Would you risk buying an L&K ?

[Prezafab]

We're in the market for another Yeti and even though I know about the pan roof issues, I'm tempted by the L&K.

 

1) Am I mad ?

 

2) Do they leak if you have the roof checked and then never open it ?

 

3) I see that Skoda dealers offer a pan roof service for £89. Is that just money for old rope for them?I

 

Talk me out of the idea if you like !

 

[Stubod]

...after owning one I would not consider buying another LK spec. Shame really as a good, well spec'd car.

I would not want ongoing worry and hassle  of a potential leaky sunroof. A real problem to sort out if it does happen as well as a significant cost .

Problem is if you got one that doesn't leak now, you never know when it may start to leak, better off getting one without a sunroof.

A "service" will probably only grease the mechanism and clear the drains and that doees not really help the basic leaky sunroof problems which appear to be a poor design / manufactuting. (As a minimum you can get the drain pipes "glued" on to stop them coming lose, cost around £400, but this by itself does not always stop any leaks).

 

Edited 13 February by Stubod

[Prezafab]

30 minutes ago, Stubod said:

...after owning one I would not consider buying another LK spec. Shame really as a good, well spec'd car.

I would not want ongoing worry and hassle  of a potential leaky sunroof. A real problem to sort out if it does happen as well as a significant cost .

Problem is if you got one that doesn't leak now, you never know when it may start to leak, better off getting one without a sunroof.

A "service" will probably only grease the mechanism and clear the drains and that doees not really help the basic leaky sunroof problems which appear to be a poor design / manufactuting. (As a minimum you can get the drain pipes "glued" on to stop them coming lose, cost around £400, but this by itself does not always stop any leaks).

 

Appreciate your reply 're the L&K. Did you ever come across a garage that could make a permanent fix with the blue etc if you then keep the roof shut, or do they still 'go' ?

 

I've actually just replaced our other car with an Audi and turned down the two best I could find because they had pan roofs and the Audi was packed with electronics!

 

 

[idleness]

Can't think of anything the L&K spec has over my SE L Drive apart from the panoramic roof and possibly electric memory seats.

I just went for the latest, best specced car that didn't have a sunroof.

 

[Prezafab]

5 minutes ago, idleness said:

Can't think of anything the L&K spec has over my SE L Drive apart from the panoramic roof and possibly electric memory seats.

I just went for the latest, best specced car that didn't have a sunroof.

 

That's exactly what we've been looking for until now as well - SEL drive. Have avoided L&K until I saw one that 'looked good'. I think the previous poster has made me see sense...

[TruckbusUK]

I understand the fears, re the pano roof, but they dont all leak ... ours is seven and a half years young, and we have never had any problems with the roof and its kept outside in all weathers, best to take a careful look ... plenty of threads detailing the tell tale signs and obviously they are the ones to avoid, IMO they are stunning cars and the L&K spec is spot-on for us.

 

Just an opinion from a fault free owner 🙂

[idleness]

2 minutes ago, TruckbusUK said:

I understand the fears, re the pano roof, but they dont all leak ... ours is seven and a half years young, and we have never had any problems with the roof and its kept outside in all weathers, best to take a careful look ... plenty of threads detailing the tell tale signs and obviously they are the ones to avoid, IMO they are stunning cars and the L&K spec is spot-on for us.

 

Just an opinion from a fault free owner 🙂

What is it they say, when people say ours is fine?

Time for a failure?

[idleness]

33 minutes ago, Prezafab said:

That's exactly what we've been looking for until now as well - SEL drive. Have avoided L&K until I saw one that 'looked good'. I think the previous poster has made me see sense...

 

You might need to travel for one, ours was 275 miles away from home took us two days to collect it 🤔

 

[TruckbusUK]

1 minute ago, idleness said:

What is it they say, when people say ours is fine?

Time for a failure?

🤣 and that applies to absolutely anything not just car components ... is there some specific soothsayer course that I should go on 🙃

[Stubod]

1 hour ago, Prezafab said:

Appreciate your reply 're the L&K. Did you ever come across a garage that could make a permanent fix with the blue etc if you then keep the roof shut, or do they still 'go' ?

 

I've actually just replaced our other car with an Audi and turned down the two best I could find because they had pan roofs and the Audi was packed with electronics!

 

 

..I used a local specialist who glued on the drainpies for me. (NB I only had a very minor leak which turned out to be the front LH side drain pipe had a "kink" in it that caused the water to build up when it rained very heavily). I am not aware of any commercially available permanent "fix". After that, and reading about all the problems I got a bit paranoid (even though it did not leak after the pipes had been glued on), that I used clear Gorrila tap around the edges and never opened the sunroof.....

 

The problem is now compounded by the very silly prices being asked for these cars, the youngest of which will now be 7 years old!!...and Skoda/VAG never accepted any responsibility for this design/manufacturing failuer even though it ws clearly of their making...hence I will never buy VAG again....

