Interphase

Earths are weird, especially when you combine them with something as finicky as the Motronic ECU. Sometimes you'll find yourself fractionally on the wrong side of a threshold and that'll be enough to stop it working. The codes in that list I can find are all short to ground though, which makes me wonder if the affected components are on a common +ve rail and that's earthing out somewhere?

There are either two or three earths (can't remember) under the battery carrier - you'll have to take off the cover and fusebox, slide out the cable guide at the back, remove the battery and unbolt the plastic carrier. They tend to get amazingly corroded. The ECU earths are in the plenum chamber, which will require you to take the wiper arms off (may need a puller), and remove the scuttle panels. Those earths tend to sit under piles of damp leaves and the connections go south very quickly. After cleaning all of mine the difference is noticeable - I used to see the headlights dim slightly under heavy loads, eg ABS activating while the aircon was on. While you're there, check that the black earth strap that connects to top of the leftmost fuse in the battery fusebox hasn't started to melt the plastic around it! If it has you'll also see that the copper strands inside the crimp will be blackened, as the lead is breaking p and introducing resistance to the circuit. If that's the case, you'll be stumping up nearly £40 for a replacement lead which you'll notice is a lot heavier duty and has better crimps. The alternative is a dead battery, alternator, an engine bay fire or all three No design fault eh?

Did you know there's a notice out for FSI engines detailing exactly the same issue (angle sensor 2 implausible) that I've been having with my MK1 for years? They put that down to iffy wiring and connectors between the ECU and TB and recommend an overlay of all 6 wires, but they can't (or won't) connect that *precise* problem to older engines. I'd already arrived at that conclusion on my own, but only replaced the affected signal wire - it seems that any wire can trigger a fault, and it almost always shows up as an issue with sensor 2! One thing I did notice is that the connectors at the ECU end become surprisingly slack over time - the difference between new and old ones is shocking. I always wondered what the lack of shock protection on the ECU mounts might do, and reckon that's probably it.

I've done that quite a few times, and it makes no difference - you'll hear the sound through the adaptation. It's just feels like and feedback loop because the ECU can't maintain a stable resting position, so you get it frittering above and beyond the target setting as it tries to stabilise. The geartrain and spindle inside mine were solid with no play, so I can only assume it's an error in the calculations.

Mine does this too - you especially notice it when it's doing a basic setting on ignition position 1. If you pop the side off all you'll see is a couple of big white plastic gears with conductive tracks (looks like graphite) and a circuit board with a small wire brush that contacts each track. There's absolutely nothing to them at all, which makes the replacement price even more laughable. It is possible to clean the tracks, which generate a lot of dust and crud as they wear. You can also get a lot of stuff out from around the spindle that connects to the valve.

I've been running 452s for a few months now and they're very good. A bit noisier because of the XL sidewall but lovely sharp handling and no noticeable wear so far. Not bad in the wet either, but obviously not as good as a dedicated tyre.

Almost exactly like mine, but mine reports a lower average. I assumed the light came on at 10 litres left in the tank, but was never brave enough to test it

The first error might suggest a dodgy lambda sensor or wiring, especially if it happened under serious load. I wouldn't worry about the ABS one just yet - it could be just a hangover or an associated glitch and may clear with the first one.

Well, over 2 years on and I still haven't sorted it. A series of exchanges with Skoda's aftersales team left me with a lifetime supply of WTF and a determination not to touch VW based again, and it seems all of the people I've tracked who are having the same problem are in the same boat. Yesterday I did a Google search just to see if anything new had come up and found this:Information on TB 2018652/3 Seems that fairly new cars with the generation of engine after mine are still suffering with this issue, to the point where VW have put out an advisory for the throttle body connector and wires. The earliest car I found with the problem is a '99 passat, so that's *12 years* of failures to diagnose and repair. I'd assumed that the ECU triangulated the signals from sensor 1, sensor 2 and the valve actuator in order to figure out which was wrong, but it seems now that any fault with the electrics that isn't a short or ground will flag up sensor 2. How many throttle bodies have been replaced on those terms? Problem is that Skoda are unlikely to accept that it's been their iffy wiring and connectors all along as this fix isn't in the diagnostic process detailed in the workshop manual. Chances are I'll have to get an indie to do the full harness overlay and take it from there.

Mine usually hits 280-290 then the light comes on, which suggests there's about another 50 miles in the tank.

Not sure if you can buy the terminasl themselves, but you can buy repair wires from TPS that have one attached at each end.

How come if you're not on long life servicing, Skoda main dealers use 10w40 instead?

I've found that dealers are absolutely hopeless at diagnosing ecu & throttle faults, no matter how much time you give them. Mine's been in shedloads of times over the last 2 1/2 years, and they still don't have a clue. They'll happily offer to replace very expensive parts without knowing if they'll fix the issue though...

That little prime is the biggest bargain in photography, and I;m amazed more people don't realise It's absolutely razor sharp across the whole range, and focuses like a rocket. I'd have grabbed one while they're still around, but the D5000 doesn't have a screw drive so I went for the 35mm f/1.8DX instead

I think the 1.8T uses an F variant as standard, but couldn't tell you the exact number. Can you get them to requote based on the VIN number, as I've often had parts turn up that are way out - a thermostat for a 1.6 diesel was the last one