Hello all,

I recently bought a part-used Fabia 2 1.4 TDI from a local dealer, with one owner, approx 10000 miles and about 18 months left on the warranty. I'd had the car for 2-3 weeks before I started to notice a "squealing" noise when I would pull away (and no, it's not me wheel-spinning it!). I would describe it as a "slipping cam-belt" sort of noise, the one that you might hear a lot from an older car. It doesn't seem to happen every single time, but it happens more often than I would like. I initially put it down the wet weather that occurred at the beginning of October.

After a couple of weeks, and the noise hadn't gone away, I returned it to the dealer and left it with them for the day so that they could check it over, but had to go back later that same day as they told me that they could not hear the noise. I demonstrated it to a technician, who believed it to be the brakes. They stripped down and replaced the brakes. However, the problem still existed as soon as I drove away.

I then took it back a couple of days later once I'd booked it in for another appointment. This time, they did a repair job on an engine mount, as this is what they said was the cause of the squeal. However, yet again, the noise still happened as soon as I drove away.

I have tried adjusting my driving to suit, as perhaps I am still getting used to the clutch, it seems to be very different from my previous car (Golf TDI 1.9). I have noticed that if I move off very slowly, letting the clutch out more gradually with the accelerator, it doesn't appear to occur. However, when I have to move out from a side road into fast moving traffic, for example, I am letting the clutch out quickly and giving more acceleration, and this seems to be a guaranteed way of making the noise occur.

So, it makes sense to me (who is not a mechanic) that it relates to the clutch or something to do with the clutch. Would I be right in thinking this? And has anybody else had anything similar occur? I'm just concerned that it is something that is potentially very serious that could cause me a lot of expense once the warranty has expired.

Thanks for reading.

My experience of squealing as you pull away has either been a slipping pulley belt which wasn't corrected by tightening but by dressing it with an anti-slip compound or, the bad news, a worn thrust bearing in the clutch. This is caused by driving with your foot resting on the clutch so the thrust bearing, which is a maintenance free sealed bearing, rests against the diaphragm and is spinning constantly. The part is probably £20 but it is an engine out job to replace it.

It does sound more like the alternator belt slipping. They squeal in the mornings especially in damp weather. With the car stationary and idling, if you turn on the headlights and the rear screen heater and blower for the heater (full blast) does it squeal when you blip the throttle in neutral? If so it's definitely the alternator belt slipping, but I'd have thought the garage would have checked that before replacing brakes. Clutch thrusts can squeal but not usually in the way you are describing unless you have your foot on the clutch as you drive, but it is difficult to be precise over the 'tinternet' without an actual listen to it session!