Fuel Leak!

[Ootohere]

Volkswagen group UK and their Brands keep putting it out in their published advice and have the Customer Services / contractors doing Customer Services giving that advice.  They make no attempt to make anything about servicing clear.  That is just how it is with VW UK. 

[J.R.]

3 hours ago, pmcg said:

Are you going out of your way to start an argument?

 

No.

Edited 1 January, 2023 by J.R.

[pmcg]

18 minutes ago, J.R. said:

 

No.

 

Thanks.

[wotzit07]

Another Yeti another sheered bolt holding the fuel rails. Good job we weren't driving at the time. Popped in the shop, came back out and could smell fuel, jumped in turned the key, nothing. Got out and it was pouring out the front of the engine. Couldn't have happen at a worse time, I was on route to my mums funeral, the only blessing was it wasn't on the outside lane of the M6, we were travelling from Scotland to Oxfordshire. If its wasn't was fiends I'm not sure what we would have done and I doubt I would have made it to my mums funeral. I can't believe they have recalled these. I have now found you can report it here https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-recalls-and-faults/report-a-serious-safety-defect and  I'm about to write a letter to Skoda. 2017 Plate Yeti 1.2TSI 29k miles.

[rum4mo]

I'm sorry to hear about this, my old Passat broke a front spring while we were travelling down to my sister's funeral from Scotland, it happened near Oxford while we were in there collecting my younger daughter on our way to near MK, not good at any time, but even worse when you are driving to a close relative's funeral!

 

It is good that you have reported this with the correct agency DVSA, you will get a letter/email saying that they know about this and have discussed it with VW Group, and as it is not a safety related issue, they can not take this further - or maybe these reports are adding up and they will now start to take action, time will tell.

Edited 12 February, 2023 by rum4mo
Front not Rear!

[MrMan001]

Evening all

VW owner here very recently having the same problem on a 1.4T engine. Strong fuel smell from the front of the car observed after the car coughed and cut out after starting.

Currently with my local indi garage who said the leak orginates from the fuel rail and they will be investigating the exact source next week.

@Krissi Do you have the document that suggests that and I quote "VW know about this issue and they are monitoring it with DVSA"? If the issue with my vehicle is the same as others have been reporting I am also minded to take this further.

[Ootohere]

@MrMan001Welcome.

?

A 1.4 TSI from what year is it and in which VW car ?  

 

 

Edited 4 March, 2023 by toot

[MrMan001]

Continued from my above comment.

The car is 2018 and the garage identified the issue as a fuel leak due to loose fuel rail bolts.

[Ootohere]

@MrMan001

What VW Model from 2018 is your 1.4 TSI in & Is it just a TSI or a TSI ACT?

Skoda never fitted them to mk3 Fabia's.    (Other than the limited run of 1.4 TSI 125ps  R5 Tributes.)

 

Euro 6 1.4 TSI,s were in other Skoda Models as TSI's or TSI ACT's and are still used in the PHEV's. 

?

Have you checked with VW if there is a TPI on your vehicle or a DSVSA recall?

 

You can report concerns to the DVSA. 

 

 

Edited 8 March, 2023 by toot

[Bat71]

Just had this happen last weekend, partner called me to say petrol everywhere when she came back to the parked car.

 

Towed to garage and the mechanic said one bolt had 'snapped' meaning the rest worked loose

 

2016 Skoda Octavia Estate 1.4 SE TSI 

[rum4mo]

11 hours ago, Bat71 said:

Just had this happen last weekend, partner called me to say petrol everywhere when she came back to the parked car.

 

Towed to garage and the mechanic said one bolt had 'snapped' meaning the rest worked loose

 

2016 Skoda Octavia Estate 1.4 SE TSI 

Please consider reporting this as an issue to DVSA or a similar gov website, it will only be numbers of genuine incidents that might force Gov to push for action on this sort of thing.

[wellpissed]

Had this exact problem occur yesterday. 
 

Smelled fuel after driving the vehicle a good distance but the odour wasn’t strong enough to set alarm bells ringing (silly me!). Upon returning to the vehicle hours later it struggled to start, EPC light on and had a severe misfire to the point of having to hold the accelerator down to avoid stalling in neutral. 

RAC arrived and correctly confirmed my suspicions (having read this thread moons ago) that one bolt on the fuel rail has snapped and others were loose. 
 

Recommend purchasing new bolts and seals to keep in the car if your engine hasn’t yet succumbed to this fault. RAC (and I imagine its competitors too) do not carry these bolts and recovery is the only option. 

