Unacceptable practice by Skoda

[rich17865]

Have you personally had such a tyre repaired? Bit hard to if every tyre place is saying they wont repair. They also can only repair IF they have the correct stuff to fully remove the gunk from the tyre.

But everywhere on the net says to replace a tyre that's been inflated using such a product.

Yes I have, warm water is used to remove it. Go to your friendly local tyre company, support local business and stop supporting those big companies who lie to you and are rubbish and expensive.

The reason people recommend that the tyre is replaced is because people drive too far on the repair at the wrong pressure and could damage the tyre, so they recommend that you replace it so if it breaks up you cant sue them.

[moley]

The real problem with not suppling a spare wheel in new cars is that more & more car makers are going down this route and eventually it will become normal practice.

One of my daughters owned a Honda Civic, the side wall split & the tyre weld repair kit won't fix that, so instead of half an hour messing around to change the wheel a recovery truck takes it to the garage to replace the tyre the next day.

As motorists we should be lobbing our MP's, SMMT, RAC & AA etc to make it a requirement that cars are supplied with spare wheels in the UK and reverse this trend of no spare or jack supplied.

It won't be possible in all cars as a friend of mine owned a Lotus Elise, which has different size wheels front & back & no room for a spare.

On the other hand there is an opportunity for someone to make a profit suppling spare wheels & tools as an after market business.

[rich17865]

Lobbying MP's? The SMMT? AA? RAC? What next protests outside number 10?

Manufacturers are doing it to cut costs, they are all doing it, so better get used to it.

Enough is enough now, its only a chuffing spare wheel.

People are needlessly dying from starvation, war, illness and so on, if only us Brits would pay a bit more attention to things like that and a little less on niff naff and triv like this, maybe the world would be a better place?

Has nobody seen the price of fuel lately? lol

[vRS Carl]

I reckon it's all a conspiracy by the Government, the Manufacturers and Tyre companies

Government wants to reduce carbon footprint so gets on back of manufacturers.

Manufacturers to appease government & because tyre companies have offered to give a cut of profits back to Manufacturers, produce some bull crap that removing sparewheel stops polar ice caps melting. When really it saves them a fortune for not having to pay for Jacks, Handles, Spare wheels & Tyres.

Tyre Companies offer Manufacturers 10% of profit of replacing Tyres insisting that Tyre Weld means replacing tyre (they are currently conducting a black ops smear campaign on the use of Warm Soapy Water)

Everyone is happy except joe public and just to really kick us in the Nuts the Government put Road Tax up because everyone is calling out Roadside Assistance to replace spare Tyres thus upping the Carbon footprint because of all the Transit vans being needed to replace Said tyres

IT'S ALL A CONSPIRACY PEOPLE

:D:D:D:D

Carl:thumbup:

[72degrees]

The real problem with not suppling a spare wheel in new cars is that more & more car makers are going down this route and eventually it will become normal practice.

On the other hand there is an opportunity for someone to make a profit suppling spare wheels & tools as an after market business.

Seems to be the trend. I suspect saving weight may be a reason as well as cost cutting. The Mazda 6 I just replaced my Octavia with (see other posting) has no spare wheel. Even a space saver would be better than the foam and pump kit. There is room for one, but the space has been used for a moulding with a storage area. At least it still has a jack and wheel brace.

[moley]

A simple solution to this issue is for the manufacturers to offer a spare wheel kit as an optional extra for those who would prefer it, a least you could haggle on the price when ordering a new car.

The original post was to complain that when the car was ordered the brochure quote a spare wheel, when the car arrived there was no spare wheel. It's a bit like booking a holiday at a hotel with a swimming pool and arriving to find there is a pool, but there's no water in it.

[eccleshill]

Apologies for the rant, but miserable, stuck in their ways, unrealistic, moaning and down right stubborn arrogant shouty people get on my wick.

The pot calling the kettle black methinks!

The OP has a valid point - he ordered his car expecting a spare wheel as per the brochure. cheesemonkai (sp?) makes a valid point that the brochure caveat of "specification subject to change without notice" isn't worth the paper it's written on. If it were then where would it stop? In theory Skoda could decide to rebadge the Fabia as Octavia and supply that as a "specification change".

The limit of this statement is to confirm that the brochure does not in itself constitute a contract.

