johnny cabbage head

where did you buy yours from in the end ? AC seem to be the ones with a few left on their books, all pre reg, some other dealers got them up on sale for silly prices still.

Cheers for the information - I am already used to more gear changes since I sold my octavia and got a 1.6crd SE superb estate, -didnt think it would pull you out of bed but - its brilliant, I drive it pretty hard so I dont get any DPF issues and I monitor the ash content on VCDS to ensure no sensor failures causing a build up of ash - but the wifes hyundai i10 HAS ONLY DONE 23K FROM NEW 5 YEARS AGO -SO A PETROL IS ESSENTIAL I am leaning toward the 1.2 tsi as much as I would like the xenon headlamps on the 1.0 , but the spec on the one I have found in 1.2 syle advanced is pretty much the fully loaded option, with KESSY , Automatic Post-Collision Braking System and Tiredness Recognition System . I am deliberating over the Toledo 1.2 vs a Rapid 1.2 SE tech which is in a nicer colour... Just left an offer on the table with one in scotland but he wouldnt drop the other £200 I wanted off the car as Im buying cash , no PX and lets face it in a weeks time the year will click over to 2018 and its a "last years car " plus I think this is the last of the toledos...this one has been on sale for 199 days so I wont get killed in the rush buying it !. it seems like the ugly pup of the litter , but im buying with my head not my heart. I must admit Im close to pulling the pin and going for it , just waiting to see if theres further movement and Im also going for a mooch around the rapid today -though the garage is closed , Im that way visiting my daughter anyway so be rude not to .decisions decisions ! thanks again for your valued input

Wow ! I just rang up about a seat toledo 1.2tsi style advanced, they are a very high spec car - especially at the discounted prices, in comparison with a new rapid. I am amazed how unloved they seem to be by the motoring press and I guess they have persuaded joe public that they are a dull boring car - but the truth is its the same platform and engine as a rapid, but with a slightly different tailgate, (albeit a tad less attractive on the rear end), - but to counter that the interior and all the toys onboard the toledo are pretty stunning. I have left an offer with a garage yesterday and he wanted a bit more than I was prepared to give. I also wanted a white one really but only metallics, - the 1.o engines I feel might be a bit too small for a car that size - although everyone seems to like them after a test drive. Anyone else driven both the 1.2tsi and the 1.0 engined cars ? would value opinions from owners of either car. Cheers ..merry xmas to you all

Thanks very much for that heads up mate I will investigate that line of enquirey.

Thanks for the heads up on that - I also ran a sneaky VCDS on the car, and a quick global scan revealed no faults on engine, so just wondering why it had this "flat spot" in acceleration between 4th and 5th gear - only 90 bhp but so was the other one which was a lot more lively and willing ??

cheers for the heads up -I was experiencing it in 4th gear DURING A TEST DRIVE on 17 plate rapid on a slightly inclined dual carriageway, its as though it would not rev any further , but I was nowhere near red lining it, bit of a mystery, really but put me off the car as the earier rapid I tested in the week -same car exactly 17 plate again pulled away all through the gears , and I was amazed by its sprightly charecteristics for a 1.2 engine.

I had more or less arrived at the same conclusion, but as I have not driven / owned a petrol car for years thought it might be something worth asking about. I have heard that on some cars the engine management system will govern the car down once low fuel in tank but never witnessed it, possibly urban myth/ Bull defacation cheers

I recently drove two 1.2tsi skoda rapid 90 cars both 2107 models "Ex Skoda" AKA ex rentals/ lease cars. one had 13k on the clock G17 plate ex rental or lease. which was very nippy and impressed me , but the price was firm and I looked elsewhere and came across a 11k model which I test drove at another garage , also a G17 plate ex rental This seemed to have a bit of a flat spot on the acceleration, almost like it had reached the end of its power band but seemingly earlier than the previous one I drove. The fuel light was on this particular car, and when I questioned the dead spot on acceleration the workshop guys said probably because its low on fuel - but it was at the top of the red band on the fuel gauge not the very bottom. I cant see how this would affect the car as long as there was sufficient fuel so it should drive OK ? - certainly wasnt spluttering or anything. Can any owners shed any light on this subject ? I would be very grateful for any input, as I suspect theres nothing in the ECU software to govern the revs when low on fuel but will happily stand corrected by someone with a greater knowledge. Thanks in advance

Thanks James, will enquire when I take my car into skoda Garage later ,just out of curiosity.

thanks , thats what I intend to do. If the emissions are improved then in my humble opinion it has to be to the detriment of performance, unless somebody can convince me otherwise Thanks for your replies chaps.

And what does the defeat device actually do in terms of emissions, maybe you are more informed than I am, thanks in advance

Taking my recently aquired superb in to have a spare key coded in at main agents tomorrow, the service dept said between half hour and up to two hours to do it?? Just wondering if they have checked my vehicle details and are intending to carry out the emissions remap at the same time - nothing mentioned but the time frame seems very long for just a spare key being coded in.?? I presume they will have to ask me first if I wanted it done ...which in fact I will decline as imn my opinion the only way to make the emissions lower is by lowering the fuel to air ratio which means a loss of power, this being the 1.6crd greenline 3 ...I dont want it to lose any power for obvious reasons. Anyone else had this thrust upon them at their dealers whilst booking in for something else ? Anyone else had their greenline 3 remapped by agents for emissions ? Thaks in advance

Just to complete the story on the france trip return leg -the car returned 43mpg fully loaded to the roof lining with two adults , and two bikes hanging off the back of the tow ball hitch bike carrier.I wasnt driving for economy I just wanted to get home and drove it hard when possible, I guess 43mpg isnt too bad, thats a fill up calculation based on fuel /mileage not on the fairy story trip computer. I think i will advance timing slightly to see if the power comes in a bit earlier though as I fell its not at its optimum setting.

(Just in case anyone is interested in my findings ) Arruved Back from France last night, car was loaded up to the headlining with camping gear 48kg tent , Fridge, food, two bikes on the back tow hitch. Even just behind the front seats we were loaded up to the head lining- Im talking proper full. two adults in the front and doing between 70 and 90 mph did Dover in 4.5 hrs 320 miles , so average speed was 71mph. However we were on a 50mph speed limit on some roadworks and M6 was shut to had to drive through stoke on trent - once on M40 it was 90 mph all the way. I filled up again in Belgium and did the maths worked out 41.9 mpg with torsion set at -4.4 on VCDS car drove fine though I think the power could do with coming in at slightly lower revs . I intend to re fill tomorrow and see what MPG was on way back - though we were crawling up the M25 yesterday for 65 miles - took us 2 hrs, I then floored it to make up time, going mostly 85 /90mph and 100 mph at times. will see how it works out MPg wise, before making a decision to perhaps advance timing slightly to arounf - 3.0 torsion reading.

just for the record ..I spent the day arsing with different torsion settings and drove over 100 miles testing the cars response..I had it from 0.0 to +20 but that sounded a bit suspect and power was down .I nudged it to -5.4 and it seemed ok but jumped to -5.9 when driving so put it back to -4.4 where I had it before, power seems ok ...still slightly under but I am sick of messing with it and I am driving to france tomorrow so will see how the MPG goes...maybe the sweetest spot is still to be found ..I may take my laptop and tools with me just in case of any dramas - though I dont think the missus will be too impressed sitting outside the tent whilst I mess with the car will report back when I return . Thanks to all :thumbup: one thing I cant alter on VCDS is the weather ...and it doesnt look too wonderful at present :(

I decided to loosen cam bolts and advance the timing slightly to see what /if the car ran and more so to see if the reading for torsion measurement changed proving it wasnt out of range for VCDS to read it (default out of range reading is 0.0 according to a TDI tech on another site). Interestingly I nudged the cam clockwise and retightened the 3 bolts..I started the car which went without hesitation..I plugged in VCDS and found to my suprise that the torsion was now showing -4.4 ! it was still within specified range at that setting so i drove it round the block carefully...no shuddering or hesitation, I put my foot down a bit and the difference in acceleration was immediate, I decided to take it for a longer run and run a log on a few blocs. I got car up to 86c and put it through its paces on the motorway...it went like a rocket. I have read on other forums that people have moved their cam adjustment clockwise and got a minus figure reading in torsion on VCDS -others say they dont ?? I can only report my own findings which was clockwise produced a minus figure. My car running at this set point is still within specified settings which are between -6.0 to +6.0 I read a report from a Vag garage who had a pd engine in and the torsion was set at -5.7 and the owners said it was brilliant on the mpg and ran extremely smoothly and fast ! I am going to check what the engine temp was again on the log as I may just nudge it to about -4.0 but otherwise I am tempted to leave it a few days and see how the fuel consumption is . Just thought I would report my findings in case anyone else finds themselves in a similar situation...with Hindsight I should have taken a torsion reading before I had cambelt replaced..but Im still relativly new to the nuances of VCDS. . Best Regards Jon

I was hoping this garage would be as good as they said they were, first time I got car back it ran ok ..but water pump was leaking so had to go in again ..obviously they were not thrilled at having to do the job again ...wonder if they rushed putting it back together and missed something...my torsion reading is supposedly OK according to a tuning guy I know -though TDI forum opinions differ from car tocar 0.0 torsion is OK but my fuel consuption is only 0.20 l/hr

I looked at the 3 camshaft bolts and they are well over to one side on the advanced angle..I suspect this belt has been fitted without a locking kit as I marked the bolts and slackened them enough to nudge the cam back (retarded it ) the width of the pencil line and the car would not even start so I couldnt take a torsion reading with VCDS . I put it back to where it was on the markings and the torsion is showing 0.0 again. I intend to advance it ever so slightly to see if I can get a different reading from 0.0 torsion as if I cannot then I know the belt has definately been fitted wrongly.as the timing is out of range . By the Way if you hover the cursor over the torsion value block ..it gives you suggested values ..which I wasnt aware of before so at least Ive learned something today... having a brew then back out to advance timing slightly see if torsion value changes. be interested to find a BXE engine running log from VCDS but can find everything but at the moment ...typical

yes thats why I am going to look at position of cam bolts - if they are central or scewed right over which indicates not using locking tools...I am starting to wonder about this garage after finding a boost hoes incorrectly fitted after the belt was fitted first time ...had to take it back because water pump was leaking so they had it for another day and a half...they were not too happy because they had to do the job again ...I have also just bought some engine mount stretch bolts to replace them as they never mentioned that ?? they reckon they "do loads of octavias"...if the weather had not been so horrendous I would have done the damn job myself..but the absence of a garage meant working on the drive in huge downpours ..so I took it to the garage......hmmm

thanks for input guys...the thing is It is showing o.o torsion so he could argue that its "bang on" from that reading , but when the temp is up to 86c I have a block 15 reading of 0.20 lts /hr which from looking from other VCDS forums should be 0.40l/hr. the multi function display was showing low mpg on motorway last night and its definateley not quite there (only a ball park figure but at least an indicator of mpg) .I understand that I should take it back to the garage...But before I do that I will inspect the position of the camshaft 13 mm bolts to see if they are centralized or scewed right over ...(which indicates a "mark and pray" method of changing cambelt) - if this is the case I will take it back to the garage and ask some pointed questions. I have noted that many of the torsion settings vary hugely between -3.0 to +3.0 as its a highly changeable tolerance from one car to another...if the bolts are central then it should be OK to move the cam slightly...literally 0.5 of a degree and the results on performance can be very significant indeed according to a very long and interesting TDI pd thread I found from guys who are all using VCDS and many of them VAG mechanics. To the casual observer ..the car drives fine...but I know the car as its owner for the last 4 yrs and its performance has dropped a fair way since this job has been done. Has anyone else set up their car timing on a 1.9 pd 8v tdi using VCDS ..be interested to hear any accounts , according to TDI forum even taking your torsion reading before changing belt with VCDS AND using proper lock out tools can produce variability of -2.0 to + 2.0 on the the torsion after this procedure has been carried out ... so its quite an emotive subject ...some set cam belts slightly advanced to allow for retarding as belt stretches slightly. I understand that interferance can take place if the setting is too far resulting in engine damage... but if its showing 0.0 torsion and the bolts are central on cam then I should be ok to tweak it + 0.5 the manufacturers put that marked window in the cam pulley for that very reason from what I understand. I am on a steep steep learning curve with the hidden mysteries of cambelt timing ..any pearls of wisdom from our esteemed techies would be welcome :thumbup:

thanks for your replies guys...Just got back from liverpool and gave it a good run on the motorway, that revealed that its kind of running out of guts too early, just managed to get to 100mph with foot flat to the floor and normally it would still be pulling away and gathering speed before even touching the floor..its also drinking the diesel...just trying to suss out whether it needs advancing slightly -or retarding, it definately need fine tuning thats for sure, will scour the net and see what I can find about timing 1.9 8v pd tdi BXE engines, I recall seeing somewhere that BXE engines favour 0.05 either plus or minus to get better smoother power and economy. It starts without any hesitation but Its obviously using too much fuel and at the same time underpowered. looks like Im going to have to slacken off the 3 bolts on cam pulley and nudge it one way or the other and see what difference it makes ...I have not got any alignment tools but I should be able to adjust it as its only the cam I am altering slightly if I understand correctly ?

just to add Block 4 reading 0.0 torsion value at idle when running at 82c...also fule consuption block 15 showing 0.40 l/hr which seems right ???

Hi ,Just had my 1.9 pd BXE Octavia cambelt water pump idler tensioner, replaced, got it back and it wasnt pulling right -opened bonnet and found boost pipe popped out incorrectly fitted, car seemed ok , however found water pump leak and took car back, to the indy who did job. On getting the car back It feels like its taking just that bit longer to accelerate, and get up to speed ,also top end speed seems slower. There is no smoke and it starts fine . I checked on my VCDS and torsion value in block 4 shows 0.0 . I wonder whether the ECU needs to "re learn" my style of driving ..its just not quite right and Im off to france fully loaded next week, so in a quandry as to whether to leave it alone and and see if engine responds better after a few hundred miles ? I have heard that the timing if out of range will show 0.0 on VCDS ?? but surely it would be showing poor starting and lumpy idling? I think the way to explain it would be that it sounds a bit raspy and runs out of steam slightly before it should do at the top end of the revs...going to re check the boost pipes today ..if it stops raining long enough...and also take my grand daughter back to liverpool from N wales so will be able to see how it performs on the motorway, MPG etc. any clues or advice would be gratefully recieved. Thanks in advance

Ha hA , APPRECIATE YOUR HONESTY Would you happily fit their cambelt kit on your skoda ? I have read that they supply VAG with the cambelt drive components ..can you confirm this ? thanks for your replies.

Thank you for your swift response, I just wanted to ensure that the whole package was of OEM spec as some kits have a decent belt but the tensioners are made of candle wax , and its invariable a failure of other components that the belt actually drives that causes most catastrophic events .Much obliged :thumbup: I know INA make the tensioners for VAG it was the actual belt I wasnt sure about Cheers