[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by GTO

- Euro diesels are far more robust than the petrols. Fancy new-tech petrols just don't fly on Indian fuel / driving conditions.

The TSI engine from VAG has actually performed pretty well in Indian conditions. The Laura TSI has been on sale since 2009 and the Superb TSI even before that. The Jetta and Polo also have TSI versions and recently the Vento also got the TSI motor. There are many long term Laura TSI/ VRS owners on our forum and IIRC nobody has faced any engine related issues. Superb TSI owners may have been haunted by DSG woes but I don't recollect Indian petrol quality causing any engine related issues.

My Laura TSI has completed 45k kms and apart from regular service my car has never visited the ASC. While in Bangalore I always make it a point to tank up at Shell pumps. During outstation trips I've had to rely on non Shell pumps, but that never affected the car. I must admit I am finicky in picking the pumps. Like I never fill at any highway pump and always look to fill up at pumps where two wheelers are queuing up.

[ajmat]

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

The TSI engine from VAG has actually performed pretty well in Indian conditions. The Laura TSI has been on sale since 2009 and the Superb TSI even before that. The Jetta and Polo also have TSI versions and recently the Vento also got the TSI motor. There are many long term Laura TSI/ VRS owners on our forum and IIRC nobody has faced any engine related issues. Superb TSI owners may have been haunted by DSG woes but I don't recollect Indian petrol quality causing any engine related issues.

The new Octavia TSI engine is different from the one in your Laura and Superb

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by ajmat

The new Octavia TSI engine is different from the one in your Laura and Superb

Yes of course it is. My point was that almost all the iterations of the TSi engine currently doing duty in India are generally reliable and have no issues with the the quality of petrol dispensed by our fuel stations.

[Arjun Reddy]

This time the engine just wont stay on, I would turn the key, car starts, and then shuts off as if it needs CPR! Nothing wrong with the gearbox as the car is not staying on. I think the fuel pump has gone kaput.[/quote]Adi,all said and done. Our forum has discussed the issue and all related issues at length. Has Skoda or their ASS got back to you on your issue?Waiting to hear from you.

[adi_petrolhead]

Apparently the fuel pump had failed. I know its unbelievable in a brand new car, mods pls advise if any other such issues have been heard by you, they had a brand new fuel pump in stock, and it was replaced. The car is working fine now.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by adi_petrolhead

Apparently the fuel pump had failed. I know its unbelievable in a brand new car, mods pls advise if any other such issues have been heard by you, they had a brand new fuel pump in stock, and it was replaced. The car is working fine now.

This is absolutely not acceptable from Skoda and a car that was discontinued and re-launched a decently bug manner and what R&D have Skoda done before this 'come-back' launch?!

Instead of getting customer support and their faith back in the brands, these guys are hell bent on spoiling it further. I fail to understand this company and their policies!

@ Adi, Hope the car is fine and have Skoda given anything in written or something to assure you of reliability in future?

Anurag.

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by adi_petrolhead

Apparently the fuel pump had failed. I know its unbelievable in a brand new car, mods pls advise if any other such issues have been heard by you, they had a brand new fuel pump in stock, and it was replaced. The car is working fine now.

Nice to hear that the problem is rectified fast. Don't worry - These things happen. IMHO, failures are better during warranty, than after.

You have spent so much money to get hold of your dream car. Obsession with these problems will only spoil fun. Enjoy your ride with a positive attitude - Every thing will be allright.

Please take care of the car. It is very easy to get carried away when there is so much power and control on tap. IMO, problems with Europeans cars start when they are abused. I don't see too much of a problem with the DQ200 too. Compared to the quantity sold, % of failures are less & half of them can even be due to abuse. More so, while using Tiptronics.

Drive safe!

