May well have done something stupid, but bought a 2008 Octavia RS manual. It's sight unseen, no records, around 170k.

Besides fluids, what else should I check/pay specific attention to? A quick Google yielded a few camchain/tensioner issues which I'm still not sure about; is there a way to identify if this is a potential culprit? Is an early 2008 model in the troublesome range? Any other potential terminal things to check?

 

Wouldn't mind trying a track day or two, and use it for occasional boring commute.

 

Thanks.

Shoulda said, 160k (kilometres).

 

Hi mate, 

 

Needless to say, Oil and filter, Air and pollen filter, fuel filter (this could be a t*#t so make sure your not relying on the car!) 

Plugs 

Cam follower

Updated diverter valve

New PCV

Cambelt and pump

Camchain and Tensioner (only small but still a £500 job same as the cambelt)

 

Done all of the above on mine and fitted an oversized Ramair filter in mine which sounds amazing and improved the sound and drivabilty immensely, bit childish I know. 

 

I'll be selling mine soon otherwise a stage 1 remap is a must, feel quite lardy and sluggish in standard form. 

 

 

 

 

Oh and you'll hear the chain, especially when it's cold outside!

Thanks, Alan.

I actually got really lucky....I bought it from an auction (no inspections allowed at the moment) and was told all service manuals get tossed to protect prior owner's details. Well, this one had the books and it has a full VW service history from new! Cam belt was changed on time, and a quick look-over today made me a happy man. Serviced this year, only a few thousand ks ago.

Next, just need to jump through registration hoops. Hoping it passes, then on the road! Sound system was better than anticipated, Pirellis are near new and Xenon lights were a nice surprise. Once sorted, I'll share more.

 

Xenon's?? Well that's rare, winner. Sounds like it's been looked after!!

 

Assuming your is a petrol?? How much did you pay if you don't mind me asking? 

Yeah, petrol. I'm not willing to disclose exact dollars, but perhaps half of what other similar cars sell for. Though, it does have minor panel damage.

It's the combo of manual and wagon that really sold it; hard to find manual mid-size wagons in Aus

Why can't you say what you paid for it?

 

It's 12 years old so is unlikely to give the taxman something you chase you with or turn the neighbours green with envy! 😂

Re price, it's just one of those things that aren't the most comfortable for us to share.

Ie, what's your annual salary and net worth? Prob not something you want to share publicly, and I get it. 

There's risk in buying at an auction sight unseen, and I think I did ok out of it. Registration is killer here (over $1000 per year), so that needs to be factored in too.

For the record, I had a bit of an interior smell and did a bit of Googling......turns out the sunroof drain hoses were partially blocked and front footwell carpet was damp. They're super-easy to access, and easy to flush......pretty confident it's sorted now, though didn't assess if there are rear drains or if they're functioning properly.

 

So far, really enjoying it. Stereo is far better than anticipated and so is the engine's mid-range; third gear is brilliant around town. My 2 year old is already requesting 'Dada, fast?'!

 

Quick question, can anyone confirm if these cars (Mk 2, RS, petrol, manual) have a dual mass flywheel?

 

Thanks.

3 hours ago, craftthirst said:

So far, really enjoying it. Stereo is far better than anticipated and so is the engine's mid-range; third gear is brilliant around town. 

 

Thanks.

I always thought the MK2 stereo was basic unless you have an upgrade. 3rd gear puts a real smile on your face, particularly if you have just traded up from a diesel/slower car. As you'll already know, even if it's not mapped, it pulls smoothly and strongly through to the red line.  

3 hours ago, craftthirst said:

For the record, I had a bit of an interior smell and did a bit of Googling......turns out the sunroof drain hoses were partially blocked and front footwell carpet was damp. They're super-easy to access, and easy to flush......pretty confident it's sorted now, though didn't assess if there are rear drains or if they're functioning properly.

 

So far, really enjoying it. Stereo is far better than anticipated and so is the engine's mid-range; third gear is brilliant around town. My 2 year old is already requesting 'Dada, fast?'!

 

Quick question, can anyone confirm if these cars (Mk 2, RS, petrol, manual) have a dual mass flywheel?

 

Thanks.

They do indeed, mixed opinions on converting to single mass depending on gearbox. I'd stick with a DMF is you need to change.

 

You need a Stage 1 and apparently you'll notice a huge difference, these engines are well held back in standard form.

Unsure if the stereo is standard (it looks like it is), but it has front door tweeters and also looks to have them in the rear too. 

Thanks, Alan, re DFM. Had the clutch slip once in an aggressive 2nd gear pull, but appears to be an anomaly (perhaps I had inadvertently rested my foot on the clutch). 

Even though there's nothing special to see, I'll attempt to put up a few pics, and get one of the stereo.

Pretty certain it's got 8 speakers; that sound right? I think down-under we got different specs to abroad (tyre pressure sensors, heated seats, cruise, tinted windeows etc) standard; does that sound right? 

Nothing exciting, but here she is. 

Nice!