PGuk

Well if I could afford to sell it at the moment I would in a heartbeat, but unfortunately financial circumstances prevent it. Its now mis-firing again. Complete loss of power is occurring almost daily. It will be going along at 40 and then all of a sudden its as if the brakes have been applied. There's definitely some sort of intermittent mechanical resistance. The only way to prevent the engine stopping (from experience - the engine WILL just stop - even at 70mph) is to put the clutch in very very rapidly, then drop a gear and pull the clutch out again when its slowed down. 4th gear is now totally impossible at anything below 40. When I have to go out in in the car I'm driving it in 2nd most of the time. It sounds like all 3 cylinders are firing but the power level suggests otherwise. In second gear when you need to accelerate harshly i.e. at a junction, you get power, then nothing for about a second, then you're thrown back in the seat as it catches again - seriously it throws you back with some force. No idea what that's about its almost like some belt or something is slipping - who knows. Basically short of a meteor dropping from space and landing on it, I'm stuck with the ruddy thing. On the plus side since January I've been walking and using the bus - its almost as if I don't own the car. Maybe they could use this in their advertising as an environmental benefit of ownership.

Ok a little update and more problems. I have the car back from the dealers, they replaced all three fuel injectors (and stood the cost!) and it seems to have improved. However, the car has a sensation similar to a mis-fire, although not quite the same as before. I'm having difficulty narrowing it down because there's still a little bit of a kick every now and again when its just idling on the drive. Basically, when the speed gets over 35mph it feels a bit shaky at the front end - so at first i thought it was mis-firing again. On an empty dual carriageway I took it up to 70mph and put the clutch in and coasted (I checked it was safe to do so first). The engine rpm dropped to about 800rpm (which is the normal idle rpm) but to my surprise the sensation continued (and its normally not detectable at this rpm)! As my speed decreased the amplitude of the vibrations dropped. Its as if its picking up every little bump in the road. Additionally it was found at MOT that my front tires are about 2mm on the inside edge and 5mm on the outside. Do you think this is some sort of issue with the suspension. Looking through the forum I keep finding refences to replacing the suspension bushes, but the symptoms don't seem to match. Does anyone have any thoughts only I'm now at my wits end with the car... I just want to drive a normal car without some daily mechanical incident!! Thanks in advance.

Thanks for all the advice so far! Does anyone have any idea what the mechanical cause of the underlying fault might be? Its obviously not the cylinder head, gasket, ignition coils, valves or the spark plugs - they've all been changed.

It was one year old when i bought it and was fine for 12 months up until the 2nd year service. The day after the service I started having problems with it not starting. After 2 months of going back and having new battery and starter motor etc, it finally started first time. 3 weeks after this, the mis-fire problem began. it was fine for a year until the 2nd year service( did they disturb something - I don't know), so I'm not sure if the sale of goods act applies - although I was still under warranty.

The garage are saying that the misfire in cylinder number 3 now is unrelated to the misfire in cylinder number 1 it had 4 days ago. they're saying its in a different cylinder (so its just coincidence) even though is the exact same symptoms and the entire cylinder head was changed. They're also saying that despite me having the RAC recovery sheet with the fault code recorded in cylinder number 3 back in January, the fact that the ignition coil was replaced at the roadside and I only took the car in to have it swapped for VAG genuine part (as per warranty), then that doesn't count as a recurring fault in cylinder 3 - as they personally didn't record the fault (even though they gave me a new coil!).

I'll try and keep this short and to the point - I tend to ramble on here! 5 breakdowns and 3 tows now. 1.2 HTP Fabia Sport 2006, 22000 miles. Engines goes around 1200 miles between breakdowns but randomly mis-fires and rough idles (1 in 3 times i drive it) and has done since January. When it breaksdown the car starts to misfire, maybe once every 5 miles (more often if going up a hill), then sudden increase infrequency - engine light comes on, either all power is lost (i.e engine stops and rev counter drops to zero) or car has enough power to just limp to the road side. Summary of actual breakdowns (engine has intermittant rough idle and mis-fires almost all the time): 1st time: Engine light came on after leaving motorway, heavy misfire, loss of power - car restarted after 2 hours (RAC), no fault codes. 2nd time: Misfired heavily on motorway, engine light came on and all the car started shaking! Fault code - random misfire cylinder 3 - new ignition coil. 3rd time: (1000miles later) - Misfire then engine totalled stopped at 70mph on M1. No fault code available, computer wouldn't connect towed to a skoda garage - 3 new igniton coils. 4th time: heavy misfiring, almost total loss of power on M6. Coasted to services (1/4 mile downhill) then switched off , restarted 15 mins later and left at dealer for a week - no fault codes logged - car returned At 3rd Year Service: I reported it was misfiring. Fault codes: Random misfire cyl no.1 + loss of compression on cylinder 1: was given new Cylinder head, + gasket + valves. (Was told it was likely to be a "valve seating issue" - which is in a Skoda technical bulletin (?) ) 5th time: (4 days after cylinder head fitted !): Misfiring, engine light, loss of power on M6 - towed back to the dealer (random misfire cylinder no.3). The last Skoda technican from Skoda Assist (not an RAC patrol) was 100% sure it was the injectors (as there was an oily burning smell and he'd replaced a lot on Polo and A2 1.2s with the same symptoms), but the garage said it would be the coils or spark plugs AGAIN. The car is obviously undriveable at distances over about 10 miles and has been since about January! 1 in 5 times I go on the motorway with it all hell breaks loose - even thouigh I'm told its safe to drive. Does anyone have a clue what's going on? The car is now 1 day out of warranty and I'm being told (4 days after the cylinder head + valves were changed) that its an unrelated fault and its just a COINCIDENCE it does the same thing every time. Any suggestions/help greatly appreciated. I'm curious to know what you all think. Am I correct in thinking this should have been fixed long ago under warranty since I've been taking it back since January for the same fault. Thanks!

