Oil usage in Fabia VRS

[MartynVRS]

Mine uses oil but now I'm doing 2000 miles a month It's using a lot less. I'm putting 3-400ml every month or so and only to mid way between both markers and only when warm. My main problem is fuel costs as pressing on I regularly do 30-32mpg. Yesterday (and probably tonight) I really wanted to get home quick. Over 50 miles I did 26mpg indicated :(

[DanGWoodhouse]

For me the yellow oil warning light would come on every 1000 miles or so. When I had a courtesy call from the dealership asking how the car was getting on I thought I would mention it and they invited me in to have the consumption test. I don't commute in mine so it only gets used for distance driving, a bit of fun now and then, and when I'm too embarrassed to be seen in my partners Fiat 500.

 

I wish I knew who the warranty company was but I have absolutely zero information on what is happening at the moment. SUK said they would call me today with their progress and they haven't, and I phoned the dealer earlier about having some new tyres fitted and they said they were due to call me later today so they would speak to me then, but they haven't either. I have no idea what the results of the consumption test were or anything regarding the future warranty of the engine etc as no-one has spoken to me about it. I have to keep phoning them and all I know is that it failed, warranty company not paying and now it has been ordered.

[vrskeith]

For me the yellow oil warning light would come on every 1000 miles or so. When I had a courtesy call from the dealership asking how the car was getting on I thought I would mention it and they invited me in to have the consumption test. I don't commute in mine so it only gets used for distance driving, a bit of fun now and then, and when I'm too embarrassed to be seen in my partners Fiat 500.

 

I wish I knew who the warranty company was but I have absolutely zero information on what is happening at the moment. SUK said they would call me today with their progress and they haven't, and I phoned the dealer earlier about having some new tyres fitted and they said they were due to call me later today so they would speak to me then, but they haven't either. I have no idea what the results of the consumption test were or anything regarding the future warranty of the engine etc as no-one has spoken to me about it. I have to keep phoning them and all I know is that it failed, warranty company not paying and now it has been ordered.

E-mail dealer for copy of the test results.

[Ootohere]

Re the Warranty.

 

Do you mean one you bought, or a Dealer Supplied when you bought the car.

 

A Extended Warranty usually requires a vehicle to have no known problems, and if you did not know buying a used car,

then thats one thing.

 

But in the First 3 Years of the Skoda UK Warranty, if they did Consumption Tests, Breather Mods, ECU Enhancements (Updates) 

in the 3 years,  then they knew.

 

They have to come clean, even if out of the Original Warranty.

'THEY STARTED SO THEY CAN FINISH',  they should have had the car fixed while in warranty.

If a Second engine is also faulty, then they know about the problem and it is their Manufacturing, Parts or Design.

 

If you get messes about, maybe get a similar Letter/Email like 'austenw90' off to

ALASDAIR STEWART,  BRAND DIRECTOR SKODA UK.

He should be a bit aware of Customers Problems with their vRS, and SKODA UK CUSTOMER SERVICES,.

[vxh26]

I really think Skoda should be putting an electronic dipstick in to these cars which could display the reading on the MFD. Whether or not they are 100% accurate is another matter but at least it will give the owner an indication of the oil level...

'Nail on Head'.   You have it sussed, how have they not, its costing them enough.!

What???  The more I read, the more confused I get :(

 

Are you suggesting that putting an electronic dipstick in the Fabia vRS would mean that drivers would get early warning of problems that would otherwise require replacement of the engine?  Surely the oil temperature reading in the MFD and the low oil pressure light should be adequate?

 

This is a genuine question, I was under the impression that the problems were due to more than just an inadequate oil level?

 

 

Incidentally, can one really buy a new Fabia vRS for £15,000 with a 5 year warranty?  I was under the impression that they started at over £17,000 and (seemingly quite sensibly from Skoda's perspective) only came with a three year warranty?

 

[austenw90]

I looked at the Abarth Punto Evo SuperSport before I got the Fabia. There are many reasons I didn't go for one but the main ones are...

Only comes with 3 doors

Poor driving position - same as the standard Punto which I find cramped.

Way over-priced!

Poor dealer network - I believe I am still barred from my nearest dealer due to a fall out when I had my MiTo...

I never drove one but can't imagine they are as nice as the Fabia.

[Ootohere]

vhx26,

You really should go and drive one.

