clamberer

Ran over some metal debris which pierced my petrol tank. Will be a write off if claimed through insurance, and expensive to repair at a garage. So: Is replacing the petrol tank on a 2wd Octavia 2 hatchback a straightforward DIY job? any pitfalls? (old tank is already empty via the hole!) And does anyone have any pointers on finding a second-hand tank? there are a few diesel ones on ebay but not petrol. I've put out a request on breakerlink but no joy. Is the petrol tank the same as those used in any petrol Golfs, A3s or Leons etc? as these may be more common with petrol engines than Octavias. Or are they all different, possibly due to different filler neck locations? Mine is a 2008 1.8tsi engine, though assuming all 2wd petrol engined mk2 Octavia hatchbacks have the same tank? I found this Audi A3 tank, would this fit or is the filler location different?

Besides the obvious track rod ends, where are all of the adjustment points for wheel alignment on the Octavia II? Had the alignment checked but the techs claimed they couldn't get any of it undone to adjust. They were suggesting replacing most of the parts involved at great cost. I declined. So I want to inspect myself, soak bolts in WD40 and free them up (if possible), and replace things if necessary before taking it to a different garage with less defeatist techs for an alignment!

Not reporting a failure, quite the opposite in fact! I have a Mk2 Octavia 1.8tsi (118kw) 57 plate/2008 so I guess the mk1 EA888. It has now done over 177,000 miles without the engine turning into a pumpkin - I bought it with 75,000 on the clock about six years ago. Clutch, rear main oil seal and water pump have been replaced. Power and efficiency probably aren't quite what they were when I got it, but still decent. Uses a bit more oil than when new but not much. Besides regular servicing with the correct oil, which I already do, is there anything I should do or check to keep it going? Bearing in mind it is probably worth well under £1000 with that mileage, so not worth pouring £100s into preventative tensioner replacement etc.. Or just enjoy it while it lasts as a car that doesn't owe me anything..

Ah after a little more research it seems that there were two variants of the 12 pointed bolt: one with the ribbed face and one (I think newer) without ribbing. The one with the ribbing is 70Nm then 90 degrees as you say, however apparently the 12 pointed one without ribbing is 200Nm then 180 degrees, same as the hex. http://workshop-manuals.com/volkswagen/golf-mk5/running_gear_axles_steering/front_suspension_drive_shafts/removing_and_installing_drive_shafts/removing_and_installing_right_drive_shaft_with_(push-on)_constant_velocity_slip_joint/ It seems that blindly following the 12 points = 70 Nm has the potential to leave you with a dramatically under torqued bolt if it is the flat faced one rather than the ribbed.

I bought a set of these: https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/laser-cv-boot-clamp-pliers/ Hopefully they'll be up to the job. One other question, I bought a new hub bolt from my Skoda garage, the new one is the 12 pointed flange bolt, whereas the old one is the 6 sided bolt with a heavy 10mm or so thick washer. The Haynes manual gives very different torques for the two bolt types: 200Nm then 180deg for the six sided, and 70Nm then 90deg for the 12 pointed. Is the 12 pointed one correct to replace the 6 sided, and at such a significantly lower torque? Also the old one appears oily on the threads while the new one has some thick anti sieze paste on it.. do I need to degrease the female thread before refitting with the new one? Cheers

Well now I feel bloody stupid. that'll teach me to jack it up for a better view and pay more attention just had another look using my phone to peer along the shaft and you're dead on. I'll order the hub bolt and the gasket! Thanks!

I couldn't spot any flange bolts, what am I looking at in the photo in my first post? either way, does the gasket need renewing? I take it pincers won't do the job for the clip ring or they risk breaking it then? Thanks for your help!

Hi All, I need to replace a split outboard CV joint gaiter on my 1.8TSI 2008 Octavia. It was flagged up at my local Skoda garage while other work was being done, but I couldn't really stomach spending another £100+ on top of my existing bill, so I asked them for just the parts, with a view to doing it myself. Now I've since looked at my Haynes manual (only diesel available so no exact match), which raised a few questions: The manual suggests replacing the hub bolt and the nuts securing the ball joint to the lower arm with new ones - these parts were not supplied along with the gaiter (I HAD asked for all parts required for the job). do they actually need replacing? It also mentions discarding the old gasket from the inner CV joint and replacing with a new one. Again this wasn't supplied, how necessary would you consider a new one to be (or is that subject to how intact the old one is) Lastly, the inner joint seems not to be the flanged type (see image http://imgur.com/MmynTvz ) Does this mean that the gearbox will leak oil on removal of the splined end, which will therefore need replacing? Again, I don't have the oil or the drain/fill plugs for that. Sorry if this seems like amateur hour but I had hoped that all required parts for the job had been supplied. This seems like it isn't the case, so I'd like to get that straightened out before beginning rather than finding I'm missing something half way through! Cheers!

True, although in this case it would not have made a difference in resolving the problem with the car left in neutral, only when it was in gear.

