ChubbsH

Hi STEVO, I don't know if you've had any luck yet with contacting Skoda UK re. your infotainment problems but when I had all of my 'issues' I phoned Skoda UK initially. Their number, I think, was Tel. 03330 037 504 Email:- [email protected]. I reported everything that had been going wrong for about 18 months, and emailed details of all attempted fixes by sundry Skoda dealers, together with several videos taken of the infotainment screen going berserk, and the radio blaring away uncontrollably. They were quite sympathetic and provided a case number which was intended to help with continuity if the fault recurred. They arranged for my car to be seen by my local dealer. The dealer declared it fixed after investigation, and I did get a few phone calls afterwards from Skoda UK to see how things had gone, but the problem returned in the following Spring once the hot weather started again. Further calls to Skoda UK resulted in further investigation by my local Skoda dealer culminating, eventually, in an infotainment screen change in May 2025. So far the car has been fine for over a year now. As I'd extended the warranty when I got the car, all investigations, and the new screen, were paid for by Skoda UK. Strangely though they seem to be very reluctant to provide me with any paper work regarding the screen change, and I'm still chasing that. I did get a follow up 'how did we do' request shortly after the screen change from Customer Services at Skoda UK, but with a different telephone number and email address from the earlier one, so I've included it in case the old one is defunct:- Tel. 0800 783 4909 Email:- [email protected] Good luck with everything, and I do hope you (and all the other poor devils that have been plagued with this problem) can get it properly sorted out once and for all.

Hi scotthugh3s, I can’t identify any particular set of circumstances which prevail when the ‘front assist unavailable’ pops up. The dash warning always disappears eventually, usually after just a mile or two, but never lasts for a more ten at the most. I believe it’s another of the little anomalies that Skoda are aware of but can’t, or don’t know how to fix. It’s Sod’s Law. I bought the Octavia because I just loved the look of it, and I’d read of the rock solid reliability of all previous marks of Octavia. No reason to assume the mk4 would be any different. Boy, was I wrong! It drives very well, but it’s been the least reliable car I have ever owned and I wouldn’t risk buying another without cast iron assurances from owners that 2026 models onwards are ok.

Hi Stevo, Just wondered how long you’ve owned the car. If only a short time, then it’s probable that the infotainment screen is still the original, and it’s this that’s causing the problem. If you’ve had the car a year or more, then I’m really surprised that you’ve not had these faults manifest themselves before. The faults you describe exactly mimic those that I had with my own 2020 Octavia mk4. No matter what you do in the way of reboots, resets, updates, battery disconnects etc, the fault will most likely never go away until the screen is changed for a new one. The old screens were notorious for causing all the problems you describe, and were particularly prone to playing up, (repetitive reboots, radio starting up autonomously and climbing to max volume etc.) whenever the inside of the car got hot. I bought my car in 2021, completely ignorant of this problem. I must have taken the car eight times or more to various dealers all of whom only ever did reboots and updates, and each time pronouncing the car fixed when I collected it. Sadly to no avail. The fault always came back. Eventually I discovered this forum and was horrified to find so many other owners worldwide experiencing identical problems with early mk4 Octavia infotainment systems. I was equally horrified that Skoda had not issued a recall and showed no sign at all of admitting there was any sort of problem. After two and a half years of exasperation I complained directly to Skoda UK and they raised a case for the car. I had to do this twice as the first time my local garage appeared to fix the car, and it ran well for months until a hot spring day last year when the infotainment system went berserk again. Another call to Skoda UK, and another trip to my local dealer, when the system failed yet again just as I was leaving their premises, eventually led to Skoda agreeing to replacing my screen under warranty. Since then, no more problems, even in hot weather, though ‘front assist unavailable’ comes and goes randomly for no apparent reason. My suggestion is to insist that the screen is changed. I’ve never had confirmation from anyone on this forum who has had these type of infotainment faults that they have ever had their system fixed permanently with reboots, updates or any other software change. It is these early screens which are inherently faulty from manufacture. It’s appalling that Skoda have been so bad at dealing with this. Good luck, and let us all know if you get the problem fixed.

