AMartinD

Once again, thanks to everyone who has replied to my original posting. I've just found the following item on eBay and have ordered one: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SKODA-SUPERB-II-08-15-GEAR-SHIFT-STICK-KNOB-6-SPEED-BLACK-3T0711113/323318773901?_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20160811114145%26meid%3D20b95a6b35364acc9485f5bb51d82dcd%26pid%3D100667%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D4%26mehot%3Dag%26sd%3D172319531018%26itm%3D323318773901%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D2334524&_trksid=p2334524.c100667.m2042 Although it's slightly more expensive than the Poland-sourced item mentioned by Othen it'll hopefully arrive here a bit sooner (although there's no guarantee of that with Royal Mail...!). The eBay posting states that the Reference OE/OEM Number is 3T0711113, 3T0711113TRYP but presumably that covers both the gaiter and the gearknob; there's nothing to indicate what the part number is for just the clip-in insert. When I receive the delivery from S2 Group Parts Ltd I'll try (carefully!) to remove the insert from the gearknob in preparation for swapping it for the faded one on my gearknob - just hope I don't end up breaking any of the clips on the replacement insert! -- Martin

Here's a pic of what the top of my gearknob currently looks like. As I'd previously described, the entire legend showing the gearshift pattern is much less clear than it should be, but what I hadn't noticed until I looked closely at the pic I took this morning is that there appears to be a black tab of some sort obscuring the figure 6 at the lower RHS. There's also a kind of a grey halo around almost all the part of the insert that shows the gearshift pattern, and the edge of the 'halo' looks far too smooth to be the result of wear - most odd! I think I need to try to remove the insert to see what's happened to it - does it just clip in, and hence can be prised out with a screwdriver blade? -- Martin

Thanks to all for the replies. I don't need reminding where the gears are when I'm driving - I think I've just about got the hang of them after almost 55yrs of driving experience... :-) The picture posted by Alan (Othen) shows exactly what I'm pretty sure my gearknob used to look like but now the entire white pattern is almost completely invisible, which is why I began to wonder if there was meant to be some form of back-illumination. What's odd is that the outer surface of the insert in the gearknob is not showing any signs whatsoever of damage, abrasion or wear, and I would have expected the white pattern to be on the inner surface anyway, so I don't believe the cause of the disappearing legend/pattern can be wear - it's almost as though the pattern has just faded away evenly and completely for some reason. I'll try to remember to take a photo of the gearknob in the next day or so and will post it on here. I'll see what I can find by way of replacement inserts, although it might be simpler just to try to find an entire gearknob from one of the dismantlers who advertise online. I'd like to restore the gearknob to looking like it should for when I intend to sell the car in a few months time. -- Martin

Here's a hopefully simple question - is the gearknob on a 2011 Superb Mk II Estate in Elegance trim (with manual-shift 6-speed box) supposed to be internally illuminated, to make the legend showing the gearshift pattern visible? I noticed quite some time ago that the legend on the gearknob on my car is almost completely invisible in normal daylight conditions; I haven't checked it after dark to see if the legend becomes illuminated when the headlights are switched on. I have a vague recollection of the legend being much more visible than it currently is even during the day, so I'm wondering if there's some form of internal illumination behind the legend that might have failed, as some of the surface-mounted LEDs that illuminate the dashboard instruments did several months ago. I asked my local independent VAG specialists if the gearknob is supposed to be illuminated and they didn't know, and there's no mention of gearknob illumination in any of the service/technical documentation I've got for my car, so I'm somewhat puzzled as to why the legend has become almost completely invisible! Anyone got any suggestions??!! Thanks in advance, -- Martin