Dear friends, hard to find proper info about my car's maintenance. The whole system seems to me very friendly but a bit opaque. I guess I would be perfectly happy if I didn't care too much about money, but I have a Skoda just because I do.

I bought this approved used car, 9 months ago 5yo/50k at the time. It had 6y/72k Skoda Retailer Approved Warraty. I also took a service plan of 2 services within 2 years with 2 MOTs guaranteed up to £750; the plan costed £300.

Two weeks ago I went for the second service at 65k (they said the 70k service).

While the car is fine, I wanted to fix some minor problems but the waranty info seems poor, and eventually all of them turn out somehow to be payable!

I like to play by the rules. Please help me figure out wether I'm either naive or perhaps unreasonable. BTW, you can skip the list, there's an interesting thing at the end.

Warranty book says:

[...] covers almost all mechanical and electrical components of your vehicle [...] There are some components, such as service items, which are specifically not covered and these are listed in detail below.

All prices below are VAT exclusive (add +20%):

So let's see:

1. Faulty seat-belt buckle sensor - random annoying warnings when you drive! Had to fix it and paid £129

Warranty: "not covered [...] Interior trim including seats, seat belts and pre-tensioners."

Now all that was seat-belt was working fine. This was a faulty electric contact or a sensor - I can hardly consider it trim - or is it? However I paid for it as I had to replace it right away... you can't drive like that, it's very distracting.

2. "Handbrake guide" - the lid below the handbrake doesn't slide to follow handbrake when you pull it. Quote: £116.

Service rep said: "interior trim" - not covered

Is this "interior trim"? Actually what is "interior trim" - other that the definition in (1)?

I decided that this is aspect only, didn't really bother me, and won't pay to fix it.

3. "Rear washer jet blocked £17" + "Rear wiper motor damaged £148" = Quote: £165

Although I did unclog the jet a few times with a pin it keeps blocking periodically. They said this blockage pushed water into the motor. The motor gives signs of weaknes. I gues I will have to fix it.

Warranty book says: "Not included: Airbags, batteries, bulbs, exhaust systems, water ingress (including damage to covered parts caused by water), wiper blades, wheel balancing and alignment; wiring and wiring looms, wheels and tyres."

Now the motor is not damaged just by "water".... it is damaged by the jet that blocked, so another fault caused it to break.

I guess "water ingress" means if water came from outside such as leaving the windows open or driving through a lake, not when the car itself starts pouring water into electrical parts!

4. "Both door mirror glasses faulty" - Quote: £129

Come the cold weather I noticed mirrors don't quite heat up and it takes very long time to demist. I heard is a common problem on this model. Believe it or not it is NOT uncovered. So it has to be covered.

What can I do then? Pay £129 like a gentlemen or be rude and call the service again and say "really?"

So... with all these in mind I had a look at the Warranty certificate and called the nationwide Skoda customer service "for any questions".

They ask me about the reg - then they say - sorry sir, no warranty enquiries were made by your garrage.

- ok, so they qouted me on some items but I believe some of them may be covered by warranty, I have all the documents with me can you help me with a few questions?

- no, sir, service has to call us first, we cannot give you any answer unless the garrage contacts us.

- you mean I have to go to the garrage with the quotes and challange them?

- yes sir.

Then the akward call to the service:

- You know, I was wondering... handbrake guide...

- interior trim, not covered

- How about wiper motor?

- water ingress

- OK, then, how about the mirrors?

- I don't know! They don't seem to appear anywhere in the warranty!

- Yes, that's why I called you, you see, I cannot get any Warranty info from Skoda because they say you have to call them first!

- Hmm, OK, let me call the service manager and ask him!

They will probably get back to me when they have their answer.

On top of that I changed 2 front tires. Should have gone for kwik-fit. I was told they are some very good rebranded Continental tyres, however they were fuel E, water grip C, and noise 71db. They're not terrible, but won't help you too much when it's raining and you're in a hurry. For that price I could have gotten Michelin Energy Saver+ somewhere else, which last longer, are safer, more eficient, quieter...

Nevermind I bought them or not, the problem is the same as the warranty and the service:

- I have no ideea what they did at the service, there was some oil change but don't know about the filter, and why is 70k at 65k anyway? service book says there wasn't inspection... what can I expect for the next service?

- I have no ideea wether some faulty items are covered by warranty or not?

- I had to decide in 5 minutes if should I replace my worn tyres today without having any data about the products in stock

For those of you who are still awake, thank you for reading and looking forward for thoughts!

Edited 27 November, 201213 yr by rumburake

Wow! Sounds like the stuff of nightmares.

1. Faulty sensor should have been replaced. It's not interior trim, it's a sensor. I'd aim for a refund.

2. No idea what this is but if it doesn't impede the handbrake operation and doesn't cause irritating rattles, then I'd probably live with it.

3. I doubt anyone would get this done under warranty, which still seems unfair. The usual excuse is 'You didn't use OEM Skoda spec screen wash' but if the car has a full Skoda dealer service history you would expect the washer fluid to be OEM spec, but then you would have to prove you haven't topped up with any non-OEM spec fluid. It's ridiculous, but that's the game they play.

4. If the mirrors don't work at all then surely this is a warranty issue. If they work a bit then maybe they're just crap mirrors and you have to live with it, but I have no experience of heated mirrors.

As for what's covered in each service, there should be a guide for each service interval in the handbook, and every service should include an inspection. The only real differences are the extra parts they're supposed to check and what fluids get replaced, i.e brake fluid every two years, cambelt changed every four years (I assume your cambelt was changed last year if the car is 5 years old?). Also, you should have had a receipt for the service, listing all the parts and fluids replaced, and what work was carried out?? If not, then go back and ask for one.

As you get more experience with your car and the dealer network you'll quickly find out that most of them are really just glorified sales outlets. Best off taking the car to a good VAG independent garage for half the price IMO.

The other thing to remember is that you don't have to get any work done at the Skoda dealer. They will suggest stuff but you're better off buying OEM parts online and getting an indy to do the work. Skoda dealers charge horrendous labour costs, and usually charge too much for parts that can be bought elsewhere. Same with tyres. Buy them online and get your local fitter to fit and balance for £10-15 per corner.

I'm not sure on the terms of your specific warranty, but most of the time, as long as you replace parts with OEM parts the warranty is still valid.

Stick with this site and go searching around. We're all helpful and there isn't much that hasn't been covered before.

I hope some of this helps