Skoda Yeti Problems

[danjelzig]

Hi, everyone,

 

I'm new in this forum and new to the Skoda family ( even though i own a VAG car ) and i would like if  you, real owners of the Yeti could help me with some info about the car, and what i should be aware when buying one. First things first, the car will be for my dad, he had a 2006 Passat B6 but he wants a 4x4 to go to the countryside and a DSG for smoother driving in the city. We thought that Yeti would be the best option for him as he enjoys VAG's cars, he likes the design of the Yeti, the versatility of the interior. For a specific variant, we are looking for a 2011-2013 pre facelift Yeti , 4x4, DSG, 140CR. Are there any real problems with this car! 

 

1. I saw a lot of posting about the rust on all four doors and the tailgate. Is the bodypaint that rubbish that it rusts after just 3-5 years? One of my neighbour has one and it has rust on the lower side of the rear right door, so i think it's a pretty common problem. I live in Romania where it doesn't rain as much as in UK, Norway or other countries. So the weather should not lead to any of these 'rusty' issues.

2. Any DSG owners, problems with the gearbox? 

3. Anything that i need to know.

 

Thanks a lot! Waiting for any advice

 

[gman88667733]

Ensure that it has not had the EA189 Emissions 'Fix' done to it. This will cause a whole heap of problems. Your best bet is to buy from a private seller or an independent garage.

[kenfowler3966]

4x4 dsg will be a diesel, so there are the possible issues with the emmisions fix in the UK, not sure what is happening in your country.

 

If left as standard and not had the emmisions fix the diesel 4x4 with its wet clutch dsg should be reliable, but these gearboxes are expensive to fix if something does go wrong.

 

I read somewhere of an octavia taxi which has done over 500k miles on its wet clutch dsg without any repairs needed

 

This age of car had issues with the wires breaking between the car body and the doors as the connecting link is a little short

[kenfowler3966]

The rust issue is a fault on some cars with the galvanising process leaving blisters under the galvanising which rust instead of protecting the steel. A car of this age will either have been fixed, not have the problem at all, or obviously need repair and easily avoided.

 

Not really a weather related issue.

Edited 14 July, 2017 by kenfowler3966

[danjelzig]

22 minutes ago, gman88667733 said:

Ensure that it has not had the EA189 Emissions 'Fix' done to it. This will cause a whole heap of problems. Your best bet is to buy from a private seller or an independent garage.

Not the case in Romania, i'm searching for one on COTW.com so every car has a detailed damage report and full service history. 

[danjelzig]

21 minutes ago, kenfowler3966 said:

The rust issue is a fault on some cars with the galvanising process leaving blisters under the galvanising which rust instead of protecting the steel. A car of this age will either have been fixed, not have the problem at all, or obviously need repair and easily avoided.

 

Not really a weather related issue.

I see, the rust problem is my main reason i'm still "on hold" regarding the decision to buy one right now. So there is a chance that this problem appeared usually on the first models ( 2009-2010 )? If so, it'll be great because i would like a 2012-2013 model. 

 

Regarding the fact that the reparing a dsg will be expensive, i m aware of that...but i still hope that it won't break while.my dad'll be using it. :)) ( He mainly keeps a car for about 4-5 years ) 

[gman88667733]

In that case, then you should be good to go! Some people aren't a fan of the diesel/DSG combo, so it is worth a thorough test drive first.

[kenfowler3966]

The problem continues on some cars. My 2014 car had a patch of rust fixed under warranty about 4 weeks ago before it was returned to the lease company 2 weeks ago at 3 years old.

This is a cosmetic problem though and does not affect the main structure and strength of the car.

[thingy]

Hi, you will normally only hear about problems owners have.

If there is only one door with rust, has that door been bashed on kerbs etc?

There has to be thousands of owner/drivers that have no problems.

Mine is the model you quote as looking to purchase. (Mines not for sale).

I've owned mine for 3 and a half years. No paint problems so far.

77000 miles and 42mpg average fuel consumption over that time.

Apart from servicing every 10-11000 miles, one set of tyres

and the odd couple of bulbs, it's perfect.

Car seems happy at 5-10mph as it is at 80+ in France.

[danjelzig]

1 hour ago, thingy said:

Hi, you will normally only hear about problems owners have.

If there is only one door with rust, has that door been bashed on kerbs etc?

There has to be thousands of owner/drivers that have no problems.

Mine is the model you quote as looking to purchase. (Mines not for sale).

