King John

My Octavia has obviously had a life changing experience! It has always been a little nervous, especially in damp weather but now it is constantly firing the door locking mechanism. Sometime it is so quick I cannot unlock the door quickly enough to open the door. Is there any cure other than CBT?

Thanks for the replies. Checked the invoice and they put G060762A2 in the Fabia. Will ask them to check the FOS wheel bearing.

That is on my list of things to do (along with the brakes), never been done as far as I know, but if it is a major bearing on the way out will it be economic? The only other info is that there is a slight flutter on the off side wheel when moving slightly to the left (e.g. following the curve of the road) when driving at speed. Had it done for the wife's Fabia today. Hope they put G70726A2 in.

Over the last couple of months my car has developed transmission whine. It is happening in all gears and is loudest when being held at a constant speed. From my limited description can anyone suggest what the problem may be and is it expensive. The car is a 1998 Tdi estate with 140,000 miles just clocked up.

Part No 1U0 953 235 E received, fitted and all hunky dory. I also had the clutch pedal replaced recently. The new pedal wobbled on the pivot but apparently there are adjustable spacers available which have cured the problem.

Cleaned up the terminals & no improvement, so I am replacing it with an upgraded 'E'. The generic 'B' seem to be available from just over £10, but not the E! £32 on line or from TPS but £32 + VAT from a dealer. Waiting for it in the post.

Considering the price of the unit might it just be that the terminals need cleaning up? I had a similar problem with a Fabia injector which turned out to be a poor connection inside the cam cover.

If I use the emergency or indicator lights continuously, after a while, they will just glow yellow. Then they take some time to 'recover', after which they work again. Any advice on what is going on/ cures greatly appreciated as I'm going abroad shortly. Thank you in advance

Looking at the location of the hinges on the body the only way I could get access to them would be by removing the door as the front edge of the open door still covers the bolt. Have I missed something?

Have you any idea what heads these bolts use? I don't have anything like them in my kit. What happened to good old hex heads?

Thanks Supercool. Am I loosening the door bolts or the body bolts?

If your engine is not using oil I would stick to the correct VAG spec synthetic oil. I do 6-8,000 miles per year and stretch my oil changes to 1 1/2 yearly intervals when I replace all the filters (except the pollen filter which I cannot get at!). I'm not particular towards any specific brand so long as it meets the VAG spec. This is important because of the high surface pressures caused by the fuel injectors which some oils cannot cope with.

The lower front edge of my door has started fouling the body. Presumably the door has dropped a little as it lifts slightly when the door is closed. How can I adjust the door so that it no longer rubs against the front panel when I open it?

Been having problems with the 1.9 tdi recently. When starting it is lumpy and very juddery on low powered accelloration, plus it is drinking diesel 8-9 mpg, until it warms up and the problem goes away. Took the car for a MoT (passed, no problems) and the diagnostics came up with an intermittant fault on injector 3. At a quoted price of just under £1,000 for one injector and wiring loom replacement, is there a more economic route? Is it safe for a novice to take the cam cover off and replace the loom or should I bite the bullet? Or does it mean all the injectors are on the edge? The car has done 144,000 miles. On a practical note will the car just cut out if the fault becomes 'permanant'?

Great video. Saved me a fortune! As JoshH said it is quite possible to do the adjustment simply by removing the air intake pipe. The only problem I had was that the three claws had seized onto the threads. Before rechecking the video I thought it might be an earlier version that needed screwing up, rather than just reclamping. Bit of penetrating oil and a small screwdriver to gently ease the claws and the job was done.

Thank you C3po. At £23 for a new sump I thought it would be easier to replace than repair. Is yours the base or higher powered model? Regards, Peter

A clever monkey used an air gun to tighten the drain screw on my wife's Fabia. A replacement is as cheap as getting it repaired. The question is which sump does she have? Her car is a 2001 Fabia Elegance Estate with an ATD Tdi engine. Does it have an oil level sensor? The car is away at the moment and I would like to fit it once she returns. Cheers!

If you are looking for economy go for the low powered version. I have a 75Kw Octavia 1.9 Tdi and get over 60 mpg whereas my wife has a 100 Kw Tdi Fabia and only gets mid 50's from hers. Both have about 130k. on them without turbo problems, but we have kept religiously to VW 505 or 507 grade oil. Electrics, especially central locking can be a problem.

My lamps are developing cataracts and need replacing. OE lamps have been priced at £130 while they are only £77 on flea bay. Has anyone experience of buying them on the internet and in particular the units sold by Energised Customs of Wolverhampton? Is there any advantage from buying original over after market equipment? Thanks.

Just to make you jealous, I expect 60 mpg plus with a 75kw 1.9 Tdi estate, but then my driving style is tailored towards fuel economy rather than tyre erosion.

We've had our Fabia serviced and repaired there on several occasions without any problems. They have even lent me tools to make running repairs to my motorcycle! They have always been civil to me. I think they have just been sold and are now trading as Northway Skoda (they are also Honda dealers)

The old black switch has gone open circuit. I've tried two of the replacement 'green' switches (GSF & VW) and neither work. They are the four tab type. Can anyone shed any light on this? Do they work on the Fabia? I'm told these are the replacement for the old black switch In addition the plunger doesn't reach the pedal. Got a very frustrated mechanic! Advice gratefully received

Can't comment on the quality of the product but Mehr is an Autolamps Ltd product. They specialise in auto lamps, filters, hose clips and wiper blades

Took the near side front wheel off my Octavia to see the 'inner face (of the disc i.e. the one I couldn't see) heavily corroded, ridged, grooved and worn' and the disc that was 'worn, pitted or scored'. I found an almost completely flat, shiny surface. Rather like the front brake that is juddering severely and is considered dangerous but is not noticeable when braking. On the brighter side I also cleaned out the inner wheel arch and got a hand full of mulch. Then I took our visiting Yorkie up to Wimbledon Common for a walk

Just checked it over. The suspension moved 7mm vertical. No idea about lateral. The disc is smooth, shiny with a minimum of scoring and 21.3 mm thick whereas the tester says the inner face is heavily corroded. ridged, grooved and worn but not seriously weakened. Pressed the caliper in, difficult to say whether it was sticking because of the back pressure, but it pushed in smoothly once I was able to get enough purchase, there was nothing to suggest that it didn't work freely. So I think it is a case of giving the car to an honest tester. Good by Autocare Europe of New Malden and your supposedly cheap MoT tests..