OccyVRS

If the modules detect a low voltage (or no voltage) they will all throw a code. Very normal. You can usually clear most of them by taking it for a drive and going lock to lock, or just clear them with a scanner.

The EA888 Evo4 (EA888.4) has a timing chain, rather than a belt. The timing chain will want replacing, as it stretches over time, however I wouldn't expect this to happen below 100k or before 2031. At 25,000 miles, you'll have done the VAQ oil I'm assuming?

Welcome. May I ask, who are you insured with? You have to normally tell the insurance company if you put a sticker on the rear window - I've never heard of anyone being fine with changing the exhuast or brakes (unless you mean that these changes are okay, cost wise?). I would honestly rather save the money than mess around putting an upgraded exhaust on a 105bhp Fabia. At the very best, it'll sound rubbish and at worst be ASBO. I would avoid spending money on an exhaust for anything less than a 2.0 - and even then, with the OPF/GPF's on newer cars, I still probably wouldn't bother. You won't gain any power from changing the exhaust. If you have a restricive GPF system on an RS3, then changing the downpipe and exhaust at the same time as other hardware and software changes will result in increased power from a more freely flowing system. However, this isn't Forza - in an average town car, there won't be any difference. Frankly, a good walnut blast will probably result in better performance gains. Similarly, with the brakes, there's really no need. The rear brakes only do around 20% of the work and with 105bhp, you aren't really exceeding the limits of them. That's aside from the fact that the rear drums are actually really good, and if you're somehow needing to upgrade, then you're driving the wrong car the wrong way. Your best bet would be to put some nice tyres on it, give it a good service and just enjoy it for what it is. If you're really wanting to scratch the modification itch, then some sound proofing and audio system could be very interesting.

"Honey, I shrunk the C5"

What do we think of the rust on the outer edge of my rear disc? I have my thoughts, but am interested to see what others think. The photo is from the 310mm N/S rear disc on my 2020 vRS 245. The O/S rear disc looks the same, with a narrow band of rust on the outer and inner edge of the braking surface. The front are absolutely fine, with plenty of pad material left and no lip. The caliper in the photo is brand new, fitted in July. The other side was new last year. I replaced the discs and pads all round last August, with OE VW parts. The car has covered around 10k since the brakes were fitted. There is no lip on either rear disc, and the pads seem to have plenty of meat on them - although being the rear they are quite difficult to see properly. Certainly, the edge of the pad I can see clearly (the inner edge of the disc) is nice and square with the edge of the braking surface. Both pads do have some rust on the edges, but that'll be from where the handbrake was applied after it was washed. The condition of the brakes can be seen by the hub/bell and the vents - they aren't even remotely worn (shields aside!). The disc rusted over following a wash last weekend, and the car has only been to town (20mph zone) since then. It did however get a decentish run in some NSL country roads this evening, with some steep hills, which I'm suprised hasn't cleared it up. I think it's just one of those things- and it is minor. That said, I'm posting here as I've never really seen this before when the discs and pads are in good condition, and I thought the run tonight would have sorted this. Any ideas?

Both are the EA211 - the 1.5 is the newer Evo version, compared to the older 1.4. Some of the later 1.4 engines had ACT/CoD (SEAT called it an EcoTSI), which was a brilliant little engine - I had a 150ps version in my Leon. I had a 2016 Leon, which was one of the last 1.4 models, yet my car had a kangarooing issue with the clutch (it was a manual too). I never got to the bottom of it. FWIW @Terrierist the split headlights give it away.

GR Yaris - now there's an interesting car. The Mk3.5 (AFAIK) didn't have any significant issues that the Mk3 didn't have. The EA888.3 has the usual water pump issues. The Mk4 uses the EA888 Evo4, which is quite different - however IIRC has the same circulation pump in it. Map (ECU) is now removed - only the TCU remains. The insurance company wanted silly money, so I decided to head back to stock - for now, anyway. I plan to visit Ecotune within the next year! True, however sticking a Wavetrac unit in isn't exactly the cheapest solution. Mind you, having driven a Mk7 GTI, I didn't exactly notice the torque steer. The TDI's are a good car - depends if you value economy enough. There's a company called Darkside (Barnsley way) that can do some very cool things with diesels, for not a lot of outlay. I'm not really interested or knowledgeable about the TDI vRS', so someone else will have to let you know about those. FWIW, my long term average MPG on my car is around 38mpg. That is with plenty of both economy driving and fun. Given the Yaris, I'd say a 245 is the best bet - I think a TDI will just feel rather dull (although, you can get AWD with that engine!). At that point though, I'd probably look at the hybrid. My girlfriends father has a Passat GTE - it's pretty good, and a similar drivetrain. I get that you already have the fun car - this is just a jack of all trades option. Final offer would be to ditch thge Yaris, and get a mint condition B9 S4!

