If there is looseness / movement of the wheel and the wheel nuts are not loose, it may be play, looseness or some kind of damage to a suspension component.  A wheel alignment check by a competent specialist would confirm or eliminate this.  The company I mentioned has, in the past, supplied expert witness evidence in legal disputes.

Hope you get something sorted!

Thanks for your help, unfortunately Chesham is a very long way for me, especially with a car that may not be safe, so I will have to find somewhere closer to home. I was thinking of getting RAC / AA or similar, or do you have any suggestions in the St Helens area?

Thanks for your help, unfortunately Chesham is a very long way for me, especially with a car that may not be safe, so I will have to find somewhere closer to home. I was thinking of getting RAC / AA or similar, or do you have any suggestions in the St Helens area?

Why not park it in a way you can feel the looseness again and then call out Skoda assistance?

Why not park it in a way you can feel the looseness again and then call out Skoda assistance?

Sounds a good plan to me!

Otherwise, you could try contacting Tony Bones at Wheels-in-Motion  http://www.wheels-inmotion.co.uk/contact-blackboots.php and see if he can suggest a specialist suspension alignment workshop in your part of the world; he tends to be a very helpful guy.

 

 

Have you had someone follow you in another car and watch how the car behaves?

Is it as visible as it feels?

Have you had someone follow you in another car and watch how the car behaves?

 

Another good idea!

_ _ _

Sorry to go on-and-on about wheel alignment, but although this is not often a problem with cars like the Octavia I have been surprised generally what odd kinds of effects can occur when this is not adjusted correctly.  I have also, worryingly, observed some very well-equipped workshops make a rather poor job of checking and adjusting it.

I remember watching another Mazda MX-5 (a car with normally outstanding roadholding) as I followed it on my way to the WIM workshop a few years ago.  The car seemed reasonably stable and its wheels seemed to remain in conctact with the road OK, but on rough, bumpy surfaces and on the entry into sharp corners I couldn't help noticing how "busy" the rear suspension seemed to be.  Difficult to describe or to explain how or why it caught my eye, but the rear suspension just seemed to be working very hard; it just seemed "unhappy" and unsettled.

Turned out that the driver was also heading for WIM because the driver had felt that the car just didn't feel right.  Apparently the suspension was slightly misaligned but after correct adjustment, the car drove beautifully.  Unfortunately I didn't have a chance to follow and observe it again after the problem was sorted.

So - yes, get someone to follow you and look; or get someone else to drive while you follow and look.  Ideally, after you've also observed a different sample of the same car where the problem is absent, so that you have a comparison. 

Good luck, and please continue to keep us posted.

 

The reason I said that was I have followed many cars that seem to be crabbing as they drive with the rear trying to overtake the front.

It must be horrendous to drive.

As above keep us posted.

Thanks everybody for your input.

 

As said it appears to be getting worse, the looseness is more noticeable now at low speeds with lots of vibration through the wheel and pedals. It's a little wobbly when cornering, almost feels like it's going over on the wheels. The car is also very unstable on the motorway especially in the wind. Something is loose and as far as I can tell it is the drivers front side of the car. It could be a wishbone, bearings, ball joints, shock absorber etc. I don't know which it is but the problem is gradually and definitely getting worse. I do not believe it to be an alignment issue as such. So far the dealers have been useless. I have now started the ball rolling for an independent engineers inspection to be carried out next week. I have informed all parties concerned and intend to follow the correct procedure. Once the fault in the car has been confirmed, I will be taking steps to reject it. There are a number of issues with this car, that I would have lived with, but when you add it all up, it's time to be rid.

Edited 10 October, 201312 yr by Leonblue

Does anyone know if Skoda still use those plastic inserts that are put on springs by the factory to lock them for journey on double decker trailers and prevent the cars from shifting weight around? They used to be bright coloured in O2 times to be immediately visible when looked inside wheel arches.

If they forgot to remove them before transport to the dealer, or worse yet if one of them is still on, your car might be "limping" with one side of the suspension working or one side might be slightly out of shape by now? It would be crazy story, but it is unusual case...

Does anyone know if Skoda still use those plastic inserts that are put on springs by the factory to lock them for journey on double decker trailers and prevent the cars from shifting weight around? They used to be bright coloured in O2 times to be immediately visible when looked inside wheel arches.

If they forgot to remove them before transport to the dealer, or worse yet if one of them is still on, your car might be "limping" with one side of the suspension working or one side might be slightly out of shape by now? It would be crazy story, but it is unusual case...

