Hi guys.

Totally new to both the forum, and Skoda's alike. I've been a happy Volvo V40 owner for many years and managed to notch up 165,000 with a bit of TLC, and was struggling to find something nice to replace it with. Ended up with an '03 VRS estate with 49,000 miles, and only picked it up on Saturday, but yesterday I had to take it back under warranty. The trouble is, I doubt they'll find all the faults.

First off, the clutch master cylinder was obviously dodgy, since twice overnight the clutch pedal disappeared most of the way down, and I had to forcibly pull the pedal up in order to be able to disengage the clutch. Despite not being able to find the fault, they've agreed with my diagnosis on this point, and offered to do the work. However, it also has an occasional misfire and they haven't been able to find anything as yet. Hopefully, they'll give it a long run when the master cylinder comes in.

Sooooo, the misfire....

Well, it's pretty subtle really, I've only noticed it so far when accelerating gently, and also (this may be a red herring) seems to happen whilst steering in one direction or another, specifically when the suspension is loading a little. It doesn't seem to happen at any particular time, ie not when hot or cold, it's purely random, and can happen at any time. At first I thought it was just my imagination, since it just felt like I'd hit a rough patch of road (plenty of those around here!!!!), but even on my way between Abingdon and Swindon to return the car(about 20 miles), it occurred three times at different stages of the journey. The down-side is, no fault codes are being thrown up either, according to my code reader, and whatever diagnostics they are using at the garage.

I'm not suspecting vacuum pipes at this stage since it's very occasional rather than constant. And it may just be at lower rev-ranges, since it hasn't happened when I've given it 'stick' as yet, although having only done 150 miles in it so far, and on busy roads, I haven't actually had a chance to use it in anger. :(

Anybody heard of any possible solutions to similar scenarios? If I can't solve this issue I'm going to have to either try and return the car (got a two year warranty, but I doubt this improves my chances) or shift it on to some other poor fellow. Perhaps I should've been suspicious of it for only £4000 and from a dealer, but it tested fine on the day.

Oh yeah, that purge valve had me a little worried too, till I looked on Autodata and saw what it was. Then the ticking made sense!

Apart from this, it seems like a nice bit of kit. I really want to like this car, but our relationship hasn't started well.

Hopefully this will get resolved and I can get down to some economy (ahem!) tweaks.

where did you buy it from mate?

I'll let you know by PM. Don't want to drag any names into this yet.

sounds like a coil pack, only way to find out if it is intermittent is give it some stick and then read the codes.

or you could buy one replacement coil pack and use trial and error i.e replace cylinder 1, drive for a few days and see if it is cured, if not try cylinder 2 and repeat.

sounds like a coil pack, only way to find out if it is intermittent is give it some stick and then read the codes.

or you could buy one replacement coil pack and use trial and error i.e replace cylinder 1, drive for a few days and see if it is cured, if not try cylinder 2 and repeat.

Yes , coilpack for the missfire , myself I would replace all 4 of them to be fair

Not that expensive either

Sarah

Good choice , I have always loved the MK1 vRS

Thanks for the tips guys, I'll think about that one. I really don't want to be shelling out for something that I personally shouldn't have to though. If they can't sort it, they can shove the car. :no: It's quicker than I really needed anyway, since all I actually need is a family runaround (that's at least as economical and quick as the Volvo was), and something big enough to shove all my guitar gear in the boot. If I need to go fast, I have a Suzuki SV1000, and the wife has a 56 plate 335SE, both of which make the VRS feel pretty tame.

I'm also not convinced it's a coil-pack issue, or even an ignition issue. More likely fuelling of some description. It is very subtle, and not in the least noisy.

Let's see what happens Monday once they've fitted the master cylinder and given it a long run. I really want to like this car, but I sure don't want to throw good money after bad if I can help it.

Hi, first let me say that the vRS Estate is a good choice! (not that I am biased in any way )

As for the problem, I would try cleaning the throttle body.

It seems to be a common solution to a lot of problems, and also helped in my case where I was having a bit of a stuttering/surging problem at low revs, for example when pulling away from standstill.