Resolved! (I think) RAC chap tried starting it in gear with the clutch depressed - this seemed to fix it. His theory is that some of the clutch components had become bound together, following driving through some deep-ish water without driving for that long afterwards before parking up (which I had done). Some water got into the clutch and caused some binding together as it sat. Starting in gear with the clutch down did the job of unbinding this. Apparently he'd seen similar in an Audi TT, so not sure whether it's something VAG cars are more prone to.. could even have been the same engine (1.8TSI) if it was the base spec TT. So cheers to the RAC! helpful as ever.

Earlier today the car was running fine, however after a few hours on the drive it seems that the clutch has stopped functioning. I start the engine with the car in neutral and all is fine, but when I depress the clutch it doesn't seem to be functioning: when I try to put it in a forward gear the synchromesh prevents it from going in, and when I try to put it in reverse it makes that grinding noise, as would happen if I hadn't depressed the clutch at all. I'm awaiting the RAC coming to diagnose the problem.. Has anyone else had this occur? what was the cause? Cheers!

Ah, yes that's the one I'm thinking of. It doesn't particularly annoy me, it's just a turd of a design.

On the car manufacturer pet peeves front (rather than drivers/owners): 1. Blanking inserts which only highlight where a higher spec extra is absent on a bog spec car e.g. a rear bumper made with cutouts for two exhausts, but only one is used and the other has a really conspicuous blanking piece. Same goes for fog light shaped plastic blanking in the bumper recesses - blank ones are okay as at least they don't shout "look at what this car is missing!". I get it that in many cases having blanking pieces and fewer bumper designs saves money, but please don't make it too obvious. I've seen cars (I forget which) which manage the worst of both worlds: they have a different bumper for the non-foglight-equipped spec, but it has foglight shaped nubbins moulded into the main part of the bumper!! An excess of blanking buttons on the dashboard/stereo is just as bad. 2. Loads of fake/non-functional vents and other bits of black plastic. Slatted or honeycombed panels on the bumper to give a 'sporty' look but which are obviously solid and allow no airflow seem popular in modern cars but I feel it looks tacky. Non-functional vents behind wheel-arches, on wings and bonnets are just as naff. The foglight shaped inserts I mentioned above also fall into this category. 3. Electronic handbrakes. 4. Proper handbrakes on which the lever goes so far down as to pinch your finger when releasing it (current Vauxhall Astra, I'm looking at you). 5. A specific model: that car which has a numberplate recess in both the rear bumper AND the tailgate but only one is used (unfortunately I forget which car it is, though I'm sure someone will say). Looks like they redesigned one of the panels but just didn't care about the other. More may follow..

Well GT85 contains PTFE, while standard WD40 does not, so I guess it should have slightly better long lasting lubricating characteristics..

Looks pretty good on a MkIII Octavia vRS too... :p

If you're looking to keep the colour from within the Skoda stable, why has nobody mentioned Rallye Green..?

I'm sticking my vote on The Darkness - Christmas Time Mainly because it's a successful mass market Christmas song which got away with knob and bum jokes, and I have a puerile sense of humour sometimes. Christmas time, don't let the bells end Christmas time, just let them ring in peace. If you've ever seen interviews with Justin Hawkins showing his sense of humour, you'll know it was deiberate..

There are quite a number of similar things and "boot camp" style training run outside in (as far as I can tell) public spaces - e.g. parks, recreation grounds, sports fields etc. I imagine (but don't know for sure) that the situation would be rather different depending on whether you were running a regular open session, or taking out a private group of clients. I think the latter would probably be easier than the former, and could be a lot more flexible to meet clients locations?

Any perceptible decrease in power from less cold air reaching the intercooler or reduced flow to the intake?

I've got the same problem as you - coolant leak, water pump needs replacing. They also picked up faults with boost and the intake runner flaps.. I suppose they would be looked at when the manifold is off for the pump replacement. This may well be an expensive month for the car - major dealer service (where they found these faults) including brake fluid change, four new tyres and now this Rodard, did you get your pump replaced in the end??

Looking to replace the diesel with a petrol? Would this perhaps go the way of Yeti_Man's 1.8TSI?

An MP's salary isn't any more than the what MDs of many smaller companies or other directors in larger companies are receiving. Admittedly the perks may be greater, and should perhaps be limited a little more, however the salary its self isn't that offensive in the scheme of things. They ARE (in theory) contributing to the running of the country. On an aside, I do think that the government could benefit from having a slightly more technocratic composition - fewer career politicians, and more specialists in their relevant fields.. I'd probably be happier with decisions made by genuine experts, and would be more comfortable with them having salaries earned through expertise.

Well, I went for the Vredestein Quatracs in the end. Replaced all four tyres, despite the rears still having around 5.5mm of tread - figured I'd like good all round grip in winter. Decided to keep the old rear tyres either as spares or to bung on ebay - not sure how much market there is for them. Will report back on the Quatracs if they get thoroughly tested by the weather. Thanks for your suggestions guys.

Should have called it "Eau Myyy..."

If you have some Autosol metal polish (or similar) try that. If you can, you may as well use something you have already..