Hi, I have a Skoda Fabia MK2 estate 2010. Recently had a timing chain changed and a new camshaft sensor. However it is still not right. It keeps having the engine management light come up, isn't always starting straight away and sometimes spinning over then starting. It has had 2 timing chains in 72000 (3 including the original), electrics has been checked and fine, recently went back in to have the timing chain rechecked to make sure it was fine. The mechanic kept it for a few days afterwards and drove the car around, everything fine no eml. I picked the car up Monday evening and by the lunch time on the Tuesday the eml was back. It is also every now and then doing the spinning over then starting crap.

Any advice? This is driving me crazy.

Welcome to the forum. What engine has your Fabia? Is it a 1.2 TSI? Was it timing chain and tension replaced each time? If a pre 2012 TSI how are the spark plugs and ignition coils, and is there armour leads?

Edited 23 April23 Apr by Evolution13

Hi, I believe the timing chain and tensioner were both replaced at the same time. It was a full kit that was ordered if that makes any sense. Spark plugs I believe are fine, I'm unsure about the ignition coils. It is back in with the mechanic tomorrow so I will ask then. It is a 1.2 htp engine, car is petrol. Sorry I don't know what armour leads are? First car and only had it 3 years myself.

Ok. It was a 1.2 TSI issue with timing chains and tensioners and an upgrade. Also they had the plug lead issue. Sorry i know nothing about your engine but some grown ups might be along. PS, surely the spark plugs have been out and inspected and replaced sometime in the past 3 years!

Edited 23 April23 Apr by Evolution13

Ask the mechanic what fault codes are triggering the EML. That is crucial information.

Is it the 70bhp twin cam HTP, or 60bhp single cam version?

Do you park on a slope, and leave it in gear, by any chance?

Edited 23 April23 Apr by Breezy_Pete

Pretty sure it's a twin cam but will find out and reply again and with codes, I do have the original code and have attached it to this comment, this is off when it all 1st started after the camshaft sensor had been changed. The problem started over a month ago with no eml on but spinning over and not starting, then it would start. Diag comp said the same code as attached, so the sensor got changed, problem proceeded to get worse. Timing chain then changed and the eml started to appear. Can be intermittent however.

Sorry I'm not much use, trying to learn the best I currently can.

No I don't park on a slope 90% of the time, I have to if I'm going to my brother's as he lives on a hill. The only time I leave it in gear is if I'm parked on a hill/slope

Spark plugs were changed over a year ago and checked on last service and were ok. (October 2025)

Hi, car was in the garage this morning, code is still the same as the one in the picture above. It is definitely a twin cam.

19 hours ago, Spanelli said:

No I don't park on a slope 90% of the time, I have to if I'm going to my brother's as he lives on a hill. The only time I leave it in gear is if I'm parked on a hill/slope

Always try to leave it in a gear that means if the handbrake does slip a little, it turns the engine the normal way, not backwards.

So if you're nose down the slope, leave it in 1st.

If the engine is turned tge wrong way, it tends to squeeze residual oil out of the hydraulic chain tensioner, making a chain jump more likely when next started.

Edited 24 April24 Apr by Breezy_Pete

I'll try to give you some tips on checking cam sensor wiring later, cos that code suggests an electrical/wiring/contact problem more than a mechanical one, I think.

Thank you! It has been into an auto-electricals and they said they couldn't find anything wrong when they had it, but have been wondering if they just plugged it in the computer and didn't check the actual wiring.

OK, if the scan screenshot above is showing the correct engine code at the top (BBM), then you have the 6-valve single cam engine, which surprises me slightly in an estate version, I thought in the mk1 at least they got the slightly more powerful variant.

I'll start a PM conversation with you so that you can share the VIN with me securely. Then I can confirm engine coide/type and also the build date. Both of these are really necessary to get the most accurate wiring info.

As mentioned in PM, car built in sept 2010, with CGPA, 12-valve version of the HTP engine.

Cam sensor wiring looks like this:

G40 being cam sensor, J623 being the engine ECU.

The rectangle with 70 inside it shows (on another page) that this earth joins a few others, and terminates at ECU pin 54.

You should be able to measure a solid 5V between pins 1 and 3 of the connector when ignition is on.

Looking for any wiring damage, anywhere between 3-pin connector at cam sensor on top of valve cover, and ECU on firewall, would be my approach, though easier said than done for most of the wiring run.

Thank you, I will see what I can do tomorrow. Not really much light at the moment

Hi wiring fine for what I can see. Put the car in the garage Friday last week, got it back yesterday all fine until a few hours later, then the spinning over started again and the light came back on. The garage got the computer to relearn everything whilst they had the car and tried to do something else but we're unable to. Sorry I can't remember fully what they said. Will ask again tomorrow.