No they don't suffer from piston ring wear. They do however suffer from head gasket failure! Most were replaced early on by dealerships though. You can check if its been done by the identification on the right hand side of the gasket as you look into the bay, as its exposed between the bottom end and head. (I forget what it says, but someone will be along to tell you). Mine hasn't been done, and although its low mileage, it doesn't show any sign of going. Its a reasonable engine. Very easy to work on yourself, although not much more powerful in real terms than the 1.2, and higher fuel economy. (Its pretty poor on fuel for a 1400).

Your going round in circles though, and your just talking yourself out of every car on the market with the possibility of something happening. You'll end up getting one that has the least amount of reported faults, and sods law says it'll be an absolute dog and cost you a fortune. Its all well and good researching cars and common problems, but just be aware of them, don't let it overrule you better judgement.

It's a minefield researching a new used car isn't it?

All the 16v 1.4's are all essentially the same design with the same known issues. They also have a VAG UK belt change interval of 4 years now rather than the service book stated 'inspect at 40/60/80/100 and replace at 120k' interval so check it's been done or budget to have it done.

The 1.4 8v is a bored out 1.3 8v of origional Skoda design, it feels lumpy at idle and has higher road tax, initially known for HGF till they released a new HG and replaced it under a service bulletin then issued updated torque settings to tighten it up properly. They also tend to suffer faulty thermostats and thermostat sensors and higher road tax but lower insurance. The big difference is the HG will have been sorted years ago and this can easily be checked by a 'T' on the front P/S corner of the gasket and a genuine new thermostat is £40 ish from Skoda and takes 20 mins to swap over with minimal tools/skill. Other than that it's a proven engine which makes 68bhp with peak torque at 2.5k rpm vs the 16v making 75bhp and peak torque at 3k, the real world difference is minimal in day to day driving at legal speeds though the 16v will feel smoother and more refined.

It's totally up to you what you choose to buy as all engines and indeed cars have compromises and issues but personally i'll take one with decades worth of proven reliability thats easy to work on and where parts are cheap over one that has a known and expensive to repair issues. Whatever you choose you may be lucky and it does another 50k trouble free but it may also cost you money early on, but the same is true with any car.

Good luck!

Okey doke. I always do this when making a big purchase... can't be too bad a habit.

Thanks again for your reassuring replies. I'll just have to go look a them, test drive and go for the one that drives best, which I suppose is the advice most people would recommend anyway! :evil:

Buy on condition first, history second and then age/mileage, its easy to alter the odo but less so to fake old MOT's and service records, new ones are just a sheet of A4 paper, take a friend along, check the vin in the engine bay and on the screen, the one on the screen may look bubbled if it's 13 years old) and don't be afraid to walk away. A slight pulse in the clutch isn't uncommon on a diesel and an mpi will feel rough where as a 16v will feel smoother. After you drive a few you'll know whst to expect. Check for working heaters, it gets up to temp (12 o'clock position) washers/heated window/mirrors/windows/central locking/handles/radio etc. work as expected. You've done enough reading to be aware of how to spot a duff set of console bushes (fool lock to the right then check the left bush with a torch for obvious tearing, opposite with the other side), drop links knock over rough roads and a misfire will show up on a basic fault code reader usually as will the angle sensor fault. £5 spent on a VCDS lite lead and a borrowed laptop or £30 on a hand held scanner are probably a good investment. Check the spare is in the boot and holding some pressure/looks OK, don't expect full service paperwork but if you have doubts ring the garage who stamped the book to confirm.

Oh and trust your instincts, it's a good time of the year to buy as people are sometimes needing to raise cash but if it's too cheap then go over it with a fine tooth comb.

Oh and no I'm not that bad when I buy a car, I'm actually worse, but at least by that stage the seller is in no doubt I'm genuine

Oh, where can I get a VCDS lead? I had a quick google and found the software... that's $99 though, from somewhere called Ross-Tech. That's unless you can recommend a freeware/cheaper alternative.

I've laptops coming out of my ears from attempting to get work done on the move on public transport for the past 7-8 years. A windows one will do, right? Even though it might be a bit over-the top to produce it at the garage, it'll probably be a good investment for finding/sorting faults myself in the future.

You can download VCDS lite from Ross-Tech, which gives you pretty decent basic fault finding ability, coupled with an ebay lead for less than a fiver. Simples!

Ah yes. I see that now... thanks! Again, I really appreciate all your help! :sun:

Just a quick message to say thank you for all the help and info... after faffing around for ages and seeing cars get sold before I even looked at them, I finally took the plunge today and bought a 2006 Fabia 1.9 TDi Ambiente, after managing to get insurance for it under £700.

I just need to wait for the garage to do the work I asked them to (cambelt etc) before picking it up in a couple of days.