wjspencer

Thanks all, that’s helpful. When I have the time I’ll either buy new and fit or buy used and refurbish and fit.

Hi there I’d like to renovate the front and rear subframes on my mk1 4x4 estate 1.8t. I was thinking of finding TT mk1 Quattro or R32 front and rear axles with all of the associated gubbins used online and renovating them (new bushes, new bolts, powder coated etc) then swapping them onto my car. Any thoughts on this? Are the front and rear axles identical across the Octavia 4x4 mk1, TT Quattro mk1, and Golf Mk4 R32? Thanks in advance!

I’ve had my 1.8t 4x4, Big Green, for a while now. Love the car, suits me and my needs to a tee, little heavy on fuel but whatever. I’ve done a fair bit to look after it over the few years of ownership… new lock and window mechanisms all round, decent rims, poly bushes (for longevity) in the rear trailing arms, new rear control arms, replaced door card fabric, fixed a rusty patch on a back door, nice head unit, decent speakers, mini amp and sub, nice seats, new suspension all round, VRS brakes, R32 rear ARB, braided lines. anyways, just after some advice or inspiration really… things Big Green needs: - cambelt - spare key - A/C sorting (probs compressor) things Big Green could do with: - new headliner - paintwork freshen up (maybe the odd panel re-painted, all-round polish) - replacement, non-locked, non-mapped ECU, then properly mapped to hopefully sort the intermittent boost issue (though easily solved by turning ignition off-on) things I’d like for Big Green: - turbo-back stainless exhaust - front and rear sub frames removed and fully refurbished with fresh paint and bushes - R32 front ARB - powder-coat refurb alloys (grey perhaps) Don’t really know where to start though, or if any of the above (apart from the cam belt), is worth it. Can’t really justify a newer/nicer car. I did think about a 280 Superb estate, but don’t have the £12-15k spare. Suppose there are some aging S4 Avants etc around £4-6k mark, but anything that old will be wanting a similar list as above. So basically I think this car is still right for me. Just not sure what, if any, of the above list is worth it.

So the N75J did change power delivery momentarily. For the first few runs it felt more punchy, but then returned to normal after a while. The E has been in for months now. The car runs like it should, bar the intermittent no boost which I’m putting down the a strange map.

I put these shocks on the back: https://www.skoda-parts.com/spare-part/jzw513025k-rear-shock-absorber-4x4-european-union-14664.html They’re KYB. They were the same as fitted previously. And the knock was there before and still there now. The car had the wrong weighted springs on the back when I bought it. So the coils would overlap occasionally and cause a loud knock. But this current knock happens all the time at low speed on small bumps. These are the springs on there now by the way: https://www.skoda-parts.com/spare-part/1j9511115d-rear-axle-spring-cs-germany-24985.html so there’s no high performance gear on there, just standard stuff.

How do you find the Koni dampers and Eibach springs? I’ve heard some say the eibachs are a little harsh? although mine rides a little high, I don’t mind it appearance wise and it’s handy on crap roads. i wonder if I’d regret lowering it with eibachs or not

Great, thanks Dean. I’ll reach out to Bowders. I’ve never changed an ECU…

Thanks, that’s really helpful. Maybe that’s what’s going on. I have had new springs and dampers all round in the last 20k miles. Is damper knocking a thing of the past with the Koni stuff mentioned?

Hey Is there anyone on here, preferably in Bristol/South West, who programs spare keys? Cheers!

I think the car was remapped by a previous owner. It does feel quick. I tried getting it mapped by Revo, but they said it was not possible as the ECU was locked - likely due to being mapped previously. I’m wondering about getting the ECU unlocked, so I can map the car with a trusted tuning firm. I guess I could also take the car to a rolling road and see how the curves are looking, and I guess if they’re good I’ll stick with them. But I’m getting no boost on startup sometimes, wondering if it’s the current map. Ignition off and on again fixes it instantly though, so no huge bother. anyone have any ideas?

I’d like to install rear parking sensors (colour matches) soon. and in 2 weeks Tech1e is fitting cruise control

I’ve had some boost issues lately so have been trying N75 valves. It’s still ongoing. Despite changing a lot of the bushes on the rear end, I still have this knock that I’m struggling to diagnose. The recaros are lovely, super comfortable. the VRS steering wheel and handbrake are a nice addition too. The Blaupunkt Stockholm 400 unit is awesome. The backlit LED keys are RGB and you can select the colour. I was gutted when “green” didn’t match the Skoda interior lights, but “yellow” is a near perfect match. I’m running that unit with an inline Alpine KTP445A amplifier, with Hertz Uno K speakers all round. There a Pioneer subwoofer under the drivers seat which really elevates the depth of sound.