 

Pretty sure they do, our company car although a 58 plate Octavia estate had them left in, think it was about a year before the dealers found this was the issue and removed them (although don't think it was orange) - the car now has a lot more roll when going round corners and everyone hates it. I do believe because they were left in so long some of the suspension/springs should have been replaced but never was. Company isn't bothered so was left as is.

Called out an independent inspector at a cost to me of £180 +vat, arranged to meet at the supplying dealer. The car was put up on the ramps and we were left to own devices. The engineer carried out certain checks, such as paint thickness, chassis damage, tyre pressures, tyre wear. He checked that all the springs were matching part numbers and had a general look around underneath the car. He checked engine oil levels etc. Then took the car for a test drive, the engineer drove for around 15 miles, mixed motorway and A roads. According to him he could not find any fault with the vehicle. I asked him if he could feel the vibration (I could feel it sat in the passenger seat) he said that the vibration was normal for a VW group chassis and that it felt OK to him.

 

We arrived back at the dealership where I thanked them for allowing us to use their facilities. I had no choice but to leave it there as no fault had been found! Embarrassing and frustrating to say the least. I now have a written report stating that my car is performing as it should.

 

So why is the vibration getting worse and the steering feels like one of the wheels is hanging off? It's getting worse day by day. I am absolutely convinced that this car is about to suffer from major mechanical failure in the steering / suspension, potentially hurtling out of control and all the dangers that scenario presents. It blows about in the wind, twitches about on uneven roads, the vibration varies through the steering wheel and pedals as you turn the wheel around the centre point. It's noticeably worse at slow speeds. When I first started this post the effects I described were only slight, its now much worse!

 

How can I reject this car when nobody agrees that there is a fault?

I've re-read all the posts and can't find any mention of "Wheel Balance"!

 

Seeing as the problem was from new, it's highly possible that a wheel weight has been thrown.

 

They can come off very easily and throw a wheel out of balance, resulting in a "wobbly" feel through the steering at various speeds.

No it's not that sort of vibration. Unbalanced wheels usually cause wobble in the steering wheel at around 65 MPH. That's not happening here. More like the wheel is loose, steering vague, vibration alters when you try to change direction. Like when you have a spinning disc (Gyro) and you try to alter it's direction, it will try to fight the change and vibrate if not fixed to the axes.

I've re-read all the posts and can't find any mention of "Wheel Balance"!

 

Seeing as the problem was from new, it's highly possible that a wheel weight has been thrown.

 

They can come off very easily and throw a wheel out of balance, resulting in a "wobbly" feel through the steering at various speeds.

Everything needs checking but surely with the number of people including an indy having given it the OK, why haven't they covered all points or felt the same as the OP when driving it. If there are other owners near the OP it might be worth them having a drive in the car to see if it compares with their's. Worth a try.

Everything needs checking but surely with the number of people including an indy having given it the OK, why haven't they covered all points or felt the same as the OP when driving it. If there are other owners near the OP it might be worth them having a drive in the car to see if it compares with their's. Worth a try.

That's an excellent idea, ideally someone with a 2.0 TDI elegance with the standard 17" wheels and Dunlop Sport Maxx RT tyres, to eliminate all other variables. St Helens area?

Edited 4 November, 201312 yr by Leonblue

I've re-read all the posts and can't find any mention of "Wheel Balance"!

 

Seeing as the problem was from new, it's highly possible that a wheel weight has been thrown.

 

They can come off very easily and throw a wheel out of balance, resulting in a "wobbly" feel through the steering at various speeds.

  

No it's not that sort of vibration. Unbalanced wheels usually cause wobble in the steering wheel at around 65 MPH. That's not happening here. More like the wheel is loose, steering vague, vibration alters when you try to change direction. Like when you have a spinning disc (Gyro) and you try to alter it's direction, it will try to fight the change and vibrate if not fixed to the axes.

If you can find another Briskodian near you it may be worth swapping wheels to see what happens.

About 10 years ago I had a Vertra SRI which I had spin out on black ice (extremely crap traction control trying to take control on ice) and smash two alloys when it skidded into the kerb. After having two new alloys and tyres fitted the car would at low speeds 50-60 act similar to what you describe. Above 65-70 it would feel unstable as at the lower speed but also like I had a massage seat (vibrations through the chassis but not the stearing). From 80-110 it would feel like the car was going to fly apart and above 110-120 it would be perfect!

After multiple trips to the garage to have the wheels/tyres re balanced they eventually turned round and said there's nothing wrong with them, stop wasting our time. Luckily I had a friend with the same car / wheels and we decided to try his wheels on my car, so we tried swapping them one at a time until we discovered it was one wheel causing all the trouble. I had to take it back to the garage with my friends wheel on, take the boss out to show him it was fine, get them to put mine back on and take him out again to prove it. He couldn't believe it and began to apologise as before they told me to stop wasting their time they had never been out in it.

