Not having a lot of luck with my Fabia I've just bought second hand. I've just done the 200 mile drive to my parents in it for christmas - the first proper run in it and I've noted afterwards that the oil has gone from max down to half way on the dipstick, I've lost about 300-400 mL coolant and there is a thick bright yellow sludge/emulsion on the inside of the oil filler cap. I assume this must mean a cracked head/head gasket? The engine seems to be running ok although I think it is a bit hesitant to what I expected for a 100 bhp engine. The main Skoda dealer did a ECU check this week and didn't report any problems. I'll get it booked in for after christmas, I just hope it lasts for the journey back. It has only got 33,000 miles on it so it seems a bit ridiculous to go that soon - I thought the 1.4 8v had a dodgy head gasket and had assumed that the more modern 16v engine would have been ok.

Cheers, for any opinins.

have you got any sort of smoke out of the exhaust , as that would be a sure sign of an engine/head gasket concern

Have you seen any oil mixing with your water/antifreeze?

According to the car bibles there is another reason it could be mayonnaising.

Read this

It's something I'm keeping a close eye on as my Felicia is mayonnaising usually on shortish runs when its been fired up from cold but long trips are ok or when its been running a whilst.

No dips in fuel economy and even my oil/water levels seem fine with no mixing.

Thanks for the tips. I've not noticed any smoke, but I've been mostly driving in the dark. The engine starts first time but perhaps sounds a little diesely when cold. I got 40 mpg on a whole tank of mixed town/motorway driving and got 45.3 mpg according to the trip computer on the non-stop 200 mile drive last night at 70 ish mph, and as I mentioned it didn't show up anything on the computer/ECU check at the Skoda dealer. It is hard to have a good look at the coolant in the expansion tank as the tank is slightly opaque, but it looks clean. The car was meant to have been serviced when I bought it (but the supplying garage is seeming increasingly to be a bit Arthur Daley bent) so the oil should still be relatively young and therefore moisture free. Any more thoughts? Cheers.

Thanks for the tips. I've not noticed any smoke, but I've been mostly driving in the dark. The engine starts first time but perhaps sounds a little diesely when cold. I got 40 mpg on a whole tank of mixed town/motorway driving and got 45.3 mpg according to the trip computer on the non-stop 200 mile drive last night at 70 ish mph, and as I mentioned it didn't show up anything on the computer/ECU check at the Skoda dealer. It is hard to have a good look at the coolant in the expansion tank as the tank is slightly opaque, but it looks clean. The car was meant to have been serviced when I bought it (but the supplying garage is seeming increasingly to be a bit Arthur Daley bent) so the oil should still be relatively young and therefore moisture free. Any more thoughts? Cheers.

One thing about the changing oil level, my wife's Polo with the BBY 1.4 16V 75PS engine uses a bit of oil, but I've noticed that while I can just remove the dip stick from my V6 Passat and read off the level, with the Polo, I need to wipe the dip stick to reveal the proper level as even its left for 48 hours, the indicated oil level will still be a lot higher up the dip stick.

I get that in mine

its a 3.5l sump and it shows as just higher than the max oil mark on my dipstick.

Not that it's affected the running.

Unless you have a good torch it's going to be really hard to check under the boinnet at night time.

I find checking the oil level in our Lupo with the 100BHP 16v is a nightmare, as the oils creeps up the dipstick.

Depending on the age of car, the mileage could be low which could also mean the car has only been used for short journeys before you got it. Short journeys will cause condensation in the engine, which leads to the goop on the oil filler. I dont think the gasket has gone, especially at such low mileage, if it has you will have oil in the coolant and the car will smoke a lot.

I think you may just have a leak somewhere, possibly the sump plug. Check under the car in the sump area for signs of oil.

Thanks for the advice, I've just done the 185-mile drive back home and have definitely lost about 1 - 2 cm in height of fluid from the engine coolant expansion tank (both readings taken when the engine is cold) and there is yellow gunk around the oil filler cap even after having cleaned it before setting off. The engine seemed to run ok and there was no obvious signs of steam/oil or other smoke from the exhaust either under acceleration or engine braking. I even managed to get 50.1 mpg according to the trip computer for the trip. Anyway it is booked into the local Skoda dealers next week to get checked out, I'll report back.