EPC / Limp mode problem on '09 VRS

[Middler101]

Bear with me - I want to give the full history in case someone can point me in the right direction - also, I am (in no way) technically-minded, so I may use terms wrongly.

 

Issue 1 (which may not may not be related to Issue 2!): Engine management light keeps coming on. I take it to a small local independent, they diagnose and replace the intake manifold. Few days later, engine light back on - take it back to the independent, and they say it could be a faulty part, but if they open it up, they'll void the part warranty. So, I take it to Skoda main dealer. They then take ages trying to diagnose (and again, I take it away several times, only to find the light comes back on) and in the end they suggest there was actually nothing wrong with intake manifold at all, but was a sensor issue. In the process they also put a crack in the fuel tank, and again, take ages to replace it (car is in garage for four months).

 

Issue 2 (current): Am driving back from France, 90 mins into motorway journey and there's an engine judder, engine warning light (I think the EPC one) tells me to get to a workshop, then car goes into limp mode. We get off the road. Car is towed to French garage, who, over the next week "fix" it. They only charge me 50 Euros though, and man seems to explain to me it was just a blockage (hard to tell with poor French). I go and pick up the car - get a further 90 mins down the road and exact same thing happens again, only difference now, is when I get off the road I am getting fair amount of smoke from exhaust. Again, off to a French garage (Skoda this time), who charge me lot more for diagnosing and say it's a problem with Fuel Injector on Cylinder 2. This time, I tell them not to fix it, and instead ask breakdown company to repatriate the car to UK.

 

Comes back 2 weeks later and goes straight to local independent. They diagnose but the only fault codes they can find relate to the previous garage disconnecting things to look behind the intake manifold. They cannot repeat the problem at all - and have now driven it for 50-60 miles - car seems to be running fine, no faults.

 

I've asked the second French garage to send fault codes (we'll see) but UK garage not keen to charge me more to do the fuel injector when they can't see any issues. My problem is that I don't trust the car anymore - how do I know I won't be 2 hours down the motorway, with kids in train, and it breaks down again. 

 

Any ideas? Anyone? Is it just a sensor problem and the engine judder is just limp mode kicking in? Could there be a blockage? (only other thing I can think relevant here is that I always use 95 unleaded, but for one tankful in France I had to fill with 98 unleaded because the pump wouldn't let me use UK credit card for anything else). Any ideas much appreciated - at least I can then maybe point current garage to check something else.

[Middler101]

Okay - French garage has now provided a fault code - P0302 if that means anything to anyone!

 

[Kris82]

On 20/09/2018 at 17:01, Middler101 said:

Okay - French garage has now provided a fault code - P0302 if that means anything to anyone!

 

Cylinder 2 not getting spark.

[kton200281]

Sounds exactly like the injector failure i had on my car - identical engine. And i had the same problem, it started misfiring, engine judder and EPC light / EML on. Turned it off, and a few mins later back on - it started ok. Drove 80 miles - made it home. Went out next day, few miles down the road, same issue, engine judder, smoke from exhaust etc. Same fault code - took to independent who replaced injector (cylinder 2 as well). Hope this helps.