Well I never! I knew they did a 190ps 2.0 but didn’t think it was an AWD model. Somewhere out there, there’s one of those pushing 500bhp and shocking every RS3 it sees.

As above, when the infotainment screen is otherwise engaged, you can answer or decline a call from the digi dash. As an aside, I used to hate when maps dissappeared when I was on a call. With iOS26, this problem is no more.

Bin them, before they upset something!

All of that aside, the car you are describing doesn't exist. No 2.0 EA888.3 came with Haldex. There was a 1.8 EA888 that was AWD (pretty rare AFAIK) but that was a PFL model only anyway. Not to be unhelpful, but I do agree with the above. You need to be able to see what codes have been thrown, otherwise we can't help you. an EPC/EML can be anything! You can likely get OBD11 delivered tomorrow if you buy it now on Amazon.

@travs you may have found your date to the ball if @Cairus can help you with the DCC slider mod...

Agree with both. Nothing to stop you removing it, but for the price you may as well just rip the old one out. I think on the double walled ones you can get them out, but it's a bit more of a job. There's nothing wrong with the silicone in theory - it's just the crappy bag.

No issues with it - I was meaning more that you can just drop a new resevoir in it, without fiddling around with pulling the bag out. I'm not sure what the design is like on the Octavia as mine doesnt have it, however the double walled design on my Leon was a right pain to get the bag from.

As above, your phone can only connect to one WiFi connection at a time. When you are connected to CarPlay, your phone cannot connect to anything else. It's one advantage of using wired CarPlay, for example, if you wanted to connect to your in-car hotspot whilst also using CarPlay - such as you are trying to do. I'm not 100% sure what the internet radio is, but I know it involves using either the 3G/4G SIM in the car, or connecting it through your phone. Of course, you can't have your phone connected to that and the radio at the same time, which is why you're havintg this issue. Two solutions - either use wired CarPlay and have the phone doing the radio, or keep using wireless CarPlay and get the car to use the SIM for the radio.

It seems to be a fairly common issue on these cars. I've seen plenty posts about warranty paintwork, but from a few years ago. Does anyone know of a solution to this? It seems to me that I'll just have to live with it - my car is a 2020 so surely outside of any 3 or 5 year paint guarantee?

It's a 2019 Octavia, so VCDS still has some use, although comparatively limited to old models. I still think the most cost effective solution to scan codes would be ODB11.

CarPlay initially connects via Bluetooth, but then uses WiFi for the actual connection. FWIW iOS26 gives CarPlay a very nice interface.

Depends what you're trying to do. It's a good price, but bear in mind for £30 more you can buy your own OBD11 tool to use whenever you like. If you need coding then you should be able to find someone friendly on here with VCDS. FWIW remember some stuff on your car will be under SFD 1. @Cairus will be able to offer more.

Again, make sure the G13 is swapped for G12 EVO. I would personally just get a new resevoir too - they can be had for £40.

Most of these issues are to do with MIB3, which is pretty rubbish. I have no real issues with MIB2.5, aside from the occasional CarPlay glitch. Certainly, it wouldn't stop me from getting one. The EA888.3 has the usual water pump issues. As long as any car you get has had the DSG done at 40k and the VAQ done at 20-30k (if the car is over that) then you should be fine. The DQ381 has it's fair share of issues too, but I've found mine to be very reliable. The boot vents can sometimes leak, as in my Leon, but this is a £40 fix. Likewise with the pan roof becoming blocked. I've found mine likes to ruin it's tracking quite quickly, which is an issue with these cars. The only two real issues I've had to sort have been replacing a rear caliper (paint flaking - you can just use hammerite) and getting a vibration with the Soundaktor sorted. Any issue with these cars are shared across the MQB range, so there are plenty of people documenting them.

