AnnoyingPentium's Adventures - Fabia Fettling and Other Nonsense

[RoverFolkUs]

I'd get all four balanced, although if you're soon swapping the wheels around again then obviously balance them then otherwise it'll be a waste of time!

Failing that could be driveshafts out of balance

TLDR; just another can of worms and parts cannon waiting to be loaded 😂

[AnnoyingPentium]

1 minute ago, RoverFolkUs said:

Failing that could be driveshafts out of balance

TLDR; just another can of worms and parts cannon waiting to be loaded 😂

There is an unidentified clunk coming from the front over bumps and when pulling into the driveway etc. Great... more money. Yay. 🥲

[RoverFolkUs]

12 minutes ago, AnnoyingPentium said:

There is an unidentified clunk coming from the front over bumps and when pulling into the driveway etc. Great... more money. Yay. 🥲

Drop link, lower ball joint, ARB D bushes, top mount, etc etc ....! 

[AnnoyingPentium]

2 minutes ago, RoverFolkUs said:

Drop link, lower ball joint, ARB D bushes, top mount, etc etc ....! 

It's falling to bits. Bloody Skoda. 🥲

Probably needing some brake related shite done too, brakes do seem a bit spongey recently.

[RoverFolkUs]

"just bloody scrap it m8" 😉

[AnnoyingPentium]

Just now, RoverFolkUs said:

"just bloody scrap it m8" 😉

Oh I've been tempted... CTB will only take £293 for it, and this was the result from some other cheeky cunts. 🤣

[RoverFolkUs]

Oh dear, that'll be due to location.. although £293 doesn't sound horrifically low for a little Fabia. A Focus will weigh in for about £350 at the moment as a general idea

[AnnoyingPentium]

4 minutes ago, RoverFolkUs said:

Oh dear, that'll be due to location.. although £293 doesn't sound horrifically low for a little Fabia. A Focus will weigh in for about £350 at the moment as a general idea

For what I paid for it, I think I'll fix it as much as I can first of all. It'd be an awful kick to the balls if I were to scrap it given that it could all be rather small matters behind the faults at hand. At least if I can get it good enough to feel that I'm in a position to sell it with a clear conscience then aye, that's exactly what I'll do.

Will maybe go back to Performance in Ayr (been fitting tyres for us for years) and see if they'll do a balance and tracking... then bomb it up the A78 towards Ardrossan or something to get a feel of what it's like again.

[RoverFolkUs]

17 minutes ago, AnnoyingPentium said:

For what I paid for it, I think I'll fix it as much as I can first of all. It'd be an awful kick to the balls if I were to scrap it given that it could all be rather small matters behind the faults at hand. At least if I can get it good enough to feel that I'm in a position to sell it with a clear conscience then aye, that's exactly what I'll do.

Will maybe go back to Performance in Ayr (been fitting tyres for us for years) and see if they'll do a balance and tracking... then bomb it up the A78 towards Ardrossan or something to get a feel of what it's like again.

Well worth persisting with it up to a point, better the devil you know etc 

[AnnoyingPentium]

1 minute ago, RoverFolkUs said:

Well worth persisting with it up to a point, better the devil you know etc 

It's a good car really, or at least I tell myself that. It's just pushing 63k miles, cheap tax, cosmetically isny too fucked, etc etc. It gets me fae Point A to Point B... most of the time. If it wasn't the way it is, then I'd have fuck all to write about. 🤣

[RoverFolkUs]

2 minutes ago, AnnoyingPentium said:

It's a good car really, or at least I tell myself that. It's just pushing 63k miles, cheap tax, cosmetically isny too fucked, etc etc. It gets me fae Point A to Point B... most of the time. If it wasn't the way it is, then I'd have fuck all to write about. 🤣

Well yep that is definitely true about if it wasn't the way it is! 😅

[AnnoyingPentium]

We have progress. The car of many problems now has fewer problems.

Today was a day of progress. Knocked the rear drums off, tidied and adjusted them. Then went into the car and adjusted the handbrake. Pedal and handbrake feel is miles better but could probably do with a brake fluid change as it's as bright as a blackoot.

In addition to this, I'll look to getting it tracked and balanced once I start working and am paid in order to alleviate the wheel wobble and drifting slightly. Onwards and upwards. Our inwards to the canal, not sure yet. 😂

[big_al_granvia]

you had better be using a axle stand as well as the jack... or even a wheel.... good work mate

[AnnoyingPentium]

Just now, big_al_granvia said:

you had better be using a axle stand as well as the jack... or even a wheel.... good work mate

Thanks Al. It wasn't up for long really, and I had my Grampa giving me a hand in swearing at the thing when the drums wouldn't come off. 😂

I think I'm probably putting too much faith in that jack alone though... especially since it was bought quite a few moons ago lol.

[RoverFolkUs]

[big_al_granvia]

2 minutes or 2 days, put a stand in, your trusting a possy wee 0 ring . your legs are worth more

[RoverFolkUs]

If you're feeling brave, rip those shoes out, remove all the brake dust, grease all the pivot points and the contact points on the backing plate, it'll be ten times better. Back in the day that was a regular service procedure, not any more for some reason.

But drum brakes are spawn of the devil, and if you think you may not remember how it goes back together, even with the other side as reference, it may be best not to touch it any further! 😅

[RoverFolkUs]

I can only echo the axle stand idea. 

Even if it didn't injure you, trying to lift a car that's fallen on the ground without a wheel on is a massive PITA 

[AnnoyingPentium]

3 minutes ago, RoverFolkUs said:

I've got a list at the moment, which is only just beginning to go down. This thread is a warning not to buy a low mileage car though. 😂 It's getting there, my Mum's helping a wee bit with keeping it on the road, thankfully.

