Rear Tyre Wear and dealer response

[Supaned]

Hello ,

I've been lurking on here since getting my Octy VRS back in 2006 , but have been more than happy with it until this week:

Took it into my dealer (Prestige Coventry) for a 20000 mile/2 year service , I asked them to check the rear camber settings while they had it , as I had read on here about issues others were having.

Collected the car , only to be told that they were unable to check the camber settings due to not having the kit. As part of the service , they had checked the tyre tread depths and the front set needed replacing as they were showing the cords on the inside , but the rears were ok as they had 4mm depth left.

Being too lazy to search out cheaper tyres , I went to local Kwik Fit , and asked for a quote on a set of Bridgestones as per OEM fit - they didn't have any in stock , but while checking tyre sizes , the guy pointed out the wear on the rear tyre - although they had 4mm depth on the outer part of the tyre , the inner area was virtually bald - definately not right.

I ended up shelling out over £400 for a new set of Dunlop Sport Maxx SPs , and while they were being fitted , rang Prestige back to ask how they had missed that rear tyre wear. I took the old rear tyre back to Prestige , where one of the techs checked it and agreed that the wear was indeed "abnormal" - he then went on to say that it was a common problem with cars with independant rear suspension

I made the point that I think it is a fault with the car , and that it should have been dealt with under warranty.

The service manager spoke to the tech , and I was advised that I would have to take the car to a VW dealer to have a 4 wheel alignment check carried out (at my own expense £150) , and depending on the results , they might do something

I'm not happy with this , I changed to Skoda from VW mainly because of crap service from dealers , now it seems it's happening again.

I've contacted Skoda UK customer service to see what they say about it , but haven't heard anything yet.

I'm also not impressed as Prestige denied all knowledge of any revised suspension settings being issued , and haven't fully completed the service sheet so I don't know if any software upgrades have been carried out....

[ScoobyChris]

Doesn't sound good at all Tbh, I'd be taking it to a tyre and exhaust place with a 4-wheel-alignment rig as chances are they'll a) charge a lot less and b) be less motivated to fob you off. If you take the revised camber settings with you, you can ask for a printout once the changes are made and check they are in spec to your satisfaction.

If it's any consolation, when I had some suspension work done under warranty on my Fabia I asked the service manager if they'd done a 4-wheel alignment check on it to make sure everything was in spec. He told that they didn't need to because the technician had "measured it by eye" and also put the same number of turns on the retaining nut as it took him to remove it. Suffice to say, they didn't see much of me after that

Chris

[cheezemonkhai]

Free check and if adjustment is needed it's £25 front only £47 front and rear.

That is at my local protyre and there are a few around here

[InSaNeCaT]

Aye, it seems Skoda dealers are useless in this respect. When I was buying a used Octy vRS off St Andrews Skoda in Glasgow I asked them to check the rear camber settings as I'd seen the sticky on here with the revised camber settings.

I asked again that it had been done when I picked the car up, "yep everything is perfect" I was told. It wasn't until about a week later when I hunkered down under the car that I noticed about the 1st 10% on the inner edge was severely worn (approx 1-2mm tread left), while the remaining 90% of the tyre surface looked like new. This was with 9k miles on the car btw.

Note to self: don't be shy/lazy and check these things more thoroughly before signing for a car in future.

After noticing this I immediately phoned them and explained that this was not right and was symptomatic of the very problem I asked them to check. The sales guy got the service manager who confirmed again that they checked it and all was fine. i.e. not really interested and fobbed me off.

So, booked into Star Performance for a 4 wheel laser alignment check and setup and the camber's were just about as negative as they could be. They set everything up correctly (to the revised settings listed on here) and it not only fixed the uneven tyre wear problem but tranformed the handling too :-)

As a result I'll never use the skoda stealer again and it was my 3rd car in a row off them, with all my servicing being done there too.

But I now make the nearly 100 mile each way trip to Star for all my servicing, knowing it'll be done properly.

Check out the before and after rear camber settings on attached pic.

[GAFF]

Either the dealerships are completely thick or THEY ARE NOT BEEN GIVEN THIS INFO BY SKODA.....its a disgrace really. Jaysus for tyres to wear like that theres obviously something seriously wrong Thank god mine was okay, fairly even tyre wear.

[Jackoskoda]

When I had uneven wear I had 4-wheel alignment checked at Protyre on their laser alignment kit and they said it was all ok so took it to my Skoda garage who sent it to their preferred tyre place who checked it and found all 4 wheels incorrect!! It was then set-up correctly and had no problems since. Cost was about £40

Jacko

[Captain Sisko]

Do other Golf mk5 chassis based cars also have this independant rear suspension uneven tyre wear issue?

