SwallownAmazon

Do you know what the other type codes refer to at all? C.

The Ackerman angle is nothing to do with the steering system as you put it. It is the angle between the steering arm and the "straight ahead" position of the wheels. The Ackerman angle is calculated by measuring the angle of a line drawn between the vertical between the steering joints and the centre point of the rear axle. Ackerman angles apply irrespective of whether it is recirculating ball, cam & peg or rack and pinion mechanicals. See a better explanation here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ackermann_steering_geometry If you put spacers on the front wheel without any adjustment to the steering angles, you WILL get uneven tyre wear and perhaps some very odd handling characteristics. Fitting spacers will move the steering centre outwards with consequent tyre scrub when the wheels are off the straight ahead position. Believe me, I've been there....

Does anyone know the significance of the three type codes 5E3, NL3, NR3 that are often seen when searching car parts suplliers' web catalogues? Can't see any reference in the V5 registration doc that quotes VIN and engine numbers. Just curious.

Bit off the original topic but as always a bit of "topic drift"..... I've just had to consider the possibility of a new turbo for my diesel vRS; £1,854 from Skoda in a Skoda box, £1,040 In a Garrett box from the UK distributor - same part! P.S. Plus 1 for KYB dampers, use them on my BMW 740 Sport "hobby car". Listed for the Mk 111 Octy.

Wheel spacers won't alter the wheel alignment when set up in the straight ahead position, it's the Ackerman angle (named after the bloke who came up with the idea) that changes with spacers. The angle is carefully set up in the design phase of a vehicle to change the angle through which the front wheels turn to ensure that the different radii of the circles are compensated for. If the front wheels are spaced out, especially by as much as 20mm, that angle is upset and you will get uneven tyre wear. Simple geometry.

Good luck with them! They were fitted when I bought my vRS and taking them off was the first job I did. 20mm spacers will throw the Ackermann steering angle out and you'll end up with severe wear to the edges of your front tyres. P.S. Anyone want a set of spacers and longer bolts? 😄

I had this sproblem with my BMW 740 soon after I acquired it a few years ago. Coincidentally the car failed an MOT test because the colour temperature of the two xenon bulbs in the dip beam lights were different. Replacement bulbs enabled an MOT test pass but the O/S one continued to go out after a few minutes running. It was the voltage inverter at fault and an OEM Hella replacement was around £600 (I know, unbelievable but true!) at the time. Found a pattern part on the bay of evil for around £100 and it's still working to this day. Be prepared for a big bill..... P.S. You won't get better than Phillips bulbs.

Gentlemen, Thanks for your input, I'm tending to the blown turbo theory as well. It's being towed up tomorrow to my garage who have looked after a variety of our Audi, Skoda and SEAT cars since 1992 when they were able to fix a problem with my company owned Audi 90 that the main dealer couldn't. They have VCDS kit to identify problems and a good old-fashioned mechanic to fix things. I'll report back when I know a bit more. Thanks again.

Don't know the error code for the EGT sensor I'm afraid, it was cleared down by the garage last time it was in. My experience with two previous diesel Octavias, (2000 1.9 & 2008 2.0 Tdi) is that the engines are pretty bomb-proof so stuck rings as suggested by "varaderoguy" above are very unlikely I would have thought. Round here, the majority of taxis are Octys or Superbs, all diesel and my last TDi with the BKD engine did over 180,000 miles without missing a beat. As to the turbo, a damaged seal seems to be the most likely cause of the excessive oil consumption; there are no discernible leaks. A new Skoda boxed turbo is £1,854.00 whereas a new one from the Garrett distributor in UK is around half that, so they tell me. The DPF is to be "hydrocleaned" as a first job so I'll get them to check the EGR valve as well. That in itself wouldn't cause the excessive oil consumption I don't think; it may be dirty as a consequence of it. Thanks for your input.

I know little about turbo diesels having been brought up maintaining what are now classic cars, pre-war Morrises, Minis, Volvo Amazon, etc; is a blocked EGR valve likely to cause excessive oil consumption? I would doubt it but not sure....

