Jocko

I downloaded the manual as soon as I bought the car and have now been through it about three or four times. Each time I find something new I missed or didn't understand the previous reading. Today I familiarised myself with the MFD and reset both the memories. Turns out the battery was not replaced after all. The salesman "spoke in error" but he did tell me the battery had not been replaced when he was handing over the car. I have the car connected up to a SMART charger so the battery is in tip top condition each time I go to it. I moved to this house about 18 months ago and my mileage dropped from 16K a year to 3K. Because my car is unused for two or three weeks at a time I thought the charger was a good idea. I have checked all the fluid levels but still have my tyre pressures to do. That is not something I relish in the rain and it has barely stopped since the car was delivered. I will however check and adjust them before driving. I have the seats and mirrors adjusted to my liking, today I tuned the radio to the local stations and I have stripped my cameras off the old car (a 2006 Jazz) but have yet to fit them to the Fabia. The car has the Climatronic system fitted and it seems to work well. The car had a full valet before I got it so the upholstery still has some moisture to give up.

My Fabia is sitting in the drive but I have been unable to tax it so I can just fiddle with things sitting in the drive. I don't think the Parking Assist works. When I first select Reverse there is a beep then a longer tone but if I then get out and walk around the back of the car there is no further noise. If I disengage Reverse then re select it there i no further beep or tone, If it works, great, but if it doesn't I am not too concerned, as I have never had Parking Assist before, so I shan't miss it. The other thing I tried to test was the Corner lamps which didn't seem to work but I realise now I didn't have the engine running when I tried them. I am sure I will have further questions.

I had a Ford Prefect 100E and I hung a square of hardboard, suspended by a wire, from the radiator cap, to close off the bottom of the huge radiator. I only took it off in the height of summer. I think the cooling system on that car was designed for the Sahara - and hotter!

First thing I would have done is changed the thermostat. Reasonably cheap and easy to do.

Thanks. I will look for it in the morning.

Forgive me for asking so many questions but I only took delivery of my Fabia yesterday and I am trying to figure out what it has and what it hasn't. The manual for the Dance radio talks about AUX IN. My Jazz radio had that and I could plug a 3.5mm jack plug from my phone into a socket on the dashboard and play music via the Aux function. Does the Fabia/Dance have something similar and if so, where is it. Do I have to remove the radio and connect to the rear of it?

I have just bought a 15 year old 1.4 petrol Fabia so, assuming the timing belts were changed after five and ten years, they are due changing again now. I will arrange for my son-in-law, a mechanic, to replace them for me but if a belt fails does it destroy the engine or does it just bring the engine to a sudden stop, i.e. do the valves encroach into the swept volume or not?

The container says you can use it neat as a de-icer. They say 1:10 for -10°C but I will probably mix it 1:1 or 1:2. I'll see how it goes. I used to work in a place where Isopropyl alcohol was freely available and I use to use that in my windscreen washers. Good down to −89 °C.

It is not that cold here. We are less than 4 miles from the sea and only 84 metres above it. And I would never dream of buying pre-mixed screenwash. Why pay good money for water?

If the battery goes flat after 10 days - until I put the car back on the road - then perhaps a Fabia is not for me. Regarding the windscreen washer fluid, I just took delivery today of 5 litres of this: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/154921481365 Hopefully that will do better than my previous winter screenwash. The concentrate froze in the container, in my garage, last week!

What I am saying is unplug the supply to the back of the radio then make your measurement. If it is the radio then the current will be zero. If there is something else connected to the fuse which is causing the parasitic drain then it will still show on the meter. Basic fault finding. If there is something else then buying and fitting a brand new radio won't help the situation. My credentials: I am a retired electronic/electrical engineer.

Thanks guys. The car was MOT'd today and passed with no advisories. The dealer does not do his own MOT's which to my mind is always a good thing. It is a local car sales and gets good reviews so I am ever hopeful. It is just to get valeted so hopefully I will get it tomorrow or Friday. I still have my Jazz up until the 27th so my intention is to SORN the Fabia until the start of January and just do without a car for the few days, until the DVLA comes back from their holidays.

Not as far as I no but I have only had a test drive so far. ICE wasn't on but Climate control was working and PAS felt great.

That is certainly my experience in the past, but there was no traction control warning in this case.

I am waiting to pick up my new (to me) car from the dealer. It was to have some work done, MOT'd and valeted before I get it (it was just in minutes before I test drove it). On the test drive the ABS light came on. When I spoke to the dealer yesterday he said ABS light showed up as low voltage, so they have fitted a new battery and since then it has been fine. Does this ring true to you?

5 years from a battery is good going. Personally I would have no qualms about replacing it.

Don't know the car history or if springs have been replaced previously. it is not a Scottish reg.

I have had experience of a diode failing on the alternator giving similar symptoms. The alternator produces AC and the full bridge rectifier gives the DC we need. On some alternators you can swap out the rectifier pack without replacing the alternator but I am new to Skoda/VAG so I have no idea if that is possible here.

Can you unplug the supply to the rear of the radio and replace the fuse? See what reading that gives. There maybe something else in the circuit.

I know that, but I was concerned that I might disturb the battery connection and inadvertently open the circuit losing the radio code. I don't have a code to put in.

That is exactly the part I am fitting. I was able to fit it to the battery on my Jazz by putting second nuts on the clamp bolts but I don't know if I will be able to do that with the Fabia. I do so few miles that the car can be sitting idle for a couple of weeks and the SMART charger keeps the battery lively.

Thanks. That is great to know. I want to connect up a lead for a SMART charger and I was afraid if I interrupted the supply I would lose the radio.

If I disconnect the battery do I need to input the radio code on reconnection?

I have arranged to buy a 2009 1.4 hatch and the garage that is selling it is MOTing it for me. I has failed on two broken front springs. I appreciate that how it has been driven has a big effect (previous owner may have been careless over speed humps) but is this a common fault with the Fabia. It hasn't quite done 70,000 miles.

A filter on the inlet to the matrix would not do any harm. if it choked up it would have the same effect as the matrix choking. No heat but no engine overheating. It sounds like the whole coolant system needs drained, flushed and possibly even a biocide run through it.