rotodiesel

The "screwdriver slot" which you can see from the wheelarch is just an indicator so that you can check that the horizontal clamp bolt is properly located. It has a shallow head with nothing other than a flat on it, which locates on a machined step on the knuckle. It's vital from a safety point of view that this bolt is correctly located before tightening the nut - hence the "slot" which is the visual tell tale. The trackrod ball pin is indeed threaded to take the bolt which screws in from the top. After slackening the clamp nut, the bolt is unscrewed several turns and the ball pin pushed downwards. When setting the raised toe, the bolt is tightened, which raises the pin. When the correct pin height is reached, the clamp nut is tightened (preferably use a new nut) and the top "jacking" bolt is tightened to a very modest torque to stop it falling out. It's an elegant system - guaranteed to be messed up by UK dealers - rather like the undertray... rotodiesel.

Don't remove the scuttle trim to access the rear bolt for the ECU housing. If you examine the scuttle trim very carefully, there's a removable "plug" (almost invisible) which gives access to the bolt. You might need to take the wiper arm off though, as normally the plug is made accessible by parking the wipers vertically. Brilliant Teutonic detail - if they had fitted a hex head bolt, there would be no need for a plug... The Superb fuse card is wrong. The card in the fuse panel is for a LHD car and is nonsense (mirror -imaged). Scan it, and flip the image laterally in Microsoft Word (it has to be good for something) and print it out. What a mean Teutonic trick for a dark wet night... rotodiesel.

5 or 6 speed? rotodiesel.

British ignorance, a culture of trade bodging and a lack of understanding of the design. The above response is precisely one which needs to be avoided. Setting the raised toe is easy if you have the jig and know what you're doing. Changing the trackrod length(s) without resetting the ball pin height will result in a wrong setting. See my earlier post. rotodiesel.

Absolutely correct. The radio is hardly a "major consumer" though.... rotodiesel.

The radio can be programmed to operate independently of the ignition - I have done this. The damned thing still cuts out during cranking though, a truly idiot design. rotodiesel.

A B 5.5 auto transmission would not be likely to take you to 192k miles without considerable cost. For a good "barge" the 1.9 PD/5 speed manual is the way to go. "Barge" describes the handling of these things very well. rotodiesel.

As we're into bangerland with the Mk 1 Superb now, consider a strategically placed tension spring on the linkage under the car to take up the ball joint play. You can often kill a rattle this way without any dismantling. (Trick last used on an M-B auto - the parts cost would have been astronomical and the spring provided a permanent fix for zero cost). Watch out for noisy pinion bearings on the 6 speed B5.5 transmission. rotodiesel.

If it's a 6 speed transmission, check the unbelievable linkage on top of the gearbox. There's a ball joint which usually ends up loose and needs changing. It's a pig to get at. The ball at the base of the lever may also need repacking with grease. The 5 speed units just have a rod going straight into the casing - all the internal joints run in oil. These don't rattle. rotodiesel.

Find a good VAG specialist independent who has been trading in your area for years. Ask him on the phone whether he has the tool to set the "raised toe" on a Passat (year) clone. If there's no reasonable response, try elsewhere. If you find intelligence, ask them to make a thorough check of all the suspension joints and reset the toe (4 adjustments - 2 trackrod length, 2 ball pin height). It won't be cheap, especially if there are any loose joints and seized bolts - but running these cars properly for peanuts is not an option. Don't waste any money with a tyre centre or a main dealer. rotodiesel.

There is an alarm horn already fitted. It's to the left and slightly under the battery tray as you look at it. Remove the battery and its tray to access - the alarm bracket will be rusty (cheap Italian job). If the alarm is giving problems, take it apart and change the internal rechargeable batteries inside - which will be leaking all over the circuit board. rotodiesel.

If the car has been properly treated, putting the front into its service position is a really quick job. I wouldn't mess around trying to work on the aux belt tensioners without pulling the front. Check the sprag clutch in the alternator pulley first. rotodiesel.

The 2.5 is nowhere near as accommodating as the 1.9 for routine maintenance - belts, thermostat, water pump are a pain. As a result, I'm seeing a lot of these being prematurely written off for economic reasons whilst the 1.9s go to the moon - and back. A VP44 now is a death sentence. It's a shame, but unless you can do the work yourself, it's probably curtains. How did the front panel mounting bolts get damaged - they're not that tight and I'm sure any competent mechanic would have greased the threads prior to replacement. It wasn't a dealer was it?.... rotodiesel.

