Hi,

I wonder if anyone can shed any light on this. I recently bought an Octavia 2.0 TDI and after driving it for a few days noticed that there was a slight wobble from the engine at idle. You can feel it when you're in the driver's seat, it's as though the car is being buffeted by a light wind. It only happens once the car has warmed up. I've been to my local garage and the mechanic seems to think it's a faulty injector - which means expensive. Does anybody know whether a faulty injector would cause this problem?

Thanks in advance,

Alex

If the engine is mis-firing slightly (Due to dogy injector) then I would think the engine would be out of balance slightly and cause a bit of a wobble. Dont really see why it would only do it when warm though?

Unless, when you start it the misfiring cylinder is firing better because the coldstart is on?

Thanks for the reply. I agree it's a bit of a strange fault and the symptoms are subtle at the moment. I just wondered whether it was a common/known problem on this model. I dont want to go on a wild goose chase.

Both of my 2.0TDI Octavias have had a little wobble on idle, its like someone shifting around in the back seat. Does the car pull nicely through the gears?

The car is pulling very well through all the gears and is returning good fuel economy. I never experienced anything like it in my 1.9 TDI Fabia which is why I found it concerning. I'm happy to live with a wobble as long as it doesn't lead to further damage.

Its easy to check with diagnostics if you have a cylinder balance issue.

Failing a faulty injector it could be a flywheel issue.

Thanks for all the replies. The car's going into the garage next week so I'll update then if the problem is solved.

if its a problem you'd have to sort out of your own pocked (i.e. the car is no longer under warranty) personally id wait to see if the symptoms get worse before throwing money at it

Just had the car back from the garage, it went in for its service, and the guy said there's nothing wrong with it woo hoo. Apparently a slight wobble (this never happened in my Fabia diesel) is perfectly normal. He also ran a diagnostic on it and that showed nothing. The garage I used is Volks-tek Volks-Tek. Independent VAG Servicing and Repairs. Dronfield, Derbyshire. S18 2XR, these guys are VW/Audi/Skoda specialists (all ex gilders mechanics) and are priced very reasonably. So, if you live in and around Sheffield or Chesterfield and are looking for an honest, reliable garage Volks-tek comes highly recommended from me. The moral of the story is - always get a second opinion.

Thanks Allou

I felt like I was going wobbly since no one else could feel it on my 2006 Octavia 2.0 tdi. It is reasuring that it is likely to be nothing serious. I have only had mine for three months and it has been in the garage twice over the past week; initially to have the variable geometry turbo changed due to sticky vanes (kept going in limp mode and engine fault warning came on), and have just had it back from the garage again after clutch and dual mass fly wheel needed replacing since it was scraping on start off, exessive play in fly wheel, and v.difficult to get into 1st and reverse. So, after £2000 out of pocket I was happy to hear some good news and that "the wobble" is hopefully not due to another alleged poor mechanical design. In the process, I have also realised that the dealers 6 month mechanical breakdown warranty does not cover these problems due to carbon build up and "wear and tear", and the dealer cannot be claimed against because these problems had not started to become manifest for at least 1 month after purchase, and they can prove that they have developed after purchase, as may be the case with normal usage, and the relatively high mileage (92K miles) was reflected in the purchase price. Oh well, at least I get "the wobble" as a freebee, at least until the injectors pack up just when I'm about to go on holiday.

Thanks Allou

I felt like I was going wobbly since no one else could feel it on my 2006 Octavia 2.0 tdi. It is reasuring that it is likely to be nothing serious. I have only had mine for three months and it has been in the garage twice over the past week; initially to have the variable geometry turbo changed due to sticky vanes (kept going in limp mode and engine fault warning came on), and have just had it back from the garage again after clutch and dual mass fly wheel needed replacing since it was scraping on start off, exessive play in fly wheel, and v.difficult to get into 1st and reverse. So, after £2000 out of pocket I was happy to hear some good news and that "the wobble" is hopefully not due to another alleged poor mechanical design. In the process, I have also realised that the dealers 6 month mechanical breakdown warranty does not cover these problems due to carbon build up and "wear and tear", and the dealer cannot be claimed against because these problems had not started to become manifest for at least 1 month after purchase, and they can prove that they have developed after purchase, as may be the case with normal usage, and the relatively high mileage (92K miles) was reflected in the purchase price. Oh well, at least I get "the wobble" as a freebee, at least until the injectors pack up just when I'm about to go on holiday.

