Hi, I've recently bought a 2012 Octavia 1.6 TDI CR SE Hatchback. The sales guy told me it had a chain and would not need replacing, but just about everyone else tells me that a Diesel Octavia of this age would almost certainly be a belt. Could anyone clear up the confusion for me?

I think all diesels have a belt, only the newer TSI petrols that have chains.

I think all diesels have a belt, only the newer TSI petrols that have chains.

 

Think the Petrol TFSI had a belt and the TSI a chain

Cam belt on 1.6cr Diesel

I think all diesels have a belt, only the newer TSI petrols that have chains.

Chains also on older petrol engined 1.4 mpi . and 1.2 HTP engines.

Chains also on older petrol engined 1.4 mpi . and 1.2 HTP engines.

Sorry, my mistake, I have no experience on those older smaller engines.

Think the Petrol TFSI had a belt and the TSI a chain

Yeah TfSI was belt, just the newer TSI (and some of the older mpi) engines have chains.

_{I emailed the salesman and he is quite insistent that it is a chain - but then he is a salesman not a mechanic! Is there an easy way to tell by just looking under the bonnet?} 

_{I emailed the salesman and he is quite insistent that it is a chain - but then he is a salesman not a mechanic! Is there an easy way to tell by just looking under the bonnet?} 

email the salesman and ask him how often the spark plugs should be changed.  :think:

nither these engines are powered solely by the drivers will

1,6 FSI is chain

Item 1 here.

 

Looks very belty to me.

 

Chain on a diesel would kill itself and its sprockets pretty fast wouldn't it?

The first attachment in the following link shows which engines have cam chains / belts in the mk2 Octavia:

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/320854-octavia-mk2-engines-dpfs-cambelts-oils-brakes-and-servicing-info/?p=3843172

Thanks for all the input - looking very much like Mr Salesman is mistaken. The list in the post above seems to suggest the belt is good for 130,000 miles, which isn't too bad I guess. I seem to remember they used to recommend changing belts after 4 years - 130,000 miles would be more like 8 years for me. Maybe I should be looking at splitting the difference? Anyway, the car is 3 years old with 30,000 on the clock, so looks like I have a while before needing to worry about it!

The list only gives the mileage intervals as per the factory info when I put the list together. The time interval according to Skoda UK is 4 or 5 years depending on when your car was made - 5 years I think for your car with it being a 2012 car.

Item 1 here.

 

Looks very belty to me.

 

Chain on a diesel would kill itself and its sprockets pretty fast wouldn't it?

 

My old Ford Mondeo TDDI had a chain, so that isn't true

My old Ford Mondeo TDDI had a chain, so that isn't true

Fair enough. (Unless it died an early death due to chain failure, but I guess you'd have mentioned that, in the context  )

Fair enough. (Unless it died an early death due to chain failure, but I guess you'd have mentioned that, in the context  )

 

Haha nope, however it got scrapped, along with the second Mondeo I had. One was damaged in a car park by persons unknown, and the other one had 3 out of 4 injectors all go at the same time, plus a whole host of other issues.