avi4tor

What I found disconcerting was the fine graduations on the fuel guage. It means you can see the needle moving a lot easier. Very disconcerting!

Service schedules. When I bought my car new last year, one of the managers bemoaned the fact that their workshops were always empty (because of the reliability of the cars). So when I received a text prompt 2 months before the service was due I ignored it - I assumed it was a standard dealer trick to get me to have the car serviced every 10 months instead of every 12 (that way they get an extra service charge out of me every 6 years). It is now 3 weeks before the service is due, still a little early but I this morning I decided to book it in. There is a 6 week lead time before they can fit it in (mid April). Strange, I wonder if they've downsized their workshop?

The last time I got a blade from Halfords they offered to fit it for me, for £5. I declined the offer. As you say, fitting it barely slowed me down between leaving the store and getting into the car.

Wow, what is the labour charge for checking and topping up the wash bottle? I dread to think of the charge for checking the air in the tyres and pumping them up, after all there are 4 of them!.

160 AUD is about £80 - I can get a set of blades for £30. Assuming main dealer mark up, £80 is probably the price for a set of arms and blades, though I could probably get them for less from third party suppliers. The roos haven't been having a go at them have they?

The radiator and fan were never mentioned when I had my second hand 2011 mkII 1.8 fitted with a tow bar. And I always used the owner's manual to determine the towing limits.

It depends on the age of the engine - if you are keeping the car for a long while then the diesel will 'age' quicker than the petrol. I did once try a diesel (Peugeot 405 GLDT) which I kept from new for over 100,000 miles, and after awhile whenever I engaged the turbo (aka a heavy right foot) I got a plume of oily smoke from the exhaust. I decided the pros of a diesel weren't worth it.

The tow bar electrics require a loom between the front of the car and the back. You can either have it installed at manufacture, or have all the trim ripped out and replaced to install it at a later date.

In my experience, I tend to use the windscreen wash when the spray from other traffic deposits dirt and salt over the windscreen. Of course, the headlights are always in the same state. Consequently having the headlight washers come on at the same time as I clean the windscreen seems to be a no-brainer. I remember commenting to the guy who maintained our company's pool cars that he needn't wash the cars due to the amount of rain we had had. His response was that the cars needed cleaning more than ever in wet weather.

Only take the power leads from the front to the back, not the data leads - you can't have additional media sources for the infotainment system.

The problem I have is that once a month the other keys that are on the same key ring manage to actuate the release for the mechanical key. Then when I remove the keys from my pocket the electronic bit drops on the ground. Fortunately it has always happened outside my own front door and I've heard it hitting the front step. I will be putting a bit of insulating tape over the release button.

With the Canbus controlling everything (and the fact that there is no ignition key) I'm not sure that you can guarantee anything in the fuse box having a switched supply. I had to trade up from my 12 year old MkII because of a parasitic current drain, and despite putting a microvolt meter over all the fuses I could not track it down.

I have a solar panel trickle charger - and having a 12v socket that stays live with the ignition off is very useful.

It happens ever since they stopped using asbestos in the pads. I use the accumulation as a reminder to wash the car. Car washes never do wheels very well - on the few occasions I've used them I always go over the car afterwards with a bucket of water and a sponge to clean the bits that were missed.

Whatever device you are currently using to read this - just take a look at the list of updates. You think they are all there for new features? No, they are there to correct errors. Do the software engineers ever say "That's it, we've cracked it, there need be no more updates". - Chance would be a fine thing. The more complex the software, the more errors. And you want to trust your life to it. God help you.

Not to mention the first Airbus flight where it was demonstrated to the airlines - the computer made sure it landed in a forest with disasterous consequences. i would prefer to fly with a pilot who was prepared to ignore the computer (bearing in mind that the pilot is an employee, not an owner, and is severely restricted in what they can do).

Re: pilots and doing things "by the book". Take a look at the aircraft that landed in The Hudson after a bird strike on take-off. The pilot followed the rules and ended up landing on the water. If he had ignored the rules he could have got back to the airfield. And yes, I have a pilot's licence. And there was the Airbus that had an engine blowout on take off. It needed to land immediately, but was too heavy due to excess fuel. The computer said "not possible". The pilot managed it anyway.

I would prefer it if everyone who thought they needed any of the 'assists' would just throw their car keys away and take the bus.

I'm surprised that wasn't picked up by a pre-delivery inspection.

Mine usually picks the background from either the radio station or the media file being played.

Interesting, they also include the seat belt cutter. You can get them on flea bay for less than £3 each.

No, you don't break the glass as an alternative to using the key - unless a situation arises when you really need to get out. I suspect mine will never be used, but if I need them then they will be available.

That doesn't fit with how I expect the start / stop to behave. For the engine to stop I need to be stationery, in neutral with the clutch up. As soon as I depress the clutch the engine fires up. The brake and accelerator don't come into it.

Apologies DragonFire, it looks like all the other posters are missing the point. Virtually everyone who drives mainly alone develops the habit of locking the car when they walk away from it without a backward glance. The fact that someone might be still in the car never crosses their mind. As such they are NOT going to disable the deadlock - if they realised someone was in the car they wouldn't have locked it in the first place. Personally I have two window breaking hammers in the car. These are primarily for my safety if the electronics fail and decide to try and keep me in the car, though I admit it would be a bit extreme to break the window if it just got a bit warm. The best solution for Skoda would be to have seat and / or internal motion sensors rigged to disable the deadlock if there was someone in the car at the instance of it being locked, though pet owners and parents with toddlers might want a different solution.

Mine also does it, but I'm waiting for it to stop raining before investigating - should be around late March next year.