[dkaile]

The VAG group's 1.8 TSI's are a gem of an engine. The engine in the current Octavia is quite similar to the Superb's & Laura's TSI with minor modifications to give a jump in power. I have driven the car all over and have filled up in most unlikely places though locally I stick to my reliable pumps. Just remember to properly warm up this engine at each cold startup for around 1 minute. It may stutter initially but that is normal. When the rpm settles down to 750 that is the time to move your car. If you follow this startup routine it will lubricate the turbo properly and give you zero issues in the long run.

Though I do not know what will happen 2-3 years down the line but in the my present ownership of 14000kms and 1.5 years it has been flawless and a GEM...

[adi_petrolhead]

Originally Posted by dkaile

The VAG group's 1.8 TSI's are a gem of an engine. The engine in the current Octavia is quite similar to the Superb's & Laura's TSI with minor modifications to give a jump in power. I have driven the car all over and have filled up in most unlikely places though locally I stick to my reliable pumps. Just remember to properly warm up this engine at each cold startup for around 1 minute. It may stutter initially but that is normal. When the rpm settles down to 750 that is the time to move your car. If you follow this startup routine it will lubricate the turbo properly and give you zero issues in the long run. Though I do not know what will happen 2-3 years down the line but in the my present ownership of 14000kms and 1.5 years it has been flawless and a GEM...

Thanks to your suggestion, i mailed Sudhir Rao and the issue was taken on priority, the regional technical head was also present, they sent pictures and logs every half n hour, they changed the fuel pump by 5 pm and delivered the car at 7 pm after a 40 odd km trial. So I am pretty satisfied but I am not sure how it failed. Have emailed them again to give me a proper explanation when they receive a diagnosis from the factory. I always do the warm up for a cold start and even keep it running for a minute before shutting down. The workshop has even managed to produce some minor streak marks on my bonnet, probably during cleaning? And the rear seat locks are not sitting in place, so the seat rattles every time I go over a bump. The hydraulic system of the glove box was also not in working condition when I got the car, got it fixed immediately but they have broken the glove box lever now, which if ordered will arrive after 1-2 months, I mean I am completely flustered by their lack of professionalism. They do not order parts quickly enough because they fear if the parts are not utilized by the customer, there is no system of re-sending the parts to the factory. The dealer will be charged any how. Also I discussed at length about the VW recall on the DQ200's and a point that the service manager raised was that the recall is first of all VIN-cutoff specific. So only those cars which are affected are being recalled. Secondly the replacement of synthetic oil with mineral oil means that the ATF change will be more frequent now, rather than the long duration of 60000 kms for the DQ250 and 90000 kms for DQ200. Its very confusing.

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by adi_petrolhead

Thanks to your suggestion, i mailed Sudhir Rao and the issue was taken on priority, the regional technical head was also present, they sent pictures and logs every half n hour, they changed the fuel pump by 5 pm and delivered the car at 7 pm after a 40 odd km trial. So I am pretty satisfied but I am not sure how it failed. Have emailed them again to give me a proper explanation when they receive a diagnosis from the factory. I always do the warm up for a cold start and even keep it running for a minute before shutting down.

Good that they changed the faulty part quickly, but bad that it needed an escalation to their MD for quick action.

Warm up and cool down practices are good for the engine and turbo but I doubt if it impacts the fuel pump in any way. No. 1 cause for fuel pump failure is bad and contaminated fuel. Do make sure you get an explanation for the cause for the failure, will be helpful for other TSI owners as well.

Some googling on fuel pump failures threw up this informative page

http://www.agcoauto.com/content/news/p2_articleid/195

Quoting from the site "Do not purchase fuel while a tanker-truck is filling the station tanks. This can stir debris that has settled in the tanks. Another factor is not allowing the tank to fall below one-quarter. Keeping the tank above this level can greatly extend the life of the fuel pump."

[GTO]

Adi,

Moved your issue to an independent thread as it's of a critical nature. Important for other potential Octavia 1.8L owners to know of the problem.

Happy to hear that the matter was solved quickly though. Hope this was the last of troubles from your Octavia.

