Had a service and fuel filter change last week. by a private garage so i understand the parts are non OEM but should work.

The car took a long time to start this morning, when turning the key in the ignition. I noticed a dripping from just in front of the front wheel (from the mud flap). this liquid was clearly fuel., when opening the bonnet I could see the same liquid all over and under the filter housing.

I took to a local mechanic, he said its a known issue on VW, and he uses the original seal if swapping the filter, but if the mechanic wasn't aware he has done the normal thing of fitting filter and seal.

 

The mechanic who did the work last week is away now for a week.

 

Is there anything i can do? resit the seal? nip to euro car parts and pick anything up ?

I have zero mechanical knowledge, The filter housing is at the front driver side and has 4 pipes coming from it, with 4(if i recall) star screws - i have various tools so getting this bit off is ok, but whats after that? and could i end up doing more damage then taking to another garage on Monday local to my work?

 

 

Don't drive it until you can get it sealed properly as the fuel dripping on the aux belt can cause it to come off and in turn take out the cambelt causing complete engine failure.

 

You can try undoing the bolts to see if the seal is damaged in anyway.  Here is a you tube guide which may help as there are different variations of the filter but the principal of removal is the same.

 

ok, ill have a look at vid.. if i only remove the top cover to check the seal do i till need to prime the fuel lines? or is that only if a complete swap over? (i dont have VCDS or the cable to run it)

 

Ill need to drive it monday about 10miles to the garage.

If / after they fix it can anything be done to clean/wash any fuel from the belts? 

Edited 15 July, 20178 yr by t3rm3y
edits

No need to prime unless you are changing the fuel filter for a new one.

 

If the aux belt is contaminated ask for a new one to be put on for peace of mind.

 

By the way what diesel model do you own as only common rail engine needs vcds to prime as Pd engine is self priming.

its a 1.6 and from looking at the great sticky thread on engine models etc ,it seems other then the greenline there is only one 1.6 made.

The aux belt is hard to get to isnt it? dont they usually want to do cam belt and aux together? 

Being a 1.6, it will common rail so you will need vcds to prime the filter if you were getting a new one fitted.

 

You don't need to do the cambelt at the same time as the cambelt is expensive to change but the aux belt is normally changed at the same time as it is only £10 for the belt and no extra labour to change.

When you do eventually change the cambelt, make sure the water pump is changed at the same time. Water pump failure is not uncommon on the 1.6 engine. When mine failed it went from a drip to an open tap in less than eight miles. The cam belt was changed at the same time as the coolant will have caused damage to the belt.

Have a good look at the rim of the filter canister with the lid off.  It's not unknown for an unskilled mechanic to lever the lid off with a screwdriver driven into the gap between the can and the lid if the lid seems to be stuck on.  That can damage the sealing surfaces and cause leaks.

As said above, be wary of driving it. My sister ended up needing a new engine in her 1.6 Octy after dealer service because of the issue you describe. 

5 hours ago, skodacarman said:

Have a good look at the rim of the filter canister with the lid off.  It's not unknown for an unskilled mechanic to lever the lid off with a screwdriver driven into the gap between the can and the lid if the lid seems to be stuck on.  That can damage the sealing surfaces and cause leaks.

I did note a notch in the top of the filter casing(didn't take lid off) it looks as though the notch should be there asas doesn't look like recently created or made with a screw driver but now you say this I am a litter weary. I haven't taken lid off though as concerned about the aux belt so rather get a mechanic to look tomorrow and seal with the outcome. 

ok, so i had to take it to a halfords auto centre for check up and repair. They advised that the seal was split, and the housing was corroded. i need to collect it and ask some questions about what would cause the corrosion.

They think they have stopped the leak, but if returns they have advised the fuel filter casing will need replacing, and quoted over £350. 

 

Could anyone advise the part for the casing so i can see costs for part. doesnt look like a massive job as its all at the front and easy to get to. 

3 hours ago, t3rm3y said:

ok, so i had to take it to a halfords auto centre for check up and repair. They advised that the seal was split, and the housing was corroded. i need to collect it and ask some questions about what would cause the corrosion.

They think they have stopped the leak, but if returns they have advised the fuel filter casing will need replacing, and quoted over £350. 

 

Could anyone advise the part for the casing so i can see costs for part. doesnt look like a massive job as its all at the front and easy to get to. 

