Hesitation on acceleration/uneven idle. Need Help.

[occy_man]

Octavia Mk1 1.8 20v (Non Turbo)

A couple of months ago I began having strange intermittent problems where the car began to hesitate under acceleration. Sometimes the car is fine although there is definitely a difference in how it ran before, just seems in general that there is less power to put down. Also intermittently when sitting in neutral if you rev the engine it sounds rough.

After speaking to a mechanic (non skoda) telling me it could be a number of things, i ended up getting a Vag-Com cable from Genden (one of ross-tech's UK suppliers) to run with the shareware VAg-Com 409.1. On looking for fault codes it threw up 00561 - Mixture Adaptation: Adaptation Limit (Add) Exceeded. See here: 00561 - Ross-Tech Wiki

It states these possible solutions: Check Fuel System Pressure, Check Mass Air Flow Sensor (G70), Check Intake Air System and Exhaust System for Leaks (I take it it means exhaust gaskets?), Check Injection Quantity, Check Injector(s).

I couldn't find any obvious leaks in the vacuum system (not sure about exhaust system), checked the air box/filter, changed spark plugs, and disconnected the MAF sensor. Disconnecting the MAF sensor seemed to make the car a little better but i could be imagining it as the car wanted to stall on a couple of occasions (it didn't when the sensor was connected). Does anyone know if there is one or two MAF sensors on the Mk1 Octavia? I'm not sure how to check the injectors but to me why would the car run ok some of the time if i had a blocked injector?

So i'm stumped other than checking the fuel system pressure & injection quantity but unsure how to do this. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

[karlbar2k]

Ive got the 1.8T 4x4 and the idle settled after unplugging the MAF. but only after I had replaced all the crankcase breather pipes and the DV. not sure if they are the same on the non turbo. could be throttle body + MAF need a clean?

[karlbar2k]

It states these possible solutions: Check Fuel System Pressure, Check Mass Air Flow Sensor (G70), Check Intake Air System and Exhaust System for Leaks (I take it it means exhaust gaskets?), Check Injection Quantity, Check Injector(s).

one of the breather hoses on the turbo version connects to the underside of the intake manifold and they are prone to split and crumble so unmetered air in the engine

[v_six]

You may find that simply disconnecting then reconnecting the MAF solves the problem. I had a similar problem, but my Octy began to miss consistently once the engine was warm. I tested the plugs, cables, coil packs and injectors. In the end a local garage removed the MAF and refitted it and the car has been perfect ever since. It is possible that the firring was disturbed during a previous service, however now the car runs like a dream.

[willskoda]

Hi, I had a similar problem with my old Octy vRS, a simple way to remedy the problem on a daily basis I just ran the car on idle for about 2 minutes until the engine had warmed a little and the revs dropped below 10000rpm. Then it ran fine. Obviously this doesn't fix anything but it took away the hesitation.

[FOZ1]

Sounds like the MAF,(they seem to die slowly, not go all at once) mine finally went a couple of weeks ago, same symptoms, eventually the EML came on & the ESP light, thought the car was dying:eek::eek:, read up on here & went for a new MAF, cars been fine ever since:D:thumbup:

[KenONeill]

As Foz1 says, but try disconnecting the battery, leave the car whilst you have a cuppa, reconnect the battery, switch the ignition on, and wait 10s (min) before trying to start it. That might sort issues that need the engine memory parameters resetting.