What have you done to your Superb III today?

[Bap33]

16 hours ago, Graham Butcher said:

My dealer suggested that I don't bother replacing the bulb(s) unless I was really bothered and a perfectionist, as the OEM bulbs were so expensive. He showed me the exploded view of the headlamp unit on his computer and the price of the bulb alone was £264 each, so I think I'll be leaving it alone for the time being unless it fails altogether.

I now better understand the joke, when some of you guys write "main stealer"...😁

[Graham Butcher]

6 hours ago, numskull said:

Non OE units are far cheaper at £150 per pair and, of course, are made by the OE suppliers. 

Yep, to be fair, they did say that was a cheaper route, but factor in the costs of them removing the bumper etc still makes it expensive. They just replaced the parking sensor brackets at the cost of £92.80 for the 4 brackets and £100 labour. They also fitted the correct Skoda engine undertray with the sound absorbing material as well for £125.78 (labour was just £25) and I must say that having that tray now fitted it sounds much quieter and less tractor ish😄 

[Lutz_91]

Vor 17 Stunden sagte Graham Butcher:

und der Preis allein für die Glühbirne betrug 264 £ pro Stück,

 

 

Buy some from Osram. Regardless of whether it is a xenon burner or another lamp, it is significantly cheaper than the original.

[Graham Butcher]

55 minutes ago, Lutz_91 said:

 

 

Buy some from Osram. Regardless of whether it is a xenon burner or another lamp, it is significantly cheaper than the original.

Haha, I just did a quick check on the Halford website for Xenon headlamps bulbs to fit my car and they only list 2 types, 1 is priced at £38 but says it might not be suitable for my car, the other is priced at £49.50 and carries no such warning, also they only charge £9 per bulb for fitting so it comes out at £108 for 2, fitted but then there is a 10% discount that can be applied currently, bringing the total down to £97.20 fitted. They are rated as being 4100K colour temperature.

 

I wonder if they would honour that £9 a bulb fitting charge if they find that they need to remove the bumper to fit them?

Edited 9 December, 2023 by Graham Butcher

[Lutz_91]

Osram has the CBI or NBU in its program. And if we talk about the Superb3V, then you need D3S burners.

And the bumper doesn't have to come off. You can change them from above, but this is very difficult. Or from the wheelhouse. Then the wheel is off and the wheel arch liner is out. 
That's going pretty well. But the bumper definitely doesn't have to come off. The 9,- are still calculated very tightly.

[Graham Butcher]

You are correct, there is this video on YT about it. Interestingly, this is a story that may have originated from Škoda themselves as the owners manual show how to replace halogen bulbs only and indicator bulbs, it makes no mention of the Xenon or the DRL's/indicators as these are LEDs.

 

(179) Skoda Superb MK3 III xenon bulb change / replacement - YouTube

 

And for the Mk2

 

 

Edited 9 December, 2023 by Graham Butcher

[Lutz_91]

It depends on which lights you have installed. With halogen you can change more than with xenon.
And xenon is actually supposed to be made by the workshop, so it's probably not listed in the BA. Although it's the same principle.
But everyone can do what they want.

I already have the second burner in there, so I know it and also know how it works.

[Graham Butcher]

I just have the standard xenon lights with the LED DRL's and indicators.

[Lutz_91]

So you need D3S and there are quite a few to choose from. Osram, Philips or other no name products.

[Graham Butcher]

Last night I tweaked my headlights up a smidgen so they are little better now. My N/S headlight was replaced with brand new one in June along with a bulb, and it has a different colour temp to the O/S one, but I'm not sure if I can really justify the cost at the moment, currently it is not causing me any problems other than I know it looks odd. However, I don't have to look at, others do that ☺️ and by the time they have noticed the colour difference, they've gone past me. 

 

If I could get under the wheel arch and access them, I'd probably swap them out, but not being as agile as I once was and at 75 I really don't want to attempt it in case anything went wrong, I'd struggle to escape in time, so I'd have to pay the dealers labour on top.

[numskull]

12 hours ago, Graham Butcher said:

I wonder if they would honour that £9 a bulb fitting charge if they find that they need to remove the bumper to fit them?

I honestly wouldn’t trust a Halfords “technician” to fit a tyre valve dust cap, let alone a Xenon bulb. And isn’t the wheel arch a simpler approach (and potentially less fraught) than removing a bumper to replace a bulb? I can imagine your sensors being ripped out again as the technician, with all of 1 hours training in every aspect of their day-to-day job, heaves the bumper off the car, complete with sensor and headlamp cleaner wiring and hoses all still attached, dropping the bumper on the concrete in the process, as they refuse to give way to the oafs abuse, attempting to deftly hang on to their attached parts. “Ooops… sorry about that mate; I fink it’s all OK though”. 🙄 

[Bap33]

3 things done today:

- Air Quality Sensor replaced: No more fault code popping up.

