OccyVRS

I have, but that was after an hour on track in a manual GT4. Lots of reactions to my above post! For a bit of background, I’ve done quite a bit with IAM and ARDS, so I’d like to think I know how to drive. The whole point of these systems is to make your life easier, safer and more efficient. It’s easier because I’m able to not stare at my speedometer. It’s safer because I can look ahead, behind and be far more aware of my surroundings. It’s more efficient because, as I said, I’m able to channel more energy into doing tasks the car can’t do - such as monitoring vehicles hundreds of meters ahead, and being more focused on the road and not my speedometer. I don’t use lane keep. I use lane assist as a safety feature, in case anything happens. One of my favourite uses of ACC and lane assist is changing my glasses to sunglasses. I am a reasonable prescription, and I’m not able to drive without my glasses. If it suddenly gets dark, I need to change my sunglasses out, or I can’t see! Having the car “drive itself” means that in the second I’m without my prescription something happens, I won’t instantly veer into a bridge support. These safety features also allow me to check my map, or directions, safe in the knowledge that if a car suddenly pulls out in front of me, I stand a reasonable chance of not having a smash. For all those that say “oh, you should stop and change glasses, you’re distracted on your maps, etc” - get real. If people had to stop every time a cloud meant they needed to change their eyewear, nobody would get anywhere. I am in full control of the car at all times. I use the systems to better myself as a driver. Do you think airline pilots sit all day with their hands on the sidestick and throttles? As I said, if using ACC, etc means that you have a collision, then you were going too fast, too close, or whatever, to begin with.

Not easily, I don't think - I did look into it. My Octavia is a 2020 build and all of the car icons (entering, exiting, ACC, etc) feature a Mk4 - it's a system from the future.

I don't think so. Maybe not in the UK? It looks similar to the Superb 280 - AWD detuned EA888.4

Handling? Not really. You'll do a better 0-60 time than a non-AWD TDI, but that's about it - I'll take my LSD any day of the week. AWD does help cars put the power down better, but unless you're 'handling' at 25mph, or in snow, the TDI doesn't have enough power for this to make much of a difference. I wanted a Cupra ST, but that's because I like doing 0-60 and wanted to take it over 400bhp. Even with 350bhp, my Octavia did very well, except for launch (which was hilarious). AWD does have handling advantages, but on a track, or on the edge of grip - not something I imagine you'll be doing in a TDI on a potholed B road. So yes, having AWD does give an improvement over FWD, but on a 350bhp+ car on a track - you won't be able to notice it in a sub-200bhp Octavia. For handling, RWD>FWD>AWD. AWD is boring.

I disagree. I use ACC heavily - especially in traffic or poor weather. It allows me to focus on other drivers and such things that I might normally take an extra second to notice, was I to be looking at my speedo, etc. One such example is in heavy motorway traffic. I don't care what the car in front is doing - I'm looking ten cars behind or ahead. If there is a situation where having ACC on affects the outcome of an event, then you were going too quickly to begin with. I am always supervising what Occy is doing, and ready to step in, or take action, should it be required. I believe the car will brake or swerve faster than I can react (probably, anyway) and I feel I'm far more useful monitoring other cars, the road ahead and things the car can't do.

It doesn't make a difference. Regardless of his actions, his reverse lights were on and you did have time to see him and stop. There were nearly three seconds between his wheels moving and the collision. As I said, while in reality it wasn't your fault at all, I will be extremely suprised if the insurers don't put it down to a 50/50. I may or may not have seen him move, depending on where I was looking. That said, I would have seen his reverse lights and stopped, or at least slowed down. However, it's easy to sit here and comment on footage captured by a dashcam - I can't see how OP could have not seen the SLK begin to move, but I wasn't there. If I was tired, in a rush, or just thinking about other things, I would imagine a similar mistake would have been made. Yes, I always slow down in car parks and check reverse lights, but if someone had just pulled out on me during all the times I haven't been going slow and looking, this would have been the result. As I said before, while I sympathise strongly with OP and believe that the outcome would have been the same with 99% of forum users here, the accident is, IMO, a 50/50.

Oh 100%. Like I said, OP was busy looking for a space and the reverse light was pretty poor. In the eyes of the insurers, though, it was on - no matter how visible.

Purely circumstantial re the birds. The car isn't quiet compared to a hybrid or EV, and none of the safety systems would have an impact on birds. The car doesn't have LiDAR, and the radar used in cars is hilariously low-powered compared to anything in aviation, let alone military. There are plenty of birds flying around Portsmouth with no issue, despite there being one or two SAMPSON radars nearby. Regarding everything else, it's just a new car. I test drove a Mk4 and then bought my 2020 Mk3.5. The TSR was disabled within the first week of ownership! I don't use any of the lane keep/assist, except when on the motorway. I've had no emergency braking activations in two years, but that said, I did get a warning last week out of the blue. I use the ACC system all the time.

