Alasdair1

Will try to once I finished the most awkward clutch master cylinder in the world I reckon. Its one of those you can see it but with hands like shovels cant get to it. Who ever decided to put a dpf in the way should be looking for a new job or if I find them worse. If you ever need to do one on a 1.6tdi mk2 octavia let a garage do it. Hope you get it sorted Alasdair

You may find one at https://www.lllparts.co.uk/ Go to browse original manufacturer diagram and enter vin or model. Think the alternator/belt etc is under electronics and timing belt under engine. Not sure if on the age of yours but worth a look Alasdair

If the drop links are tight have a look at ARB bushes etc. It could be them that have failed or other suspension bush. On the rear of my mk2 octavia there are different diameters of ARB so check size. Have also heard that there is a plastic liner in ARB bush bracket that can disintegrate so new bushes are too slack. Alasdair

You would get away with changing one but I personally would do both. It could be the rubber but also perhaps the bearing is failing. I always do anything suspension/steering in pairs but in the past have had to change one side and do the other later due to needing car all the time. Last ones I did on a mk2 octavia the small bolts that secure top mount to turret wouldnt come out as the encapsulated nuts were just turning. I managed to get a few extension bars from strut side to hold them while undoing bolts. Ended up replacing front shocks and new springs while I was at it as one was starting to go and springs looked pretty rusty. Used KYB parts and have had no problems for a few years now. From memory you are supposed to renew bolt that holds strut to steering knuckle. The top mounts are marked on the originals with arrows and have a specific direction for fitting. Not my favourite job but fairly straight forward as long as everything comes off. The ARB bushes look worn but if solid on bar cant see them being the culprit. Alasdair

Many thanks. Thought it might be a filter but non return valve makes more sense. Alasdair

Meant to add anyone know what the larger diameter filter looking part is? Alasdair

Hi have a 1.6tdi cayc and need a small part of the vacuum hose that's part of the egr system. It connects to air box. Left hand side of picture. Rest of hose is fine but can only seem to buy complete hose at £43 which seems excessive as I only need the small part. Its split and not enough to cut and reuse. I tried a straight pipe but due to lack of space and angle it kinks. Have to get clutch fluid tomorrow so will check if halfords have anything that would do in the meantime. Alasdair

Could be antiroll bar bushes or perhaps a bad cv joint/propshaft as its more noticeable when turning. Check the top mount again and also the top strut bolt. Had an annoying tack tack noise on mine and discovered the top strut nut needed tightening. Why it came loose I don't know. It started soon after I got the car so I assume at some point strut had been removed/broken spring and not torqued up properly. Alasdair

I would check and clean all earths. It may be that under normal load the battery is fine showing 12.6v but when cranking under extra load a poor earth can cause voltage to drop for enough time to trigger codes. Check the earth/terminals at starter motor etc as well. Does the car turn over at a decent speed? Alasdair

If its losing coolant it may be filling a piston and partially hydraulicking hence difficulty in turnover. Remove spark plugs or injectors if diesel and turn over after being parked for a while. If coolant comes out of either then it may be a HG or cracked head/block(hopefully not) as for the pulley Is it a tensioner or idle pulley. I came up with febi 30990 for idler and febi 30989 for tensioner. If its the timing tensioner febi 11556. That was from febi parts finder via the reg of car so would need checked. Havent seen one for years. Used to be a couple of white ones around but alas salt on roads up here killed them. That looks in pretty good condition and yes nice colour. Alasdair

First I would do a compression test to rule out piston wear etc. If it comes back fairly equal and above spec then as said PCV etc and finally valve stem seals. Not sure if they can be done with head in place. On a very old Fiat my local garage fed soft string into chamber and compressed it to hold valve to replace broken spring so may be possible to do stem seals the same way. Check as well that the coolant isnt dropping and theres no oil in coolant. If its a diesel then it may be poor pattern/worn injectors that's causing smoke. Alasdair

Reckon if you go for a well known aftermarket like febi,pierburg etc should be ok. I would avoid any manufacturer that you haven't heard of e.g ridex,maxgear Alasdair

