speedsport

Has anyone tried converting the front reading lights using Superskoda LED "Dome light" units? They don't just replace the capless 5w bulbs by simply pulling the bulb out of its holder & pushing in an LED one, but you appear to have to remove the reflector in order to insert the LED array, which is a flat disk with self adhesive foam "wedges" to locate it between the original reflector & the front "dome" lens. The problem is that I cant figure out how to remove the reflector, or the lens, from the grey plastic surround without risking breaking the mounting. Also, once the new array is installed, does the passenger's light then dazzle the driver, as I assume it's no longer using the reflector to aim the light towards the passenger's side of the car?

Phoned my selling dealer (Lookers, Eccles) to ask them to look at the car. Was put through to one of their technicians who helpfully suggested that as i was on my mobile phone, I sit in the car and follow his instructions...... Ignition on (don't start the engine), Lower the offending window by pushing the switch down (the switch on the driver's door) and keep holding it down until the window's fully open. Then pull the switch up, and keep holding it up as the window rises and at the same time apply gentle pressure outwards on the glass near the top.* Keep the switch up for a further 10 seconds after the window closes & a click should be heard. The window should now be reset. Amazing.... it is! * The application of pressure on the glass isn't in the handbook, so presumably that's something that the technician has discovered through trial & error and was happy to pass on. A couple of minutes on the phone has saved me a trip to the dealers. Now, that's clever service!!

Oh well.... my new Yeti will be 4 weeks old tomorrow and it seems to have joined the over sensitive window limiter club. Unfortunately, trying to rest it as per the instructions isn't making any difference, so it looks as though it's going to be a case of letting the Skoda garage have a go.

Back in late December when I was looking, dealers were telling me that the Kia (and the Hyundai whose underpinnings they share) were due to be replaced but couldn't tell me when. I stopped looking at them at that point. Having said that I thought both of the cars I looked at (sorry, I've not kept a note of the model designations) were rather "scratchy plasticy" inside and the fit and finish generally wasn't brilliant. I didn't test drive either manufacturers' vehicles. I know they get good press and can be very well equipped, but a bit like the Peugeot 3008, they didn't excite me. Maybe I've never recovered from driving an early model Sportage, which I thought was absolutely dreadful, though you still see plenty on the roads, so someone must like 'em.

I probably wouldn't be tempted to get someone with VCDS to have a go in case there's something else wrong with the installation. I would insist that PF Jones complete their contract, preferably using another fitter, but it's their responsibility to get it right. If someone with VCDS has a go at it and it subsequently turns out that there's a missing connection or a chafed wire (even months later) PFJ could argue that a 3rd party had interfered with their work and they then might not cover it under their guarantee.

I tried the new Honda CRV (lovely soft front seats that you realise are unsupportive after about 30 mins!) Fussy dashboard, and quite a big car. Very well spec'd but pricey. Steering a bit vague and too much body roll. Nissan X-Trail - expensive and seemed even bigger externally than the CRV, though again very well spec'd. Nissan Qashqai - lots of toys and drove quite well, but I thought the inside was small given its exterior dimensions. Mazda CX3 & CX5 - both were great to drive, not much to complain about except poor rearward vision. I reckon Yeti is half way between the two on interior space. Ford Kuga - actually quite good, nice driving position but the fit and finish was way behind the Yeti with lots of bare paintwork on show. I could only look at a basic spec one as the 2 dealers I tried (same group) didn't seem to have any others available, or couldn't be bothered finding one. Didn't like the way the rear seats folded, and the sales staff were totally disinterested. Became quite expensive if I tried to match the L&K spec. VW Tiguan (the one that's just finished production) - very impressed, it shared a lot of features with the Yeti (as you'd expect) and the slightly bigger boot was attractive. Great sales staff at my local dealer , but to match L&K spec would cost nearly £10k more than the Yeti I eventually bought. But... shortly after I placed the order for my Yeti, VW started offering £3400 off list, plus dealer discounts which would have softened the blow. LR Disco Sport - an attractive car, but way too expensive, and just a touch too bling for my tastes. Salesman definitely looked down his nose at me for asking practical questions that he couldn't answer - but he knew about every cosmetic option available to make it stand out from other Disco Sports! Peugeot 3008 - I don't know why, but I just didn't like it, cant put my finger on why as it looked ok, but there was just something about the car that totally failed to grab me! All the above (except the Tuguan & 3008) were wider than a Yeti, some substantially so. I could have coped with most, but it would have made parking under the carport at the side of my house difficult, ie physically getting out of the car once parked. I've not mentioned diesel/petrol, manual/auto nor 2wd vs 4wd as that's down to the individual's preference. I'm not disappointed that I've bought my 2nd Yeti, but in the next Yeti, Skoda does need to address the amount of road noise that enters the cabin when driving on today's worn road surfaces, as I thought each of the above was quieter. In the end, for me, the Yeti simply ticked all the boxes. It might not be stylish, but it is practical and is a great drive, though I wish they did the DSG box with the 1.4 petrol engine. John H

This looks like yet another car "designed" to have an appalling rear quarter view from inside. Which is why I love the Yeti. It's one of very few cars left with a decent glass area that allows great all-round vision and only a tiny blind-spot at the D pillar (and I tried out several of the competitors before buying my Yeti No 2).