I've owned mine for 3 and a half years. No paint problems so far.

77000 miles and 42mpg average fuel consumption over that time.

Apart from servicing every 10-11000 miles, one set of tyres

and the odd couple of bulbs, it's perfect.

Car seems happy at 5-10mph as it is at 80+ in France.

Hi,

I see your point. The only reason i've asked about the rust problem is because i've seen a lot ( probably too many for a car of this age ) of  posts about this issue with the Yeti and i thought it s a common problem. If i would have found only one or two negative posts and thousands of positive reviews, i would have bought the car by now.

 

Do you have the 140CR DSG?

[danjelzig]

1 hour ago, kenfowler3966 said:

The problem continues on some cars. My 2014 car had a patch of rust fixed under warranty about 4 weeks ago before it was returned to the lease company 2 weeks ago at 3 years old.

This is a cosmetic problem though and does not affect the main structure and strength of the car.

Ow...hope won't be the case for me..do you have any information. That shield of the paint has a poor quality in some countries or...? 

[danjelzig]

2 hours ago, gman88667733 said:

In that case, then you should be good to go! Some people aren't a fan of the diesel/DSG combo, so it is worth a thorough test drive first.

Won't have the possibility

The car will come on platform. 

[thingy]

Hi dan,  yes I have that Yeti, it's in the post name.

Mine was reg Nov 2013.

Bought as a showroom model.

[danjelzig]

2 hours ago, thingy said:

Hi dan,  yes I have that Yeti, it's in the post name.

Mine was reg Nov 2013.

Bought as a showroom model.

I'm writing from the mobile version of this site and i don't see the complete info as on the desktop version. Thanks for your messages..it kinda encourages me to look forward to buying this car seeing that there are a lot of cars that don't have that rust problem, which for me is crucial. 

Edited 14 July, 2017 by danjelzig

[ejstubbs]

4 hours ago, danjelzig said:

The only reason i've asked about the rust problem is because i've seen a lot ( probably too many for a car of this age ) of  posts about this issue with the Yeti and i thought it s a common problem.

 

I suspect you may have been reading about the zinc inclusions problem.  It's by no means restricted to Yetis; do a Google search and you will find discussions about the problem on a number of forums for owners of VAG cars, including Audi.  I don't know whether it was pinpointed to any particular batches of vehicles, or certain colours.  You might want to ask whether a car that you are interested in buying has already been treated for this problem: if so then it shouldn't occur again.  Otherwise, aiming towards the more recent end of the age range you're considering, and buying an approved used car from a dealer might give you more chance of a come back if the problem does arise.

 

All that said, as thingy pointed out, you almost always only hear about the problems that people have with a product - people rarely post specifically to say, "Hey, my Yeti has been trouble free for x years!"  There's an old adage in the marketing industry: if someone has a bad experience, they'll tell ten of their friends about it; if they have a good experience, they'll tell just one.  I reckon internet forums magnify that ratio by at least another factor of ten.

[muddyboots]

On 14/07/2017 at 20:32, ejstubbs said:

 

I suspect you may have been reading about the zinc inclusions problem. 

There's also a separate issue of rust on the trailing edge of the front doors, where the paint rubs against the rubber seals between front & rear doors.

Both my doors have it, just a very thin line of rust on the trailing edge, doesn't seem to have spread though.

You can't see it with the doors closed.

 

I've read that others have this problem too.

[137699]

On ‎14‎/‎07‎/‎2017 at 12:36, danjelzig said:

1. I saw a lot of posting about the rust on all four doors and the tailgate. Is the bodypaint that rubbish that it rusts after just 3-5 years? One of my neighbour has one and it has rust on the lower side of the rear right door, so i think it's a pretty common problem. I live in Romania where it doesn't rain as much as in UK, Norway or other countries. So the weather should not lead to any of these 'rusty' issues.

2. Any DSG owners, problems with the gearbox? 

3. Anything that i need to know.

1. My experience is that this affects EVERY Yeti. When I noticed it on mine (at 3 years old) I took it to the local dealer and went around every Yeti on their forecourt - newest one 15 months old. They had 7 or 8 Yetis there and they ALL had the blisters forming.

2. Yes - my DSG6 has just lunched itself 3 months out of warranty. Repair cost is £5076.

3. If you can live with / avoid the pitfalls, the Yeti is a really good car. Sadly the last few months of mine has soured what had previously been 3 years of very positive experiences.