& maybe after the test drive try the Dipping of the oil.

Before the Road Test dip it cold.

Ask the Salesperson how to check the Oil, see if they know how, many are clueless.

 

There is no inadequate oil level problem.  You can keep the oil topped up and thats that.

The problem is that some might accept 0.5 litres used in 621 miles,  many have,  most cars use little oil.

 

The main problem is engines drinking Oil at the like of 1 litre in 500 miles.

 

The cars cost what you can buy them for, not some Skoda RRP.

The 3 year standard warranty can be had and an optional extra 2 years when ordering at a good price.

Or on a Used car, you can buy a 2 year Extended Warranty.

 

The Maxidot displays the Oil Temperature if you set it to, or look at it.

THe engine can be 25% short of Oil and not show a higher Oil Temperature.

a Twincharger at UK National Speed limits is hardly being stretched when running correctly.

That how a plug/cylinder/coil can be misfiring and you might not even notice.

 

Here again are a list of potential problems from 2009-2014 as listed by REVO.,

not all resolved with the CTHE engine being introduced, which is obvious by CTHE engines that have been replaced.

[austenw90]

The only reason I suggest an electronic dipstick is to save the hassle of popping the bonnet and check it every other day. I had a 120d BMW from work a few years ago that I looked after for a little while, I thought it was a really handy feature.

[garyallen]

I phoned Skoda UK Customer Care Dept today and spoke to a very helpful member of staff.  He logged my complaint re heavy oil consumption (Fabia 2 VRS) and stated that the car would have to be tested by a Skoda dealer.  I asked him if he was aware of this problem in the VRS but he was somewhat unconvincing in his reply, merely stating that Skoda had not issued any recalls to deal with such a problem!!

 

I then contacted the nearest Skoda dealer who agreed that they could do the test but at a cost to me of £230.  In brief I would leave the car with them on a Monday morning, the car would be driven 300 miles through the week by the Service Manager or a Master Technician and the oil weighed at the end of the test.  I assume they drain the oil at the start so they can weigh the oil prior to commencing the test.  If a fault with the engine is diagnosed I wonder is the £230 refunded?

I am going to monitor the consumption for a further month before taking any decision on the test.  Also I want to establish if the Auto Protect Warranty might cover the problem - doubtful?

 

On a different matter I have ordered four Vredestein Ultrac Cento tyres to replace the current tyres; as soon as they are fitted I will report my early impressions.

[Binzie]

I had a revised crank case breather fitted today, second version I have had fitted 

 

They really dont want to replace my engine 

[DanGWoodhouse]

The car is one month outside of manufacturers warranty so is now on the extended warranty for used cars which came from the dealer. SUK phoned me at 16:55 just as I was leaving work and asked if the dealer had been in contact. I raised all my concerns yet again with them and they've asked me to put it all into an email and copies of all the work that I've had done. This should only be the fourth time or so I've had to explain it all. So that's tomorrow's job. I'm requesting a copy off all reports as part of that so I can actually get some solid answers. 

 

I asked why the warranty company wouldn't pay for it and their reasoning is that the engine is still working regardless of how much oil it is using and that they will only replace it if it fails. SUK are now paying for it themselves. I'll let you know the outcome when they're phoning back on Tuesday. Sadly it makes me want to sell the car but I just love it too much.

 

As for garyallen, I read a lot about the consumption test within the forum and many have said the car needs to do at least 600 miles to get a realistic measurement. That's what I had to do and the dealer wouldn't accept anything less but they did let me do the miles and then call them when it was ready to go back in.

[Big Sheep]

I then contacted the nearest Skoda dealer who agreed that they could do the test but at a cost to me of £230.  In brief I would leave the car with them on a Monday morning, the car would be driven 300 miles through the week by the Service Manager or a Master Technician and the oil weighed at the end of the test.  I assume they drain the oil at the start so they can weigh the oil prior to commencing the test.  If a fault with the engine is diagnosed I wonder is the £230 refunded?

I was able to drive the car myself for the oil consumption test over the course of a week. I wouldn't have been so happy to let the service staff drive it. The evidence seems to be that oil consumption will be worse if a number of short trips including stop start driving in traffic are driven (as my normal commute to work) rather than long distant runs at speed.

Anyway, it is important to make sure you know exactly how much oil you are using over the long term by keeping accurate records.