hi all my girlfriend has just bought a fabia classic 1.4 mpi 8v 2002 she paid £1750 with 80,00 on clock full skoda service history

every seems fine plenty ov room for the baby just ive noticed a drop or 2 of oil under the car is oil leaks comon faults on skoda.And also i have read

on many forums that these cars are greedy for petrol any info on this model would most helpfull as this is our first skoda cheers people

Edited 28 March, 201016 yr by cheese2010

Just from reading various threads on here myself, the MPI's are a little thirsty on fuel. There is a thread somewhere about the engine as If I remember correctly it was a Skoda design but I think they're pretty robust.

As for oil leaks, that certainly isn't a common problem flagged up on these forums. Can't aid with solving it though I'm afraid!

I am assuming it is engine oil. Try get it up some ramps/jacked up and see if you can determine the source of the leak (bearing in mind oil may travel around when the car is in motion - you may need to clean up the oil/hose the engine down a little). Check... sump plug (leak there easily sorted, torque wrench and torque it up to correct figure). Oil filter (get your hand underneath it at the point it screws onto the engine and run your hand across the end to see if there is oil there) - tighten up if required. Sump pan, if you have a leak here you can try tightening the bolts (6mm I think), make sure you don't tighten too much, you'll notice if any of them were loose when you tighten them - but you may need a new gasket/sealant. Timing chain cover, this is at the bottom offside of the engine - pretty much same as sump pan. Oil pressure switch, front of engine - this was common leak point on the old Skoda engines this one is based on, seen no mention of it on here but easy to look - new oil pressure switch. The Rocker cover gaskets can leak, but I doubt one would leak enough to drop oil on the ground, the gasket tends to harden over time - easy to replace (engine cover off, two hoses off, two nuts off the rocker cover and it's off plus costs next to nothing at dealers). If it's coming from between the engine and the gearbox it will cost a bit for a garage to sort and I'd suggest leaving it until the clutch begins to slip due to oil contamination (my old car leaked like this for a while and never affected the clutch though).

2 drips are nothing to worry about. Look at the supermarket car park next time you're shopping and see how much oil other people's cars have leaked during the short time they've parked there (there are usually numerous dark patches on the ground). An oil leak isn't an MOT fail.

Edited 28 March, 201016 yr by anewman

Most likely it will be coming from the driveshaft flanges either side of the gearbox housing. Nothing to worry about.

I am assuming it is engine oil. Try get it up some ramps/jacked up and see if you can determine the source of the leak (bearing in mind oil may travel around when the car is in motion - you may need to clean up the oil/hose the engine down a little). Check... sump plug (leak there easily sorted, torque wrench and torque it up to correct figure). Oil filter (get your hand underneath it at the point it screws onto the engine and run your hand across the end to see if there is oil there) - tighten up if required. Sump pan, if you have a leak here you can try tightening the bolts (6mm I think), make sure you don't tighten too much, you'll notice if any of them were loose when you tighten them - but you may need a new gasket/sealant. Timing chain cover, this is at the bottom offside of the engine - pretty much same as sump pan. Oil pressure switch, front of engine - this was common leak point on the old Skoda engines this one is based on, seen no mention of it on here but easy to look - new oil pressure switch. The Rocker cover gaskets can leak, but I doubt one would leak enough to drop oil on the ground, the gasket tends to harden over time - easy to replace (engine cover off, two hoses off, two nuts off the rocker cover and it's off plus costs next to nothing at dealers). If it's coming from between the engine and the gearbox it will cost a bit for a garage to sort and I'd suggest leaving it until the clutch begins to slip due to oil contamination (my old car leaked like this for a while and never affected the clutch though).

2 drips are nothing to worry about. Look at the supermarket car park next time you're shopping and see how much oil other people's cars have leaked during the short time they've parked there (there are usually numerous dark patches on the ground). An oil leak isn't an MOT fail.

I am assuming it is engine oil. Try get it up some ramps/jacked up and see if you can determine the source of the leak (bearing in mind oil may travel around when the car is in motion - you may need to clean up the oil/hose the engine down a little). Check... sump plug (leak there easily sorted, torque wrench and torque it up to correct figure). Oil filter (get your hand underneath it at the point it screws onto the engine and run your hand across the end to see if there is oil there) - tighten up if required. Sump pan, if you have a leak here you can try tightening the bolts (6mm I think), make sure you don't tighten too much, you'll notice if any of them were loose when you tighten them - but you may need a new gasket/sealant. Timing chain cover, this is at the bottom offside of the engine - pretty much same as sump pan. Oil pressure switch, front of engine - this was common leak point on the old Skoda engines this one is based on, seen no mention of it on here but easy to look - new oil pressure switch. The Rocker cover gaskets can leak, but I doubt one would leak enough to drop oil on the ground, the gasket tends to harden over time - easy to replace (engine cover off, two hoses off, two nuts off the rocker cover and it's off plus costs next to nothing at dealers). If it's coming from between the engine and the gearbox it will cost a bit for a garage to sort and I'd suggest leaving it until the clutch begins to slip due to oil contamination (my old car leaked like this for a while and never affected the clutch though).

2 drips are nothing to worry about. Look at the supermarket car park next time you're shopping and see how much oil other people's cars have leaked during the short time they've parked there (there are usually numerous dark patches on the ground). An oil leak isn't an MOT fail.

thanks for the info really helpfull just hope my girlfreind likes the fabia cheers ppl

Most likely it will be coming from the driveshaft flanges either side of the gearbox housing. Nothing to worry about.

thanks for the peace of mind so the 1.4 mpi 8v are made by skoda them selfs and not a volkswagen engine are there

just as strong or am i heading for big problems

thanks for the peace of mind so the 1.4 mpi 8v are made by skoda them selfs and not a volkswagen engine are there

just as strong or am i heading for big problems

Big trouble? Not really , Ive had one (MPI) for 5 years and not had a bit of trouble from the engine , only done 47K miles though. The 16V (VW) engines had some problems with piston rings , and the MPI used to suffer with head gasket trouble (mine hasnt) but I would think they will all have had the new uprated gasket fitted by now. Also the MPI doesnt have a cambelt so that saves a bit of cash come service time. Dont worry about the robustness of 'old' Skoda engineering , its not as bad as TV Comedians and Tabloids would have you believe.

Skoda won many a rally with their OHV engine, notably coming first in the World Rally Championships 1994 with the Favorit in the 2 litre category (no mean feat with a 1.3 litre engine), and many other class wins. And those rally drivers really do cane them. If you look at the figures Skoda won more because of the mechanical failures and crashes of the other teams, rather than being fastest round the track.

Only thing to watch out for with the timing chain is they can become somewhat noisy as the miles add up (unless they added a tensioner in the 1.4 mpi design, which I am guessing they didn't due to small gap between cam and crank). They can stretch and become slack over time. The noise is generally not much to worry about, but excessive noise may make it a good idea to replace. My 1994 Favorit was based on the same engine, had well over 120k miles (not sure exactly how many as clock stopped working) but that had never had the chain changed, was quite noisy, I thrashed it like anything and it never gave up or broke down in the couple of years I had it.

Edited 28 March, 201016 yr by anewman