Alasdair1

Not sure on Octavia but have you checked drivers side door pillar wiring as well. On my sons fabia the drivers side supplies/controls passenger side window etc. As for the rear wiper I have had two Octavia mk2 and a Seat altea and have had to replace wiper motor three times so far. They seem to be prone to getting water ingress and seizing. Alasdair

If skoda did the timing belt they would have used a decent OEM one so should be perfectly ok for a long time. The belt change interval has increased a lot with lots of different explanations. The idea of 120-140k scares me especially if I dont know what make of belt was used so personally I change mine every 6 years/60,000. As I have Octavia I do the waterpump at same time.

I do my own on my Octavia and other cars but have a tripple set of spring compressors that you can lock in place. Last time I added a couple of older style ones just in case. Still scary as ****. If you can get the strut off my local garage used to swap the springs over for a small donation to their lunch fund. They have the proper compressor much safer tool. Main problem I found was the top mount securing bolts tend to seize over time and can break the welded encapsulated nuts so just turn. Have had to cut them off a few times Give them a good spray with releasol from the underside of the suspension turret for a few days beforehand. I used a small cold chisel to gently open gap between strut and hub. If I remember correctly some of the bolts are use once and throw away. You may need a special open socket to remove shock top bolt so you can stop it turning

Not sure on the quality but got to be easier plus ready to underseal and fit. Maybe someone on here can vouch for their quality etc. I was pleasantly surprised as well £140 is a bargain if its upto scratch Alasdair

Used to drive my old octavia with front fog lights on on dark roads especially when no white lines at side until I upgraded bulbs to phillips extreme vision. Still as said not brilliant but better. Alasdair

PCD and CB are the same. Offset is 8mm difference so think should be ok for car +/- 10mm is the rule I go by but only real way is to check by trying in case it rubs at full lock or when hitting speedbumps . Both have 17" wheels as options. Alasdair

My sons are the same on his mk1 although not bi=halogen. Think its just the way they are. I fitted extra bright bulbs which did make a difference but they are still poor. My Octavia arent bad but could be a lot better. Same as my mates fairly new vw transporter. He got them upgraded but still not that great. Maybe its a VAG thing. Daughters volvo on the otherhand would illuminate a football pitch. Might be worth getting alignment done. His were pretty low but MOT guy tweeked them for him. Alasdair

I would just fit new one. Probably a lot easier than getting a second hand one off plus fitting new bushes etc. Had a look on IM axles and £140 for mk2 fabia. My sons is getting pretty poor as well. Thanks to DieselMonte for link. Alasdair

Still have the glue in my cars as well as the spare just in case I get flat on busy road to get me out of there quick. Your right though in the past I have used it and works to a point but not for very long plus tyre service hates it. Hope you enjoy new car Alasdair

Sons mk1 runs the same size. He had 185/60/15 but I changed to 195/55/15 last year. Slightly wider and seems perfect for the car plus a lot better than a space saver wheel or can of glue. (My two ton people carrier has a spacesaver. Not the most pleasant drive home on what looked like a moped tyre after a blow out plus limited to 50mph) See if you can pick up the foam insert with a jack etc if the new car doesnt have one. Alasdair

I couldnt get Gbox completely out of his fabia but managed to pull it back enough and suspend it to get to clutch. Personally I would also replace slave cyinder while your at it. I use either sachs or luk clutches in general. Not sure if yours is a DMF. Depending on mileage of car and condition of flywheel it may need replacing at same time. His wasnt to difficult but time consuming and a bit tricky removing drive shafts especially drivers side.Think the 4x4 if its haldex is a bit more complicated. Alasdair

If you go for a 15" with 185/60/15 or 195/55/15 it will be very near the same size as 215/45/16 assuming the 16" has these tyres. https://tiresize.com/comparison/ Alasdair

Not sure but I did my sons fabia and bought this which helped enormously. It sits in the side channels and you can raise and lower engine and gearbox seperately. Works great as long as you have channels in wings. https://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai=DChsSEwjb1rWHroOSAxV5iFAGHcBNHOIYACICCAEQFRoCZGc&co=1&ase=2&gclid=Cj0KCQiAsY3LBhCwARIsAF6O6XjzYwXVTFwr1LWAVHd8RQBvXQcGdLm9Gzd_avKN-B-uAcaQ9kmwb_8aAlNHEALw_wcB&cid=CAASJeRoMaY2NNPXSJu2L-b0mC-ZjaxY1WUuL4xLz8st-J3-0UkMfS8&cce=2&category=acrcp_v1_33&sig=AOD64_1qY7M9wwqELE-L7oSljMj4hoBeOQ&ctype=5&q=&nis=4&ved=2ahUKEwi1jLCHroOSAxWxWEEAHeTaFn4Q9aACKAB6BAgIEB4&adurl=

Fabia Mk3 is 5 x 100 / 57.1 centre bore /46 offset Citigo is 4 x 100 / 57.1 centre bore / 35 offset Dealer has got it wrong. You should be able to pick up a spare from scrapyard. or use https://www.wheelfitment.eu/ for alternative wheels that fit (search by PCD) Possible tyre sizes for fabia are 185/60/15 215/45/16 215/40/17 Alasdair

Thats a weird one. Its a long shot but maybe a sticky/bad exhaust valve? Leaks when cold seals when hot? Alasdair

Was the new injector coded? Sorry if its a daft question Alasdair

Pretty sure it has DMF and variable turbo. Folks had the estate 1.9tdi and it was definitly dmf. Cant remember if it was AXR or ATD engine Alasdair

If the heater matrix fails it can leak coolant into footwell. Happend to my sons fabia. Not sure on the Octavia but on his the matrix started leaking at the metal join that the rubber hoses connect to at the matrix itself Alasdair

Not sure I to thought it was on the drivers side. Have you checked coolant level in case its the heater matrix? Alasdair

If its just good looks your looking for then crack on with cone filters etc. Doubt it will make any difference in power but may look smart with bonnet open. I go to a regular car meet with loads of upgraded cars. (modern and classic) Some of them have spent thousands and they do look very impressive but the number of owners that I speak to who have blown engines/gearboxes with huge turbos etc is fairly high. Fine if you have a bottomless money pit. Personally if your looking for more power go for a proffesional remap plus spend the money on upgrading brakes/discs and decent tyres/wheels Alasdair

Personally I use NGK across the board from chainsaws etc up to cars. Never had a bad one and they do last. I would stick to them. I have heard that denso are equally as good but never tried them. Alasdair

Reckon a leak down test might be the way to go. Hope you get it sorted. I prefer the Mk1 and early Mk2 Octavias. Still have my 1.9tdi bxe sitting waiting for me to tackle rust but reckon its past it. Shame as its mechanicly sound. If I scrap it will let you know as engine has 140k and runs like a train with no probs. Alasdair

Check the engine breather system pcv isnt clogged/jammed as well Alasdair

If your using 3l /1k then I would expect a full smoke screen behind you. It may be that its oil getting into coolant thats forcing coolant out and not burning much but that amount of oil would mean that you probably wouldnt have much coolant left. Check that the intercooler isnt full of oil. Had an old volvo that the turbo seals failed and was dumping it there. If it sat idling for a while then some blue smoke but not much when driving. If you have an oil leak that amount would definitly be noticeable. Alasdair

If there is any warning light on dash the chances are it will fail I am afraid especially if its part of a safety system. Have you had car scanned to see if there are any fault codes stored? It may be possible to disable it for the MOT? I read on a VW forum/Golf it can be disabled by going into Car/vehicle setting/setup and toggling the front assist to off although it may reactivate once car is stopped and restarted. Not sure on Skoda Alasdair