Thanks both for the info. Sounds as if I’m good to go!

Hi, Don’t know whether this topic has been covered elsewhere, but is the USB C socket near the rear-view mirror on a 2020 mk4 Octavia capable of powering a dash-cam without any further wiring. If so, can anyone recommend a current dash cam that would work ok with only this wiring configuration. Frankly, I’m not up to doing any wiring connection requiring fitting into into the car’s own 12volt electrics, nor do I want to start pulling trim about to hide any new wiring from a new dash-cam. All suggestion very welcome

Got mine in Dec.21. just a year old. Bought it from Cazoo. The car was indistinguishable from new, but the infotainment system never worked properly from the day I got it. To be fair Cazoo did everything they could to fix it via a main dealer but always with only limited success. The car was totally unreliable exhibiting all the faults so often mentioned in these forums. We had holidays spoilt, paid money to Skoda garages to update software, only for the car to fail again and again. I got Skoda UK involved twice in trying to provide a fix but, ultimately, the owner of my local Skoda franchise, stepped in after the infotainment system went berserk on their forecourt. The infotainment screen was changed last May under warranty, and after three and a half years, at last, I have a 99% reliable car (‘front assist unavailable’ still comes and goes at random times in random weather! Nobody knows why.). I appreciate that the new, ever expanding and intrusive computerisation of cars mostly brought on by safety considerations, is applicable to many marques, but some manufacturers seem to deal with it much better than others; and you’re so right about falling foul of newly introduced car software. I assumed that because of the rave reviews by owners of all previous marks of Octavia that the mk4 would be just as reliable. I never realised I was a shakedown guinea pig for an entirely new type of VAG computer system. Should have done some homework, but I just fell in love with the style of the new mk4 and jumped at the chance to get one when they were so hard to come by. Nearly a year’s waiting time was quoted when I made enquiries at my Skoda dealers in early autumn 2021. Now the car is reliable, I’ll keep it for a few years, but when the time comes to change it I’ll do a lot more research before I buy. Might even lease for the first time in my life!

Thanks SteveTheElder, I haven’t used the car in the last couple of days, but I’ll try out what you said and see what happens when I prod the North symbol. Very often, with the Octavia mk4’s infotainment system, I find that what, at first glance, appears intuitive to operate, often needs an extra non intuitive step to be carried out before the required result is achieved. I really do think that the truly awful reliability of the Octavia Mk4’s infotainment system, ever present since the car’s first introduction in 2020, must have hit sales really badly. I live quite close to a Skoda main dealer yet see very few Mk4s in the area, or indeed anywhere else. Skoda never quite seem to keep on top of the problem either. ‘Solutions’ to software issues seem permanently ongoing yet never result in a fully stable system. I love the car to drive but doubt I would ever chance buying anything else from the VAG group until reviews like Briskoda show the cars to be much more reliable .

Bingo! I get it now! I spent a great deal of time prodding the on-screen ‘buttons’ to try to make a selected destination a ‘favourite’, but all to no avail. Then I realised, from one of SteveTheElder’s earlier posts, that when you get to ‘Save’ there is a flashing cursor at the beginning of the already entered address. What you have to do then is totally and utterly counterintuitive! The cursor wants you to start overwriting the address you’ve already selected by either re-entering the address all over again, or, preferably, by renaming the address, eg ‘Bob’s place’,. When you’ve done this, then ‘Ok’ will light up. Press ‘Ok’ and your destination will be in ‘Favourites’. In the case of entering, say, ‘Bob’s place’, Bob’s actual address will appear on the line below ‘Bob’s place’ in the listings. I imagine if you didn’t do this but entered the whole address all over again (when the cursor was flashing), you’d get the re-entered address showing above the original identical address when you look at the ‘Favourites’ listings. Why on earth Skoda decided to ridiculously overcomplicate something which should be as intuitive and simple as possible is beyond me. Next thing. Is it possible to re-orientate the map display so that it is always ‘north up’?