I cannot believe this isn’t classified as a dangerous fault - I was metres away from entering a national speed limit carriageway! 

 

2016 (66 reg) Fabia CJZC 1.2 tsi 40k miles FMDSH 

[Ootohere]

Those affected should be contacting the DVSA.   

 VW Group / Skoda will just continue as they have unless people do something other than post on social media about it.

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/513687-fuel-leak-sheared-bolt-on-injector-rail

 

 

[Breezy_Pete]

^ Agreed.

My suspicion is that VW Group won't do anything as expensive as a recall without being forced to.

 

I have previously commented that I thought it would take a fatality/fatalities caused by this fault before action (by VW group) was taken, but owners who have experienced the fault should perhaps be more proactive than to wait for that.

Edited 31 May, 2023 by Breezy_Pete

[wellpissed]

22 minutes ago, toot said:

Those affected should be contacting the DVSA.   

 VW Group / Skoda will just continue as they have unless people do something other than post on social media about it.

http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/513687-fuel-leak-sheared-bolt-on-injector-rail

 

 

Certainly will be doing this once I receive a diagnostic report from the RAC. 

 

13 minutes ago, Breezy_Pete said:

^ Agreed.

My suspicion is that VW Group won't do anything as expensive as a recall without being forced to.

 

I have previously commented that I thought it would take a fatality/fatalities caused by this fault before action (by VW group) was taken, but owners who have experienced the fault should perhaps be more proactive than to wait for that.

Agreed. It is a shame that profit is valued higher than life. 

 

Is the problem confined to the 1.2 and 1.4 tsi units or is the 1.0 tsi affected too?

 

Also, does anyone know where we can source the replacement bolts and seals?  

 

Cheers 

[rum4mo]

Any/all VW Group main dealers parts department will order in any parts that you need.

 

So far, it seems that the 1.0TSI engines are not subject to this assembly line error, maybe the 1.2TSI and 1.4TSI engine lines share common tooling and the 1.0TSI is different, I remember checking over the parts listing from the 1.0TSI and I think that it uses different bolts to hold the fuel rail down, so that might be enough to keep them clear of this problem.

[krigl]

Hi all...

 

My Fabia 2016 1.2TSI 110 DSG also had a loose bolt to left side of fuel rail. I have inspected it during cambelt and water pump change. I have just replaced the bolts and locktite them also, just to be sure. It was around 160kkm on the milage of the car.

 

Good thing I have checked.

By the way, just take the cambelt and water pump to be changed at the dealer, because it is a right pain in the ass to do. It took me 8h to do both on jacks (I have no lift) and the amount of disassembly of the engine is quite high compared to official guides (in the guides the engine is usually out of the car and can be accessed easier). No need to use official tools, a white marker does the job quite good, just remember to mark the sprockets to block of engine and not only the belt, because the belt does not align after couple of turns when checking.

 

After this milage, the belt and pulleys were quite in good condition, but the water pump was a bit loose (free turning compared to new). I have also noticed some carbon buildup on the valves and will be likely take it to the dealer for cleaning later this year, since this is something, I cannot do on my own unfortunately.

[rum4mo]

Did you refill the coolant system with G12evo and how much did it take to refill it?

I really must remove the inlet manifold on my wife’s August 2015 Polo 1.2TSI, and check it's fuel rail bolts and refill it with G12evo. I’ve bought a used AC pipe - expansion valve to condenser, as I’ve finally worked out that maybe that pipe is leaking very slightly where the flexi section is joined to the alloy section. I’d always only considered that oil that appeared on that pipe originally when that car was under warranty, and I have been assuming that it is engine oil that escaped onto it when in fact it just might be fridge oil weeping out - along with the fridge charge! I bought new O-rings today for that job. Maybe the new Nissens condenser will continue to sleep in the attic, at least for another year!

Edited 16 June, 2023 by rum4mo

[krigl]

Use the G13... it is labeled on coolant expansion reservoir...
I have disconnected the hoses on both sides of radiator on bottom and let it drain out as much as it did, and when you take out the water pump (I have changed it, do not unscrew it if you will not change it!!! You can take off the big hoses on the water pump and let it drain there, just cover the gearbox vent hole on top with some duct tape not to spill the clutch with the cooling liquid) quite a lot had drained from there also (unfortunately to the flor ),  then reassemble the hoses.

