Hello all. I've done a search on here and also through Google, and I think this might be a new one!

2010 Mk2 FL vRS estate, as per sig. 45k on clock.

When the lights are on the needles on the dashboard dials are lit in white. Unfortunately, the needle for the speedometer no longer lights up. So it is difficult to tell what speed you're doing at night. Not good, and not safe for Mrs Dunc and the little ones during winter!

I have spoken to my dealer, and he tells me that Skoda will need to replace the entire dashboard unit.

The car is seven months out of warranty. The first quote was at about £1000. I asked the dealer to speak with Skoda, and they have offered to pay 60% of this. This is subject to Skoda checking the car and verifying my full Skoda service history. This is to happen on Saturday, and will cost me about £50.

My view is that this light or LED should last the lifetime of the car, and I am therefore not happy about spending c. £400 to have it fixed. Once the diagnosis has been confirmed, I will be approaching Skoda UK and asking for them to pay for the complete repair.

Watch this space. But, in the meantime, I would appreciate all thoughts and views.

And, has anyone else had a similar problem with a Mk 2 FL Octy?

Otherwise, I love this car. It has never let us down and gets a pretty hard life ferrying the children to school every day, taking us on family breaks etc etc. It's the perfect combination of space and pace for the price!

Cheers all,

Dunc

i wouldnt be paying for this, it isnt a serviceable item i would expect it to last the life of the car.

 

i would ring skoda tomorrow before your car goes in

there is a thread in the superb 2 section with the same problem

Thanks guys.

Remove the cluster and take it to a decent electronics engineer.. he would be able to de-assemble it and replace the LED for a hell of a lot less than 400 quid.. quite a few people used to do this back in the day on the MK1 octys to get the same blue and red colour as the MK4 golfs.. it isnt hard to do, any competent electronics guy could do it... (thats assuming it is just the LED, could be a dry joint or break in the PCB)

 

Auto electricians may not cut it, you would be better looking for someone who repairs car stereos and is used to getting down to component level... dare I suggest it, take it to your nearest university that does courses in electronics, they usually have speccy boffins that would be good for this sort of thing.

Had this issue smd and a break in my dash got pcb repair liquid and white and blue smds and changed all the smds while i was there to get rid of the green. I had no experience doing anything like it before but if you take your time and know a bit about soldering you could manage it yourself they are tiny so steady hands are needed.

Thanks for your replies guys.

The guy with the same issue with his Superb 2 found a specialist in Hants who sorted it for £80. See Superb 2 Forum.

I plan to speak to Skoda UK in the morning to challenge them to fix it for free..........wish me luck!

Otherwise a trip to Waterlooville beckons.

Update. SUK will not pay for more than 60% of the repair.

I argued about it being a non-serviceable item and that the dash pod should last the life of the car etc etc.

They wouldn't budge. The lady (who was very polite and friendly throughout) did say that she thought I could probably have it sorted by a competent auto electrician for under £100. My dealer had told her this. I said that I would prefer Skoda to do it for that price, but she said they weren't geared up for such a repair. I understand that.

I do not understand the reluctance to look after a good customer though. To replace the binnacle wouldn't cost them more than a couple of hundred pounds which is nothing to ensure good PR.

Would appreciate your views guys!

The guy on the Superb forum had the same problem fixed for £80 at cartronix.co.uk near Portsmouth.

They seem an excellent outfit, but it's two hours from me. Can anyone recommend someone similar in the Bristol area - and vouch for their work?

Thanks all!

Dunc

Ok, so this was fixed yesterday at Cartronix in Waterlooville, Hants.

Richard, who did the fix, and who I think is the boss, said that he'd had a quite a few of these. The FL is a newish dash to him as it is just coming out of warranty.

He said the OE LEDs are cheap Chinese ones which are not lasting as long as they should. He says they are also filled with a gel, which is unusual, and he can only that think this is to make them brighter.

He has replaced the speedo LED and the others linked to it on the RHS of the Maxidot display (as you look at the dash) with better quality ones. He guarantees his work for two years. The dash now looks as new.

Very pleased. Thanks to Richard and Cartronix - highly recommended.

Ok, so this was fixed yesterday at Cartronix in Waterlooville, Hants.

Richard, who did the fix, and who I think is the boss, said that he'd had a quite a few of these. The FL is a newish dash to him as it is just coming out of warranty.

He said the OE LEDs are cheap Chinese ones which are not lasting as long as they should. He says they are also filled with a gel, which is unusual, and he can only that think this is to make them brighter.

He has replaced the speedo LED and the others linked to it on the RHS of the Maxidot display (as you look at the dash) with better quality ones. He guarantees his work for two years. The dash now looks as new.

Very pleased. Thanks to Richard and Cartronix - highly recommended.

off there tomorrow, to get leds fixed and will be parting with £150.00 all in and me taking the cluster out , (40.00 for them to take out) will post how i get on.

Useful info for when mine breaks down! Ha

off there tomorrow, to get leds fixed and will be parting with £150.00 all in and me taking the cluster out , (40.00 for them to take out) will post how i get on.

to all, went there today, cant fault the service, they replaced all the led in cluster its now like being in blackpool with the lights on.

took about a hr and half to do with me taking the cluster out. 15 min job that just need some torx tools and a small blade to release the top clips.

you get a warranty on the repair and a full receipt . all for £150.00 

 

just a word of warning, when you take the cluster out , make sure the key is NOT in the ignition, mine was and when i reconnected the cluster the airbag warning light would not go out , fixed at local garage  who do the servicing. airbag was telling the car i had no dashboard in?. all well now 

Edited 12 November, 201510 yr by trucknetjack

thats good news. im hoping to find a local company here, (south bucks). ive got the rev counter "out", and whilst its not critical, i dont like having a black hole in my dash at night. plus im planning on keeping mine for 5yrs, so its worth doing now.

Bit the bullet and went down to Cartronix this week. Removed cluster myself and they had it done in 30 minutes! Made the mistake of leaving the key in and getting the airbag light illuminated, but Richard re-set it for me. Lifetime warranty on repair, and a nice afternoon out in Portsmouth. Highly recommended.

Hello everyone,

since many of my customers read this thread before they find me I thought I'll help a bit.

I do repair these instrument clusters:

https://totaltronics.com/instrument-cluster-repairs/skoda/skoda-octavia-mk2-instrument-cluster-repair/

and many others, while you wait and usually with a lifetime warranty. I'm in Rugby, Warks.

As said before, this is usually LEDs fault, however not always. 

If any forum member facing this problem is confident enough to DIY I'm happy to help.

Instrument cluster repairs