Niall

I've always done it by hand without issue before (this'll be the 6th year on winters from memory). I have already ordered a Torque Wrench to makes sure I don't wreck the replacements though!! I don't want that feeling of dread again!

Delete this the database is being screwy

So......... .....that moment when you have 3 alloys fitted and the lock nut key starts to chew on the last winter steel wheel Off to the local town garage on Tues to get it removed along with the other 3 (the key can't turn them now either). The metal used in the key looks pretty cheap, the star shaped style on the Mk2 scout were much better. (swapped the wheels without issue on the good lady's Fiesta today so I'm not a ham-fisted eejit........). Worked it out and the key changed 15 wheels before failing, not impressed is an understatement!! So do I get another set of OEM or something else more robust? Just needs to be compatible with the plastic nut overs and not have a key made of cheese! Thanks, Niall

My bad, can't remember all the specs of a car I no longer own!!

All very interesting, but not important in the real world. I had a Haldex 3 pre-facelift Scout and now a Haldex 5 4x4. I have never (touch wood) got stuck in either and I have been far from the beaten track on occasion. Ability to assess the conditions is paramount, the best off roading 4x4s can get defeated in a wet grass field on the wrong day. Always have an exit plan (never stop at the bottom of a hill, etc). I find the biggest limiting factor of where I'm prepared to go is ground clearance, not drivetrain concerns. Sure he gets stuck in the vid above driving at a wet, muddy, steep, slope on summer tyres, but try the same on hard dry earth or with better mud tyres and the result could have been different (though he would have grounded the belly if he had made it.....). When was the last time you drove at a cliff in a car? It's all compromise, but the Octavia can do more than you reasonably need and anything beyond that isn't really Estate Car territory, but it is a bonus that the car can do it. Niall

I should be 'bang on' at 19,860 on its 1st birthday (60k 3yr deal). Thankfully the 4x4s normally hold their value a little better, but I specced for selling on as much as for me. The only bugger was that I pushed the boat out a bit to make it a bit more Elegancey on the basis you couldn't get a 4x4 Elegance when I ordered, thinking that anyone wanting Elegance-like kit with 4x4 would be drawn to my car as you can't get it any other way. Then they brought out the 4x4 with Elegance spec 3 weeks before mine was delivered......... Still, provided I can roll my £3.5k deposit into the next one and keep the payments the same then the overall cost is the same as running a Scout into the ground over 6 years!

Hmmm. I must be showing my midthirtiesness, I like it! If you can spec the Rough Road Pack on the 4x4 Estate in the UK this time round I can see me going for one of these over another Octavia 4x4/Scout when my PCP runs out in January 2017. Niall

Does it have to be new? If it has to be a VAG petrol 4x4 Estate then obviously there's the A4 Avant with the 2.0l engine, otherwise a Subaru Legacy or 3 series xDrive? Niall

Just for you Silver....... ......please excuse the mess, can't be helped at this time of year. Just makes it even more of a sleeper!! Niall

PF Jones have one! It is made by Westfalia who make the OEM bars (as per the links above). I had a Westfalia detachable fitted to my RRP (raised height option) Mk3 4x4 by the dealer before collection. Not a problem and I'll be within a cm or so of your ride height. When detached the bar is completely invisible.

Even has the right picture!

What's wrong with the PF Jones link above? (Here's the expanded Scout choice) http://www.pfjones.co.uk/tow-bars/tow-bars-for-skoda/skoda-octavia-towbars/skoda-octavia-scout-towbars.html Clearly shows a Westfalia for 2007-2013 and a Westfalia for 2013+ Niall

Glad to see 205/60 is now an approved size. Got some for my Mk2 Scout in Autumn 2013 as a better match for 225/50 R17 than 205/55 R16. Only had them a few months before change was somewhat forced upon me, so running them on the Mk3 without issue (summer size is now 225/45). Interestingly my 4x4 with RRP ended up parked next to the dealers Mk3 Scout when in for its 20k service last week; on 205/60s there was almost no difference in ride height. Niall

Can you not put the broken card back in (it should match the profile of the retained piece), push really hard along the broken edge and hope it releases the spring part (as if normally removing a complete card). Then have a go again with a toothpick/hoover to remove the hopefully now loose piece?

