prt57

Garages not admitting liability is a major itrritation, especially main dealers. I have an Audi S3 which at the time had only ever been to my local main dealer for any work. I had to remove the undertray so I could remove the front bumper so I could fit an uprated intercooler as part of my modification programme. Most of the flat clips that the undertray screws attached to were missing and there were even holes where the clips should be. Obviously, too much use of the zip gun by them in the past. Audi Birmingam would not accept liability as I could not prove the car had not been worked on elsewhere but out of “good will” were prepared to pay for half of the damaged parts. As you can imagine, the car has never been back to that dealership! We also have a GTi that I bought new in 1998. At the time it only ever had brake fluid flushes at the VW main dealer. I took it in for a flush and 45 mins later the receptionist told me sorry mate, the bleed nipple has rounded off with the spanner so nothing they can do. I had an even bigger row with them as apparently, a VW garage cannot fix a VW car! I knew the master tech who came to my assistance. The car went back into the workshop, he extracted and changed the offending nipple, then flushed the brakes. We avoid main dealers like the plague, preferring to use specialist garages if we cannot do the job ourselves

On my five speed, I tried removing the chrome top from the topper and it was a mess! Probably your best option would be to remove and wrap the replacement part you have bought. It does not need to have the 6 speed logo on as I’m sure you don’t look at the gear stick when you are changing gear!

I just looked and nothing from what I can see in the U.K. I easily found the item on a site called Wagen shop in France but this has terrible reviews so beware! Others available elsewhere in Europe but my language skills are not good enough to decipher! Another possibly less attractive option is to buy a generic 6 speed gearstick for a Skoda Fabia Mk 1 from EBay.

I did the same job about 4 years ago on my passenger side. The window mechanism wire had become all tangled up. I just used the bare mechanism from ECP and had no issues since. It looks like the current drivers side comes with the door card. However, the door card rivets are hideous and using a standard one handed squeeze rivet gun knackered my knuckle joint as they are very tough. Fast forward to last year when the drivers door lock started misbehaving and so that side had to come off. I bought a 2 handed rivet gun from EBay of the type where you hold the handles like a pair of garden loppers and squeeze the handles together. These worked great with no ill effects. Don’t forget to reseal the lower edge of the metal door card to avoid water leaks into the footwell.

It might be worth checking with Skoda. The price I paid for my chrome coloured 5 speed cap from my local Skoda garage was much less than some on line places.

Here is the part number: 6Y0798002 Not a cheap item, I bought the standard 5 speed chrome version from Skoda for my 5 speed car.

The pads to definitely avoid are the economy range Skoda pads. I bought a set then took them back as they looked like someone had made them in their shed. Big lumps in the pads material and very rough backing plate. The label confirmed they were not made in Europe. They also cost much more than any of the easily available alternatives.

After fitting Brembo front discs and pads that started to judder, I ditched them and fitted ATE discs and Pagid pads. No problems since. Similar issues with Brembo kit on other cars. Other folks have no issues with Brembo.

All I can say is that the VW springs fitted to our Golf don’t really affect the handbrake feel but the others fitted to the Fabia do make the handbrake a bit harder to pull on.

These are listed as for a Fabia Mk 1:- https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/404089114255?var=0&mkevt=1&mkcid=1&mkrid=710-53481-19255-0&campid=5338268676&toolid=10044&customid=EAIaIQobChMIrozfsO--gQMVHYtQBh2H2QilEAQYAiABEgLXifD_BwE

I did this many years ago with the Sharan springs to my Mk 4 GTi that had slightly tired returns on the handbrake lever. It certainly helped and the levers would always return properly after fitting. When new rear callipers were fitted, I transferred the springs and they are still there maybe 15 years later. From memory, I fitted the Frentech springs about 4 years ago to our Fabia. As before, they do a good job of getting the handbrake lever to return properly. The only downside on the Fabia is that it does make the handbrake slightly more resistant to being pulled on. Probably a slightly different position compared to the Golf for the positioning of the handbrake lever in the cabin giving poorer leverage. In conclusion, I’d fit them again if we had another car with the relevant slots on the calliper.

Just an update in that the latest part number for the drivers door lock is 3B2837016AA. This is the part you would buy new from Skoda. This part supersedes 3B2837016R. The big difference with the micro switch in the AA part is that it has been modified with a springy piece of metal that pushes on the micro switch as the latch rotates. This will prevent the micro switch wearing or even become gunged up. The older part has no protective strip of metal so the switch button will wear. Put the part number into your local auction site and you will see it is used by quite a variety of VAG vehicles. The very latest version has a white and black case rather than all black. The next issue that I tackled was the riveted inner door card. It seems that Skoda dealers do not keep the rivets in stock and you have to order a bag of 25. They are very robust rivets and so your average one handed rivet gun will not deal with them easily. I bought this piece of kit and 10 rivets installed no problem. It’s quite brutal but for the money it’s a good piece of kit. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/175748928234?epid=2331128690&hash=item28eb73d2ea:g:aQwAAOSwtTJkVbMz&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA4LOF%2FvMUusY%2FpAha7tHWibrZvtmqeerMuDk7uVDR9HjIP9g37%2BVGCHZABeyZgV6FUgvfqMiZNgQQwjTB8vfkkK8vC27ox6L4E8VC6OHCU4NfieuJQVdO0cvvoHbVM9uUmRL%2Ft1no8FE%2BSZaQMOR6Q2S6ugAwdTsH4MeUEdYjpbMR9FhwrYdeuZL4ri4OIwW%2BMHxm8Sdk7YPG286j4fH5rGIS2bYSV%2BE846OKo77tBJrbN20fuUAB6RMQTMGVihW1qloz%2BAgdq45uLl5EUgxmW1Z5myGtJ%2F6kIJ73VFd2GtZb|tkp%3ABk9SR-a0jZjXYg

Sorted now, thanks to all the help.