If there's no answer from OP, I may be able to help. I've got the 2022 issue Octavia Mk3 manual.

AGM is better than EFB (or EFB+ as a lot of VW's use) but you will pay for it. I wouldn't bother sticking it one in a 1.5 - they're generally only needed for beefy engines, or hybrids.

The oil specification matters more than it being genuine or 5W-30. Leaving it 15,000 miles isn't brilliant, but the 1.6 TDI is bombproof and it's not exactly a performance engine. Send a photo of the oil condition here, but given that it's been 11 months, I'd be suprised if anything even slightly unusual has happended. Most people just drive their cars and do an annual service.

My honest advice would be to leave the car as it is, and wait until you have something more capable. Have you done a track day?

A friend of mine puts a litre of oil into his TDI vRS every 1,000 miles, and I've heard of much worse. His has just clicked over 140,000 miles and has been drinking oil since he got it at 40k.

Plus, you won't really see much from a 1.0 anyway. You'll need to be careful too, as both the MQ200 and DQ200 won't like the extra torque.

I removed mine. It's not a tricky job, really, as it is only one piece of trim with two clips. The difficult part is due to the clips being industrial grade and requiring some force to remove. I can put some photos and instructions on the removal, if OP wants. Just @ me if so.

I agree with the others, I suspect you'll have a challenge getting it to anything other than 50/50. In reality, of course, it's completely the fault of the SLK, and I expect you were looking for a space. That being said, you did drive behind a vehicle that already had the reversing lights on and, technically, you could have stopped. In reality it of course wasn't your fault, but I suspect it'll be 50/50 as there were steps you should/could have taken to avoid.

My 2020 car needed a new battery in 2024. Dad's 2024 car needed a new battery in 2025. Get it drop tested - I suspect it may be a bit knackered.

It’s only held on with one screw/bolt. Have fun getting the A-pillar trim off. You’ll want to order some spare clips!

FYI, it depends heavily on the car. If it's an MQ200, you can expect some slippage. If it's an MQ350, you'll be okay.

https://www.briskoda.net/forums/forum/298-skoda-fabia-mk3-2014-2021/

As I said, I stick 99 in because I can, and because it can't hurt. Given the miles that OP is doing, I'm not sure it's worth it! We ran previous cars on the cheapest stuff going, and all of them had no issues in the decades of ownership. They were pretty mixed too - all the way from a 1.4 to a 3.2. Maintenance will have a bigger impact on the longevity of the car than the fuel used.

Surely those water spots will clean off? Looks to be quite cold though.

Yeah, my first instict would be to check the settings are all enabled. I'm not sure about the PFL, but my vRS recognises my key and tells me when I've selected a different user. Our BMW will tell you in the dash which user is selected when you press the memory selection buttons.

What he said. You can also get it from Skoda but that will probably cost you an arm and a leg. Speaking from experience (as both a detailer and someone that's had water ingress issues) this detailer seems like a great guy. There are a few things I'd suggest also doing. Firstly, I'd get a couple of those reuseable dehumidifier bags. I keep three or so dotted around my car and it keeps moisture at bay. You'll want to do this to avoid any mould/damp issues (coolant aside, I presume you'll have used water to top it up). Secondly, I would ask the detailer if he could, pretty please, lift the carpets one morning and then come back the following day. You'll have to pay him a bit more, but it would be very good for everything to air out. At this point, I'd also get some APC or IPA on a cloth and just wipe down what you can. These steps are probably overkill, and feel free to ignore them - but, from my experience, once you get mould or damp in a car, that's pretty much it. You don't want that to happen here!

Given how the question was framed, I copied my general reply from another post. It was about air filters or oils, IIRC, so it wasn’t very specific. Of course different fuels have different formulas, and winter mixes are different to summer. Of course manufacturers will recommend you run expensive fuels, just like they only recommend genuine coolant, oil, parts and OE approved tyres and wiper blades. Like I said, unless the car is a performance car, or is heavily tuned (probably less than ten cars on this entire forum fit into this category), the difference in fuels is going to make absolutely no difference. I know someone that puts 95 into a GT4 RS, and it hasn’t gone wrong yet. I don’t know enough about the earlier Fabia vRS to comment, but I really can’t see them requiring a higher octane fuel when an M5CS doesn’t. Do dealers fill them with 99 before sale? I doubt it. Besides, OP was asking specifically about the 1.5 petrol engine in his Octavia. You couldn’t get much further from a performance engine if you tried - running 99 or 97 versus 95 will make absolutely no difference. It just won’t.