[ScoobyChris]

Originally Posted by Jackoskoda

When I had uneven wear I had 4-wheel alignment checked at Protyre on their laser alignment kit and they said it was all ok so took it to my Skoda garage who sent it to their preferred tyre place who checked it and found all 4 wheels incorrect!! It was then set-up correctly and had no problems since. Cost was about £40

This is the reason I always ask for a printout of the current settings wherever I go as it means I can cross-reference them on somewhere like here and also have some comeback. Trust no-one

Chris

[GAFF]

Originally Posted by ScoobyChris

Trust no-one

Chris

Unfortunately your DEAD BLOODY RIGHT

[phiL&K]

Sorry to change subject slightly.

Have been encountering wining noise from rear tyres. (Any speed)
Had bearings checked (only done 10,000miles) they are ok,

went to local Kwik-fit, who said that the rear tyres are suffering from a condition called 'heel and toe effect'.
The mech showed me how you can feel the 'uneveness' of the tyre by placing your hand close to the tread and spinning the wheel.

No need to replace the tyres they said, no particular cause for this problem, just that some tyres do it and some dont.

Tyres are the ones fitted by Skoda when new.

Gets on your nerves more so on smooth roads solution is just turn up the stereo

[sworrall]

Originally Posted by phiL&K

Sorry to change subject slightly.

Have been encountering wining noise from rear tyres. (Any speed)
Had bearings checked (only done 10,000miles) they are ok,

went to local Kwik-fit, who said that the rear tyres are suffering from a condition called 'heel and toe effect'.
The mech showed me how you can feel the 'uneveness' of the tyre by placing your hand close to the tread and spinning the wheel.

No need to replace the tyres they said, no particular cause for this problem, just that some tyres do it and some dont.

Tyres are the ones fitted by Skoda when new.

Gets on your nerves more so on smooth roads solution is just turn up the stereo

did he say how you could avoid it in the future?

[Scottiepaul]

Originally Posted by Captain Sisko

Do other Golf mk5 chassis based cars also have this independant rear suspension uneven tyre wear issue?

Yep - Any car with independant rear suspension

Have been encountering wining noise from rear tyres. (Any speed)
Had bearings checked (only done 10,000miles) they are ok,

went to local Kwik-fit, who said that the rear tyres are suffering from a condition called 'heel and toe effect'.
The mech showed me how you can feel the 'uneveness' of the tyre by placing your hand close to the tread and spinning the wheel.

No need to replace the tyres they said, no particular cause for this problem, just that some tyres do it and some dont.

Boll***s - Rear camber adjustment will sort it - Check the new tyres by running you hand around the inside tread and check for the bumps again - Hate to say it but they will be back!

I ended up shelling out over £400 for a new set of Dunlop Sport Maxx SPs , and while they were being fitted , rang Prestige back to ask how they had missed that rear tyre wear. I took the old rear tyre back to Prestige , where one of the techs checked it and agreed that the wear was indeed "abnormal" - he then went on to say that it was a common problem with cars with independant rear suspension

Just had two rears at my local KWIK FIT SP Sport MAXX for £200 all in, and find them really noisey compared to OE bridgestones.

In short(? or not) I to have experienced all the issues with tyres and wear and dealer not interested and £150 for VW 4 wheel alignement and noisey wheel bearing problem and to be honest I am giving up - had alignment done and new tyres and will see how it goes.

[phiL&K]

Originally Posted by sworrall

did he say how you could avoid it in the future?

No, just change the tyres, however they look hardly touched and it seems a shame.

As the car is with HSBC fleet, they will not change the tyres.

Incidentally, had this happen on my first skoda, an mk1 Elegance 2.0 estate and later a mk1 L&K 130pd Estate, although the problem disappeared when better quality ie michelin pilot etc were fitted.

The only comment I had in the past was that the tyres are low profile and not really rated for carrying sustained heavy weights. I adjust the tyre pressures to suit when I am towing my caravan, however only used it once since the car was new.

If you look at the tread pattern the blocks do seem more worn on the leading edge and raised on the trailing edge, this is obviously where the excess noise is generated.

I dont notice any loss of grip, just the noise.

[Supaned]

Originally Posted by Scottiepaul

Yep - Any car with independant rear suspension

Just had two rears at my local KWIK FIT SP Sport MAXX for £200 all in, and find them really noisey compared to OE bridgestones.

In short(? or not) I to have experienced all the issues with tyres and wear and dealer not interested and £150 for VW 4 wheel alignement and noisey wheel bearing problem and to be honest I am giving up - had alignment done and new tyres and will see how it goes.

