Skoda director responds to lady Slavia owner who complained about problems

When Skoda launched the Kushaq, many customers faced the EPC and fuel pump failure issues. Then Skoda fitted the Kushaq with a new fuel pump which they call a robust fuel pump. Eventually, the issues were resolved. However, now a lady Slavia owner has faced the same EPC issue. So, it seems like some of the Slavias are also facing the same issue.

The name of the owner is Harsha Kripalani. She wanted to buy a safe car because her work timings are late and she often has to travel long distances at odd hours. Harsha opted for a Skoda Slavia but she started facing issues just after 3 weeks of purchasing the sedan.

The first time, the car showed a noticeable lag in responsiveness and acceleration. Then an error showed up in the instrument cluster. It said, “ERROR: AUTO START/STOP” and along with it was the infamous EPC check light.

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She contacted the TAFE dealership, this is the same dealership from where she purchased the car. She had to wait for hours before someone looked at her car. The car was not fixed on the same date. The next day, the service centre updated the software and said that the error has been fixed.

Then after 11 days, the EPC error showed again. This time the car was picked up and a Kushaq was given till her car gets fixed. Till now, she has faced various different errors such as EPC error, Auto Start Stop Error, System Voltage Low (P0562) and Intake Air Temperature Circuit High Input (P0113). The faults have been cleared but the root cause is not shared with her.

Harsha’s Slavia has less than 900 km on the odometer. The first error happened at 559 km which was within 30 days of purchase. The second error came up when Slavia was at 839 km. Harsha has also shared pictures of the errors that popped up on the screen.

Zac Hollis, Director of Sales, Service & Marketing is very active on Twitter and some other social media platforms. Fortunately, he saw the post of Harsha and replied that he already has her email id and his team will be addressing concerns.

The EPC issue is only on the 1.0-litre engine of the Kushaq. The 1.5-litre engine is being imported to India and it does not have any such issues. Moreover, the EPC light can turn on because of a number of reasons.

Some of the reasons were shared by Zac Hollis himself. They were rat bites, bad quality of fuel, software glitches and engine management issues.

It is quite understandable that an error like this can break the confidence of the owner. Especially considering that it has been just 30 days since the owner bought the new car. Then there are other factors like the service centre has not given proper reasoning as to what has been changed that the light turned off. Harsha has to travel alone at night so it is important for her that she is able to trust the car and has confidence that her Slavia would not leave her stranded in the middle of nowhere.

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