DerekU

I understand that a Skoda Fabia Mk4 bought new in Israel will have a 2-year warranty and (presumably) that warranty's terms and conditions will be similar to those of the UK warranty that includes this exclusion. Damage caused by industrial pollution, climate, external heat, chemicals or mechanical force. It seems much more likely (to me) that 'fading' of the black trim surrounding the window switches will have resulted from a fault in the trim's plastic material rather than from Israel's climate, but Yogev's Skoda dealership might argue the opposite and not support an under-warranty replacement. Having looked, not too closely, at the plastic trim around my 2024 Fabia's switches, I think the trim+switches should not be too difficult to remove. (That's just based on there being a small slot in the lower edge of the front part of the trim behind the door handle.) Realistically, a new replacement trim will only be available from Skoda and the chances are small of finding a secondhand trim from a smashed-up Fabia Mk4. This link relates to black trim restorers and may be of interest https://www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-advice/maintenance/the-best-black-trim-restorer-to-freshen-up-tired-plastics/ As Evolution3 mentioned earlier, it would be worth Yogev asking a Skoda dealership what the cost of a new trim would be (It would almost certainly need to be ordered). If a new trim is fairly inexpensive (and the 'fading' really annoys Yogev), a replacement could be fitted: or, if the cost is high, Yogev could try a trim restorer - though they can be pricey.

The bought-from-new cars owned by me and my wife have included 6 VWs and 2 Skodas. All of these (and the other makes of vehicle we've owned) were all serviced by their manufacturer's main dealerships and - to the best of my knowledge - none of their brakes were ever stripped down, pins greased etc. Brake pad thickness and brake disc condition were checked and reported on, but this was only using a visual inspection and without the road-wheels being removed from the car. That doesn't mean that our cars' brakes were never stripped down, as I used to do this myself on my cars and on my wife's last VW (a Golf diesel estate), but this was primarily when I was replacing the pads to try to improve the brakes' performance rather than me feeling a pressing need to do this. Do you know which car manufacturers have included (or now include) a brake strip-down as part of their standard servicing? I expect a VW/Skoda main dealership would include brake strip-down/pin greasing as a supplementary task during a service if an owner insisted (despite the pads' thickness being adequate) but current labour charges would bump up the cost significantly.

This link may be of interest https://www.sunset-derby.co.uk/how-do-you-fix-your-vws-squeaky-brakes/ You said in your original posting "...my brake pads seem to be well worn...". Assuming it's your car's front brakes that are squealing, received wisdom (example here) https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/car-maintenance/brake-pads/ is that, if the pads' thickness has to reduced to 3mm, the pads should be replaced, but that advice obviously depends on a car's annual mileage. My wife's bought-new-in 2009 Skoda Roomster has only covered 27k miles, does under a 1k miles annually nowadays, and its original front and rear disc pads still have plenty of 'meat' on them.

I carried out several online searches about this, relating to Skoda Fabia Mk4s and to the equivalent-age VW Polos, but the results were inconclusive with it being suggested that a pad-wear warning system might not be fitted to lower-spec or lower-powered cars, but could be fitted to higher-spec or more powerful models. My own Fabia Mk4 was built in late-2023 and UK-registered in April 2024. It's an SE L model, has the 999cc 3-cylinder TSI motor with a maximum power-output of 81kW/110PS/108bhp and has a DSG transmission. Braking is the UK-specification front discs and rear drums system used on Mk4 models that have the 999cc motor. I put my car on full right lock and drove the right front wheel up on to a 3-inch wooden block. Lying on my back, I was then able to get my head fully behind the front wheel, shine a powerful torch on to the brake disc and caliper and also feel around the caliper and the area near to it. There was no sensor-cabling and, consequently, no means to warn (via a dashboard warning light) if the brake-pad thickness seriously reduced. Just in case, I then did the same for the left front wheel and there was no sensor-cabling there either. As my (fairly powerful, fairly high-spec) Fabia Mk4 with 999cc motor does not have front-brake sensor cabling and @Breezy_Pete has said that his wiring diagram for a Mk4 does not mention a pad-wear sender, it now seems that (despite the brake pads-related references in the Fabia Mk4 Owner's Manuals) at least Fabia Mk4s with the disc/drum braking system probably do not have a worn brake-pads warning system that would cause a dashboard light to illuminate. I don't think Lar has ever said which motor his Mk4 has, so if it has the 1.5litre 4-cylinder power-plant and disc/disc braking system, it's possible it might have a worn-brake-pads warning system. Not too difficult check as suggested earlier, or a Skoda dealership should be able to advise.

