Hello. New to here and wish I had seen posts before deciding to by a Skoda. Bought a 2000 1.4 31000 miles full service etc etc from a certain dealer in Aldershot. With a Skoda dealer and warranty I thought I was in for some trouble free motoring.. how wrong could I be!!

Problem 1 - It all started 6 days after taking delivery with the airbag light coming on. 3 visits later it was 'fixed'. A switch apparently and a wonky steering wheel to boot. 6 months later its back. This time im told its the airbag that needs replacing.. at a cost of

I'd be annoyed too.

I thought all Skoda used cars had a comprehensive 12 months warranty?

It comprehensively covers nothing :0(

Welcome to the beautiful VAG World

Being a first production year model,it is somehow normal it has some problems... good luck in fixing them, Fabia is a great car when it is running

Problem 1: Bad luck really, but a Fabia that has only done 31,000 in seven years makes me think it was a town runabout, probably not best serviced, lots of short journeys and all that. I hope you manage to get this one sorted soon.

Problem 2: You are aware that the fabia has an electronic thottle and a slight lag is expected... one second sounds a bit extreme, are you sure it is one second?

Problem 3: this one surprises me a little, i've got a 1.4 Fabia (2000 X reg) the leaks were all sorted by the previous owner... maybe I was just lucky.

Problem 4: the Classic Fabia 1.4 (well mine at least) doesn't have a working boot switch, the only way to open it is by using a lever next to the driver's seat. The microswitch is present, but not linked to the lock mechanism.. I picked up on this on my first test drive and got a few quid off the price.

Problem 5: my Classic Fabia 1.4 doesnt have mirror demisters so cannot comment on this, but this should be covered surely!! ouch

Looks like a trip to the small claims court then, you've got a good case for some of these issues!

Martin

Sorry about your issues. Despite low mileage, the car is still 7 years old. Someone probably traded it in because the gremlins were creeping in. Still think the dealer should be doing more to help, though.

Thanks for the replies so far.

Servicing - The book is up to date and was serviced on an anual basis rather than by mileage, by 'that' garage in Aldershot. So anything should(!) have been picked up.

The throtle problem is that it sticks open for a second or so - so when braking with clutch engaged its actually not stopping and wearing the brakes.

I understand that the older the car the more potential problems ... but what gets me is that the warranty is only uselful as toilet paper (and thats the old Izal sort!). Iwas told by the sales (yes, taken inI supose) that it coved all major parts except for wear and tear. So is an unused airbag down to wear and tear??? It hasnt even gone off!!

"My other car is NOT a Skoda" as the saying goes.. its a Seat Leon and other than a couple of rattles which WERE fixed under warraty, not by the garage at Aldershot, is a brill car. I no its not a VW but Im still very pleased with it. Tempting fate here ??

Any more info would be gratefully appriciated.

Swings and roundabouts, having worked for Seat and Skoda I know which i'd rather have.

Leons fill up with water quicker than the Fabia does...lol

Thanks for the replies so far.

Servicing - The book is up to date and was serviced on an anual basis rather than by mileage, by 'that' garage in Aldershot. So anything should(!) have been picked up.

The throtle problem is that it sticks open for a second or so - so when braking with clutch engaged its actually not stopping and wearing the brakes.

I understand that the older the car the more potential problems ... but what gets me is that the warranty is only uselful as toilet paper (and thats the old Izal sort!). Iwas told by the sales (yes, taken inI supose) that it coved all major parts except for wear and tear. So is an unused airbag down to wear and tear??? It hasnt even gone off!!

"My other car is NOT a Skoda" as the saying goes.. its a Seat Leon and other than a couple of rattles which WERE fixed under warraty, not by the garage at Aldershot, is a brill car. I no its not a VW but Im still very pleased with it. Tempting fate here ??

Any more info would be gratefully appriciated.

I beleive the airbag in the Fabia can sit idle for 11/14 years. It's obviously not wear and tear as it isn't something that is used, Same goes for water leaks and other problems you have with your car. Don't be soft with them, you have a warranty so tell them to fix it!

Its not a maufactuers warranty though at 7 years so the same rules and regulations dont apply as the 3 year Skoda warranty.

Most third party/used car warranties cover very little when you read into them.

Is it me or are most V/W Plate Fabias turning to ****?:confused:

the leaking door problem you could fix yourself for £21 not £200 as you have been quoted!

Tomorrows call will tell how little or much they care about customer serivce. I think the Fabia itself is a good car but Skodas weakness in customer services, used warranty and the fight to get things done leaves a LOT to de desireed. And one question I have for them is if the air bag isnt covered why did they replace the airbag switch under warranty ?????

Is it me or are most V/W Plate Fabias turning to ****?:confused:

Mine is still going! It has had a new steering rack , and now needs a new indicator switch , oh , and the front suspension is starting to get noisy......but its still going...lol

I hope you get your problems sorted out Duffskoda.