Greetings All.

My girlfriends mums 05  Fabia BME 1.2 (140,00 miles) would not start. The AA came out and said it seemed to be the timing chain had snapped. they said the bottom half of the engine was moving and the top half wasn't. 

If this is the case, are we talking bent valves ect.  And what price range are we looking at for worst case scenario.

Given the mileage and age should we consider a repair or look for a reconditioned/replacement engine, or sell it as seen.

Thanks in advance.

Dave

If it's snapped then possibly bent valves yes. If it's just skipped a few teeth then you may be lucky.

Sorry for the lengthy delay in replying.

 

Finally got a chance to have a look at the car with the help of the owners neighbour. It was a little bit of blind leading the vision impaired.

The outcome seemed to make sense, but degrees of doubt and hope were equal.

After turning over the engine and no start, the plugs were pulled and found to be wet, so along with the smell assumed fuel was not the issue.

EPC was on, but later found it should go out once engine has started. Plugged in code reader to see if any codes had been stored. P0172 which had been coming and going prior to the no start. And a new one to the car P0341-Camshaft position sensor out of range/parameters. Without any information to hand to confirm the sensor was at fault, the powers that be decided to order a new one, and three new coil packs for good measure. Doubt & Hope. 

 

I had my doubts, and then had them confirmed by reading a weak battery or excessive cranking could also bring up the P0341 code.

New parts fitted, hopes got dashed. Still no start.

After reading.

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/341699-12-12v-fabia-wont-start/

And checking the cams positions through the removed end caps at TDC (cyl 1)  found // \\ instead of = = . Not Good.

Also car was extremely low on oil too. So the tensioner could be slack allowing for slippage. 

I've bought an inexpensive locking kit.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/CHAIN-ENGINE-TIMING-SKODA-CORDOBA/dp/B00OQVT960/ref=pd_sim_sbs_60_2?ie=UTF8&dpID=41q6htsEBgL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR160%2C160_&refRID=0FSDT417AXQTNEARCWMA

A trusted mechanic advised me to check and or set the timing back up, then manually hold the tensioner in place and do a quick compression test on each cylinder. And if they came back good , then to do the timing chain kit. But if the compression read low then remove the head for replacement or repair. 

My current problems are:

Crank pulley bolt removal 

    Haynes says put it in 4th gear and get someone to apply the brakes firmly, while undoing the bolt. I was unable to get enough leverage from below due to once the car is jacked up to a point the front wheels can be moved. 

If I support the engine from below and remove the engine mount above, I might be able to get the leverage, but would the engine tilt. 

I'm lead to believe that the crank sensor can be removed, allowing one of the timing tools to be inserted which in turn goes through the fly wheel.

Is this correct and would it be a better option for locking the crank to remove the pulley bolt. I'm having a little fun trying to locate the whereabouts of the crank sensor. ( it's a BME 1.2 12v 47kw engine). 

Lastly, an 18mm multi-point socket seems to be fitting the crank pulley bolt. Is this ok, or am I setting myself up for misery and despair. 

Many thanks in advance

Dave.

Cam position fault will be stored as the cam timing is out, not due to a faulty sensor.

To be honest by the time you have the engine stripped down enough to get to the timing chain the head isn't far off removal. A leak down test is a far better method of diagnosis than a compression check.

Edited 13 March, 201610 yr by Tech1e

Crank sensor position photo in this thread.

When the engine's in the car that's a rather tricky spot to access though.

Thank you for the rapid replies.

Not au fait with a leak down test, but had plans to just go ahead and remove the head and get the exhaust valves checked over. 

Thank you for the photo link for the crank sensor. I'm off for some retail therapy at my local automotive shop for a breaker bar and a socket for when I've wrestled with the crank sensor.

Cheers for now.

Dave.