Hi

What should the temp guage run at when up to normal running temperature ? I've had an ongoing starting problem with my Felicia in that frequently when stopping for fuel or shop etc when engine hot or cold it will not start ! It fires but you end up having to leave it for 1/2 hour or more after which it starts no problem . I finally took it too an ex Skoda dealer at the weekend who thinks it's the thermostat housing and temp sensor . Thing is it's had a new pattern housing off ebay which is modified to eliminate the probs with the originals but only runs at around the 70 mark on the temp gauge . They say this is too low and confuses the engine management into flooding the engine but as i pointed out it happens even if the cooling fan has just been on in traffic or when the engine is cold . They tried a different temp sensor as it happened at the garage to no effect and i have also tried a secondhand sensor with no result . I don't want to throw money away and am sceptical that this is the problem , any opinions be great as i'm about at the end of my tether with it . The cars just not usable apart from going to work and back and stopping for fuel is a nightmare as i end up pushing it off the pumps and waiting for 1/2 hour ! .

Steve

I think consensus seems to be approx half-way up the gauge but it can differ between cars, and as I just found out changing the instrument panel itself can affect the level shown (but last instrument panel could have been faulty).

Any idea when the valve clearances were last adjusted?

Valve clearences were last done 2 years ago when it had a new head gasket , is this something i should check . To be honest i couldn't tell you if they are noisy or not as the timing chain rattles that loud ! What should the clearences be please and i'll check it out .

The dealer mentioned something he called ' Paper shop syndrome ' where they don't start when nipping to the shop etc and said they often used to experience it when doing MOT's etc if you stalled the engine they wouldn't start . He said that Skoda said it was a software glitch that they never got to the bottom of but still felt in my case it was likely to be the thermostat etc . Anyone heard of this prob before ?

Valve clearances would definitely be a good start. It's not such a bad job if you fancy a try yourself.

I think sometimes it's done 0.2mm all round. Could be inlet 0.2mm and exhaust 0.25mm.

Richard Black posted a great guide on how to do it without feeler gauges here http://briskoda.net/forums/felicia-fun-forman/proud-owner-tractor/99064/#post1143814

Easiest way to turn the engine is to jack up front driver's side wheel with the car in 5th and turn the wheel

The dealer mentioned something he called ' Paper shop syndrome ' where they don't start when nipping to the shop etc...

This is familiar to me! Typically when taking off from work and stopping shortly at a shop after just a few minutes. Then the engine refuses to start unless I give it just a little throttle (as if it was an old carb engine). This happens both in my Felicia and in SWMBO's Octavia 1.6.

Well, you've probably tried this trick already.

You say that your temp gauge runs at around 70 which indeed is a bit low. Does it never go above that - not even when the fan cuts in? If so, it could mean that the gauge just give an incorrect value but it could also be the sensor, Sounds a bit unlikely, though, if you've tested two different ones.

Another possiblity is if the coolant system has not been bled correctly, i.e. engine ran with coolant cap left off. This may mean coolant does not run across the temp sensor, but would usually result in poor cold starting I think.

Mine never leaves 70c and always starts perfectly. It does rise to about 100, then the fan kicks in, when in traffic

It does rise to about half way in traffic at which point the fan cuts in so maybe the gauge reads a bit low . When it fails to start it does fire and run roughly for a few seconds but touching the throttle has no effect at all . The only thing you can do is leave it and try again in about 1/2 hour ! It never seems to smell of fuel when it happens so i doubt its flooded , i've been wondering if its actually being starved of fuel . You can hear the pump run when you turn the key and i've tried both keys just in case it is the immobiliser transponder in the key . I'll try bleeding the system and adjusting the tappets , and do you think its worth fitting a new timing chain and sprockets as it rattles its head off ?

Thanks for the replies so far .

Steve

I would try a new coil pack, it sounds as if the spark is not very good

The dealer mentioned something he called ' Paper shop syndrome ' where they don't start when nipping to the shop etc

I'm also all too familiar with this, it was as though my feli was only firing on 1 or 2 cylinders and revs wouldn't pick up, after a minute or two it would start normally.

Hasn't happened since i fit new spark plugs.

well its a 1.3 so you'll be thrashing the living life out of it so i'd say HOT!! :D:D

reminds me of a mitsi colt i had with a front seazed disk! i pulled up at my mates and it looked like a rally car glowing red, thought it might melt the alloy. lol

well its a 1.3 so you'll be thrashing the living life out of it so i'd say HOT!! :D:D

reminds me of a mitsi colt i had with a front seazed disk! i pulled up at my mates and it looked like a rally car glowing red, thought it might melt the alloy. lol

LOL!

Actually, with the 1.3 mpi- you need it to be running cool so it overfuels slightly;)

best way to do this is to rag it til you blow the thermostat out its housing:thumbup:

Update so far . I've checked the valve clearences and i've fitted another coil pack but its still doing it ! I removed the sparkplugs to see if they were wet but they were bone dry , almost seems like fuel starvation . It fires but won't run . Really getting fed up with it now , i'd sell it but how can you when its doing this !

Steve

I guess that leaves spark plugs. Also possibly the fuel filter, fuel pump (although not sure why those would fail to work only when the car is warm and stopped, but return to normal later). A sensor of some description, temp sender, air flow sensor or wiring somewhere.

Duff Stepper? - Maestro & Montego Owners Club makes some reference to the temp sender in the 5th post for "paper shop syndrome".

If it were the coolant not covering the temp sensor, running the engine with the coolant cap off for a while (could drape a cloth over to help prevent splashes onto paint work, possibly with the front of the car a little higher, till the fan has cut in then squeezing and massaging the pipes to try force any air out of the system could help. Stop engine after it's run a little bit.

Thanks for that , i'll try a set of plugs next . You can hear the fuel pump run when you turn the key and i removed the fuel pipe to check fuel was coming through . Was messing around with it all morning , you could have it running on the drive then turn the engine off and try to restart immediately but it would not go no matter how much you tried until about 1/2 hour had passed . It has been plugged it to the comp at the Skoda specialist , would this have found a faulty sensor ? . Coolant level looks ok but i'll try bleeding it as well .

Steve