I still would get an Octavia. I was meaning even now, I'd still go Mk3.5 over Mk4 (or 4.5). I am quite young (as in, take the median age of this forum, halve it, and you probably can still take five from that), but I absolutely love my car. There are faster, bigger, cooler, more practical, better driving and better quality cars out there, but for the money I don't think you can beat the Octavia vRS. I was considering a GTI (230 and PP), Cupra (ST and hatch), S3, R, JCW and others. Okay, so one of the main reasons for choosing an Octavia was the lower insurance, but I'm still extremely happy with my choice. I drive up to Scotland a few times a year, and recently did it in one fourteen hour hop. The car was amazing. It drove itself most of the way there, being comfortable and having enough space for all our stuff. Once up there, it was put into sport mode and came alive. Okay, it was mapped then (330bhp ish) but it just drives so well. Okay, sure, the road noise isn't the best due to the crappy insulation, and a GTI/JCW/Cupra/etc will all be so much more engaging to drive - but that's missing the point. The Octavia is the most well-rounded of the bunch. I was recently in an I30N - in a foreign non-extradition country. Several times we were well into triple digits, and all I could think was 'this feels so planted, but I'd hate to go anywhere in it'. I think it's one of the first fast FWD hatches I've been in (besides Occy) and the comparison was interesting. Afterwards, while a tiny part of me was longing for the bucket seats and ASBO (factory) exhaust, I just couldn't shake the feeling that I'd made the right choice with the vRS. It might not have been quite as fast, or as engaging, but it would have been a lot more comfortable and done it all with everything but the kitchen sink in the boot. I think that sums up the Octavia vRS quite well. If I were to do it now, with insurance being a lesser factor, I would probably push to get a Cupra ST. I love my Octavia and with the LSD it does such a good job of putting the power down, but you just can't beat AWD. In the winter I do notice it, but how often are you trail braking into and booting it around a dual carriageway roundabout? That being said, again, I am saying this from someone probably a lot younger than you, with a very different set of requirements. During my search, I test drove both a GTI PP and an R. Strangely (well, quite commonly after looking online) I much preferred the GTI. It wasn't that I didn't like the R - I did, it was very quick and got off the line instantly - it's just, the FWD with the diff felt more engaging. Less secure, sure, but more fun. I could see the AWD getting a bit boring, unless you were regualrly doing silly speeds. Similarly, I liked the Mk3.5 better than the Mk4 I drove. It felt a bit more analog - in the Mk4, I felt like the front wheels weren't connected to the wheel. I vastly prefer the feel of Skoda over SEAT/Cupra (I've had both), and think a vRS hatch is just something a little different. It almost feels like an IYKYK car, much like an M340i or Polestar V60. I also like that, around town, the car feels like a minicab. It is quiet, smooth and draws no attention. It's only when I put my foot down do I remember why I bought the car! I hope I've given you something to work with, from a purely performance/driving standpoint. In terms of 'normal' stuff, um... I get around 38mpg long term, the seats are quite comfortable, there's plenty of space to store things and the controls are easy to use. I'm sure others will be along to offer more. What don't I like? Well, aside from my strange spec with no power mirrors or heated seats, there isn't that much. The sound deadening/sound system is pretty rubbish, but that's an issue across SEAT/Cupra. Likewise, the infotainment can be a bit crap, but that's an issue across VAG, along with the hateful Soundaktor. The ACC is rather good, but if a car turns off in front of you, Occy will 'see' it for a bit longer, causing you to brake when there is nobody in front of you. Aside from that, and looking at specific Octavia issues - I don't like that the interior lights are different colours, I hate how cheap the door cards are, I wish it had an EPB and full LED rear lights. Performance wise, I also wish it had the same exhaust as the GTI - the Octavia version is totally silent, along with some slightly stiffer rear springs, a beefier RARB and the same aux/DSG cooler setup as on the more powerful MQB cars. All in all, I am very happy with Occy. I wouldn't change it, and it's the first car I've really liked as more than a lump of metal. Other cars do certain things better, but the Octavia just does everything really well.

Induction, ECU/TCU tune, stiffer RARB and some stiffer rear springs. I'd also like to look at the exhaust and change the tyre/wheel sizes (coming soon...).

My Mk3 manual is from here.

I can hear a noise around 0:04, but this sounds like it could be anything from the turbo to the transmission. Does it do it when stationary? Are you able to video it from outside the car?