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)

[Opie]

Video running on idle Sorry bad sound, but you can see when the needle drops, it sounds and feels like a misfire. I blip the throttle twice and let it come back down.

I have done almost 15000 km on the car, still the same thing, no changes on the idle and jutters whilst sitting in the traffic. Does yours get better after switching on the A/c? Mine does.

I had a misfire once on cylinder 3 whilst driving on the highway, fixed itself right away, not sure if it's related or not.

Hmm I have not noticed any misfire on mine yet, it seems to get better (but not perfect) once warm and with A/C on as far as I can tell its the same.

Pretty much always over 100 deg C

I get around 100-112 I think is the most I have seen.

It believe it has to do with emissions / cold start. Lots of (European) cars do this and I am lead to believe it is normal/acceptable. My old Clio Sport RS172 used to do this and as do current RS Meganes so I wouldn't worry about it.

When I talk to the mechanics they all seem to say the same thing, due to the lower emissions they run on the minimum fuel.

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 use Caltex in all my cars, but the last tank I put shell in and still the same, unfortunately I don't have BP here in ACT (As far as I know)

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.

I will be getting them to look into it if its not gone by 5-8K mark.

[Gerrycan]

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)

Yup pretty much the same.
I was wondering if it was due to the flywire screen I have on the grill but after what you said, obviously not

[GTR27]

Hmmmm. Might ask at service time. In the manual it says over 110 avoid high load/revs. I can get that going up a steep hill. If I gave it lots, I could understand but this is normal driving. I don't believe it should get that high under normal driving conditions.

[brad]

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.

I was addicted to Coles shopper dockets (shareholder & Coles Supermarket was very convenient) for quite some time then after the ACCC intervened & stopped Coles Supermarkets from x-subsidising the Coles fuel (or whatever you call the spend $100 and get 10c off) I noticed that Coles Express was 4c dearer than any other fuel and that V-Power had a higher premium (20c/L compared to 16c) over ULP than other fuel.

I mainly get 7-11 (Mobil) or Caltex Vortex but sometimes slip in one of the bigger, high volume independent offering like Metro (Mobil), etc. On the odd occasion I use V-power I struggle to achieve good results.

I given uip my addiction to shopper dockets & am now addicted to motormouth.com.au

[brad]

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)

Hmmmm. Might ask at service time. In the manual it says over 110 avoid high load/revs. I can get that going up a steep hill. If I gave it lots, I could understand but this is normal driving. I don't believe it should get that high under normal driving conditions.

I wouldn't be overly concerned at that. I think you'll find what they mean by high revs is like sitting up near redline and high load they mean pulling a caravan with 5people & luggage on board.

My "warning Will Robinson" point for full synthetic is 130c. For a race car 150c is common (but they change oil every race)

If you go up a grade then you'll have to drop back to 502.00 spec as 504 is only available in one grade (5w??-30).

I'm not positive about the 1.4tsi but all the other units are fitted with a water/oil heat exchanger. The oil temp is dictated by the water temp. Have a good look - you can probably seal the area around the radiator slightly better & force more air through the radiator.

I think the oil temp gauge is the stupidist thing VW has fitted to a car yet. People worry too much about it. We've all been driving for years with no gauge & didn't give a toss about oil temp.

I'd suggest Used Oil Analysis before making changes. Also, as I've said before, they take 15,000km to run-in. The oil will run slightly hotter on a new engine.