Rooster

Coming loose is not the only cause of problems with the main fuse box - some of the early cables were crimped poorly and subsequently corrode, also causing high resistance. In my case the fuse box melted (similar symptoms of random electrical gremlins) and i needed to replace the fuse box and alternator cable (for a later upgraded part). Rooster.

oh, and thanks again evereybody :-)

Had another couple of weeks away with work, and haven't had access to my laptop - appologies for not closing this off. Parts and prices as follows: 1J0971349GN Alternator Cable 33.35 ex VAT 1J0937617D Fuse plate (fuse box) 41.35 ex VAT N10424905 Fuse 2.26 ex VAT Total £90.43 inc VAT Also needed a battery ~86 +VAT from VAG Bosch S5 battery £64.95 ex VAT from Euro Car Parts (better spec battery) It was quite a struggle to remove the nut retaining the p-clip, but having done it I reakon it's only an hour job from start to finish. For ease of doing the job, I would reccomend the following: 1. Disconnect the battery terminals. 2. Remove the fuse box (to be replaced), taping the cables together to hold them in order. 3. Remove the battery clamp and battery 4. Remove the battery tray 5. Remove the engine top cover and matching front trim piece 6. Unclip the two ribbed plastic hoses at the right side of the engine. 7. Remove the two bolts at front of engine holding one of the plastic tubes. 8. Bend both tubes to the left, and wedge behind bonnet prop. 9. Unclip the alternator cable from battery, taking note of cable tie / clip positions 10. using a 13mm socket, knuckle joint and extention bar, approach horizontally and unscrew the main (front) alternator cable nut 11. using 8mm socket as before, unscrew rear alternator cable nut, removing cable and p-clip. 12. Replace cable and re-assemble in reverse. Hope this helps someone! Rooster.

Picked up the cable today. Not checked the diameter against the old cable yet (just got home), but noted it had two dates on it - one in 2003, and the other feb 2010. I wonder if the first is the manufacture date (would this mean the cable may be the original (lower) spec), but would the second be some kind of shelf-life - although I can't imagine why this kind of part would have one? Did wonder that if it was bigger that the original (as posters would suggest) that it might be too large for the clip! I bought a long flexible shaft driver today, so hopefully will be able to get the nut back on. Away for the rest of the week but will post the results at the weekend. Can't belive you managed it in the snow!

Thanks, I did play around for ages with my hands blind in the engine bay and managed to get an 8mm socket (after trying a few sizes) and bar on it at one point but wasn't sure if it was right - didn't feel like the right resistance when rotating - I thought perhaps I was still using too big a socket, or it was another plastic cap (like the front one), or a screw, or a spring washer on a post. Perhaps I was on it, and it was just already loose. I can definitely feel the P-clip, so it is probably the same - just have to spend a little more time figuring out how to access it. I have serious reservations about being able to get the new one succesfully in place and tighten up the bolts in situ, but I don;t have much choice - i'm sure it will be fine, albeit i'll loose a bit more skin! I've already removed the air box, battery and tray, and engine covers, so fitting looks ok - just a few cable ties to cut and replace, and some plastic channels to clip it into. If I can work out how to get the I did some searching on Briskoda on the train home, and found out how common my problem was. I did try to search originally, but think I put too many search terms in - I discovered the search works better with fewer (one) term - perhaps an issue for the moderators (?) to address (or I am inept!) Thanks for all the help so far, ExAudiSi, and everyone else!

my mod would have replaced the crimp and top 8" of the damaged cable, but since i don't have a battery anyway I've decided to heed advice and wait - new cable turns up tomorrow. have been working away today, so couldn't do anything. does anyone have experience of removing the alternator cable? with much swearing and loss of skin i was able to remove the frontmost 13mm bolt securing the cable, but it is also attached to the alternator in another place which i cannot easily reach. what type of fastening is the second one, and is it possible to remove it in situ?

the battery was indeed flat. halford (one of the few places open on a sunday) checked it and it was beyond saving. their checker confirm it was flat, and damaged. they wanted£120fo the bosch battery which is £76at euro car parts. they wouldn't price match as ecp don't open on sundays, so i'll get one tomorrow - the alternator cable doesn't turn up until tues anyway. if figure since i can't drive the car to the dealer, and i would be charged for them to collect the car on a trailor (plus labour for fitting) i may as well invest in a trolley jack, some axle stands and ramps, and change the cable on the drive way - don't think i can access the bolts from above. fingers crossed all is well after new fuse box, battery and alternator cable! is there some kind of initialisation procedure once the battery has benn off the car? after i put it back on yesterday i did leave the key in the start poition for aminute as i recall there is some maf recalibration etc. it did beep for a while, which i assume this was.

