Simplesoul

@Ttaskmaster Thanks for the pointer. I will have a good shufty tomorrow with an inspection lamp and will be sure to check carpet and trim before breaking my back on the sills trying to dismantle the pedals. I think it will be a seat out job.

If you want to make a claim then this knowledge may help. https://www.ecfinc.com/plating-plastic-defect-troubleshooting/ See section 4. https://www.ccahardchrome.com.au/common-hard-chrome-plating-problems/

@MikeTheThinkerThank you very much for the diagram, very helpful! From the feeling I get when changing gear and accelerating, it is as if the clutch and the accelerator are hinged on one bar and this is worn on its pivots. However I know that this cant be the case and your diagram confirms this. I have the electronic module (part no.45 not part no.1) as a few years back it failed due to water ingress and the car went into limp mode on the A3 near Frankfurt. The ADAC guy removed it and got it going again with WD40. So I have actually seen the unit. The only thing I can think of is either the clutch problem is such that the feeling transfers via the bulkhead mounting plate to the accelerator pedal or the mounting plate itself has worked loose. I think its investigation time as its not getting any better. Armed with which bit fastens to what I will have look on Wednesday and report.

Not the door handle but the hand brake release knob on my Octavia...and the broken edges of chrome are very sharp!

The car in question is a 2002 RHD Octavia 1.9TDi (120,000 miles) The problem: I am having intermittent problems with the clutch pedal momentarily sticking a little at the 3/4 stage on depression (travelling back up) and then clicking free and returning to the up position. Normally I would have said that the pedal rubber is sticking in the profile of my boots or the master cylinder is on its way out. However.... I can really feel this sticking/releasing in the accelerator pedal when changing over from clutch and accelerating the throttle. On an old car I would have just assumed it would be a worn out cross bar where all the three pedals are mounted, but if I remember rightly, this car has individual electronic pedals separately mounted on the bulkhead. Before I take the front seat out and break my back on the sills, has anyone had this strange problem before?

The effort depends on the rims you are using. Probably only worth it if you can at least see the calipers. A caliper strip down is always a good thing though. I have painted brake calipers in the same green colour as the green in the Skoda emblem. It looks good as its rare and not too boy racer, but if you like red, then fine. I got a good result with smooth Hammerite in green and did a full strip down, and replaced all the seals at the same time. I used a fine brush to paint as Hammerite will disperse and it covers well. But dont try to put too much on at one go or it will run. Two coats covers well and lasts. The paint will go a little soft at first, but it becomes as hard as enamel when the calipers get hot and then cool off. I did my clio MK1 calipers in Gold Hammerite. That looked good. You can also pre cure them in the oven (if the Mrs is out).

Did you get this fixed? I have exactly the same problem and currently just disconnect the battery when not using the car for more than a day. There is a short somewhere and it could be anywhere with the botched design on the Superb electrics. Would appreciate your findings as reprogramming the radio and clock is a pain and I am planning a strip down in August. Would be good to get it right first time.

Brilliant Content. Thanks. I seem to have quite some water coming in. I have got rid of the condensation by filling two large socks with Catsan cat litter and placing them on the top of the dash. I will rip out the lot this summer and rebuild. However I have no water coming out of the windscreen jets and some kind of leak somewhere around the bonnet hinge and this water is also getting in through the duff pollen filter. I can see some washer fluid pipe connectors, but cant yet put my finger on the fault. Any ideas?

Adam is absolutely correct. If you have been carting a lot of stuff about in the boot, the washer fluid pipe separates from a joint behind the side trim in the boot (LHS) and fills the boot with screenwash. Easy fix, cut and refit pipe, but you may need a cup of boiling hot water to get the pipe snug onto the connector.

That does sound like a major electrical supply fault and not an individual system fault. The hand brake warning light and buzzer will normally come on if either you are driving with the hand break on or the break fluid level has dropped to a critical level. Its difficult to see the actual level of the brake fluid (at least on a TDI) but just one small wheel cylinder leak will be enough to set it off and braking will not show any deterioration. However get it looked at as its not funny when a seal goes completely especially on the rear as the drums will be contaminated with fluid and the hand brake will not help you.

Before you do anything or buy anything, check the obvious i.e. is the joystick in the right setting? Once confirmed that one side works and the other really doesnt, remove both upper speaker covers in the door (behind the mirrors). With the door open you will then see all three of the mirror mounting screws and should have access to the electric connections (You may need to remove the mirror totally and pull out the foam in the opening to get enough play). Remove the "faulty" mirror and test on the side that works. You will then know if its a mirror motor fault or a wiring/joystick problem. A used colour coded mirror can be found on Ebay for about 45 quid.

Stuff quality absorbent anhydrous cat litter (Catsan) into some old socks and place in the car and along the dashboard. It works! This tip is especially good for those drivers with a long term damp problem and a steamed up interior every morning. This is first aid, but you need to find that fault or it will kill the electrics especially the blessed CCU.

These cars are very reliable. You need to ask yourself what has changed. Just check that whoever changed the air filter at the last service properly replaced the electric connection that goes to the large pipe which feeds from the air filter and that is in the way of a filter change. If that plug connection doesnt sit right your TDI will be sluggish and wont go over 70mph. Unplugging obviously wont make any difference to the problem. Limp mode is a different story. That really is 15mph and the most prevalent cause is water in the electronic accelerator pedal. Back breaker of a job but WD40 will save the day. The water gets in from the bulkhead when its full of leaves and has blocked the drain holes.

Just completed a similar job to replace the broken pin on the lock as shown in the picture above. One of the pins sheers off the spring retaining ring and the key (and also the lock paddle and more importantly the sensor in the internal locking mechanism) will not return to centre. After 3 seconds all the windows go down and you cant lock the doors. This material failure is such a common fault after a while with owners who are reduced to using the key due to remote problems. If you know what you are looking for then its a quick job. If not, you can end up taking far too much apart. I wonder how many owners have been conned into buying a new locking mechanism when its this quick few quid solution. But hey ho once the door card is off you may as well inspect the wiring and all the plug connections and WD40 the lot. When replacing the exterior door handle cable (The short one that goes from the locking mechanism to the exterior door handle) be sure to get the tension just right. Too tight and the door will require two tugs of the handle to open, or even a big thump under the lock from the outside. To answer the question, all the repair kits I looked at include all the parts (you will only need the spring retainer) and are available in a range of prices and cast finish qualities. But once you know how its done..... The main learning here is do not totally unscrew either of the Torx screws. The Gold one just 12 turns and the black one just enough to easily remove the lock assembly. Otherwise its door card bingo!

Just a word of warning! The little black screw holds the lock in place. The bigger gold one moves the retaining ring on the inside of the handle. When unscrewing the gold screw count 12 TURNS only and that will be enough. If you unscrew completely the retaining ring may fall into the bottom weld of the door and its a job to get it out. Removing the complete door handle assembly is then the best option unless you can wallpaper your hall through the letterbox.