Hiya,

Got a few issues with a recently bought 1.4 mpi 2002 classic fabia which I'm trying to fix up. I've used the car a few times now and have found it to be VERY underpowered when going up a hill, it's particularly bad in second gear and will slog up at around 10 mph with my foot to the floor. It actually has more power in 3rd than 2nd! But still not enough. Has anybody else had the same problem?

Took it to the mechanic and he said the clutch is fine, ecu showing no error codes but he thought the idle was lumpy (but not misfiring).

Just another prob with it, 1st and reverse gears are very hard to select and a small white part (forgot the name) on the gearbox is wobbly and will be changed soon to rectify this. They think I'm selecting the wrong gear but I can still find where the gears are and pretty sure second is second.

Basically I was wondering if anybody else had no power up a hill and what needed to be changed to fix it. Mechanic says it could be a fabia thing but I don't agree! Also there is a bit of a judder and hesitation when moving away in 1st, it don't seem 100% to me!? What will I need to change first...

There is an ongoing thread in this forum "is your 1.4 Fabia gutless" in which several 8v owners including myself have remarked that our cars tend to quickly run out of steam on hills although perhaps not as badly as yours apparently does.I have found with mine that you do very much have to be in the right gear at the right time so that could possibly be part of your problem.As regards the idle being lumpy, this has been well documented on this forum and is to do with the engine being outdated and struggling to meet current emission requirements.You should consider taking it to a Skoda specialist but not necessarily a franchised dealer and if you delve further into these forums you may well find recommendations for your particular location.

Ha ha gutless is the word!! I'll check out the other post :-)