Got my 2021 Octavia Estate SEL 1.5 TSI First Edition in October 2023.  It came with several of the well-documented software "issues" which I was fortunate to get sorted under the original warranty.  It was invaluable getting information from this group as I could be extremely specific with the dealership about what I wanted sorting, going as far as printing out TPI's, etc.  In all honesty without the knowledge I gleaned from the group I suspect the dealership may have fobbed me off although, to be fair to them, they do seem to be one of the better Skoda dealerships.

The car now all works very well, with great fuel efficiency, I like the tech side of the car and it drives well.  I appreciate the frustration early purchasers must have experienced as it seemed to take Skoda an unacceptable amount of time to sort out many issues, often taking a total denial stance, which all seemed to be mostly software-related.  I think this is the modern-day problem with all cars, they are so technical and built around software, that the mechanics rely almost completely on diagnostic computers - if the computer says "no" or the manufacturer hasn't acknowledged a problem they don't seem to be able to progress a solution.

The longest run I did mine was 640 miles and had at least 1/4 of a tank left in when I finished the trip.mind you it was diesel but have had diesel cars before but this tbe best figures I have ever had off any my cars.am no slouch when it comes to driving.as I said before I have never had any problems.i have now got 25000 miles on the clock and the tyres are still in good 4mm on front and 5mm on the back.so no complaints there either.

 

Totally unhappy with my late 2023 1.5 DSG SEL. Infotainment muting, freezing, SOS triggering, all the other 'known' faults but the main thing is the way it drives and the quality of gearchanges and the  way the regenerative braking reacts to my braking, frankly it's dangerous. Sadly no fault codes have ever been stored. I've had the dealer demonstrator for 2 1/2 months now while they and Skoda argue about replacing it with another one. The Facelift I have at the moment is a different kettle of fish altogether, smooth quiet and much nicer to drive ( it has its rattles and creaks though so not entirely faultless ).This is my 6th Skoda, I have loved all of them and they have been faultless, this has been a massive disappointment for me. It's a great looking car but I may have to look at an uglier reliable, safe car next time .

Andy

I have been very happy with all my Skoda cars, problems have been few and my dealers Tech Team have sorted anything that arose (Platinum Bath)

So that is two Yeti,  a Fabi Kombi Monte Carlo, a Kamiq Monte Carlo 1.5 and now a Fabia SE L (and I do like the wheel trims ) 

 

1 hour ago, Merlin1640 said:

the  way the regenerative braking reacts to my braking, frankly it's dangerous

Could you elaborate what you mean by that?

If I’m travelling along a dual carriageway for example and come up behind a slower car my car brakes automatically ( braking and regenerative braking I’m guessing but could be wrong ). As I get closer to the car in front the auto braking ends, I have to brake and the engine ( that has been shut down ) is restarted quite violently ( as if it were being bump started by the motion of the car ) but all of this is very harsh and not at all synchronised. I sometimes get left with ‘half a brake pedal’ too. Not easy to explain but very unpleasant. The demo car is all very civilised and smooth in similar situations. 

9 minutes ago, Merlin1640 said:

If I’m travelling along a dual carriageway for example and come up behind a slower car my car brakes automatically ( braking and regenerative braking I’m guessing but could be wrong ). As I get closer to the car in front the auto braking ends, I have to brake and the engine ( that has been shut down ) is restarted quite violently ( as if it were being bump started by the motion of the car ) but all of this is very harsh and not at all synchronised. I sometimes get left with ‘half a brake pedal’ too. Not easy to explain but very unpleasant. The demo car is all very civilised and smooth in similar situations. 

Try deactivating Eco-Assist?

4 hours ago, Merlin1640 said:

If I’m travelling along a dual carriageway for example and come up behind a slower car my car brakes automatically ( braking and regenerative braking I’m guessing but could be wrong ). As I get closer to the car in front the auto braking ends, I have to brake and the engine ( that has been shut down ) is restarted quite violently ( as if it were being bump started by the motion of the car ) but all of this is very harsh and not at all synchronised. I sometimes get left with ‘half a brake pedal’ too. Not easy to explain but very unpleasant. The demo car is all very civilised and smooth in similar situations. 

 

That sounds like a combination of ACC and Collision Avoidance along with the regenerative braking. A lot of tech 'happening' all at once, and potentially not talking to each other (as it were). I'd suggest getting the car checked to ensure you have the latest updates to all of those control system modules.

2 hours ago, SteveTheElder said:

 

That sounds like a combination of ACC and Collision Avoidance along with the regenerative braking. A lot of tech 'happening' all at once, and potentially not talking to each other (as it were). I'd suggest getting the car checked to ensure you have the latest updates to all of those control system modules.

