Hi,

I'm looking at getting my hands on a relatively recent 2nd gen Octavia vRS estate. Because I'll be doing tiny miles in it I'm looking at petrol rather than diesel. I wondered if there were any particular things I should be looking out for when I view possibles.

I've had a look on the honest John website and they mention the following:

- Timing belt replace at 60k

- Climate control can fail due to 'chafing' cable between bulkhead & dash

- Ventilation fan, confirm it runs at all speeds

- A/C compressors by Valeo & Zexel often need to be replaced

- Check for damage on roof from fitting roof bars

- Stiff change from 1st to 2nd can indicate issues with manual gearbox

- Check ABS / ESP warning lights

- Beware of clutch judder

(All from http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/skoda/octavia-2004/?section=bad)

Any feedback would be great.

Cheers, Greg

I would be careful what u read as u could scare yourself out of buying one......

Yes they do have a few issues but so does every car

I would be careful what u read as u could scare yourself out of buying one......

Yes they do have a few issues but so does every car

Cheers for that vRSPete, I know what you mean but I also checked out a few of the other reviews and the Octavia does seem to get off quite lightly in comparison.

Just wondered if there was anything that means run away as quickly as possible as soon as you see it?

The car I'm looking at is this one:

http://www.evanshalshaw.com/vehiclesearch/used/skoda-used-car-fg09ubz.html

A vrs should have a timing belt and water pump changed at 4 years OR the 60k. So the timing belt needs doing this month.

Get this done before you buy and save yourself 350 bucks.

A vrs should have a timing belt and water pump changed at 4 years OR the 60k. So the timing belt needs doing this month.

Get this done before you buy and save yourself 350 bucks.

Thanks for that Gregie, I'll be sure to check that one out to avoid any unpleasant £350 surprises.

Cheers

On a 09 it will most probably be the later Tsi engine so Chain driven

Or a new engine if it snaps ;-)

And don't be scared to give it beans on a test drive it will show its true colours under pressure.

On a 09 it will most probably be the later Tsi engine so Chain driven

Does the chain make a positive or negative difference?

On a 09 it will most probably be the later Tsi engine so Chain driven

Oh good point. Forgot about the new tsi. I'm bias though lol

Or a new engine if it snaps ;-)

And don't be scared to give it beans on a test drive it will show its true colours under pressure.

Ha ha, I'll tell them you told me to do it and its not a fair test if you can't hear the tyres complaining

This is where my original post kicks in.......

This is where my original post kicks in.......

:-) I see.

What's the best way to check whether its belt or chain, I assume its all covered up by lots of metal and plastic, is there a code to look out for? And to be honest is it something to be majorly concerned about or just something to keep an eye on?

Engine cover ...

Engine cover ...

Looks from this post (http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/215642-vrs-tsi-cam-chain-or-belt/) that the TSI versions are chain driven and the FSI versions are belt... Or am I reading it wrong? The one I'm going to look at is an FSI so I should be fairly safe assuming its belt driven?

He has probably listed the title wrong as its a May 09 registered car i would say it will be a Tsi model

Yes tfsi belt tsi chain

He has probably listed the title wrong as its a May 09 registered car i would say it will be a Tsi model

Yes tfsi belt tsi chain

Thanks for that vRSPete, really appreciate your time.

What would you say the best features of the are? I'm looking forward to taking a look tomorrow and as I said I've had some great recommendations so I'm expecting to be very impressed when I compare it with my wife's current '56 diesel Passat.

Cheers,

Greg

Big difference between the two engines is the tsi obviously has a chain driven camshaft, and has an uprated fuel pump. Latter is useful if you want to customise the engine, a generic stage 1 remap yields bigger gains because of this. There may be other differences, but I think these are the most significant.

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As im sure has been mentioned already the cam chain tensioner can fail and you'd be looking at a new engine most likely; be worrying myself if this wasnt covered by some sort of warranty.

Also its only fair to say expect a real world economy of early 30 mpg; TSi's only make their claimed MPG on a long run driven very carefully. Just be prepared to be filling the tank every 300 miles or so.

Cheers to Stever750 & Pipsyp for those comments I'll keep them in mind. I ended up going for the red one I posted earlier in the thread, seemed smooth, on both heavy and very light throttle, no issues with the gears and not too much noise from the chain either.

Any suggestions on where should I post to find out about options for getting a tracker fitted?

Greg

Glad that car was ok Greg looked nice from the link

Do u plan to leave it standard or tinker a little ..?? A remap really changes the car

Does your insurance as for a Tracker unit..?? Sure the o.e alarms are Cat 1 spec

Glad that car was ok Greg looked nice from the link

Do u plan to leave it standard or tinker a little ..?? A remap really changes the car

Does your insurance as for a Tracker unit..?? Sure the o.e alarms are Cat 1 spec

My insurance doesn't ask for one but there have been a few local cars taken by thieves breaking in to steal keys. Was wondering if anyone had experience of having one fitted... Better safe than sorry I guess, plus I'd be keen to get it back!

I'd certainly be leaving it standard to start with, check out what 'needs' replacing before I start any upgrades :-)