- New battery installed.

- Appointment book for sunroof side seals replacement (will be replaced in early january).

 

BTW, the VCDS coding upon battery replacement, is really bullsh*t. My original battery was a 68Ah Varta, but I discovered the manufacturer code was JCB instead of VAO as it should be 😯. Additionally, the S/N was 1111111111 instead of the actual S/N figuring on the battery BEM code sticker 🙄. I nevertheless coded everything properly, at as it should be. 

 

Last point to fix is the inner ski hatch handle... 

[Graham Butcher]

@Bap33 Where is the air quality sensor located and is it easy to change?

[Bap33]

It's just under the plastic housing at the windscreen bottom on passenger side.

2 metal clips and a seal to remove to remove the plastic housing and the you can access the AQS. It's a 10mn job, no more.  

You just eventually need a small flat screw driver to "unlock" the safety clamp of the sensor. Sorry I'm not sure I use the right words. But you'll understand, once you see it. 😁

[JR RS]

2 hours ago, Graham Butcher said:

@Bap33 Where is the air quality sensor located and is it easy to change?

 

[CB_4x4]

On 10/12/2023 at 04:20, numskull said:

I honestly wouldn’t trust a Halfords “technician” to fit a tyre valve dust cap, let alone a Xenon bulb. And isn’t the wheel arch a simpler approach (and potentially less fraught) than removing a bumper to replace a bulb? I can imagine your sensors being ripped out again as the technician, with all of 1 hours training in every aspect of their day-to-day job, heaves the bumper off the car, complete with sensor and headlamp cleaner wiring and hoses all still attached, dropping the bumper on the concrete in the process, as they refuse to give way to the oafs abuse, attempting to deftly hang on to their attached parts. “Ooops… sorry about that mate; I fink it’s all OK though”. 🙄 

If you ever wondered what happened to the (you can't get thicker than a) KwikFitFitter ... they were put into a selective breeding program in the late 1980s, and now after two generations we have 'alferdz techs, and if they seem to show any aptitude they get given a customer facing role to erode any happiness ... "I can't sell you this because it doesn't appear on my stock screen" - "but I can see it, you're actually holding it" - "but the computer says no".

 

I watched one, once, putting a push-bike together out of the packaging - they only had to loosen and twist a few things to straighten it up - but it got written off as "damaged in transit" by a supportive manager when the customer refused to accept it 😞

[numskull]

SWMBO 2003 Focus AC failed last year and Halfords had a free airco test offer. So I took it down there and after 25mins of him trying to find the coupling (yeah, I know; I should’ve told him to pack up after 10) he announced the system was full so it needed a compressor. 
I then went to KF, who had a 1/2 price Airco regas offer and after 25 mins the car is handed back over with nicely chilled air coming out. Yeah, it was nearly out of gas. 

[Warrior193]

17 hours ago, Bap33 said:

3 things done today:

- Air Quality Sensor replaced: No more fault code popping up.

- New battery installed.

- Appointment book for sunroof side seals replacement (will be replaced in early january).

 

BTW, the VCDS coding upon battery replacement, is really bullsh*t. My original battery was a 68Ah Varta, but I discovered the manufacturer code was JCB instead of VAO as it should be 😯. Additionally, the S/N was 1111111111 instead of the actual S/N figuring on the battery BEM code sticker 🙄. I nevertheless coded everything properly, at as it should be. 

 

Last point to fix is the inner ski hatch handle... 

From my understanding, the only critical information for the adaptation is the battery type (fleece or EFB)  and capacity - the serial number can be simply changed by one digit to indicate the battery has been changed.

[Bap33]

Yes, what I've discovered fully confirm your sayings.

[KeteCantek]

I renewed insurance for my 280. Same price as last year (with same conditions and 9 vs 8 years NCB) actually so am very pleased. 

[Gammyleg]

On 12/12/2023 at 22:37, Bap33 said:

the manufacturer code was JCB instead of VAO as it should be 😯. Additionally, the S/N was 1111111111 instead of the actual S/N figuring on the battery BEM code sticker

My details were the same when I changed mine. No idea why.

[Graham Butcher]

1 hour ago, Gammyleg said:

My details were the same when I changed mine. No idea why.

I think they preprogram the battery monitor in the factory all the same because they know which battery they are fitting as standard. 

[Graham Butcher]

2 hours ago, KeteCantek said:

I renewed insurance for my 280. Same price as last year (with same conditions and 9 vs 8 years NCB) actually so am very pleased. 

Your lucky then, most have seen increases. 

[Sheriff]

Yep had to change mine today as they wouldn't put new car on existing policy. £242 in March and £507 today.

[Bap33]

5 hours ago, Graham Butcher said:

I think they preprogram the battery monitor in the factory all the same because they know which battery they are fitting as standard. 

Probably right, but surprising to set JCB code instead of VAO when they install a Varta.