[adi_petrolhead]

Originally Posted by GTO

Adi, Moved your issue to an independent thread as it's of a critical nature. Important for other potential Octavia 1.8L owners to know of the problem. Happy to hear that the matter was solved quickly though. Hope this was the last of troubles from your Octavia.

Thank you GTO and all Senior Bhp-ians for the help and support, and for creating this standalone thread. I hope Skoda pays heed to my concerns and at least lets me know for sure that the fuel pump failed because of a bad fuel only and nothing else.

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by GTO

Personally, if I were considering a Jetta / Octavia, I'd always pick the diesel MT. Reasons:

- Still really fast. And I do prefer the driving pleasure of an MT over AT

- No DSG nightmares

- Euro diesels are far more robust than the petrols. Fancy new-tech petrols just don't fly on Indian fuel / driving conditions. My earlier C was once in the authorised service station for 2 - 3 weeks because they couldn't solve a rough idling issue & power loss at high rpm (German engineer attending to it and all). My petrol Merc left us stranded several times by the road in 3 years / 30,000 kms. While the diesel C220 has had many issues, it's broken down on the road 1 single time in 8.5 years / 92,000 kms.

Sorry to hear about your experience, Adi. My 7 year ol' Civic standing down has yet to suffer a breakdown. Your nearly new car has absolutely no right to. This is shocking, disappointing and depressing. Just goes to show that Skoda engineers have NOT done their homework.

I completely agree with you here. BUT the lack of a multi-link suspension set up in the diesel, would leave us enthusiasts with no other choice as far as the Octavia is concerned

[Chethan B G]

Originally Posted by adi_petrolhead

The workshop has even managed to produce some minor streak marks on my bonnet, probably during cleaning? And the rear seat locks are not sitting in place, so the seat rattles every time I go over a bump. The hydraulic system of the glove box was also not in working condition when I got the car, got it fixed immediately but they have broken the glove box lever now, which if ordered will arrive after 1-2 months, I mean I am completely flustered by their lack of professionalism.

Typical attitude problem - Pathetic. I have seen this in some VW workshops as well. Our own Moderator Ajmat had a similar service attitude issue with his Jetta.

After this issue is sorted out, try changing the dealer, for future service requirements.

Originally Posted by adi_petrolhead

They do not order parts quickly enough because they fear if the parts are not utilized by the customer, there is no system of re-sending the parts to the factory. The dealer will be charged any how.

Accident repairs can be different, as it requires numerous parts which are unforeseen. But a dealer cannot site this as an excuse for a "running problem". They should keep all necessary spares in stock - Especially the electro-mechanical ones.

This is an era of triple "S" - Sales, Service & Spares under one roof. Even if spares are not available with the dealer, it hardly takes a maximum of 2 working days, to get them from any part of India. Down-time of more than a week for any "running issue" is not acceptable.

Originally Posted by adi_petrolhead

Also I discussed at length about the VW recall on the DQ200's and a point that the service manager raised was that the recall is first of all VIN-cutoff specific. So only those cars which are affected are being recalled. Secondly the replacement of synthetic oil with mineral oil means that the ATF change will be more frequent now, rather than the long duration of 60000 kms for the DQ250 and 90000 kms for DQ200. Its very confusing.

Mineral oil requires more frequent change. But this recall should solve the problem with DQ200. In your case, has the gear box come filled with mineral oil?

Originally Posted by adi_petrolhead

I hope Skoda pays heed to my concerns and at least lets me know for sure that the fuel pump failed because of a bad fuel only and nothing else.

Need not be only because of bad fuel - it can even be a pre-mature failure. Even this is acceptable. After all, warranty is provided to cover such failures.

[arunphilip]

Originally Posted by GTO

Fancy new-tech petrols just don't fly on Indian fuel / driving conditions.

Is that specific to European marques, or is something like Ford's EcoBoost also at risk? (I ask with vested self-interest )

It would appear that the EcoBoost and TSI are technologically similar - direct injection, turbocharged petrols.