@Breezy_Pete Dunno - based on the Owner's Manuals I'd EXPECT all Fabia Mk4 models (or any 2020-onwards car for that matter) to have a brake-pad-wear warning system. Perhaps you could do as you suggested to Lar and "Look to see if there's a wire coming from any of the inner brake pads" with your Mk4. This 2019 topic discussed Fabia Mk3 brake pads https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/468756-brake-pad-wear-sensors-on-mkiii/ so some Mk4s may have pad-wear sensors and some may not, depending on the car's specification.

Lar Every Skoda Fabia Mk4 Owner's Manual refers to there being an orange/yellow warning light for "Worn brake pads". The light looks like this and is shown in the "Indicator lights" section near the front of the Manual and in the "Brakes" section further on ("Brake Pads" in the Manual's index.) I believe it can be safely assumed from this that all Fabia Mk4s have a brake-pad wear-sensor that will trigger a warning light when the pads become unduly worn. I did check whether that particular warning light would appear on my 2024 Fabia SE L's instrument-cluster when I turned on the car's ignition. It did not, so I presume it only illuminates when worn pads are detected. (Your forum Profile suggests that your Fabia Colour Edition is a 2022 model, so I'm doubtful about the mention that "...it has done 2k miles..." in your enquiry. Perhaps you meant "...it has done 20k miles..."?)

In my posting above perhaps I should have made it clearer that the light-units I arrowed as being LEDs did not have LED BULBS in them when I said: LEDs are used in the two number-plate light-units and (on the right side of the hatch) in the fog=light/reversing-light unit. The light-unit on the left side of the hatch is a dummy and has no LEDs in it. Left-hand-drive models will have a LED fog=light/reversing-light unit on the left side of the hatch and the light-unit on the right side of the hatch will be a dummy. with no LEDs in it. On the car's 'hatch', only one of the fog-light/reversing-light units is operative (the right unit of RHD cars or the left unit of LHD cars). The fog-light and reversing-light outputs come from small individual LEDs. (There are four separate LEDs in the reversing light-unit and these are visible if you shine a torch into the underside of the reversing-light's reflector). The units are 'sealed' and neither the fog-light nor the reversing -light can be upgraded by fitting higher-output LED bulbs. I agree that the reversing-light's output is poor and I'd like a reversing-light on both sides of the hatch - but that's the way it is. LED bulbs could be fitted in the outer rear light-units, but this would be illegal in the UK. It's also near certain that replacing any of the 3 halogen bulbs in each light-unit with a LED-bulb equivalent would trigger a dashboard 'light failure' warning. I've thought about replacing the boot-light W5W halogen bulb with a LED equivalent (as I did with my Hyundai i20) as the boot-light gets pretty hot, but I probably shan't bother. For spare rear-light bulbs, I managed to obtain a pair of OSRAM "ULTRA LIFE" W5W and P21W bulbs reasonably cheaply, but finding a good quality inexpensive WY16W bulb has proved trickier and I'll probably opt for a Halfords bulb if I'm passing one of their branches.

Your 2022 Fabia should have been originally delivered with a fairly slim booklet-format Owner's Manual with an 'issue date' on the outside of its rear cover. The booklet Manual for my own 2024 UK-registered Fabia SE L car has the issue-date of 06.2023 on its rear cover and, when referring to the relevant online digital Manual, the 06.2023 reference allows me to choose the relevant file. For the Fabia, Skoda has used a 2-pronged approach for Owner's Manuals, with 'essential' advice being in the booklet and the same advice plus more complex information being in the digital Manual. When a particular subject is dealt with only in the digital Manual, this is stated in the booklet Manual. LANE ASSIST is covered in its entirety in the booklet Manual (Pages 108/109 in my car's booklet) and how to turn the steering-wheel vibrations ON/OFF is shown in the Settings section (Activating/deactivating the steering wheel vibrations). Turning the steering-wheel vibrations ON/OFF must be carried out using the car's infotainment display-screen's Lane Assist menu. This Skoda Fabia video is about Lane Assist https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoktYazaDso It shows a car that has an Amundsen display-screen (as fitted to my own car) where the Lane Assist menu looks like this A green tick in the Steering wheel vibration 'box' indicates that vibration has been turned ON. Unticking the box will turn steering-wheel vibration OFF and the chosen setting (green tick=ON, no tick=OFF) is then saved until that setting is deliberately altered. Turning OFF the vibrations will not turn OFF Lane Assist, that will still enable automatically each time the car's ignition is switched on. I turn OFF Lane Assist before driving my Fabia, but, when I occasionally forget to do this, I can't say I find the system's corrective operation particularly intrusive or 'strong'. The Owner's Manual says "The system is designed primarily for driving on the motorway", but on twisty rural roads It's just an irritation that I don't want. (And I definitely don't want additional xxxxxx steering-wheel vibrations!!!)

