Just bought a Roomster (61 plate)

[SkodaETC]

I'm brand new to using forum sites so my apologies if I don't follow the protocol correctly. I've just bought a 2011 1.6 TDi CR (105ps) Roomie Scout - my first Skoda. I'm the second owner and my Roomie has done 12k miles.  I've always done most jobs on my previous cars but am by no means a mechanic. Judging by the topics and threads on this forum site there is a wealth of expertise out there and I would be most grateful for your help/advice. . Although my car looks immaculate, there any a few minor things I would like to sort out and would appreciate advice. These are; 

  1. The rear brake calipers are heavily oxidised and I would like to clean them up and paint them. Please can anyone advise on how to remove the oxide and what to paint them with?

 2. There is a 10mm dia. rubber pipe (empty, clean, open ended and pointing upwards) in the front right corner of the engine compartment. It doesn't seem to have detached from anything but can anyone suggest what the pipe might be?

3. The one thing I noticed when I took the car for a test drive was the fragile internal door handles. While this was not enough to put me off buying the car, I will always be aware of how flimsy they are. They are at odds with the high spec of the rest of the interior. The handles are a dark grey plastic (not chromed). Does anyone else have this type of handle and agree with me on their fragility? Also, is there any way they can be easliy replaced with more robust chrome ones?

I look forward to your responses.

Cheers.          

[eccleshill]

Welcome to the forum!

Regarding the interior handles - I think it is just perception.  The "robust chrome" ones in other models aren't metal at all - they are plastic covered in some kind of chrome plating.

Mine a black plastic and seem robust enough to me after 2 Octavias with the chrome ones.

[SkodaETC]

Cheers eccleshill thanks very much indeed for the welcome. I'll take on board what you say about the handles.

Regards

[Jonny5ive]

I'm not able to assist with any of your queries.

Nevertheless, welcome to the fold

[SkodaETC]

Cheers Jonny5ive, thanks for the welcome and I lokk forward to corresponding with you in the future.

[merseadog]

Welcome also from me .  Re 1. Yes they do look oxidised but I  don't know the cure. 2 No idea. 3. I have had 2 Roomsters  over  nearly 6 years, not known a problem with the internal door handles myself or , as I recall, on this forum

[dnlbwls]

welcome

[greenfieldboy]

1) Have a look in the Fabia and Octavia sections - vRS models have coloured calipers and there are several posts covering refurbishment of vRS ones or creating lookalikes. It goes without saying that whatever you use needs to be heat resistant and very carefully applied

2) No idea what this tube might be especially if it points upwards and is open - this would presumably encourage things to fall down it - presume you can't see where it goes? Has the car perhaps had a set of air horns at some time (unlikely I know)

3) You won't break the internal door handles, the door card will come off or the release mechanism will break first - my friends wife didn't understand 'anti-hijack' locking and when the passenger door wouldn't open last week she just pulled harder and harder instead of letting go and trying again. The door handle won I'm pleased to say! I let her off as I'd just brought them back from a beer festival

You can buy chrome covers which just clip on and make them look a bit more robust/classy - don't know how well they fit

[paully]

Welcome to the forum

[Robjon]

Welcome to the Forum.

 

Mine's the earlier 1.9TDI but I had a rummage under the bonnet anyway, just in case I could find a similar tube.

Sorry - nothing like it.

 

Regarding the door handles; I've had no problems with mine and I cannot recall any problems mentioned by others.  

They must be up to the job!

 

Enjoy your Roomster.

[bobspark]

I have a 57 1.9 TDI ,and battling away to bleed the clutch and adjust the gear cables, I noticed with the battery tray out ,a thick rubber tube coming from under it ,to take anything spilt in the tray away and down. If its by the battery this could be your mystery pipe. If so it needs to be pointing down not up.

 

All the best!

[SkodaETC]

Thanks to you all for your much appreciated welcomes. I must say that I greatly appreciate corresponding openly with like-minded people about all things Skoda. My wife's eyes just glaze over if I touch on the type of issues I raised in my initial post. I just love my Roomie and haven't felt like this about a car since my 20's. It's a delight to drive and I get a nice warm feeling inside when other drivers do a double take as though they can't believe it's a Skoda. The build quality and driving experience is second to none and I think it easily holds its own against most cars on the road today. During the honeymoon period with my Roomie I'm working on the fine detail just to get it as near perfect as I possibly can.

Thanks mersedog, greenfieldboy and Robjon about your comments re door handles. I'll try and source the chrome ones just to improve their appearance. Thanks also to bobspark for your comment about the mysterious rubber pipe. I think you are spot on about its function and have pointed the pipe downwards to drain anything away which may accumulate on the battery tray.

 

One question I would like to ask - can anyone recommend a reputable/reliable Skoda dealer in the northwest region? They may well all be excellent but I've been let down badly by main dealers of other car makes in the past and am a cautious customer. I don't mean to do Skoda dealerships a disservice but it's possible that some may be better than others and I would like to put the feelers out. I look forward to a response. 

Cheers  

[Robjon]

I've had mine four years now, and still consider it the best car I have ever owned.  With the possible exception of the Yeti, I can think of no other car I would rather own.

 

I, too have been let down badly by main dealers of other car makes and can understand your concern. Fortunately, I live within a stone's throw of an excellent Skoda main dealer.  I think you will find this section of the Forum helpful:

 

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/forum/73-skoda-dealers-in-the-north-west/

[nbramwel]

I use Alex Lawrie in Liverpool for my service work. As far as I can see, they do what they should at service time. They are also flexible on price. Just get a quote from an independent and ask them to match it. They have for me. All in all, can't fault them.