Elsie

All £200 or so of it 😄

Hmmmm, yes indeed. I was told by the garage that the front hoses were split and therefore dangerous, needing urgent attention. (It passed MOT fine 4 months ago! And there's no noticeable lack of braking pressure, though the worry that they suddenly split is obviously there.) They apparently noticed this when taking off the front wheels to do the coil springs; didn't check the rear hoses, they said, but might as well do them (hmmm again), especially as the MOTs have for many years referred to the standard rear and front corroded ferrules (but just at a 'monitor' level). I looked on Euro Car Parts and found that their bits are half the cost that the garage quoted me earlier today. Not helping that I've moved house, and the old garage, which I at least trusted, is a fair drive away. But I have asked them for a parts and fitting price anyway, for comparison. I am getting a bit iffy about this new garage; highly recommended by locals, but... ?? I've already tried another nearby garage and they were not impressive at all (don't mention rear handbrakes!). Anyhows, I've agreed with them to get it up on the ramp in a few days on a while-I-wait basis to check if the back hoses do need doing, and I'm taking a reasonably mechanically-competent friend with me to use the opportunity to inspect the underneath of the car (and of course the hoses). Said friend did have a quick crawl underneath the car tonight with a torch and said that whilst the rear hose pipe metal bits were a bit visibly corroded, the rubber front ones looked absolutely fine, wheels fully turned both ways. So, um, hmmmm again...

Thoughts and advice, please, regarding my beloved old workhorse estate, now 155k+ miles. Mainly a local rural runabout, but occasional long motorway or UK several 100 mile trips are needed, when it needs to be as reliable as any car can be. Had hoped to keep it pretty much forever, and was 'happy' spending £6-800 (hopefully less!) a year on the inevitable round of bushes, links, bearings, brake parts, suspension parts, and so on and so on, plus the annual de-rust and paint. Justified it against the capital cost of another 2nd hand car (I don't have income now, as retired), plus the inevitable annual works required on that too. (Which, when I had a second smaller 2/hand petrol car, was just about as much on the same kind of items; in fact, pretty much been the case even on some much newer cars which I've owned.) Better the devil you know, too. "They'll go on forever," everyone used to say. Well, until the powers-that-be finally ban them... But it's all getting a lot more expensive now, parts and labour, plus very hard to find a good mechanic where I live (and certainly one doing a good job for sensible money). And next year it'll be timing belt & water pump time (not mileage, but years), and then there's potentially a clutch (had the car since 2007, about 60k then, never replaced knowingly); God knows what else is in the pipeline and could need urgent replacement. No clue what they could cost, either, but I fear they'll be seriously challenging. Just had 2 broken coil springs replaced, 2 new front tyres, 1 battery, 1 rear brake caliper, now told I need some or all of the brake lines replacing (and being quoted silly money)... Sadly, I can't do major mechanic work myself (no facilities and too old). Can have basic welding done, and other minor replacements (did door locks and window motors, for instance). So give me your thoughts, please. I hate to let it go, and hate even more the thought - and cost! - of buying a new one. And I don't want to keep on buying and scrapping old cars, either: very much want to buy and keep. But is there a point where it's just a silly and utterly economical idea to hold on? Cheers.

I used to use industrial rubber /silicon sealant when working on a large industrial plant where it was often available as surplus. Will look into the van/MH stuff, thanks.

Wow, that is a bit of a bargain! Too much of one? I'm surprised at how cheap they are though. Well, after a tad of a struggle & a lot of learning on the job - including unintentionally stripping & rewiring the regulator & cables! - we got the old clip plastic welded & back in place, drilled & re-riveted the carrier & door back together. Need to seal it up again properly at some point, but see how it goes. All working again so far, but with the expectation of just seeing how long it lasts and carrying a good roll of duct tape in the boot 😉Take it from there... Maybe whole new carrier with regulator is the best and easiest way, it seems. Thanks.

Ah, thanks. Don't look the same without the metal bits attached - but comparing them with said clips they may well be. I'll message them and see. Appreciated.

Windows on the poor old Rat Skoda have been fine, then suddenly a few days ago, on raising, driver's side did a nasty bangy clunk, fell at an odd angle and refused to rise. Motor still working, managed manually to get it back up and secured with tape. Stripped down (butchered???!!!) door and carrier today, and found, as expected, the front of the 2 steel/ally and white plastic clips which the window's held on with at its base has lost a corner of the plastic. Don't know what these are technically called, struggling to locate a replacement set (E Bay doesn't apparently have "compatible" ones). It's a Saturday, so the main dealers are shut (!!!) Any clue where I can get some? (Online / by phone) Pretty urgent to get it sorted, hopefully can bodge back up as a DIY job, trying to plastic weld or glue as a temporary measure, but expect new ones are really needed. (Then the other side will doubtless go idc...) Thanks. Will try to attach photos if I can on an edit from another device in a bit.

Just seen this. Happy Birthday! Finally all growed up and legal, huh? I don't post that often, but this site and its easily-Googled fountains of information has been so useful over my last ten or so years of Fabia ownership. Long may it continue.

Er, nope. Tis fighting talk, that Couple of B12 and B6 engines tho'; not in Bandits...

Go for it! Not enough chops around any more.

OldSkool, mainly Suzy's - steel frames with 600-1200cc in-line 4 1980s air or oil cooled engines. One offs, street fighter types, highly cosmetically and engine modded to say the least

I have read both 4 or 5 years if sooner than the mileage. I also read 4 years is for pre 07 (mk1?) and 5 years for later models. Either way, I think that mine's now due, either way (I presume water pump & tensioners included).

Thanks xman.

Erm, well, yes... Presumably because the dampeners weren't, nor rear coils and 1 front coil? I dunno, really: hence my original question.

Oh joy, more £. What's the recommended age interval, then? Will it need water pump and/or anything else too?