Alasdair1

Just thought if there was an autobox there may have been a switch so you could only start in park. I doubt the manual box would have one but it may need switch if there is bypassed. On my newer MK2 12 plate car wont start unless clutch depressed. On my older Mk2 08plate it started without clutch depressed. Both were manual but my Toyota people carrier wont turn over unless in park (auto) Alasdair

You could take live feed from battery instead of signal wire to see. It may be a missing earth or not sure if theres a relay involved? Alasdair

A friend had similar problem. Car didn't sound right and engine was way down on power. I noticed strands of what looked like hair coming out of rear tailpipe. First we thought a small animal had crawled in and partly blocked it so we pulled it out and it kept coming and kept coming. Weird looking stuff like long hair. The internal baffles on exhaust had rotted out and allowed the fibreglass to come out of tail pipe. New exhaust and back to normal. Alasdair

Its possible the silencer is double skinned and the inner has gone but its normally the other way round. It may have baffles in box that have come loose. If its the original exhaust it may be failing. Alasdair

Are you sure they state 28 fingers and are not refering to splines on plate? Reckon the important part would be diameter and spline number. Alasdair

I fitted a sachs clutch to my sons fabia but didnt count fingers. They may have changed design or perhaps different manufacturers? Not sure if yours has a DMF or solid plus I would replace slave cylinder while your at it. There not that expensive and last thing you want is for the old one to start leaking with a brand new clutch. Glad its a clutch problem and nothing too major. Alasdair

I read that westfalia or oris make them for vw. Might be worth contacting westfalia to see if they can help. There is usually a number engraved on outer surface but it may have worn off or be an older style. If theres a westfalia dealer near you they may have a set of master keys to identify which one you need or drill out and barrel Alasdair

Reckon a new loom would be quite expensive. Maybe see if there's a local auto electrician that can repair it for you. Shouldnt take long to splice in another section of cable if its a broken wire. If you were to remove door cards etc. it would make the repair cheaper. Alasdair

When my sons battery failed he was with the AA and only place open was either halfords or Eurocarparts for a new battery. His wouldnt even take a boost to get car started. The price was mad so he phoned me and I took a spare one from home and got him going with it. The guy from AA was really decent and even fitted the spare battery for him. Even he said the price was way high. Got the same one from Tayna battery for less than half the price. Alasdair

Does the Gbox selector select gears if you move it manually. Hope its just a clutch problem. Now you have removed box should be fairly straight forward. As you said it happened suddenly so hopefully then problem is fairly obvious. Alasdair

Sorry for getting it wrong way round been a hectic week and its not over yet. Alasdair

Put your reg into Tayna batteries and choose start/stop option. From memory its an 027 battery AGM and EFB are both start stop with EFB being more expensive and I think fitted to high spec cars. My sons fabia 1.2 mk1 battery read 12.5v but on random ocations especially on coldmornings car wouldn't start so I assumed a cell was failing or actual capacity was poor. It eventually gave up completely. At 9 years old the original battery isnt owing you anything. I would change it for peace of mind. Alasdair

Try VAG bolts on ebay. Can be a bit more expensive but my local dealer is pretty hopeless and never have what I am looking for in stock or they cant be bothered looking. They may be able to help. Alasdair

Have a look at the tyres fitted. I found that Extra load tyres improved handling as well. The ones that were on my old Octavia were budget comfort tyres. The Extra load were slightly noisier but improved cornering and car felt more positive. Alasdair

I agree left my old Seat altea over winter and when I opened it early on this year it was covered in grey green mold. Its off the road and is a work car so wiped everything down/hoovered and then sprayed with diluted vinegar. Left in sun to dry out with all windows down and so far so good. Still smells a bit like a chip shop but smell is getting better and the mold has gone. Alasdair

Came across this company when looking for carpet. They do underlay 1.5m wide per metre. Another option would be scrapyard. https://www.carcarpets.co.uk/ Alasdair

You may have blown a fuse when removing coil packs etc. Not sure which one on yours but look at the ones near battery box as well. Alasdair

Yes the reservoir is both clutch and brakes. Its design from memory is that the clutch outlet is higher than brakes so if clutch leaks you still have brakes. It may be that the garage let the fluid get too low when bleeding brakes and some air has got into clutch system or by pure coincidence the master/slave is failing. If not leaking it could be fluid getting past the seals. It first needs the clutch bled and if that doesn't improve it I would look at master for leaks(on mine the fluid ended up on undertray) The slave on mine is external but the actuator rod that operates clutch is internal so difficult to see if leaking. It is removable without Gbox removal to check if its leaking or look at bottom of bellhousing for signs of clutch fluid. As said I would get clutch bled first and take it from there. Alasdair

It may be that the clutch/release bearing has had it if nothing else helps. I would change the slave anyway as if its the clutch I would be changing slave at the same time. It may also be the clutch plate has stuck to either the flywheel or release bearing has stuck. You could try put in first gear with engine off and then use starter to try and jolt it free. Try first with foot on clutch in first and if it tries to move forward the clutch isnt disengaging for some reason Careful it doesn't start and shoot forward. Alasdair

If it goes into gear no problem with engine off the Gbox should be fine and selector mechanism good. If you have reset cables then it does sound like a clutch problem. Wonder if the slave is starting to fail and only pushing so far before fluid leaks past the seals. On mine its an external slave but actuator rod is internal so cant see if its leaking. If its the same as mine I managed to change mine without Gbox removal. Could also be a failing master but I would start with slave. Might be worth bleeding clutch system first in case theres any air in there. Alasdair

Maybe its needing a good clean and then reset? Alasdair

Hope its something simple. Check the brake/clutch fluid level isnt dropping as well in case theres a leak in master/slave. Alasdair

Sorry just realised your talking about rear not front. Not sure on them as I did the front. Alasdair

From memory it wasn,t that easy. I have snapped a few but last time I think I heated it up slightly and knocked it through rather than pulled out. I have both Fabia and Octavia and the Octavia was a bit more tricky. Alasdair

Found the link to youtube that shows how to set cables. Its a 5mm not 8mm pin/drill Alasdair