Hi. This site is brilliant and full of useful info for new Skoda owners like me! Bought an 03 Superb Elegance (out of warranty due to mileage) 3 weeks ago and have managed to get rid off the little niggles that seem to come with any second hand car. One problem continues despite the alleged efforts of my local garage as well as the nearest Skoda agent. The 'light failure' indication comes on every time I shift the stick from 'P' into any of the automatic positions. There is no obvious bulb failure and the Skoda agent changed the number plate bulb holder but still no difference! The car is like new and I'm delighted with it -apart from this mystery. Anyone any ideas? Thanks in advance.

Is it only when you first start off? Think it was a Saran I borrowed once that had a similar "feature", it was to let you know if the brake lights had failed, as soon as you touched the brake pedal the light would go out unless you had a blown bulb.

No, foot on brake, start engine - all OK. Warning light comes on (and buzzer sounds) as soon as shift lever is moved out of 'P'. Light stays on for a few seconds. This happens on every occasion when starting up although the warning light has come on 3 times in 500 miles whilst driving. Thanks for your interest and thoughts!

Interesting?!?!?!

My brake light bulb blew a while ago but as soon as I replaced it the in dash display went off so all normal there then?

Wonder why yours is playing up?

Has the dealer cleared any errors via VAG-COM?

The garage I bought the car from had the car (at their expense) with a Skoda agent for 4 days but the 'fault' reappeared within hours. Don't know if any codes were found as Skoda agent seems slightly reluctant to tell me what they did or did not do. Outcome is that it's going back to Skoda on Monday and the original garage is giving me a courtesy car in lieu - so can't really complain on that score.

BTW - It's a Superb Elegance with the 2.7 engine. Are there many of them around or have I just purchased a car with rarity value and an annoying fault?!?

BTW - It's a Superb Elegance with the 2.7 engine. Are there many of them around or have I just purchased a car with rarity value and an annoying fault?!?

A 2.7 is very rare you must have the only one - You have probably been robbed 100 or 200cc's the only Superb's over 2 litres are a 2.5 deisel or 2.8 Petrol. Welcome I have one of the less rare 2.8 Tiptronic Petrols with no bulb failure indication problem. It does work when a trailer bulb fails however to my surprise.

The indicator bulb failure must be driven by an imbalance of resistance to the left and right lighting circuits, so starting by meassuring these may help when selecting with the gearshift.

My apologies - it is the 2.8 petrol with Tiptronic. I have learnt more about cars in the past 4 weeks than I've picked up in 40 years of driving!

Now I wonder how impressed the garage will be if I suggest an imbalance between left and right!! I shall try them on that and keep you posted.

Thanks for your interest - I may have further queries in the coming weeks/months as I plough my way through the 100s of pages in all the supplied manuals!

Now I wonder how impressed the garage will be if I suggest an imbalance between left and right!! I shall try them on that and keep you posted.

Just my thoughts on how it must work - so might not be wise! I would suppose the electronics side of it will work like the RCD circuit breakers in the home again by looking at current flow out and return any difference and there is leakage to earth. On the Superb there is probably a control unit attached to the cars CAN bus for the lighting control that performs all the monitering functions un noticed - when things go wrong thats when it will be tricky - especially where in your case an unrelated action causes the lighting circuit fault. But getting back to basics can solve what are concidered to be complex problems. Best of luck I am sure youyr dealer will get to the bottom of it especially as its not an intermitent fault. Has the car had towing electrics fitted or removed? The Tow bar may be hidden under the rear bumper with swing down 12N plug - and a removable tow hitch - thats the OE installation on mine.

Thanks for your thoughts! Will have a look in an hour to see if there has been a tow bar. Two unhelpful comments from wife: 1. 'Luxury cars like that shouldn't have you looking underneath them' 2. 'Would you know what a tow bar looked like'. Some people!! Watch this space.......

Had a good look underside and no signs of a tow bar or additional electrics having been fitted/removed. The mystery remains.......

Thanks for your thoughts! Will have a look in an hour to see if there has been a tow bar. Two unhelpful comments from wife: 1. 'Luxury cars like that shouldn't have you looking underneath them' 2. 'Would you know what a tow bar looked like'. Some people!! Watch this space.......

Just thought maybe the failure indication is only activated when you are in a driving gear - so coming from park would make sense, I may take a bulb out of mine and check later.

Just a couple of quick thoughts (i'm sure your not silly enough for these to be correct though)

When shifting the lever out of 'park' into a forward driving gear you must shift through 'reverse' I believe? (not having an auto personaly), have you checked the reverse light bulb?