My recently bought 2016 Octavia manual diesel vRS is giving no end of problems with DPF codes being thrown up and descendng into limp mode. The story so far: Engine management light (EML) came on coincident with switching off the stop-start function when idling in traffic on a very hot day. Checked at my indie VAG specialist in Sevenoaks with VCDS which indentified a "spurious" EGT sensor fault. Cleared using VCDS and I went on my merry way. EML came on again about a week later which showed a fault with one ot the DPF pressure sensors which again was cleared and I went on my merry way again. Pete did show me the sensors one of which was a Bosch (probably original judging by the dirt) with the other being a Hella replacement. His advice was that there was probably a very minor discrepancy between them and they should both be renewed if the problems happened again. EML came on again about two weeks later shortly followed by followed by the flashing curly glow plug light with car going into "limp mode". Work done was: replacement of both DPF sensors with Bosch units, replaced one of the EGT sensors between turbo and DPF which was burned away to the thickness of a pencil lead, found DPF was choked at 49 gms soot, forced regen of DPF to 4.3 gms soot and I went on my merry way a third time with the car going like a rocket ship on wheels, wallet nearly £600 lighter but which also included an oil & filter change, AC regas and cabin pollen filter change. They did tell me that fairly recently it had been fitted with a replacement turbo which was likely a DIY job because there is no record in the service history that came with it. It's likely that the engine management "electrickery" had been fooled into believing the DPF was clear when it was actually choked. This may have caused some of the original faults I had found. Sounds plausible, what does the "panel" think? This weekend, we had to be recovered from a family wedding in Suffolk when the car went into limp mode three miles before we arrived at our hotel. Yesterday, the breakdown chappie did a code read and came up with a choked DPF and injector fault. He could not clear the DPF fault using the TOPCON code reader he had so we had to wait another 90 minutes for the flatbed to arrive. I had topped up the oil with Castrol Edge Professional before we left home on Friday and when I checked just now it seems to have used about 300 ml in 115 miles. Bearing in mind that both my previous Octavia TDi's (2002 1.9 and 2008 2.0) hardly used any oil between changes, this seems excessive to say the least. The last previous owner was a member of a family that owns a garage chain in the Newcastle area and probably "outed" the car to auction as a bad job ASAP. I bought it in High Wycombe, from the dealer who probably bought it at auction. My questions are: Is it possible that a replacement (probably recon) turbo could have failed in such a way as to cause excessive oil burning and choking of the DPF? Can anyone recommend a supplier of a) a replacement DPF and b) a replcement turbo? The memsahib and I both love the car, as when it's running well, it's super but when it's not running well, it's a bit of a dog..... Sorry it's a bit long-winded but to get a logical answer, as much info as possible is needed. Thanks. Chris.

I've just had a very similar problem: The lock button on the key fob operates all the central locking actuators except the drivers's door but the alarm doesn't work, as when the drivers's door is opened it doesn't sound. Problem only showed up yesterday, is changing the actuator a DIY job or better left to the experts?

The weight is the giveaway, all my "exchange" painted calipers from TRW in the past were b*****y heavy...

I too am surprised that coating has come off the caliper. TRW is the manufacturer and supplies the "aftermarket" with exchange units in UK via a parts factor such as Motor Parts Direct; they will not supply consumers direct. If you get in touch with the factory in Redwither Road, Wrexham, they should give you the details for their area rep if you are concerned about the integrity of that caliper; phone number is 01978 667810. They are now owned by ZF (makers of gearboxes, steering racks, etc.) I would be very surprised if the caliper is alloy and not cast iron - all the calipers on my cars have been iron; alloy would only be used where weight is important such as racing or rally cars. I have dealt with them a couple of times with exchange calipers for my Volvo 122S rally car (now sold) and my BMW 740 Sport and found them to be very helpful.

Another example of "rip-off Britain" .....

