No car since October !

[octavianestate]

Repeating a tech... if they built the cars as well as the reputation they trade on; i.e. as well as the ones in the 80/90's, we could not afford to buy them.

Some good hills around Huddersfield though :) Some I fear in the citigo if anything is behind me.

Of course in the 80s and 90's if you had an issue... you had far less recourse. The old man had a XM with a HAL like computer, don't think it ever got it's brain reset.

One thing for sure, we can use the community here to spot pattern or ways to help each other. That's when it's at it's best, even at two remote ends of a phone line; antiquated concept too now...

Good points.

A pattern clear to see is the hit or miss level of skoda quality. By that I don't just refer to parts quality but also assembly quality.

[vrs red]

The engineer has looked at the car and the first thing he saw, the lower wishbone bushes were separating ! Not sure how this wasn't seen ! New bushes on order, should be ready for me to road-test on Saturday. (Fingers crossed!)

[octavianestate]

Good news that a problem has been found.

 

Is it just me or is the word 'engineer' banded around to easily and to often.

 

[Ttaskmaster]

2 hours ago, octavianestate said:

Is it just me or is the word 'engineer' banded around to easily and to often.

 

 

Not just you - I work with civil engineers, who regularly complain about those "engineers" who lack any actual degrees.

Apparently doctors and engineers once had the chance to get their titles legally protected, but the engineers decided that no-one would be foolish enough to claim something they couldn't substantiate... Doctors felt that 'everybody lies' and acted accordingly.

[Wardy]

Indeed - 'engineer' is a legal title elsewhere. Germany, for example.

 

Technician is usually more applicable here, when not talking about actual engineering.

[Guest]

I would be writing directly to the managing director of Skoda UK if i were you. I assume you have documented everything. This is what i did after six months of a vehicle which i wasn't happy with. The supplying dealership were adamant they wouldn't be replacing the vehicle, odd how it all changed after an email to the MD. Picked up a new replacement vehicle a few weeks later. 

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Ttaskmaster said:

 

Not just you - I work with civil engineers, who regularly complain about those "engineers" who lack any actual degrees.

Apparently doctors and engineers once had the chance to get their titles legally protected, but the engineers decided that no-one would be foolish enough to claim something they couldn't substantiate... Doctors felt that 'everybody lies' and acted accordingly.

I actually work with plenty of people who have got their degree from uni and are engineers, i guess, but in the real world some of them are pretty thick tbh. I actually have no degree myself but a 30 year career working in the field of electrical wiring  has allowed me to progress to a design engineer role at Dyson where my knowledge, not a bit of paper has actually counted for something. 

 

Just because someone has passed a uni degree, doesn't mean they understand how to use that knowledge. I have prevented many a degree laden engineer from electrocuting themselves indeed one of them wasn't even sure how to test a fuse for continuity lol. 

Edited 25 January, 2017 by Guest

[James@RRG_Skoda_Rochdale]

We're technicians in the motor trade and the "engineer" was no doubt - one of the technical team from Milton Keynes, usually a master technician and most of the older team have recognised engineering qualifications but whether they have degrees is a different matter. 

[Ttaskmaster]

2 hours ago, James@RRGRochdale said:

We're technicians in the motor trade and the "engineer" was no doubt - one of the technical team from Milton Keynes, usually a master technician and most of the older team have recognised engineering qualifications but whether they have degrees is a different matter. 

 

Technician is another bone of contention, since I technically am one... Too often I've heard people claim to be a technician, and/or a mechanic, when they're neither and little more than a fitter... if even that.

Technicians generally have industry-recognised academic and/or professional qualifications, but are not fully-fledged engineers. They're more like Journeyman apprentices along the road to becoming Incorporated Engineers... traditionally, anyway. These days people can pretty much make up their own job titles.

 

3 hours ago, roblatus said:

I actually work with plenty of people who have got their degree from uni and are engineers, i guess, but in the real world some of them are pretty thick tbh. 

 

Often depends on the type of engineer, although that seems to be graduates in general. Those engineers with a more theoretical bent who rarely get out in the field or implement designs that can come back to bite them do seem to be a bit 'in the clouds'... and so few, even Chartered ones, seem unable to spell or use any capitalisation and punctuation!!

[James@RRG_Skoda_Rochdale]

Staff who dwell within the workshop have had a varied range of descriptions for their job over the last 10/20 years and have seen their title evolve along with what the job entails.

 

Mechanics or motor engineers from the days of old were soley responsible for the upkeep of mechanical components on cars because that's what the vast majority of vehicles were fitted with, in the event of an electrical issue they would seek the help of an auto electrician to find and fix said faults.

 

These days some mechanics still exist but I see a lot of older guys who don't want to move with the times and sadly end up becoming fitters because that's all that's required of them, they still often sub out work such as diagnostic fault finding and focus mainly on maintenance work.

