Hello again,

Just fixed a rough running vibration which was the MAP sensor and broken glow plug wire, all was good, but now a few days later this happens.

2009 MY10, MK2, Octavia Scout, 6 spd manual, 2.0tdi, diesel, wagon. 200,000km

Pre-existing very minor problem, but getting worse since yesterday:

1. Noise and Vibration coming from front of car.

2. In gear only AND only under acceleration.

3. Not present at idle or whilst decelerating. You can play with accelerator on and off to make problem come and go.

4. Minor to moderate only, car does not shake.

5. Appears to be a little worse at 1900rpm to 2500rpm, like that's a sweet spot for the problem.

6. You can rev car in neutral, and car revs without problems.

7. Previous mechanic said that car has an oil leak but it was too messy to say what location~. [A mechanic before that said there was a different oil leak which could be from gearbox (not confirmed) but at that time an oil leak from the throttle body housing was fixed]. ~I first noticed this leak from smelling it about 2 months ago. Haven't seen any oil drips on the ground though. - EDIT: unsure if oil leak is part of this problem.

8. Other than this car runs fine.

9. No dash warning lights.

I have nowhere at this point in time to work on the car myself. So, I need to take it to a mechanic. Mechanics in Sydney can get horrifically expensive, AND the ones in my area charge to diagnose ($150 to $200). I need to get as much knowledge about this problem before talking to one.

Any help with a possible diagnosis appreciated. Thanks :-)

Edited 8 August, 20258 Aug by AusAds

It is worth keeping to the original post / thread and adding to it. Just in my opinion.

My 1.6tdi has a wobble/vibration when accelerating worse at 40-50mph. Weird as it randomly is ok. Felt through the seat but not the steering wheel. Have replaced and checked bushing suspension etc and still there. Spoke to a mechanic today and he suggested swapping tyres from rear to front etc and if its still there get a four wheel alignment done plus tyre balancing. If that doesnt work then it might be a damaged drive shaft thats out of balance or worn cv joint.

Alasdair

Thanks. Because of the vibration-problem being instant on/off based on accelerator on off, I doubt it's wheels. I agree that it's more likely cv or driveshaft. It doesn't appear to have worsened since it became worse last week, I might leave it a while [preventive maintenance be damned] and wait for it to get really bad so it's much easier to diagnose.... what's the worst that could happen? lol

8 hours ago, AusAds said:

I might leave it a while [preventive maintenance be damned] and wait for it to get really bad so it's much easier to diagnose.... what's the worst that could happen? lol

I have been waiting for about a year now for mine to get bad enough to diagnose and still no luck. everything is solid and no advises on MOT last month and no visible play in anything. Going to get a 4 wheel alignment done to see if they can shed some light on it and hopefully improve it.

I'll be happy if mine lasts a year without getting much worse, I only plan on having for another ~6 months before getting a newer car. Let me know how the alignment goes.

I reckon an alignment is the next option although tyres are wearing perfectly so not too hopefull. If that doesnt work going to see about getting front drive shafts replaced/reconditioned as its the only thing left to do. Going to swap tyres around first in case its wheel related but just had new tyres plus balancing on front and rears are only 1/4 worn.

Alasdair

Check the rubber couplings on the prop shaft on a Scout or 4x4... They tend to fail and cause a bad vibration at around 2300rpm under acceleration

Thanks, rubber couplings noted.

Are these located near the front of the car? cause that's where I am guessing this vibration is coming from

Usually the coupling at the rear of the propshaft is worse.

But that can mean felt at the front of the shaft.

Inspection required. More expensive leaving things longer & a good competent mechanic involved is not a false economy.

3 hours ago, AusAds said:

Thanks, rubber couplings noted.

Are these located near the front of the car? cause that's where I am guessing this vibration is coming from

There are two on the propshaft from memory - one at the front near the gearbox / transfer case and one at the rear in front of the Haldex coupling. As above the rear one seems to be the one that causes most issues but both can deteriorate.

Skoda will apparently only supply a complete propshaft at a ridiculous cost but the couplings are available individually from third party suppliers and are common across the platform.

Thanks, I might try to get the car one side up on the gutter and crawl under for a look and a wiggle.

Joyful (not) update

Can't get a look under the car myself cause of all the rain.

So, yesterday ave similar symptoms to the fixed first problem (MAP sensor) have come back. Fuel economy according to dashboard got worse, normally the second half of the drive home I get 5.7L/100km, yesterday it was 7.5L/100km, no changes to traffic or route. Then this morning, the fuel economy didn't improve from yesterday, car felt a bit sluggish even after warmed up. So I found some back streets and USED the accelerator to see if I could get the car to trip a warning code (no codes yet), car drove 'ok' until around ~2900rpm and above (when you really feel the turbo kick in) then it started blowing black smoke. Smoke disappeared as soon as I backed off throttle and didn't reappear under normal (quite gentle) driving. --- not certain if this is part of current vibration problem ---

Car currently idles fine and starts without problems. (With previous map sensor problem there were occasional difficulties when starting the car, sometimes at idle whilst cold the car would KUNK KUNK and die).

This car also has the LIMP MODE flashing glow plugs light problem when driving on highway at speeds 90km/hr+, which often means faulty turbo actuator or vanes sticking inside turbo.

1. Can a problem with a dying turbo also cause vibrations as per the problem at the start of this thread, could the turbo be the source of all these problems?

2. a recon turbo replacement here in Sydney will be min $2000 as best case scenario, if I source the part myself but get a mech to install. It's just not worth it for this car. Does the Mr Muscle Oven Cleaner trick actually work or will it destroy seals inside the turbo?

Thanks :-)

Never brave enough to try the MR muscle. If I read up on it correctly its ok on steel but will eat any alloy so you have to be careful when using it. I cant see a failing turbo causing vibration but a sticking actuator or veins will put on the EML or limp mode. Check that the actuator is moving freely. Mine was sticking and car would go into limp mode if I revved it too high when driving.

Thanks for info re mr muscle. I tried to get the last mechanic to spend 10 minutes massaging penetrating oil into the turbo actuator arm but he made up excuses saying it could break, I asked him to do it anyway but he never did.

Might be worth replacing it as they arent that expensive. Have seen some online for around £30

Cant see it breaking and if it does it needs replaced anyway.

Alasdair