Did the alignment check show that the rear camber was out? Did you have it set up to the revised Skoda settings?

I've found a place local to me that specialises in performance cars and their setups , I plan on getting a quote from them to see how they compare to VW - I'm loathed to have to use VW as one of the reasons for getting a Skoda was dire customer service from ALL of my local VW dealerships , so I'm reluctant to give them any more of my cash.

[Sammycarp]

Does this happen on both sides? Just had the tyre man who replaced my n/s/f comment on the uneven wear on the n/s/r - outside 1/4, checked the o/s/r and its fine. Still running OEM Bridgestones at 22.5k. Suggestions?

Its a fleet car, so can get it looked at at no cost to me :-) but from lots of threads on here, sounds as if its not really worth it?

[Supaned]

Just to update , had a reply yesterday from Skoda UK , quoted below :

"
Thank you for your e-mail.

I can advise that the wheel alignment of any motor vehicle may require adjustment from time to time as a result of the road wheels impacting with the kerb, road debris, pot holes, etc. Therefore, the cost of checking or adjusting the alignment cannot be considered a manufacturing or material defect, claimable under the warranty.

I can confirm that we issued a service bulletin dated 22 November 2005 to our retailer network advising on alternative rear camber values to reduce rear tyre wear or noise with the Octavia A5 range, when appropriate. However, these suggested adjustments would not be covered by your vehicle’s New Vehicle Warranty as there is no inherent defect in the running gear itself.

We suggest that you follow Prestige Garage’s advice to have a four wheel alignment check, carried out by a VW dealer with the necessary precision testing equipment, after which the Skoda retailer will be able to advise further. "

Grrrr - I am fully aware that FRONT wheel alignment can be knocked out by potholes etc , but I find it hard to believe that BOTH rear suspension units would be done so that they both give uneven tyre wear

This just smacks of a fob-off , it seems that Skoda are following the VAG customer service policy ie can't do enough for you when it comes to buying the car , but any problems and we'll wash our hands of you.

[Jonno VRs]

Originally Posted by Supaned

Just to update , had a reply yesterday from Skoda UK , quoted below :

"
Thank you for your e-mail.

I can advise that the wheel alignment of any motor vehicle may require adjustment from time to time as a result of the road wheels impacting with the kerb, road debris, pot holes, etc. Therefore, the cost of checking or adjusting the alignment cannot be considered a manufacturing or material defect, claimable under the warranty.

I can confirm that we issued a service bulletin dated 22 November 2005 to our retailer network advising on alternative rear camber values to reduce rear tyre wear or noise with the Octavia A5 range, when appropriate. However, these suggested adjustments would not be covered by your vehicle’s New Vehicle Warranty as there is no inherent defect in the running gear itself.

We suggest that you follow Prestige Garage’s advice to have a four wheel alignment check, carried out by a VW dealer with the necessary precision testing equipment, after which the Skoda retailer will be able to advise further. "

Grrrr - I am fully aware that FRONT wheel alignment can be knocked out by potholes etc , but I find it hard to believe that BOTH rear suspension units would be done so that they both give uneven tyre wear

This just smacks of a fob-off , it seems that Skoda are following the VAG customer service policy ie can't do enough for you when it comes to buying the car , but any problems and we'll wash our hands of you.

My experience of Skoda UK is that they tend to side with the dealer.

[Makefish]

Originally Posted by Jonno VRs

My experience of Skoda UK is that they tend to side with the dealer.

And lets face it, why would'nt they?

There are enough examples of uneven tyre wear on this forum to put a VERY strong case to a legal team but it would take some effort to do it and a fair ammount of time and effort which frankly few of us have. Until that time I'm affraid there is only one outcome imho.

[cheezemonkhai]

You mean you marry a lawyer and screw them hard?

[Scottiepaul]

Originally Posted by Supaned

Did the alignment check show that the rear camber was out? Did you have it set up to the revised Skoda settings?

I've found a place local to me that specialises in performance cars and their setups , I plan on getting a quote from them to see how they compare to VW - I'm loathed to have to use VW as one of the reasons for getting a Skoda was dire customer service from ALL of my local VW dealerships , so I'm reluctant to give them any more of my cash.

Yes it has cured the problem and transformed the handling, but please remember that just changing the tyres will cure the road noise/whine, but the tyre will still wear in the same way.

It will and can effect both rear wheels independantly hence why it is called independant rear suspension. I would be inclined to think that if only one tyre is showing wear this is more likely caused by a pot hole or similar. My main gripe is that BOTH my rear tyres wore out in the exactly the same way on the rear axle, and could only have been set incorrectly in the factory.

Incidently - Screw who?!