scotsgent

its very easy to peel back the rubber gaiter, then maybe peel away the loom covering to expose the bunch of wires within the area.. Close examination should reveal any wires with cracked insulation, a broken one will be obvious. I repaired mine with a crimping tool and heat shrink tube and never needed to remove the door card, it was a wee bit tight and fiddly but do-able. If I remember correctly, on both rear doors, the thicker red wire was the culprit (window not winding down) and in both cases was completely broken and separated so easy to spot. Cheers, Terry

I have one of these in the rear of my Roomster: http://www.bitiba.co.uk/shop/dogs_accessories/dog_carriers_cages/dog_crates/531031?gclid=CKCG3ZClw8oCFYIfwwodazkNzg I have a working Cocker spaniel. The box is plenty big enough for the dog and fits nicely in the car. I also have a 'proper job' box for shoots for the back of my Octavia, but in truth, if I were to have only one box it would be the Atlas, its a good bit of kit. Its lightweight and easy to lift in and out of the car. Cheers, Terry

Indeed 'magic', it seems you are right! :clap: It seems that Ferodo's range of 'Coat+' discs have a painted coating and not the usual thin, removable, oily protectant. http://www.m-eng.com/wp-content/uploads/Ferodo-Coat-brake-discs.pdf Here's the important bit: "15th September, Bradford, UK… Federal-Mogul Motorparts, a division of Federal-Mogul Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ: FDML), has seen a positive response from automotive aftermarket customers for its COAT+ coated brake discs. Originally introduced in 2011 for a selected range of high-end vehicles, the company now plans to roll out the advanced protective technology to 95% of vehicle applications. "As more cars are being fitted with alloy wheels that feature an open rim design, brake discs are becoming clearly visible," says Jonathan Allen, Regional Marketing Manager, Federal-Mogul Motorparts. "This is increasing the desire for braking systems to be aesthetically pleasing as well as be able to deliver excellent braking performance. We believe this is one of the reasons behind the growing preference for Ferodo COAT+ coated brake discs. The practical benefits of ease of handling and time saved for the installer by removing the need for degreasing prior to fitment is also driving demand." Ferodo COAT+ brake discs, which provide customers with the assurances of a top performance brake disc with the added benefit of unblemished looks, are finished with a zinc and aluminum flake spray that is evenly coated onto the full surface of the disc. This thin and very consistent covering, which is just 6um (micrometers) thick, not only improves the appearance of the disc but also removes the potential for disc thickness variation, which may be apparent with lower quality coatings and can lead to judder and brake noise. Ferodo COAT+ brake discs also offer corrosion prevention qualities and are resistant to automotive fluids such as brake fluid, greases and other strong solvents which can be present during the installation process"

Hi, I have just taken delivery of a set of Ferodo rear brake discs for my Octavia 1. The diagrammatical instructions (pictures not words) seem to indicate that they should NOT be cleaned before fitting. Usually, I have removed the protective rust-proof coating which is applied at the factory with alcohol or somesuch.? So, which is right? Remove the stuff or leave it on? Cheers, Terry

I bought an inner joint for my Octavia PD 130 from J and R more than a year ago, (this is the link posted above). It was so cheap I really didn't think it would last. Its still going fine 11k later!. My mechanic mate commented on the apparent good quality when he fitted it. They seem to have a wide variety of models. Cheers, Terry

Surely, you need to find the source and fix it there? Cheers, Terry

I would remove the speaker, its easy enough. Inspect the area within the door behind it. It maybe that water is running down the electrical cable which feeds the speaker from somewhere. Cheers, Terry

Before spending money. Check the connection of the master cylinder hydraulic pipe where it enters the gearbox before the slave cylinder. This connector is a plastic, device which houses the bleed nipple. The connection pipe has 'o-ring' type seals and they can fail and then draw air in giving the symptoms you describe. Wrap some kitchen towel around the connector and see if there is any evidence of dripping oil. Cheers, Terry