It turned to to be a faulty tyre and once replaced the car was perfect. It could be you have something similar possibly just not as bad.

  

If you can find another Briskodian near you it may be worth swapping wheels to see what happens.

About 10 years ago I had a Vertra SRI which I had spin out on black ice (extremely crap traction control trying to take control on ice) and smash two alloys when it skidded into the kerb. After having two new alloys and tyres fitted the car would at low speeds 50-60 act similar to what you describe. Above 65-70 it would feel unstable as at the lower speed but also like I had a massage seat (vibrations through the chassis but not the stearing). From 80-110 it would feel like the car was going to fly apart and above 110-120 it would be perfect!

After multiple trips to the garage to have the wheels/tyres re balanced they eventually turned round and said there's nothing wrong with them, stop wasting our time. Luckily I had a friend with the same car / wheels and we decided to try his wheels on my car, so we tried swapping them one at a time until we discovered it was one wheel causing all the trouble. I had to take it back to the garage with my friends wheel on, take the boss out to show him it was fine, get them to put mine back on and take him out again to prove it. He couldn't believe it and began to apologise as before they told me to stop wasting their time they had never been out in it.

It turned to to be a faulty tyre and once replaced the car was perfect. It could be you have something similar possibly just not as bad.

Certainly a worthwhile suggestion. The only thing is that I did feel movement in the O/S front wheel when the car was parked on a slope nose down. I cannot feel any movement when the car is parked level which is bizarre. It felt like the wheel itself was loose, and could be felt by holding the wheel at the 10 - 2 position and gently rocking, a slight clonking could be felt. It could also be felt using one hand at the 12 o'clock position and very little effort. Voila! I thought and instantly got the wheel wrench out and checked the wheel bolts, which were fine. I tried the other 3 wheels and they were solid. I did think wheel bearing, but I have been unable to replicate the symptom when parked at home on the level.

I remember you saying that in an earlier post now, has been a while since I've read all the previous post.

What ever it is pal I hope you can get to the bottom of it. There's nothing takes the shine off your new car like problems

I'm not that close to St Helens, but if you fancy a jaunt over to Rossendale at the weekend we can quite happily compare cars. Mine is on 18" wheels, but that shouldn't make a huge difference in how it feels to drive.

I'm not that close to St Helens, but if you fancy a jaunt over to Rossendale at the weekend we can quite happily compare cars. Mine is on 18" wheels, but that shouldn't make a huge difference in how it feels to drive.

Thanks a lot for the offer, I will bear it in mind,  although I am a little uneasy taking it too far off the beaten track while it's playing up the way it is.

I know it is in ecky thump land, but it isn't that far off the beaten track!

I know it is in ecky thump land, but it isn't that far off the beaten track!

Actually it's not as far as I thought.  My concern is that if something does actually fall off, then i'd prefer to be somewhere near home. Can I mull it over and perhaps let you know later in the week? By the way did you get that fully loaded ex demo car from Simpsons? I seem to recognise that photo. I was looking at that car on Auto trader a couple of months back.

If the car was to turn out to be dangerous, who would be liable at this stage? The dealer for not finding the fault after having the car a total of 3 days or the engineer whom was paid especially to locate the fault? If the car was to fail and cause an accident what then? I've been told by several professionals that it's safe to drive. Could I be held liable?

Edited 4 November, 201312 yr by Leonblue

Actually it's not as far as I thought.  My concern is that if something does actually fall off, then i'd prefer to be somewhere near home. Can I mull it over and perhaps let you know later in the week? By the way did you get that fully loaded ex demo car from Simpsons? I seem to recognise that photo. I was looking at that car on Auto trader a couple of months back.

 

I did, it does have a few extras on it, yes.

If the car was to turn out to be dangerous, who would be liable at this stage? The dealer for not finding the fault after having the car a total of 3 days or the engineer whom was paid especially to locate the fault? If the car was to fail and cause an accident what then? I've been told by several professionals that it's safe to drive. Could I be held liable?

 

Difficult one - but you have had professional opinions that tell you it is perfectly safe, so I would guess that liability is with them.

 

I could meet you somewhere halfway if you know of anywhere suitable at the Manchester end of the East Lancs?

Difficult one - but you have had professional opinions that tell you it is perfectly safe, so I would guess that liability is with them.

 

I could meet you somewhere halfway if you know of anywhere suitable at the Manchester end of the East Lancs?

I'll have a look and get back to you if that's ok?