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My front foglight broke 2 days after I bought my brand new Fabia. From looking at other posts it seems to be common, which makes one suspect the lamps were none too sturdy. That was 8 years ago and (touch wood) I've had no further problems. They are / were expensive and the stealers wanted a fortune to fit the replacement. Expecting to have to buy another I experimented on the broken one and found that the plastic can be glued and that a piece of similar plastic can be glued over the top to strengthen the lens. Laminate I tried did not stay on - but it was not one mentioned in posts above.

Gearbox For the right oil see previous threads - depends on speeds etc. Check the plugs; some need special VW sockets, but others (such as mine) use large conventional drain plug sockets. Make sure the filler opens before loosening the drain :giggle: . Coolant bleeding is easy - no special tricks - usual fill/run/squeeze pipes/fill/run. Radiator does have a drain, but it is a pig to get at; bottom passenger side - a twist out knob rather than a screw and up behind the cross bar. HTH

Mine done at 163K only wish it had been done at 100K (or earlier!)

If you have standard brakes then you don't need anything special just a good allen key. They are pretty much a standard size so you can buy one with a handle - labelled 'brake key' - at any accessory store

Have you checked the scuttle drains? A common problem. If blocked water or very wet air is blown into the car so you'll get condensation but not the wet patches on the floor due to door problems.

Many years ago when I was a lad ... diesel lorries had an over-fueling system to aid starting. A "law" was passed to put the operating lever outside the cab so that they couldn't use it to help climb hills.

Thanks for the feedback Fred; now if someone has the same problem they'll be able to use your experience and save worry and cash.

Can you put back the old paper filter and see if it solves the problem?

4 months through the summer - they may be shot. The suggested toothpaste and a new set (Aldi do great cheap ones) are suggested. Might also be worth emptying washer bottle, cleaning and refilling in case there's something nasty got in there.

It would be hard to improve economy. They can be remapped, but I've never met anyone whose done it, so can't comment on the value. remember completely different to petrol so watch the rev counter to stay in the torque band - much lower revs than you've been used to.

507 covers everything including long life, so it's fine. Here is the last word (only you need Google translate) www.vw-service.de,

Biting point is high on ours (130K) and always has been. Did you bleed it when you did the brakes?

Thanks for the update. Hope you never have to post on this again, it sounded to have been a nightmare.

Have you looked at the plastic shield over the drive shaft at the rear of the gearbox on the driver's side? It's a curved piece of plastic mounted onto the back of the box by 17mm bolts. It can appear OK but is actually loose which shows up on bumps or just when reversing. The noise can be transmitted down the drive shaft so it appears to be coming from the side of the car. To be honest, I'm not clear what it does; looks as if to stop stuff being thrown on exhaust, but undershield keeps gater clean and it would be unusual to use plastic as a heat shield.

Do check the excess you're paying. The usual £100 is compulsory, but adding more can really bring down the quote and may be that if you do have a bump, the excess you pay will be less than the difference between the original quote and the price you pay. I've a total excess of £450, which sounds a lot, but actually means that if all goes pear shaped it will cost me an extra £200. Check around for "ordinary" companies. There are lots of agents shouting "Special low rates for young/old/female", but actually they are more expensive. RIAS (good for over 50s; i.e. me) quoted £300, but the Post Office gave the same insurance (both use Ageas) for £150.

It's just run in. Cam belt never take a chance so, yes, do it. The air filter is probably worth changing as the book gives a ridiculous mileage between changes. Changing the brake fluid is a good idea if you don't know when it was last done. Enjoy

Any loosened crud would go into the engine. Not, I would have thought, a good idea. Yup; take it off. I'd also suggest that the windscreen is not a safe place to put any pieces you take off - put everything in a box and, if possible, put things in the order that you took them off.

Also called "Italian tune up"

Usual problem is the bolt at the back, but the gasket is an O ring so you can twist the body to get better access after removing exhaust connection. All in all very easy, but very dirty wear old clothing.

Hope this isn't a hi-jack. When my EGR diaphragm gave up the ghost I had the warning deleted as part of a remap. I'm assuming that the EGR will not be working as the diaphragm link opens the exhaust inlet (true?). The ASR works as usual. If this is so, then people deleting the warning could stop the EGR working by making a hole in the diaphragm which would be cheaper than buying extra bits. Have I missed something?

Elephant mod also catch can mod or Pikey mod - you'll find lots on this forum. Basically it takes the oil vapour from the camshaft cover to either the open air or to a can so stopping the stuff getting into your EGR. Easy, cheap, legal and worthwhile.

Don't do anything until you've had it a week or two. Check codes of course. No problem with usual mechanicals, tyres, brakes etc, but MAF no. EGR may be worth a clean depending on mileage and any other mods (eg elephant)

mattvrestate Thanks m8. Will take your advice.

Agreed. Get a new tensioner and alternator pulley with the new belt. I just replaced mine at 163K. Cost £70 approx, but £28 was for the tool for the alternator pulley removal (it's a star within a star), so you may not need the tool. Got my bits from CES in Chester. I was told by Europarts that it wasn't possible to buy just the pulley - I needed a new alternator; the ***tards! If you want to borrow the tool, no problem if you pay the postage - just pm.

There are a few very old threads on using copper grease (not); perhaps worth a look. At such a low ,mileage I'd be tempted to clean inside the dust covers and move the pistons back and forth a few times beyond their normal movement as dust etc and wear can lead to a lip which could cause roblems in the future.