Servicing Intervals

[menacer]

Hi Guys,

Just got a Black Mark 2 Octavia ambiente, and its flipping lovley! (1.9 TDi), Question is...In order to keep the warranty valid I have to get it serviced at the correct milage/time etc. In the service schedule books it has been serviced at 14,886 miles and then at 30,152, it now has done 42,125, however when I read the manual etc it talks about variable servicing, ie the dashboard indicating when it has to be serviced, however is this the offical way of knowing the correct time to service it or is there somthing in the manual which ive missed?, or do i just ring up the garage to find out?

Thanks for your time,

Dave

[mannyo]

Thats variable servicing, the maximum time/distance between services is approx 18K miles or 2 years. Based on its previous services the next one will be due somewhere around 45K miles.

With the octy you can have fixed or variable servicing, they all come on variable from the factory.

[magic62]

Manual also tells you how to find out the time/miles you have left till service.

Get in the car, close the door, buckle up, and than turn ignition on. Dont start the engine! Now push the reset pin on the dashboard and hold it. You will see how the tripmeter goes to zero and than after a short moment it will indicate the rest mileage till service.

[menacer]

Ok magic, just done that, heres what came up...

first it said "3220" with a little spanner....then after about 5-7 seconds a second number appeared "404" with a little spanner again plus a little clock...

do you know what this means?

Thanks mate,

Dave

[mannyo]

Approx 3220 or 404 days, whichever occurs first. That is a max distance, it could be slightly less.

[gadgetman]

Whether you should be on fixed or variable based on your driving needs can be determined here - http://www.volkswagen.co.uk/owners/servicing/regimes

[menacer]

Thanks mannyo,

Question is..is this the official time to have it serviced? or is there any other way of indicating the next service?

gadgetman...I assume im already on variable and I want to stay on it after reading that link you just posted, what are the benifits and negetives of using a fixed servicing?

Dave

[gadgetman]

gadgetman...I assume im already on variable and I want to stay on it after reading that link you just posted, what are the benifits and negetives of using a fixed servicing?

Soi long as you do more than the mileage per trip/day, and exceed about 9k a year, then variable is fine. If all your journeys are short, driven hard or less than 9k you should be on fixed.

Sadly it's what the car wants/needs, not just your preference.

What is your usual driving style, mileages etc?

[menacer]

Sorry didnt realise your replied!

Anyway I drive around 16-18k per year due to my job. Driving style I take it easy somtimes give it a little push but nothing mad.

Another question I have, being new to all this, What is VAG? I assume its somthing to do with the platform of engines the octavia uses as well with VW, Audi and SEAT, so in other words just means common parts etc? Also what is ECU remapping?

Thanks for your time!

Dave

[BeakervRS]

Hello.

VAG means Volkswagen Automotive Group - which includes VW, Audi, Seat, and Skoda as the main core brands, and a lot of the platforms and drivetrains (engines etc) are all shared between these 4. Other brands included in VAG are Lamborgini, Bently, Porsche, and the HGV brand Scania. Although not 100% sure if Scania is still in the group or not. : :S

ECU remapping is a term used when the Engine ECU is "updated" with better software than what it came with from factory. Vehicles from factory are set to strict emissions laws and different quaility of fuels for lots of different countrys. Remapping the ECU can increase the performance of the engine and make it run better on the fairly high quaility of fuel we have of here - and still keep the engine within the reliability limits set from factory. If a car is poorly remapped it can also damage the engine or cause engine failure, so research is required to get the right one that suits you.

If any of these details are wrong, some one please feel free to correct me

Hope this helps

Ian