OCTAVIA III Owners discussion thread

[Dzl_Dubba]

I'm no engine expert but the 2.0TSI does run quite lean from the factory, could this have anything to do with it?

[brad]

While I agree a solid run in will help for sure, I think this is a legitimate issue. Gerrycan also noted this issue on his car.

My car (with only ~2400k's) is smooth as silk on cold start. No coughs, lumps or shuddering. Although cold start in qld summer is >20 deg C. The engine is so smooth/quiet, its hard to tell its running most of the time, especially at cruise or idle.

You've done 150% more km. That's like night & day with these engines. Truly, when I got mine, for the first 5000km you could feel the engine freeing up with each drive.


Gerrycan has 9000km now so there's probably something happening there. My guess is either a coilpack or spark plug (maybe even the gaps). If it was me, i'd have a sneaky look at the spark plugs & check the gaps are all even and at 0.030" - maybe even tap them back to 0.028". Also, get a scan for any misfires.

I would strongly recomend that you run the fuel down to the fuel warning with each tank for about 4 tanks as well so that the new tank of fuel is as fresh as possible.

[GTR27]

Agree the engine is looser now, revs better, better economy etc. But it has always been perfectly smooth/quiet - even with 16kms on it.

Plug gap, or a coil issue sounds more likely than run in, especially given mine has none of these issues, even when brand spankers.

Edit: I always fill with 98 from a high volume servo.

[vEnOm_oz]

I would suggest you try a different fuel brand as well. My old car (Japanese) had this problem every time I filled up at Caltex, no issues with Shell or BP.

I would strongly recomend that you run the fuel down to the fuel warning with each tank for about 4 tanks as well so that the new tank of fuel is as fresh as possible.

[brad]

I would suggest you try a different fuel brand as well. My old car (Japanese) had this problem every time I filled up at Caltex, no issues with Shell or BP.

Possibly that. I find my economy gets worse with V-Power these days. It used to be the best.

[Gerrycan]

You've done 150% more km. That's like night & day with these engines. Truly, when I got mine, for the first 5000km you could feel the engine freeing up with each drive.


Gerrycan has 9000km now so there's probably something happening there. My guess is either a coilpack or spark plug (maybe even the gaps). If it was me, i'd have a sneaky look at the spark plugs & check the gaps are all even and at 0.030" - maybe even tap them back to 0.028". Also, get a scan for any misfires.

I would strongly recomend that you run the fuel down to the fuel warning with each tank for about 4 tanks as well so that the new tank of fuel is as fresh as possible.

Hi Brad,
General mileage is down recently so the car is only just shy of 7k to date.
Yes I still have the problem with poor throttle control when cold.
Starts first time every time and idle is fine but when I am trying to drive slowly in first gear at around 1200/1500 revs it is very hesitant and seems insensitive to minor throttle adjustments.
When I get to the road and able to accelerate through the gears a couple of times to warm the engine then the problems disappear and I can crawl in traffic in 1st gear with no problems.

I have tried a few consecutive full tanks of 98 octane and more spirited driving but it made no difference (to the problem or the overall very good general running)
I initially thought is was worse in colder weather but I have discounted that.
I did not have the problem when new, but became aware of it at around 2k, and I think I have recently become aware of a rattle noise on in gear overrun during the cold start phase.
There was one isolated incident where I notice the problem was not apparent and the average fuel consumption from start was showing about 2 l/100 better than normal to the end of the road.

I'll have a look at the spark plugs (have not done that for quite a few years, when it was part of my monthly routine to check the contact breakers).
My personal guess is that it is something to do with the EGR.

[99Reza]

Gerrycan: I would watch your issue closely. Despite idling issue during cold run, my car's throttle is very sharp and never have any issue, except for that misfire one time.

[notflyingscot]

Possibly that. I find my economy gets worse with V-Power these days. It used to be the best.

Interesting comment on V Power there Brad. That's my "normal" fuel and I seem to be struggling to get the mpg now I was getting six months ago. Might try a different diet for a few weeks as an experiment.

[GTR27]

Bp ultimate or caltex vortex for me. Even though realistically there are small differences between them all, some vehicles just run better on different fuel.

[GTR27]

What oil temps do others regularly see? Particularly those with the 1.4TSI.

Mine always seems really high (well compared to the mk2 rs I previously had). Pretty much always over 100 deg C - sits between 105-110 for "normal" running. A run up the mountains (and not absolutely manging it, just rolling on corner to corner, going 2K to about 4.5K in revs) easily sees 115-120 deg C. It seems really high compared to pretty much any other car i've had. So much so, i'd be tempted to go up a grade in oil, or fit an oil cooler to bring temps down a little (10deg C would be nice)