[ejstubbs]

5 hours ago, 137699 said:

1. My experience is that this affects EVERY Yeti.

 

I think that's a bit of an exaggeration.  Simple counterexample: it didn't affect mine.  Mine did have the problem which arose from the early Yetis not having the protective foils on the the trailing edge of the lower part of the rear doors (ie the forward outer part of the rear wheel arch) unless the car had the rough road pack fitted.  I caught that early on when I noticed the stone chips in that area: I got both doors repainted and the protective foils fitted under warranty.  It had not progressed to actual corrosion at that point.  Other owners may have been less vigilant, or just not been aware that it was a recognised issue for which Skoda had accepted responsibility.

 

In any case, that issue would not have affected all four doors and the tailgate, which is what the OP in concerned about.  I can't remember when Skoda took to fitting the foils as standard EDIT sometime late in 2010, Google suggests, which means that any vehicle in the OP's target age range should have them.  But it's fairly easy to check anyway: if the car is clean (which it shold be if it's for sale) then a visual inspection of the area concerned should show whether the foils are present.

[Ootohere]

That deals with the foils.

As to the other issue from the poor QC from the factory and the corroding panels closer inspection even paint thickness testing can be required with a used car to see if the paint applied is original or a replaced panel painted correctly or 'Kerb side' auto repair as some Skoda Main Dealers / Skoda had done or as some call it a bit of tart up and shift them on.

The number that had to have warranty work or just refinishing will be something Skoda knows and will not be telling.

[oldstan]

Quote:- 1. "My experience is that this affects EVERY Yeti. "

 

Every Yeti except two, then. ejstubbs has one of them and I have the other. Six years old and not a spot of rust anywhere. (OK then, not a spot of visible rust).

 

The DSG did need the modified clutch pack within warranty, but has been fine since.

 

Can only speak as I find.

[logiclee]

If you are looking at a DSG 140CR then check the gearbox has had an oil change at 40k miles. If it hasn't do not buy it.

 

Lee

[kenfowler3966]

My 2010 car did not have the foils on the rear doors when new. They were retrofitted as a repair when they repaired all the stone chips at about 2 years old.

I would think they all had this done in the end.

Unfortunately the retrofitted ones never stuck down properly where they wrap around the door edge, ended up dirty underneath edge.

2014 car was fine and the foils stayed properly stuck down.

[danjelzig]

Okey, everyone, thanks for your answers, helps a lot. What i understand and what scares me so far is that the "rust" or "zinc inclusion" problem appears randomly. Some of you seen this problem on many Yetis, some of you tell me that there's nothing to worry about.

Also, as i researched any other options ( Nissan Qashqai 2013, Skoda Octavia Scout 2012 ) there is something that doesn't let me remove Yeti from the shortlist yet.  

-Nissan Qashqai might be a reliable car but i can't get along with the cheap interior and the fact that under the skin it's much of a Renault than a Nissan.

-Skoda Octavia might be a little bit more expensive than the Yeti if you find one with the 6DSG and with a decent mileage

 

So, the problems with the bodypaint are a real thing, if there wasn't there shouldn't be so many experiences on the forums...but still, i will look closely in finding a minimum 2012 Yeti ( maybe those have this problem fixed ).

 

It would be awersome if you will continue to provide relevant info about the Yeti...Hope i will buy one in good condition ( that will not rust after 3 years :)) 

[137699]

On ‎17‎/‎07‎/‎2017 at 18:34, oldstan said:

Quote:- 1. "My experience is that this affects EVERY Yeti. "

 

Every Yeti except two, then. ejstubbs has one of them and I have the other. Six years old and not a spot of rust anywhere. (OK then, not a spot of visible rust).

 

The DSG did need the modified clutch pack within warranty, but has been fine since.

 

Can only speak as I find.

 

As I say - EVERY Yeti in the dealer had it. I guess if you have super low mileage, keep it in the garage, like EJSTUBBS have had the doors repainted before anyway, then you might not have it. Either that or you simply haven't noticed them yet. On the Yeti's in the dealer some of the "blooms" were tiny any only under extreme close scrutiny could they be seen - but they were there all the same.

[oldstan]

Can only say again, I speak as I find. Yes, low mileage, yes, garaged most (but not all) of the time. And driven with a degree of sympathy, and wash off under the wheel arches every time it returns from a trip in the rain. No, it's not been painted anywhere in six years and.... please... give me enough respect to have noticed if it's gone rusty or not.... I'm not entirely oblivious to that sort of thing.... this is my 34th car since I started driving in 1967.