Hi All

 

I just picked up my new (second hand) Octavia estate 1.4tsi 63reg. Just driven it back from Norwich so given it a good 100 mile or so run out. So far, so good. certainly no booming noise that i could hear which was my main worry after reading the forum.

 

However, there are rusty looking areas on all of the wheels (couple of examples below). 

 

 

The dealer (renault dealer, not skoda) said they were nothing to worry about and that's just how wheels go but I know nothing about cars so i wanted to see what you all thought. 

 

Does this look fairly normal for a 3 year old car? Can it be cleaned off at all?

 

The other slight blip was a low tyre pressure warning kicking in after 30 miles or so. I stopped and looked at the wheels, and to my untrained eye, it looked fine (it was the front passenger side) but i did notice the tyres were set to Winter in the display area. Do these sensors tend to be very fussy or is it likely to be a genuine tyre issue?

 

Im going to take the car to my local skoda dealer soon to have them give it a once over and make sure things are ok

 

Thanks

Dan

I wouldnt worry about the "wheels" rusting. It's actually the hub of the brake disc not the wheel thats rusting, and it's very common. If cleaned off it would be back within a few months.

I'm not sure about the tyre pressures. The car uses the ABS sensors to work out if one wheel is rotating at a different speed. It's worth checking the pressures next time you fill up though.

Thanks Simon, that's very reassuring about the wheels

The 'rust' can soon be sorted with silver Hammerite and as above, check your pressures and then press the reset button.

"I did notice the tyres were set to Winter in the display area".

Isn't that just to set a speed warning for winter tyres with a lower maximum speed rating?

The actual rust is, as said above, just on part of the brake disk and is nothing to worry about. Some people have cleaned it off and applied brake caliper paint (or it's equivalent) to make it look better. The discoloration on the wheel itself is mainly just road dirt and brake dust, and can be cleaned off relatively easily with a good quality wheel cleaner.  

 

Check all your tyre pressures are similar and correct them, then reset the TPMS; that should sort it. If it returns again, check the pressures are equal again or for a foreign body in a tyre causing a slow air leak. Tyres being set to winter wheels is just so you can enter a speed warning parameter because many winter tyres have lower speed ratings than 'normal' tyres, it won't affect the TPMS at all. 

 

Interesting about it isolating a particular tyre that may be at fault. The system's slightly more sophisticated than I thought! 

 

 

I'm sure you know this but the tyre pressures are displayed inside the fuel filler flap. Just check the tyre size shown on the tyre and look for the size/pressure on the fuel filler list. Your tyres are probably 205/55R V16 so the pressure will be 2.2 Bars/32 psi on all wheels but don't forget that tyre pressures are different if you're carrying a full load in the car.

As FluffyEyeball says when you've checked/corrected the pressures 'tell' the TPMS that they are now correct.

BTW, it's probably a good idea to let a Skoda dealer check the car out.

Edited 24 September, 20169 yr by bertJ

Also whilst you're at Skoda get them to replace the wheel badges, the edges are peeling. Only about £4 each but better Skoda pay...lol

Also whilst you're at Skoda get them to replace the wheel badges, the edges are peeling. Only about £4 each but better Skoda pay...lol

Would the replacement of these be covered under the warranty or would it be classed as "normal wear & tear"?

Tunap and Wurth both sell a Zinc based spray paint that treats and prevents rust on metallic components. It's high temp tolerable too so it's suitable for brake applications.

My hubs started going after 6 months, I whipped the wheels off, painted the hubs with silver Hammerite Smooth and all has been good ever since.

Edited 25 September, 20169 yr by Mence