Hi guys & gals,

be gentle as I know very little about Skoda(cars & brand) but have a question or two regarding the optional extras on a new Octavia Scout.

My wife and I have pretty much made our mind up to buy a new 1.8 petrol scout. Petrol for mileage reasons, scout for it's practicality.

Anyway, we haven't got to the point of agreeing prices with any particular dealer, not sure how flexible the dealers are up here, previous posts would suggest they are not. I am going to take a print out from 'Drive the Deal' and see where it get me, you never know?

Before getting to agreeing money terms, I have to figure out what extras(if any) I'm getting.

I'm going to go for the polishe proteus alloys, seen some nice pics here and worth the difference I think,

Was thinking of upgrading the steering wheel to one with controls as I'm led to believe the stock steering wheel has no controls whatsoever? Online it lists 2 options, first is £245 and says it's for audio and maxi-dot, second is for audio, telephone with bluetooth and maxi-dot at £575. My question is, regardless of which steering wheel I go for do I have to buy the maxi dot option as well (at £130), and while we're at it, what exactly is maxi-dot? One dealer said it was basically a trip computer but I thought nearly all new cars had that as standard, my 6 year old renault certainly has! Does the multi function steering wheel also control/set the cruise control or is this only achieved by the indicator stalks?

Is there any other factory fitted options I should consider at this point? Thinking about the electric sun roof but in my experience, given time, they WILL leak, anyone have problems with Skoda sun roofs?

Thanks in advance for any constructive advice or opinions, I'm sure I'll be back soon with more questions!

I can't fully answer your questions but I may as well add the limited knowledge that I have!

The Maxi-dot is indeed just a trip computer. The car comes as standard with a trip computer with the usual features (avg mpg, speed etc) but the maxi-dot one has a nicer, larger display and can be used to set other features of the car such as the anti-hijack locks etc. Someone who actually has one will be along in a minute to explain in more detail I'm sure but the general consensus is that it's definitely worth the £130 or whatever it costs.

In terms of dealers, I see you are in Edinburgh. In my experience Chathams in Edinburgh will tell you to get knotted if you try and haggle anything off the VAT free price. I don't even bother trying them anymore.

West End garage in Boxburn/Uphall will also tell you that they cannot discount the car but if you have a part-ex they will more than likely give you a good deal on that in order to get you a competitive price-to-change. Stuart there is also very pleasant to deal with.

I have ordered my Octavia from Chathams in Dunfermlne. Armed with the Drive the deal price I (after a fair bit of haggling) managed to get the salesman (Donald King) to knock a reasonable chunk off the VAT free price.

I agreed a price with him, took it to Stuart at west end, he beat that by £100 or so and I took that price back to Donald who beat that by a further couple of hundred. A very pleasant buying experience if I'm honest. I have had dealings with another salesman there a few years ago and he wasn't so pleasant but if you ask for Donald you'll be fine.

Good luck with the purchase, you've made a fine choice

Firstly the Scouts a great car so a good choice.

Maxi dot comes with the steering wheel upgrade & is a bit more than a trip, gives averages, time driven oil temp etc but also has a sub menu allowing a few other things to be changed, how long the lights stay on for when you lock the car , you can adjust Xenon lights if you add them for foreign travel etc etc etc. Someone will be along soon I hope with a far better explanation.

re extras I would def add the full size spare, without it you just get a can of squirt & not even a jack

We added the split level boot floor, Xenons, & Alcantara trim.

Price wise some dealers will match DTD, you might just have to travel a few miles to find them

This might be worth a read

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/147872-fl-maxidotnon-maxidot-with-pics/page__hl__maxi%20dot

Firstly the Scouts a great car so a good choice.

Maxi dot comes with the steering wheel upgrade & is a bit more than a trip, gives averages, time driven oil temp etc but also has a sub menu allowing a few other things to be changed, how long the lights stay on for when you lock the car , you can adjust Xenon lights if you add them for foreign travel etc etc etc. Someone will be along soon I hope with a far better explanation.

re extras I would def add the full size spare, without it you just get a can of squirt & not even a jack

We added the split level boot floor, Xenons, & Alcantara trim.

Price wise some dealers will match DTD, you might just have to travel a few miles to find them

Hi Stuart,

How long have you had the scout, I am only asking becouse I too was looking at buying one but having read about wheeel alignment issues on the octavia and the wear in tryres after a year, and also the problems people are experiencing with cambelts and water pumps. I am now less than sure i want to.

Edited 4 February, 201115 yr by Alan W

Hi Stuart,

How long have you had the scout, I am only asking becouse I too was looking at buying one but having read about wheeel alignment issues on the octavia and the wear in tryres after a year, and also the problems people are experiencing with cambelts and water pumps. I am now less than sure i want to.

Had my 1.8 TSI Scout just over 1 year now, only 5000 miles on clock, can't tell you about tyre wear but mine perfect at the moment. The 1.8TSI engine is chain driven OHV so no need to worry about cambelt changes etc.

The car is a great drive and given a few "beans" it goes very well.

