Dude, the ECU is waterproof, stop guessing, you and your garage don't have a clue.

 

Listen to the advice you're being given, this is a specialist forum, the people here are specialists, the information you're being given is specialist knowledge.

 

Get an auto electrician to test the wires between the alternator and the ECU, tell him to fix the one which broke when you went over the bump which put the warning light on.

 

Ok?

Dudette actually.

I realise I don’t have a clue I’m asking if that’s where the ECU is because of all the other electrical problems and that’s the worst area for condensation, there’s something going on behind the glovebox too moisture wise. But I do know enough to know water and electrics don’t mix.

Now you’ve spelt it out I know what I’ve got to do but no I had no idea there was such a thing as an auto electrician and I just assumed the garage would know this stuff because I don’t hence why I gave them my car to find the problem and fix it but there’s no point me going down there and saying the DFM wire without knowing what I’m talking about because they’ll blind me with excuses, ask me about something I’m specialist in and I’ll explain it to you but I wasn’t trying to guess at what’s wrong or how to fix it but being female when I walk into a garage if I’m not armed with knowledge, they get away with murder hence why I’m asking here or I would’ve paid £460 and lost my car for a week for no reason.

Does the vRS engine undertray have a slot in it near the front giving you a view of the bottom of the gearbox like the one in the first photo?

If so, you may be able to see the DFM wire at the point it usually breaks, along with another that tends to cause the battery light not to come on at ignition on; does yours?

If the slot is there, get a torch and have a peer up there. You might be able to see a two-wire connector like the one in the second photo. See if there's any sign of a wire breakage there.

If you were local I’d take a look, sadly not. 

1 hour ago, Wino said:

Does the vRS engine undertray have a slot in it near the front giving you a view of the bottom of the gearbox like the one in the first photo?

I shall try and have a look tomorrow if it’s not chucking down.

1 hour ago, Wino said:

If so, you may be able to see the DFM wire at the point it usually breaks, along with another that tends to cause the battery light not to come on at ignition on; does yours?

As far as I can remember all the usual lights come on at iginition, yes I’m sure the car battery light comes on and goes off again as it always has. Honestly can’t say I’ve really paid that much attention. I had a recent photo of all the lights but of course now I want it I can’t find it

1 hour ago, Wino said:

If the slot is there, get a torch and have a peer up there. You might be able to see a two-wire connector like the one in the second photo. See if there's any sign of a wire breakage there.

 

1 hour ago, Wino said:

Does the vRS engine undertray have a slot in it near the front giving you a view of the bottom of the gearbox like the one in the first photo?

If so, you may be able to see the DFM wire at the point it usually breaks, along with another that tends to cause the battery light not to come on at ignition on; does yours?

Battery light, parking (handbrake) light, engine management light, traction control malfunction light and ABS light all come on at ignition.

 

 

 

3 hours ago, BB78 said:

Dudette actually.

I realise I don’t have a clue I’m asking if that’s where the ECU is because of all the other electrical problems and that’s the worst area for condensation, there’s something going on behind the glovebox too moisture wise. But I do know enough to know water and electrics don’t mix.

Now you’ve spelt it out I know what I’ve got to do but no I had no idea there was such a thing as an auto electrician and I just assumed the garage would know this stuff because I don’t hence why I gave them my car to find the problem and fix it but there’s no point me going down there and saying the DFM wire without knowing what I’m talking about because they’ll blind me with excuses, ask me about something I’m specialist in and I’ll explain it to you but I wasn’t trying to guess at what’s wrong or how to fix it but being female when I walk into a garage if I’m not armed with knowledge, they get away with murder hence why I’m asking here or I would’ve paid £460 and lost my car for a week for no reason.

 

I don't discriminate between dudes and dudettes but I do understand your difficulties dealing with the misogynist morons at the garage.

The best suggestion is to call a mobile auto electrician to come to you and ask him to continuity check and fix the wires between alternator and ECU, it won't take him long so the charge should be reasonable.

