Recently got my mk3 octavia to replace my rather modified and flame spitting golf mk4 v6 (was a 1.4... You get the idea!) as reliability and mpg was a concern...

However I've had nothing but bad service from my dealer, and now loads of faults with the car!

Started off with a diesel/strong exhaust smell outside of the car after pulling up, now comes into the cabin while driving, then climate misted up windows while on auto, Bluetooth kept dropping connection to my phone (blamed on my phone..) booming noise from rear suspension at speed, window infills that look like the protective film was taken off with wet and dry, and now today, the cream on the cake, "start stop error" on the maxi dot!

Dealer pretty much refuses to ever admit a fault, only begrudgingly do they when I physically prove it (but they haven't found it during testing?!) and their idea of booking the car in is weeks and weeks.

Last time I had to wait a week, no problem, hire car booked etc.

Turn up on the day, "oh sorry no hire car, well pick it up from you work." They scratched the windscreen on the 25mile trip, said they'd fix it, and keep avoiding actually doing it. Oh and put me in a equivalent car, a Citigo..

Tried to book it in for the start stop error today, I've been given the date of the 28th, until they "might be able to get a hire car"

Is this everyone else's experience, or just mine!?

Sorry for the rant, and how hard it is to read, I'm posting from my iPad.

They have taken your money and that's where there service ends, a proper dealer would bend over backwards to help you out. Name and shame the company!!!

Hope it gets sorted soon! :-)

It's not hard to guess the dealer... Only ones in Cambridgeshire, and the only one in cambridge! Lol

Hopefully it'll get sorted, I emailed skoda customer services tonight as I've literally had enough.

The Citigo was a laugh, with all the stuff I have to carry for work, a pushchair, and a child seat (which incidentally, didn't fit).

Horrible little car, no offence to anyone that has one and likes it!

Have you tried starting a complaint through Skoda UK? They don't have any direct control over the dealers but complaints they can't or won't resolve themselves have consequences.

When I got a similar service from a dealer a couple of years (denying there was a problem even when I demonstrated it to them, no fault because "the computer couldn't find one", waiting 4 weeks for a booking), I dropped a snotagram to SUK customer services, copying in the MD. Miraculously, my car was booked in a week later and kept until they had found and finally fixed the problem after a year of trying. This took 3 months during which I had unlimited use of a loan car.

 

Sometimes you just have to make a fuss (unBritish, I know!)

 

Hope you get things sorted soon.

It's not hard to guess the dealer... Only ones in Cambridgeshire, and the only one in cambridge! Lol

Hopefully it'll get sorted, I emailed skoda customer services tonight as I've literally had enough.

The Citigo was a laugh, with all the stuff I have to carry for work, a pushchair, and a child seat (which incidentally, didn't fit).

Horrible little car, no offence to anyone that has one and likes it!

Just googled them, wouldn't have expected that from such a large well know group. I live in south cambs and I went to a dealer nearby what was recommended by a friend. My car is being built this week and can't fault the level of service from my dealer so far.

Never heard of the group! What are the dealers in Ely like? Any good?

The only other listed dealer is ALS in little downham, bit of a pain to get to though!

I'll see what SUK say when they reply.

I just think the dealership see a young lad (I'm only 22) and ignore anything I say, as I couldn't possibly know what I'm on about.

Unfortunately for them, I rebuilt my last car from the ground up, and broke it and fixed it several times.

The reason I went for a new skoda was reliability and the fact I could just hand it back to a dealer to fix!

I now do 300miles a week for work, so driving an obnoxiously loud and uncompromising car was getting a bit wearing (as was the 20mpg, lol)

But the fact my brand new car started breaking a week into ownership, and more keeps breaking (were only on week 4 of owning it!) and the dealer couldn't seem to give two is beyond a joke.

I would complain to Skoda UK, but don't just write a ****-o-gram construct your argument well and I'm sure they'll sort it.

It sounds like terrible service from the dealer but the moral of this post is....if you shout loud enough someone will listen.

Sorry iDENTITi, it is Little Downham. I just saw Ely written below it, and never looked at anything else! 16 miles from Cambridge?

Fingers crossed Skoda UK do something. I certainly wouldnt want a car with diesel fumes entering the cabin.

Sorry iDENTITi, it is Little Downham. I just saw Ely written below it, and never looked at anything else! 16 miles from Cambridge?

Fingers crossed Skoda UK do something. I certainly wouldnt want a car with diesel fumes entering the cabin.

Yeah it's 16miles, unfortunately in the wrong direction.

Well see what happens! Current paying payments on a car, that to be honest, I don't exactly want to drive....

Gave it a little go with my handheld scanner and no fault codes found, need a newer version of vcds to work with the chassis though so there might be a fault code there that my scanner won't pick up.

With the smell, and now the start stop error, I think they might be related... And be a sign of something more serious about to happen.

