iriches

This isn't how "exchange parts" are described on Skoda UK's own web pages: http://www.skoda.co.uk/default/aftersales/parts (and scroll right to the bottom) "All you have to do is take advantage of the range of ŠKODA genuine exchange parts. The range of works-reconditioned, but the same quality as new parts, includes gear boxes; engines, engine heads; clutch plates and thrust plates; injection pumps, jets; starters; alternators; drive lines; outer joint set; brake callipers; water pumps; turbochargers; catalysers; air weight meters and other parts." (my bold)

I know :-) The "long-term" resets every 100 driving hours or 10,000 km, whichever is reached first. Unless you never drive in a city, that will most likely be after 100 driving hours.

Firstly, unless you are doing the calculations yourself then it's a bit pointless to compare cars. The on-board computers all lie a bit - but the amount by which they lie can vary a lot. My Mk1 Octavia TDI regularly showed a long-term average of 58MPG on the trip computer, but had a true long-term average of 51MPG when I did the calculations myself. It was over-reading by some 14%. My Mk3 1.4TSI is showing a long-term average of 49MPG on the trip computer, and my true calculated average is around 47MPG - only a 4% difference! If i just went on what the trip computer told me I would think that the petrol (49MPG) was a lot worse than my old diesel (57MPG). Doing the maths myself shows it to be much closer (47MPG vs. 51 MPG). Secondly, manufacturers are continually optimising for the EU tests. I've looked at and analysed the user-reported figures on Honest Johns Real MPG site. My last analysis showed that models launched in 2002-2004 had user reported MPGs of 93% of the official value. For models launched in 2014/15 that was down to 78%. This means that a typical new car replacing an older one will not get as close to the official figures. On the specific question on Eco mode, my car is a manual and so does not have the freewheeling feature of DSG cars (and I hope you mean engine braking not breaking :-) ). For me, Eco mode does nothing that a careful right foot cannot achieve. I tried it once and never again. Finally - a personal opinion. You bought the 2.0-litre. Enjoy it. Why spend all that money then drive it slower than a 1.6 :-)

Nav update is DIY. http://updateportal.skoda-auto.com/ You will need your VIN, the original SD card with the map data on and a computer on which you can download the update and transfer it to the SD card. I have found it best if I copy the existing data from my SD card first as a backup, then delete it from the SD card before doing the update. Beware if you are using a Mac that they can sometimes leave behind odd files on the SD card which confuse the Amundsen unit.

I normally use voice control to switch navigation announcements on and off. Once they did not come back on, as you describe. The way I manages to fix it was to use voice control to turn them off (even though they were showing as on) and then use it again to turn them back on.

What works for one often doesn't for for another - but I've got my 1.4 TSI Elegance insured with Aviva via quotemehappy.com for £213. But I'm a 45-year old living in a pretty good area with full no claims. If you're 21 and living in a "will my car be there in the morning" area then £622 could be as good as it gets......

Built-in sat navs can typically make use of data from the wheel speed and steering angle sensors to provide pretty accurate dead reckoning for vehicle positioning while the satellite signal is lost.

If it is off to MK then I hope they also test it elsewhere. My MIB1 Amundsen unit in my 2014 1.4 TSI estate behaves flawlessly around MK. Never had a single drop-out, and I listen to DAB everyday commuting back and forth from Bedford. There is the Bow Brickhill transmitter on the outskirts of MK, so I'#m guessing signal strength is pretty good...... (Mind you - I can't remember a drop out anywhere else either - but on longer weekend runs I tend to listen to music from my SD card)

You should be able to find a list of the option codes, as per this link: http://igorweb.org/decoder/howto.html You can then type them in to get them de-coded here: http://igorweb.org/equidec.aspx

No. Nor has the 150PS version in the Octavia. The new Superb 1.4 TSI 150 does feature ACT.

It is definitely a belt. The renewal period is a trickier question to answer. On a VW UK page for the same engine family it says: "In the new generation of engines, Volkswagen was also able to make further significant reductions in internal friction. Take the example of the overhead camshafts (DOHC): the drive here is not by chain, rather by a single-stage, low-friction toothed belt drive with a 20 mm wide belt and load-reducing profiled belt wheels. Thanks to its high-end material specification, this toothed belt’s service life reliably spans the life of the entire vehicle. Actuation of the valve drive via roller cam followers and an anti-friction bearing for the high loads of the first camshaft bearing also lead to reduced friction resistances." (my bold) Ultimately Skoda UK can quote any change interval they like, and we as drivers can choose to ignore it if we so wish.........

