Hi,

Just got a bit of a query regarding the exhaust on my mk1 Octavia vRS, i took the car in for its MOT and it got an automatic fail on the MOT test due to a supporting bracket on the exhaust being broken (mid section of exhaust). The main dealer quoted me the price of £120 for a replacement mid section. When i enquired if the bracket could be welded the service department guy told me that it could but would need to be MIG (sp) welded. Iv had a browse and noticed this seems to be a common problem, however my question is:

To pass the MOT, does the exhaust (standard factory fitted stainless) need to be Stainless steel welded or is regular MIG welded sufficient?

Thanks in advance for your help guys.

if the support brackets come off, then it might be wise to replace it anyway. The corrosion needed to cause the bracket to detach could mean a hole in the box is not to far in the future. Its porberbly worth replacing it now, rather than pay for the welding and also pay later for the centre section.

Beaten to it.

To pass the MOT, does the exhaust (standard factory fitted stainless) need to be Stainless steel welded or is regular MIG welded sufficient?

The standard exhaust it a stainless system?:confused:

Would not have thought that the center section support bracket would be a MOT fail, I mean it not like the exhaust will fall off without it in place.

Why not secure the bracket back on with a jubilee clip,I did this when mine went, and it is always an excuse ,if you need one, to buy a nice stainless system.

I had mine welded at kwik fit for £15. Mine passed the MOT like it also.

I'm selling this, has the centre section IIRC:

Skoda Octavia MK1 vRS exhaust system on eBay, also Exhaust Components, Performance Tuning Parts, Car Tuning Styling, Cars, Parts Vehicles (end time 31-May-08 15:19:55 BST)

Where are you located ?

Welcome to the forum.

Get it welded for now and passed mot. They are nice thick exhausts and the holding brackets do tend to fail early. who knows you may get another year or so out of it, if not get a nice shiny stainless one.

mine broke a bit back and was p1ssin me off a bit so found a backstreet place and he welded it for me £5

was covered by warenty but couldnt wait for them to make up there minds, ive now got a longlife custom one on.

still shouldnt fail MOT i wouldnt of thought

That broke on my last vRS, I got it welded and all was well

My bracket had failed when I bought the car two years ago. I got it welded back on and the whole system is still fine...

The standard exhaust it a stainless system?:confused:

Standard exhaust is mild steel with a stainless shiny bit on the end

had the same problem on a 54 VRS, welding done. It is a bracket problem, not corrosion, at least for me. Exhaust system was not affected, just that the way they designed the clips is pants.

I passed the MOT with the broken bracket. There is no reason to fail you for that bracket, since the exhaust has literally nowhere to go. The MOT place are either stupid, or want to rip you off for some cash.

There is nothing wrong with MIG welding it while it's on the car, which takes about 15mins. Just make sure you connect one of those things across the battery terminals to prevent blowing everything.

Don't buy the centre pipe from Skoda, it's a rip off. Get it welded for a few quid (or for free if you know a man), then get a decent aftermarket system in a year or two.

thanks for all the help guys!

I phoned a local garage and going to pop down after work thursday and the guy is gonna weld the bracket for me. The MOT was done at main Skoda dealer and it was their service guy who advised it would be cheaper to get it welded so that should hopefully suffice for the time being.

The only other fault on the car was a cracked roll bar collar, which surprisingly didnt fail on the MOT, however i have requested it to be replaced under warranty when i take the car back for retest on saturday.

As Kenny Rsell said, the centre bracket can be replaced with a Jubilee clip or 2. Mine's been like that since before I bought it, so has been through 3 MOTs like that.

Also the front bracket on mine needed welded at service last October, and passed an MOT no problems in April. The car was up a lift last month, and there's no sign of cracking or tearing around the welds.

You can mig weld (mild steel) the stainless exhaust, i found that dog-bone mounting was soft which caused engine to move a bit more so broke bracket off. welded back on 3 yrs ago and been fine since.

Standard exhaust is mild steel with a stainless shiny bit on the end

Thanks for clearing that up Rob.