Edited 13 February by Stubod

[Ootohere]

@Prezafab  Are you talking 1.4 TSI or a do not touch with someone else's barge pole 1.8TSI?

[idleness]

7 minutes ago, Stubod said:

The problem is now compounded by the very silly prices being asked for these cars, the youngest of which will now be 7 years old!!.

Mine is coming up to it's sixth birthday next Monday.

Registered on 19th Feb 2018 😎

[idleness]

 

 

Petrol Yeti prices seem to be easing

There are now four 2017 SEL drives on autotrader for £11k or under.

[Robjon]

I've had two Roomsters in the past, both with fixed glass roofs.  I miss this feature dreadfully on my Yeti.  Were I in Prezafab's position, I would certainly consider an L&K with no leak damage and taping up the sunroof with Gorilla or Helicopter tape.

[Stubod]

..shame Skoda never offered the option to replace any leaky roofs with a sealed / fixed permanent one....

[muppix]

14 hours ago, Prezafab said:

We're in the market for another Yeti and even though I know about the pan roof issues, I'm tempted by the L&K.

 

1) Am I mad ?

2) Do they leak if you have the roof checked and then never open it ?

3) I see that Skoda dealers offer a pan roof service for £89. Is that just money for old rope for them?I

1. Probably. But so am I.
2. The problem isn't with the roof per se, it's with the cassette which sits directly beneath the roof, and is there to catch the occasional drips which the roof is expected to let through by design. Two sides of this cassette are made of aluminium, the front and back sections are made from plastic. Everything is glued together with best intentions and a kind of sticky, putty-like pipe cleaner. This eventually dries out and cracks, allowing water onto the headlining and down the A-pillar, through the fuse box, into the foot well. Some people have also had issues with the drain hoses (1 in each corner) but for me it's all about the join between the four major components of the cassette.
3. No idea, but I'd be interested to hear whether or not there's a warranty on that work. £89 is a small price to pay for, say, 3 years peace of mind.

 

56 minutes ago, Robjon said:

Were I in Prezafab's position, I would certainly consider an L&K with no leak damage and taping up the sunroof with Gorilla or Helicopter tape.

 

Doesn't work. Gorilla tape lacks the necessary UV resistance, helicopter tape (assuming you can find the genuine article) only works if there are no air bubbles - which there will be since the rubber seal that goes around the glass doesn't meet the roof panel perfectly square-on. I think the most effective fix would be to glue the roof in with the same stuff they use for fitting windscreens, but that's a one-way journey and screams "avoid" to and subsequent sale / trade in.

Edited 13 February by muppix

[Stubod]

I used Gorrilla tape, and it stuck no problem, however I did have to replace it after a year or two...I got a roll, cut it in half and went around all the joints between the glass and the rubber seal, also the glass joint across the middle. (Just need to be carefull, and not try open the sunroof!!)

 

It was a bit of a pain to remove it when I came to trade it in, had to use meths to get ride of the "glue" residue from the tape.

 

Also be wary that most "guarantees" will not cover things like sun roofs.

 

I would definately not buy anything with a pan roof again, may as well just go for one of the latr "Drive / SEL variants if it's a Yeti you really want.....(IMHO)

Edited 13 February by Stubod

[Prezafab]

Thanks for all the good advice. 

 

SEL Drive is the one we've been looking for at a decent price.

SEL doesn't have sat nav (my other half wants it, regardless of Smartlink)

Monte Carlo looks like our Black Edition (which she likes) but no sat nav.

L&K perfect apart from this thread !

[Stubod]

...probably cheaper to buy the SEL drive, and then just get a satnav for it....cost a lot less than fixing a pan roof!!

[muppix]

3 hours ago, Stubod said:

I used Gorrilla tape, and it stuck no problem, however I did have to replace it after a year or two...I got a roll, cut it in half and went around all the joints between the glass and the rubber seal, also the glass joint across the middle. (Just need to be carefull, and not try open the sunroof!!)

 

We went down the Gorilla Tape route with an ageing Landcruiser that we run for ‘rough’ work and it didn’t last a year, getting brittle and curling up after 8 or 9 months. Manx weather is on another level though …

 

As for not opening the sunroof, I believe there’s a fuse which you can pull, though that kills the electric sun blind as well.

[b1ackb1rd]

Why not get the car, and have the roof wrapped in clear vinyl so you don't lose the pano roof effect?

[idleness]

3 hours ago, Prezafab said:

SEL doesn't have sat nav (my other half wants it, regardless of Smartlink)

My SEL Drive  does as does my friends.

Neither of us use it cos it's crap

Edited 13 February by idleness

[idleness]

Are you after petrol or diesel?

[Prezafab]

Dsg petrol or diesel, but has to be dsg. 

[idleness]

DSG costs 😱