It's just 4 allen bolts on the end of the inlet manifold, and a jubilee clip. You should be able to clean it pretty easily with a brush or a cloth with some degreaser. There are some more specific guides for this on here if you search :beer:

Andy..

Hi, first let me say that the vRS Estate is a good choice! (not that I am biased in any way )

As for the problem, I would try cleaning the throttle body.

It seems to be a common solution to a lot of problems, and also helped in my case where I was having a bit of a stuttering/surging problem at low revs, for example when pulling away from standstill.

It's just 4 allen bolts on the end of the inlet manifold, and a jubilee clip. You should be able to clean it pretty easily with a brush or a cloth with some degreaser. There are some more specific guides for this on here if you search :beer:

Andy..

+1

I had a slight hesitation under light throttle openings when I just got mine (had 80k on the clock). Thought it was a coil pack or flat spot but a throttle body clean got rid of it.

Thanks for the pointers guys. Actually I was thinking towards cleaning the throttle bodies with brake cleaner when I get her back anyway. Haven't really had a look at the engine at all as yet myself, so I don't even know what is where for know.

I have a reasonably up-to-date version of Autodata though, so I'm good for a lot of stuff here.

If it gets sorted to my satisfaction I'm going to give her a major service anyway despite it having one 4,000 miles ago. From the the invoices I see that came with it, it certainly hasn't been serviced as it should. (Surely a garage charging only £24 for oil isn't using the right spec 0W-30!!!!)

And although I'm sure the cam-belt will be just fine with less than 50,000 miles, if I'm going to go thoroughly into servicing, then I might as well whip the blighter out whilst I'm there.

I've already got an account with TPS that I assume I can get parts from, but is there anybody much cheaper? Or do I just stick with TPS since they'll deliver to my workplace anyway?

I must say though that I'm pleasantly surprised with the size of the boot compared to my V40, which I thought to be about the same size moreorless! And I've got plenty of stash spots for my tools too. (Although I've not had to use any of my breakdown tools in over 10 years, I really don't know why I bother!)

National tyres will do an oil and filter change including labour for £30 using castrol Edge

National tyres will do an oil and filter change including labour for £30 using castrol Edge

Yikes. I doubt I could even get 5 litres and a filter for that. Might have to see where there is one local to me.

Yikes. I doubt I could even get 5 litres and a filter for that. Might have to see where there is one local to me.

I know mate, its crazy cheap. Guess they buy in so much it must cost them peanuts.

Why buy a VRS when you have a 335!? lol

Thats like having a 6ft blonde playboy model at home and cheating on her with Heather from eastenders

Why buy a VRS when you have a 335!? lol

Thats like having a 6ft blonde playboy model at home and cheating on her with Heather from eastenders

Yeah, she's the accountant, I'm the forklift engineer. Therefore she's got the nice motor for commuting (COMMUTING!!!! Wot a f...... waste!) and I've got the "beater" that does everything else and the shopping and get's thrashed around at weekends.

The 335 is utterly awesome I have to say. I just cannot believe the low end torque on a highly strung motor with twin-turbo's. The pull even from just over 1,000RPM is really strong, and 2nd gear from 2,500 upwards is insane with yer foot hard down. But alas, I don't really get to drive it often.

And when I do, she moans like merry hell that I've used too much of her fuel!

Still haven't got the bleedin' car back yet either. Got a phone call today saying the parts should be in tomorrow, and that hopefully it'll be ready by end of tomorrow. It bloody better be, I need it for rehearsals tomorrow night. They looked at it on Friday, and I know damn well I could've gotten a master cylinder from TPS next day. Since I've owned it, they've had it longer than I have.

Plus I'm keen to start ripping bits off and cleaning them (and seeing if I can find the ignition/fuel fault that I bet THEY won't). Especially since this week is half-term and I'll have more time to mess with it.

National tyres will do an oil and filter change including labour for £30 using castrol Edge

Looked into this. They use 5W/30 instead of 0W/30. Which is fine if you ARE going to change the oil every 6,000 miles, but how often does this happen? This is precisely the way that this VRS has been serviced so far, but with the normal LongLife service intervals.

