Rab-k

Try the wheel/tyre combination which is fitted on the Scout - this gives the Scout its increased ground clearance over the standard 4x4 and you will not have to alter any other part of the vehicle. Scout wheel/tyre combinations: Your wheel/tyre for the 4x4 is 195/65R15. If you fit the Scout's 225/50R17 combination you will have increased ground clearance by 11.15mm. Your speedometer will under-read by -3.4%. I also found that the soft rear springs in the Octavia resulted in the tail dropping when rear passengers and any significant loads were carried in the rear. MAD Progressive Springs ensure that this no longer happens. Again, this does not involve altering any other part of the vehicle.

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/337608-safety-recall-20v7-diesel-fuel-filter-fabia-roomster/ Notice issued in December.

Ok, it may involve a 'Brave' pill or two... :think:

Having the Fabia, which has CC, has made me inclined to retro-fit it to the Octy. Anyone with experience of having it done by someone located in the central belt? (Scotland). Cheers

Also have All Seasons (Vredestein Quatrac Lite) fitted and have been having no trouble in recent weeks on snow/ice.

General handling is no different from the Dunlops they replaced. (I do 25k pa: 50% on motorway, the remainder evenly split between urban and rural roads). However, I'm in a part of the world where temperatures rarely creep into the high-teens, and anything in the 20's is newsworthy. Elsewhere, high summer temperatures may become an issue, but here (Stirlingshire) 'hot' (C20+) days are uncommon. I drove back from work in the Fabia late last night, (was using the Octy 4x4 in the morning), and had to detour just north of Milngavie, (N.Glasgow), after finding myself at the end of a queue of stationary traffic approaching a hill with a bend - which doesn't allow for a 'good run' at it. (Someone at the head of the queue had likely stuck to the 'tramlines', which become polished ice after a while, and/or had forgotton to switch off their traction control - gradually losing all power to the drive wheels). I then took a detour via an unclassified road with a couple of steep climbs and, even having switched the ESP off in anticipation of some wheel spinning going up hill, not a slip was detected. I just stuck to the deeper snow to the side of the 'tramlines', to fill the treads with snow - snow sticks to snow so the more in the tread the better. The snow was about 5" at its deepest and the car just romped up the steep gradients/tight turns with ease. Coming down the other side was a case of dropping into 1st and keeping both feet off the pedals to let the engine do the braking, and again no probs down the steep bits/sharp bends. I'd thoroughly recommend the Vredesteins, but would also say the Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons I had on my old Polo were also good.

5" of snow yesterday and the Vredestein Quatrac Lite All-season tyres performed really well - no drama anywhere.

Q: "how bad/good is your car in the snow" A: Outstandingly good! 5" of the white stuff in west Stirlingshire by close of play yesterday - the 4x4 plus Nokian WR D3 on each corner, AND, (unlike some others on the road), remembering to turn off the ESP prior to going up a steep hill meant no drama anywhere. The Fabia also did well on its Vredestein Quatrac Lite All-season (winter rated) tyres, so choice of rubber is the key.

Greenline II affected by this (received letter today), not sure about other models. "Vibrations and pressure in the fuel line may crack the filter cover around the supply neck on affected cars, causing fuel leaks".

Just for fun decided to look at a Scout, full-spec with all the trimmings from the Skoda car configurator, and managed a sum total of.... £38,339 Not including any extra bits the dealer could throw on, which would probably take it beyond 38.5k Imagine the depreciation when you drove it of the forecourt. I mean, honestly, if you had the best part of 40k to spend on a new car, would you? (Configuration ID 62307811)

Cards on table - only prior 4x4 experience I've had is the fleet of Landy 110 Defenders c/o my previous employer, and the off-road course that went with them. As far as the Octy 4x4 is concerned, which is a Scout albeit with smaller wheels/tyres and no tupperware fore and aft, I've never had any issue. Winter tyres, (Nokian WR D3 at present), and a bit of sensible driving on ice and snow (ESP switched off if required going uphill on snow) and it is fine for my needs - which is all metalled road/farm track-based use. If I needed one, I'd buy a Landrover, as I don't, the Octy is just fine for my needs. Horses for courses. PS When it reaches its 8th birthday I intend to replace like-for-like. 'Nuff said....