Follow up: I've just collected the car. Neither the dealer or RAC could connect the computer to the car. After perisistant asking, the dealer now claims to have fixed this by replacing a Fuse. I have no way of verifying this, but does this sound likely???? Judging by one of their other repairs (involving double sided tape no less - I don't trust them). Can anyone answer the above please???? The repairs they carried out (without being able to use the diagniostic system) seem to have left the car worse than before. When car idles at ca. 800 rpm which is the same as before (1.2 petrol 3 cylinder). However if you gently rev the car and release, instead of the revs falling back to idle like before, they now drop really low and the car almost stalls before recovering. I had a Megane that did this and it turned out to be an alternator fault. My car just had a new starter motor and battery about 3 months ago. The dealer replaced 3 coils (one was replaced the last time it broke down 3 weeks earlier), but the RAC reckoned it was the cam shaft sensor. Any ideas?

Hi, I have searched the forum and can't find the answer, so here's a quick summary of the problem and maybe someone might know the answer. My Car has broken down 3 times every 3 weeks, at 200 mile intervals. Always between 80 and 90 miles into a motorway journey and without warning. The first time I got an Emission light (engine management light?) the car went into safe mode and when I stopped it idled roughly so I called Skoda assist. The RAC arrived but the fault seemed to have fixed itself. I thought it might be an ignition coil or possible cold sensor in exhaust (after reading the forum). The key point is this, the diagnostic computer the RAC had couldn't see my car. So there was nothing the guy could do, Three weeks later, same problem. RAC computer connected this time, Ignition coil 1 was faulty and was replaced. Next day i took it to dealer for a genuine part under warranty. Car seemed to run fine but I only travelled 10 miles or so at a time. Three weeks and into the first trip of more than 10 miles, car looses all power and engine stops on the Motorway at 70. Engine light then Oil light flashed (but had checked oil earlier). RAC arrive, RAC man suspects Crank sensor and says its "definitely not ignition coils". He towed me home off the motorway. He then spent 1 hour trying to get his laptop and also a seperate VW branded Engine Diagnostic computer to connect without success. He said that it ALWAYS connects using the code in the handbook. Next morning, RAC tow me to a dealers. I've just found out today (a week later) that they've changed all 3 ignition coils and a small length of wiring to one of them (one of coils is only 6 weeks old!) . I asked why all 3 and was told that they couldn't get there computer to connect to the car so just changed all 3 and it seemed to run fine. Now, is this an acceptable repair whilst under warranty or shouldn't they have tried to fix the computer ? I've now asked them to fix the computer connection problem, they said they'd get back to me but didn't. I phoned them again this afternoon and was told the car was ready for collection. I asked what was wrong with the connection and was told "a fuse". So 2 questions. 1) Is it likely that its just the ignition coils? Or is the crank sensor more likely? How often should coils need changing - ever 6 weeks??? 2) Is it likely that a single fuse could have cause the connection problem, or are they being economical with the truth and still haven't fixed it? I'm picking the car up in the morning so any advice would be most welcome. I suspect that in another 90 miles I'll be losing power in the outside lane of the motorway again and having a near heart attack. The car (a 1.2) drove fine between breakdowns as the garage claim it is driving now. Is there some other fault that causes the out of the blue engine cut outs when I've driven about 90 miles? The car has done under 20k miles on an 06 plate (so only just still under warranty). Thanks a lot.

Hi, I've got the same problem BUT I've already had my door carriers re-sealed and the door cards are now bone dry! The rubber seals at the door-step have still got water underneath then, and this time around the carpet is wettest in the centre of the car near the hand brake tunnel. So, what could the new source of water be? Cheers.

Cheers for the reply. That sounds promising. Is it a big job? I've not actually had the door cards off on the fabia yet, so not sure what the wiring is like under there. Is any dash trim going to have to come off for the wiring?

