Hi,

I bought a second hand Fabia 1.4 16v 100bhp about three months ago... One of the things I've noticed as time has gone on is that the idling is a bit erratic and lumpy - you can feel the car shaking while standing at traffic lights. Another thing I've noticed is that when you pull away or hold the car stationary on a hill with the clutch while stepping lightly on the accelerator it hunts between around 600 to 1100 rpm. But worse than the above is that the car has no mid-range power whatsoever my fiance's little saxo 1.1 has better acceleration from 3rd to 5th!:( It's got me tearing my hair out and slightly embarrassed being passed by grannies on their way to tesco!:eek: Any ideas about what might be causing these problems?

I did take the car back to the dealer I bought it from and he said that the idling issue was normal and that they couldn't find any way of sorting out the hunting. They cleaned the throttle body and checked the vacuum pipes and sent my on my way...

Don't accept no for an answer - if it's warranty work or you've recently bought it you are covered to have it resolved to your satisfaction.

Idling could be normal although I'm surprised about the range of revs - for reasons of emissions effectively the engine is kept at virtually stalling revs.

Didnt think it was 100 bhp either, thought it was more like 60ish of the top of my head (thus probably wrong )

I drive a 1.4 16v as well. You do have to rev its neck off at EVERY gear to get the best performance out. Power come from 2.5k-4k RPM. Gear change from 4th to 5th is crucial, on motorway, don't shift to 5th until you reach 60mph.

Idling could be normal although I'm surprised about the range of revs - for reasons of emissions effectively the engine is kept at virtually stalling revs.

Didnt think it was 100 bhp either' date=' thought it was more like 60ish of the top of my head (thus probably wrong )[/quote']

If it was 60'ish Horspower (68) it the 1.4 8v in which case a lumpy Idle is commonly reported and a dealer will tell you this is normal, and it has absolutley no power below 2.5k RPM (Because it's bored out to a 1.4 from a 1.3) and a 1.1 Saxo will happly pootle on past it as will anything else with a 1.0+ Engine. The 1.4 8v has Its little plus points, but most of the things I can think about it are negative, And I Own one :P

Nope, this is definitely the 100 BHP 1.4 16v elegance with all the goodies - or as many of them as you can get on a Y reg car anyway...