I would go to the CAB about that, the garage gave you a 6 month warranty so they have to honor it by law

There’s every chance that I was being fobbed off by the stealers, but their explanation for very similar symptoms was that the lean burn management on the 2.0 TDI is set for extreme efficiency, to the point that when you come to idle after a steady run, that the engine gets too weak a fuel mix.

It seems to run true in practice, as the tick over is fine in stop – go situations, but is lumpy as you come off the motorway etc.

I had a fear that it was a DMF issue, but its run like this for three yeas now.

My 2010 Octavia VRS is in the garage for this exact same fault. Have been told that a new DMF is needed and that the cluctch is slipping. Thankfully the DMF is covered by the manufacturers warranty. Have been informed that the clutch is not covered by the warranty!

Question for those that are more technically gifted that me (includes most 5 year old's) Does the clutch have to be replaced at the same time as the DMF? I only ask as some pictures (plus text) on here have mentioned uprated clutches going in at the same time as Flywheels.

Many thanks all

There’s every chance that I was being fobbed off by the stealers, but their explanation for very similar symptoms was that the lean burn management on the 2.0 TDI is set for extreme efficiency, to the point that when you come to idle after a steady run, that the engine gets too weak a fuel mix.

Utter tosh.

I have the same issue with my 2005 2.0 TDI PD. Again I have been told it is normal by my mechanic who father also has same car. Ive done 100K in the car, and the engine is great, can get 60 mpg on longer runs at national spped limits. Im now considering throwing a few quid at the car on cleaning up the body work and having the A/C fixed

It does seem to be a characteristic of the 2.0 140 BKD engine in particular that it can have a slightly lumpy idle. I've owned mine since 20k and its always done this to some extent, particularly in hot weather.

When this engine first began to be fitted in the Audi A3, VAG tried all sorts to smooth the idle out, new DMF, new injectors, new injector loom, under warranty on many, and it made not the slightest bit of difference! The 'official' bodge seems to be to tweak the idle speed slightly up or down using VAS or VCDS to find a sweet spot where it's smooth.

Its always worth checking the torsional value with VCDS Block 4 position 4, especially if its either in need of a cambelt or has just had one. Generally means the cambelt timing is out a touch. Should be -1 or there abouts. My mates Leon TDi was at -5 after a cambelt swap and was wobbling all over the place. I adjusted the timing on the vernier pulley bolts and got it to -1 and its now as stable as ive ever seen one.

Its always worth checking the torsional value with VCDS Block 4 position 4, especially if its either in need of a cambelt or has just had one. Generally means the cambelt timing is out a touch. Should be -1 or there abouts. My mates Leon TDi was at -5 after a cambelt swap and was wobbling all over the place. I adjusted the timing on the vernier pulley bolts and got it to -1 and its now as stable as ive ever seen one.

I'll believe this.

After I had the 30,000km service, my engine was rocking like no tomorrow - massive swinging in the engine bay, felt and looked like when you rev it and let it go quickly just to shake the engine!!

Only happened on the odd occasion, and specifically when I was in the middle of Sydney (100k's from home, 120k's from my dealership :() ... After the 45,000km service it had stopped. I thought it might have been something to do with the belts, but I wasn't sure. Either way I'll let them know to scruitinise the service guys a little harder. :p

An independant service specialist (BMW, VAG, Merc) in my area said it could possibly be the engine mount - not enough of it to hold the engine steady? Fair enough I guess, but I was hardly going to pay the AU$200+ for an replacement (read: stiffer ) engine mount and installation, so I got a torque arm mount insert put it in and haven't looked back since!

Now at 93,000km and nothing has been had since the 45k service.