spiderbarks

If I were a betting man I'd put 50p on it being EGR stutter you're describing. If so, buy this http://www.skodaparts.com/product/fabia-egr-gasket---special-25863 then drill it out to 11.5mm (or as close as you can get) and fit it. That sorted my 07 BLT SE right out. Enjoy

Had mine regassed during its last service (a week ago). Prior to that it was making a hallow whistling type noise, and wasn't blowing cold at all. Cost me £35 to be hooked up to a machine, have any residue sucked out, pressure tested, and regassed. Now blows cold as ice, and doesn't make any odd noises.

https://youtu.be/0GcwQk5o6dU This one? The black soot steam train 4x4 Fabia...

Been using the same place for all my mechanical needs for about the last 6 years, over 5 different cars and this is the first time there's been an issue. They give the impression they're a quality outfit, but i guess we'll see. I wonder how well "the internet reckons you're a bunch of useless idiots" will go down when i go back to pick it up

Interesting. No idea if they used that tool or not. The invoice just mentions it was 'pressed out' and pressed back in again... They definitely mentioned something about hub run out yesterday... I guess they must have come to the same conclusion then; wonky bearing. Thanks for input chaps - always nice to be armed with a bit of info. Hopefully they wont try to sting me for a new hub, discs and pads.

Folks, Had the Fabia in having the front OS wheel bearing replaced. They pressed the old one out of the hub, and replaced with a new one. Since getting it back the brakes have felt juddery while under a medium load (ie stopping on a slip way after exiting the motorway). It's a very similar feeling to when the ABS is kicking in. Took it back to the garage, the dude plugged the computer in, and said no faults were showing. They stuck it on the ramp, and couldn't see anything obviously wrong. It's back with them today as he gave me some theory that I didn't understand. Being a man in a garage i didn't want to confess that at the time... Something along the lines of when they pressed the bearing back in it may not be totally in line, which may have caused the brake disc to be a bit off. Said they're going to remove the disc, assess it on a (didn't catch the name) machine, then maybe use their lathe to fix it if possible. I just blindly nodded and said cool... Any idea what they're on about?

That was pretty much my thinking when making the decision too. 1) Get nasty with the fusebox area with loads of obstacles. 2) Just go a couple of feet further and have unhindered access the whole way. Plus, as you say, the glovebox had to come out anyway for the stereo so might as well. Glad it went in well for you buddy.

Put my mic at the top right of the windscreen, clipped it to the roof lining then ran it along the top of the windscreen down the left pillar (came off really easily), behind the glove box (that came out really easily too) then to the headunit. My Kenwood unit came with enough cable to do that run with some to spare, and I found it much easier than trying to navigate the area behind the wheel/instrument cluster etc.

Lofty - yes. Significantly wrong gear, and the judder is very noticeable. Guess I'll be sticking one trip to the garage in the budget for December time Thanks for the input.

Thanks for the reply buddy. 89,000 miles - Was last serviced and fuel filter changed 3800 miles ago. Full service history up to this point. I've already replaced the EGR gasket with the 9mm (drilled out to 11.5mm) which cured the what-felt-like-misfire during light throttle. It does seem to only be very minor at this point, so you're probably right to just suck it and see for a while. Just don't want to be left stranded if it finally decides to let go one day. £400-600 doesn't seem all that bad for the job lot - that's cool. The engine shake is only every now and again which is what's odd. From cold it's fine, and if I've been driving Miss Daisy it's fine. But get back into town, and stop/start traffic after coming off the motorway seems to be when it's worse. On it's own it's not even a real issue - just thought it might be related.

Gentlemen of knowledge, Got a few symptoms that I think may be the DMF on its way out. Your opinions if you will. 1) When accelerating gently from ~1400 - 1700 rpm can feel a judder like going over loads of very very small speedbumps. Happens at all speeds, but most noticable in 2nd/3rd gear through town. 2) Slight chatter from the engine when idling, becomes less noticeable when the clutch is pushed in. 3) Occasionally when stationary (clutch in or out), normally after some spirited driving there is significant engine shake. This is lessened if I turn the A/C on, and the engine revs rise slightly. Everything else seems fine. Car still pulls superbly in all gears, cruises beautifully above 2k revs - just seems to be that on/off throttle at low revs in traffic situation that it feels unpleasant. Not unbearable, but definitely not quite 100%. My assumption was DMF... If that is the case, are they normally swapped while leaving the clutch in situ (I assume they live pretty close to each other - I'm no mechanic)... or is it prudent to swap both the clutch and flywheel at the same time? Thanks for any replies. Would just take it to my trusted indie, but I'm not even sure it's bad enough to replace yet.

The annoying rattle that comes from the front of mine comes from the little pads near the hinges that the bonnet sits on. Obviously no idea if the same noise as yours but I thought it was suspension related too, until figured it out, put some grease on them and they shut up.

Just to detract from the mountains of questions and problems often posted, just thought I'd chime in with something a bit different. Drove from the Southwest of England, to Folkestone across the tunnel and on to Bruges this weekend in the little VRS. The little beast performed exceptionally. Didn't miss a beat; got out with no aches; returned (according to the notoriously wayward computer) 65mpg; and sat happily in stop/start traffic/50mph average speed zones/ cruising at 90. She was an absolute pleasure to be in. Great for munching the miles. No real point to the story, just wanted to recall my positive experience in case there's any potential buyers out there that are put off by the seemingly many problems in the forum.

Tried suggesting that. Seems to have been overlooked.

As for shaking at idle, mine does it too (on occasion). I read it had something to do with the EGR at idle, and turning on the a/c puts slightly more demand on the engine and stops it. This works for me. The Mrs. notices it more than I do, so whenever we travel anywhere and its stop/start we do it with the air con on. Obviously yours might be a more severe problem, just thought I'd throw it out there.