This is not necessarily either a master cylinder or a slave cylinder failure, there is another possibility and one which I have just experienced and thankfully sorted. My problem was on a 130 hp ASZ engine where the slave cylinder is internal, The standard 110hp models have an external slave cylinder but both have a similar 'connection' from the master cylinder pipe and it is here where the problem might lie. In essence, the bleed nipple for the clutch hydraulics is situated outside the gearbox in what is called a 'breather assembly'. This is the item which is fed from a pipe from the master cylinder. This is made of plastic and the pipe from the hydraulic master cylinder enters this. The 'breather assembly' is then, in turn, connected to the slave cylinder. This assembly is easily seen on top of the gearbox immediately forward of the gearbox operating assembly. The hydraulic pipe from the master cylinder comes from under the battery tray into it. The connections from the hydraulic pipe are push-in with a wire clip to hold them. Within each connector is either an 'o-ring' or a 'sealing washer' (depending upon model). These can fail and leak, allowing air into the system and giving the symptoms you describe. You should see a drip of oil from the lower point of the gearbox and a corresponding dribble down the side of the gearbox from the leaking connection (if this is the case). Luckily, this item is easy to get at and its also easy to bleed it, (I continuously bled it for a few months, maybe every week or so as well as topping up the fluid, before I finally fixed it, so you can actually live with it if you keep on top of it, at least for a while. You can easily bleed the clutch from looking down into the engine compartment. If you want to have a good look for leaks around the gearbox, then you will have to remove the lower engine cover. It may be the master or slave cylinder, but before buying components, try and eliminate this breather assembly as the culprit, because its only a tenner to fix. If it proves to be it, then let me know and I can give you the part number for the 'o-ring/washer kit.'. I had to do a fair bit of research to identify it, Skoda parts departments didn't have a clue. Cheers, Terry

Check the clutch slave cylinder hose connector. If this leaks then fluid will run down the face of the gearbox and drip off the bottom of the bell-housing, mimicking a gearbox leak, Cheers, Terry

I also struggled with this recently. I wanted to change out the alternator clutch on the same (ASZ) engine and considered doing it in situ (alternator still in the engine). However, in order to obtain sufficient room for the clutch removal tool I needed to remove the washer bottle. Because the 130hp ASZ engine Octavias have headlight washers, then the washer bottle is much larger than the standard bottle. (5.5 litre). I found 1 plastic nut at the top of the bottle and another steel bolt on the bottom left (as looking down). The washer bottle still wouldn't shift, it was still fixed by something. In the end, I removed the alternator to do the job and left the washer bottle where it was. I now think that you probably access the lower part of the bottle via the wheel-arch liner, you will also have to remove the square sectioned intercooler pipe which runs next to the bottle to slide it out when the bottle is loose and this you have to do by removing the wheel-arch cover. Cheers, Terry

Terry Octavia 1 2003 L&K 130 pd tdi, silver Roomster Scout 1.9 tdi 105 remapped to 135 bhp by Star Performance of Kirkaldy. Fort William (also have connections in Tarland, Aberdeenshire)

I have a 2003 Octy 1. L&K 130 hp 6-speed 1.9tdi. 106k miles. Its a super car in all areas and I love it! I have for a couple of months had a slowly 'leaking' clutch hydraulic system. The master cylinder seems good and so I reluctantly came to the conclusion that it must be the internal slave cylinder which was leaking. The pedal would occasionally fall to the floor and I would need to bleed the system every couple of weeks and top up, etc. This means a gearbox out job and so I decided I needed to be absolutely sure before proceeding. I removed the undertray and hosed down the exterior of the gearbox and then dried it all off. At night I put a piece of cardboard under the gearbox and each morning, there was the equivalent of a teaspoonful of fluid on it. the fluid was clean and light - definitely hydraulic. A dripping point could be seen at the lowest point of the gearbox. I thought this confirmed my fears and the internal slave cylinder was shot! I then noticed that there was a sheen of oil running down the side of the gearbox (not just dripping from the lowest point) and following this upwards from underneath the dripping point, I reached the point where the clutch master cylinder line joins the clutch slave (this is external) and I could then see that the source of the leak was in fact the plastic bleeder assembly or more specifically, the joint of the metal pipe with this assembly. This had a tiny drip only visible from directly under the fitting. It seems that the pipe is located by a spring clip and then an O-ring. I suppose its most likely that the O-ring only needs replacing. So, the point of this posting is to know that its often worth looking beyond what seems to be the obvious and no necessarily accept the obvious conclusion and also a plea to anyone with access to Ekta or some-such for some parts numbers. I believe the bleeder assembly might be called the clutch slave cylinder' breather assembly' or maybe 'bleeder assembly' It is the external component of the internally situated clutch slave cylinder on the 02M gearbox. Its made of black plastic, is roughly an inverted 'T-shape' with the bleed nipple on the top. In truth, it would be great to find that just the O-rings are available and that a VAG number exists for these. Can anyone help? many thanks, Terry

indeed! I'm now considered to be a mechanical genius by the missus! Cheers, Terry

Now sorted! The brake light switch was probably not the culprit, (though the new one was only £9 so I'm not fussed). After doing a little more searching on this forum I discovered that sometimes a faulty bulb or bulbs can give the same effect. Sure enough, on examination of the two side brake bulbs, both had blown. These were replaced and no the lights work and the warning lights have gone! Cheers, Terry