sorry for spelling/grammer - writing on my phone.

well, i replaced the fuse box and offending fuse today, but could not getthe replacement cable. the dealer had trouble deciding what tgis cable went to, and at one point thought it mightbe the main loom! we settled on it probably being the alternator, and when i got home i took the battery tray and air box out. it does go to what i think is the alternator, so at least it should be a straightforward cable swap. they didn't have one in stock, so i wirebrushed the damaged crimp and reattached. now the car will just begin to turn over, then die - like having a flat battery. the battery is just above 12v - is it possible for the battery to have voltage but insufficient current? i will try to get the batterychecked tomorrow. i also read about the 'majic eye' indicator on the battery, which i'm pretty sure was black, indicaring discharged. is it likely the fault has destroyed my battery? is the cable which caused the melt likely to be damaged internally (the crimp area is still corroded) and thus causing me problems? the garage agreed that splicing some 4awg cable to replace the damaged end section may be a viable running repair until i get the replacement. any thought? thanks again.

Thanks - that make sense. Like to understand the cause of what i'm trying to fix, to avoid it happening again. Will call the local Skoda dealer tomorrow to see if I can get all the parts I need to fix it, otherwise it will be an expensive trailor to the garage I guess! I do have some 4AWG cable and terminals, but no huge fuses - not really sure I want to bodge something like this though! So just to confirm - the first cable from left (black one) is definitely the alternator? Cheers guys.

I'd like to understand why it has blown in such a violent way - presumable something must have caused an overload or fault that made the fusebox melt. If I replace the box and cable, is there not a danger that it will just melt again? I was suprised at how violent it looked - I would assume a fuse is supposed to blow without melting everything around it, or is that normal??

Ok, well you are definitely along the right lines - I check the fuse box on top of th ebattery and the first one on the left (from in front, facing rear) which has a think black cable coming out of it has melted and sagged. There was lots of white dust inside the cover, which has melted at the left side, and the inside is all white. Looking at the thinkness compared to the one next to it, it was probably a 110amp fuse. I can;t see this fuse box in the manual - anyone know what that one is for (i'm guessing the starter), and what my next step should be? Thanks.

I was driving home today in my 2003 Octavia VRs, when the ABS and Traction Control Warning Lights came on. A few seconds later the radio turned on then off a few times, then died. Next the Airbag light came on. I was only a mile from home so continued and parked up on my driveway. I stopped the car, took the key out thenre-inserted it. Turning to the first position, the radio comes on, and the warning lights as per usual. When turning the key to the start position, all the display and dials go dead and the car won't start. I have no idea what the fault could be, and unfortunately I left my multimeter at work today. I hope someboday can please help me! Thanks, Mark.

Not to hand, but I did search a while ago and found lots out there - including a couple of good tutorials. I bought a how-too guide off ebay, but haven't got around to giving it a try yet. Me and my friend still keen to give it a go in the new year, so will probably post details when we give it a go. Let me know how you get on if you try it!

The octavia is very fussy on front speakers - I tried 3 sets before I found some shallow enough to fit! I used Exile speakers (approx £200) which i'm very happy with, but there are cheaper ones which will fit - I think some of the infinity models. A search on 'front speaker recommendation' or similar should find you some disucssions - not sure about the Alpines you mention. If you are prepared to cut the plus of the existing cable from spkr to tweeter that would save you opening up the door panels (or use adaptor cables if you want to re-fit the original bits when you sell the car, but about £5/pr (more from Halfords) and you'd need two pairs - not worth it and more unnessesary connections to fail. If the tweeters don't fit, some come with brakets - I bought an extra pair of the trim panels and sunk the tweeter bracket into these for a neat factory look. I've got a hatchback but a friend i'm seeing tomorrow has the estate - will check the space in the rear panels, as I suspect a small sub would fit if you fibreglassed a small box. I have an autoacoustics custom box (which is awesome) in a similar location in the hatchback to retain boot space, and have been meaning to try and build something for my friends car, and my fiances SLK. If you used a decent sub, such as JL Audio you could get away with something small - obviously you won't have much volume for a box. If you wanted the sub sub deep rumble effect, you could add a pair of bass shakers under the front seats or behind the rears - these are effectively the motor bit of a speaker (coil and big magnet) without the cone, and use whatever you attach them too as the speaker, giving bass you can feel. I've got too pairs brand new gathering dust at home, as I change dmy plans - might use one in the merc. Hope i've been of help.

