[Ant problem in a car. How to get rid of them?!]

You need to track them back to source and kill the nest. Hopefully (and most likely) this will be on the outside of the car, most likely a chassis rail.

[Rust on an engine of less then three years old?]

The white spots on alloy material is normal. It's actually a normal property of alloy material to lay down a fluffy deposit to protect itself. As for other rust, at least it means you don't have any oil leaks. 

If it isn't broken, don't fix it.

[Spare wheel - why 50 mph max?]

Health and safety gone mad. Wheel is a different weight, hence the speed limit sticker. Also if your tyres are directional, the spare tread pattern will face the wrong way if fitted to the opposing axle.

[2.0 TDCI "pinking"]

EGR flutter caused by lean burn to reduce emissions. Planting the right foot seems to cure it.

[Overheating!]

3 minutes ago, Jono said:

I had this happen to me last week and haven't used the car much since (Motorbike weather)

 

Temp shot up to 135, red warning and an alarm.

 

Coasted to a stop, opened up Torque app and coolant temp was already rapidly dropping. Oil temp was fine (reassuringly)

No fault code logged in Torque app, but no VCDS to check.

 

Now I have a month or warranty left and a service due where I want to raise this, get it logged and replace the pump.

 

Whats the best technique to provoke a repeat, so I can get photographic evidence in case they are ****y about it?

Bottom line is Skoda know about this problem, as they manufactured a revised pump. If they refuse to help, ask why a revised part was made, then point them to the main thread on here about overheating issues.

[Octavia Vrs estate overheat]

Bottom line is Skoda know about this problem, as they manufactured a revised pump. If they refuse to help, ask why a revised part was made, then point them to the main thread on here about overheating issues.

[Diesel leak]

Sounds like the full tank is getting pressurised, best to have a garage check the tank vent pipes. 

[engine issue??]

Does it do it in all modes? Eco/Normal/VRS

Mine did it in normal mode, but not eco or VRS mode. If it does it in all modes, I would suspect either a boost problem or manifold pressure sensor.

Code scan might reveal an intermittent fault, as temporary faults don't throw up a MIL light.  

[At what rate do the indicators flash]

MOT standard used to be 60 to 100 flashes per minute. All now close to 60 per minute.

[Small annoying sound from front and back.]

Haldex clutch

[12v or 24v?]

12 volt for cars 24 volts is for trucks.

[1.2 petrol vs. 1.6 diesel - which is best for me?]

I'd go for petrol and although the 1.2 is a decent engine, the 1.4TSi is a peach. I went from a 2.0CR diesel VRS to the 1.4TSi 7 speed DSG and the 1.4 is slightly quicker 0-60 and returns a long term average of 50.8 MPG

[DPF questions (I know)]

58 minutes ago, MachoGrande said:

Well folks, this gets stranger and stranger!

 

Thanks to a site called cazana.com I was able to check the history of when it was last sold to a new owner. At that time it was £8,995 and it had done 149,000 miles. That was in October! Between then and mid-December it gained nearly £3k in price and lost a little under 100,000 miles. It's been clocked! How convenient that it hasn't had its first MOT yet and there's no MOT history.

 

Suffice to say, I will be getting some advice on how to proceed with this, legally.

 

But at least it shows the DPF's "age" is about right for the correct mileage!

Hopefully there will be a paper trail, someone needs a slap on the wrist that's for sure.

[engine bay cleaning.]

23 minutes ago, lux4zg said:

I did mine few days ago... previous owner did’t have OCD like i do... 

 

Few brushes, APC and pressure washer

 

Only cover ECU and fusebox...

 

 

Nicely done. 

[DPF questions (I know)]

To put DPF replacement into context regarding cost, assuming you had to replace the DPF at 100,000 miles, that's 1 Pence per mile additional running costs.  If you add up servicing and maintenance like brakes and filters, oil, tyres, that will be far more than £1000. Sure it's an added expense having the DPF but £1000 in say six years after purchase is hardly the end of the World. 

 

Given the latest Intel CPU vulnerabilities that have come to light, I wonder what shocks electric car owners are in for down the line. Simple law of a mechanic states. "If it's got wheels or boobs it will cause you problems."

[DPF questions (I know)]

2 hours ago, MachoGrande said:

Thanks all,

 

Spoke to the Skoda dealer down the road today. They were initially skeptical of "my app", told me to uninstall it and reinstall it but after they plugged the car into their diags they basically confirmed the same readings. They agree that the oil ash residue (60.4g or 75%) is way too high for the mileage and reckon the DPF has less than a year left before it'll need replacing. They said it could be down to the wrong oil, or something catastrophic happening in the past such as a turbo blow up.

 

Also I found out that the car has no service history at all, despite being advertised as having full history. Skoda haven't seen it since it left their dealer forecourt. This is beginning to possibly tie in with the "wrong oil" theory.

 

I've called the dealer I bought the car from, and suggested I return it and get a refund. I'm waiting for their call back. It's not that it's a bad car - far from it - it's just that I was looking for a low mileage car with full service history, and that's not what I've ended up with here.

No service history = Get your money back and walk away. Get a copy of the original advert and if they refuse to refund, tell them the car was miss-sold due to false information.

[Wonky Headlights!]

The lights auto level and centre each time you start the car.

[DPF questions (I know)]

That ash residue is very high, will need a new DPF soon I'm afraid.

[Faulty! "Starter System Faulty. Workshop!"]

Most likely brake pedal switch

[Low Battery Warnings Again]

5 hours ago, ms10 said:

Has anyone used Halfords? Their prices seem good, but I'm a little concerned they won't have the expertise to reprogram a stop start car. 

Depends on the branch you use. Some of their techs are actually good. I stick to my local Skoda dealer who really are top notch. 

[1.8 tsi whining sound]

Does it still do this if you switch the aircon off? 

[OBD 11 service code question]

9 minutes ago, susi said:

The codes were showing during last week's service scan as:

 

P034100 Camshaft position sensor.   November 2017

C111204 Haldex clutch pump.  October 2016

 

I've scanned with OBD 11 repeatedly since I got the scanner in June 2017 and haven't seen either code ever.

 

That's what confuses me  ... How can they be visible during a service scan, when I haven't ever seen them myself.

Could be codes from another customers vehicle. I've had advisories appear on my MOT's and when queried, was told, sorry forgot to clear that data while typing out your MOT.

If your OBD11 says no codes, then there are no codes.

[Emptying Washer Reservoir]

4 hours ago, JohnnyType2 said:

and the moral of the story is..... 

Well my ex, once tried to top up the oil in her 1974 Mini using the dipstick tube rather than the rocker cover oil filler cap. She also put diesel in it twice!

 

[VRS Black Pack - Wing Mirror Cover Colour Code]

2 hours ago, Lyminton said:

You can buy set of 2 caps painted in Black Magic from Skoda.. http://www.skodaparts.com/product/octavia-mirror-covers-black-2013-2020-51194

 

 

Indeed, but he is getting the wheels painted to match the mirrors. 

[Emptying Washer Reservoir]

Put clean rags over all the washer nozzles. Remove one washer pipe from a front nozzle and operate washers. The removed pipe have lower resistance to pressure so very little will come out of the other other nozzles.