I also work for Halfords auto centre, but have never ever changed a fuel filter housing on an Octy, don't get me wrong they do corrode but it's only surface corrosion on the outside, it in no way effects the seal. I also fill the housing with fresh fuel when i change the filter; doing this means you don't need to use VCDS to prime the system.

 

The corrosion is caused by age and heat from under the bonnet, this makes the thin layer of paint peal. On my old octy i just took the housing off, sanded the surface corrosion off and repainted it satin black, was good as new.

Take a picture of the sticker on the fuel filter housing...

 

Some people aren't very careful when removing the fuel filter housing lid, it is important to apply equal pressure in multiple positions around the rim to properly distribute the pressure...

 

Always, always replace the seals...

 

 

 

 

 

What works for me when refitting the filter lid is 4 small sets of mole grips around the top applying equal pressure while screwing it down, doing it this way i have never had them leak, and yes always use the new seals provided.

2 hours ago, Ju1ian1001 said:

What works for me when refitting the filter lid is 4 small sets of mole grips around the top applying equal pressure while screwing it down, doing it this way i have never had them leak, and yes always use the new seals provided.

I'll try and get a photo. The mechanic did say he sanded it down to bear metal but will likely corrode and doesn't know how long will last. He did say it appeared to be surface corrosion.- paint peeling etc. But due to metal being rough and uneven they suspect this damaged the seal.

I have to drive a fair amount of miles for work so am worried that pressure may cause leak to reoccur- do you think this may not happen ass they have wire brushed it and smoothed it down? (Obviously without seeing it).

One mechanic did say he doesn't use the new seals but uses the original due to poor fitting. 

 

59 minutes ago, t3rm3y said:

I'll try and get a photo. The mechanic did say he sanded it down to bear metal but will likely corrode and doesn't know how long will last. He did say it appeared to be surface corrosion.- paint peeling etc. But due to metal being rough and uneven they suspect this damaged the seal.

I have to drive a fair amount of miles for work so am worried that pressure may cause leak to reoccur- do you think this may not happen ass they have wire brushed it and smoothed it down? (Obviously without seeing it).

One mechanic did say he doesn't use the new seals but uses the original due to poor fitting. 

 

Where the seal sits is inside the housing and is bare metal, where there is contact with fuel here it can't corrode. Using the old seal is bad practice and lazy, it's been disturbed on removal which can damage it, this can cause an airleak which can cause rough running, or even stop the engine from starting.

 

As you have seen my method already, i don't have a problem with the new seals, equal pressure all around and the new seals fit as they should.

I feel your pain mate with all this I really do and can so very relate. Last August I had my car serviced at an Indy and they incorrectly removed and resealed the fuel housing lid. So much so, it literally ****** out all over the car park when I went for lunch after the service. Needless to say, I went straight back and the bloke ahem "tried" to reseal it only for it to leak again. Made all the excuses under the sun but didn't once mention he may have bent the lid and actually, be at fault. Had to leave it all the bank hol for 3 days until the garage owner was available to fix it. The withdrawal was strong.

 

Best bit, when my mate initially phoned him (his recommendation so knew him as opposed to myself) he said 'I can't do anything right now I'm on my way out to play footie'!!

 

Similar to you, the guy did mention corrosion on the inside and paint peeling ect (car is 6 years old like). He sounded like a pansy on the phone saying he had to 'prioritise' the car and go in bank holiday Mon and sand all the inside out and put some special gunk on and fit a new seal bla bla. He was trying to pass on the bkame saying if it fails I'd have to buy and pay labour for a full filter housing. Yeah ******* right pal.

 

Don't get services done on a Sat at half a day speed job as clearly they rushed it to maximise profits and didn't use 'reasonable care & skill'. Don't go off mates recommendations either. Lesson bloody learnt!!

 

I hope you will be able to sort this and maybe come to an agreement with the original chap who carried out the work. Tbh, I hear this is a common issue but a garage as in my scenario that denies it, obviously lacks the expertise. 

 

One last thing, if you haven't considered it already, deffo look into getting your aux/cambelt changed ect. I rang skoda and aired my concerns. The reply was straightforward, any slight chance of diesel on belt and it snaps, engine write off. I had to bring cambelt change 12 months forward but peace of mind eh.

 

Good luck matey I can imagine how annoyed you are with all this.