Had the same issue with my recently acquired 2016 diesel vRS with 144,000 miles. DPF warning light came on when trundling in traffic on a very hot day. Fault cleared by my friendly garage - showed as "Intermittent DPF Pressure Sensor". Fault cleared and OK for a few days then, Same fault cleared by garage but was shown a Hella sensor on the "upstream" side and the original Bosch one on the downstream side. Advised that they both ideally should be changed so booked car in. Incidentally, I was told by a friend who followed me one day at this point that there was quite a lot of blue smoke from the exhaust. Before the work could be done the curly glow plug light started to flash with the original DPF warning light again and car was in limp mode. Got the car back after two days restored to health. The garage told me it had recently had a new turbo fitted but the folk who did that work for a previous owner in Newcastle ignored a number of other faults including the almost choked DPF and an exhaust gas temp sensor that was almost burned away to nothing. They must have also reset the DPF "electrickery" to zero which meant it would not regen on its own. Anyway, two new Bosch DPF pressure sensors, a new EGT sensor and a forced regen later the DPF is now down to 4.3 gms soot (from 49 + gms); all the lights are out and it goes like a train with no smoke from the exhaust. My advice to DaveyK would be to look for your local BOSCH specialist garage (who may specialise in VAG cars as ours in Sevenoaks does); they should be able to sort you out.

I second Dave's view. Not a Skoda but I had a similar problem a few years ago on an Astra CDX. Sounded and felt like rear wheel bearings but my garage that serviced the car showed me the tyres; worn assymetrically. Nothing wrong with wheel alignment just crap AVON tyres.....

That's what i wanted to know but didn't express myself very well in my original question.... DOHHHH

I have a 2016 Octavia 3 vRS TDi Hatchback first registered on 23/06/2016 that I bought last month. It has the variant AACUNAXD shown in the V5, is this enough info to confirm if this is a "Facelft" model? What are the differences between a facelift and a pre-facelift version?

Thw three most important factors for a successful bleed are, I believe: System should be cold. Heater should be at Max heat Engine should be running to circulate the coolant.

I'd say there is an airlock somewhere, but where? That is the question..... Without understanding the layout, I would try and find the highest hose clamp, undo it and fill the cooling system from there with the engine running and cold. My BMW E38 740 Sport with 4.5 litre V8 takes about 30 minutes to fill and bleed the cooling system properly. There is a bleed valve on the expansion tank that MUST be higher than the heater hoses at the back of the engine. This is difficult as the bleed valve is actually a lot lower when the car is level so, it MUST be done on ramps; and the engine has to be cold, i.e. with the thermostat closed and the heater on full heat to make sure the matrix is filled properly. If the stat opens you have to go away, make a cup of tea, watch the cricket for an hour and start again... Quite a rigmarole and it sounds like VAG havn't fitted a bleed valve to save money.

Hopefully (!) final update on my issues: Garage changed both DPF pressure sensors but still could not force a DPF regen even though the "machinery" started OK - it kept stopping. After further investigation, it turns out the turbo was replaced recently (unknown to me when I bought the car) and the original exhaust gas temp sensor between the turbo and DPF was put back/left in place. This probe was almost burnt away to the diameter of a pencil lead so was changed and hey presto the DPF regen was completed without further problems. Soot down from 42.9 to 4.3 of what ever units are used. Goes like a rocket now......

I have exactly the same problem and it's having a Bosch sensor being fitted tomorrow to replace the Hella one that a previous owner had fitted. Hopefully that will solve the problem...... Coincidentally, the glowplug warning light came on this afternoon when the low fuel warning came on at 65 miles range. I'll get my indie VAG specialist garage to sort that at the same time.

I've only owned this Octavia for five weeks and the whoever did them up previously did them up far too tight. I managed to undo the F/N/S ones but the others defeated me jumping up and down on my 3ft breaker bar.....

Not on a Skoda but I have very good experience on my BMW 740 Sport (E38 variant) with EBC Greenstuff brake pads. The BMW brakes are marginal for a 2.5 tonne 300 bhp car (single piston sliding caliper) but the Greenstuff pads have significantly improved things; better intitial "bite", less fade and less of the black dust associated with copper based pad material. I shall be fitting these pads to my Octavia vRS as soon as I can undo the wheel nuts.....