The instructions below were copied from the digital Manual for a 2022 Skoda Fabia Mk4. No option is provided to turn off the Lane Assist feature permanently - it will be turned on automatically every time the car's ignition is switched on. However (as the final paragraph in the instructions says) it is possible to turn off Lane Assist's steering-wheel vibration through the car's infotainment display-screen's settings menu and, once this has been done, steering-wheel vibration will not take place. Lane Assist will still turn itself on every time the car's ignition is switched on, but there will be no vibration of the steering-wheel when Lane Assist 'intervenes'. BURTEQ offers a 'save the settings' memory module for 2021-2023 Fabia Mk4 models https://burteq.com/products/skoda-fabia-4-iv-memory-module and it may be possible to override Lane Assist's automatic activation on ignition switch-on using a diagnostic/code-modifying tool like OBDeleven, VCDS or Carista.

The rear lights of Skoda Fabia Mk4 cars can be 'all LEDs' or be a mix of LEDS and conventional bulbs. This 2023 forum enquiry was about the latter type. https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/513749-rear-light-bulbs-for-mk4-fabia/#comment-5760144 and (for right-hand-drive models) the 'mix' is as shown below, with the outer light-units having bulbs, while LEDs are used in the two number-plate light-units and (on the right side of the hatch) in the fog=light/reversing-light unit. The light-unit on the left side of the hatch is a dummy and has no LEDs in it. Left-hand-drive models will have a LED fog=light/reversing-light unit on the left side of the hatch and the light-unit on the right side of the hatch will be a dummy. with no LEDs in it. The bulb-changing guidance in the Fabia Owner's Manual is fairly good and the types of bulb involved are shown in the image below Gaining access to the bulbs should be straightforward. Pull off the black plastic cover that's next to the light-unit; remove the two T25-head retaining screws; pull the light-unit straight backwards. There's a small plastic ball (purple ringed on the image) that engages with a small plastic socket in the bodywork and a small amount of force may be needed to get the ball to disengage. The Manual suggests that the light-unit be disconnected, but that should not be necessary just to change a bulb. I found that removing the P21W (brake light) and WY16W (indicator light) bulb-holders was easy, but removing the W5W (tail light) bulb-holder was fiddly. The P21W and W5W bulbs were OSRAM-marked and I assume that the amber WY16W bulb. was also an OSRAM product.

Thanks, I thought I had subsequently posted the correct part numbers, but clearly not! Anyway, these two UK adverts shown below show the relevant part numbers for Fabia Mk4 cars and (as you said above) they are 6VA601011F for the spare-wheel and 6VA093860A for the tool-set. Wings SKODASKODA Spare wheel FABIA IV15“ Spare wheelWhen choosing a spare wheel from the ŠKODA Genuine Accessories range, please refer to the information in the registration document to check that the dimensions of the spare wheel corresWings SKODASKODA Toolkit for Spare wheel FABIA IVThe Spare wheel set is designed for drivers who prefer to use the spare wheel instead of the puncture set in the event of a puncture. Spare wheel set - includes all the necessary tools for changing a(I THINK the spare-wheel for a Mk3 should be OK for a Mk4, but a Mk3 tool-set would definitely be unsuitable as the Mk4 requires a different design of jack.)

Sorry - I note that the advert I referred to in my last posting does NOT include the spare-wheel!!! The Skoda part number for the spare-wheel (including tyre) is 6V0601011M and should be available for around £215. (Delivery charges extra.)

These 2025 and 2024 forum topics discussed (in some depth) spare-wheels for Fabia Mk4 cars. https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/533394-fabia-spare-wheel/#comment-5952581 https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/522682-spare-wheel-and-central-tool-holder/ The 'genuine' Skoda Fabia Mk4 spare-wheel + tool-kit is currently advertised here at £225.15 (Sale price) https://skodapartsdirect.co.uk/product/skoda-fabia-2015-2026-spare-wheel-tool-kit/

I happened to come across this 2019 BRISKODA Karoq-related topic https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/463124-dipstick-question/ I doubt this has any relevance to the dipstick of the Fabia Mk4 car owned by @fabiamk4man but it MIGHT still be worth emphasising which side of the dipstick the 'dotted' oil-level section should be on. These two images should make this clear...

