Guys

I have a 61 plate Fabia 5 door hatch had it 1 year it is1.2TSI and it is a great wee car but when it rains heavely you cannot see out of the side mirrors for the rain streaming across the glass especialy the drivers side ,and when you use the washers to clear the front screen you get the drivers side window all streaky .Has anyone slse had the same complaint ,told the dealer and said never heard of it dont beleive surly i am not the only perso had this complaint .Would fitting a wind deflector resolve this issue .Have just taken this up with Skoda U-K and said not aware of it .It is driveing me mad to the point i just want to get rid of the car .

Brian

Happens on my car, and the other halfs '09 fabia... just poor aero design i imagine.

Some rain-x might help it stream off and not hang about.

Rain-x!

I actually use a cheaper version of it. Turtlewax rain repellent.

Phil

Rain-X and similar products.

My 2010 1.2Tsi has the same issues as described at post #1. I think it is a design flaw since non of my two previous Skodas had it (Octavia MK1 hatch and Fabia MK1 hatch).

im sure ive read on here that wind deflectors help a lot although i think they look naff so rain x it is for me to try

I have it on mine too. I have just lived with it, but it can be annoying when on the motorway and wanting a better view of the lane you are about to enter!

Bad aero design. It had been noted on one of the motoring shows when the model was first introduced.

These claim to fix the problem. http://www.superskoda.com/skoda/fabia-ii/skoda-fabia-ii-05-10-front-rear-windows-wind-rain-deflector-set

Note: this was raised on here ages ago http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/210684-wind-deflectors-in-rain/

Martin

Rain-x!

I actually use a cheaper version of it. Turtlewax rain repellent.

Phil

+1 really works well

Happens to an extent on most cars - even on the Superb.

Any form of rain repellant will help be it GTechniq, RainX, Aquapel, Turtlewax.

Deflectors stop well for me they have. I brought a set because of this and living in scotland get alot of rain so this is perfect. Not too much bother to fit either

Noticed it for the first time the other day whilst motorway driving in heavy rain. Really obscures the wing mirrors. Will definately try the turtlewax treatment or rain x. Excuse my ignorence, but do it apply it to the windscreen or the side windows (or both)?

Cheers

It works great on windscreens normally.

but some wiper blades are not happy with it, i do not use it on a Fabia Windscreen.

On side windows i do 2 applications, and have changed to the other Rain Repellents after years of Rain-x use.

I also use Fog-X inside but its really meassed up my Windscreen inside,

reacted with what ever was on the screen & messy with the A/C. i need to get it cleaned off properly.

I did it yesterday with White Vinagar but was still streaked today and misted easilly.

george

It works great on windscreens normally.

but some wiper blades are not happy with it, i do not use it on a Fabia Windscreen.

.....

george

That's absolutely true. Of course water is moving upwards when moving above 50 km/h BUT wipers are producing a squeeking noise after a few minutes of wiping. Then I have to use windscreen washers to pour some water with "soap" over it to keep my wipers quite unfortunatelly for few minutes and so on.

Thanks for a quick responce very much appreciated .Gives me a bit off ammunition when i talk to Skoda again as they deny any design fault andsaid they have never heard of this problem .Have used rainex on previous cars on the wind screen before and works great the faster you go the clearer the screen becomes.

I have not tried it on the side windows yet ,to be honest should not have to do it it is clearly a design issue ,will push them to see if they will cover the cost on wind deflecters .will inform you off any outcome .

Brian

Welcome to the forum.

I do think you are having a laugh, but if you never ask you never get.

The Fabia MK2 is not much longer for this world as a mK3 can not be far away.

2007-2013 and i have never seen that many Sidewindows get dirty comments.

I only find the Dirty sidewindow to be a Winter salted road thing and thats spray from other vehicles i believe.

Or in very stormy weather.

Easy peasy to give the side windows a clean before or during a trip if not freezing weather.

Passing through main Glasgow roads in winter certainly is where my car gets dirtiest of all.

good luck with your dealer.

george

I will certinatly ask beleive me .It is clearly a design fault traveling on a motor way at 70 in heavy rain and not being able to see out of your wing mirror is no laughing matter . I have had and it is still in the family a L&K Octavia 02 and it is the best car i have had for reliability hence on retirement bought the Fabia it has not given me the satisfaction and pleasure of the previous one .Even using the wipers to clear the front screen leaves streaks all over the passengers side window it really bugs me .

Brian

I'm with George on this one. Not entirely sure what you're expecting from Skoda by complaining really? Just seems vexatious, they're hardly going to re-design your car for you!

Thanks for all you comments ..i do understand Skoda is not going to redesign the car . What i do not like is dealers/Skoda saying never heard of the complaint when clearly it is an issue by some of the comments of posts on this site, some may choice to accept it and i too may have to put up with it . .It is annoying and was just looking for a solution to a problen to an otherwise nice wee car perhaps the wind deflector would solve it .Waiting for Skoda to get back with an answer to my enquiry .

Brian

I would love to see that answer.

With George as well,

The MK2 Fabia has been in production for many years now. Until this thread, I have seen this issue maybe mentioned twice in all my years here. People may comment about it here at there, but in reality how much of an issue is to to them to have not mentioned it before and only mention it in passing.

My dad has a 2009 MK2 Fabia, which I regularly drive in all weathers and have seen the problem myself. However it was only in extremely heavy rain where driving about 50mph would have been dangerous. In those same conditions, my current 13 year old Audi and my previous Skoda Superb were exactly the same. In heavy rain all that water swept from the screen has to go somewhere and it goes over the roof mostly, but when there is a large volume of water it will go over the sides too.

I noticed within the first week that the spray onto the front windows from the mirrors was more prominent than my last car, however I would say it's far from dangerous and just one of those niggles to live with.

At first I thought this post was pretty ridiculous, but I drove through heavy sleety rain yesterday and the OP is right, the water streams off the screen right into the view of the mirrors, quite significantly obstructing the view. I'd never go so far as rejecting a car over it, but it is a slight aero design niggle. Never had it on any other car.

The same issue has been mentioned in the Roomster section, not a surprise as the front end of the cars are the same and the Rain-X solution was also mentioned there.

Same problem on the Roomster, I drilled an 8mm hole in the plastic scuttle (where there are some small slits for drainage) Doesn't cure the problem but it helps.

The problem only happens on drivers side because w/screen wiper is vertical at the end of it's stroke and is pushing more water than the drain holes can handle.

Now only a week into ownership I have a theory as to one reason this happens. Most new cars have a Deep recess either side of the screen to take up the excess while the wipers are in use. The Fabia has a shallow groove that is nowhere near as deep at the top. So like others have noted the water has to go somewhere...

On a slightly different point, Will the installation of wind deflectors stop you getting wet when you have the window cracked when its raining. I have never know a car like it for getting a wet arm. Even my Panda didn't allow as much water in as the Fabia does. I quite fancy some deflectors, are they easy to install yourself?

Edited 8 March, 201313 yr by 4matt