Not sure this is specific to my Karoq, but probably other models as well 🤔

The dealer ran diagnostics on my car and satisfied themselves that they had identified the problem and provided the solution. Unfortunately, this was not the case and it has to go back again for a replacement part.

My question then is whether they automatically clear codes on the machine, or if this is operator choice, since clearly the faults returned within 5 miles of leaving the dealer! Thanks.

Clearing the fault after dealing with the issue or fault and then road testing it and checking for fault codes is just 'Simply Clever' or a necessity'. Did they road test your vehicle before handing back the keys having given you the invoice. Plus the report on the checks they did while they had the car with them?

If they didn't clear the codes how would they be able to tell they had fixed the problem?. Normally faults that have not been fixed correctly will reappear as soon as the vehicle is started or driven. The awkward faults are those where codes are logged, cleared and return after a period of time. I used to use VCDS to periodiclly check for codes, there would be codes listed which didn't result in any messages on the dashboard, that when cleared never returned or sometimes did return many weeks later, usually it was just a sensor reporting a reading that was out of spec.