vRS cam tensioner

[Papfox]

Hi,

 

I have an 07 petrol vRS with 104k miles on it that the last owner had serviced at a string of off-dealer service places. My first dealer service uncovered that the engine mounting bolts had been removed and put back in (they're stretch bolts that must always be replaced with new when they're undone) rendering the engine loose on it's mounts so I have some doubts about the level of love and care that may have been lavished on it in its former life. I had a full dealer service done as soon as I got it.

 

I was just reading this thread and I notice that the first symptom of cam chain tensioner failure he reported was that the car was becoming more reluctant to start. I've also seen others report that increasing reluctance to start can be a symptom of spark plugs eroding towards the end of their life. The last few weeks, I've noticed my car isn't quite as willing to start as it was. I just got VCDS and there are no fault codes listed against the engine.

 

My car is booked in to have a traction control fault looked at on Friday (the fairly-common 01435 - Brake Pressure Sensor 1 (G201) 012 - Electrical Fault in Circuit). I'm very tempted to ask them if they replaced the plugs when they did the service and, if not, ask them to do so. Are there any signs I can look for in VCDS that might reveal that all might not be well in the cam chain department or is this something the dealer can check without replacing stuff and costing a fortune?

 

What would you advise me to do and what conversation do you think I should be having with my dealer when I call them on Monday please?

 

Thanks,

Paul.

 

[TheClient]

07 vRS petrol will be BWA Engine. Uses timing belt as the main timing belt, there is a chain to run the second camshaft as well if I am remembering correctly.  That thread to do with tensioner failures doesn't have any relevance for your engine. It relates to the EA888 newer generation CCZA engine.  

 

You are supposed to periodically replace timing belts such as on your BWA engine on a time or mileage schedule, which ever sooner.  I would be checking when / if your belt has last been renewed.  The limits are a bit all over the place and vary on engine types and sometimes manufacture date but the max on any of the engine derivatives is about 110k miles or 5 years, whichever sooner.  Call a skoda service department or discuss in person on Monday (is that who you are using?) Confirm exactly what schedule they have listed for your car.

 

 

Check your invoice or your garage service records for when the car last had a change of plugs (or ask them to look at their records). If it is still using double platinums it should be probably on it's third set now. If on the second set they could be getting quite long in the tooth...

[Papfox]

Thank you. I checked and my belt wasn't a genuine Skoda part but it's got nearly 3 years left in it assuming it has a normal 4 year service life. I'm doing about 10k miles a year so I would expect the belt to be replaced on time rather than miles.

 

I made the seller change it before I bought the car but, had I known they were going to use an off-brand belt, I would probably have paid to have it done myself at the dealer.

[TheClient]

As long as the belt and parts are an oem quality alternative, I don't think that is a big problem. More important is probably how the whole job was done. Attention to doing it properly including any  idlers pulleys the belt tensioner and often a water pump is a good idea.

 

On your starting issue, it could be as simple as the battery. How old is the current battery? If 4-5 years or more. You may want to replace that as a start.

[Papfox]

Thanks. I'll go and get it tested. I mentioned it to the dealer when it was just in. They confirmed the plugs were changed at the service under a year ago. They didn't find anything wrong and said the next step would be leaving it with them overnight for a cold-start test.

 

I do think the problem only  happens when it's been left overnight. I don't perceive it if I've been using the car already that day.