 Or just turn all that annoying crap off and drive the car like an “old school” car, i.e. one where the human being drives it rather than the computers

Have had my RS since late 2022. Had a couple of very minor glitches with entertainment.But apart from that it's been rock solid.Australian cars don't (or didn't when  bought mine) have SOS or internet connectivity apart from your phone.Seems like we might be lucky

19 hours ago, Merlin1640 said:

If I’m travelling along a dual carriageway for example and come up behind a slower car my car brakes automatically ( braking and regenerative braking I’m guessing but could be wrong ). As I get closer to the car in front the auto braking ends, I have to brake

Quite frankly, I understood nothing. Are you on adaptive cruise control? Why do you come closer to the car in front despite your car braking? It's not like you have 60mph speed difference between two, is it?
Mine will use regen to just slow down to match the speed and will keep distance to the car in front, unless I overcome it by accelerating intentionally. It will only (I guess, never tried that) apply brakes in emergency if I will continue accelerating too close to the car upfront, but that is not quite normal behavior on the road.

On 20/02/2025 at 14:37, Merlin1640 said:

If I’m travelling along a dual carriageway for example and come up behind a slower car my car brakes automatically ( braking and regenerative braking I’m guessing but could be wrong ). As I get closer to the car in front the auto braking ends, I have to brake and the engine ( that has been shut down ) is restarted quite violently ( as if it were being bump started by the motion of the car ) but all of this is very harsh and not at all synchronised. I sometimes get left with ‘half a brake pedal’ too. Not easy to explain but very unpleasant. The demo car is all very civilised and smooth in similar situations. 

I have this weird braking too on my 1.5 TSI e-tec. Seems to be worse on some journeys than others. I'm not concerned about the slowing and regenerative braking as such - quite like it in a way - but there is a disconcerting and dangerous effect as the car downshifts when approaching roundabouts and junctions. Generally around 25mph and 15mph. One second you're braking normally, then suddenly there's a big decrease in braking force and it feels like the pedal is doing very little. Front Assist actually saved me a couple of times. I'm getting used to braking harder from the off, which seems to help.

The dealership say the brakes are functioning normally and it's caused by the latest ABS systems. Something about the software controlling the braking force but dropping out when it thinks you are trying to over-ride the system. If that's true, can't see how it's progress. Very lumpy and it does feel like a surge forward sometimes at just the wrong moment.

Sounds very like the issue I was having BadgerUK. Anyhow after complaining for nearly the whole of the time I had the car Skoda ( although they still deny there were any issues with it ) have ‘come to the party’, coughed up some money and I now have a facelift Mk4 which is like night and day compared to the other one. A lovely car in all respects. A couple of minor niggles that I’m sure will be dealt with promptly. I’m a very happy chappie ( hope I don’t regret that ! ).

Andy.

6 minutes ago, Merlin1640 said:

Sounds very like the issue I was having BadgerUK. Anyhow after complaining for nearly the whole of the time I had the car Skoda ( although they still deny there were any issues with it ) have ‘come to the party’, coughed up some money and I now have a facelift Mk4 which is like night and day compared to the other one. A lovely car in all respects. A couple of minor niggles that I’m sure will be dealt with promptly. I’m a very happy chappie ( hope I don’t regret that ! ).

Andy.

Thanks. That’s interesting. Mine is a 2024 Facelift model. I assumed it was all cars, but perhaps not. The local dealer described it as a ‘feature’ which was mildly amusing. I’m currently pursuing the sporadic ‘failure to start’ problem for which there’s no fix, so may end up pushing for a different vehicle anyway. Sounds like leaning hard on Skoda hard as well as the dealership will be the best approach.

Very happy with my diesel VRS Mk4. The only annoyance is lane assist, but it is easy to turn off. It has adaptive cruise control, which I have not used much as the car has only been used in the UK as chemotherapy is currently stopping me from taking my usual long continental trips. I would far rather have the old fixed cruise control. Aside from those small annoyances, the car is very good. My old cars were a Jaguar XK and a Seat Leon, both of which had very powerful brakes, which could be quite abrupt on the Leon. I do find the Octavia brakes to be rather weak by comparison, although they are progressive. I do wonder if some more aggressive brake linings would be a good idea, though I think that the issue is really that the Leon had a lot more servo assistance.

Edited 13 May, 20251 yr by NormanE

Nice to see this thread is still going!

I'm pleased to report that I'm 4 years into ownership and still very happy myself, although I've faced almost every documented issue with the cars software etc, it's all sorted now (apart from some ongoing issues with the key fob that will hopefully be replaced soon).

I like my IV apart from the 12V battery problem which Skoda have been horrible at dealing with it. A few of our fleet are suffering from it now and we are replacing them with different cars due to this unreliability.

I've been very happy with my late 2022 petrol VRS (manual).

I had a brief period of about a month with the infotainment system restarting but apart from that no issues & still love driving it.

New face-lift model ordered & due at the end of next month. It'll be my 3rd VRS but the first dsg

On 10/05/2025 at 18:57, BadgerUK said:

I have this weird braking too on my 1.5 TSI e-tec. Seems to be worse on some journeys than others. I'm not concerned about the slowing and regenerative braking as such - quite like it in a way - but there is a disconcerting and dangerous effect as the car downshifts when approaching roundabouts and junctions. Generally around 25mph and 15mph. One second you're braking normally, then suddenly there's a big decrease in braking force and it feels like the pedal is doing very little. Front Assist actually saved me a couple of times. I'm getting used to braking harder from the off, which seems to help.

