I just thought it was time to open a thread where we briskodian's (and guests) could talk about the longterm reliability with "tuned" Skoda's.

I could start with myself. I've tuned my car about two weeks ago and now I have 220bhp on my Octavia RS -02.

No strange things yet, but you never know (my vRS is still a little too young for that).

What's your experience? Is Skoda's reliable after "tuning" them?

Regards,

FD

Jon, over to you...

I'm sure Jon will reply (TaviaRS); he done over 90k miles in a couple of years and this include track days (including the several to the Ring).

So it's had a hard life.

It's had most things done to it, ahem....tuning wise, and he not had any problems.

Pretty good indication of reliability of a tuned RS I reckon.

Cheers.

Adrian.

p.s must improve my typring; everyone keeps on getting "in" before me.

I have a long running battle to fix a "down on power" problem....

I seriously don't think it's in any way related to the remap, but intermittantly I get two (sometimes three) error codes and it feels like I have about 160bhp...

Dealer has so far...

Replaced EGR valve

Replaced pressure boost valve

Replaced throttle body

Replaced MAF

Disconnected and checked all pipes for blockages etc.

When it feels down on power, I can turn off and back on the ignition, and it's back on form. Can't link it to long runs, short runs, when hot, when cold, when driven gently, when driven hard...

Frustrating.

(oh, and done nearly 50k, remap was done at 23k)

Ian,

is this similar to Jon's problem of not boosting properly? May be your inlet pipe is collapsing??

This is EASILY my biggest concern regarding remapping my TDI. Before I do it next year, I think I'm going to have a long chat with Matt, who will have been running his remapped TDI for at least a year by then. I've been told there should be no problems, but I don't want to damage the life-span of the engine, AT ALL, if I can help it.

*starts shuddering at thought of blown engine at 50K or 60K... :( :cussing:

Originally posted by SkodiRS in this post

Ian,

is this similar to Jon's problem of not boosting properly? May be your inlet pipe is collapsing??

If it was that, then resetting the ignition would not make the pipe suddenly regain it's strength \ cool down etc.

Could it simply be the software pulling back power as it suffers from heatsoak?

Delivered with 3 miles end of Sept 2001

Chipped at 9,000 miles

Exhaust and DV replaced at about 15,000 miles

485 laps of the Nurburgring

14 UK trackdays with about 150 miles covered on each one

1 new sump

5 new coil packs

3 new sets of discs

2 sets of rear discs

2 sets of rear pads

6 sets of front pads

11 complete sets of tyres

What else have I replaced:

The inlet pipes, the clutch (my choice just in case), the cambelt (well 120,000 miles is too long), just done the front bushes (cheated and bought new wishbones as the bushes and ball joints are included) and the exhaust gas temp sender/wide band lambda (holds boost even better now, on taking the old one out it was completely fried, must have got hot at some time )

Mileage now is 94,000 miles.

Obviously mine has had a gentle life.

Originally posted by FightingDiva in this post

Could it simply be the software pulling back power as it suffers from heatsoak?

So then why can I feel it sometimes within a few miles late at night, and yet do 170miles chasing impreza's on a hot day and it didn't miss a beat?

Keep em coming

Re reliability, The Engines & most other bits are from the VAG parts bin so I Guess (HOPE) that the experience gained on Audi's, VW's & Seats will prove a good guide to what can & can not be done & what is likely to break.

I honestly don't know

/FD

EGT sender and wideband lambda sensor?

Mine was giving random spurious signals to the ECU which effected the boost levels, ignition advance and fuelling. Totally random.

Anyone know what the "original" vRS boost and ignition levels are?

I have had a Fabia 1.9 tdi from new.

It had a tuning box fitted at around 3,000miles and had a remap at around 12,000 miles.

Coming up to 20k miles (18 months old) and I cant report any problems related to the tuning. Lets hope they dont find anything wrong at the next service!

IMHO i think you're more likely to run into problems with a hard driven standard car, than a tuned car that's driven more sensibly.

Jon's car is obviously a very good pointer to reliability.

However, remember that there are thousands of 1.8T's and Tdi's from all over the world, of all hues be it audi, vw etc etc that have had remaps for years now with no real problems.

i challenge anyone to browse any of these numerous forums ( fora? ) and to find posts that suggest regular problems with sensibly tuned and maintained VAG cars.

regards,

Originally posted by FabiaTDi in this post

I have had a Fabia 1.9 tdi from new.

It had a tuning box fitted at around 3,000miles and had a remap at around 12,000 miles.

Coming up to 20k miles (18 months old) and I cant report any problems related to the tuning. Lets hope they dont find anything wrong at the next service!

IMHO i think you're more likely to run into problems with a hard driven standard car, than a tuned car that's driven more sensibly.

Matt - This is the kind of talk that encourages me to want to spend hundreds of pounds on a re-map. I was hoping to get this kind of help around June next year, not within a couple of weeks...

Aaaargh! I want to do it!!

edit: whats the tuning box do, compared to the remap?

Jason, stay away from tuning boxes. Go for the remap.

OK - I'll steer clear, but I'm curious now... :confused:

Plus, I'm aiming to pip my 1000 today...

My car is in the dealers today... new wheel bearing and another attempt to resolve the power issue...

Today we're concentrating on the exhaust sensors - 17535 - bank one system too rich, here's hoping!

Originally posted by devonutopia in this post

edit: whats the tuning box do, compared to the remap?

Jason,

Its better to have a remap than have a tuning box, as the fueling on the reamp will be plotted throughout the entire rev range and be matched to boost levels etc. This gives a more progressive and smooth power delivery.

A TB intercepts the fueling programme between the ECU and the injectors, giving you more power than standard. However, a TB cannot effect boost levels directly (only as a result of the increaed fueling) The TB does give a huge dollop of torque though at low revs, but the power delivery is a bit sudden, shall we say!

An advantage of a TB is that it can be removed for services

If I had to choose between the two, I would go for the remap although the TB was giving more torque than the Jabbachip.

If we ever get a chance to meet up at a future Briskoda meet, we might be able to give the TB a try in yours, to see what you think.

Oooh - If the Bruntingthorpe thing happens, in Sept, I'd give it a crack! VRRROOOM!

Cheers

Tavia4x4:

Dealer has so far...

Replaced EGR valve

Do we have EGR valve? I think not, but may be Iam wrong! Any help?

TaviaRs:

and the exhaust gas temp sender/wide band lambda

Do we have an EGT? In which engine block can I see Exhaust temperature through Vag-Com?

And this message also implies that the fist lambda is wideband, am I correct?

as far as I knw we do, the error code (17608) even refers to it!

(EGR that is )