Just got my car back from the dealers.

I have noticed that the service book has been updated (good you say).... well the "Use long life oil.... for variable service" is not ticked.?.?.?

Also in the book there are details regarding the next service due date. I was suprised to see that it is due in either 25,500 (10,000 more then now) or 30/04/08 (12 months from now)

Looks like they have changed it over from Variable to fixed.

As it is a lease car with 16 months left on the lease they are now guranteed to get another service out of the company before its returned. Is it just me or does that seem a little cheeky?

If it were left on Variable I doubt very much if it would have needed another service before being returned.

Should I ring and protest, or not worry as its not my car?

I think I may ring the lease company to make them aware of this change of service interval?

Ask the dealer what they are doing? Would the lease company have told them to?

All lease companies I have ever dealt with love the variable service regime as it quite obviously equates to less service visits for the vehicles. There is no other economic reason to do it as a FDSH is just as valid whether fixed or variable.

Being a high mileage company car driver I hate getting the car serviced so I'll always try and stick to the magic QG1

i was in at my local dealers today about a paint defect i need repaired under warranty. While i was in i asked about the service schedule as i am supposed to be on variable but the car shows me as being on fixed . I was told by my dealer that they cannot change it to variable on the car as they have been instructed to keep the cars on fixed although my service book shows my next service in 2 years or 25,000 miles . Aparently i am not the only one they have had ask them about this but they say that the dealer software is preventing them from changing cars to variable servicing ..

I have spoken to the lease company and they are happy that it is on fixed servicing....

Why? I ask

Well it will be due its 3rd service in May 2009 and we don't pay for a 3rd service

My car was purchased in Aug06 and has only done 15,500 miles, so i explained that this was its first service?

They told me that it had a service in May 2007 - ah, I remember.

I had to take it to the dealer for an oil change as I put some "non long life" oil in as an emergancy measure when the car requested "check oil".

However, the service book in the glovebox shows only the 15,500 first service.

I asked what will happen now in 12mths/10,000 miles (around may 2009).

The lease company said that they will probably refuse to pay for the "3rd service" and just ask the dealer to reset the service light.

Which will actually mean the poor person who buys the car in Aug09 when the lease expires will get a 3 year old car that has had one service in its 30,000 life.

Essentially if the lease company are happy, then I suppose it's not my problem - just seems unfair.

As it happens the car (today) is still saying service in 100 miles???

What to do?

Its going back in 10 days to sort the key out.

I don't think the dealer will just reset the service light.

That's scummy lease companies for you

When the service counter gets to zero it will just bong and flash "service now!" if maxidot is fitted.

Technically the car could go as much as 38,000ish miles with only one service under it's belt if the car achieves it's maximum variable service intervals.

If that's what the lease company want to do, forget it and let them get on with it.

If that's what the lease company want to do, forget it and let them get on with it.

That's exactly what SWIMBO says..... still doesn't feel right somehow.

i was in at my local dealers today about a paint defect i need repaired under warranty. While i was in i asked about the service schedule as i am supposed to be on variable but the car shows me as being on fixed . I was told by my dealer that they cannot change it to variable on the car as they have been instructed to keep the cars on fixed although my service book shows my next service in 2 years or 25,000 miles . Aparently i am not the only one they have had ask them about this but they say that the dealer software is preventing them from changing cars to variable servicing ..

That sounds like a load of old rubbish to me. The cars are set to variable from the factory. It's the dealers that change it to fixed servicing. It seems to me they just don't want to do it.

Not all were set to variable from factory. Quite a few in the early life of the Octv 2 were set to fixed in error.

Alot of dealers will set to fixed unless the customer requests to be set to variable at PDi. This makes more sense to a dealer as it gurantees a return within a year.

You can switch from fixed to variable whenever you like, but you need an oil change at least to do it.

my car was set to variable servicing from the factory but was changed to fixed at pdi. when i got my first service done in march i asked for it to be switched back to variable servicing. i was told originally that the tfsi could not be switched to variable servicing and that was for diesel's only. i think its my dealer just doesn't know how to do it

When we bought the previous FSI I found that the dealer had switched the car to fixed service intervals without telling me. When I protested they 'suggested' that their customers were happier if their cars were serviced every year. This was despite the leaflet in the service book stating that modern Skodas were perfectly OK on variable servicing. When we bought the present L&K, we again had to insist that the car remain on variable servicing.

Presumably there's more profit in annual servicing.