Eccles

I was with Aviva for three years then they started to get lairy even though my record was spotless and had been for ten years. So, off to LV who I knew could be a good bet. Their quote was £185 albeit for around 5k miles and driveway parking, so they got the job. Mind you where you live and your job can make a difference and I do not commute.

If you are only going for an oil change it should be possible to find someone cheaper than a main dealer as I have done as it is not rocket science. I would add there is another very important issue:- Brake fluids must be changed after the first three years then every two years as they deteriorate over time rather than over miles. I am another low mileage user and queried the filters and plugs issues at the main dealers after the first year. I was advised that plugs do 40,000 and air filters do 20,000 (unless the car is subject to a very dusty atmosphere, which is unlikely in the UK).

Fair enough but It won't be "every few years" with me, just two or three months so I doubt if any "big issues" will arise.

Read the link you gave. Now do I do frequent cold starts - no; Frequent hill climbs - no; Heavy accelerating and braking - no. That has to imply that VW accept that I can go for 18k miles or 24months to my next service does it not? Many other makes allow far longer than VW's 10k miles, are they wrong? I suspect not however, I think I will put up with the computer message for another couple of months and then go for an oil change. What is interesting is that my MPG seems to be now improving a tad - just passed 12k on the odometer.

Interesting, I only do around 3000 miles annually. I did have a general inspection, oil and brake fluid change at three years as recommended last year but am currently ignoring the computer meassage. Not sure how long I will do this but the oil is clean and still up to level so I may leave it up to a year by which time I will have done about 16k miles. Why shouldn't I? After all if I bought one brand new and left in the garage for a year except for turning it over for ten minutes once a fortnight, It would not make sense to the pay out for a full service at the end of that year would it?

Don't understand any of this, my 1.2 is coming up to 4 yrs with no problems at all. I love it, best small car I have had since Golf Mk2 but that was a few years ago. Mind you, it is driven carefully unlike a lot of bad behaviour one sees on the roads these days. Considering that we spend a small fortune to buy a car, why do folk then proceed to insult their vehicles and other drivers with bad driving. As an example, almost every day I see people rushing up to the lights nearby and slamming on brakes at the last minute when the red light could be seen coming on 200 yds away.

Reading rum4 mo's post above shows yet again how it is often better to find a mechanic that you can trust with your life rather than some doofer in a main dealer's workshop and have a bit of knowledge oneself. This is where all too often women (and men who don't know much) get ripped off or badly informed with disasters following in my experience. I am so glad that I have a mobile mechanic who knows his stuff at present, however I expect to move house shortly so will have to begin hunting for a reliable mechanic all over again boo hoo.

Ah well, my real point is that I suspect that someone is playing games here to keep their dealer's workshops happy. If one has a glance at the service intervals for other makes such as Ford, Renault,Nissan, Toyota and Audi, they all say 60k. Does VW then use belts which are inferior to those used by these other makes? You and I hope not and I seriously doubt it. Nevertheless I have to admit that I will get mine changed at 5 years even though my mileage is likely to be only 20k. TBH I would rather have a chain as in our little KIA Picanto, now nearly 8 years old and still going strong with no chain rattles. Maybe next time I buy a car I will select a chain driven engine, rather interesting is that BMW swapped over to chains in 1993 and all models are now so driven, can't afford one though LOL.

Well of course they base their 5 year cam belt replacement on the average mileage of 12k = 60k of course which is why other manufacturers say 60k. What if you were a high mileage driver as some are and did 30k per annum would you wait for the 5 year mark? I think not. How did you get on before the advent of pollen filters which was for at least 40 years in my case. Then of course we all know that air filter behaviour depends on where you do your driving - in my case in a relatively clean atmosphere which is why my reliable and knowledgeable mobile mechanic has a good look at it before deciding whether to replace or not. Of course he is a cut above the average doofer which is found in a main dealer's workshop. I could tell you more about what happens in main dealers' workshops because my bro was a main dealer service manager before he retired last year but we'll leave it there for the moment.

I also found the so called ECO tyre pressures a bit stiff so had a chat with my very knowledgeable mechanic: " Well what does the car carry most of the time?" he asked. Me (75 kg) and sometimes mrs (68kg), I replied. "In that case 2.0 (30lbs/sq inch) all round will be fine", he replied "but don't forget to tell the computer" So that is what I have done for the past 3 years for a more comfortable ride, I don't really care about another 2-3 mpg because I don't do a lot of miles.

All very interesting and yes I decry the lack of a proper service book in the kit especially as I use a very reliable and knowledgeable mobile mechanic (why shouldn't I? Interestingly I do only around 4000 miles a year and my man says they don't seem to cater for folk who only do low mileages which he thinks is not very good. On his advice I usually leave it for another 3 months from when the wretched message comes on before having an oil change. I did ask the local main dealer about spark plugs and filters the last time I used them (2 or 3 years ago) and they said 40k for the plugs and air filter and 20k for the pollen filter. So at my rate of mileage that will be at least another three years. Actually I have never had a pollen filter in my life before and don't suffer from hay fever even though I live in a rural area. I might just get my man to take it out and chuck it sometime rather than bother with the expense. Another matter is the timing belt which VW say to change at five years but in the past I have generally had it changed at 60k which in my case will probably not be until the car is at least 8 years old. I would welcome any knowledgable comments on this matter.

I have heard of similar problems albeit on other makes where the car's system has not completely shut down when turning off so that some components are still draining the battery. It is also true that batteries need a finite amount of time to recharge to full capacity, especially in winter when we tend to use every component on the electrical list. This can mean that frequent short journeys don't give the alternator long enough to get the battery up to full whack. We should also always remember that batteries have a life and that is rarely longer than 6 -7 years. Recently came across two gents trying to get into their aging 4x4 in a car park. It would not open because the battery was flat as a pancake - they had left side lights on for several hours it seems. "How old is the battery?" I quizzed. "Dunno mate, years probably" came the response and there was the clue - batteries do not last for ever.

