Did my first service today..not too tricky but lots of bits on really solid so can't have been serviced well in the past :(

Not only that..but did I come across THIS evil thing:

Must be a 'tuning' box because it was coupled to what must be my temp. sensor!

This could explain my bad turbo 'hiss/whistle' that I get from getting over-boost on acceleration because since driving it afterwards the whistle has pretty much gone away and the car is much less smokey..sadly slightly slower but smoother acceleration!!

Just wondering what this could have done to the car in the long term and if there are some steps I should take to nurse it back!?

As I understand it the basic principal with a tuning box is that it 'fools' your temp sender into thinking it is colder than it actually is therefore supplying the engine with more fuel and hence more 'go'.

Obviously this will mean a pick up in performance but as you've noted more fuel in means there is likely to be more un-burnt fuel (smoke) out the rear.

(I think)

Yeah looks like a cheap ebay tuning box. It just gives false temp readings to the ecu, so engine would have been running a bit rich. Wouldn't have thought it would cause too many problems now you've removed it, (assuming your car is running fine with no faults now), and you may even see an improvement in MPG. Long term usage may have caused increased ring wear and compromised the the lambda probe, but if emissions are ok atm, all should be good.

Ok, well sounds like just what I thought then really! Probably needs a little Italian' tune up and a little time for the ECU to settle to the correct temperature readings! Hope I will see better MPG then as I can normally get around 56mpg max..perhaps I'll get some better miles around town!

The little box looked so out of place..surprised I didnt see it before!!!

what's the piece to the right of the pic, the piece with the VW logo and the OOOO Audi logo?

As far as I can tell its a genuine Audi/VW connector in a black plastic case..cut very crudely with hard resin inside..

what's the piece to the right of the pic, the piece with the VW logo and the OOOO Audi logo?

That's there to fool people into thinking that it is genuine VAG/Skoda..................

if you open it up, it will contain a 10p resistor encased in a load of silicone. The casing is to fool others into thinking its something more. Your Fabia will be much happier now its not fitted.

I've been trying to get through the resin in the plastic box to get a photo up here, no such luck! Can't believe anyone would be fooled into fitting one...it's made me worry about what my car's previous owners were like now

go on go on open it up

Is the car fine after removal? Those noises gone?

Those hideous things should be banned.

Hope the cars ok. All should be healthier now

Dreadful little black boxes containing as others have mentioned a cheap resistor which fools the ECU into thinking the engine is cold thus injecting more fuel per cycle. The most expensive example of this method are the units available from TDI-Tuning UK, they charge well over £100 but it does come in a more attractive alloy casing!

On driving it today..clearly boost is lower because whistle is slightly less..but sadly it pulls a lot less too :(

I'm wondering if the ecu will need time to adjust or if it will just remain slower and if I'll need to do all the boost pipe seals also?

No luck pulling the black box apart yet!

this might be worth a try to help relearn the ecu values -

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/244178-simple-cheap-diy-tune-up-brilliant

It shouldnt alter boost only fueling.

Get it remapped.

Job done.

56mpg is good ne way. I never get that anymore. Mind I nees to give her a goimg over when it picks up.

No it clearly hasn't adjusted boost because it's still leaking boost somewhere badly, plus it's so much more slow..makes me want another car :(

Dependimg on where you are get over to cn tuning.

Clive can pop it on the smoke machine and sort the leaks then remap it for you and it will then be awesome.

I had one of these in a 1.4 TDI back in my foolish days and when I removed it to sell the car it felt so slow! I wouldn't fit one now adays now I know what I do

Id love to but Im in Ipswich, Suffolk!! Wondering now how to find my boost leak? I've had NO luck finding it going over the system with a fine toothed comb because the leak only happens on heavy throttle under load!!!

I fitted an expensive tuning box to my car before remapping. The car felt so much faster but wasn't any faster. Sounds odd but after comparing to other cars that I knew how my car went against it made no difference. Once remapped the car still feels slower than the tuning box but has made the world of difference. All about the power delievery!

Ypou need to preasurise the system. I think I have a leak too but not aorted yet. Will be having a go at some point soon and will be looking for something I can use to go where the maf is and use a spare wheel to fill the system bit like the $24 thing from the us the 1.8t boys are on about in the octy section. Think ita in one of david8 threads.

I'll need to have a good look out for this then Billy.

An update..I have given it a good week..but my computer seems to be reporting about 52mpg on run..compared to 56mpg on a run from before?!!

Torque seems to last longer and not be just so 'sudden' to come on and go away..

Any ideas why my MPG is reporting so low?

7.6% drop is well within the margins of error of the trip computer which isn't known to be that accurate.<br /><br />For reference check your tyre pressures which can change as much as 1psi per 10c of temp change. Colder temps also negatively affect fuel consumption on a diesel as it takes a lot longer to warm up. Fuel also plays a part, I generally got more miles out of a tank of Shell Fuel Saver than Asda diesel, finally driving style/journey type/conditions, get stuck in stop start traffic could easily account for such a small drop.<br /><br />The only accurate way to calculate fuel consumption is brim it each time and average the results over several tanks to reduce the variations in filling. Comparing consecutive tanks is rarely accurate.