Hi fellow SKODA owners.

My 2012 Superb 2.0 TDi 170CR with 203K on the clock sadly let me down whilst returning from France last week. Having effortlessly carried us to the South of France we disappointingly broke down on the way home just 30 miles into our journey but 800 miles from home. After being recovered to the nearest recovery depot we duly made alternative arrangements to get home to then start the process of dealing with our breakdown cover which happens to the AA through SKODA Assist.

The first surprise was to be told that our car would be repaired through the SKODA Warranty. This came as a surprise as servicing at the local SKODA dealer ended a long time ago to be replaced by me carrying out routine servicing and more involved jobs such as clutches etc to be handled by my trusted local specialist. All I had done had maintained my breakdown cover with Skoda Assist ever since they wrote to me when the car was 3 years old. Who was I to argue if someone else was going to pay. It all started to unravel when I was told that SKODA in France do not offer the reciprocal arrangement and anyway the nearest dealer in Beziers has a 3 month waiting time for repairs.

To date I have not been able to get an accurate diagnosis as to what the problem is and I need to make a decision whether to get the vehicle back to the UK and repaired. To complicate matters the current market value of the car is less than the cost of repatriation. I have the option to repatriate the car myself for which I will be reimbursed up to the value of the car. Having looked at the cost of doing so I can do so without putting my own hand in my pocket. The problem is that the breakdown cover will only reimburse my out of pocket expenses for getting the car back home once I can prove the car has been repaired.

All I can share here is what happened. Car was running absolutely fine, we were on the motorway sitting happily at 70mph with the cruise control on when without any indication ie. noise etc we started to slow down. My first reaction was to put my foot on the pedal but with no response. Looking at the dash the glow plug warning light was flashing. Thankfully we were going downhill and were able to free wheel into an SOS layby. Having stopped I briefly tried to start the engine but to no avail.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to what could be the problem. If it's a problem that is £1500-2000k or above then the car will most likely be left in France. The car has been brilliant but is nearly 14 years old and has done 203K miles. The mileage does not put me off and since I know the car and that it has never let me down I would prefer to keep it running. Some might think I am being sentimental but to buy a 3 or 4 year old replacement that has all the same features as the one I have will cost me £30K.

Any help would be appreciated.

It's likely that the cp4 pump gave out, or that the DPF is full and needs to be replaced. To give you a price would be ridiculous, as I cannot properly diagnose your car from Germany and I have very little information about your car. Both options are expensive, but not the only possibilities.