The dealership say the brakes are functioning normally and it's caused by the latest ABS systems. Something about the software controlling the braking force but dropping out when it thinks you are trying to over-ride the system. If that's true, can't see how it's progress. Very lumpy and it does feel like a surge forward sometimes at just the wrong moment.

I have this exact behaviour with my brand new 2025 Mk IV Sportline Estate 1.5 TSI e-TEC CW15 (01/04/24 to 25/08/24 (CW14/2024 - CW34/2024)). Dealer I bought from, Skoda and VWFS said to take it back for investigations, but so far my dealer has not been able to provide a suitable date and wants to charge me £32 for a loan car (fine but a common courtesy with this type of issue on a brand new car, they could waive it...?). I'm going to look at other Skoda dealers and see what they can do...

36 minutes ago, Andacami said:

I have this exact behaviour with my brand new 2025 Mk IV Sportline Estate 1.5 TSI e-TEC CW15 (01/04/24 to 25/08/24 (CW14/2024 - CW34/2024)). Dealer I bought from, Skoda and VWFS said to take it back for investigations, but so far my dealer has not been able to provide a suitable date and wants to charge me £32 for a loan car (fine but a common courtesy with this type of issue on a brand new car, they could waive it...?). I'm going to look at other Skoda dealers and see what they can do...

For what it’s worth, they changed my Octavia due to a different issue and I feel the braking is far more consistent on the new car. Seems a lot smoother. I’m not sure I entirely buy the original dealer’s insistence that this was normal.

5 hours ago, Andacami said:

wants to charge me £32 for a loan car (fine but a common courtesy with this type of issue on a brand new car, they could waive it...?). I'm going to look at other Skoda dealers and see what they can do...

In its very early days mine was in and out of the dealer more times than I care to remember - lots of investigations etc but they NEVER charged me for a courtesy car; they waived the fee because it was under warranty.

Sold my Mk 4 and rolled back to a Mk 3. Very ,very happy to be rid of this heap of IT error ridden junk that thinks that after 55 years driving I’m a total moron needing protection from myself.

Back on topic, my current, early view of my 2025 Sportline Estate 1.5 TSI e-TEC Mk IV is:

• No windscreen washer fluid low/empty warning. You only get this with a certain headlamp configuration, apparently. I know all motorists are required to check fluids, tyres, oil, etc. before each drive, but this seems like an expensive and bothersome feature to remove and a complete guessing game as to whether the tank is half full, nearly empty or empty. Madness!

• The braking issues as noted above. Scary!

• Inability to retrofit a towbar, even if one has purchased Tow Bar Preparation. The Sale of Goods Act is coming into play on this one!

• Having to stare at a screen in the middle of the dashboard to find the answer or reject a phone call button (if it chooses to display it at all). Whatever happened to the handy buttons on the steering wheel? How is this any different to touching a phone screen mounted on your dash (which it is illegal to do in the UK I believe?!). Madness!

• Air vents that, when you turn to the left, actually seem to shut themselves! WTF?

• Stop-Start weirdness. Get used to it, I guess.

• Random Infotainment behaviours. Sometimes it will remember the radio station and volume last used, and sometimes not. I can always press a few buttons before I set off.

• Lane assist does not really assist until it's too late. Older 2017 vRS would help steer me back on course; this car only does that when I've crossed the line, and I don't really notice any vibration prior to my straying out of lane. I'll need to experience this more of course, as I'm not inclined to nip out and deliberately stray in order to test that theory

• The range gauge has a red bar under the petrol pump symbol. Instantly recognisable as a warning that you are about to run out of fuel. Why put it there?

• No tear drop wipe when activating the windscreen washers. My 2017 Peugeot Boxer van has this feature! Although with the wipers in Auto mode, it does work sometimes, purely as it thinks it's raining so a sort of "fix".

Good things:

• I like the looks (I have Sportline, Estate)

• It is comfortable to drive and a nice place to spend time in

There are a lot of silly things that should just be there or work properly at this price point for a brand that has successfully hauled itself out of the skip. Overall, I'm disappointed in the car and in the after-sales service and want my simpler diesel Octy vRS back, or even my very old Superb Elegance 😢

I'm in love with mine, especially since the Gremlins left with the 1985.

Still very happy with mine. Smooth, plenty powerful with great fuel economy (not an EV fan), stylish, well finished and equipped, also roomy (for a smallish/med wagon). All modern cars/brands laden with electronics have the odd hiccup, it's not unique to Škoda.

Maybe I'm lucky, but mine has been totally reliable and everything works so nothing has ever ruffled my feathers. Before I bought the car new I was fully aware of the safety systems it came with, so I harbour no negativity toward them and we get along just fine.