Pull off the upper big hose of the radiator and pore in about 3l of G13 down the tube to the water pump, so engine and pump has some liquid to turn over. What is left, if any, put then in the expansion reservoir. Now use distilled water to fill the rest of the expansion reservoir. Turn on the engine and wait for it to heat up, fill up the expansion reservoir with distilled water if it is sucked in the system. Do not fill to top, but always to max marker...
You will wait quite a long time for engine to heat up and open all the valves. Also turn the heating on in cabin so water is circulated also there and verify that it is blowing hot in there.

It is also handy to have a OBD reader of any kind to verify coolant temperature. The coolant fan turns on at about 100 degrees Celsius. Please also turn of AC, since it uses same cooling fan   Maybe also pump wit your hands  on the big coolant lines to help move the trapped bubbles in the system. I have monitored the coolant level for first 50 km I have made and refill the coolant reservoir if it was missing fluid. 

[rum4mo]

I’ll stick to using the latest version of VW Group coolant, which is G12evo, what is printed on the coolant reservoir body is just what was being used at the factory on initial build.

I will also be applying a slight vacuum to the system to help with refilling, then using a scan tool to run the charge cooler pump also to help initially get rid of trapped bubbles.

One thing about needing to demand cabin heating, these cars use the “air blending” way of adjusting the temperature of the air from the heater, and that means that the heater matrix has engine coolant passing through it at all times while the engine is running. Having said that, when I follow a coolant change with a car run, I will usually have the cabin air temperature set high so that I know that there is coolant flowing around the system.

[krigl]

This is theory
When you touch the pipes and follow the hot ones of each one then you understand what actually is happening
I know this information from SSPs but practice has proven otherwise
 

The charge cooler draws directly from expansion reservoir and return to it and is the non problematic part and is quickly bleed of air bubbles. The engine and cabin heater takes some cycles and driving to fully bleed out the bubbles. This is what I have learned during my testing after water pump replacement.

[wellpissed]

Hi all, 

 

Just to follow up from my previous post; the DVSA have provided the following response: 

 

"I have reviewed your report and additional correspondents and note that you became aware of the fuel leakage through a reduction in engine performance, a warning message illuminating and a smell of fuel. I also note that this resulted in no incidents involving damage, injury, fire or loss of 

control.

 

DVSA has previously investigated matters of fuel rail bolts coming loose or snapping with the assistance of the manufacturer and has concluded in those cases that, although a leakage of fuel may occur, a lack of ignition sources in the immediate area means that there is an absence of immediate risk of a thermal event.

 

Additionally, the resulting fuel leakage is readily detectable during routine maintenance and servicing, together with the potential for a reduction in engine performance which will illuminate warning messages in the event of low fuel pressure whilst driving as was the case with your report.

 

Furthermore, the smell of fuel to the user will prompt the need for further investigation.

 

To conclude, whilst I acknowledge a quality concern does exist, DVSA are currently unable to conclude that this concern meets the definition of a “safety defect” as stated by the Code.

 

If owners believe they have received a product of poor quality, DVSA would advise they contact the manufacturer for further consideration (e.g., goodwill) or the Motoring Ombudsman." 

 

The reply certainly seems very copy-paste and certainly twists my words. I did not experience loss of power or warning lights prior to the failure, only afterwards. The car had only been serviced at the main dealer months beforehand - no faults found, another false statement. 

 

I can only assume they are not interested in thoroughly investigating or pushing the manufacturers for a recall of any kind. 

[rum4mo]

Yes, another report getting dismissed in respect of any real need to prevent this failure actually happening, as I found when I contacted them only as a "concerned owner", the trigger point for action has not been reached - yet, so "all is good" in their world.

 

Edit:- there must be quite a few drivers that do not have a "good" sense of smell, or appreciate a drop in engine performance - and so "bash on" - but VW Group and DVSA are probably not bothered too much about them.

Edited 2 August, 2023 by rum4mo

[rum4mo]

Oh bother, another one, I'm just adding this link to keep info together.

 

 

[Balazs_HU]

Hi, I registered to report another one happening in Hungary. It's a CZD 1.4 TSi Octavia from 2015. From what I've gathered from local forums this is not a well-known issue in Hungary, I found only one other example. 

 

Did any of you manage to repair it on site? My car is stuck in a very narrow underground parking lot and I have doubts if a tow car will be able to get in (the Octavia can barely go through the front gate, well, I am very happy with the front parking radars). For what I've understand the repair may or may not necessites draining the coolant? I am not looking to do it myself, but any similar experiences would greatly help my understand how I can get the car up and running.

 

Sorry if my English is somewhat lacking, usually I talk in Euroenglish which does not have the same flow as proper English 🙂