Jesus. Who blind muppet passed that through PDI?!

I know. I initially thought the bumper flaw had been caused at the dealers but it's define toy under the lacquer. And thankfully I was thinking about getting the roof vinyl wrapped so was looking see where I get the edge to and noticed the flaws there.

Going to call the dealers now. Bye bye car.

That's a wreck, if its that bad on the outside now, whats it going to be like in a year or two with paint peeling off and rust. Not to mention the areas you cant see. When you come to sell it, they will pick up on all the repairs and assuming the worst!

Bugger just seen this - I'd reject it too. You pay a lot for a new car and it should be as close to perfect as possible.

Well I'm literally off the phone to the dealers.

They took it pretty well and to be honest I think they were expecting my to reject it after I spoke to them last night.

And in fact the have just emailed me as I'm typing confirming acknowledgement of me rejecting the car due to the paint faults.

They are going to contact Skoda UK and Skoda financial services on Monday and expect me to be asked to go into the dealers for a formal report to be compiled and other than that can't see any issues.

Fingers crossed. In the meantime I've to drive it like I've stolen it. Well that's not his exact words - he said just use and drive it as normal ;-)

That's a start then Mike.

Looking at the pictures (albeit on my phone), how the hell did it get out the factory? Secondly why didn't the dealer pick it up during PDI?

Well I'm literally off the phone to the dealers.

They took it pretty well and to be honest I think they were expecting my to reject it after I spoke to them last night.

And in fact the have just emailed me as I'm typing confirming acknowledgement of me rejecting the car due to the paint faults.

They are going to contact Skoda UK and Skoda financial services on Monday and expect me to be asked to go into the dealers for a formal report to be compiled and other than that can't see any issues.

Fingers crossed. In the meantime I've to drive it like I've stolen it. Well that's not his exact words - he said just use and drive it as normal ;-)

 

Don't expect you're old car back either. Insist Skoda UK provide you with a temporary car to use while you wait for a replacement. My previous Octavia was off the road for 12 weeks for Skoda to repair it (catastrophic engine failure) and Skoda UK gave me temporary car. Be firm and insist, if no joy I'm sure the numerous motoring magazines will side with you.

I've no idea why it wasn't picked up either. Although I think going by the standard of valeting etc the dealer employed the three blind mice to prep the car. I have a feeling they may no longer be employed though.

As for getting my old car back I really hope that isn't suggested. Dealer did mention it but I did point out people have been let to keep cars while the replacement is being built/sourced. He agreed it had been done but down to skoda although he did say he would see what they said first and then start twisting their arm if needed.

If I do end up with it back the order will be cancelled due to the money I'll have to fork out for tax and mot etc. might even take a second look at the focus st estate!

What a state you must have been gutted! Glad to hear the situation is being resolved

Guess what? I've found more bubbles! Thank Christ the dealer is on side!

Ah well, at least I can enjoy the car just now rather than getting bored running it in!

Just seen this, and words fail me.

Can't imagine how you feel.

Well sent an email to the dealer outlining all the issues I've found so far. Waiting for an acknowledgement and word from skoda uk.

Fingers crossed!

Mind you, reading the list I can't see any problems! Has anyone else noticed the problem with the door seals?

"Prior to you contacting Skoda I would just like to confirm the faults I have found (to date) -

Exterior:

- Scuff/paint flaw under paint lacquer lower near side front bumper.

- Possible poor painting on bonnet (I say possible as it appears to be patchy but only in strong sunlight so this may be down to the high metallic content of the paint finish, although I cannot see this effect on any other panel. (Also, by chance I was parked next to a MKVII Golf yesterday which was also silver and did not display a similar effect.)

- Poor sealant finish/insufficient sealer near side join between roof panel and "A" pillar.

- Poor paint finish near side join roof panel/"A" pillar due to above.

- Excess sealant off side join between roof panel and "A" pillar

- Poor paint finish off side join roof panel/"A" pillar due to above.

- 4 bubbles under the paint along the near side roof panel join between "A" and "B" pillars.

- Off side front window channel seal had been turned into the channel for approx 2 inches and had been pinched by the window causing it now to be creased and also sag slightly.

- Excess sealant/poor paint finish rear near side join between roof panel and "C" pillar.

- Both (near and off side) leading edge rear door seals appear not to be finished correctly. The leading edge strip appears that it is meant to be joined to the seal above and below by small pieces of double sided sticky tape (despite all the other seal joins being glued or "rubber welded". In fact the off side leading edge rear door seal still has the backing paper on the tape so was never attempted to be jointed. These joins have all failed.

- Paint defect (lighter shade) around Skoda badge on the tailgate.

- All gloss black trims panels on door pillars are VERY badly marred/swirl marked.

Interior:

- Handbrake gaiter either not fitted correctly or simply poor finish at handbrake handle end.

- Carpet trim on "ski hatch" flap in boot peeling lower right corner.