When I was ordering my Yeti back in January, the dealer told me not to rely on the configurator as it is sometimes unreliable and doesn't offer combinations of options that the dealers' system can provide. He wasn't referring to the Yeti in particular, but the Skoda range in general. I'd talk direct to an authorised dealer & see what they can do.

I've a suspicion that they issue a printed "owners' handbook" with every car to avoid litigation in the event of someone doing something daft and being injured (or worse). eg, the US lady who was awarded damages when she was injured after her brand newer Winnebago crashed because she wasn't told that setting the cruise control didn't mean she could then leave the drivers' seat and go and make a coffee whilst on the freeway. On the other hand there was the Honda Jazz that I hired a couple of years ago (awful drivers seat!) with an 900+ page owners handbook that contained such useful advice as "the driver should not attempt to adjust the rear seat head restraints whilst the vehicle is moving"!

If you have a smart phone with a QR reader, then look at the inside back page of the manual where you can download a fully searchable manual to your phone or tablet...... or so it says!

Cant disagree! I used my previous Yeti (a 1.8Tsi 4x4) as Safety Car on the Aintree circuit for 6 years and it surprised many people with its agility, acceleration and outright speed. (I must have a better photo somewhere!) And you can get 36 cones in the boot and still seat 5 people:- And, of course it'll tow trailers too:- Yep... it's a great all-rounder!

Oops, sorry, thought you'd had a "Classic" Yeti before your current one. I think my new Yeti must have had a brain storm the other day. The instruments were fully lit even though it was dark & I had no headlights on. But having seen your reply, I've just gone outside & checked it again and find that whilst the needles stay illuminated all the time the ignition is on, the numerals are only lit when the light switch is selecting Auto, manual headlights, or fog lights. When the switch is off, or selecting side (parking) lights, the numerals are not lit - just like your photo. Which is what my pre-F/L Yeti did too. I'll keep an eye on it! I'm on the Isle of Mull at the moment and it's not totally dark yet, but the front fog lights do look rather dim. Not impressed!

Assuming the part is in stock at VW Group central European parts, it should be available at your local Skoda dealer within 48 hours at the latest. Their parts supply system is normally excellent.

But does your new Yeti dim the numerals like your old one did if you don't put your lights on after dark? I suspect you might find it doesn't!

In low light conditions, the numerals on the instruments on my pre-facelift Yeti would dim or disappear completely, leaving just the needles visible as a warning that the driver should put lights on. My F/L Yeti doesn't seem to do this... is this common to all F/L cars? (I would of course have switched my lights on anyway if on the road - or had 'em on Auto - but in a local undercover car park this "feature" was noticeable.) I thought this was sensible as there are too many cars out there that have the instruments illuminated all the time and as a result inattentive motorists can often be seen driving around unaware they've not put their light on at night.

Glad to be of assistance Dave. I don't always get it right but it's good when I do!! Shame I didn't manage to convince my Skoda agent earlier that my Yeti's wheel bearing was failing, but it's easy to be wise after the event!!

I echo several of your comments. I've changed from a 1.8Tsi elegance to a 1.4 Tsi L&K. On the new car, the general build quality seems better & there are no creaks & rattles (now I've tweaked the aluminium panel behind the rear bumper so it no longer vibrates against it). The engine seems much quieter, though there seems to be more transmission noise at certain revs/load. Economy seems much improved, though that's to be expected with the smaller engine. The steering was unpleasantly light until I adjusted the tyre pressures to the correct figures (Over 10 psi too high all round). Now feel is very similar to the old car. I'm hoping that the engine will free up a bit as the low down torque is substantially down compared with the 1.8Tsi and only really starts pulling once the turbo cuts in. I like the Amundsen, but is there actually too much on it that I'm never going to use? Time will tell. I preferred the layout of the buttons on the old multi-function steering wheel, particularly the thumbwheels which are now set too far in. However the wheel itself hs a much nicer feel but, and it's a big but... I don't like all the chrome bits on the spokes which dazzle me with the reflected sun when the sun roof is open. The gear lever is slightly shorter - which I like, but others may not. All in all, I like the changes, some very subtle like the way the window switches stay live for 10 mins after you turn off the ignition (as long as you don't remove the key) and even then you can close all the windows once you've removed the ignition key & opened the door just by operating the driver's window switch for 10 secs or so. I'm sure I'll find other things as I get used to the new car... I even like the stop start system! The handbook is as poor as the original one though! Presumably written in Czechoslovakian, translated to English via German and Italian. You really would think that Skoda would have someone with a decent command of the local language to copyread & correct the darned thing before publishing it!