Hi everyone, I’m reaching out to somebody with access to the 2005 Skoda Fabia Mk 1 petrol 1.4BBZ estate elegance parts catalogue. The driver’s door lock has started playing up with interior lights or fuel pump sometimes not working when the driver’s door is opened. after owning a Mk 4 Golf for 25 years I am well versed with dodgy door locks. Experience has shown me that the cheaper Ebay locks don’t last and it’s better to buy a genuine second hand item. My research cannot pin down the exact part number for my car and so if anyone can help with this then I can get one ordered before stripping the door, especially as my inner door lock and window carrier is riveted rather than being bolted. The Skoda dealer will not help with the code but a new one is approx £180 after a call today. All help welcome.

Hi everyone, I’m reaching out to somebody with access to the 2005 Skoda Fabia Mk 1 petrol 1.4BBZ estate elegance parts catalogue. The driver’s door lock has started playing up with interior lights or fuel pump sometimes not working when the driver’s door is opened. after owning a Mk 4 Golf for 25 years I am well versed with dodgy door locks. Experience has shown me that the cheaper Ebay locks don’t last and it’s better to buy a genuine second hand item. My research cannot pin down the exact part number for my car and so if anyone can help with this then I can get one ordered before stripping the door, especially as my inner door lock and window carrier is riveted rather than being bolted. The Skoda dealer will not help with the code but a new one is approx £180 after a call today. All help welcome.

A couple of years ago, I bought some genuine caps from the Skoda dealer. They were OK for a while then they seemed to become loose and were wobbly. I contacted the parts chap and he said none else had mentioned loose caps. So two tiny blutack blobs of blutac on either side of the cap and they are still attached. just enough blutac to hold them on but not enough to lock them on for ever.

I used ATE discs with the Pagid pads. No probs and certainly better than the Brembo discs and pads that juddered.

Not all VaG pads are the same quality. I went to buy some genuine pads for my Fabia with the FS lll calipers. I was offered what the parts chap called the basics range. The company of origin was India and the pads material looked really suspect with cracks and lumpy bits. I declined and bought some Pagid from ECP instead. Overall, these looked much better quality and I have had no problems with any of the rattling described plus the braking !is pretty good tool! Take care with getting copper grease near any of the rubber parts on the calliper as it will make them expand and go floppy.

Hi, After a browse through my Haynes manual, the information regarding torquing up the anti roll bar bush clamps and drop links to the wishbone is not totally clear to me. If I am reading it correctly, the information suggests the clamp bolts are 15 lb ft plus 90 degrees. This sounds like a stretch bolt but there’s no mention of using a new bolt on reinstallation. This is on a 2005 Estate. The drop link looks like 30 lb ft with no additional rotation. Please can anyone clarify the situation? Cheers!

Just reporting back after the Pagid pad and ATE disc change. All went well during the job and I was meticulous in ensuring the hub and discs were spotless. so far, I’ve done about 40 miles, the braking is nice and progressive and there is no judder (at the moment). Early days I know but looking positive at the moment.

Thank you for your info. Not available at ECP at the moment. I prefer to buy in person. As I have fitted one side of Pagid , I’ll carry on!

Thank you for more replies. The car does not have carrier bolts as it has the FS111 callipers. I’m part way through reinstallation using ATE discs and Pagid pads. Just finished one side before the rain comes. I’d have bought ATE pads but not available at the moment. I did explore fitting some genuine pads and went to the local Skoda dealer and I was shown what is called the economy range. They looked very rough and had chipped edges to the pads. Made in India. Not an economy price at £58 and apparently the non economy pads are about £75! The Pagid pads look well made as I would expect. Don’t need to use the car over the weekend so I’ll complete the job on the next fine day.

Thank you for your replies. I believe the slider pins are fine with no noticeable wear on the last inspection. I can buy the ATE discs easily but not matching pads. My wife’s TT has Pagid discs and pads and has been totally fine for maybe 5 years. My son fitted Pagid parts to his TTS and they juddered. Only fixed with the EBC discs. so it seems a game of pot luck but ATE parts seem to be fitted at the factory.

Hi, About a year ago, I replaced the front discs and pads with Brembo components form ECP. I have changed discs and pads on many cars and so know how important it is to get the hubs spotless before fitting the new discs. By now, I’ve done about 5,000 miles on them including a trip up and down the steep hills of the Lake District last summer. More recently, I have noticed a judder with moderate braking which is disappointing. I had this also on my Mk 4 GTi with Brembo brake parts that we fixed using EBC discs. Also the same on my son’s TTS. So which brake discs and pads are you using that removes this issue? I’m severely doubting the Brembo parts at the moment. All thoughts very welcome.

How about a “Rusting” of Fabias?