Not at all sure about this 1.0 3 cylinder jobbie. My 1.2 90 continues to perform wonderfully (now 4 years old). I suppose they know what they are doing but will the new version still do 150+k mile? Probably because I am an oldie but have a funny feeling that it may not unless they have made it from some super dooper new alloys which I am unaware of.

Stay away from the DSG's I still don't believe that they have got it right. Now that you have retired (like me) you will probably do a lot less miles in which case I reckon the car will pretty much last for ever provided you replace the cam belt every 5 years.

Yeah, don't get an automatic with the DSG clutch thingy. Had my 1.2 SE for nearly four years now (manual gear change), no problems whatsoever.

The cubic capacity of an engine is how much empty space is swept by a complete rotation of the engine. Of course it is not "empty" when the engine is running because that space will then contain a mixture of fuel and air or burned exhaust fumes. So the larger that space is the bigger the bang when the fuel/air mixture is fired by the sparking plug. Thus in theory a 1395cc engine is more powerful than a 1195 cc engine. However, there can be other factors to consider such as "have said engines got turbochargers or not, which force more fuel and air into each cylinder. Thus a 1195cc engine with a turbocharger can be just as powerful or more so than a 1390cc engine which does not have a turbocharger.

I trust my long time mobile mechanic far more than the bods they employ at dealerships. I have seen this over-filling of oil business before at dealerships and of course I never get it with my man; he even asked what the quantity required was per the handbook last time I had a new car (just to be sure). Also of course he is around 50% cheaper than what the dealerships charge and always tells me if there is something that may need to be done in the near future. These guys are not that difficult to find - (word of mouth,etc.), and I have had two of them in the last 15 years or so.

The problems with LED's are 1. Getting them to focus so that the require wide beam spread for road use is achieved (they are very different to traditional lamps). 2. The current crop are so bright that eye damage can occur (similar to looking directly at the sun). I learned this when I began using them for night time fishing and noticed a warning on the packaging of one lamp which I bought. Now their light emmissions can be damped down to get over this problem but in the EU the authorities have not yet been satisfied by anything currently available. Interestingly some cyclists now seem to be using certain really bright lamps at night but they are probably illegal (risk of eye damage to oncoming drivers).

All very interesting. Now this year I swapped over to LV from Aviva because the latter was beginning to take the mick. We have two cars on the same policy but LV shows the separate premiums. The premium on the now aging KIA Picanto was about £12 more than on the Fabia 3 which surprised me but now I know why. The Fab has front "radar" and rear parking assist which the Picanto does not (even though the Fab is a more powerful and expensive car it is still a better risk than the Picanto).

Yes windscreen fogging is a possible issue but how long can it clear with a "standard" fan system - quite a few minutes from my past experience whereas the AC assisted system now used by Skoda is much faster. Can't say I have experienced any of the other issues you have mentioned in my now 3year old Fab Estate although the DSG system has had troubles in the past which is why I chose to have a manual gearbox.

Well of course as we all know it depends how you drive. There are some locals to me for example, who habitually keep going right up to the traffic lights nearby then screech to a halt, when anyone could see from 200 yds back that they were on red or about to be. Then there are the gents who are always doing 80-90 in the outside lane when it is well known that overcoming wind resistance at that speed will always use more fuel than doing 60-70 and you will only save a couple of minutes on the average 20 mile trip. OK so I have a 1.2/90 estate and over the last three years I am averaging 57 mpg, very pleased as the previous Roomster only managed 42. Sadly the old Roomster is no longer available; I bet it would have done a lot better if it had the 1.2/90 in it but it didn't. Oh yes, I didn't sell/trade in the Roomy, a geezer going too fast in a Mondeo crushed it into the back of the car in front of me and it was a write off.

Just had my 3 year service done by my long time mobile mechanic which of course included a brake fluid change and he knew all about the ally washer on the sump plug. Fortunately he is very thorough and well known in my area; so what was the charge? Just £90 of course vs what you got quoted. No i don't care about future trade in prices as I keep my cars for ever being a low mileage user. I once had a Golf which I kept for 15 years LOL, unfortunately the Golf is now like a tank compared with the earlier versions so doubt if I will ever buy another.

Found this folks, so now you know: https://www.volkswagen.co.uk/need-help/owners/cambelt-change

It took a few minutes for me and my great mobile mechanic to get this right. I am not travelling 15 miles to get a high priced service done by a main dealer then having to wait around for up to two hours when I can get my man to come to my home. I have used him for years and know that he is very thorough. So we searched the 'net and found this:- skoda fabia 2015 oil service reset - Yahoo Video Search results Now I know that this video is for the Octavia but it's the same for the Fabia 3. Why they no longer put it in the user manual as they used to I don't know but suspect that it is to ensure that you go to a dealer which as we all know is illegal in the UK.

Hi there Mozzy, My Mk 3 estate is now three years old and faultless so far. Comments are 1. The brakes could be a tad better but that may happen when it has the first brake fluid change due at three yr service shortly, we'll see. 2. Wish the cabin heating would get going more quickly but I am told that is a feature of these modern lightweight turbo charged engines. 3. I rarely achieve the advertised 60 mpg and I am not a boy racer; usually more like 55mpg but that is so much better than the 35 - 40 I used to get with older non-TC engines so can't really moan. For the money there is still no other car on the market at present which competes although that may change if KIA start fitting TC engines (our other car is a KIA Picanto which takes for ever to accelerate up to motorway speed.)