Ok, so other than checking the oil and topping up my washer bottle. What do I need to look at on a regular basis to keep Lissy ticking nicely? Should I be poking at anything to get the best out of her? Not really very clued up at all on cars full stop but I figured after running my last couple into the ground - my cars get a lot of abuse up and down motorways on a regular basis - its about time I looked after one properly.

Any tips would be really gratefully recieved for complete clueless owner!

- Tyre pressures and tread are the most important along with checking the brakes.

- Check that the coolant is at the right level, but never do this when the engine is hot.

Gearbox oil change at 50k ish even though skoda say not needed.

Is it petrol or derv as there will be other things too.

"Lissy"

Thanks. Shes a 1.4 petrol. would i find all this in Haynes manual? appologies for a really basic question, have never ever looked after a car before i just drive them till they die. never even washed the astra I had!

lol yea Felicity the Fabia Lissy for short. I am totaly unoriginal at naming cars. My last one was Meggs no prizes for guessing she was a megane.

You will find all of this in your users manual

There are sections about daily and weekly checks.

Haynes will also have the before each journey and weekly checks section in it too.

I personally change spark plugs every year, but that was on older engines and I don't know how much the 1.4 cokes them up.

Make sure you use the correct oil to top `her` up and this will be in the manual.

If your 1.4 has a timing chain it's ok.

If it has a timing belt (or cambelt) make sure this is changed when it should be or before. That will be 4 years or a set mileage (probably 60k).

I'd also generally keep it clean and wash it then give it a polish with something like Autoglym Super Resin polish and a layer on top of either hard wax like colli 476s or a sealant such as autoglym EGP. Much more on that in the styling and car care section though

Further on the spark plugs thing, my ZX had a "schedule" that only had plugs replaced every several years, but it definitely did run smoother and pull better at very low revs with new plugs every year.

thanks guys - am gonna invest in a haynes manual I think. Mite tempt me into messing with things i shouldnt though.

As for cam belts - i had one go on me last december. Wont be forgetting to check that again!

Some of the 1.4's have a timing chain so if you speak to skoda UK or a dealer they should be able to use your VIN to tell you this with 100% certainty