In December 2020 we got this:

Well, mostly.

It didn't look exactly like that. It's had a few minor changes, and a couple of bigger ones. The minor ones are really just to make it a bit different; some are practical improvements and some are nothing more than trivial exercises in vanity.

In terms of the way the car has treated us over the past forty eight and a half months it's done its best to be reliable, and bar a couple of very minor glitches (mostly infotainment-related, needless to say), it's succeeded.

The first three and a half months of this relationship didn't go quite as well as we both had hoped. The car spent most of that time languishing round the back of the dealership with its discs slowly going rusty while it waited for a new rear diff. The original one made an interesting selection of unpleasant and unexpected noises on the way home from collecting it brand-spankers, and after a bit of a hoo-ha it turned out that the differential had quite a lot of swarf in it.

And it sat there for weeks and weeks.

I don't know, but I guess Covid had some bearing on all this. What did become clear was that there isn't a warehouse somewhere in an unremarkable town in the middle of Europe full of rear differentials just waiting to be picked off the shelves by a forklift driver wearing a woolly hat and a hi-viz jacket.

The dealership were really good throughout. They lent us another Karoq for the duration, and did the best they could to get a new unit. There just weren't any lying around.

Skoda UK were good too. I got regular progress reports from them, and they couldn't have been more polite and helpful. I don't know if the email expressing a modicum of disappointment that I sent to the Big Cheese had any bearing on this, but at no point did I get even the faintest whiff that I was being kept at arms length.

Anyway, after weeks and weeks (and weeks) of the car not moving at all, it finally moved into the workshop in the February.

I know this because I checked its location on the MySkoda app. Sporadically to begin with, but after a while I'm ashamed to say I became unhealthily obsessed with looking to see if it had actually moved.

It's sad. Kinda pathetic.

I called the dealership for a sitrep. They said they'd fitted the new diff, but a diagnostic showed that the steering wheel's touch sensor had gone west and they couldn't give it back to me with a defective steering wheel.

Turns out there isn't a warehouse somewhere in an unremarkable town in the middle of Europe full of replacement steering wheels either.

A couple of weeks later, we got it back. New diff, new steering wheel. All washed and ready to go.

Because it took such a long time to fix, the possibility of getting a replacement car was briefly mentioned (not by me, I hasten to add), but the snag was there weren't any others in the country with the same specification.

And it's not as if we were reduced to using Shanks's pony for months either because of the car they lent us.

I don't really subscribe to the notion that one dud component - even a big one like this - makes the car a lemon, so we stuck with it.

And I'm chuffed that I did.

It's comfortable and quiet and because it's moderately pokey it's quite good fun to drive. You can't really hoon it round country lanes because the centre of gravity is higher than a regular car, but I guess that's what you'd expect.

I can't be faffed with brim-to-brim fuel consumption figures entered assiduously on an Excel spreadsheet, so I rely on the app to give me a reasonable approximation of how may miles to the gallon it gets. Over the past four years it's returned about 34mpg.

I'm okay with that. I didn't buy it for its economy.

I love the seats. They are by far the most comfortable seats of any car we've had. No backache, no sore arse and no sore legs. In terms of build quality - particularly inside - I was a bit spoiled by the Audi A3 8V 2.0TFSI that this car replaced. The inside of that was just lovely. Having said that, nothing has fallen off this car, and there are no rattles. Not a one.

It does everything I hoped it would before we bought it.

Well, nearly.

I've replaced the discs with drilled Brembos all round, along with their Xtra Line pads. This was partly because the original discs did suffer from the car sitting unused for yonks through no fault of its own, and partly because I'd always fancied trying drilled discs to see if they were really style over substance, 'cos they do look spiffy.

Verdict is that they do bite a lot harder than the cheddar cheese ones that the car came with. A lot harder.

And I got it remapped. Racingline OEM+ stage 1. It's gone from 187bhp to 230, but much more noticeably the torque has gone from 320Nm to 405Nm. And that does make a difference. It pulls really well.

Last year I got the transmission control unit remapped as well, again Racingline OEM+.

That makes a big difference too. Whereas before the gearbox did its damnedest to get into seventh in as short a time as possible, it doesn't do that any more. It picks its gears in a way which is much more like the way you'd do it yourself if you were driving a manual.