The Mk3 2.0 TSI VRS uses the EA888 Gen 3 engine. The cams are chain driven. Note: Earlier versions of this engine do have some history of cam chain (or more accurately cam chain tensioner) failure, e.g. http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/266114-18tsi-and-20tsi-engine-failures/ I have not yet seen any reports of failure on a Gen 3 EA288 unit - but am prepared to be contradicted!

Coolant temp is an old-fashioned analogue gauge on the dashboard :-) It's on the left hand-side at the base of the tachometer.

No idea on the airbag light - but the other issue seems likely to be the turbo boost pressure sensor. A common fault on the 2.0 TDI VRS ,e.g. http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/379327-vrs-tdi-recall-campaign-boost-sensor/ http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/386629-9-month-old-vrs-eml-and-glow-plug-arrrghhh/

This engine (code name EA211) is *completely* different to the 1.4 TSI twincharger that developed a very bad reputation for oil consumption as well as the standard turbocharged EA111 unit that has seemingly suffered from a few cam chain failures and was most likely the one in the Leon you tried. The only link is that it's a VW unit of 1.4 litre capacity. The unit is too new to draw any reasonable inferences on long-term reliability - the oldest ones out there are probably not three years old yet. There have been no disaster stories yet that i have heard - and I looked for them before buying my own EA211 1.4 TSI-equipped car! No-one can guarantee a lack of long-term problems, but as far as I know there are no signs of them yet..........

It's German: Modular Infotainment Baukasten (~Modular Infotainment Platform in English)

One of the few. No < 2 year old 1.8TSIs for sale on Autotrader at the moment! When I was buying if they'd offered it in Elegance trim I would have been tempted, but L&K trim was just too expensive (and too brown).

Well...being a sad soul I just looked on the UK Autotrader site to get a sense of how many of each variant for Octavias <2 years old were available. Drum roll please..... 390 1.6 TDI (37%) 263 2.0 TDI (25%) 206 2.0 TDI vRS (20%) 106 1.4 TSI (10%) 63 2.0 TSI vRS (6%) 26 1.2 TSI (2%)

It could be that you have not moved the little tab to the "unlock" position, as mentioned by andyvee above.

Can you be a bit clearer as to what has gone wrong and what "no joy" means? Any ideas at what point the process is going wrong for you? The process is normally pretty robust. The main gotcha is for those using Apple machines. These tend to leave additional files on the SD card which can cause issues such as missing road names / details on the map.

Sorry - going off topic - but I'd love to hear more details on this if you actually witnessed it, as I always believed such reports were false urban legends, e.g. http://www.snopes.com/horrors/techno/radar.asp

Glad you got it working! It's helpful knowing that the "is it a valid Skoda SD Card" check hasn't changed from MIB1 to MIB2.

Remember that the Skoda cards are normally supplied with the write protect lock enabled. You'll need to flick it to the unlocked position before you can write to the card.

IIRC the 6.0GB file size is indeed correct for an MIB1 Amundsen. The MIB2 download is bigger. However - the system will ONLY accept data on a valid Skoda SD card. You cannot use any old SD Card you have lying around. It seems that (if I am correct) you have the SD card for an MIB2 unit but an MIB1 unit in the car that you are probably stuffed until you get the correct SD Card. You could try unpacking the files you have downloaded to the existing Skoda card you have, but it still probably won't work, and unless you restore the card to how it was some poor soul could end up with it after you've returned it and wonder why it doesn't work in their MIB2 unit... IMHO you need you Skoda dealer to give you the correct SD Card for an MIB1 Amundsen.

I may be wrong, but from my deciphering of the pics you've attached you have an MIB1 (e.g. old-style) head unit and an MIB2 (e.g. new-style) navigation SD card. That would explain it not working... If you put your VIN into http://updateportal.skoda-auto.com/ what does it say? How big is the download?