Yes, you will need a spare wheel , Maxidot with multifunction steering wheel (one package) Zenons, and maybe silver roof rails.

Enjoy.

Senior Scout

I have basic steering wheel which steers left and right and has a horn button

If buying new I would have opted for maxidot because it is much more than a trip computer (which is standard anyway) you can set all sort of options on locking and lights etc.

I did have problems with water coming in on my Mk1 Octavia sunroof and I am not missing the lack of sunroof in the Scout.

I would also suggest Chathams Fife as I have had bad experience with West End in Broxburn and Chathams Edinburgh seems expensive, for instance they were £100 more than Fife for same servicing.

All in all I'm sure you'll enjoy the Scout its a great car.

Hi Stuart,

How long have you had the scout, I am only asking becouse I too was looking at buying one but having read about wheeel alignment issues on the octavia and the wear in tryres after a year, and also the problems people are experiencing with cambelts and water pumps. I am now less than sure i want to.

We bought ours in May, 2.0 Tdi, currently showing just over 22000 miles, I think the front tyres probably have another 3-4000 before they are on the blocks (original Dunlops) Rears have a long way to go. There are no signs of uneven wear across the tyre or edges going threpenny bit shaped. The 4x4 has different running gear so it may just be a problem thats limited to a few of the 2WD cars

Re the other "horror stories" people only post with problems, happy people dont seem to post anything like as much & lets face it these engines are used right across the VAG range so if there were massive problems they would have made the national press by now.

The Scout is a massivly under rated car, you wont regret getting one

Edited 4 February, 201115 yr by Stuart_J

Maxi dot comes with the steering wheel upgrade

Stuart, are you pretty sure the maxi-dot comes with the wheel upgrade? I only asked as I had a brief discussion with one of the many salesman I spoke to, he wasn't entirely sure and said he would need to clarify, the cynic in me thought he was trying to wangle more money out of me.

The brochure says the maxi-dot upgrade is £130RRP, the 4 spoke multi function wheel for radio and maxi-dot is £245RRP, it says online and in the brochure it is 'FOR' the maxi-dot, not that it comes with it also. So, going by those figures, the wheel itself is only an extra £115 which seems a bit low to me?

If it does indeed come with the maxi-dot then that seems a pretty decent deal?!?

I ordered my 2.0TDi PD at the end of March 2010 and received it in July. I have previously owned a Nissan Primera (fantastic ride and handling, massively underpowered) and a top of the range Honda Civic (fantastic engine and handling, abysmal ride) and I can truthfully state that the Scout is the best car that I have ever owned. I bought my car through a broker, so did not have much face time with a dealer. I specced it with front parking sensors, curtain airbag, full size spare wheel and tools and a rubber boot liner. I regret not specifying Maxidot as you can do so much with it. If you don't have Maxidot then it is a trip to a dealer or to a fellow Briskodian with VCDS to change the settings as you wish.

First Six Months of Ownership;

Be wary when opeing doors when car is wet, especially the rear. With the passenger doors the problem is that there is no guttering to channel the water away from the side. Whenever I wash the car, I ensure that I open the rear door s-l-o-w-l-y to give the water time to disperse.

I had the doors reprogrammed from the 1 key blip driver only, 2 key blips all doors open to 1 blip opens all doors by my local dealer, as it was seriously ticking me off and also had the doors automatically lock when driven above 10mph(15kph). The doors automatically unlock once you pull the key out the ignition, which is really useful, otherwise it is two pulls on the door pulls of EACH door to open the door or a press of the central locking button beside the handbrake. For the above items the dealer charged £35 or half an hours labour. I thought that a bit steep, but it is now 'fit and forget'. The dealer claimed he was unable to activate the 2nd rear fog light and the ability to activate the hazhards when you brake heavily, but I believe the latter happens automatically when you brake from a certain 'high' speed.

I have recently completed a journey of nearly 500 miles and averaged 51.7mpg, this was via Road Trip Lite on my iFin. The trip computer on the car runs slightly optimistically, but in general gives a good account of itself. Generally, I am in the 40's, which is good enough for me, all things considered.

In the recent snows, the car gave a fairly good account of itself, I found disengaging the ESP(?) button on the fascia helped on compacted snow with ice underneath. This was with the original fit Dunlop SP 01's. I would maybe see if the dealer would exchange them for a tyre of your preference. I currently have Nokian WR g2 225/50/17 winter tyres on and they have transformed the cars handling in the snow. Make and model of tyres is down to personal preference, but I am very impressed with the performance of these tyres, although they are a little noisy. Plus it was the ONLY winter tyres available at the time.

There is a problem with 'sawtoothing' on the Octavia, but I believe it mainly affects the vRS. I had a good look at my Dunlop's when I replaced them with the Nokian, but could not find any evidence of this, though I have only done 4k on these tyres. Due to previous experience, I will eventually replace them with Continentals.

My main gripe about the Scout only affects diesel versions, as the dip stick is black, the same colour of the oil! Oh, I nearly forgot, I have recently noticed the 'veneer' of one of my alloys is bubbling so I think a trip to the dealer is on the cards.