Can’t see the logic in having to input a separate name to ‘save’ for a new destination, which I want to use in future as a ‘favourite’, if the name or location has already been input and accepted through ‘search’. Surely ‘save’ already knows the name of the destination I wish to retain as a ‘favourite’. I think I’ll just do some more fiddling with the nav system and hope I’ll hit on the correct prod sequence, but thanks for your help and advice ‘SteveTheElder’. Certainly not a case of ‘If all else fails, read the instructions’. I really do find them near useless.

Forgot to add, I just don’t find the manual very intuitive. It’s written, to me at least, in a rather strange way making some information puzzling rather than illuminating. By way of an example, the instructions for how to close the bonnet correctly are particularly bizarre! What ‘flaps’!?

Thanks SteveTheElder. I thought that that was exactly what I was doing but when the instruction to ‘Save’ was displayed there didn’t appear to be any way to actually do the saving! I’ve got the same info too, that you kindly reproduced, in my manual but when I followed the instructions, ‘Save’ just didn’t work. I’m sure it’s me and not the nav system that’s at fault. I’ll have another go and see what happens. I think it might be something to do with inputting a desired destination in ‘search’. Once that’s been done successfully I think I have to activate the destination using ‘start’ before I can ‘save’. Anyway, thanks for your help and advice. Chubbs

I’ve had a mental blank! Can anyone please tell me, in the most basic way, how to make a destination a ‘favourite’ using the Columbus nav system in a 2020 Octavia Mk4. Many thanks

In response to 386ka, I wonder if anyone who has had the extreme infotainment problems I was talking about has achieved a permanent fix by just cleaning the slider bar and power button. I doubt it, as the problem is an inherent fault within the screen itself. Perhaps anyone who has achieved a permanent fix by cleaning could let us all know.

Absolutely agree with vran22. No amount of tinkering with software updates can change the fact that the infotainment screen is almost always the cause of all the trouble and must be replaced to remove all the problems. I suspect Skoda know this but have opted to ride out the storm rather than issue a recall for screen replacements, which would cost them a bomb. Unfortunately, in order for the dealers to get paid by Skoda (or the warranty company) for the work involved in replacing a faulty screen, the dealers have to follow set procedure, specified by Skoda, even if the dealer knows it’s the screen at fault. This involves trying out all manner of alternative attempts, (software updates, reboots, factory resets etc) to correct the infotainment problems except changing the screen. Only when this has all been done and, if the problem still remains, will Skoda allow a screen change under warranty. The added frustration is that often a software update will sometimes appear to cure the problem. However as the screen problem is usually brought on by high ambient temperature, having a software update done in cooler months only masks the problem until the hotter weather returns bringing back all the infotainment problems too. When this happens the whole exercise starts all over again! The cynic in me might think that this is what Skoda is relying on, so that the car eventually goes out of warranty and. when the inevitable screen change takes place, it’s the car owner and not Skoda who will have to pay for the cost. I had all of these infotainment problems continually from Dec.21 until the screen was eventually changed in May.25. Since then no problems! As I’ve said in several previous posts, I cannot emphasise strongly enough that software updates will not cure the extreme infotainment problems associated with many pre-facelift Octavia mk4s. Screen replacement is the only permanent fix.

Hi Meridion, I’ve had this trouble too. Skoda Assist (AA Roadside Services) did a diagnostic and determined that there was a fault with the front left hand (viewed from the driver’s seat) wheel speed sensor. When this happens, (with any of the wheel speed sensors) the car can’t determine speed accurately and so the various functions and aids associated with the car’s speed won’t work properly. Sometimes it can be a wiring fault but most likely a faulty wheel speed sensor. A pal had something similar happen on his BMW. I had the wheel speed sensor changed last week and all seems ok again. The ‘front assist unavailable’ warning comes on occasionally but cleaning the blank centre of the front grille, where the transponder sits, and also the windscreen, where there’s a tiny camera (it looks like a small chip in the windscreen) in front of the rear view mirror, seems to fix things. I hope this might be of some use.