1 minute ago, big_al_granvia said:

2 minutes or 2 days, put a stand in, your trusting a possy wee 0 ring . your legs are worth more

Definitely. It's usually up on jack stands or ramps. Regardless of what it's on I don't like or trust being under the car, or having any of me under it, so I tend to stay away from it.

1 minute ago, RoverFolkUs said:

If you're feeling brave, rip those shoes out, remove all the brake dust, grease all the pivot points and the contact points on the backing plate, it'll be ten times better. Back in the day that was a regular service procedure, not any more for some reason.

But drum brakes are spawn of the devil, and if you think you may not remember how it goes back together, even with the other side as reference, it may be best not to touch it any further! 😅

Drums are the bane of my existence really. One of the guys on Briskoda with an SDI swapped his for discs eventually. I don't think I'll be doing that, nor will I probably be taking the fuckers to bits. 😂

[big_al_granvia]

good lad ryan, i was only bollocking you because i give a shit

[AnnoyingPentium]

Just now, big_al_granvia said:

good lad ryan, i was only bollocking you because i give a shit

Cheers, I do appreciate it. I've got axle stands as well for when I require them. I don't do much work at home though since the driveway is all stone chips, just stuff I don't have to jack the car up for. Anything else gets done at my Granda's or my Grampa's since they've got flat ground. Thankfully I've only ever got a flat tyre at my Grampa's in Mauchline. 😂

[RoverFolkUs]

It's more that you could do with being an octopus with drum brakes as it takes more than two hands to hold everything together while trying to stretch a spring in place and/or knock the retaining pin through, all at the same time

Discs are more of a pain as they're more difficult to deal with when they seize up, but they're obviously far more efficient and easier to work on when they aren't seized up!

I don't think there would be any merit on putting a disc brake conversion kit on a Fabia, even if such a thing did exist! (Maybe for the VRS, but I don't know off the top of my head) 

They have as much power and weigh as much as Mavis's motorised Tesco shopping trolley lol so disc brakes on the rear might* be a bit overkill! 

Same applies for aforementioned SDI

[AnnoyingPentium]

12 minutes ago, RoverFolkUs said:

They have as much power and weigh as much as Mavis's motorised Tesco shopping trolley lol so disc brakes on the rear might* be a bit overkill! 

Same applies for aforementioned SDI

I'll PM you over a link to the thread though, he's done some class work.

[Shirley Knott]

@big_al_granviais spot on, get a stand under that! Also, it looks you're jacking on the rear beam, avoid this as I've seen them bend (Ignore me if I'm wrong) Otherwise- Good thread and a heartwarming read. 

The vibration at speed could easily be balancing, but also don't disregard the possibility of a slightly seized front caliper. Get the car in the air and spin both front wheels, even a very small drag on either of the fronts can and will give the exact symptoms you describe, I've seen this time and time again FWIW.

[AnnoyingPentium]

1 minute ago, Shirley Knott said:

@big_al_granviais spot on, get a stand under that! Also, it looks you're jacking on the rear beam, avoid this as I've seen them bend (Ignore me if I'm wrong) Otherwise- Good thread and a heartwarming read.

I reckon you're right (as is Al) and thank you for the kind words. 

I cackle and cringe when I see people jacking these era VAG cars up near the sills. They're made of bloody cheese there, IMO. 

2 minutes ago, Shirley Knott said:

The vibration at speed could easily be balancing, but also don't disregard the possibility of a slightly seized front caliper. Get the car in the air and spin both front wheels, even a very small drag on either of the fronts can and will give the exact symptoms you describe, I've seen this time and time again FWIW.

I'm still throwing about the possibility of a sticky calliper as it would explain a few issues I've been having, but I've got nothing concrete to say so. I think further investigation will be required when I can be arsed/won't get feckin roasted in the sun. 😂

A brand new calliper is £30 as well, music to my ears right there.

[RoverFolkUs]

To rule this sticky caliper idea in or out, get a screwdriver between the disc and caliper and pull towards you as far as possible to retract the piston. Then pump the pedal and check that brake to see if it locks up. If it's fine, it'll be ok and not causing you the bother. They either stick (lightly or completely solid) or they won't. And by allowing the piston to complete (or almost) it's length of travel, that will confirm it. 

Repeat on the other side

In my experience calipers will lock up after pressing the pedal and you'll know about it. As @Shirley Knott says, even if the wheel isn't locked up, if it's dragging and you can distinguish it as the caliper then that will be a problem. If it spins freely it's fine. Calipers don't usually bind intermittently 

[RoverFolkUs]

^^ 

Remember to take the cap off the brake fluid reservoir first! 

It's pretty unlikely to cause damage to the master cylinder, but it could if you left the cap on

[Shirley Knott]

I can definitely say with 100% uncertainty that your vibration/feedback at 65mph+ is either one of the two front wheels out of balance, or a slightly dragging caliper.

Get on it and investigate 👍

[AnnoyingPentium]

4 minutes ago, Shirley Knott said:

I can definitely say with 100% uncertainty that your vibration/feedback at 65mph+ is either one of the two front wheels out of balance, or a slightly dragging caliper.

Get on it and investigate 👍

Excellent. I'm skinto at the moment so free investigations are what's going on at the moment. 😂

[Wibble]

I can only echo what others have said about safety when jacking but you’re doing a great job. Skodas are great cars and yours is well worth persevering with. I’ve no doubt you’ll sort it big man and wish others your age would follow suit!