And it's much smoother. Even when giving it some beans, you only really know it's doing its thing by watching the rev counter dip.

Neither remap was cheap, for sure. Were they worth it? For me, absolutely.

No regrets at all.

Both remaps were done by the supplying dealer. They just happen to be Racingline dealers too, so it was sort of 'in-house'.

There are one or two little things I've done to it which aren't as significant as those, but I think it's better for them. It's all massively subjective, of course.

I thought the rear lights (the indicator and reversing light bit) looked a bit naff, so I put a grey Oracal tint on those bits of the lenses as well as swapping the wheezy and slow indicator bulbs for LEDs which snap on and off much more satisfactorily. Didn't do it for extra brightness, just so that they didn't look so last century.

The wing mirror repeaters are now Kopacek sweepers, just because I think they look nicer, and the mirror caps are satin silver rather than the standard black ones. Nose badge is a Kopacek black and body colour job instead of the chrome and black original.

The wing mounted Sport badges are no more because I thought they looked like things you win at a fairground by shooting tin ducks with a bent air rifle.

The boot LED was utterly weedy so got replaced by a brighter pcb with 3 LEDs instead of one, though not the kind that Kopacek supply which you could play five-a-side under and costs a fortune.

The door pockets were lined with a kit that someone else (Irfant, if I remember right) had used, and I put an anti-glare matte screen protector on the infotainment screen because it was horrible and shiny and constantly covered in greasy fingerprints. You just can't see them any more. I wish I could do the same with that awful piano black nonsense around the gear shifter and the aircon controls.

Piano black is pants. It looks rubbish to begin with, never mind when it's covered in scratches two weeks later.

That's it, really.

Would I have another one? Not at the moment.

This one is the mutt's nuts.

Edited 13 March, 20251 yr by Phutters

5 hours ago, Phutters said:

I put an anti-glare matte screen protector on the infotainment screen because it was horrible and shiny and constantly covered in greasy fingerprints.

Do you have a link for it? There are a lot out there and they are not all the same.I would prefer to get one some one has actually tried. (you can't really trust reviews on Amazon)

4 minutes ago, chills said:

Do you have a link for it?

I do.

Here you go.

@Phutters regard the engine remap did it increase insurance cost and did you notice any difference in mpg. The torque increase is what interests me.

37 minutes ago, thamestrader said:

@Phutters regard the engine remap did it increase insurance cost and did you notice any difference in mpg. The torque increase is what interests me.

In my particular case the ECU remap bumped the premium by round about five or six percent.

It’s difficult to be more specific because there were other factors involved.

The TCU remap didn’t affect it.

As far as my fuel consumption goes, the difference is minimal.

My semi-educated guess would be if you tootled round like my aunt Wendy you’d likely see a modest increase in mpg because the extra torque gives the engine a somewhat easier time, but there are an awful lot of variables.

If I said I tootled round like my aunt Wendy I wouldn’t be telling the truth, and having spent a not inconsiderable amount of money on jammy dodgers I’ve no intention of leaving them in the biscuit tin.

It’s not terribly helpful, really.

Sorry 🙁

Edited 13 March, 20251 yr by Phutters

Did you need to do anything with the clutch after it’s remap? Often the torque gain can be too much for OE clutches.

It looks like a nice car, what tyres do you run on it?

7 minutes ago, disco-barry said:

Did you need to do anything with the clutch after it’s remap? Often the torque gain can be too much for OE clutches.

It looks like a nice car, what tyres do you run on it?

The Racingline TCU remap is what they call a 'dynamic' remap.

The details are here.

Tyres are Bridgestone Turanza All Season 6s. They are 245/40 19s. It's the alternative size for this car.

The ones it came with were 225/45 Bridgestone Duelers. The wider section ones it has now do give the rims quite a bit more protection. I'm not convinced I'm making any real sacrifice in ride comfort with them on.

It isn't a cushy ride for sure, but I wasn't expecting it to be.

