21 plate Octavia PHEV - Navigation system fault - any fix ?

[SeanyH]

First time poster and first time Skoda owner

Have a '21 plate Octavia PHEV estate from a lease company

Vehicle has 3.5k on the clock prior to me having it 2 weeks ago

A few days back 15 minutes into a long drive, the SOS light came on. Left vehicle off for 10 minutes but didn't clear

SOS light seems to correct itself after leaving the vehicle off overnight and has been ok since

 

At the same time as the SOS light fault, the navigation seemed to start going haywire, for example showing that i was on the M48 even though i was on the M5 🤣

And ever since, the navigation just shows as "Please wait" and "Starting navigation" (see attached photos)

Vehicle has obviously been left switched off overnight many times since so it seems that its not going to clear itself

 

Now i'm a patient sort of guy, but i draw the line at 5 days for a navigation system to start !

 

Any ideas on how and if i can sort this please or is it a book it in with the garage ?

Really disappointing to be let down by what appears to be poor software as the rest of the vehicle (drive, handling and overall comfort) is very good

 

Thanks in advance

[Ianh05]

I had this problem, it was fixed by replacing the control panel. 

[SeanyH]

2 hours ago, Ianh05 said:

I had this problem, it was fixed by replacing the control panel. 

Thanks for the reply Ian

 

Replacing the control panel…sounds drastic

i notice on my photos (3rd one) the navigation database version is empty where I see on some other similar  photos shared by other contributors on this site, that there is some text there

 

almost seems to imply there are no maps but that said, the maps have worked been visible previously 

 

[Ianh05]

Mine lost its database for no rhyme or reason, the garage tried updating it with no success, so had a new control unit which fixed it. All under warranty and done in a day, so no dramas! 

[SeanyH]

Thanks again Ian

you mean a complete new ECU ?

If so then it sounds completely bonkers for Skoda to be replacing these as almost the equivalent to a laptop company replacing the motherboard when it’s just that Google maps won’t work

likewise it won’t cost me either other than the inconvenience of being without the car for a day

for me being in the IT industry and worked closely for over 30 years with car manufacturers it sounds like Skoda have no clue what the issue truly is and it’s clearly not been tested to any level 

 

what concerns me more is if they don’t understand how the infotainment system tech works, then it doesn’t give much if any confidence in the rest of the car technology, particularly around safety type functions 

 

[Ianh05]

Not too sure tbh. My problem with the software issues has left me thinking when is it going to go wrong again? 

 

As you say, it's dented my confidence, hate to think how much the software issues would cost to fix out of warranty! 

[SeanyH]

….and all so unnecessary if Skoda tested this stuff properly 

[Ianh05]

Exactly! 

[Greezy56]

I too have a D unit and it showed me in the middle of a loch 5 miles from my current location. I then plugged in my home address and the nav told me take the next left. The next left was into oncoming traffic. Trip to the dealer and i was upgraded to 1803 S/W. Didnt happen again.

 

That said my SOS problem got worse 2 days ago when it rang the emergency services and i couldnt stop the call. Had to explain to the call handler the prob with the car.

 

All our WOES WILL BE GONE by the 31st March 22 so VWFS tell me.

[SeanyH]

Greezy…. Lol !

i will ensure I wear a life jacket in future then in case it ditches me into a canal !!!

whats the significance of 31st march 2022 then….did they say ?

[Greezy56]

I was assured that by that date a FIX ALL will be released to the dealer networks . The exact words were VW group were manufacturing a full fix. Manufacturing is interesting as that sound like hardware.

I think that may be quite an extensive fix and time consuming for dealers who dont have any cars to give out as courtesy. Certainly my dealer has a scant amount of new cars or used. I also noted the price of 18-19 plate cars as way above what they should be , i heard one guy saying his VRS was in positive equity  after 6 months ownership. No wonder due to the chip shortage and the long waits , some on here are waiting.

 

[SeanyH]

Shocking approach 

anyone who knows anything about software development knows not to release a huge major release, they should be incrementals

 

fix an issue…release the fix (repeat)

[Greezy56]

The group must be brickin it , the lost revenue re chips , returning customers and satisfaction with the brand. I also think the poor cousin mentality is at large here with Audi , VW getting the fixes swifter than Seat and Us. 

Hindsight , i dont think this major roll out will be without problems.

 

[Joss1733]

Greezy you say that Audi,vw getting fixes quicker.what friends tell me in the motor industry.say if right across the whole of the car manufacturers apart from the very high spec cars ie Bentley,rolls,etc.

[SeanyH]

This is simply a software issue surely so really should be no issue in being resolved in my mind

its nothing to do with the shortage of chips

[zetzet]

4 minutes ago, SeanyH said:

This is simply a software issue surely so really should be no issue in being resolved in my mind

its nothing to do with the shortage of chips

Software issues are never simple, especially in systems like this that have all sorts of connections between modules. It's sad that it has taken them this long to sort them out however, I expected for faster improvement when Audi developers stepped in. Maybe hardware is limiting them and they can't optimize it enough, so they cut corners.