Amazon parts ordered and fitted , because the Areo plastic covers were just brake dust / gunge collectors , cars only just done a few hundred miles and I prefer the new look with the covers in the shed for 3 years till my pcp deal is up,

Edited 30 May, 20242 yr by Willie_Skoda63
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Yep, have to agree. I asked dealer not to fit them as I had bought centre caps and nut covers prior to delivery. Covers still wrapped in their sealed bags up in my loft, where they will remain for some years.

Anyome want them??? Haha.

Truely horrific design , I notice they’ve dropped them for build year 24 as I ordered my fabia back last August , arrived February/ March delivery , I see that I’ve missed out on the free digital 

cockpit but hey hi ho , manufacturers are always updating spec ! , this is my second fabia had a 15 plate fabia it was a dream car no issues at all in three years ! 

 

To be honest, I am pretty non plussed with my Monte Carlo, had it for exactly one year now. Going for first service next week with only 800 miles on clock! Can't really get into it as I find absolutely no pleasure driving it. I have owned loads of cars, but this really is so boring. The menu system is crap, and sound system has 'no sound'. I could go on, and maybe just showing my age, but this has to be the most boring car I have owned. Absolutely no engagement at all.

Edited 30 May, 20242 yr by Tintowellfan

Are those the 16" Proxima wheels? I'd already checked the configurater for the SE L and told the salesman I didn't want those horrible aero covers but he looked and said no they don't come with them. I didn't see any mention of them in the configurater and they aren't shown when building a car.

 

If they do come with the car I will be telling them not to fit them and they will be going in the bin!

 

Edit: Whilst posting I see that Willie says they have been dropped, thankfully!

Edited 30 May, 20242 yr by VAGCF

Yes they are 16 proxima , apparently here in uk Scotland to be precise they will look like picture 1 if you ordered after March 24

Edited 30 May, 20242 yr by Willie_Skoda63

@Tintowellfan - do you drive something else as well as 800 miles is very low? We haven't ordered one for an exciting drive but just to do a job, did you expect more then?

 

To be honest most modern cars are pretty boring to drive. One reason I've kept my 10 year old Audi TT roadster which does provide enjoyment.

5 minutes ago, Willie_Skoda63 said:

Yes they are 16 proxima , apparently here in uk Scotland to be precise they will look like picture 1 if you ordered after March 24

Thanks, that's good as I like the look of them. Stuck with the 16" as less vulnerable to kerb damage.

14 minutes ago, VAGCF said:

@Tintowellfan - do you drive something else as well as 800 miles is very low? We haven't ordered one for an exciting drive but just to do a job, did you expect more then?

 

To be honest most modern cars are pretty boring to drive. One reason I've kept my 10 year old Audi TT roadster which does provide enjoyment.

Yep, I actually prefer to drive my wife's 2017 VW UP, and two old Corsa D cars, both over 10 years old, and my motorbike. I am not sure why I bought the Skoda, other than I retired and thought I would buy a new car. I am 67 and have owned dozens of cars, but this is the most boring car ever. Just my opinion, I am sure loads of you are very happy with your car.

My favourite cars were my several Mk2 Gti Golfs. Wish I had kept at least one of them. Anyway, i am going way off topic.

Edited 30 May, 20242 yr by Tintowellfan

I've got a few years on you at 70 but still riding motorbikes as well, can't beat it!

2 minutes ago, VAGCF said:

I've got a few years on you at 70 but still riding motorbikes as well, can't beat it!

Yep, canny beat a bike. I had my first in 1973 when I stayed in Bromsgrove as a 16 year old. Garelli TigerCross moped, did 58MPH on way to Worcester.  Happy memories, enjoyed my time south of the border, but now back hame in Bonny Scotland.

 

I removed the aero trims a few weeks after I got my Fabia. The car was 6 months old by then and obviously the previous owner hadn't taken them off to clean behind them as there was shed loads of s*** behind the trims. 

I think they look better with them off. I fitted the Skoda centre caps and black plastic nut covers.   

I also removed mine last weekend. The front ones took a real pulling to get off. I think it's the first time they'd ever been off by the state of the brake dust behind them.