BUT the order placed by the OP was a contract based on the specification supplied by the dealer to the OP in the form of a brochure. At that point the brochure formed part of the contract and that contract has been breached.

[Car 67]

I reckon it's all a conspiracy by the Government, the Manufacturers and Tyre companies

Government wants to reduce carbon footprint so gets on back of manufacturers.

Manufacturers to appease government & because tyre companies have offered to give a cut of profits back to Manufacturers, produce some bull crap that removing sparewheel stops polar ice caps melting. When really it saves them a fortune for not having to pay for Jacks, Handles, Spare wheels & Tyres.

Tyre Companies offer Manufacturers 10% of profit of replacing Tyres insisting that Tyre Weld means replacing tyre (they are currently conducting a black ops smear campaign on the use of Warm Soapy Water)

Everyone is happy except joe public and just to really kick us in the Nuts the Government put Road Tax up because everyone is calling out Roadside Assistance to replace spare Tyres thus upping the Carbon footprint because of all the Transit vans being needed to replace Said tyres

IT'S ALL A CONSPIRACY PEOPLE

:D:D:D:D

Carl:thumbup:

We use T5s not Transits;)

[Car 67]

I think we're all doomed and should move back into caves and re-invent the wheel.

(or spare wheel anyway):rofl:

[vRS Carl]

Roadside recovery in a T5 :eek:

I know volvos are big but you won't get anywhere near the kit you get in a Van plus think of the fuel bill :P

Carl:thumbup:

[gregozedobe]

We use T5s not Transits;)

Roadside recovery in a T5 :eek:

I know volvos are big but you won't get anywhere near the kit you get in a Van plus think of the fuel bill :P

It's possible that Car67 is referring to a VW T5 Transporter van (like mine), rather than a Vovo T5 (car)

For the record, when I collected my Octy vRS, I not only checked that the spare was present and correct, I also checked that the supplied security socket fitted the bolts on all 4 wheels too (before I took it for a short test drive). Only then did I hand over my hard earned dollars ! The salesman was mildly amused at my throughness, but not at all put out (by then he knew what I was like).

PS Can we all agree to be a bit nicer to each other from now on, this thread feels like it has taken a bit of a detour down "aggro lane", not what I usually read here :thumbdwn:

[PumpeDuse]

I have 2 full size 16" vega alloy spares for mine. :rotz::rotz: happy days.

[Car 67]

Roadside recovery in a T5 :eek:

I know volvos are big but you won't get anywhere near the kit you get in a Van plus think of the fuel bill :P

Carl:thumbup:

DOH ! ! !

Sorry:O Should have put Transporter T5.

Before the Transporter T5, used Audi A6 Allroad Quattro for 5 years, really good but filling up with fuel every day upset the big cheeses, hence the promotion to the more efficient VW Transporter.

[vRS Carl]

It's possible that Car67 is referring to a VW T5 Transporter van (like mine), rather than a Vovo T5 (car)

DOH ! ! !

Sorry:O Should have put Transporter T5.

I knew what you were on about i was just being Sarcastic :rolleyes::D

Carl:thumbup:

[mr_awol]

HERE, spare wheel on offer (free)

Sorted. I should be in the UN me

[uncle bulgaria]

... brochure caveat of "specification subject to change without notice" isn't worth the paper it's written on. If it were then where would it stop? In theory Skoda could decide to rebadge the Fabia as Octavia and supply that as a "specification change".

The limit of this statement is to confirm that the brochure does not in itself constitute a contract.

BUT the order placed by the OP was a contract based on the specification supplied by the dealer to the OP in the form of a brochure. At that point the brochure formed part of the contract and that contract has been breached.

:thumbup:True to a point, the contract is with the supplying dealer, however anything not expressly written into the contract could be "subject to change". So if the OP did not have it expressly written into the contract about wanting the vehicle supplied with the full size spare, as "suggested" in the brochure, then... as far as contract law is concerned, it could be subject to change. If the belief in the accuracy of the brochure was to be taken as part of the contract, then again the law would uphold the "subject to change" statement, providing this was "reasonable". In other words, the vechicle didn't come with a spare, but an "alternative" (I know some don't like this alternative, but lets leave that for now!), would be seen as "reasonable". It would have been "unreasonable" however to simply not supply a spare. Where you might stand a chance, would be if you could show that you had raised the issue with the dealer and had "reasonable belief" that this part of the specification was not likely to change & was essential to your purchase. However once you sign a document to say that you have recieved the vehicle in a condition you are satisfied with, then you enter a whole new ball game! Top and bottom of this is that contract law is a mine field, but when faced with these sorts of issues, always try to seek a compromise. Be assertive, but sincere and there is usually a way forwards.

