Hi,

I recently acquired my boss's 2016 Octavia vRS diesel to replace my 2015 Octavia 1.6 diesel and aside from having the most fun I have had on 4 wheels in quite some time, there is a feature which I am amused and baffled by simultaneously.

I noticed it the first time I drove the car at night and after a bit of brisk acceleration getting out of a junction, the backlights on the discs of the speedo and fuel gauge (possibly also the rev counter) started cycling different colours clockwise and then anti-clockwise around the outer edge of the dials. It has happened a few times and I cannot find anything anywhere to explain it. It looks great, but I don't know what triggers it: I was trying to show it off to my son this evening and despite my best efforts, the backlights behind the dials remained static and did nothing. My son now thinks I have lost the plot and am seeing things, but I am sure I did see it.

Anyone out there have a Scooby what I'm talking about and if so, what triggers this little light display?

Cheers.

Was the car scrabbling for traction at all? You will get traction control lights and your speedo etc will go a bit bonkers. If its a 2 wheel drive VRS, they can have issues with putting down the power sometimes (depending on the road surface). Tyres are everything with those cars. Not a massive issue, but you just have to be mindful of how you apply power to the wheels. The VRS diesels are 190bhp and whilst that isn't massive compared to the petrol versions (typically 230-250bhp and gets very exciting in the wet and loose stuff), its the torque you need to watch out for.

Do you have a virtual dash or a standard dashboard?

Hi,

No, there was no loss of traction (no warning light on the dash like you get when the wheels slip) and light effects happened after the acceleration and went on for several seconds, just colours cycling one way and then the other around the speedo. I think it's a standard dashboard but tbh I'm not sure of the difference.

Ask your boss if any mods have been done

Will do.