 

I've given them a good wash and stored them away while I wait for some hub covers coming from Amazon. They're due tomorrow. The car looks much better. I drove round Wales at the weekend and I was hitting 60mpg so I haven't noticed any downside to fuel consumption.

 

(Also got black wheel nut covers coming from eBay 👍)

Edited 30 May, 20242 yr by JFrankMiller

@Tintowellfan I'm sorry you're not too enamoured with the vehicle. I'm not going to argue, apart from the bit where you said the stereo was poor. I like mine on my SE L. I use Apple Music on my phone, through a USB-C cable and it plays banging beats and is lovely and clear. If I put something with crazy bass lines on and whack the volume up it can struggle a bit, but otherwise I'm finding the sound quality really nice.

 

Edited 30 May, 20242 yr by JFrankMiller

On 30/05/2024 at 23:59, JFrankMiller said:

...I drove round Wales at the weekend and I was hitting 60mpg so I haven't noticed any downside to fuel consumption...

 

 

This link is to a 'fuel efficiency' test of the Tesla Model 3 with or without its aero wheel covers.

 

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a30169467/tesla-model-3s-aero-wheel-covers-efficiency-test/

 

So, even if the Skoda expensive plastic aero inserts could add (say) 3% to your Fabia's fuel efficiency, you'd be most unlikely to notice that improvement just by driving the vehicle.

 

There's a 2020 research paper here for combatting insomnia

 

https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/211225703.pdf

I think the aero wheel covers look rather good but haven't dared to remove them yet.  Any tips for getting them off and then reattaching them?  I thought maybe that I'd remove them, wash them and reattach after having the car cleaned at the local car wash.

To remove them your Fabia should have been supplied with a small metal tool with a hook on the end. You hook that into one of the small holes and give a strong pull to remove the aero trim. I'd advise against removing and reattaching them every time you wash the car as there's a good chance you will damage the alloy wheels over time.    

Maybe time for a pinned thread on Aero covers in the Mk4 section. 

17 hours ago, DerekU said:

 

This link is to a 'fuel efficiency' test of the Tesla Model 3 with or without its aero wheel covers.

 

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a30169467/tesla-model-3s-aero-wheel-covers-efficiency-test/

 

So, even if the Skoda expensive plastic aero inserts could add (say) 3% to your Fabia's fuel efficiency, you'd be most unlikely to notice that improvement just by driving the vehicle.

 

There's a 2020 research paper here for combatting insomnia

 

https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/211225703.pdf

Thanks for that. I'll have a quick read tomorrow. 

I'm really finding next to no difference in mpg with Aero's removed and the wheels look a lot cooler, in my eye. I don't think any evidence of 3% better efficiency is gonna make me put them back on. I also appreciate that the brake dust has somewhere to go now, instead of accumulate behind the front trims.

It’s a good point that removing and putting back the aero covers might damage the alloys.  I will get them off and find out. As I’m not into cleaning cars as a hobby it wouldn’t be more than maybe three times a year.  Can anybody post a picture showing how they grip to the alloys and comment on whether a smear of say silicone grease around the grip points would be a good idea?  As Fabia wheels come in different sizes are the covers also different sizes?  Again, don’t the aero covers give extra protection against curbing damage to the alloys behind them?

Guidance for removing/replacing the Aero wheel-trims can be found in the "Wheels" sections of the hardcopy and on-line Fabia Owner's Manual and the advice is as shown below

 

 

The wording is a mite strange in places - "1. Put the clip for removing the wheel trim behind the trim close to the centre" would be better, and I couldn't find anything on my car's Aero trims that would be relevant to the standard anti-theft wheel bolt.

 

As I've mentioned before, I DIYed a couple of 'pullers' from fencing wire to use instead of the little wire bracket/clip.

 

 

These make removal of the Aero trims very easy, but I found it a lot harder to put the trims back on than to take them off. 

 

This advert is for a Fabia Aero trim 

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/354940197566

 

and this image of the trim's rear should give you a fair idea of how it attaches to the wheel.

