Ultrasonic

A scangauge would be cheaper, and better, than Maxidot: http://www.scangauge2.co.uk/

Yes, there are loads of colours you can choose from. I have one too, and use it in a car that has a maxidot as it gives me extra info. like engine load and temps, as well as being MUCH more accurate than the Maxidot for mpg data. There is also a data logging mode for people who want to measure 0-60 mph times and the like. They aren't cheap though, about £120 new.

Thanks for clearing up what the J means! mytyres don't actually specify this but presumably it is standard? Edit: actually as the tyres will come fitted I guess I don't really have to worry about the J bit!

Yesterday I was driving in torrential rain at 5°C in the south west of England. Conditions where winter tyres would definitely have been the safer option.

Yes, I'd be getting them with winter tyres. In fact I don't think you can buy them without tyres! It's the specific wheel size I just want to check.

Regarding my wheel size question I think I've found the answer in an online version of the Octavia II workshop manual. This appears to say that with 195/65 R15 91H/V tyres I can use either 6J wheels with a 47 mm offset, or 6.5J wheels with a 50 mm offset. Does this sound right? mytyres sell sets of 6J wheels so I'd like to go with this, but Skoda UK said 6.5J when I e-mailed them (I've e-mailed back to check the above this morning to see if they can clear it up).

Package arrived safely on Thursday but I was away so only got my hands on it last night. Fitting the grille block this morning was quick and easy. Product looks decent quality, exactly as in photos. Now to see if it does anything useful...

Have you checked out reviews for those Avon tyres? http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Avon/Ice-Touring-ST.htm 20th and 40th in the two proper tests isn't brilliant. These Continentals are pretty consistently best rated but they'll probably cost more. http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Continental/WinterContact-TS-850.htm The test results may give some other options worth considering? Very interested in your question btw as I'm considering steel wheels and tryres from mytyres too.

Hmmm... the bit of the manual for the Climatronic system in my car states: I've always taken this to mean that the AC compressor is off when the ECON button is pressed. What else could it mean? Checking the manual for a Mk III Octavia online I see the ECON button has been replaced by an AC button, but the principle appears the same? Although perhaps I'm missunderstanding what you mean by 'Always on'? I'm geniunely interested as in summer I do periodically run my AC specifically for the purpose of keeping the system healthy so I'd love to know if I'm wasting my time (and fuel) doing this!

Postage was 13 Euros (if you click on Add to basket this comes up automatically). I paid via Paypal and the total cost was £32.47. Probably not worth it purely financially but I'm curious to see if it does anything useful . I have a ScangaugeII so I've been paying attention to both water and intake air temps the last couple of days, so that when I do fit the grille block I know what is normal.

I'll post when I've (hopefully) received it if you want to be totally sure they're reliable. The UPS tracker currently shows that my package has made it from Poland into Germany.

Thanks for the eBay seller tip Mike, I'll check it out. As for the cost, the major part is the tyres. The best price I've found for the ones I want is £82 each, so £328 for 4. I plan to keep my car for a good few years yet or I wouldn't be considering this. Oh, and when I spoke to a main dealer their parts guy seemed to think they could sell me some 15" steel wheels for about £24 each but he's trying to confirm they are definitely suitable for my car. (This shouldn't be tricky but seems to be...)

Thanks for all the replies. I'm trying to make sure that whatever wheels I get are officially correct so that there are no issues with my insurance company. Getting the tyres right is easy (195/65 R15 91H), but I can't work out how critical the wheel width or offset are? Does anyone know what the 'J' of 6.5J stands for? I know the number is the width in inches. I realise second hand wheels would be cheaper, but I haven't seen any near to me, and I'd be a little unsure about buying them just in case there was any damage that mattered. I'd looked at mytyres just for the tyres I wanted and the price wasn't the best, but combined with wheels they have do them for ~£500, which I might go for.

I want to buy some 15" steel wheels for winter tyres. I phoned a main dealer at lunch time to try to at least find what they'd charge but I haven't had the promised call back yet. I'm guessing there are cheaper places to buy from though, any suggestions? Also, would anyone be able to tell me exactly what wheel size I'd need? My main wheels are 16" but according to Skoda UK I could use 15" 6.5J wheels and 195/65/91H tyres, which would be good as they are cheaper. Looking elsewhere I'm a little unsure if that should be 6.0 rather than 6.5, and I can't for the life of me find out what the J means! I think they need to be 5x112mm right? But I'm not sure about the centre bore or offset. Thanks for any help .

When you say 'even when A/C is off' are you including when the ECON button is pressed? I was under the impression this turned the compressor off, and that running with the car out of ECON mode to make it run the compressor periodically is advisable for the reasons that TsvRS mentioned? Oh, and I use the windscreen clear button, coupled with wiping the inside of the windscreen to help it along if there is a lot of condensation.

Ford have an active grille feature for the Focus which if it works it would be good if other manufacturers took up too (unless Ford have a patent I guess): The video only talks about improved aerodynamics, but I'm sure it will help warm up in winter too.

I ordered mine from the link you helpfully posted, thanks for that . (Order placed yesterday and already dispatched via UPS - they sent an e-mail with a reference to track the parcel.)

What product are you suggesting? The fuel filter heater?

My concern was that it was changing the appearance of the car. If some actuary had decided it did so in a way that theft of the vehicle would be more likely, then the insurance company may well want to know. Insurance is a strange business...

I've just checked with my insurance company (People's Choice) and they do not need to be notified of the addition of a grill block. They also surprisingly don't need to be notified if I change my 16" summer alloy wheels for 15" winter steel wheels, which surprised me. But I'm certainly not complaining . I've decided I'll give one of these Heko grill blocks a go.

Plus it isn't a legal requirement to use winter tyres like it is across much of Europe. There is additional cost involved and since everyone is used to making do with summer tyres, largely without obvious problems, the temptation is to keep doing so. That's pretty much where I'm at, and I have a greater interest in cars than most (though I'm far from a petrolhead!)

Think I prefer the 1st ones. I'm tempted by these for myself: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NARDO-16-SET-OF-4-QUALITY-WHEEL-TRIMS-HUB-CAPS-FREE-TRACKED-POST-/161104212873?pt=UK_Cars_Parts_Vehicles_Wheels_tyre_Trims_Trims_ET&hash=item25828f3389

Would it be better to coast less until the engine is warmed up then I wonder?

Well it is certainly a very visible change, and actually I do quite like the look of it (in the photos at least). Also, people who don't understand what it is could easily think it was purely cosmetic. But that isn't really the point either way - a mod is something that changes the car from the standard spec. I would hope an insurance company wouldn't charge for this, but reading my own insurance policy it's not at all obvious that this isn't something they would want notifying of. An air freshener is of course entirely different! I was planning to phone my insurance company tomorrow to enquire about changing to winter wheels and tyres, so I'll ask about a grill block while I'm at it.

Thanks for correcting me - I didn't realise that!