1995 Volkswagen Polo polo 1.0 using loads of fuel

Check timing , compression test .

i thought the timing could not be adjusted on the aev series engine??

sorry i posted that question as a solution,,

Any idea when the timing belt was last replaced ? Could have jumped ?

63000 last replaced and water pump

Not a solution really.
I have similar problems with my son's Civic. It has been mentioned to me that lack of power and huge fuel consumption are classic signs of a blocked exhaust, usually at the Cat.
I have not had any recommendations on how to verify the fault without either a visual inspection,swapping it out, or using tools I don't have.
Ian

right, think i have solved the problem,as i mentioned i did change the lambda sensor .also the combined tenperature sender unit ,,it sends signals to both the guage and the ecu however i think theese may have been red herrings??,
what i found was that the vacum air temperature valve in the air filter housing (it has two pipes on it one from inlet manifold ,one to the cold or warm air intake valve in the intake pipe before the air filter housing)this appeared to be "letting by "when the car was at operating temperature ,so to test the theory i bypassed the valve alltogether thus stopping any vacum leak and setting the air intake to take only warm air from the exhaust manifold,,
the result the engine now warms far quicker ,mpg is about right (i think) but no comprehensive readings have been taken but after a 20 mile hard drive (usually about a gallon) the fuel guage only moved about the width of the needle,
i know these results are hit and miss as i changed two components before the final result but maybe this will help anyone else who is struggling,,just goes to show the best tools in the box are your eyes and ears!!,
,does anyone know where i can get a new valve searched net but no results??.
many thanks for everyones help,
best regards,
mark.

allegedly the the most common sign of a naff cat is the smell of rotten eggs from the exhaust when hot,,,,
no tools required but don`t sniff it for too long its dangerous stuff!!,
let us know how you fare with the civic if i can help i will.used to have one of those, a 1.5 gti ,wish i never sold it ,it was vv quick but rotten!!.

Don't go condemning cat because of egg smell, other possiblities and causes i.e


ROTTEN EGG SMELL FROM CATALYTIC CONVERTER


The sulphur smell from the exhaust, is actually caused by running the engine/cat convertor slightly lean for long periods and then running under a rich condition (ie going up a hill under heavy load) This is when the sulphur smell (rotten egg) is produced.


Under relatively lean conditions, the sulphur found in gasoline is converted to sulphur trioxide, then during the rich running condition the sulfur trioxide is converted into hydrogen sulphide (rotten egg smell) within the catalytic converter.


Audi of America issued a service bulletin Group 24, #92-04 which detailed this problem. They list the cause as : the gasoline sulphur content and the characteristic of catalytic convertor to store sulphur compounds and release them during rich engine running conditions.


Switching gasoline brands may help. The Oxygen sensor may also need to be replaced to correct a fuel injection mixture problem

oh,,,,ok.

Off topic, I Know, but thanks anyway ;-)
O2 sensor OK'd by garage.