SOS issue again, and some info travelling in Europe

[Routemaster1461]

I had the SOS issue a while back which was cured by fitting a new aerial. I hadn't used the car much until just over 3 weeks until we went off heavily laden to Austria on holiday. Just setting off from a petrol stop in Luxembourg on day 2 I got an SOS fault warning, which disappeared afterstopping the engine , poer down and restart. Same again in Switzerland on day 5, then 3 or 4 occurrences over the next 4 or 5 days. After that for about 10-12 days, no more alarms. 2 days ago we stopped at a supwermarket on the way home. I switched off the engine and a message came up for a software update. Something about an update to the SOS system to fix bugs. No idea whether it has done anything, but as I didn't have any alarms for at least the previous week I suppose it was no great surprise nothing had happened by the time I got home. Oil service in a few weeks time, so I'll mention this when I take it in and hopefully they can read the codes.

 

Whilst I'm posting, just a few things of not from the trip. Fuel consumption was generally just over 50 mpg, but significantly lower when it was very hot at ~ 33 degrees (thank goodness nowhere as high as Spain and Italy. Petrol prices are pretty high, diesel is significantly cheaper in France and Germany, petrol tending to be ~£1.70 / litre. Austria isn't too bad though. If you have a petrol car and you wish to save a little money I suggest travelling over with a full tank and trying to return with as little fuel as possible.

 

On thing I saw this year, they sell a gtade of fuel called E85. As the name suggests this is 85% ethanol and 15 % petrol. At just under £1 a litre it could be a bargain if your car will run on it, depending on what the consumption is like.

[barcudcoch]

@Routemaster1461,  When I got my MY20 1,5tsi Edition, I was having the SoS problems you describe. Sometimes it was triggered when going into a 5G area or changing towers in the 5G area.

This was fixed by a software update until about 2 months ago when parked in a 5G area, I pressed the start button to continue listening to the radio while I ate my lunch and the SoS light and warning came on.

It would not go and eventually I had the SoS module replaced which included reprogramming both keys.

 

I never got to the bottom of the 5G question. Has anybody else had SoS issues associated with 5G I wonder?

[Routemaster1461]

Further to my original post.

 

I went to book for a service today and told the receptionist about my 5 or 6 SOS alarms. Having told her that the problem occurred on a continental trip, she asked me the country location when the alarms occurred. The first occurred just after arriving in Luxembourg, going off leaving a petrol station. After travelling into Germany and staying a few days, the second occurred shortly after leaving the Rheinfalls in Scaffhausen in Switzerland. The others occurred in Germany or Austria. No Alarms since very early in July. No alarms in the UK.

 

I have no idea why she asked me. I suppose she wonders whether there is an issue with European service providers.