New A2 Owner - York

steve_c said:
It required a few revs to get it moving, and it was using more petrol than I would have expected when it did. Occasionally it would go into limp mode, and sometimes the engine would cut out altogether.

I've had none of those issues since, and the car will happily pull away on a reasonably level road without needing any throttle whatever.

I've had stainless exhausts on all my long-term cars over very many years, I knew exactly what I wanted, and I was happy to travel across the country to get the right exhaust. I documented the experience here:

My new stainless exhaust system

I bought my 1.4i A2 in October 2016 aware that it had all the original exhaust and I thought that (barring any obvious problems) I would run the car at least until its next service to get a better sense of whether it was worth investing for a custom stainless exhaust system. The car had an...
www.a2oc.net
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Definitely something I'll keep my eye on and consider for the future!
 
Welcome Sam,
sounds like you’ve got plenty of help in York,proper little hotspot for A2’s. I’m in Wetherby and have 2x1.4tdi, one a daily driver and the other currently sorn but ready for its MOT and some re spray work. When you get sorted we’ll have to have a meet in York, there’s a guyin Poppleton as well - Gerrrard
good luck
Brendan
 
Brennybear said:
Welcome Sam,
sounds like you’ve got plenty of help in York,proper little hotspot for A2’s. I’m in Wetherby and have 2x1.4tdi, one a daily driver and the other currently sorn but ready for its MOT and some re spray work. When you get sorted we’ll have to have a meet in York, there’s a guyin Poppleton as well - Gerrrard
good luck
Brendan
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Thanks Brendan - that sounds good!
 
Brennybear said:
Welcome Sam,
sounds like you’ve got plenty of help in York,proper little hotspot for A2’s. I’m in Wetherby and have 2x1.4tdi, one a daily driver and the other currently sorn but ready for its MOT and some re spray work. When you get sorted we’ll have to have a meet in York, there’s a guyin Poppleton as well - Gerrrard
good luck
Brendan
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Don't forget Little Dog in Boroughbridge.

InkedIMG_5632_LI.jpg
 
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Crikeymikey said:
Welcome aboard, Sam.

Many of the faults you list are common. The fuel flap release problem could be the switch, the relay or the mechanism. Press the button and listen for the relay click. If it clicks, then the switch is working and the problem is either the relay sticking or a mechanism (linkage) problem. If the relay doesn't click then the fault is either the switch or the relay. Replacing the relay is VERY fiddly, much more so than replacing the switch.

The manual release procedure for the filler flap is to remove the driver side boot panel and pull the linkage downwards to release the peg on the filler flap. In my case the relay had stuck in the open position and some clown had bodged the spring mechanism holding the flap in place so that you could open the flap with a finger nail or credit card!

Engine misfire could be one of a hundred things so, as previously mentioned above, invest in some diagnostic capability. Most here use VCDS, I use OBDeleven Pro. Horses for courses.

A word to the wise. I would urge you to take the 12 months MoT with a pinch of salt and physically examine for yourself cv boots, drop links, track rod ends, brakes and brake lines for piece of mind. It never ceases to amaze me how 20 year old cars magically manage to sail through a pre-sale MoT when they are misfiring, showing visible signs of neglect and generally clearly being worse for wear.
I have spent £4k in the last 12 months dealing with overdue maintenance issues and remedial repair of various oil leaks, as well as badly worn suspension and brake components. But the car sailed through it's pre-sale MoT! It really doesn't mean anything.

We all love our A2s here but don't for one moment think it is cheap motoring. Many of these poor little things have suffered the most horrendous abuse and neglect. Mine certainly did. Think of this club as some sort of donkey sanctuary and you won't be far from the truth!

Good luck and welcome to our eccentric little tribe. :)
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To add to the checklist for Sam. If the front suspension wishbones aren't the cast ones go over them with a fine tooth comb. As said before they rust from the inside to out. 🤞
 
Stan H said:
To add to the checklist for Sam. If the front suspension wishbones aren't the cast ones go over them with a fine tooth comb. As said before they rust from the inside to out. 🤞
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Thanks Stan! Is there an obvious way to tell if the ones I have fitted are susceptible to this issue? They definitely have some surface rust.

driver_side_wishbone.jpg
passenger_side_wishbone.jpg
 
These are the earlier cast iron wishbones, the left picture appears to show the possibility of something leaking onto the wishbone to me or it might be a trick of the light

J
 
With the cast wishbones, the balljoint is integral and can't be replaced separately. Keep an eye on the condition of the rubber covers, replace them as soon as there is any deterioration starting to become visible, before the water gets through into the balljoint beneath.
 
Proghound said:
With the cast wishbones, the balljoint is integral and can't be replaced separately. Keep an eye on the condition of the rubber covers, replace them as soon as there is any deterioration starting to become visible, before the water gets through into the balljoint beneath.
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Thanks! I'll keep an eye on them.
 
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