32 minutes ago, kenfowler3966 said:

I now tend to connect only when it needs to charge as smartlink is such a waste of money.

 

You should have been able to charge from the USB socket without smartlink.

 

It's personal taste, I always use smartlink with android auto. I much prefer Waze for navigation than the onboard satnav and almost exclusively listen to either podcasts or streaming sources.

 

 

3 minutes ago, langers2k said:

 

You should have been able to charge from the USB socket without smartlink.

 

It's personal taste, I always use smartlink with android auto. I much prefer Waze for navigation than the onboard satnav and almost exclusively listen to either podcasts or streaming sources.

 

 

It will charge and stay On Bluetooth I guess if smartlink is not enabled. Might even be an option to do so if enabled. Not too bothered either was as long as phone works.

I do carry a usb power adapter for the power socket so I can charge without smartlink if I want

Once thing I prefer about SmartLink is that the voice recognition is always on, and works very well.  (This is on an Android phone using "OK Google" to tell it that I want something doing.  If I use the phone on its own I have to activate Google Assistant via the phone's screen before it will react to voice commands.)  I use SmartLink a lot for navigation (using Google Maps - I don't have satnav built-in to the car).  Being able to say "OK Google...navigate me to Forestcraft in Granton" and it just works makes me very happy.  I've also used the voice recognition for sending a text message, making calls (much more reliable for that than the dodgy voice recognition in my old 2010 Elegance, and doesn't require any manual input to trigger it) and selecting music to play. 

Edited 20 February, 20197 yr by ejstubbs

The beauty of Smartlink is the ease of use of Voice recognition and the way it integrates your phone into the car. I find the Skoda Satnav is iffy at best and despite updating the maps regularly it still misses some obvious changes and junctions and some of it’s route selections are obtuse at best! Being able to use Google Maps or, particularly, Waze is much better and it has the knack of being able to avoid traffic jams and difficult junctions. Not sure how it does that but it just does.

Thanks for all the comments, you've helped me with a related issue, which is "why should I pay for an Infotainment Online subscription for the satnav, when Smartlink + Android Auto is better for me?" The data cost isn't particularly high for me as I don't use streaming audio services, just podcasts which are downloaded when I'm at home. Now I understand that on some cars, it's either/or, not both. The built-in navigation system is fine, but a good quality USB lead, a SIM in the car to provide WiFi and a phone over Smartlink is cheaper and better for most people as there's no annual subscription. 

Enjoy your new car, and whatever you finally choose, you might be able to get the dealer to add a couple of upgrades....

No Issues with Sunroof on 65 plate L&K diesel. Leather seats fine other than drivers seat right side where some slight wear is evident (46 K Mls) . Only complaint is Dark brown metallic paint shows every mark . Even nail scratch marks behind passengers door handle and there are not often passengers in rear of car!

11 hours ago, gregwhates said:

 

I remember my old 1.2 Yeti averaging late 30s.

 

@AllanDJI assume the 1.4 is the same unit without the stop/start features? 

My 1.4 has the top start which I find a pain and rather pointless, so if I remember I always turn it "off". (I wish there was a permanent way to do this).

Going back to economy I have just returned from a 140 mile round trip to the NEC caravan show and averaged 50mpg on the way out and 48mpg on the return journey. (NB off the maxidot which I know is about 4% optimistic...).

Edited 20 February, 20197 yr by Stubod

I haven't had any issues with my L+K's roof either. I had a "quick" look (2 hours...) under the roof lining to check and it all seemd OK.

 

The other benefit of a L+K, and the reason I went for one in the end; the heated windscreen!

6 hours ago, kenfowler3966 said:

It will charge and stay On Bluetooth I guess if smartlink is not enabled. Might even be an option to do so if enabled.

 

Just checked in my 2017 SE L with my Sony Z5 Compact: the phone definitely charges and keeps the bluetooth connection up if you just plug in the USB cable without selecting SmartLink on the Bolero.  In fact, even selecting SmartLink on the Bolero doesn't change that: the phone still charges and keeps the bluetooth connection up (as indicated by the bluetooth icon on the phone).

