Dear Skoda brains! 

 

My Octavia's starter motor has stopped working! My investigations have so far taught me several things, including:

 

1/ The starter motor is in an almost inaccessible place.

2/ The Skoda workshop manual says you need 2 special spanners in order to remove it.

3/ I don't have these spanners!

4/ I'm not as agile or as young as I once was.....

 

However, all is not lost..... I initially though the problem was merely a flat battery-it wasn't-so I dug further..... The headlights (such as they are; 35 watt bulbs are not that bright....) weren't going dim when the starter wire was pulled, so I deduced no current was reaching the starter. Closer examination revealed the split pin, on which the arm that swings the live feed pivots, had fallen out of the motor, and couldn't be found on the garage floor. At this point I decided to remove the starter motor, and managed to remove the 17mm nut from the off-side of the starter, using a socket and a very long extension, but the one sandwiched between the starter and the engine block has yet to surrender. 

 

Has anyone ever tackled this job is there any advice out there as to how I ought to proceed?   

5 hours ago, Andyroo! said:

the one sandwiched between the starter and the engine block has yet to surrender.

Have you tried feeding it PlusGas, because it's probably been there for 60 years or so?

A good penetrating/releasing fluid  and patience.  As said PlusGas or GT85, not WD-40 Multi-use, spray (or drip) on generously then leave as long as possible, overnight at least.  Then first try slightly tightening the fixing to break the rust/crud seal and slowly loosen.  If difficult spray (drip) more fluid and tighten a little and loosening more, repeat as required.

 

If you can't loosen the fixing at all, use more patience by starting the process again - soak, leave as long as possible to soak in, and try again.

 

The only time I've failed is when my stock of patience was too low, lesson learnt I don't start unless the stock of patience is full.

 

I prefer GT85 to PlusGas now as GT85 has more uses and PlusGas is made by a different company now and to me doesn't seem as effective.

 

Having put that GT85 is no longer made by a British company but from an invasive American corporation, called WD-40 Company. - https://gt85.co.uk/

 

Edited 20 May, 20224 yr by nta16
spelling

Right then... over two years have passed since I added to this thread, during which I've dealt with a serious medical problem, almost all of which I'm relieved to say is behind me now! Back to the Skoda Octavia..... I didn't have the opportunity to explain how I removed the starter before, for the reasons above, but I can now do so, if this helps any other owners.

1/ In the engine bay, remove the split pin from the gear linkage on the steering column & detach the linking rod, tucking the rod safely out of the way.  

2/ Unscrew the vacuum pipe from the carburettor to the distributor at the carburettor & tuck this away too. 

3/ Remove the metal heater pipe running from the lower radiator hose to the rubber connection to the heater matrix at the bulkhead (2 Jubilee clips)

4/ Unscrew the nuts and bolts holding the exhaust manifold to the down pipe, allowing the down pipe to be pushed lower, to assist in the starter's removal.  

The two 17 mm nuts are now more accessible, at 1 & 7 pm positions. The lower one's just about accessible from under the car using a short reach spanner and the higher one's best removed by an open spanner, lowered between the bulkhead and the engine block. I eventually managed to loosen it a little and then used a 17mm (with two extensions!) to allow me to slowly unscrew the nut. Once the nuts are off I tapped the starter motor with. rubber mallet & it detached from the block. I was the able to wiggle it out. 

 

In a day or so I'll continue the saga of obtaining a new starter & fitting it. It's all good news! 

Having removed the starter motor I confirmed the problem was that the pin on which the staring lever pivoted had, indeed, somehow become detached. I attempted to find a similar pin that might fit, but to no avail and I eventually decided to bite the bullet and buy a new starter motor. At this stage I made contact with www.pragos.cz who are just brilliant when it comes to finding parts for the really old Skodas. They sell the starter motors on an exchange basis, so I posted my non-working one and awaited my new one, which was duly returned quite quickly. Incidentally, the Czech Republic is now a member of the E.U., and the United Kingdom isn’t, but this made no difference whatsoever to the delivery of both my old starter to the Czech Republic or my new one to the United Kingdom!

 

Right then, now let’s fit it to the engine…… It slotted into the place where the old one had been without a problem, but the tightening of the nuts proved every bit as difficult as they had been when I removed them. I could only tighten them a few degrees at a time, which was somewhat frustrating, and rather like cycling to Pluto, but over time I could feel the nut going onto the thread. I took a breather when I saw the stub of the bolt come through the other end of the nut-phew-and I subsequently just kept going. It took for ever, but eventually it started to become tighter and finally it became tight against the engine block. Once I was happy they were as tight as I could make them I clipped the wire over the lever and wired the car to a spare battery. I confirmed the ignition system in the car was working and tested the lights, indicators and fan before pulling on the starter wire……AND IT TURNED OVER! I knew it wouldn’t start, but I was reassured the block hadn’t seized over the year the car hadn’t been touched. I then tightened the securing nuts still further, as the action of operating the starter had shaken the bolts a little.

 

I’ve ordered a complete gasket set and will be replacing the exhaust and lower water pipe gaskets before reconnecting the various items I disconnected or removed in order to remove the starter, before topping up the cooling system again and connecting the fuel system to a 5 litre plastic container, as there’s still a problem with the fuel line. But that’s a battle for another day……

In my endeavours to put things back together I've come across a problem...Blimey, ownership of these cars can be a pain in the proverbial backside sometimes! The gear linkage went back together fine, but the exhaust manifold to down pipe bolts have had it. I've four holes in the down pipe, but only two holes in the exhaust manifold; the other two are blocked by two bolts, which I'm certain are the original ones put there when the car was built. I've tried the trick of putting 2 nuts on the thread and using one to remove the bolt, but all this did was strip the thread. After some consideration I reckon the only way to remove the offending bolts will be to remove the exhaust manifold from the engine block and drill them out.

 

On a more positive note I've bought a new set of new (old stock) door and ignition locks. The original ones fitted to the car were fine, but I some 3 years ago I sent the keys off to a specialist locksmith for an extra set, only to lose them as a result of a postal error! But, thanks to Skoparts I've both a new door lock and key, and a new ignition switch and key. Incidentally, in the 1965 "Motoring Which" report on then Skoda Octavia Super, they noted the "stout double lock" on the driver's door, but of the 5 cars being tested with it, the Skoda was by far the easiest for their "thief" to break into.....