OK, from the battery light function being normal we can conclude that the blue wire from alternator to Onboard Supply Control Unit in the cabin is intact. The other wire in my pictue of 'Alternator signals" is the DFM wire, and it actually changes colour at that connector on its way to the engine ECU. Brown/red towards alternator, purple/green towards ECU.

 

If you can get a look in there; examine this wire for breakage near the connector pair shown.

Not been able to get under the car in daylight thanks to the constant rain but been back to the garage & questioned their electrician, the problem is I’ve got a speed sensor fault but it’s intermittent they changed the sensor but that didn’t fix it, one minute the sensor is sending a signal and the lights go out the next minute the sensor stops sending a signal and the lights come back on, there’s continuity at the connector pin so it’s talking to the ECU and he said there’s a regulator in or on the ABS pump that fails that causes this problem, VW used to sell a rebuild kit but they don’t anymore. He did give me one other option though, buy a second hand ABS pump & he can connect that to the car to test it, if it comes up with a different fault then it’s the electrics on my car if they suspect the new second hand pump is faulty it’ll be under warranty being an electrical item (he means buy it from eBay using PayPal) and if it’s faulty I can send it back, he thought a second hand pump would be around £100 but looking on eBay they are between £40 and £400. For £40 if it’s faulty I’ve got the option of sending that one off to be repaired and not losing the use of my car for 6/7 days.

He said one thing that’s now got me concerned, is this an MOT failure? MOT due soon so have got to do something if so.

Have you guys heard of an issue with a regulator on the ABS pump causing this problem before? He drove around the car park and the lights went out and he showed me the display on Vagcom and the signal from that sensor compared to the others was very up and down.

Is this my problem?

 

This is going to sound like a really daft question, but are there any other warning lights illuminated at the same time as the Traction Control one? Specifically the ABS light (orange) and the Handbrake warning light / low brake fluid warning light (Red exclamation mark !!!), also any warning bings from the dash when the lights come on?

 

Edited 7 October, 20196 yr by Lofty

Just now, Lofty said:

This is going to sound like a really daft question, but are there any other warning lights illuminated at the same time as the Traction Control one?

Only the ABS light. 

Never heard of that G201 fault on a Mk1 Fabia, I think it's a different ABS module.

 

If the sensor is OK, and the wiring is OK, it must be either a problem within the module or the magnetic target on the wheel bearing that the ABS sensor is looking at has a problem, or the positioning of the sensor relative to it.

Has any work been done recently that may have removed the rear hub/bearing?

And does the light illuminate immediately after start up or only after 10 mins or so? Assuming the fault code is cleared beforehand?

 

1 minute ago, Lofty said:

And does the light illuminate immediately after start up or only after 10 mins or so? Assuming the fault code is cleared beforehand?

 

Immediately.

My money's on a broken load sensing wire to the alternator - the blue one. Especially as it only came on after being on a rough bit of road, engine movement can be enough to finally break a tired corroded wire in the loom connector.

 

Before the garage does anything else get them to take the undertray off and examine the two wires in the connecting block in front of the starter - I think Wino put a picture up. Might save you a bob or two in wrong parts being fitted.

 

Failing that has anyone actually checked the 40a strip fuse on top of the battery for cracking - another very common thing in Fabia's of this age.

 

It's very easy to be mislead by "diagnostics" on these platform cars, quite often it's a minor fault causing the flagging up of a worse issue!

 

2 minutes ago, Wino said:

Never heard of that G201 fault on a Mk1 Fabia, I think it's a different ABS module.

 

If the sensor is OK, and the wiring is OK, it must be either a problem within the module or the magnetic target on the wheel bearing that the ABS sensor is looking at has a problem, or the positioning of the sensor relative to it.

Has any work been done recently that may have removed the rear hub/bearing?

Such as?? Just so I know what I’m looking for on invoices and by recent, how recent do you mean, around the time of the fault? Just so that I don’t give you a load of Irrelevant info. Basically I don’t do anything to the car myself except drive it, MOT it and service it once a year, I do DIY indoors but don’t have the strength for the car.

