PHJ

Afternoon all, First of all I'd like to thank every one who gave advise. Thought I would give an update on the binding caliper issue. I also developed a wheel judder at about 50 mph so took the car in and got the wheels balanced but this did not solve the issue. I bit the bullet and fitted a new brake caliper and the problem with both the binding and the wheel judder has been resolved, the fact that the old caliper piston could be easily retracted with a screw driver was in fact a red herring so it looks like I made a mountain out of a molehill but I got there in the end once again thanks to all for you input. PHJ

I agree, air in the system would not cause the problem, I was refering to purging or resetting the OBD information from the system. I must say though I am old school, that is pre ABS and airbags, ECU's and electric cables instead of accelorator cables if you get my point and I have only recently been looking at my own cars since I retired since I have a lot more time on my hands now and a lot less money to spend at garages, I am quite happy to get involed but do find the modern systems a bit daunting so really do appreciate the support, thank you PHJ

The problem occured after the recall, the installed ABS unit failed the software update and Skoda fitted a new unit. This was done pretty much as I aquired the car so I am not sure if the problem was present before it was worked on. I have contacted them but they are only able to look at it on 16/07/2020, Yes I agree purging the ABS would be a last resort but it would show it there has been an incident.

Thank you for the advice JR, I have been looking at it today, 04/07/2020 and dont appear to have resolved the issue, I will be taking it for a drive tomorrow and will see if the problem persists, if it does I will carry out your advice. In answer to your question I didn't notice any dashboard warning lights come on, I will put the OBD on and check for faults, My thoughts are I may have had the problem since the new ABS unit was fitted by Skoda but only noticed it yesterday. PHJ

Thank you MicMac, I stripped the caliper off the carrier and cleaned it up as it was a bit corroded and the pads do slide freely in the carrier, but once the brake pedel was depressed again the problem still persists. PHJ

I have recently purchased a 2009 Octavia K S in February 2020 and it went in for a factory recall to re-program the ABS unit which was actually changed for a new unit as the old one would not update. I complained about binding brakes at the time but was assured all was well. Today JuIy 4th 2020 went for a drive and had a sudden out of balance which I put down to a balance weight coming off, however, the front left wheel was too hot to touch while all other wheels were only warm to the touch. On getting home I checked the wheel which was tight, I removed the wheel and eased the brake piston back and all was well. Could anyone enlighten me as to why a single caliper might cause binding especially as there was no effort required in pushing back the brake piston once on a stand, after which the hub rotated with ease. Any thoughts would be most appreciated. PHJ