It could also be a low quality/slightly dodgy bulb, as bulbs are pretty cheap i'd try replacing them all just in case, i've had some very low quality bulbs that set the warning off before even though they appear to work perfectly!! - also LED bulbs set the warning off!

What service! Thanks for all the ideas. Yes, you must go thru reverse to get to any of the other positions. I'll take the reversing bulbs out (they're working) and put them back in, just to see what happens. I'm stuck with the Telegraph crossword so it will be something to do........!!

Took both rear light assemblies out and took 8 bulbs out for inspection. All seemed OK - no sign of dampness, dirt etc. Only interesting discovery was that if I move the shift from any of the gears back to 'P' and then back into one of the gears the fault doesn't occur! But switch off the ignition, tun the engine and the fault indication appears as soon as the shift is moved from 'P'!! I just hope I don't have the same difficulty with the tree lights when they go up next week-end! Thanks again for all the assistance.

Took a rear side light bulb out then get the "bulb failure" message when moving the transmission from Park to a drive gear,seems to behave much the same as yours.

Many thanks for going to all that bother - much appreciated. So there is a possibility that one of the bulbs may be faulty, although illuminating? How fiendish!

Unfortunately rural Renfrewshire doesn't have a selection of open bulb shops on a Sunday so I can't test a new one. However I'll put the theory to the garage in the morning and see what they have to say.

I'll keep you posted on developments as someone else might need the solution. Hope it comes soon! Thanks again.

This happens on every occasion when starting up although the warning light has come on 3 times in 500 miles whilst driving. Thanks for your interest and thoughts!

Driving today got an alarm and multidot text for "Washer Fluid" this seemed to give the warning every now and again during my trip so seems a normal prompt for a warning event you experienced during your trip.

Driving today got an alarm and multidot text for "Washer Fluid" this seemed to give the warning every now and again during my trip so seems a normal prompt for a warning event you experienced during your trip.

I find the low washer fluid alarm comes on and off when the fluid level is obviously only just low enough to set it off, when you are on different gradients/cambers etc it re-sets itself sometimes - a quick squirt with the washers gets it low enough to not be affected by gradients/cambers so it just stays on.

Incidentaly I find that the washer fluid alarm comes on when their is still over half the fluid left in the tank? can go on for ages without actually running out!!

Sounds to me more like an earth fault.

It never ceases to amaze me how helpful some people are on this site. You restore my faith in humanity:thumbup: !

Couldn't agree more - thanks to all for their thoughts.

Just collected the car from the local garage who have had it (again) with a Skoda agent for the past 2 days. Details sparse because 'Tracy' from 'Customer Services' was allegedly in charge and I do believe I have found someone more ignorant than I am about things on wheels.

No matter, I managed to decipher that the fault appears to involve a part in the self-levelling headlight system. They had the car for 4 days a fortnight ago and claimed that this had been checked and OK! Tracey also advised that the warning light had been disconnected pending the arrival of parts (date unknown). Guess what? The light is still coming on!!!! :(

So far the garages have had the two and a half year old car for 15 days in the past 4 weeks since purchase. Room for improvement?

Standby for the eventual outcome!

Got the car back yesterday after another week at the garage! They claim to have fitted a new sensor to the self adjusting headlights and hey presto

1) I don't get the light failure warning when putting it into gear on start up and 2) I can now drive in the dark, despite being assured that there was nothing wrong with the alignment!

Thanks again to all who provided their thoughts. Hope no one else is caught out with this.

Got the car back yesterday after another week at the garage! They claim to have fitted a new sensor to the self adjusting headlights and hey presto

1) I don't get the light failure warning when putting it into gear on start up and 2) I can now drive in the dark' date=' despite being assured that there was nothing wrong with the alignment!

Thanks again to all who provided their thoughts. Hope no one else is caught out with this.[/quote']

Good to hear you have a fix!

Might be worth removing a bulb to see if the warning still works, would be terrible if they just removed the LED in the dash or something to stop it illuminating...

Driving today got an alarm and multidot text for "Washer Fluid" this seemed to give the warning every now and again during my trip so seems a normal prompt for a warning event you experienced during your trip.

Warnings will go off periodically. On my tiptronic, it does it when you change gear. Reverse out of the drive, and drive off, it does twice in ten seconds! Better to be safe than sorry I guess. Also does it on the low fuel warning when you are down to 50 miles range left.

Good to hear you have a fix!

Might be worth removing a bulb to see if the warning still works' date=' would be terrible if they just removed the LED in the dash or something to stop it illuminating... [/quote']

Tom: What a suspicious mind! That makes 2 of us! I've taken out a brake light and the brake light warning displays OK. Not sure if the lght failure warning is specific to the dipped headlight circuit and I don't feel qualified to start poking in there. I'll keep a sharp lookout...