Meant to add keep a very close eye on fluid reservoir to see if its dropping. Alasdair

Think there is a small plastic cover inside that when removed you push a plastic lever to open manually. On my Mk2 octavia theres a small slit that you slide a screwdriver left/right. Maybe some foreign object has jammed locking system. Alasdair

Could be failing seals in the wheel cylinder. My sons was leaking slightly and when took old ones off they were badly coroded inside that had damaged seals. I fitted two new ones and back to normal. There not that expensive from memory £12-00 per side. I fitted new adjuster at same time as they can get worn over time. keep and eye on base of drum for moisture especially when weather is dry. Alasdair.

Quick update. It pulls off carefully and eventually. Managed to undo sensor cable and clutch line with a range of long tools and pedal plus master is out. Reckon it would be a hell of a lot easier on a LHD car. Did my old 1.9tdi a few years ago with no hassle but it had no dpf etc in the way.(I hate DPF with a vengeance.) will see how easy it is to connect new one when it arrives tomorrow. Doesnt help having hands like shovels. Alasdair

Meant to add how does one actually get to the clutch high pressure pipe and sensor connector with DPF etc in the way. Doesnt look accessible from below either? Alasdair

Sorry if its a simple question but is there a trick to remove clutch feed pipe from reservoir. On mine its a grey corugated hose. Dont want to just pull off in case I damage it or reservoir. Looks like a black seal attached to pipe. Alasdair

Paid £1400 for an 06 fabia mk1 for my son to learn to drive two years ago. Was well above book price but only had 60k and was completly rust free and a lot better than around 20 cars we looked at. Theres an 07 plate with 110k for sale near me that was originally £1200 but they have reduced to I think £700. Stick the reg into we buy any car and see what comes up. Fabias seem to hold value better than some. Alasdair

Hi clutch master cylinder I assume has failed. Can see fluid on and around under tray near master plus reservoir was low enough to let air into clutch. Ordered new sachs one as I cant do without car and don't have time to strip it down to get part number but on re checking there seems to be two. One with sensor and another without. Am I correct in thinking the one with sensor is for vehicles with cruise control as mine has. Got the part number from LLL parts 1k0721388ab/ac/af (its been superceded quite a bit) Any help welcome plus wish it was the slave but at least cars at home and its sunny. Its a 12 plate 1.6tdi estate 5 speed manual. Wish they had a clutch fluid low warning as well as low brake fluid Alasdair

Dont suppose a hydraulic hose company could adapt the auto steering hose for you? Glad your getting sorted though. Alasdair

Yep another one that reverses out and then looks. Had one in my carpark that reversed about 30 feet and into the side of my volvo940. She jumped out and said oops I didn't look. My volvo was the only other car in carpark which is big enough to get an artic turned plus I wasn't even in the car. I saw it move from my house window. She did say she would pay cash to have it repaired if it was less than £300. Local body shop said that would just about cover the paint!! Took a month to get repaired after I refused point blank to have it written off or accept a cash adjustment and then 6 months of insurance wrangle as I was not at fault and told my insurance to claim off her as I wasnt even in the car. I had just spent £750 for MOT. Definitely merc fault on this one. Hope its just cosmetic. Alasdair

Not a bad result at all for a 12 year old car. All mine seem to have the same advisories re rust underneath subframe coroded but not seriously weakend. Too much salt on the roads in my area. Hope you get another 100K out of it. Alasdair

That's the MOT you want. Sons had a few minor advisories but nothing serious although the tester said the car before him was onto the second sheet with fails and he had condemd it. He wondered how he got it to the MOT station in the state it was in. Alasdair

I would avoid Mr clutch. Have read of two instances where propshaft to Gbox bolts werent tightened properly or original were reused and catastrophic results. If the local garage is willing to swap gearboxes for a reasonable price I would go with them. If anything goes wrong they are local. You could try partsgateway or similar once you have Gbox number for a replacement. They send out to breakers etc and you get emails of prices. Google vw/skoda/seat breakers as well. Alasdair