Hi Folks,

 

Hoping you can help me please.

 

My morning started as follows;

 

Car covered in a layer of frozen snow - Car door almost frozen shut - took a great effort to open and Wing Mirrors didn't open fully (am I supposed to do something to defrost them before unlocking?)

 

Started car and radio came on as usual - shut the door and proceeded to chip the frozen Ice/Snow off the windows - OK so far on that front!

 

Got in car, and radio had gone off - went to 'Radio' and it still had R2 selected... tried changing between DAB and FM - no joy, nothing, nada, not even crackling! Not sure what I may have inadvertently pressed or has the cold 'got to it?

 

On the display in the middle of the dash I always have my consumption data... but it had gone to phone data for my mobile I haven't seen before and it wouldn't go back to the consumption data until I parked up and had a fiddle.

 

I'm concerned I've done something... or not done something I should have. Should the car have these problems because of a bit of snow - it's not like we get much in the UK - what do they do in colder countries?  It's only -1C!

 

Finally - Am I right in thinking ABS should be off on Ice and Snow? I can't view the manuals on my work PC can anyone tell me how to disable it pls?

 

Thank you!

Turning ABS off when on snow/mud is only advisable when there is enough of it (a few inches) for the locked wheel to build a wedge in front of it. It would also likely disable ESP at the same time, which is not really a good thing if its slippery.

 

But the electrics shouldn't have failed at such a warm temperature, at their 'home' Skoda's are subjected to -20-30 so there must be something wrong.

Car door sticking is probably as a result of moisture sitting on the seals and then freezing. It used to happen on my Octavia. Same with the door mirrors I suspect, although there is nothing you can do about.

 

 

My Columbus plays silly buggers when it's cold - it will change station automatically as the screen warms up.

I switch the folding mirrors off when it's frosty.

Don't think you can turn the ABS off? Are you thinking of ESP? Turn it off to get moving, then switch back on. 

 

When I had my Volvo I was also told to switch the stop/start off in snow/ice

Turning ABS off when on snow/mud is only advisable when there is enough of it (a few inches) for the locked wheel to build a wedge in front of it. It would also likely disable ESP at the same time, which is not really a good thing if its slippery.

 

But the electrics shouldn't have failed at such a warm temperature, at their 'home' Skoda's are subjected to -20-30 so there must be something wrong.

 

You can't turn off the anti locking brakes system (unless you remove a fuse or something), and you shouldn't. Especially in slippery/icy conditions the ABS system will help you be able to steer while braking (but winter tyres are highly recommended in winter conditions, BIG difference driving with 'winter rubber' (with or without studs - I have studless 18" Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2) than with summer tyres.

What you can do in case you are in the risk of loosing momentum through snow, is to switch off the ASR (Anti-Slip Regulation) by pressing (not holding) the button next to the gear lever.

This way you can force the car to keep spinning through snow/up a snowy hill, not risking that the ASR starts braking the wheel(s) that looses grip.

Just be aware that you of course risk that you get really stuck if the snow is deep ;-)

 

 

Car door sticking is probably as a result of moisture sitting on the seals and then freezing. It used to happen on my Octavia. Same with the door mirrors I suspect, although there is nothing you can do about.

 

 

My Columbus plays silly buggers when it's cold - it will change station automatically as the screen warms up.

 

You can use a silicone 'pen' on the rubber gasket around the doors:

This will ensure that the doors don't freeze stuck. We use it a lot here in the Nordics.

 

 

Happy winter driving! :-)

 

Christopher

Oslo, Norway

Follow up...

 

Here's me trying to get up a snowy hill two weeks ago.

 

First attempt with ASR enabled - i.e. I didn't touch anything, and tried to go gently and leaving it up to the car to crawl up...

(sorry for the arrogant laugh from my friend filming - he drives a Range Rover...)

 

Then I switched off ASR, and attacked the hill in a more brutal fashion...:

(again, the voice of my friend, this time yelling at my dog to get out of the way...)

 

 

EDIT: I have a 2017 2.0 TDI 190HP 4x4

Edited 13 January, 20179 yr by grenness

Follow up...

 

Here's me trying to get up a snowy hill two weeks ago.

 

First attempt with ASR enabled - i.e. I didn't touch anything, and tried to go gently and leaving it up to the car to crawl up...

(sorry for the arrogant laugh from my friend filming - he drives a Range Rover...)

 

Then I switched off ASR, and attacked the hill in a more brutal fashion...:

(again, the voice of my friend, this time yelling at my dog to get out of the way...)

 

 

EDIT: I have a 2017 2.0 TDI 190HP 4x4

 

Nice one !!

 

 

Are you running a studded tyre or something non studd,  like Michelin IceX  ?

Edited 13 January, 20179 yr by RickTT

Are you running a studded tyre or something non studd,  like Michelin IceX  ?

 

Non studded winter tyres, Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2. Definitely one of the absolute best winter tyres available, not only IMHO but it comes out in top 2/top 3 in most tests during the last 3 years.

They also have a great studded tyre, the Nokian Hakkapeliitta 8. 

Pretty certain the manual for our 4x4 Octavia says turn the ESP system off in snow...

Pretty certain the manual for our 4x4 Octavia says turn the ESP system off in snow...

 

Sounds strange.

My personal suggestion (take it from a Norwegian who drives on snow for several months each year...) is to leave all assist programs on/default when driving along in normal speeds, even in snow.

Only switch off when you really know what you are doing (i.e. if you want to push the limits, do some fish tailing/drifting/power turns which is great fun when you master it, but difficult and not something you do with the wife and kids in the car on your way to Sunday dinner...) or very special circumstances are present, like that last snow covered hill you want to get up and the ESP/ASR clearly works in a counterproductive way braking the wheel spin and thus braking the car (as in my video above).

I also must stress that summer tyres are crap on snow, and absolutely hopeless on ice - all the three letter abbreviations in the world won't help you if you start sliding on ice with summer tyres :-) (ok, brand new summer tyres can maybe be ok if the rubber is fresh and soft and you drive really careful, but several videos on youtube will show that a 4x4 on summer tyres doesn't stand a chance up a snowy hill against a 2 wheel drive with winter tyres - even studless).

Just found the online manual...

 

 

Just found the online manual...

Exactly, only turn it off in special circumstances, and snow aint that. Unless in a 4x4 and looking for a bit of fun ;)

The esp did save my behind in a few occasions when I was young and dumb. It really works well on snow and ice.

@OP

Ive never had any issues with the Columbus, not even at -15 and below.

Have you perhaps turned off the AC so that moisture builds up in your car?

Edited 14 January, 20179 yr by Gromle

very nice :)

thanks for sharing

I switch ASR always off when there is wet snow on the roads.

You can imagine situation, when overtaking a lorry.  Everything looks good. Suddenly ASR reduces the power because wheels meet the wet snow coming from the wheels of lorry. No chanche to brake and no power to overtake, and someone already staring into your eyes from the opposite lane...

Nasty and dangerous.

 

Cabin electronics in cold and moisty weather - let them be until the cabin heatens up.