I'll stick to doing it myself I think. That is, if I ever get the car back. Apparently the master cylinder turned up at around 3.00PM today. Personally, I think something else is going on, and the car's just not being worked on for whatever sodding reason.

I've now owned the car for 13 days, and only had it in my possesion for 6 of them. This isn't going well is it!

And the problems continue, maybe.

Got a call to collect the car today around 11.30ish. They couldn't find the misfire but they've run some fuel cleaner through the system apparently as a precaution (I really wish people would ask before running crappy additives through any engine of mine. NOT amused!) and then when I get there to collect the car at around 5.30pm, the pedal felt crappy to me and a little low (bearing in mind, I've hardly driven it and certainly haven't gotten used to it yet) so I stick my foot underneath the pedal to see if I can move it up, and Lo and Behold, pedal moves up. So before I even start the car, I go straight back in and tell them that the car WILL be coming back, whilst somehow managing to keep my cool. I had no choice but to take the car home, since my ride in had already tootled off.

So what the hell did they actually do? Obviously not fit a brand new master cylinder that's for sure. Please tell me they didn't fit a second hand one?

Anyway, I shall take it into work tomorrow and have a good look at it at some point. My patience is wearing really thin though.

Wondering if I should look up any other local VRS owners to ask if they wouldn't mind having a quick go in it, and comparing???

It would be worth you investing in an £8 cable from ebay and VCDS lite, you can then do your own diags and fault code reading from the engine. Any management lights popped up?

It would be worth you investing in an £8 cable from ebay and VCDS lite, you can then do your own diags and fault code reading from the engine. Any management lights popped up?

I've already got three code readers kicking about. No lights, no fault codes. Haven't had a chance to clean everything out yet, but I'm thinking the misfire isn't going to be a long-term problem. Didn't have any issues on the way home wither (about 16 miles or so). Right now I'm still really p!ssed off about the clutch though. My relationship with this motor isn't getting any better. :(

could it be air in the system?

I thought it's the clutch slave cylinder that is at fault when the pedal doesn't come back up?

I thought it's the clutch slave cylinder that is at fault when the pedal doesn't come back up?

No, the pedal controls the clutch. Therefore the master is at the pedal (the controller) and the slave is doing the business at the other end.

could it be air in the system?

Don't think so. Air could cause a crappy pedal and a bad throw, but it's much more likely that somebody's tried to bodge it and recondition the master cylinder. Especially since it took from Friday morning till late Wednesday afternoon (supposedly) to get the parts. I mean really, how long does it take to get a new master cylinder. I could get one same day, so I don't think a busy garage should have a problem.

Either way, I'm going to be firing rockets up somebody's @rse come Monday.

Cleaned the throttle body today as well. The butterfly was stained, greasy, and furry too. Removed it and carefully brushed it back to a shine with brake cleaner, and dried it thoroughly before refitting so as not to upset the pollister in the manifold with nasty fumes/chemicals. Gasket was in perfect condition and didn't require changing. No trouble since.

21 mile run home resulted in no misfires, a few very fast overtakes and an average of 37.9 mpg according to the computer. Not sure how accurate that is though.

However, I'm still a little concerned about the butterfly itself. I thought they should close fully in the relaxed position, but there is still a little gap. It will close up, but relaxes back to the slightly open position. Any VAG technicians present I should be asking about this? I guess it's possible the servo could force it back that last little bit the other way, but fuel systems aren't my area really. Most of what I see these days is diesel and hydraulics, and my real forte was ignition systems and electrical components back when I was an aircraft engineer.

Ooh, one more thing (in Columbo style voice), do these normally come with rear headrests? Mine hasn't got any. :(

Edited 25 February, 201115 yr by demonufo

There should be a small gap around the butterfly, & yes you should have rear headrests.

Edited 25 February, 201115 yr by pauldazzle

There should be a small gap around the butterfly, & yes you should have rear headrests.

Bugger. I guess the dog guard that is there isn't much of a bonus then. (Especially since I don't have a dog. Or want one for that matter.)

Should be 3 rear headrests and ditto re: throttle plate.