Hi Stonekeeper, I don’t think this is the problem in my case, but thanks for offering it as an idea. I had the battery changed a year ago. The old original battery was rendered useless by the faulty infotainment system constantly stopping and starting even with the car locked and the ignition off. Ever since the infotainment screen was replaced, the battery has been fine. When the Skoda Assist technician attended he was pretty certain that the duff info supplied to the car’s ’brain’ by the faulty wheel speed sensor was the real culprit behind the plethora of dash warning lights. A pal who’s an RAC technician, and the garage that services my wife’s car, both confirm that a faulty wheel speed sensor can cause this type of problem. They’re not desperately expensive and for the sake of my sanity, I might just consider having it replaced at my own expense instead of waiting an eternity for Skoda to replace it under warranty. The car is great to drive but so utterly unreliable.

I have a 2020 Octavia mk4. Had the infotainment screen replaced in May and have had no more problems on that score but I now get pretty much all the yellow warning lights coming on on the dash if the car has been left for 24hrs or so. Plenty of ‘bonging’ noises too. Worst of all is ‘Auto Hold’ inoperative during this time. Sometimes all the lights go out fairly quickly but sometimes some of them stay on for several minutes. It’s pot luck if they come on again or not if I restart the car. ‘Front Assist’ always seems to be the last to go, but sometimes I can drive 10 miles or more before the last of the warning lights finally go out. Skoda Assist did a diagnostic in my driveway and said the near-side front wheel speed sensor was faulty and was responsible for causing all the error lights to illuminate. Took the car to my dealer but they said Skoda Assist had cleared all the faults so they couldn’t change the wheel speed sensor under warranty as no faults were showing. Asked me to bring it back if the fault happened again so they could do their own diagnostic. Each time I try, the faults go away by the time I get to the garage, so the dealer won’t do anything if there’s no active fault showing. Has anyone else managed to cure the warning lights coming on by replacing a wheel speed sensor? Skoda seemed to have created a monster with the mk4 Octavia!

Hi path-cobbler, I also have a 2020 Octavia mk4 bought second hand in 2020. From the word go it exhibited many of the problems you are experiencing which only got worse and more frequent in 2021 as the weather became progressively warmer. Like you, I had the radio start up spontaneously, volume climbing uncontrollably, infotainment switching on and off randomly, red SOS illuminating randomly, all accompanied by manic 'bonging'. Various dealers, always Skoda, tried all manner of software updates and every one failed. The car became totally unreliable and, in my opinion, dangerous to drive. Having found through this forum that I was not alone, it became apparent that the only permanent cure was to have the infotainment screen replaced. As I had an extended warranty, I thought it would be easy to get this done but it wasn't. Whenever I took the car to a dealers, if the faults were not showing, they said there was nothing they could do. This went on for a couple of years until I'd finally had enough. I contacted Skoda UK directly and raised a complaint citing all the other examples of this fault experienced by other Octavia mk4 owners from all over the world as evidenced through the Briskoda forum. I have to say they were very helpful and made arrangements for the car to be inspected. Meanwhile, I got my wife to video the dash whenever the infotainment played up, including sound. Apparently the crack, like a pistol shot, which was always the precursor to infotainment system trouble in my case, is the clincher for Skoda that the infotainment screen needs to be replaced. The random radio volume and 'bonging' also help. Despite showing three videos of these faults to both Skoda UK and my dealer, Skoda UK or the warranty company, I never found out which, would not immediately authorise a replacement screen insisting that software updates and reboots would fix the problem. Finally In May this year, after yet another reboot which temporarily appeared to fix the car, the infotainment system again went berserk just as I was leaving the dealer. The dealership owner himself drove the car and, despite best efforts, was unable to do anything to stop the radio volume randomly going to maximum and switching itself on and off. Finally it was agreed that the problem was almost certainly hardware and not software. The car was left with the dealer and the infotainment system screen swapped over temporarily with one known to be ok. My car then exhibited no further infotainment problems. As this proved that my own screen was faulty, the dealer obtained authorisation for it to be replaced with a brand new one under warranty. Since then, no more infotainment screen problems, although the car does have other 'issues'. The lessons I've learned from over three years of frustration with the car, and Skoda, before it was put right are: 1. Always be polite, very firm, provide as much video evidence of the problem as possible and always deal with just one Skoda dealer. This builds a progressive timeline of the problem and helps, hopefully, to establish some rapport. 2. Get Skoda Customer Services involved. Make a complaint and get get a reference number to follow up on the complaint if things aren't going well or quickly enough. 3. Persist, be patient, don't lose your temper and, hopefully you'll get there in the end. I would also add that for anybody else experiencing identical faults with their infotainment system on an early Octavia Mk4, reboots, fuse removals and/or software updates will absolutely not fix the problem. Only a screen change can do that. Personally I think it's shameful that Skoda haven't acknowledged this widespread problem and done far more to sort it out quickly. For a car that was supposed to be incredibly good value for money and highly praised by the motoring press at launch, I see relatively few of them on the road. I wonder why?! Finally, if anybody out there has the new 2024 slightly face-lifted Octavia Mk4(.5), I would love to know whether the Infotainment system and screen gives any trouble, or anything else for that matter. Next time I think I might be tempted by the new 2025 Honda Civic. Good luck path_cobbler and let us all know how you get on.