 

AFAICT the USB connection is just for the screen mirroring.  The phone, SMS and audio (music and navigation) all still go through the bluetooth connection.  Would be easy enough to verify by turning off the phone's bluetooth and seeing what stops working.  EDIT: Ha! Thought I'd proved myself wrong, but it turns out that if you try to make a call or play music through SmartLink while the phone's bluetooth is off, it turns it on again!

 

I think the message that you get when you select SmartLink on the Bolero, telling you that BT Audio is no longer available, is simply saying that you can no longer select BT Audio as a music source on the Bolero's Media screen.  Instead, you drive the music app on the phone via the SmartLink screen (or by voice control), but the actual audio still uses the bluetooth connection.

 

I know for a fact that you can still use e.g. an SD card as a music source while using the SmartLink for navigation.  The Bolero (usually) silences the SD card audio when the Google Doris is talking (it does sometimes get confused if Doris gives you two direction instructions in rapid succession).  I'm not sure whether it's smart enough to do the same if you're listening to music from the phone as well as navigating (I hardly ever use the phone as a music source).

Edited 20 February, 20197 yr by ejstubbs

My sel has a heated windscreen fitted as standard?

4 minutes ago, kenfowler3966 said:

My sel has a heated windscreen fitted as standard?

So does my SE.  But I think they were only standard fit on the runout "Drive" models.

Everybody's feedback had been so helpful; thank you.

 

It seems to me then the difference is L&K has 4x4, park assist and panoramic roof, but no smartlink (which I can sort out easily enough,  and barter with dealers over!)

 

I've also noticed most of them have the raised boot floor.  Was this standard on the L&K? Seems to just waste boot space,  or can it be raised and lowered like on my Octavia estate?

 

 

The boot floor is lower if you do not have the spare wheel option. If you have a spare wheel then the "packing" around the wheel raises the floor level. Worth noting that you can take all the rear seats out in about 5 mins if you need more space.....

Edited 21 February, 20197 yr by Stubod

With a spare wheel you lose 25% of boot space. If you can get a variable floor then you can choose floor height to get the floor either level with the opening or fold up to gain max depth. It is amazing how much extra space is released by eliminating the spare wheel.

Moved from the 1.6 Diesel Greenline pre FL  to the 1.4 L&K.

Average mpg dropped from approx 50 to 40 mpg same sort of rural driving.

Mine has the spare wheel option, which raises the boot floor to the level of the tailgate opening.  I find this convenient and provides sufficient boot space for 99% of my needs.  For the 1% of time I need every inch of boot space, I leave the rear seats and spare wheel at home, drop in the goo can and inflator, and keep my fingers firmly crossed!

2 hours ago, Stubod said:

The boot floor is lower if you do not have the spare wheel option. If you have a spare wheel then the "packing" around the wheel raises the floor level. Worth noting that you can take all the rear seats out in about 5 mins if you need more space.....

 

Also worth noting that the "packing" around the wheel actually provides some useful storage space below the boot floor.  The raised boot floor even comes with fold-up 'hatches' to access the sub-floor storage spaces.  I find that space handy for my tool roll, warning triangle, small top-up bottle of screenwash and other stuff that I carry "just in case".  (Access to the storage spaces in an emergency is somewhat impeded if the boot itself is completely full, of course.)

7 hours ago, ejstubbs said:

 

Also worth noting that the "packing" around the wheel actually provides some useful storage space below the boot floor.  The raised boot floor even comes with fold-up 'hatches' to access the sub-floor storage spaces.  I find that space handy for my tool roll, warning triangle, small top-up bottle of screenwash and other stuff that I carry "just in case".  (Access to the storage spaces in an emergency is somewhat impeded if the boot itself is completely full, of course.)

+1

Waterproofs, towel, towrope,various gloves etc can be fitted in the various spaces including around the spare wheel itself

10 hours ago, Robjon said:

So does my SE.  But I think they were only standard fit on the runout "Drive" models.

My mistake then. For some reason I thought it was only on the L+K models that had the heated windscreen.

 

I agree with the opinions above regarding the spare wheel. I just got the kit as I don't trust the gunk option and found the extra storage was really handy for bits and bobs.

Absolutely loads of useful information and feedback so far - thanks!

 

Starting to lean towards the L&K more,  but I think it will depend on the deals I find!

 

Next opinion - DSG vs manual. I think manual.

I'm sure the 1.4 L+K was only  available as manual.