. Hi, am new to this site. Have just bought a 2016 Octavia 2.0 SE Business estate, which has 18 months left on the Skoda warranty. I have had quotes from approved fitters for around £500 for a Westfalia removable hitch and 13 pin electrics. The car does not have a dedicated wiring socket in the boot. I have been told by local dealer that even if I have a Skoda approved bar and use a Skoda wiring loom, I will invalidate my remaining warranty. Does any other member know if this is the case. Waiting for price from dealer to gave them do the job.

Welcome.

Maybe fire an Email off to that employees Dealer Principal asking if what was said was true about Invalidating the Manufacturers Warranty. 

Too many make it up as they go along.

&

Ask Skoda UK Customer Services, then you can have 2 replies in writing.

http://skoda.co.uk/about-us/contact-us 

Edited 17 January, 20188 yr by AwaoffSki

Thanks for the reply. I had to call them back regarding the dealership fitting a bar, which am told would be a grand.  The parts manager said that as long as a genuine Westfalia bar and loom were fitted, it wouldn’t be a problem. If any wires were cut and problems occurred from that, then that would be down to the fitter and not Skoda, which is fair enough. Am surprised for what a dedicated loom would cost in a modern car, they are not fitted as standard. Both companies that I have contacted have said their quotes of £495 include genuine parts, so should be ok. 

I had a tow bar fitted, by an independent fitter, to my Octavia about a month after i bought it new in 2012. I told the dealer that I was going to do it when I ordered the car and nothing was said about the warranty being null and void.

 

As long as any faults with the car cannot be attributed to the fitting of the tow bar then, in my opinionk the remaining warrenty should be valid.

2 minutes ago, Liger1956 said:

As long as any faults with the car cannot be attributed to the fitting of the tow bar then, in my opinionk the remaining warrenty should be valid.

 Spot on logic.

 

 

2 hours ago, Liger1956 said:

I had a tow bar fitted, by an independent fitter, to my Octavia about a month after i bought it new in 2012. I told the dealer that I was going to do it when I ordered the car and nothing was said about the warranty being null and void.

 

As long as any faults with the car cannot be attributed to the fitting of the tow bar then, in my opinionk the remaining warrenty should be valid.

Why have an independent fit it when it can be a factory fitted option?. It may cost a few hundred more but the car costs 25/30 grand or so,  so why risk your warranty for a hundred or two?

14 minutes ago, YMe said:

Why have an independent fit it when it can be a factory fitted option?. It may cost a few hundred more but the car costs 25/30 grand or so,  so why risk your warranty for a hundred or two?

Because I bought my Octavia from Skoda stock brand new but already built and in the UK. I could have paid the dealer to fit it but they would have used the same installer that I used but charged me an inflated price. The dealer advised me to have it fitted myself and that the warranty would be unaffected.

Not sure about now but when the Octavia first launched you couldnt have a factory fitted tow bar.

The only upgrade you could order was "tow bar prep" which was half of the wiring loom needed if I remember right.

Afterwards you had to pay the dealer double (who would send it to a specialist fitter) or get it fitted directly by the specialist.

26 minutes ago, YMe said:

Why have an independent fit it when it can be a factory fitted option?. It may cost a few hundred more but the car costs 25/30 grand or so,  so why risk your warranty for a hundred or two?

My car was bought pre owned, and gas 18 months Skoda warranty left. I agree, I would have done that if buying new.

My car was bought pre owned and still has 18 months Skoda warranty remaining. I agree, I would have done that if buying new.

When I asked about fitting a towbar on a pre-reg car they said they would send it off to an independent fitter anyway.  So the only conclusion I could draw is that if I took it to the same place, they wouldn't have an issue.  That is for a genuine westfalia which he suggested was the exact same model as would have been used if it were factory fit.

@Skiprat Skoda have homologated the car towing capacity at 1800Kgs for FWD and 2000Kgs for 4x4 models. I very much doubt fitting a towbar will affect the warranty no matter where it is fitted. New model tests prior to launch include trailer towing excercises at combined Max vehicle and trailer weights. I have conducted these very tests on other manufacturer vehicles including agressive hill starts on 5% inclines until the cluches have burned out!

Edited 17 January, 20188 yr by BigEjit

Thanks to all who have answered. This is a very helpful forum. I have found out that Skoda can supply a loom that plugs into the dedicated socket in the boot, (if fitted) or another that connects to the vehicles electronics at another location, without the requirement to “cut” into the existing loom. Neither of which if selected will affect the warranty. I have also discovered what “homologated” means. Thanks BigEjit

5 hours ago, Skiprat said:

Thanks for the reply. I had to call them back regarding the dealership fitting a bar, which am told would be a grand.  The parts manager said that as long as a genuine Westfalia bar and loom were fitted, it wouldn’t be a problem. If any wires were cut and problems occurred from that, then that would be down to the fitter and not Skoda, which is fair enough. Am surprised for what a dedicated loom would cost in a modern car, they are not fitted as standard. Both companies that I have contacted have said their quotes of £495 include genuine parts, so should be ok. 

 

Hi Skiprat - can you let me know where these companies are? I'm after getting a Westfalia bar and dedicated 13-pin electrics fitted to mine and have been quoted £650 for a mobile fitter, which is a touch on the pricy side for me!

 

The one I have been in contact with today is in Cheshire where I live. He has just come back to me with additional programming cost of £55, taking whole job to £550. I was given his details by my son in law, who had him fit a bar to his Freelander 2. Very nice job he did on it. Will post company when I get the details

Or if you are up for it, you could do it yourself for around £250. Parts from PF Jones and follow one of the guides a fellow Briskodian has done a few years ago. 

I would have done a few years ago, but don’t have the confidence any more. At 68, I prefer to watch and learn now

21 hours ago, crispymorgan said:

When I asked about fitting a towbar on a pre-reg car they said they would send it off to an independent fitter anyway.  So the only conclusion I could draw is that if I took it to the same place, they wouldn't have an issue.  That is for a genuine westfalia which he suggested was the exact same model as would have been used if it were factory fit.

Only difference is the s are a "one stop shop" both on purchase or warranty. Worth their markup to my mind & there's no argument about the coding to make the TSC work properly

Well in the end I got the fitter from PF Jones to do it. Nice job and I'm loving the way the Westfalia detachable just disappears entirely, including the electric socket which just folds up under the car. You even get a little bag to put the tow ball into and some gloves

 

Bad news was it cost an eye-watering £650 to get it done with the proper electrics kit and coding the car with the proper Westfalia stuff. But it does have a 5 year warranty and it's a proper quality bit of kit!

 

If anyone wants me I'll be in the corner comforting my aching wallet

I have done this myself with a Westphalia kit from PF Jones. There is one seriously tricky bit. The supply lead has to be inserted into blank plug slots behind the fuse box. Bend a pin and it can do £3,000 of damage. The installer had a problem and had to claim on his insurance. I fitted the tow bar and all the wiring up to the fuse box area, I then paid £100 for him to do the interface and code the car. Thier machine is much easier to use than VCSD for this!

 

Edited 25 January, 20188 yr by Garnett