Hi folks

A newbie here, though have read the forums on and off for a while.

I'm currently stuck at home due to my Skoda Fabia VRS not being able to start. This has been an intermittent problem. I turn the key and there is no response. Some tries, it will start first time. Other tries after a couple of attempts. Some attempts after a good 10 to 20 turns. Currently, it is not starting after trying over 30 minutes plus.

Other issues I've seen happen when I manoeuvre the car (e.g. parking). I see lights flash and beep (e.g. hand brake, traction Ican think of) and they disappear. Other occassions the power steering fails too. Usually fixed by turning the engine off and on again.

As you can see a few issues, but the starting one is a major headache currently. Any help please?

Cheers

Neil.

Starting

Sounds like a dodgy starter motor signal cable. Quite common and I have the same thing. Originally it was the wire had corroded, as is usually the case. Repaired this by bypassing the joining plug, but now it seems like mine is actually the plug on the starter motor itself.

I'll see if I can find another thread with a picture of where to look / what to wiggle.

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/190145-fixing-starter-wire-broken-off/ only thread I can find with a picture at the minute. Under the battery tray. If you've got small hands you should be able to get to it to wiggle it about by putting the car in reverse and looking down under the battery tray.

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/123705-fabia-vrs-starter-motor-the-wire-of-death/page__p__1580521__hl__starter+motor+wire__fromsearch__1#entry1580521

Flashy lights

Could possibly be the alternator signal wire has snapped. Also another common problem, and apparently causes the traction control light to light up I think? Or was it the power steering light? Start the car, don't rev it and measure battery voltage - if it's still 12v until you rev it a bit (about 3000RPM should do it?), that's probably it.

Edited 2 June, 201115 yr by mark.r.cullen

Thanks for the quick reply. I'm not mechanically minded, I understand without ever really trying. My car was due for it's service. Armed with what you've said, I'll get it to the garage somehow (franchise one in this instance)

Always eager to hear tips though.

Thanks

Neil

Starting

Sounds like a dodgy starter motor signal cable. Quite common and I have the same thing. Originally it was the wire had corroded, as is usually the case. Repaired this by bypassing the joining plug, but now it seems like mine is actually the plug on the starter motor itself.

I'll see if I can find another thread with a picture of where to look / what to wiggle.

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/190145-fixing-starter-wire-broken-off/ only thread I can find with a picture at the minute. Under the battery tray. If you've got small hands you should be able to get to it to wiggle it about by putting the car in reverse and looking down under the battery tray.

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/123705-fabia-vrs-starter-motor-the-wire-of-death/page__p__1580521__hl__starter+motor+wire__fromsearch__1#entry1580521

Flashy lights

Could possibly be the alternator signal wire has snapped. Also another common problem, and apparently causes the traction control light to light up I think? Or was it the power steering light? Start the car, don't rev it and measure battery voltage - if it's still 12v until you rev it a bit (about 3000RPM should do it?), that's probably it.

Thanks for the quick reply. I'm not mechanically minded, I understand without ever really trying. My car was due for it's service. Armed with what you've said, I'll get it to the garage somehow (franchise one in this instance)

Always eager to hear tips though.

Thanks

Neil

No worries. I'm not mechanically minded either.

Unfortunately I won't be able to get you a picture myself until later on, and I am awful at describing things. Best I can say is put it in reverse and look down underneath the battery tray towards the passenger side wheel. You may be able to grab the wire and wiggle it, whilst someone else tries to start it (clutch pressed remember!). Failing that, it should bump start absolutely fine. Get it to the garage and tell them the starter motor solenoid wire is dodgy - please fix

I'll wait for someone else to chip in with the flashy lights, as I am not so confident about that one. The alternator load cable has snapped on my parents Fabia (not a vRS), but hasn't on mine (a vRS). I don't remember any warning lights on their car when it happened, but others has said it does cause some traction / power steering lights to pop up from what I remember.

edit - If you are in the Norfolk area I would be happy to pop over with a diagnostic cable and multimeter to have a quick look for you.

Edited 2 June, 201115 yr by mark.r.cullen

I thought it be worth update on what's happening.

I got my car towed to the garage and left to play a waiting game. After making a couple of calls today (Monday), I was told there diagnosis so far was with a lead from the battery (I guess power lead, that's the only one I could think). The lead became very very hot when in test conditions (turning the wheel under low drive, I guess). They did reproduce my power steering issue which is good to hear.

They've had to call Skoda to consult on this and apparently this "said" had undergone improvements. Hearing the lead got very hot made me wonder how close to fire risk I was.

Anyone else heard of similar? I've not got the car back yet, so the above may change.

BTW Mark, thanks for your offering of looking but I'm in Cambridge area.

Cheers

Neil.

Well, my car is now fixed. I've had it back for a week and no signs of problems so far.

The problem was diagnosed to be one of the battery leads (can't remember which one). It had degraded over time. This had lead to high resistance in the circuit. Apparently, it got really hot when the problems occurred. Skoda have since redesigned the lead now to include rubber caps at the ends. The lead cost £25 roughly. So my fear of a massive bill for now seems to been avoided.

I hope this write up makes enough sense to be useful to others.

Thanks

Neil.