Hi all
I’ve been chasing a stubborn intermittent issue on my 2016 Skoda Superb Combi 2.0 TDI (L&K trim, originally German-market, now in Latvia), and could use some input from anyone who’s run into something similar.

Main issue:
The issue is intermittent and mainly shows up during short, city driving, especially after several stop-start cycles:

• The car jerks sometimes, especially at low to mid speeds

• Sometimes, while coasting at ~50 km/h, the engine shuts off, shows the message “Start engine manually”, and then restarts itself within 1 second, without driver input

• No warning lights during the event, and infotainment stays on — so it’s not a full electrical reset

• Sometimes when starting the car:

  • It cranks longer than normal

  • Then enters limp mode with the glow plug light blinking

  • Multiple other systems shut off with it: Auto Hold, ACC, electric parking brake, etc.

What I’ve done so far:

1. Replaced the battery with a Bosch S5 A08 AGM (70Ah)

2. Coded the new battery via VCDS (changed serial number)

3. Replaced camshaft position sensor

4. Replaced turbo boost pressure sensor

5. Replaced 3 glow plugs

6. Start/Stop has been disabled manually, but shutdowns have still occurred

7. Glow plug + dash warning surge always happens with multiple systems deactivating simultaneously, not just the glow plug alone

Current behavior:

After short drives, I’ve had:

• Long crank

• Sudden jerks at ~50 km/h

• One incident where restarting the car to move it triggered all dash warnings again (glow plug blinking + others)

My questions:

1. Has anyone had a random engine shutdown + self-restart while driving, with no EPC or full power loss?

2. Could a bad ground or power relay cause these exact shutdowns + dash warning floods?

3. Would a crankshaft sensor cause this behavior even after cam sensor was replaced?

4. Could something still be interfering with Start/Stop logic, even when manually disabled?

Any help or shared experience would be hugely appreciated, I’ve done a lot already but still feel like I’m missing the key fault source. Will update as I check more next week.

Thanks in advance!

Very similar problem here https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/533413-oil-temp-reaches-90c-vehicle-starts-jumping/ was solved by replacing the crank sensor.

1 hour ago, D402 said:

Very similar problem here https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/533413-oil-temp-reaches-90c-vehicle-starts-jumping/ was solved by replacing the crank sensor.

Thanks! I’ve read quite a lot of threads with similar issues, but none had came up with the crankshaft sensor yet. Was hoping to change it myself yesterday, but it seems that it isn’t as easy as camshaft sensor, to reach, so will have to book it for a garage.

Giving an update on this in case it helps someone in the future.

I originally went to the garage expecting to have the crankshaft position sensor replaced. The mechanic I spoke to wasn’t entirely convinced that simply swapping the sensor would solve the issue. Interestingly, he also owns a Superb himself (a slightly newer model, but same generation) and had experienced similar problems.

He suspected that the root cause might be damaged wiring, which he said is a common VAG issue on this platform. I left the car with them, and after two full days of diagnostics and inspection, they confirmed that the problem was indeed wiring-related.

They found and replaced four damaged wires:

• One going to the crankshaft sensor

• Three others near the ECU, which were also causing communication issues

They fully diagnosed the ECU, replaced the damaged wires, and ultimately decided to replace the crankshaft sensor as well, since it may have been affected by the faulty wiring or at risk of future failure.

TL;DR

If you're having intermittent jerks, limp mode, long cranks, or random engine shutoffs, especially if glow plug lights or other systems flash up, don’t overlook the possibility of damaged wiring, especially near the crankshaft sensor or ECU harness. On this generation of Superb, it's more common than you'd expect.

Hope this helps someone! Feel free to reach out if you’re facing a similar issue.

Edited 8 August, 20258 Aug by mepaulrye

Hi,

Have you check your harnesses? No rodent bites?

´Rodent attack’ can do a real mess.

I faced that on my wife´s former Audi Q3. Maybe worth to check... 🤷‍♂️

Can you post a VCDS scan report?

BTW, have you ever tried to ask on the Ross-tech forum (assuming you own a genuine VCDS tool)?

On 08/08/2025 at 17:31, mepaulrye said:

Giving an update on this in case it helps someone in the future.

I originally went to the garage expecting to have the crankshaft position sensor replaced. The mechanic I spoke to wasn’t entirely convinced that simply swapping the sensor would solve the issue. Interestingly, he also owns a Superb himself (a slightly newer model, but same generation) and had experienced similar problems.

He suspected that the root cause might be damaged wiring, which he said is a common VAG issue on this platform. I left the car with them, and after two full days of diagnostics and inspection, they confirmed that the problem was indeed wiring-related.

They found and replaced four damaged wires:

• One going to the crankshaft sensor

• Three others near the ECU, which were also causing communication issues

They fully diagnosed the ECU, replaced the damaged wires, and ultimately decided to replace the crankshaft sensor as well, since it may have been affected by the faulty wiring or at risk of future failure.

TL;DR

If you're having intermittent jerks, limp mode, long cranks, or random engine shutoffs, especially if glow plug lights or other systems flash up, don’t overlook the possibility of damaged wiring, especially near the crankshaft sensor or ECU harness. On this generation of Superb, it's more common than you'd expect.

Hope this helps someone! Feel free to reach out if you’re facing a similar issue.

I don't suppose you have any pictures of the location of the damaged wires?

Where to look is anyone has the same issue in the future?

Off-topic - had the same on an E36 328i (and 323i) - if it ran rough but didn't stall it was camshaft position sensor (easy change), if it ran rough and stalled it was the crankshaft position sensor (not easy change). Just reminded me reading this through.

Glad there was some solution and hope its a long-term fix OP.

On 10/08/2025 at 11:46, Bap33 said:

Hi,

Have you check your harnesses? No rodent bites?

´Rodent attack’ can do a real mess.

I faced that on my wife´s former Audi Q3. Maybe worth to check... 🤷‍♂️

Can you post a VCDS scan report?

BTW, have you ever tried to ask on the Ross-tech forum (assuming you own a genuine VCDS tool)?

Hi!

The issue was resolved (see post above), it came down to poor wire quality in some places and winter/salt impact on them in local climate.

On 12/08/2025 at 08:19, Gabbo said:

I don't suppose you have any pictures of the location of the damaged wires?

Where to look is anyone has the same issue in the future?

Unfortunately I didn't ask for any picture, but as far as I know, one of the damaged cables was leading directly to the crankshaft sensor and other ones were in the engine bay (as I understand, leading or very near ECU).

----

All in all, I've got the car fixed for a few weeks now and the issues really seems to be resolved. First few cold starts after the repair seemed to take a bit more than I would like, the crank wasn't instant (still less than a second to start), but I might just be paranoid at this point. No other issues and the cranks seems to be fine now as well.