OccySport

All cars have seam sealer & its probably grey because they dont paint the underside what you cant see. Doesn't look like I'll be doing mine this weekend then because I dont have new fixings but I think you have saved me a future headache by letting me know that the bolts need changing.

Do you know if the bolts are standard thread or serated & what type of nuts as in nyloc or the locking type that are used on exhaust maninifolds? Front: Front Strut Piston Top Nut = 60Nm 7. Hex Collared Bolt [N 10127707] M8X26 (6) 15Nm + 90° 10. Oval Hexagon Socket Head Bolt [N 90954802] M12X1,5X80 (2) 70Nm + 180° 11. Hexagon Collar Nut Self-locking [N 10106402] M12X1,5 (2) 70Nm + 180° 19. Hexagon Collar Nut [N 015 081 6] M12X1,5 (2) 65Nm Rear: Rear Shock Piston Top Nut = 25Nm 8.Hex Collared Bolt [N 10628601] M12X1,50X75 (2) 70Nm + 180° 15.Hexagon Head Bolt (Combi) [N 90648402] m10x35 (4) 50Nm + 45°

Thanks for that, thought I was in trouble for a minute.

Looks like seam sealer & I wouldn't worry if its the same the other side. Do you know if the garage replaced all the nuts & bolts when refixing the shocks?

When I originally posted this I noticed that it was in the wrong section so reposted to the Mk3 section because I have the Mk3 so I'm not sure but yes I would like all replies to be in the Mk3 section if can do that please. Please be gentle with me because I only joined a couple of days ago & still finding my way around.

OMG that is a lot of damage & its very obvious that the suspension has been bottoming out, surely it must of been horrendous when driving on rough roads. Are you replacing the parts yourself or is a garage doing the work for you?

Yes its Nyloc 22mm on my replacement B4s & through research it should be 21mm on the originals.

The originals shouldn't be all that rusty & the thought of stretch bolts did spring to mind but I dont think they would be. I have changed springs on previous cars & reused the bolts without any problems but have no experience with VAG & I'm a bit unsure what to do.

Something nagging me before I replace my suspension is that the manual states "replace after each removal" of certain nuts & bolts & I see no sensible reason why other than a money grab for overpriced bolts from the stealers. I would appreciate hearing your opinions on this because I only want to do the job once. Front image: no.5 comes with new front shocks but what about no.7,10,11 & 19 Rear image: no.13 comes with new rear shocks but what about no.8 & 15

Lowering a car causes negative camber where the wheels point inwards at the top & push out at the bottom & causes inner tyre to wear evenly. In your case it could be that the front springs have sagged which is normal for them to settle & most cars come with slight negative camber to help with the handling The toe is adjusted to compensate the negative camber hence the reason I advise you get alignment checked. I'm actually in a similar situation, I purchased my car with only 16k miles & within the first 6 months & only 20k miles my car has noisy rear shocks & oil leaking out the front shocks & the dealer doesn't want to know because Skoda have said "its perfectly normal to have oil leaking from the shocks" the bill to have "genuine" parts fitted is £912.84 but I have decided to do the job myself because I will know exactly what parts are fitted to my car & not have to rely on specialists that charge ridiculous prices. I have purchased a set of Bilstein B4 shocks & Eibach pro kit lowering springs with a total cost of £383.69 & when fitted I will be getting the wheel alignment checked.

Hello @AJJD Welcome to the forum, I think this is the best place to be to learn about anything Skoda.

Inner tyre wear is usually due to negative camber so perhaps it would be a good idea to get the alignment checked. The transport blocks would just cause the bump stops to bottom out quicker but I'm sure you would of noticed because it would be a banging sound before the springs fully compress.

I wouldn't drive a car with cracked tyres, the cracking happens with age & tyres only last for 5 years & they would normally need to be changed within that time anyway.

@Carlston is this the part that I would need if when I get my 17" alloy & it doesn't bring the boot floor level?

I purchased the space saver from eBay & it included the foam insert but think it must be the wrong one & the VW tools they come with are a bit mickey mouse to me. Ive purchased a Heyner heavy duty scissor jack eBay item number: 114953397074 & I have a Ring digital tyre inflator, I'm hoping that these will fit inside the alloy wheel & the height will be perfect. I also have the plastic screw to hold the spare upside down but I want the wheel face upwards so I need to come up with something to strap the wheel in.

@RaymondReddington what size spare did you settle for in the end? I bought a space saver spare on the recommendation of my local Skoda, that was a complete waste of time because the carpet sagged & I have my dog in the boot. So, Ive ordered a 17" alloy & yet to try it until it arrives.

@kevdog Nice job & yes SuperSkoda prices are expensive. I ordered the black magic grille frame & mirror covers from my local VW dealer. Grille frame part no. S5E0853761AF9R £49.11 Mirror caps part no. S5E0072530B £39.00 Total with VAT was £105.73

@Skeloggs I have a similar problem where I get a weird hollow sound when going over humps, turns out to be the rear shocks on mine.

@Stokesy I have bouncy front suspension because the shocks have lost a lot of oil only 21k miles, my rear shocks are ok but make strange noises when going over speed humps I have been told that its a very common problem for VAG cars having shocks fail early.

Hi Everyone, I bought my first Skoda in September 2021 with only 16k miles & full dealer history. Its a 66 plate 2017 Octavia III 1.4 SE Sport manual in race blue. Having a few issues which are: 1. Gearchange isn't very smooth feeling a bit notchty, when changing from 1st to 2nd I sometimes hear a crunching sound where cogs trying to line up. 2. Creaking noises when passengers get in the back that is probably caused by cheap brake materials. I have a full set of Brembo discs & pads to fit to rectify the problem. 3. Shock absorbers need replacing at 20k miles Within the first couple of weeks of ownership I'd been trying to find the cause of a weird hollow sound from the back when going over speed humps slowly & the culprit has been found to be the rear shocks making the strange noises. I had the car MOTd at a VAG specialist in March this year @ 20k miles & they informed me that the front shocks are starting to leak but car had passed because it wasn't bad enough to fail. 3 weeks later the car was serviced at the same specialist @ 21k miles & I was advised to replace the front shocks. So, I took the car to a VW specialist who also confirmed the front shocks are leaking & need replacing before next MOT. I have a full set of Bilstein B4 shock absorbers & Eibach Pro springs to fit. Hopefully this forum can give me lots of valuable information that can help me & in return I will help others if I can.