 

Modern technicians are categorised thusly:

 

service tech - fitter 

 

diagnostic tech - normally has a strong skill set for electrical and mechanical diagnosis 

 

master tech - all the above plus admin, training, coaching, customer handling 

 

We're not just s?@! head filter spinners these days. 

On a regular basis we're working on one of several different and often interlinked systems which require skills such as:

engines (mechanical)

cooling (plumbing)

brakes (hydraulic)

Hvac (air conditioning, now requires a minimum qualification and training on 3 different gases)

Storage and charge curcuits (basic electronics)

can and Lin bus systems (advances electronics)

hybrid technology (HV tech)

various IT requirements for the likes of software updates, adaptions, diagnostics etc 

and the paperwork that accompanies each job these days requires a lot of thought power to make it all correlate.

 

We have to do a lot more than what the world gives us credit for.  

 

 

[Ttaskmaster]

See, to my understanding, a vehicle mechanic is someone who can strip a faulty part down, clean it, repair it, rewire it, rebore it, reprogram it or otherwise do something to refurb/repair or just fix it in general... occasionally replaces parts with something even better than the OEM one, but can also rig in all sorts of weird and wonderfulls at the customer's request.  Will usually know which parts from other vehicles are compatible, along with advanced knowledge of things like how the vehicle works at all levels and may even have something similar to some academic engineering qualifications.

 

A technician is along the same lines as a mechanic, but more often specialises in something and has more advanced knowledge in that one particular field.

 

A fitter just replaces old with new... sometimes whether it needs it or not. Flip a coin as to whether or not they've even read the workshop manual in the last six months. A few go on to proper mechanics. Others just make a tidy living from parts swapping.

[skomaz]

I think the point being made about protection of the name 'engineer' was related to the protection and use of the word only by those who are professionally qualified chartered engineers...   And as one (MA Cantab CEng MICE) with nearly 27 years of experience in the civil engineering industry to go with that qualification it is a bone of contention with me too that it isn't protected...

 

But hey ho that's life...

[Ttaskmaster]

1 hour ago, skomaz said:

I think the point being made about protection of the name 'engineer' was related to the protection and use of the word only by those who are professionally qualified chartered engineers...  

 

Very much so, although while CEng, IEng and EngTech, any professional Engineer ought still to have some recognition, since they'll be working for a few years before they get Chartered... It's like how a Junior House Officer or a Registrar are still actual professional Doctors, even though they've not yet become Consultants.

 

Probably because the mere term 'engineer' can cover so many disciplines, actual non-chartered Engineers often specify what flavour of engineer they are - Chemical, Civil, Wastewater, CAD - to validate their years of study and distinguish themselves from those who don't have an Eng qualification.

[James@RRG_Skoda_Rochdale]

Just to add - I do actually hold the IMIs highest qualification title of "Advanced Automotive Engineer" which comes with its own post nominals (AAE) and it was awarded to me after a review of my current qualifications and career experience.

[spinifex]

All getting off-topic with semantics of technician versus mechanic versus engineer.

 

I'd like to hear more about this issue that was instantly spotted by someone from Skoda, yet missed by everyone else.... and what Skoda is going to do for the OP to rectify & recompense the issue

Edited 26 January, 2017 by spinifex
typo

[vrs red]

Rang the dealer today to check the bushes had been replaced and I was going to drive the car Saturday morning. Told the bushes hadn't turned up, and it was going to be Monday ! ! . . . But I could still drive the car if I wanted ! ! (Maybe a trip down memory lane ! )

[James@RRG_Skoda_Rochdale]

They should be fitting 2 x complete arms really. 

[vrs red]

Popped in today to have a chat with the service manager, and when going to look at the car, have noticed the nearside has now been hit too ! ! The gap around the headlight is really tight to the wing now. So that's now both side hit while at the dealership ! 

[vrs red]

And the offside. 

[skomaz]

That is ridiculous and very poor...   I'd be playing hell with them!

[octavianestate]

And the dealers excuse for not taking due care of your vehicle whilst at their premises?

[vrs red]

The dealer wasn't aware the nearside had also been hit ! ! Only when I pointed out the paint was missing ! "We will fix this" was the response, well I wasn't going to ! ! 

[ToffeeMRD]

16 hours ago, vrs red said:

The dealer wasn't aware the nearside had also been hit ! ! Only when I pointed out the paint was missing ! "We will fix this" was the response, well I wasn't going to ! ! 

 

How on earth did they miss it being hit?!? I'd be after a new bumper too - those gaps would be picked up if you went to sell. Have you checked the mileage - hopefully no ones been out on a jolly in your car....

 

I certainly won't be going to that dealership mate!

[vrs red]

It was already having a new bumper ! (For the first damage) but now needs the headlamp/wing looked at  

 

And you're right, definitely not going back ! ! 

[vrs red]

HOLD TIGHT . . . "MIGHT" HAVE THE CAR BACK THIS WEEKEND ! Only been 130 days ! ! The bumper will be collected from detailer tomorrow now the Gtechniq has been applied (as long as it's not dropped) they should fit it on, and fingers crossed . . .