Apart from that, the car is fantastic. Even SWMBO'd thinks it is the Mutts Nuts!

You won't regret buying the Scout, but in my opinion, you will regret not speccing Maxidot regardless of what steering wheel you choose! :clap:

I forgot to mention that the parking sensors can be a bind as much as a boon. Be wary of using a jetwash near them as I have had one of the front ones knocked out when using the pressure washer. It was replaced under warranty. When the car is wet, or it has been raining/snowing/icy they tend to indicate you have something directly in front of you and you get a continuous tone. Which is normally alleviated by wiping that particular sensor dry. In my experience it only appears to be the front sensors which give me grief. The standard fit rears have been (ahem!) sound!

Happy Scouting,

Fin

Edited 5 February, 201115 yr by Guest

Stuart, are you pretty sure the maxi-dot comes with the wheel upgrade? I only asked as I had a brief discussion with one of the many salesman I spoke to, he wasn't entirely sure and said he would need to clarify, the cynic in me thought he was trying to wangle more money out of me.

The brochure says the maxi-dot upgrade is £130RRP, the 4 spoke multi function wheel for radio and maxi-dot is £245RRP, it says online and in the brochure it is 'FOR' the maxi-dot, not that it comes with it also. So, going by those figures, the wheel itself is only an extra £115 which seems a bit low to me?

If it does indeed come with the maxi-dot then that seems a pretty decent deal?!?

If you go into the configure your car section and tick the 4 spoke wheel that says leather and maxidot then the option for just maxidot at £130 is greyed out so looks like it does come with the steering wheel.

Stuart, are you pretty sure the maxi-dot comes with the wheel upgrade? I only asked as I had a brief discussion with one of the many salesman I spoke to, he wasn't entirely sure and said he would need to clarify, the cynic in me thought he was trying to wangle more money out of me.

The brochure says the maxi-dot upgrade is £130RRP, the 4 spoke multi function wheel for radio and maxi-dot is £245RRP, it says online and in the brochure it is 'FOR' the maxi-dot, not that it comes with it also. So, going by those figures, the wheel itself is only an extra £115 which seems a bit low to me?

If it does indeed come with the maxi-dot then that seems a pretty decent deal?!?

We added the 4 spoke with radio etc & got maxi dot in May. I was scheptical like you & asked the dealer to confirm when we ordered as I was happy to pay the extra , he straight away assured me it did come with Maxi dot & thats how the car turned up. Your dealer should be able to check this is still the case & confirm. Its always better to have a dealer that checks rather than one who wings it, if you still are uncertain get it confirmed in writing on your order.

Another little Gem then was if you ordered the Alcantara trim you got electric memory seats, at least we only orderd Alcantara but it turned up with the leccy memory drivers seat, perhaps Skoda slipped up

If you are stuck on colour "Arctic Green" is quite nice, click this & scroll to the later pics http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=175071

Edited 5 February, 201115 yr by Stuart_J

My experience to date; hope it's relevant.

Car on order is 2.0 TDi Octavia Scout [spec: Anthracite, polished Proteus alloys, xenon headlights, silver roof rails, curtain airbags, alcantara upholstery, sunroof (for light in the winter), space saver spare wheel, leather multi-function wheel with maxidot, electric memory seat & folding mirrors (there was a discrepancy between DtD's website and the Skoda website concerning the cost of Alcantara & elecrtic seats which I bottomed out before ordering)]

I tried various dealers but the closest any could get to Drive the Deal was almost £1300 more expensive, and despite wanting to go local my head won the day. Actually, some dealers wouldn't even quote, some refused to budge on list price (less VAT which was the offer at the time), and others just didn't reply; although a couple were honest and gave good advice so all in all I had a mixed experience.

I ordered the car via Drive the Deal on 22nd Nov 2010 knowing there was a predicted 26 week (6 month) lead time. The order was passed to the Skoda dealer who took the £1000 deposit and placed the order. It took about 8 weeks to get an estimated build week; in my case it turned out to be week 19 (1st week in May 2011) and if I factored in 3 weeks to get from the factory to the dealer that made it about the end of May. If all goes to plan that will be six months from ordering which is what I expected.

However, I did ring up the dealer yesterday (just checking, couldn't help it, the control freak was taking over) and my order wasn't visible on the system. It was explained that on Thursdays and Fridays the factory tend to shuffle orders around and checking earlier in the week would be better. I have no reason to doubt what I was told and will ring again Monday or Tuesday.

I have no doubt the factory are doing their best to produce the cars as best they can in the face of a bulging order book, some people will win and some will lose, but it's not personal. As long as the car isn't massively over the 26 weeks I'll be fine.

Worrying and getting all worked up isn't going to make my car appear any earlier so I'll just let them get on with it; they are the experts after all

Oh, I nearly forgot, I have recently noticed the 'veneer' of one of my alloys is bubbling so I think a trip to the dealer is on the cards.

Get used to it...

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/123460-halting-alloy-wheel-lacquer-delamination/

Despite being a problem for many years Skoda don't appear to have improved their quality.