Replacement of the bearing would be one thing. 

I'm wondering if where the new sensor was put in wasn't cleaned off adequately, so some rust is holding it further out than its correct position.

I see @Tech1e is viewing the thread so hold tight for some experienced ideas.

11 minutes ago, Wino said:

I see @Tech1e is viewing the thread so hold tight for some experienced ideas.

 

Sneaky

 

It's one of them problems that i'd need to get my hands on and have a fiddle with. We just end up going around in circles sometimes over a forum with suggestions and someone inexperienced on the other end, no offence to the OP of course.

It's a fair cop. 

18 minutes ago, Wino said:

Replacement of the bearing would be one thing. 

I'm wondering if where the new sensor was put in wasn't cleaned off adequately, so some rust is holding it further out than its correct position.

I see @Tech1e is viewing the thread so hold tight for some experienced ideas.

No nothing like that but just looking at my MOT last year and I had 2 advisories: service brake binding but not excessively Offside and Nearside Rear (preventing full inspection of wheel bearing) and it’s the offside rear speed sensor that’s playing up/they’ve replaced.

Theres also a comment: Front and Rear discs in poor condition on inner edges and front and rear brake pads 50% left that’s on my invoice from the 16/09/2019. I seem to go through discs, pads and tyres at a shocking rate considering I’ve only done 37k miles & only do about 2,000 miles a month.

My Coil springs are corroded.

Edited 7 October, 20196 yr by BB78

If you can, safely, have a look at the area around where the sensor is mounted, looking for rusty surfaces that may have caused the sensor to not sit fully in the right place. The pic shows where it sits relative to the brake caliper.

 

 

Alternatively: It may be that there is play in the bearing that's allowing inward/outward movement of the wheel hub, and that wasn't picked up by the MOT cos as it says, the slightly binding brakes didn't allow full inspection.

 

 

6 minutes ago, Tech1e said:

 

no offence to the OP of course.

None taken. I do get the feeling I’m being fobbed off by the garage because of my gender they keep telling me I’m free to get a 2nd opinion but they don’t like it that I have sourced a 2nd opinion and they don’t like where that source is coming from i.e. the internet I haven’t been specific. I don’t care if they don’t like it I gave them my car to diagnose and fix it and they didn’t, I’m not forking out £460 when they’re not entirely sure what’s wrong.

They didn’t exactly convince me on Saturday when they didn’t know what a DFM wire was, why they would check it or where it was located, so I showed them the picture you posted. Honestly I shouldn’t be going to those kind of lengths.

7 minutes ago, Wino said:

If you can, safely, have a look at the area around where the sensor is mounted, looking for rusty surfaces that may have caused the sensor to not sit fully in the right place. The pic shows where it sits relative to the brake caliper.

 

 

Alternatively: It may be that there is play in the bearing that's allowing inward/outward movement of the wheel hub, and that wasn't picked up by the MOT cos as it says, the slightly binding brakes didn't allow full inspection.

 

 

It’s raining again and it’s not that I mind getting wet but the car park is flooded, would rather not get my phone wet taking photos. He had the car up on the ramp on Saturday and I did notice there is shed loads of rust all around the springs/coils (didn’t specifically look at the caliper), he disconnected the pin connector to the sensor and showed that to me and there was no rust on the ends and that’s when he said there was continuity and started saying that that wire is super tough and virtually indestructible (unless you’ve got scissors or a knife or wire cutters) I’m female not 5.

If there's a big empty car park you could drive around, try this.  Drive in a big anticlockwise circle for a while, and see if the fault lights go out. Then try driving in a clockwise circle and see if they come on. 

Repeat both to see if it seems consistent (or does the opposite if my theory is pants).

 

I'm thinking that clockwise turns will tend to pull the offside rear wheel outward on its bearing, maximising the distance from sensor to magnetic pickup.  Anticlockwise will push the wheel inward, toward the sensor.