Hi, I've got an 2006 1.2 Sport which sadly came with manual mirrors and no rear speakers. I've added OEM rear speakers using the skoda kit, fitted just about every OEM accessory I could find on eBay including the MFD, but I'm stuck with the annoying manual mirrors. Does anyone know if its possible to change them for electric? So far using the search function i've discovered that the door wiring loom seemed to change occassionally depending on model and year. I don't have the red lights in my door, but i do have electric windows, so I assume I have a more basic loom. Is it just a straight swap with the mirrors, loom and switch from a scrapped car, or would the convenience module etc be differerent? My fuse box seems pretty basic too. I have no spare switched lives in there, and only 2 spare permanent lives. I'm assuming the sport had very basic wiring to cut cost. Does anyone know? I'm guessing this mod might be too expensive to be practical.

I've just been back and had a look at the road. There's a really shiny and worn man-hole cover that appears to have sunk by about 3+ inches, right were the front left wheel would be when the problem occurred. I'm guessing that the bang was the wheel going down the bump (the back wheel probably didn't go over it so it was just at the front of the car), and then possibly the locking of that wheel as it lost contact with the ground and reduced friction on the shiny metal. Thinking about it, the way the brake pedal felt was exactly the same as the one and only time the ABS kicked it. That seems logical doesn't it - a pulsing sensation in the pedals for a fraction of a second. I guess the car probably was still braking - it just felt different. I probably felt the bump through the pedals since the cover appears sunk by quite a way. I've just done a few emergency stops on some empty road outside my office, and the car seemed fine. I'm guessing that was it. I had a similar thing happen before about 2 months back, and thinking about it, it was at the same junction! It just scared me a bit this time, especially with the other problem the car is having. I think I've put 2 and 2 together and made 5! Thanks for the advice though.

{ Think I've Solved this one now after going back at nearly midnight to look at the road where it happened! } Hi, Ok. having yet more problems since the car came back from its 2nd yr service. Today the car has been starting first time (rare since the service - see earlier post), but then..... I was driving up to a roundabout, slowing from about 20mph to -15mph, just dropped down a gear from 3rd, to 2nd. As i was releasing the clutch, with my other foot pressing lightly on the brake, there was an almighty bang from the front, the clutch pedal felt like it moved, and the brake pedal seemed to go soft. Then I wasn't sure if the car was still braking or not. A fraction of a second later, the brake and clutch pedal returned to normal, and the car stopped. Needless to say it was almost a brown trouser moment. Now then, no bumps in the road (I'm walking back there in 5 mins to have a double check). EDIT - COLLAPSED MAN-HOLE COVER!! What the hell was the bang??? and more to the point what the hell happened?? Was the bang the clucth somehow slipping and therefore I lost engine braking, hence the brakes needing to be pressed harder, or was it something more serious/dangerous?? Any ideas? Needless to say I'll be on the phone to the garage ASAP, but in the meantime it would be nice to know things are ok. { See My Last Post - Probably ABS kicking in for a second as the front left locked}

Hi, Just wondered if someone could post some friendly advise on what to do until I can get a problem fixed. I've had my 06 Fabia (1.2 Sport) serviced 2 months ago, and ever since then I've had problems starting it. The problem is intermittent so it can go for a few days at a time without seeing it, but basically its getting worse. The car always starts, but its taking more and more attempts. Example: Week 1. Starts 1st time 90% of time, then 10% with 2nd turn of the key. Week 3. Starts 1st time 80% of time, then 20% with 3 or 4 turns of key. 2nd Month. Starts 1st time 50% of time, then with 8 or 9 turns of key. I can turn it off after eventually getting it started and it will restart straight away - first time. I wouldn't have thought it would do that if it was a flat battery, since running for 1 minute won't recharge it that much. All the electrics seem to work fine. Not sure what's going on, but the problem started within 2 days of it being serviced. Its still under warranty, but I can't get it to a garage for at least 2 weeks due to work. Any advise on obvious things to look for? I'm driving for long distances of 120 miles at a time, every 3 weeks, then shorter 10 mile trips ever couple of days, so wouldn't have thought it was the battery running flat. Even after a long trip it still won't start properly within an hour of switching off. I've checked the battery is connected ok, but is there anything else I can look for in the meantime? Also, any suggestions on the cause? I'll feel a bit of a wally taking it back to the garage if its something simple. Thanks a lot!

Yep, I did exactly as described above over the weekend - used the green block to plug into the back of the headunit. It works fine. Not sure what Parrot kit you have but on the 3100 they used to be the loose green and brown wires in the cabling that you could connect to the radio line in (I crimped my own cables). If you have an aftermarket headunit and want to plug in using standard line it (phono style plugs) then you should be able to crimp something together. I know Maplin do the Yellow external amlifier block connector blocks with Phono/RCA plugs already on them that you could modify. Might make the connections a bit easier if you need to start with the plugs already on the cables. What headunit are you connecting to? Will it accept the Green block type connector like the VAG units or does it have to be phono/RCA type plugs?