Anyone buying a vehicle should read all the blurb on the back of the contract as there is a load of stuff on there that hardly anyone reads, that covers issues to do with what the contract does and doesn't cover. Issues to do with what happens if the specification changes or if the vehicle isn't as ordered tend to be in here.

With regards to calling Fabias Octavias, don't joke this kind of thing has happened ! A good few years ago Ford stopped selling the Orion as a separate model, and simply re-badged it as an Escort. Now you could say that this was still the same car but with a different badge, but people who had ordered Orions on their contract got Escorts supplied instead! For a while dealers offered to swap the badges back if customers wanted it. However the log book of course still showed it was an Escort! My mate worked at a Ford dealers at the time, and will tell anyone (over a pint!) about the customer who sucessfully rejected his new car on this basis!

I'm afraid that it is still a case of "buyer beware", but if these issues do arise and you can't get a compromise, then step back, and seek advice about your rights as a consumer before you embark on any further course of action. It may save you a lot of grief in the long run

[Johndad]

Re my comments on tuning the radio

this comment in the original post seems to have been missed by most of you.

All i was trying to do was offer some practical advice to a fellow member (who seems to have gone very quiet) who was having problems isnt that one of the reason this forum exists?.

[Jules59]

Some people seem to have more punctures than others. We live in a rural area and seem to had more than our fair share of punctures over the years from nails and other sharp objects dropped in the road from trailers and trucks etc. Found this in the road outside house last week.

On another note, whilst I understand why manufacturers are doing away with spares, personally I dont like it. Ive had far more punctures than mechanical breakdowns in 33 years of driving. In fact in the last 10 years we've have had 4 Freelanders and 2 Skodas and 1 Matiz - none have ever broken down but I think collectively we have had at least 4 punctures.

So I think a breakdown due to a puncture is more likely than any other cause of stopping.

What happens if you are trying to get somewhere with a deadline several hundred miles away - eg airport, ferry, wedding etc. Id rather spend 10 minutes changing my puncture for a good tyre than waiting around an unknown amount of time for a tow truck to take me, my passengers and all my gear to where we are going. Also assuming you can manage to inflate your tyre with the goo stuff , I believe you are then rather limited in distance you can travel - which sounds very inconvenient.

So I'll still be looking for cars with spares tyres - although it sounds I may find availability deminishing in the future.

Oh well back to my old series 2 with the spare on the bonnet.

[lordsummit]

Last 3 times I've had to deal with a puncture, I've had to get the AA out anyway. Alloy wheels seem to weld themselves to the hubs remarkably effectively

[David 8]

Last 3 times I've had to deal with a puncture, I've had to get the AA out anyway. Alloy wheels seem to weld themselves to the hubs remarkably effectively

Slighlty OT but if you apply copperslip to the hub face it will stop this happening :D

[MAPGO]

'Subject to change without notice' - if this was applied to the entire purchase surely what the dealer supplied could be entirely different than what was ordered (and in contravention to the sales of goods legislation) :confused:

[Jigger72]

Re my comments on tuning the radio

this comment in the original post seems to have been missed by most of you.

All i was trying to do was offer some practical advice to a fellow member (who seems to have gone very quiet) who was having problems isnt that one of the reason this forum exists?.

That was me. Sorry I had indeed missed the radio question in all the hubub about the spare wheel so I thought you were just randomly talking about a completely different thread or something

My humble apologies

You're right though, the OP has gone quiet. Maybe he blew a gasket and is just off the road for a while

[dan_the_v8man]

Slighlty OT but if you apply copperslip to the hub face it will stop this happening :D

or when it does and your stuck in the middle of no where, **** on the floor, foot on either side of the tyre and keep rocking it, you'd be suprised how easily a seemingly stuck wheel will come off with that method and no tools required

[Gillywibble]

**** on the floor:)

I can see that helping

[MED vRS.]

Lets be honest, how many people, when picking up a car from a dealer, whever its a new or used, goes and checks there is a spare tyre in place........

Ive never done it, and im sure not many others have either. But im sure someone on here will have...:(

And what would you call them.............:weeping: