seaweasel

Our Octavia was a nearly new one so didn't get to spec a spare - came with the compressor and gunk. Interesting you mention the compressor from your Ford being good though - I asked our sales guy if it could be used for general inflation and he told me it would only work with the gunk. Chap was pretty good overall so didn't have any reason to doubt him and didn't think about it again until now. Is the Skoda one really only single-purpose? Will maybe see about getting a steel spare for the Octavia though. Will need to have a look at the one in my Fabia - it's there but can't remember what state it's in!

Thanks for the suggestions. I did wonder before about a code I found before, but some of the other posts I saw recently looked like the pedal unit fixed the same symptoms I have and thought it was cheaper/easier to try that first. Just checked codes again, here it is: P0444 Evaporative Emission Control System Purge Control Valve Circuit Would that be a possible cause? Will get some help checking the intake stuff above and have a look at the pedal. I had noticed there's a few fairly cheap on eBay and I've been meaning to get to my local scrapyard for some trim I need, so that's why I was wondering about how specific the part was.

I remember the Fabia coming out and that it used the new Polo platform before the new Polo did (first couple of cars I had were old Polo Mk2s), then read reviews of the vRS and thought it was super cool - never had the money for something new at the time though. Had a succession of Fords and various lemons, then we decided to go for something newer recently and found ourselves an Octavia Combi which has been great. For ages were were running just the one car but needed a second last year and thought I'd finally get myself a Fabia - not quite a vRS but picked up a 2.0 MPI pretty cheap and love it.

Think my Fabia 2.0 MPI needs a new throttle pedal - have been doing some searching on here and seems fairly common (idle is a bit unsettled and keeps revving when changing gear). Quick question about parts though - are all the Mk1 throttle pedals interchangeable or do I need a specific one for petrol models/2.0 in particular? Cheers.

If you're lookng for new wifi hardware - have a look at Unifi's Ubiquiti range. It's aimed more at business users but is cheap for what it is and I've had good results with even the standard model (there's long range and dual band versions too, LR worked well with old building with thick walls). As HotRod says 2.4GHz will travel through walls better, though the flipside is that there might be less interference with 5Ghz, so dual band can be useful (e.g. if there's lots of other wifi networks nearby, or even things like cordless phones and your microwave), especially if you're moving lots of data around like streaming video.

Synology stuff is very good - have set it up for clients and works well, good interface and very flexible. Bit more expensive than the Zyxel range though you get what you pay for. I have a Zyxel nsa 221 at home - cheap and has been generally fine, transfers aren't quick as I'd like but usable, though drive specs don't help (WD Green). As pixor says, would recommend something like the recent WD Red range as it's designed for high availability and has a longer warranty.

Hmm, phoned my local dealer this week for an aircon quote and their service guy told me they sub-contract the service out - £95! Local garage I tried do it for £69 seemingly, haven't used them before though.

Ah, I see. Thanks colzie64.

Doh, Not a lawyer, that acronym should read!

AFAIK that's true for GB but they didn't bring the same requirement in for NI (yet). Here you also have to be SORNed otherwise you're liable for tax, but can do without insurance if it's not being used on the road (IAMAL etc).

Another sensor hunt query - any ideas for the 2.0 MPI? The radiator hoses aren't as obvious as pictured in the main guide (a few smaller hoses/pipes). I did find this, which look like it might be a temp sensor but it seems to have 3 pins instead of 2, so wasn't sure if it's the wrong one, or if the sensor on this engine uses a different part. Cheers.

Ha! Very good.

Just got a MKI 2.0 petrol, don't think it'll be having an Porsches! Quicker than my old Passat though, more fun and I can lock it!

Good to know about the hitting the pillar, will try some cheap eBay flats first and see how they are. Cheers.

The eagle eyed would have noticed that I registered a while back when we got our Octavia and haven't been around much until now. Apart from a surprise clutch replacement after a few weeks and a little suspension work under warranty during first service, it's been delightfully reliable so haven't had many questions! Well my old Passat was being a nuisance so I ditched it and found myself a 2003 Fabia Elegance 2.0 MPI (I was swithering between it and a 1.4 MPI or 1.2 HTP but glad I got the 2.0). Looks pretty good for the age I think, will stick a photo up once I get it washed/waxed. There are a few niggles, none of which make it undriveable and a few of them I'm happy enough I know I can sort or have found some good guides on here for. Others will probably need a pro or I'll at least need a hand with. Maybe I could get a bit of help with these problems and fault codes? Temp gauge has failed suddenly, had a look at fault codes and found this: P0116 Engine Coolant Temperature Circuit Range/Performance Problem (Pending) From what I've read in the thread in Technical Guides, assume it's the coolant temp sensor so will see about replacing that and maybe the thermostat. I know the 2.0 8V isn't a common engine though, is the sensor/thermostat located somewhere obvious? Any coolant draining needed? Fuel gauge/range doesn't work, found this fault code related to fuel/evaporative control system: P0445 Evaporative Emission Control System Purge Control Valve Circuit Shorted Jammed/bad solenoid in the valve? Bit beyond my ken this, but can get a mechanic in the family to help if that's the cause (or stick it in to the auto spark if I have to), but where is this located roughly and how is it to replace? Also idle can be a little bouncy (sits around 900 but moves a bit more than I'd expect) and have had a couple of difficult starts from warm. Don't know if that's related to the above or not. Other bits and pieces like new aerial (another great guide), swapping in my head unit etc I'm confident enough doing. Great to drive though, good fun!

If you haven't done it before, it's not a technically difficult repair, but they can be fiddly. If it's had a fall and the rear case is dented (corners especially), then you'll need to 'panel beat' it back into shape a little. With it being so thin and held together with glue essentially, the tolerances are quite small for getting the new display to fit well if there's been impact damage. You may well know of it but if not, there are very good repair guides at iFixit.com. Also, make sure the flex cable for the display is tucked in properly before you stick it back together (and test before sticking!). I tend to leave them for a good few hours (or overnight) to make sure the adhesive sticks well, wrap it in a jaycloth or something similar and either leave something relatively weighty on it, or some little plastic clamps from the pound shop can work well. Good luck!

This may be a silly question, but what about the £5 Tesco flat blades, any good?

I got the 3M kit for my Passat headlights and was quite pleased with the results. Didn't get round to MOTing with the one I'd polished, but certainly looked better and think I noticed a bit of a difference on the road too. I had tried it first with a spare headlight I bought off a forum for a few quid and used a cordless drill with the assembly out the car. Think this turned out better than the one already installed with a corded drill. Still have a little of the polish left and some spare discs so think I'll give it a go on my new Fabia as it's looking a bit frosty. Photo of polished passat headlight:

Scrub that, will get the 1DIN surround from local dealer and have ordered the other bits. Have some miscellaneous bits of trim to find at a breakers so will pick up an OEM tray at some point. Cheers.

I know the whole radio conversion topic seems to have come up a million times on here, and from what I've read I think I can get it done. The 2003 Fabia I'm hopefully picking up tomorrow though has a missing coin tray (just the depths of rear of dash at the back), so I was wondering if I could kill two birds with one stone. There seem to be two types of 2003 kits about on eBay - one single DIN for the oversized 1DIN OEM units and double DIN kits with a coin tray built in. Would this kit do my Fabia that currently has a plus-size 1DIN Skoda radio/cassette, or would I need the standard £3 1DIN Skoda one, plus source a replacement tray? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Skoda-Fabia-Double-Din-CD-Stereo-Radio-Fitting-Kit-Wiring-ISO-Aerial-2003-2006-/151045292583?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item232b004227 Hope that makes sense. Thanks for any advice.

Also, remembered my satnav will think it's connected to a PC when used with a plain USB cable, could maybe use something like this with a mini to usbA adapter though? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Garmin-nuvi-200w-205w-250w-255w-hardwire-car-charger-/190444415932?pt=US_GPS_Chargers_Batteries&hash=item2c575f2bbc Not hundred percent sure the adapter would be an issue, but I think a resistor in the power supply lets the unit know that it's not a PC, so could work. Or I could get a new smarter satnav, but old Nuvi works fine and cables are pretty cheap.

Great idea, I noticed that the lighter socket on the Fabia is pretty far away so was wondering about satnav power. Would something like this China-goodness do the job spliced in from the lighter cable in the centre console and shoehorned in to a blank switch? http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DC-12V-to-5V-3A-15W-Step-down-Converter-Regulator-to-2-Female-USB-Output-for-Car-/321125580536?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Test_Measurement_Equipment_ET&hash=item4ac4937ef8 http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DC-12V-to-5V-3A-15W-Step-down-Converter-Regulator-female-Panel-mount-USB-for-car-/271266538422?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Test_Measurement_Equipment_ET&hash=item3f28bee3b6

Cheers. Got some Mer hybrid wax and alloy stuff a while back but this is such a good deal I thought I'd pick one up - reserved. I should really wax the cars more so should need it eventually anyway! Also, an extra 50p or so through TopCashback!

Best educational discounts are higher/university, further/college and schools in descending order, as mentioned AppleCare especially is heavily discounted. Best way in fact is to order through your university as you essentially get free AppleCare which also covers the battery on notebooks (this doesn't include phone support however). If buying from an Apple Store with higher education discount AppleCare is extremely cheap but does include support (some exclusions on battery though). And if you're wondering, although AppleCare is basically an externded warranty, it's something I would reccommend - service from Apple is generally very good and it can come in very handy if something big fails like a logic board. Also, some Apple machines are becoming more spacialised to repair, so even something like a battery or SSD can be a hassle to do a DIY replacement on MB Air or Retina MBP. Apple UK are now also doing AppleCare+ for iPhones/iPads where it also covers a few instances of accidental damage (kind of a hybrid warranty insurance policy).

Just need to fit the bugger now!