 

 

The challenge is to get all 5 'spokes'  of the trim properly on to the wheel without using brute force (that might damage the wheel's surface where the spokes contact it) before banging the centre of the trim so that its rear enters the hole in the wheel's centre. The spokes of the Aero trim will bend slightly, but the fitting task would be easier if humans had an extra arm! If you are careful, there should be no need to use grease on the spokes' grip points, though a smear of wax polish would do no harm. The Aero trim must match the wheel - so a trim appropriate for a 16"-diameter wheel will be unsuitable for a 17"-diameter wheel, etc.

 

As the Aero trim does not protrude beyond the outer edge of the alloy wheel's rim ad spokes

 

 

 

it's unlikely to provide extra protection against kerbing damage.

 

(Idle curiosity, but when people decide to remove the Aero trims and obtain plastic caps to go over the now-exposed wheel-bolt heads, do the caps come with a removal 'pincer'? My Roomster had caps as standard and, without the 'pincer' that came with the car, it would be hard to get the caps off.)

Edited 2 June, 20242 yr by DerekU

Tweazers for cap removal around £2

1 hour ago, DerekU said:

Guidance for removing/replacing the Aero wheel-trims can be found in the "Wheels" sections of the hardcopy and on-line Fabia Owner's Manual and the advice is as shown below

 

 

The wording is a mite strange in places - "1. Put the clip for removing the wheel trim behind the trim close to the centre" would be better, and I couldn't find anything on my car's Aero trims that would be relevant to the standard anti-theft wheel bolt.

 

As I've mentioned before, I DIYed a couple of 'pullers' from fencing wire to use instead of the little wire bracket/clip.

 

 

These make removal of the Aero trims very easy, but I found it a lot harder to put the trims back on than to take them off. 

 

This advert is for a Fabia Aero trim 

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/354940197566

 

and this image of the trim's rear should give you a fair idea of how it attaches to the wheel.

 

 

The challenge is to get all 5 'spokes'  of the trim properly on to the wheel without using brute force (that might damage the wheel's surface where the spokes contact it) before banging the centre of the trim so that its rear enters the hole in the wheel's centre. The spokes of the Aero trim will bend slightly, but the fitting task would be easier if humans had an extra arm! If you are careful, there should be no need to use grease on the spokes' grip points, though a smear of wax polish would do no harm. The Aero trim must match the wheel - so a trim appropriate for a 16"-diameter wheel will be unsuitable for a 17"-diameter wheel, etc.

 

As the Aero trim does not protrude beyond the outer edge of the alloy wheel's rim ad spokes

 

 

 

it's unlikely to provide extra protection against kerbing damage.

 

(Idle curiosity, but when people decide to remove the Aero trims and obtain plastic caps to go over the now-exposed wheel-bolt heads, do the caps come with a removal 'pincer'? My Roomster had caps as standard and, without the 'pincer' that came with the car, it would be hard to get the caps off.)

I got a pincer with my ones from eBay...

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/254908894463

 

But it's only made of plastic and I was worried that if I ever need to remove a wheel quickly (when I get round to replacing the puncture repair kit with an actual spare wheel!), then a single plastic removal tool may not be up to the job. The nut covers in that eBay link are quite snug and required a decent push to seat them in place. The pack of 20 includes 16 standard nut-shaped ones and 4 special ones for the locking wheel nuts, which are only different if you look at them from the inside and they all look identical once they are fitted, by the way.

 

Anyway, I've got one of these on the way, in case I need a backup removal tool in a hurry...

 

https://amzn.eu/d/6pzvaXT

The 'pincer/tweezer' provided as standard with my 2009 Roomster is plastic...

On 30/05/2024 at 20:20, Tintowellfan said:

Yep, I actually prefer to drive my wife's 2017 VW UP, and two old Corsa D cars, both over 10 years old, and my motorbike. I am not sure why I bought the Skoda, other than I retired and thought I would buy a new car. I am 67 and have owned dozens of cars, but this is the most boring car ever. Just my opinion, I am sure loads of you are very happy with your car.

My favourite cars were my several Mk2 Gti Golfs. Wish I had kept at least one of them. Anyway, i am going way off topic.

I had the 1L monte estate, manual g/box and thoroughly enjoyed driving it, I now have the SE-L 1L d.s.g and after a period of caution I really love the performance.

I had a 350 Viper and 500 Venom Velocettes but having worked with bikers who have had run ins with car drivers I will stick with the slick new Fabia mk.4