Good thinking... On the rear of my Fabia's dipstick's yellow plastic handle is a QR code and the Part Number 05C115611H Searching online using that Part Number retrieves plenty of adverts for dipsticks for recent VW Group cars (not just Skoda Fabia Mk4s) that have the 1.0litre TSI motor. I've looked at a few adverts that carry photos, but, although they all resemble my Fabia's dipstick (yellow angled handle, black flat steel 'blade' and with a bent section that plainly relates to oil-level measurement) I can't get sufficient resolution on that section to confirm if any of the advertised dipsticks lack the 'dotted' marking. As it's fairly easy to do, it would be worth @fabiamk4man checking the Part Number on his car's dipstick.

Fabiamk4man (who originated this topic) owns a Fabia Mk4 "Style" model built in December 2022 that he purchased (in Greece) in September 2025 when the vehicle had covered 28,000km. The car has a TSI 1.0litre motor producing 110PS and, although the "Style" trim designator was not used in the UK, the motor's capacity and power-output of his car are the same as those of my own similar-age UK-marketed Fabia Mk4 SE L model. Photos of the engine compartment of Fabia Mk4 cars fitted with that motor show the position (and yellow colour) of the dipstick 'handle' (arrowed on this image). As I said earlier, the angled design of the yellow handle means that the dipstick can only be pushed fully home when the handle is leaning towards the car's front. However, it is possible to establish that the dipstick's tube is straight (rather than curved) as the dipstick can be turned through 90° and still be easily inserted until the angled handle prevents it going any further. Online photos/adverts indicate that the dipstick normally has a 'dotted' oil-level marking section towards its end that matches the drawing in Fabia Mk4 Owner's Manuals. Just for the record (and assuming that my own Fabia's dipstick is the correct one!!!) I've measured my car's dipstick and its critical dimensions are shown on the image below. To make that abundantly clear - the distance from the underside of the yellow handle to the dipstick's end is 525mm - the distance from the underside of the yellow handle to the start of the dotted oil-level marking section is 493mm - the overall length of the dotted oil-level marking is 19mm, meaning that the dotted oil-level marking section stops 13mm from the end of the dipstick.

That's very odd... As it was more convenient, the photos I provided were not of my own Fabia's dipstick, but copied from this UK ebay advert. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/375482427248 However, my 2024 Fabia's dipstick and other adverts for 'genuine' Fabia Mk4 1.0litre-motor dipsticks are identical and match the relevant picture in all Fabia Mk4 Owner's Manuals. (As I was aware you were in Greece, I checked the appropriate section in the Greek-language 2023 Manual and - as the attached image shows - that was no different). There seem to be two possibilities - (1) that a Fabia Mk4 car with the 1.0litre TSI motor may sometimes have been factory-fitted with a dipstick that does not have the raised dotted section shown in the Owner's Manual, or (2) that your car does not have a 'genuine' Skoda Fabia Mk4 dipstick. You'd be wise to check this with a Skoda dealership. If your car does not have the 'genuine' Skoda Fabia Mk4 dipstick, its dipstick may be the wrong length and (obviously) that would affect checking the car's oil-fill level. During my 65 years of driving I've owned many cars, including 6 VWs and 2 Skodas. The only vehicle I've had any real difficulty checking the oil-level was a 2015 motorhome based on a Fiat Ducato that had a LONG dipstick 'tube' that curved around the front of the engine before disappearing into the motor. The dipstick itself was flat black steel with just a narrowed section near its end to indicate minimum/ maximum oil-levels (image below). Fiat dropped the dipstick from later Ducatos, provoking vociferous complaints from owners who found the electronic oil-level system to be untrustworthy.

In an earlier posting you said "My dipstick is exactly the same as the manual describes BUT there is not ANY treatment at the marked area as shown in S19-0760 picture - it is just plain steel." Is that actually the case, or does your car's dipstick have the raised 'dotted' section shown in the image in my last posting? This Toyota Tacoma-related Facebook entry discussed reading the oil level on a dipstick when thin oil is being used in a vehicle https://www.facebook.com/groups/4870321056422088/posts/6768461309941377/ and the following three 'tricks' were suggested 1) Use a brand new or extremely sharp hacksaw blade or metal file to “scratch” up both sides of the dipstick with a crosshatch pattern. Be certain to wipe all metal powder/dust before inserting into the engine. If this doesn’t work then add the following to #1. 2) Use a piece of regular stick chalk to rub on the cross hatches when the stick is completely wiped off. Insert dipstick and pull out to see where the level shows on the chalk. Clean off all chalk before reinserting after level is viewed. If you don’t want to do #1 and # 2 then try #3. 3) Have a piece of absorbent white paper towel or absorbent tissue paper. When the dipstick is pulled out quickly then slowly slide the paper towel or tissue edge held tight on the metal from top down toward full mark. When first sight of oil shows on the towel that’s the level. Holding a powerful light close during either of these methods also helps especially if you are in shade or dark conditions. My 2009 Skoda Roomster's dipstick has a single O-ring seal, but my 2024 Fabia's dipstick has two O-rings (image attached) and - as its 'handle' is angled - it is only practicable to fully insert the dipstick in one orientation. Engine hot or engine cold, the two O-rings mean that a good upwards pull is needed to remove the dipstick.

