56vrs

I eventually had the cambelt changed last November it had done 45000 miles 6/7 years old. You could definitely hear the belts or the bearings in the pulleys, I also had the water pump changed. It is quieter now. The car still going strong....

Hi I know the dealers try and persuade you to replace your cambelt after 4 years with tales of massive engine repair bills, and it was common place for neglected engines in the 1990s for engines to let go, but is it really the case today? The Ford Mondano belt is said to last 100k miles, so why not the Octavia? The manufactures must have improved the quality of the components in this time. Are the dealers just being over cautious and making a nice tidy profit on an £15 rubber belt and 4+ hours of labour? How many people have actually had a cambelt let go or tensioner/waterpump cause a top end failure? What is the longest time or mileage someone has gone without having the belt replaced? If it does go, is it the belt, tensioner or water pump that goes first? Does anyone know anyone whose engine has lunched from a cambelt failure in a VRS. Well I am going to run with mine for at least 5 years, I will look at the condition this year when it is 4 years and only get it replaced if it is cracking up. It still looks new now. I intend to keep my car for 10 years and keep it out of the dealers as much as possible by doing as much as the servicing myself. When its 10 years old the price difference between a car with full service history and one that has not is a lot less than the cost all those services. We need to know the truth. What do you think....

Hi Does anybody know if 16 inch alloys fit on a VRS, I was thinking of getting some to put some winter tyres on. I know that the steel spare is 16, but not sure if the alloy wheel will clear the caliper. Or do the oil burners have the same brakes and 16 inch wheels? Thanks

Just got back from the skoda garage they said the compressor was broken and there were bits of broken metal in the air conditioning system so it will all have to be replaced. Condenser and all. They said they will need the car all day. Thank the lord its under warranty.

Hi My AirCon also stopped working last week on my 2 1/2 year old VRS. Not very impressed as they should last at least 4 years without top up. Thought I would have a look to see if the belt had come off..... Its a jungle in there. Anybody know where the compressor is under the bonnet? Thanks

Hi Glad to report that my boot is still dry, I have now washed the car at least 3 times since making the new holes in the seal and its been left outside in the rain. The seal is no longer full of water, as it drains out side the car not in my boot.

Hi I punched holes directly opposite the holes already in the seal on either side of the boot so the new hole was facing down. I did that about 3 weeks ago, the seal is no longer full of water there is no water in the boot. I have washed the car a couple of times since cutting the holes but it has not really rained so it is hard to tell if it has worked or not. I will keep you posted. I cut the holes with a hole punch like you use to put holes in leather belts.

Hi Has anyone out there done any motor sport in their Octavia I have done a 12 Car Rally and a Scatter Rally in my VRS

Don't get a rear parking sensor if you have a long narrow driveway as it goes off all the time when you reverse. I find it easier to turn and look behind myself I can judge when the car is 6 inches from most things, the sensor starts beeping at about 2 foot then gives a constant beep at about 1 foot. Its not as good as what you get in a BMW but probably is a fraction of the price. I wish I had ordered the steering wheel audio controls so you don't have to take your eyes off the road!

Thanks for your replies, The water is not coming from the rear window wash spray, I think its just collecting at the bottom of the seal and running in near the boot latch. I am going to punch some drain holes in the lower edge of the seal on either side of the boot and see if that helps. I will let you know what happens!

Hi I took my spare wheel out of the boot at the weekend and found there was about a cup full of water in the spare wheel well. This probably explains why the back window was misting up. I also noticed that the boot seal was full of water as well, when you squashed it water came out of the small holes in the seal so maybe when I shut the boot this is where the water was coming from. I was thinking about cutting a couple of holes in the seal on the underside so the water drains out. Then a small hole in one of the bungs in the boot floor. The seal otherwise looked fine it is not damaged or twisted . Anybody got any ideas? Thanks

Hi Over the last couple of months and over 500 miles I have been driving my VRS quite carefully mostly A and B roads commuting, and a couple of hundred miles trips on the motorway. I was amazed it averaged over 46 miles per gallon today. No its not an oil burner and I don't hold the traffic up on the motorway. I have found now the car has done over 10k the economy has really improved. Who needs a smelly diesel?

Hi Has anybody tried using 102 octane petrol in a vrs? I saw it in the BP garage the other day, £2.42 a litre thats about £11.00 a gallon! not so good for your everyday commute but might be good for a track day. I was wondering if the standard engine electronics/knock sensors would detect the difference and adjust the timing to maximise performance?

Hi As my VRS is approaching 7000 miles and the front tyres are looking a little worn I thought I would swop the wheels front to back. So I pulled the trolley jack out of the garage and peered under the car to find a suitable jacking point, there's not alot there but decided on a large alloy wishbone mount, which if you lifted the car a bit the jack just got under. I could not find a suitable jacking point at the back so I used the car jack. I removed the wheels to find that the wheel bolts were covered in white oxidation, which was quite alaming for a car just 11 months old. Anyway I swopped the wheels put some copper ease? on the bolts and put the wheels back on. Then I thought I would check the tyre pressures as I had not checked them since the summer and thought they might be different front to back. I was amazed that the pressures had dropped about 6-8 psi. I had been under the impression that the Tyre Inflation Pressure-Control system was monitoring the the pressures for me. It appears that this system only monitors unusual changes in pressure, say if you get a puncture, it does not pick up a gradual even loss of pressure over time. As a word of warning to other Briskodians I would check your wheels have not corroded onto your hubs and that just because you have a tyre pressure warning light it is not an excuse not to check your tyre pressures.