Hello everyone.!. I recently bought a 2001 1.4 mp1 fabia in black magic, but i'm just in the middle of getting the head gasket/waterpump replaced {common faults?} although the car is mostly good apart from the mentioned faults it does have a bit of a lumpy tickover. fluctuates between 800- 1000 rpm, is this normal or could it be connected with head gasket. Any info would be appreciated. [/b]

Hello everyone.!. I recently bought a 2001 1.4 mp1 fabia in black magic, but i'm just in the middle of getting the head gasket/waterpump replaced {common faults?} although the car is mostly good apart from the mentioned faults it does have a bit of a lumpy tickover. fluctuates between 800- 1000 rpm, is this normal or could it be connected with head gasket. Any info would be appreciated. [/b]

Hello and welcome

I have one and haven't suffered from lumpy tickover. That said, it was a little less joyful than usual this morning in the freezing temperature.

There are lots of knowledgeable people on here though

Mo

Only in that water pump failure can often cause head gasket failure I think.

An uneven tickover to that extent sounds unusual; maybe a problem with the idle controller?

thanks for the info , i will see what its like when i get it back from having the head gasket/waterpump done.

sime.

The lumpy tickover is partly down to the MPi engine being quite old-fashioned. I gather it was originally designed to tick over at higher revs, but emissions controls mean that the idle has been slowed right down, to the point where the engine is on the brink of stalling. Hence it sometimes 'hunts' a little for the correct idle speed. Having said this, replacing the coolant temp sensor on my wife's car (because the temp gauge occasionally didn't work) also seems to have made the idle much smoother - only the odd shudder, even in the cold weather we're having at the moment. Unless it's going to be done as part of your gasket / water pump work, I'd suggest considering swapping yours for a new one; not least as a blown head gasket can be a sign that it's overheated without the driver knowing about it. It's an easy DIY job, and should only set you back about 25 quid...

HTH

thanks apOgee, i will certainly bear it mind,

sime.

Have to disagree with Ap0gee's "old tech engine" thesis; my first new car was a Citroen ZX 1.4 (engine being a mono-point injection EMS conversion of a carbie Simca unit from the late 1960s) which had a dead-even idle (Haynes spec 850+/-50, and same for carbie version) .

Welcome to Briskoda simefab

Have to disagree with Ap0gee's "old tech engine" thesis; my first new car was a Citroen ZX 1.4 (engine being a mono-point injection EMS conversion of a carbie Simca unit from the late 1960s) which had a dead-even idle (Haynes spec 850+/-50, and same for carbie version) .

Hey, I'm just repeating what other people on here have said! It's seems sensible 'cos a tiny bit of throttle (up to just over 1000 rpm) smooths out the engine vibrations nicely. But you never know - maybe it's a self-perpetuating myth on this forum...

I'd agree with ap0gee myself, it is pretty normal for the MPi to have a little shake at base idle, alot I think to do with emissions and low air speed at idle, wont be due to an idle air control valve as it doesnt have one but sometimes a basic setting on the throttle body with diagnostic equipment can help.

Water pumps leak and headgaskets are common, but ok once replaced with the modified gasket.

Always do the cheapest and easiest things first, clean the the throttle body and see if it improves.

Apparently the garage who supplied me with the car have told me that the garage who are doing the repairs have done the head gasket/ waterpump and are now replacing the piston liner seals aswell!. ( i'm not too concerned as i'm not having to pay for this repair due to the supplying garage paying). anyone else had these seals replaced or know anything about them?

It depends on who you read, but some people will advise replacing wet liner seal rings whenever you have the head off the engine; others will say "only if you disturb the liners", say by moving or removing the pistons.

Hello folks, got car back today and all seems well (touching the biggest piece of wood i can find!!). goes better and the idle is a little less rough. garage also replaced all the core bungs in the head too. still gunna give the throttle body a blast of carb cleaner just to say ive done it,it may improve matters a bit but i think its livable. Now the management lights appeared on me 1.8t octy the good old pressure loss bettween turbo and throttle valve malarky!!. where do i start?.