Just had a look and you're right - every day a school day!

I used Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons on the Polo which worked a treat - no issues. With the Fabia Greenline I've opted to keep the low rolling resistance option and replace the original Dunlop Sport Bluresponse with the Vredestein Quatrac Lite. The Vredesteins don't have the M&S classification which the Vector 4 Seasons do, but I'm hoping they'll do the job this winter. (If it gets really tricky I'll opt to leave the Fabia tucked up in bed and take the Octy 4x4, which is shod with Nokian WR 3D winter tyres).

All I do is wash them, clean the alloys and spray them with a protective wax, and make sure I've picked all the stones out of the sipes. They sit on a tyre tree which comes with its own cover. Tyre tree was about £20 from Ebay.

For one of those garage door openers used for fragging the lazer on a hand held speed detector...maybee....if so don't expect the PO to 'fess up.

I've run with Nokians on the Octy 4x4 for the past 4 winters and have had no issue with them. TBH they can best be described as making driving on icy/snowy roads positively 'boring' - which daft as it sounds is exactly what you want. Just got a set of Nokian WR D3 205/60 R15 95 H XL from Pneus online to fit to OEM steels, so it may be worth checking the Nokian range for your prefered size.

Nice to see someone else with the same issue. Had mine back at the dealer who checked it out and said there is a small degree of play in the brake pads when they sit in their calipers. When the brakes are applied when the car is rolling backwards the pads move in the caliper and generate a single 'clunk'. I was told there was nothing to worry about and nothing to be done. Edit: I should say that since 2002 I've bought 4 cars from new from my dealer, who was also Skoda retailer of the year 2013, and I wouldn't hesitate to take them at their word.

Dunlop Sport BluResponse 205/60 R15 95 H XL.... £69 ea. @ Pneus online. Anyone with experience of such?

Same issue after 40k, replaced under warranty.

Driver's seat suffering from the cheap foam problem to the extent after 75K on the clock it feels like your @rse has falen through the seat onto the metal underframe. Dont suppose anyone has gone to the expense of getting a seat base replaced? If so how £?

Close to losing the plot now... Have tried to adjust my driving 'style' - not throwing it into a higher gear at the earliest opportunity, keeping the rpm between 2/2.5k whatever the gear and only using 5th on the m/w when my speed is 60+ and I'm still only getting average low 60's mpg! To top it all, I've been in a dealer courtesy car for the past couple of days whilst mine is in getting work done under warranty, and the standard Fabia hatch 1.6 TDI, (which had only 15 miles on the clock when I got it), is getting better mpg figures on the same drive than my Greenline II. (which now boasts 14.5k on the clock!). I simply don't get why my mpg is so cr@p !

According to MaxiDot... 1st 3500 miles: Av 58.3 2nd 3500 miles: Av 61.1 3rd 3500 miles: Av 61.3 Big difference from basic Greenline II spec is the carriage of a F/S spare wheel together with the factory fitted automatic climate control. However, the 4 door VW Polo the Fabia replaced, which also carried a F/S spare and had auto climate control with a 1.4 TDI 80bhp engine, achieved Av 68 MPG on the same road/daily commute. (Standard model Polo - NOT Blue Motion). At 10.5k on the clock I recon the Fabia engine should be loose enough to be giving better MPG than I'm getting currently. I'd hoped to get at least as good an MPG to the standard Polo it replaced, but sadly the Fabia is not even close to that. Underwhelmed...

Noticed that when reversing into a parking bay, for example, when the brakes are applied a single 'knock' comes from the front brakes when they're appled. No equivalent sound is heard when the brakes are applied and the car is moving forwards. Any ideas?

My Greenline II is coming up on 4 months old and has passed the 9K mark, with service indicator saying it is due for its (1st) service in 500 miles. I used to get 18K between services onm my 06 plate 1.4 TDI Polo on a variable service interval. How am I not even getting 10K for the Greenline II (between services) on exactly the same driving conditions/route/style/frequency as the Polo? Is it on a fixed service interval, and how can I tell?

Can it be done? Is it simply a case of replacing the indicator stalk with the CC version and programming via VCDS, or is there more to it? Cheers