The faults below will not be cause for Skoda to accept the rejection, and will be mute points when the car is returned but I've included them to ensure a full picture of my disappointment and frustration is conveyed.

- Window tints ALL require to be redone due to every window having a multitude of bubbles and the rear window also has two small creases in the film.

- Mirror caps both need resprayed due to poor quality finish.

- Off side mirror cap has not been reseated correctly.

- General low standard of vehicle valet/PDI.

Numerous panels and window seals still have residue from the transport coverings despite having had Autoglym Lifeshine applied. Water marks / general workshop marks on vehicle interior.

Blue protective film still on rear interior light.

Alloy wheels not cleaned properly (and on driving they are covered in tyre film which is now apparent due to the brake dust sticking to them).

Sticky residue on interior drivers door grab handle.

Gloss black trim panels on all doors badly marred/swirl marked - unsure if this is factory or valet related.

Windscreen washers do a great job of washing the roof, not so good at hitting the windscreen though.

And finally, possibly the worst issue of them all; Everyone from the factory QC to the staff involved in the PDI and prep of the vehicle have missed every single one of these issues.

I realise despite many of these are serious flaws others may be seen as me being a bit picky but I'm really just trying to paint a picture of my disappointment.

I look forward to hearing from you today in regards to Skoda UK's response and their proposed course of action. "

This thread makes for some really depressing reading :(

So sorry to hear all the issues you've had and on a selfish note I hope mine doesn't turn up like that!

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Me too. It's awful.

The main thing that concerns me is we're all going to be collecting our cars as we head into winter. Stood outside the dealer in the rain and wind won't help our 'own' inspection if the car is covered in rain.

We won't open the doors for long as the rain will get in. Any scratches/ defects found after driving straight home to a dry warm garage - will they be accepted or blame placed on the individual?

James

This thread makes for some really depressing reading :(

So sorry to hear all the issues you've had and on a selfish note I hope mine doesn't turn up like that!

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I don't mean to depress anyone! (I'm depressed enough myself!)

On a positive note I'm actually liking driving the car.

The suspension that was originally very jiggly had started to settle down a bit and even although it's a diesel it's still pretty lively when provoked. In fact it's doesn't really seem to make a song and dance when you use the go pedal and it's easy to be going faster than intended - it genuinely just doesn't feel like it's going fast. I suggest folk might want to set the warning speed on the maxi-dot!

The seats are also a high point to me. Very comfy, and don't feel like you're getting a hug from an overly friendly bear, but they do hold you in place in the twisty bits.

We went for a family day out yesterday and I was impressed with the mileage - mixture of dual carriageway, several towns, rural roads and sensible speed plus a couple of quick overtakes as well as crawling around our destination trying to find a suitable parking place saw a return of 55mpg on average. Not too bad really considering it's only got 200 miles under it belt.

See, there are good things in here too!!

Me too. It's awful.

The main thing that concerns me is we're all going to be collecting our cars as we head into winter. Stood outside the dealer in the rain and wind won't help our 'own' inspection if the car is covered in rain.

We won't open the doors for long as the rain will get in. Any scratches/ defects found after driving straight home to a dry warm garage - will they be accepted or blame placed on the individual?

James

Can I suggest you ask to do the handover inside? Workshop or valet bay, any decent dealer shouldn't have a problem with it. Although you might want to take your own microfiber towel to dry the car off to check the paint - their valeters one will no doubt been dropped on the floor several times!

In a previous life a long time ago I was a vehicle progresser for a now defunct car dealership chain so I might be more tuned in to being picky. Although that was over 12 years ago.

It does pay to take the time to check over the vehicle. It's the last thing you want to do when you're new pride in joy is in front of you wanting to be driven home but it's worth it to save the "who's fault is it" conversation later.

Well dealer has phoned and Skoda want a dealer report/paint inspection and pictures but that was expected.

So.... I'm off to another of their dealerships on Wednesday morning (I'm guessing because it has more space there) to be met by their warranty administrator, after sales director and, just so I have a "friendly" face, the sales manager from the dealership I bought the car from!

The journey will be a wee pain but I'm playing ball at the moment and see how things pan out. No point in being awkward just yet. Besides, I'm planning on asking which one of them has the fuel card when they've finished doing the inspection!

They are planning of testing the paint depth when I'm there but that really isn't the issue but that's what skoda have asked for for some reason. They may be in for a wee shock if they suggest the paint thickness etc is fine (particularly under over the area of excess sealant) - my dad's been inspecting paint and industrial coatings for over 20 years and I've got a feeling he may be out with his kit when he comes back from holidays!

Fingers crossed it all goes smoothly though, I really can't be doing with a long drawn out fight.

Sorry to hear all the troubles you are having, but please - a word of caution. DO NOT, for the love of god, buy a Focus ST if you decide to get rid of the VRS.