Xenon's are great, no question, I had them on my Mk2 Scout which was an ex-demo, so had been liberally specced by the dealership I bought from. But...... ......they are expensive! Fine if you spec the car to keep for a long time, not so handy if you're planning to roll over your 3 year PCP and are speccing the car accordingly (i.e to maximise your get-out value against purchase price). Sure a Xenon equipped car is more attractive used so should sell before a non-Xenon version, but it isn't any more expensive in the 3yo used market all other things being equal. So are brighter headlights worth £333 a year I asked myself? No, was the answer! Niall

All the odds and ends are in an old rucsac under my VBF, seems to do the job fine. Everything else is loose (seat covers, tow rope, jump leads, load straps) and none of it slides around.

My long term average is establishing at around 46mpg now (trip computer) after 17,000 miles on the clock. This is much better than my previous Scout at the same mileage. However, I live near lots of twisty B-Roads, I have a fast 4wd car, and I enjoy driving....... ......long trips 'constrained' by flowing traffic sees a 50-52mpg average without too much trouble. Niall

So having initially played with Drive Mode when I got the car, I like many others, found myself simply leaving it in normal for 99% of the time on the basis that once your foot is in the carpet the acceleration is the same between Normal and Sport and when you're driving sensibly the economy is broadly the same between Eco and Normal. Though I do sometimes reach for Sport on a solo twisty B-Road blast as I prefer the heavier steering in that situation. So today whilst making progress on a blustery motorway I think I stumbled across a genuine use for the system! Car feeling slightly twitchy in gale force side winds? Engage Sport for heavier steering and settle down to a relaxed and efficient drive once more. Genius! Niall

Eventually....... Basically you wouldn't know it's there until the swan neck is fitted.

I've got the 'OEM' westfalia detachable fitted. When it's not on, you wouldn't know it was there! Having done bikes in a car and on a car (roof mounted and hatch mounted) I'm a firm believer that behind the car is best. (Also leaves the roof free for other toys.......) A trip with a bike on the roof and a trail bag, change of clothes and helmet in the boot was worse on fuel economy than 4 kayaks on the roof and a full to bursting car! Towbar racks FTW (as the kids say) Niall

Once you add power halfway through a corner in a 4wd car compared to a 2wd, there is no going back......... I got my Scout originally for off road reasons, but found that I really enjoyed the extra road holding for chewing up B-roads in a way not expected of an unassuming Estate car. (A formula improved with the lighter, tighter, slightly more powerful O3 I have now). Made it a no-brainer when it came to replacement. 13k miles in and the mpg is already better than the Scout (averaging 45-50mpg without trying, easily 55mpg+ if dawdling at 50mph behind traffic), so the mpg question probably depends on where you're coming from. (I would expect the 1.6 to be even better than the 2.0). Chuck on a set of winters and you will be unstoppable in all but the worst/deepest of snow, and if you are moving somewhere remote then you can't necessarily sit back, have a cup of tea, and wait till it's all blown over! Also bear in mind that 4x4 versions historically have held their value better, so depending how you pay for it and what you expect out the end of your ownership, it isn't necessarily 'just' an extra cost in the grand scheme of things. If it's itching you to go 4x4, I say do it, the Octy 4x4 is about as compromise-free a way of scratching that automotive itch; but I'm bias! Niall Oh, I'd probably spec the Rough Road Pack too for good measure.... Edit: Just noticed this is my 500th post - Gulp!

Looks familiar, location and colour! Will be sure to wave if our journeys ever cross!!

A red rag to a Bull! (kinda........)

No action shots, but here she is in her unwashed state yesterday. Gives you the general gist of how it all looks (better than 16s IMHO).

Not quite. They had another customer who wanted 16s on his Elegance and I wanted 17s on my SE, they simply joined the dots and did the swap at no cost to either myself or the other customer. Was obviously very pleased! Niall