I’ve owned Big Green for about 3 years now and I love the thing. It’s such an enjoyable car to drive, camp with, go on road trips in, and work on. In this time I’ve done the following. Most recent jobs are at the top, oldest jobs at the bottom. Done ✅ Sort out rusty patch on rear right-hand door Fix coolant leak in engine bay HEL brake lines front 312 carriers discs and guards front Drop links front Drop links rear HEL braided brake lines rear 256 rear brakes and callipers Rear trailing arm polybushed Fit rear control arms x4 Fit rear hub bushes x4 Rear door membranes fixed Fit TT Comp wheels and PS5 tyres VRS Handbrake VRS steering wheel VRS gear knob New front wishbones New front ball joints VRS front springs Install golf mk4 recaro seats Fit under seat subwoofer Fit new passenger window regulator New passenger door handle cable New windscreen wipers front and back New door locks Fit Blaupunkt DAB radio Fit Hertz speakers Fix leaking SAI motor (noisy) Remove and replace oil pickup pipe Fit new sump Fix headlamp inclination motors New carpet mats Fit DAB antenna Fit gas struts to boot and bonnet New number plate light glass New badges front back and wheels New front left radiator fan Next jobs; 19mm RARB powder coated Polybush 19mm RARB Aesthetic: Reupholster door cards Reupholster head liner Sort out rattling sunroof cover Sort out rear end rattle (interior) Remove glass from NSF door

Ok N75J just installed and taken for a run 🤩 🚗💨

So with E installed for a week now, boosting is nice as per F, but I’m still getting the intermittent boosting issue - perhaps even more frequently. I’m starting to think it’s the map at fault, assuming the car is mapped (feels like it…)

Ok so I turn AC on and both large diameter fans spin up. With AC on lowest, I’m feeling around the pipes in the engine bay and none seem to be getting cold. any pipes I should be checking in particular?

Ok so I’ve bought a genuine N75E. That’s in and the car seems to be boosting nicely just like the F. Time will tell if it solves my intermittent boosting issue on startup. I also found an N75J so looking forward to fitting that and seeing how it performs - if no good I’ll sell it on

Ah great thanks for the guidance. I’ll try your low tech test this morning. By high speed fans I’m assuming we’re talking about the 2 large radiator fans at the front bumper?

I’m in need of some help. im getting fault code 01274 (4FA) on my mk1 Octavia with climatronic. also, air con was regassed, hardly any refrigerant added, no leaks found, and with Climatronic in AUTO, I can see the AC compressor running under the bonnet. so the main bits of the AC seem to be operational. does the faulty v71 recirc flap have an effect on air icy-ness? Really scratching my head here!

With about 500 miles on the C, the F is back in. With the F, the increase in performance over the C is significant. There is more power all the way through the rev range. I still find it strange that there is such a big difference between the F and the C. I guess there’s a chance my car had been mapped to the F and so that’s the one for my car. The C is widely available, the F is hard to come by. The E is the current iteration of the valve, so I’ll try that when it’s delivered. Hoping this thread helps anyone with a 1.8t (ARX, elegance 4x4) wanting to renew their N75.

Ok I’ve been driving with the N75c all weekend. Still getting the same (worse) power delivery. And MPG hasnt improved as previously thought. Turns out the C was superseded by the F and now E. An N75E is on its way, so I’ll be interest to see how that performs. When I was running the F the car felt really punchy. Could it be that the old style map was written for the F valve? And that using a brand new but outdated C valve doesn’t match the map? Hopefully the E brings her back to expected performance. I find it strange that there would be differences between the C F and E. I’ll check all hose clips while I’m at it

Hi everyone 1.8t 4x4 mk1 estate (ARX engine) Some unusualness which, with all the knowledge and experience on here, I’m slowly getting my head around - so thanks! My car is stock and goes like stink, I think it has been remapped by a previous owner (I tried getting it remapped at Revo, they said the ECU was locked, potentially due to an old style remap, so they couldn’t remap). intermittent issue - I’d go for a run and get pretty much zero boost. I’d turn the engine off and on again and then back to full boost. No fault codes present, but forum searching suggested n75 at fault. The N75 valve on the car was an F. I read that F was superseded by C. So bought a C. C installed I feel like the car boosts different. It ‘seems’ less powerful, but the mpg seems to have gone up. The boost curve maaaybe ‘feels’ more smooth? But I preferred how the previous valve felt. Too soon to tell if the intermittent no boost issue has gone but so far so good. Is what I’m experiencing expected for the N75 change from F to C? Does anyone recommend an N75 variant for a (potentially) remapped 1.8t ARX (150 when stock). thank you in advance

Hi all, as subject says, I’m after a set (F+R) of mk1 vrs brakes including carriers. truly enjoying mk1 20vt 4x4 estate life, just finding the og brakes a bit weak. cheers!