Hi Warrior193 and Grady, I can’t provide a photo of the little battery symbol as it’s not there anymore! It definitely wasn’t a red cross. I’m certain now that it must have been a battery warning for my iPhone. Prior to noticing the battery symbol, I’d connected the phone for navigation via Apple Car Play but when I went to charge the phone overnight, I noticed that the battery was at its absolute minimum; I’d forgotten to plug the phone into the car’s usb socket! The following morning, with the iPhone’s fully charged, plugged in, and connected to Apple Car Play, no red battery warning symbol! Problem solved. As I said earlier, it would be good if SKODA mentioned these smaller details in the car’s manual. Thanks again for the advice and suggestions.

Thanks SteveTheElder, I don’t know, but if that’s what you’re presumably suggesting, then why don’t Skoda mention it anywhere? Their car manuals are hopeless, and full of weird English constructions, making it sometimes difficult to appreciate what some of the information means…..and, as I’ve found out, some information is just not there at all.

I recently noticed a tiny solid red battery warning symbol in the ‘INFO’ section at the bottom of the Infotainment screen on my mk4 Octavia. I can’t find any information about it in the digital manual or the hard copy manual. Anyone know what it’s for? All systems seem to be ok, and there are no other warning lights showing anywhere. Thanks for any help.

Update, We’ll the new screen has been fitted, and so far all seems well after a very limited amount of driving (in distance), but a lot of stops and starts. So far, there have been no instances of malfunctions whatsoever, even on some quite hot days. Sometimes the system does seem to take longer to boot up than others, but as I’ve no previous experience of any sort of infotainment system, where all functions are controlled by touch, I don’t know if the Octavia is particularly ‘laggy’ in this respect compared with other cars. Another thing that I’ve never seen commented about is whether it’s ok or not to drive off while the screen still shows ‘loading’. My observations during the 3 year plus history of infotainment malfunctions that I’ve experienced myself, and read about from others who have posted identical problems with their mk4 Octavias, is that the only permanent fix is to have the infotainment screen changed. In my opinion, no amount of software updates ever fix the faulty hardware issue inherent in a lot of Octavia mk4 touchscreens. If you have this screen problem, talk with your agent, be polite but firm, take videos, gather as much evidence as you can, write letters, email Skoda, persist and persevere and, hopefully you’ll get there in the end, as I did. Good luck to all.