The octavia is very fussy on front speakers - I tried 3 sets before I found some shallow enough to fit! I used Exile speakers (approx £200) which i'm very happy with, but there are cheaper ones which will fit - I think some of the infinity models. A search on 'front speaker recommendation' or similar should find you some disucssions - not sure about the Alpines you mention. If you are prepared to cut the plus of the existing cable from spkr to tweeter that would save you opening up the door panels (or use adaptor cables if you want to re-fit the original bits when you sell the car, but about £5/pr (more from Halfords) and you'd need two pairs - not worth it and more unnessesary connections to fail. If the tweeters don't fit, some come with brakets - I bought an extra pair of the trim panels and sunk the tweeter bracket into these for a neat factory look. I've got a hatchback but a friend i'm seeing tomorrow has the estate - will check the space in the rear panels, as I suspect a small sub would fit if you fibreglassed a small box. I have an autoacoustics custom box (which is awesome) in a similar location in the hatchback to retain boot space, and have been meaning to try and build something for my friends car, and my fiances SLK. If you used a decent sub, such as JL Audio you could get away with something small - obviously you won't have much volume for a box. If you wanted the sub sub deep rumble effect, you could add a pair of bass shakers under the front seats or behind the rears - these are effectively the motor bit of a speaker (coil and big magnet) without the cone, and use whatever you attach them too as the speaker, giving bass you can feel. I've got too pairs brand new gathering dust at home, as I change dmy plans - might use one in the merc. Hope i've been of help.

Thanks, they look great - love the centre caps

mannyo; I was wondering that myself: whilst the std offset is ET35, it would make sense (to me, at least) that the offset should differ with width - any idea whether ET35 would be within limits for an 8.0" wheel?? Basically i've been offered something but want to check it would be suitable first. Thanks for your comments, all.

RichieVRS: ok, so they don't take that long to clean, I guess i'm lazy, and trying to justify buying some new wheels - have seen a set I really like the look of. KenONeill: The damage is not kurbing, so the wider tyres wouldn't have helped, it's more that the surface has bubbled in a few place. Again, me being picky and trying to justify spending the cash! Did consider the 225's last time I changed tyres, after reading it here, but stuck with the original fitment in the end.

I'm looking at changing the standard wheels on my '53 Octavia vRS for a set of 18" alloys, as the std 17's are starting to get a bit tatty, cost me too much for tyres (fitting the std 205's), and take too long to clean. Anyway, what is the reccomended width an tyre size for this setup. I've assertained that I need a 5x100 PCD at ET35, but can't find any definitive advice on width - it looks as though some people have had rubbing problems with 8.0"? My suspention is unmoddified, but the rear of the car does sit low due to the ICE in the boot, and I often heavily load the car going rock climbing, camping etc. Any advice would be appreciated.

Currently sitting in the 'waiting room'

Count me in - didn't realise the last one had been superceeded. So that looks like 5 to me - what happens next?? 1. JRD1960 2. Trevorb33 3. Michael Balai 4. Jigger72 5. Rooster

You can get a custom box for the Octavia (Chris has already contacted me) See pictures in thread http://briskoda.net/forums/ice-security-insurance/sub/97822/ These currenty retail at £190 from Auto Acoustics (www.autoacoustics.com) Give Paul Godden a call on 01403 823628 or email [email protected] - tell em Mark Everett sent ya. Seems expensive, but definitely worth the money when you consider the amount of time it would take to make something yourself to this standard.

With a gentle right foot I regularly see 40mpg on a long motorway journey (~>100miles). Driving like an OAP, I once achieved 46mpg over a ~200mile journey - a score never to be repeated since. mpg has dropped apreciable since I installed the audio kit....

I used the earth for the rear lights. If you pull the carpet out of the way there is a cap-head nut that can be un-done and the earth eyelet added before screwing the nut back up. Has worked fine for me. Incidently, I never managed to ge tthe scuttle of either - I removed the front clips and bent it up as far as I dared, wedging it with wooden blocks. I lost alot of skin from my forearms, but got the cable through in the end. Check the crossover settings on the amp, and the gain. You want the crossover set so the sub is only getting low frequencies, or you reduce it's efficiency, and risk damage. I would set it around 120Hz or below for starters. Just make sure none of your cables (particularly power) rub on bare metal - it'll cut through them in no time. I've used a combination of heat-shrink sleeving, insulating tape and odd scraps of leather on particularly sharp edges. If you remove the plastic trim you mention in the rear (it's an awkward job to manouver), you can hide all the cables entirely.