Hello everyone, I am currently looking to buy a Fabia, and went to look at a second-hand one today. It drove fine and was in very good condition, but there are 2 faults that I would like someone to help explain a solution.

The car is a 2001 Fabia Comfort 16v and had done 95,000 miles. Firstly, 2 lights appeared on the dashboard throughout the test drive, 'EPC' and one that looked like a gearbox. What do these lights mean, and is there a serious problem with the engine?

Secondly, the car only has one key, and if I did buy it I would like a spare. How much do spares cost and where do I go to get one cut? I'm not too worried about it having a remote, just so long as it unlocks and starts the car.

Thanks for your help.

Just walk away. Seriously, neither of those lights is good and there are plenty of cars out there that don't have dashboards like Christmas trees.

Ask yourself this - if those lights were easy or cheap to fix, the seller would have fixed them, no?

To diagnose the engine management light and the EPC light you need access to a VAS machine or a copy of VCDS to read the fault code(s) that is(are) causing them to come up. That's usually about £30 from an independent or you may find a Briskoda member who will read them for you for free/diesel money.

Sorry if I'm coming over very negative, but it's always a bad idea to buy a big bag of trouble. That car is a potential bargain for someone that knows what they're doing, but for a non-mechanical type it's probably just a money-pit.

And a key is £30-150 depending on where you buy it from, what kind of key it is and who you have program it for you.

Edited 18 June, 201016 yr by wja96

Just a heads up - the 1.4 16v suffers from piston ring failure quite frequently (big issues and money to fix it). (Changed the engine around 2003/2004 for one with different internals.)

Better off going with the 1.9 TDi in many ways. Same power and performance, better fuel usage, and less likely to be promlematic.

Otherwise, main things to look for are:

knocking suspension

wet rear carpets (more noticeable in the winter sadly)

eletric windows/eletrics all work.

Are you mental?

Walk away. no one sells a car with one key. The only people that do are the ones who come and nick it back with the other key when you are asleep.

Also, the engine light does not come on for no reason. Its knackered!

Thanks for the replies people! I have (wisely) decided to leave the car, although it was in immaculate condition and drove well for it's age.

I have found another Fabia 1.4 for sale, which again only has the one key. What is wrong with these people, do they keep loosing them or what? :p Where would I go about getting a new key from, and what is involved? I'm not too fussed about the spare having remote locking, just so long as it unlocks and starts the car.

Thanks.

I'd hazard a guess the EPC and engine light point to at least one expensive repair being required.

Keys could come from either a dealer, or some of the site sponsors. Getting it cut is easy enough, but the 'inards' of the key need coding to match the rest of the car.

To program the key you need a blank key and the number that is printed on the plastic key fob that you should get with the car. This is the SKC code.

The keys are basically programmed to match the SKC code in the car dashpod.

If you have the 4-digit SKC code then you can program a key yourself if you have access to VCDS/VAG-COM

The process for doing it is described here.

If you don't have that number then you need someone that can extract the number from the car or access to a genuine VW/Audi group VAS machine which talks to a big master database in Germany.

The only person I know who can extract the codes is Shark_90 (Ben Wardle) at Shark Performance and he charges £40 to do it and £30 to program a new key, although his charges are time based so he could probably be sweet-talked into doing it for less than £70.

The keys themselves are cheap enough from ebay. eg. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Skoda-Remote-Flip-Key-3-button-Fob-UNCUT-HAA-Blade-/170502053184?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item27b2b6dd40

or http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-UNCUT-BLADE-KEY-Skoda-Octavia-Fabia-/140348012306?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item20ad64b712

I personally wouldn't buy a car that didn't have the 4-digit SKC and both the original keys.

Oh, and you still need the key cut so it fits the ignition, but most locksmiths can do this for under £10.

Edited 20 June, 201016 yr by wja96

I believe something called VAG-TACHO can extract the SKC codes.

I sold my vrs with only one key. Night out in the cold + storm drain + fall over, you can guess the rest im sure.

I believe something called VAG-TACHO can extract the SKC codes.

Indeed. And do you have this software?

Indeed. And do you have this software?

No, but have considered trying to get it off ebay with the cable. Not sure if those are illegal clones/copyright infringing though. Seems to be available from about £25+ all in.