However my knowledge of VAG only extends as far as the older models, and the the 3 being so new, even the dealers seem to have no clue!

The start stop error that you mentioned, does that occur when you've put the car in neutral (or park) and the car won't automatically restart? You then have to restart it manually. If it is, I've had that a couple of times and I don't believe it logs a code. I don't think it's a major issue, I think it's just picking a condition that won't let it automatically restart that time.

If it's no that, ignore me.

The start stop error that you mentioned, does that occur when you've put the car in neutral (or park) and the car won't automatically restart? You then have to restart it manually. If it is, I've had that a couple of times and I don't believe it logs a code. I don't think it's a major issue, I think it's just picking a condition that won't let it automatically restart that time.

If it's no that, ignore me.

It isn't the normal logo crossed out it does, it's a full on maxi dot clearing for an error message, and a fault on the car menu screen.

Went on for about 15miles until I pulled over and restarted the car.

Edited 11 January, 201412 yr by iDENTITi

Document everything e-mails to Skoda UK and copy the dealer MD.

 

Built up a history FILE FOR LEGALS SHOULD IT BE NECESSARY.

Got a phone call from SUK and the dealers the following day, some pr person or other, and it was being investigated.

Cars now booked in for drop off on Monday night, a week earlier.. Funny that!

Turns out they registered a new car, so I get use of the managers ex car (think it's a vrs, I was supposed to test drive it before)

They're being more helpful now, but we will see what happens!

A little update...

They finally found a fault with my "air quality sensor" (humidity) and it's been replaced.

Will pick the car up in the next few days and see if it's worked!

To anyone still reading this.. I have a little rant, and then a big question.

Service manager took my car home last night, with my permission.

When it arrived this morning it was lit up like a Christmas tree, apparently.

The faults are, no power steering (light on), abs & tcs light on. Start stop errored out..

They think it's the abs module, and ordered a new one. No solid eta on that, as it's on back order.

They can't promise it'll fix it though.

Seems a joke, in fact, I laughed down the phone when they told me all this.

I'm now paying for a car that I don't actually have, or have any idea when it will be back. I was driving around a potentially unsafe car, luckily it didn't fail with me or my young son in the car.

Am I within my rights to refuse this car? I have a phone call planned from SUK tomorrow, so I think some serious questions are to be answered by them about this car.

You could start down that road but also make the finance company aware of it as they're liable too.

You could start down that road but also make the finance company aware of it as they're liable too.

Yeah, I think I'll start going down that road, wether I will or not is another matter.

Just sat down tonight and the "what if?" Questions started, and I don't think I'll ever trust it again.

Just unbelievable that all the safety systems, barring the airbags, broke all at once.

It wasn't even booked in until the 28th until I complained, in which case I'd still be driving it when this happened!

All this is a bit worrying. My trusty Roomster hasn't missed a beat in 2 and a half years, so I shall be disappointed if my new octy misbehaves. I had a new Yeti a few years back and that was faultless too. Reliability was a huge factor in my choice of car.

I wonder how many Octy owners are completely fault free?

I feel for the folks who are having problems and hope they get resolved promptly.

All this is a bit worrying. My trusty Roomster hasn't missed a beat in 2 and a half years, so I shall be disappointed if my new octy misbehaves. I had a new Yeti a few years back and that was faultless too. Reliability was a huge factor in my choice of car.

I wonder how many Octy owners are completely fault free?

I feel for the folks who are having problems and hope they get resolved promptly.

No-one ,(especially me !) wants to tempt providence , but after almost 4 months and 4000 miles my Octy 3 Elegance DSG 1.6 Tdi has been absolutely fault free and a joy to drive - I hope you'll be as happy,& that my happiness continues !

JKW

You'll be fighting an uphill struggle to get the dealer to accept refusal of the car until you have given them ample opportunity to rectify the problems.

You never know, they may put this right and it'll be problem free from then on.

Statistically there will be failures in all car makes and types, the complexity of modern cars doesn't help. Its how frequent they are that matters and on that basis Skoda is quite good.

For me I'm more concerned about whether the company stands by their product and that seems to be dealer dependant, as I found out with my Toyota.

Edited 23 January, 201412 yr by ozoccy

To be fair though, the high price of extended warranties beyond a pretty short 3 year standard one doesn't show that SUK have much faith in the reliability of its product.

 

If I had to keep the car i'd be looking for an extended warranty for time I'm likely to keep it as a gesture of goodwill from Skoda.

Still no eta on the part, even though I was assured it would only be a week.

Handed back the hatch elegance I was given as a hire car on Friday night, as they asked for it back.

Put me in a dsg elegance wagon, which I discovered had no navigation sd card tonight. Rang dealer and was told they'll have to order it.

Things are just getting stupid now.

Edited 28 January, 201412 yr by iDENTITi