Edited 14 March, 20251 yr by Phutters

On 13/03/2025 at 15:54, Phutters said:

put an anti-glare matte screen protector on the infotainment screen because it was horrible and shiny and constantly covered in greasy fingerprints

On 13/03/2025 at 21:19, Phutters said:

On 13/03/2025 at 21:12, chills said:

Do you have a link for it?

I do.

Here you go. (https://www.protectionfilms24.com/article/2x-brotect-matte-screen-protectorskoda-karoq-amunds-sportline-2021-infotainment-system-1941804.html )

I got one and very please with it. It does have a semi matte finish but doesn't show fingerprints. I find the screen is easier to read under all light conditions (so far) and is still OK with fingers touching "buttons" Recommended. BTW, you get two screen protectors in a pack.

On 17/04/2025 at 13:27, chills said:

I got one and very please with it. It does have a semi matte finish but doesn't show fingerprints. I find the screen is easier to read under all light conditions (so far) and is still OK with fingers touching "buttons" Recommended. BTW, you get two screen protectors in a pack.

Excellent.

I forgot to mention that you got two.

It just looks so much neater than the standard shiny effort, and, as you say, no more greasy fingerprints. Mrs Phutters has got a FIAT 500 clown car which has a semi-matt screen on the infotainment thing and it was that which set me off trying to find one for the Karoq.

Dunno why they aren't all like this.

On 18/04/2025 at 17:44, Phutters said:

Dunno why they aren't all like this.

Agree completley.

A bit more frivolous tiddling. I reckon that's it.

For now.

Got rid of the piano black B and C pillars with overlays from EZM. Good, sturdy stuff, and very accurately cut. Highly recommended. They're sold to fit an Ateca, but Ateca doors are identical to those on a Karoq. The finish is identical to the roof rails, so it all ties together.

No more inadvertent scratches and no more fingerprints.

The last remaining bit of chrome (with the exception of the wheel centre cap detail) has gone too - the pretend exhaust trim has had several coats of matte black FullDip, and I think it looks much better for it. FullDip is the same stuff as PlastiDip, and the only reason for not using PlastiDip was to see what the other stuff was like.

And the Turanza AllSeason 6s have gone to the great recycling skip in the sky.

It's a long story. These are Goodyear Eagle Asymmetric 5s.

If it gets really cold or snows I'll stay at home, light the woodburner and spend the time canoodling with Mrs Phutters instead.

On 22/06/2025 at 19:09, Phutters said:

A bit more frivolous tiddling. I reckon that's it.

For now.

Got rid of the piano black B and C pillars with overlays from EZM. Good, sturdy stuff, and very accurately cut. Highly recommended. They're sold to fit an Ateca, but Ateca doors are identical to those on a Karoq. The finish is identical to the roof rails, so it all ties together.

No more inadvertent scratches and no more fingerprints.

The last remaining bit of chrome (with the exception of the wheel centre cap detail) has gone too - the pretend exhaust trim has had several coats of matte black FullDip, and I think it looks much better for it. FullDip is the same stuff as PlastiDip, and the only reason for not using PlastiDip was to see what the other stuff was like.

And the Turanza AllSeason 6s have gone to the great recycling skip in the sky.

It's a long story. These are Goodyear Eagle Asymmetric 5s.

If it gets really cold or snows I'll stay at home, light the woodburner and spend the time canoodling with Mrs Phutters instead.

Did you take the pretend exhaust trim off the bumper or plasti dip it in situ mate?

Just on with the finishing touches to my Sportline and the pretend chrome is next for sorting.

Cheers mate.

1 hour ago, globyxl said:

Did you take the pretend exhaust trim off the bumper or plasti dip it in situ mate?

In situ. The lesser of two evils, I reckon.

It was a bit of a faff masking it off, and since I haven't got a garage I had to wait for a nice calm day. I've never used FullDip before - well, not on a car, anyway - but I was pretty chuffed with the results.

No regrets at all.

Good luck.

46 minutes ago, Phutters said:

In situ. The lesser of two evils, I reckon.

It was a bit of a faff masking it off, and since I haven't got a garage I had to wait for a nice calm day. I've never used FullDip before - well, not on a car, anyway - but I was pretty chuffed with the results.

No regrets at all.

Good luck.

Thanks for the info mate, much apprecited.