The 6 speed transmission was introduced with the 2.0 PD engine - two lemons together. The later 2.5 V6 vehicles with uprated engines also had 6 speed transmissions. Stupidly, the gearing for the PDs and the V6s is the same, so the extra torque of the V6 is largely wasted. With longer gearing, a manual V6 would have been quite a good cruising car - between VP44 replacements. The reverse gear position on the 5 speed transmission is not unique in the VAG range - the CitMiUp is the same. rotodiesel.

But you wouldn't want a 2.0 PD at any price. The 5 and 6 speed gearing is virtually the same in top. At 70 mph there's 120 rpm difference. The 6 speed has a crappy linkage and eats pinion bearings - the 5 is reliable. The best Superb by a mile is AWX/GGB (1.9 PD/130 + 5 speed manual). rotodiesel.

It's a bit like aunty in a short frock - these cars are now low-rent barges (which happen to be long-lasting if properly treated), and don't warrant any decoration. Watch the boot lid balance - it's pretty hopeless as designed with no gas strut resistance when nearly closed. Adding extra weight to the lid will make this a lot worse. Slamming the lid breaks the filaments in the number plate lamps - which will be rusted in unless you have worked your way down my preventative maintenance list. With a 1.9 diesel engine, these cars are useful bangers. Spend any time you have on preventative maintenance to offset VAG's dreadful design c o c k ups in various areas, and you have cheap, comfortable, long-lived motoring. Decorating it does nothing - spend the money on de-rusting wax such as Dinitrol and oil/filter changes. rotodiesel.

The CCM is under the passenger's seat on a RHD car. rotodiesel.

Don't buy a car that has ever been wet. Corrosion in connectors and spliced joints in the wiring loom will continue long after the water disappears. The 2 plenum bungs need to be removed/displaced and the outer pollen filter housing to body seal discarded and replaced with mastic strip. You can't check for seal replacement easily. rotodiesel.

Make a Forum search under "brakes" (not breaks). The Teves calipers in the Mk 1 Superb have a design fault which I have identified - the outer pad is not secure in the caliper body and is pulled back by the wear lip on the disk. The inner pads are handed and will make noises if fitted incorrectly. There is a rotational arrow mark on the pad spring to aid correct fitting. rotodiesel.

The pipe pushes into the slave cylinder and is retained by a spring clip. The pipe has a formed end - so you may need a new one + clip from VAG. Use a VW dealer or TPS. rotodiesel.

Fuel vapour locks are a distinct possibility at such high ambient temperatures. The heat soak of a large petrol engine is very considerable (we can't afford to run these heat generators here - the fuel we buy needs to turn the wheels). Depending on your fuel composition (I guess there's not too much bio-ethanol where you are) your car may now be operating outside its parameters for normal running. Wet rags on the outside of vapour lock susceptible components such as fuel filter cans will often identify this problem. A wet rag cools the can by evaporation. rotodiesel.

A design for the real world. I'll stick to the 5 speed manual. rotodiesel.

Auntie in a short frock? Stupid. rotodiesel.

The glovebox catches break because VAG use an unsuitable combination of plastics in the latches, with a ramp angle that is too shallow. For any of you with a still functional glovebox, apply silicone grease very sparingly to the ramp and thrust faces of the latches. Do this as part of the annual preventative maintenance (together with about 20 other design c o c k ups) and you will have no trouble with it. The lid will also close much more easily. The quickest and best fix for a broken latch is to araldite onto the inside of the lid 1 or 2 small rare earth magnets. Messing around with VAG's interpretation of an airfix kit is a waste of time. rotodiesel.

I can't give you a blow-by-blow guide to taking this lot apart. if you're not familiar with doing this job, it's best left to an expert. Brakes are not to be messed with. To answer a few of your points: Inboard - edge closer to the axle. After removing the guide pins (7 AF Hex key needed) the caliper body can be pulled off. The inner pad will stay with the body as it's clipped in. Hang the body up to avoid straining the brake hose. If you let it drop, the CV joint boot may be damaged (favourite dealer trick). The speed sensor just pulls out of the knuckle - unless you've let it rust in place. If you run a single wheel by differential action you might trigger an ABS fault. It's better not to provoke it - the sensors on my car will pull out easily by hand. The disk will be loose on the hub unless you bolt it back on. Spacers are needed as the bolts will foul. No alignment is required on refitting, just careful assembly with copper based anti-seize on the pad ears and bracket runners, and I use a very light smear of silicone grease on the slider pins to stop them picking up on the rubber bushings. Don't over torque the slider pins. Advance the pads to the disk before driving the car. rotodiesel.