I have one (a 2012 hatch) and it is BY FAR the worst car I have ever owned.

Oh that doesn't sound good! In what way?

Like I said I've enjoyed driving the vRS and hope it gets sorted but it depends on what Skoda do really.

Sorry to hear all the troubles you are having, but please - a word of caution. DO NOT, for the love of god, buy a Focus ST if you decide to get rid of the VRS. I have one (a 2012 hatch) and it is BY FAR the worst car I have ever owned.

I'm interested by this too. I nearly bought a bright orange ST 3 years ago when I bought my current car and it was also an option this time round!

P

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Just seen this. Sooooooooo sad! You must be gutted :( Im glad to see the dealer is backing you and being decent though. Fingers crossed you get a new car which is perfect! 

I don't want to derail your thread Mike, but here goes... (i'll keep it as brief as I can).

 

1) Arrived at dealers to pick up my car, noticed a shallow dent right in the middle of the bonnet. Turns out (apparently) that it's the sealer that is used to bond the outer bonnet skin to the inner 'skeleton' underneath - when the car is warm it shrinks the sealer and 'pulls' the middle of the bonnet down. I spotted another (blue) ST in the showroom that had a dent in exactly the same place.

 

2) Bonnet/bumper gap - it's absolutely shocking (and they all seem to be bad). How it ever passed Quality Control is beyond me.

 

3) Car broke down (while traveling round a roundabout) 1 month after buying it, AA couldn't fix by the roadside so it had to be recovered back to the supplying dealer. (Idiot recovery driver allowed my front bumper to contact the ramps, scraping the paint off my bumper which had to be repaired). Dealer diagnosed a blown fuse, checked the wiring for the circuit (or so they thought) and gave me the car back. The car would then momentarily hesitate going round roundabouts (power would die for a second then come back to life). Booked the car in to get fixed, dealer Service Manager took the car out for a run, came back to say "It's supposed to do that - it's the traction control kicking in". ****** I said, but the guy wasn't for changing his mind so I decided I would call Ford Customer Services the next day & complain. Car broke down again (while going round a roundabout, again) on the way home that night. Car was recovered back to the supplying dealer again (who were ABSOLUTELY hopeless) - their Master Tech then admitted to me that although he'd replaced the correct fuse at the 1st breakdown he'd then mis-read the fuse chart and checked the wiring for the circuit that was protected by the fuse NEXT to the one that had actually blown. What had actually happened was there was a wire rubbing off the gearbox casing, eventually wore through (in the space of a month!) and the bare wire was shorting on the gearbox, but only when the car was cornering - the engine & box would move slightly on their mounts and touch the cable for a split second, which is where the momentary power cut was coming from. Twice though, at the two breakdowns, it touched for a wee bit longer and blew the fuse.

 

4) Speakers - particularly the passenger-side rear door speaker. Rattles like hell. The dealer had a look at it, then allowed me to play any track I wanted via my iPhone inside their demonstrator, with the bass etc settings set to the same as my car and the demo car speaker rattled like hell too. Once the left-right balance + front-rear fader is set to remove the signal going to the rear passenger-side speaker the rattle goes away, both on my car + the demonstrator. Means that I can't play really bassy tracks up loud as I can't stand the rattle.

 

5) The Ford Sync system (for controlling your phone + any music on it via the stereo) is a bit hit-and-miss. Sometimes it works fine, for weeks sometimes, then at other times it will play up for days on end. It is also SUPPOSED to be able to read out any text messages that are received while the car and the phone are paired but it rarely works.

 

There are also a fair few people reporting issues on ST Owners Club forums - some owners have had to have their steering rack replaced due to their cars wandering about on motorways, the illuminated ST kick-plates on the sills seem to go on the blink regularly (ok not a massive problem) and i've seen a few people say they've had issues with their DRLs flickering. A software update seems to sort that though.

Ah the gearbox wire thing. I'd read about that but I'm sure there was a recall it at least an official fix for it.

Yeah the dealer does sound a bit useless!'

Speakers rattling are a big no no, thankfully the vRS doesn't have that problem!

And I've got an iPhone so nothing reads texts from it and I'm used to it being crappy for working with things properly.

Well fingers crossed my situation gets resolved quickly. I'm loving the space, pace and, I hate to say, the mileage!

Sorry to hear all ur trouble :( it's not nice I'd say,maybe u should buy a nice year old blackline mkll or something.

I've always thought that Fords were carp.

Anyway, to get back on track today is dealer visit day to let them loose with their paint depth gauge and take pictures to send to Skoda.

I can't see what the depth of the paint matters as that's not in dispute - it's the quality and finish of the car!

Hopefully it won't take too long as I'm actually on annual leave today and the mrs should hopefully be on a half day so would be nice not to be tied up for hours.

I'll be happy just to get the ball rolling to get the "ok" from Skoda that they are taking the car back so I can get the new one ordered!

Wish me luck.