Bear in mind that the biggest issue with towing a trailer isn't making it go, it's making it stop when laden. Which is why Skoda recommend a max gross trailer weight of less than 750Kg on some models of Yeti. Basically the ability of the brakes to stop the car plus unbraked trailer is being pushed to the limit. I'm speaking from experience..... as someone who tows a 750kg unbraked trailer with my motor club kit on board, you certainly have to adopt a different driving style when fully laden. It's amazing how heavy 60 big foot cones plus ancillary kit is!

I bought my 1.8Tsi new in April 2010 and traded it in after 56,000 enjoyable miles last week (ie 6 years) for a new 1.4 L&K - so I've gone for another Yeti despite the various annoying niggles with the first one. It's just such a good all round car, that does virtually everything I want a car to do. And I'm quite fussy!

Well, the new 1.4 L&K Yeti collected today and brought home. I'm rather impressed actually, though I've only done 6 miles in it so far. Seems quieter than previous one, but initial thoughts are that (I hope) it's very tight - there's not much go about it until the turbo spins up. Having said that, I shall be careful not to under-rev it for now as I've always thought that it's not good to put too much load on an engine early in its life. I'm certainly going to ignore the maxi-dot indicator that keeps telling me to change up.... It's saying I should be in 6th gear at 30mph ! Most "stuff" now put back into the car. New front flaps fitted (I specified rear's on the factory order) LED boot light installed, under bonnet sound mat clipped in place (the outer bonnet skin may be different on the F/L Yeti, but the inside has all the same mounting holes as the pre-F/L Yeti), L&K carpet mats replaced by the more durable rubber mats that I had in Yeti No 1. Negatives? They've changed the under floor boxes in the boot and some of my kit no longer fits in them. The upper box on the RHS doesn't sit properly in place because the lower box is about 5mm too tall for the space it sits in. Shock/horror - a craft knife soon sorted that. (The one in the showroom car was just the same). The new upper box is moulded to hold the detachable tow hook in place so it isn't merely a useful rectangular box any more. I nearly swapped it for the one out of my old Yeti, but I'll persevere. Not sure what all the other spaces are for though. The cubby in front of the gear lever is very much reduced in size thanks to the usb socket. Bit of a shame that! Otherwise all seems fine. Just need to fit the radio/light beacon power supplies and I'll be happy. Oh, and I'd better look at the manual to see what else I've not noticed yet!

Have you ever checked how much extra weight you cart around in your car all the time? Having stripped out everything ready for Yeti No 1 to be part-ex'd tomorrow, I put everything in a large plastic crate. I nearly couldn't lift the thing, it was so heavy! And I thought there was nothing unnecessary in the car too! Mind you there's plenty of things that I like to have with me "just in case"....... fire extinguisher, first aid kit, hi-viz vest(s), and of course various bits of motorsport stuff that I do use from time to time and if they weren't kept in the car I'd forget to take 'em to the next event! Roll on 2pm tomorrow. Then I can start putting it all back in Yeti No 2 !

Aldi or your local Pound Shop can be your friend each autumn!

Once the car is built and cleared for shipping from the factory, your dealer should know almost exactly where it is... They will know each stage of : when it's reached Port of Emden, if it's been cleared for loading on a ship, whether it's arrived in Goole, and if a transporter has been allocated to bring it to the dealer and finally an ETA at the dealers premises. The latter is very important for the dealer as they need to have space for up to 12 cars per transporter! It means a bit of work for the dealer, but they have access to a similar system that VW's customers have to track the progress of their new car.

Isn't the reason that LED rear lights have been introduced and are standard in some markets, (as fitted to the L&K in the UK) because some countries require the rear lights to be on all the time, rather than just the front DRL's as in the UK? By using LED's the lamps last many times longer and use less power than traditional incandescent bulbs.

Is this issue still occurring on more recent Yetis or is it just pre-facelift vehicles? If I trawled through the last 4 pages, I might eventually find the answer, but not everyone says how old their affected car is. (I'm pleased to say that my early 2010 car is thankfully completely free of paint faults, other than a few paint chips that I've touched up as soon as possible after they occur, mostly on the leading edge of the bonnet).