Warrior193

What is the measured voltage at battery terminals with engine running? Then measure with engine switched off.

Lazarus, come forth. 😆

SWMBOs Fabia has the 1.0 110PS TSI engine, with 16 inch wheels. Ride is very good. Engine not quite as velvet-smooth as my 1.4, and a little less torque, but very enjoyable to drive.

Chippendale? 😄 Looks like someone's been using it as a sawhorse too.

Can I ask for a report of standing voltage reading before charger is switched back on in the morning?

Deal, with one condition - battery sits off-charge for minimum of 12 hours after full charging cycle.

The big problem is that lead-acid batteries really hate deep discharge.

In case battery had actually frozen, give the case a careful check for any cracking or suspicious bulges. My money is on it being unrecoverable. 😢

Hello, has the battery become discharged to too low level due to the wiring fault?

Hello, welcome to the forum. You say there is noticeable smoke when up to temperature - does this look like oil burning ? (blue smoke) What mileage and how much oil lost in, say, 1000 miles?

To OP, recommend that you check the expansion tank anyway, it could save you some grief in the future. Very simple and low cost DIY.

Hello KAH, if you are still looking, keep an eye out for the 110PS version - if you are open to manual transmission, this one has the 6-speed.

Was there a lot of dark-coloured debris produced during these cooling system flushes? If so, check the expansion tank - is it marked on the side 'Mit Silikat, and is the coolant in it discoloured? VW originally fitted a small bag of silicate granules into these tanks, these bags are prone to fail and allow the contents to migrate (and block) small water passages, EG. matrix cores. Do a search on the forum under 'Tea Bag, Silikat' etc. There is a possibility that your silicate bag has failed - if this is the case, the expansion tank should be replaced with one without the 'tea bag' before flushing the system again, you may get lucky.

How do you manage to read tyre pressures with those damaged stems?

In extreme conditions, letting some air out of the tyres can help gain traction - but care needs to be taken that pressures aren't allowed to go too low, then you need to be able to restore correct pressures afterwards.

Hello Shauna, welcome to the forum. I assume by your saying 'it would only reverse DOWN the hill' that you had lost traction going up - is that correct? Good quality Winter / 3-Peaks / M&S tyres would probably have given you a better chance of getting you up it.

My first thought - how far was this metal bar projecting from the van, and was it marked / flagged in any way? In UK, it's an offence to have projecting load without some visible marker. Don't completely rely on rear sensors, they may not always be able to detect certain projections such as the one you encountered, especially if it's narrow.

I believe that an updated expansion tank is available, with modified sensor probes. And without Silicat

With fuel pump unpowered (ignition off) of course.

Hi Toot, I remember them (used em too) Dunlop SP44s were a lot better.

Would I be correct in supposing you could use either 1s or 0s (zero) in the 10-digit battery serial number?

That does sound like a failing CV joint, although I've usually heard it as more of a click (clunk with more wear) each revolution. Are you sure there is no part of a tyre touching part of the suspension? I suggest making a close inspection the RH CV joints. Do you have a trusted garage?

That could suggest just one of the balls has flat-spotted - or one track is damaged. Is this noise audible on both locks, worse on one lock than the other, or just on one? From my Mk1-2 Mini days, louder noise on one lock indicated wear damage to the joint on the inside of the turn IIRC.

Rhythmic clunk at full lock sounds like badly worn CV joint to me.

Actual road temperature is an important factor - the compound on winter tyres (Alpine, 3-peaks/M&S) is markedly softer than normal - or even all-season (cross-climate) tyres and definitely give better grip in cold conditions. There are very good, independent tyre tests that consistently support this.