The sole reason I provided a link to the video was because it demonstrated the 'kitchen towel' ploy. The business end of my Fabia Mk4's dipstick is as shown in the attachment below and matches the drawing in the relevant Owner's Manual. The main difficulty in identifying the oil-level is due to the dipstick's black colour.

My Fabia's Owner's Manual describes checking the oil fill-level as shown in the attachment below. The Fabia's dipstick is black-coloured steel and (as fabiamk4man has said) it is not easy to spot the level, particularly when the (thin) oil is clean. About 3.14 into this video it is suggested that laying the dipstick against a piece of kitchen towel is a useful means of identifying the oil-level and I've used that method successfully for many years.

The UK MOT-test rules regarding DRLs are as shown in the attachment below. In @SteveFab partner's case, as the car is a 2022 Fabia Mk4, it's DRLs will be inspected during a MOT-test and, if either of its DRLs is found to be inoperative, that will be classed as a Major defect.

On a RHD Fabia Mk4 the fuse-box is to the right of the steering-wheel, while the pollen-filter is behind the large glove-box that is on the opposite side of the car's dashboard. So replacing the pollen-filter should have no effect on wiring/fuses.

It won't make you any happier, but the £880 price you've been quoted by Skoda for fixing the problem (that presumably would involve replacing the existing defective headlamp) is - as the 2024 CAT article (link below) highlights - not that unusual https://www.catmag.co.uk/features/led-lighting-replacement-cost and, In 2022 when I was considering buying a Hyundai i20N, I was reliably informed that the cost of a single 'full LED' headlamp for that model was around £1400. In 2015 I bought a new motorhome based on a Fiat-Ducato chassis. Its headlamps were the 'all halogen bulb' type, but Fiat also offered an LED equivalent that was MUCH more expensive. Within about a year, much cheaper 'aftermarket' headlamps for the bulb-type light became available, but, if an original LED headlamp failed or became damaged, it was (and still is) not possible to buy a less expensive 'copy'. Current Ducatos still have halogen bulbs for the main and dipped beam, but may or may not have a LED DRL. A 'copy' headlamp with no DRL can cost well under £200; a 'copy light with LED DRL (but no LED driver) can cost about £275; but an OE headlamp with LED DRL + LED driver is priced around £560. The CAT article says WhatCar?’s advice was very clear: “If you’re going to keep your car for many years or are buying second hand, we’d recommend avoiding models and trim levels that have sealed headlight units.” but this has become increasingly difficult to do as car manufacturers drop replaceable-bulb headlamps from the specification of their products irrespective of the trim range.

The Skoda 'configurator' for UK-specification Fabia cars currently indicates that five brands of tyre (Continental, Goodyear, Kumho, Laufenn, Nexentire) may be factory-fitted depending on the particular model and wheel-diameter that the buyer has chosen. 15" wheels may have Continental, Goodyear or Kumho. 16" wheels may have Goodyear or Nexentire. 17" wheels may have Laufenn or Kumho. 18" wheels will have Laufenn. I'm sure that the contract that the buyer signs will have a clause warning that the vehicle's specification is not set in stone and that the manufacturer has the right to change it. (I was at a Skoda dealership last Wednesday and there was a brand-new 130 in their showroom. The car had Continental tyres...

What size and make of tyres are you planning to fit to the 17"-diameter wheels? The 18"-diameter wheels fitted as standard to the Fabia 130 carry 215/40 R18 tyres, whereas the tyres fitted when a Fabia Mk4 has 17"-diameter wheels are 215/45 R17. I wouldn't have thought that dropping the wheel diameter from 18" to 17" and fitting tyres that have the same width but a 45 'height' (rather than a 40 'height') would offer a worthwhile increase in pothole protection. For that you'd need to go to something like 215/60 R17, but that would look odd and there might be under-wheel-arch clearance problems with the 130 model.