2003 Polo 1.2 Petrol...Not well :(

[polohorse]

Hello All!

Apparently, I'm the newest member Apologies for the long story My posts won't always be like this

I purchased a very nice wee Polo on a '53 plate for my daughter just about a year and a half ago. It is very clean and only 53K miles on it. I got it on ebay and although I bought it from afar, I felt sure it was a decent car. It drove from London to Glasgow no probs and didn't miss a beat. It seemed fine for the next couple of months but then developed a stalling fault and lack of power. I've been in the trade 30+ years but unfortunately I live abroad right now.

After the RAC said the camshaft position sensor was gone I organised a new one and talked my daughter through fitting it. It made no difference. I got it in to a garage in Edinburgh and the guy said they suffered with a timing chain guide problem. I got a new kit and paid him to sort it.

The car was fine since then, although it has only done 5k since the repair but a couple of weeks ago on the motorway it lost power. The EM light came on again and so she called out recovery. The guy put the diagnostics on it but could find no fault. When he finished, the light went out and they carried on from Washington, Newcastle, to York and all the way back to Edinburgh without a problem.

The light did come back on again but there are no symptoms until it gets up to around 50mph and it drives around the city quite happily. I got the garage that repaired it to take a look at it but he's now telling me it needs an engine

I gather that this is a common fault with these and so I'm hoping there are a pile of people who can advise. If I was there it would be much easier. Thanks in advance for any advice or info you can offer.

[RUM4MO]

I can understand the initial problem that needed, hopefully, a revised timing chain + guides + etc fitting, but this latest problem where it sounds like it goes into limp home mode only at higher road speeds, becomes "okay" when the fault is cleared or it is "esponged"(sp?) by a few fault free starts, and then continues okay until out on the "open road" - and it needs a new engine to sort this "known" problem, I can't work out, though I've never had a 1.2 3 cylinder engine VAG car.

Is the garage you are using familiar with this engine? Maybe your daughter should try a local VAG indie - there are a couple or some in or about Edinburgh - well they claim to be VAG specialists, for my money I'd head for Star Performance in Dysart just above Kirkcaldy I use them for cambelt changes and TCA rubber changes.

I have been on a recovery truck in Washington - it was a sheared locking tab on the differential of my mates SAAB 96, saved a bit of money on petrol but wasted a lot of time luckily at the end of a holiday!

Now I am not being nasty to this forum, but, if you want technical advice on that engine, you should join www.briskoda.net and www.seatcupra.net as some of the folk on there really do sort their own cars. (Fabia and Ibiza sections respectively)

[alexperkins]

Now I am not being nasty to this forum, but, if you want technical advice on that engine, you should join http://www.briskoda.net and http://www.seatcupra.net as some of the folk on there really do sort their own cars. (Fabia and Ibiza sections respectively)

Alot on here do too, just dont necessarily stick it in a post! I for one do everything myself.

[RUM4MO]

Now I am not being nasty to this forum, but, if you want technical advice on that engine, you should join http://www.briskoda.net and http://www.seatcupra.net as some of the folk on there really do sort their own cars. (Fabia and Ibiza sections respectively)

Alot on here do too, just dont necessarily stick it in a post! I for one do everything myself.

I don't want to enter a discussion on this concept, but, due to the sort of person, in general that buys VW or Seat or Skoda products, the Skoda owners tend to be the ones that for any number or reasons, do the most "fixing" followed by the Seat owners - nothing wrong with that - that is fact.

So, when asking a certain type of question on VAG product, sometimes it pays to look elsewhere for answers other than in your "home" forum, I've been a VW owner for 15 years, and for Passat issues I used the Passat-UK and Passatworld forums, for Polo 9N problems, I found that "owner/fixers" for that platform were yet to appear on this forum, so I looked elsewhere and that elsewhere was the two forums I mentioned in my previous posting - we should be open to do that without being seen as being unfaithful to our "home" forum, life must go on, problems need identifying and fixing quickly - and there is the fact that sharing information across forums can only be good for VAG owners?

[alexperkins]

No issue with that and fully agree - it's all about sharing

Your post merely implied that people on here don't tend to try fix it themselves

[RUM4MO]

Okay, for the early VW Polos I can see that, but I'm meaning the 9N "Skoda Polos" especially.

[polohorse]

Thanks a lot "RUM40MO" for the advice and I liked the money saving story about the Saab, although I'm an avid Saab fan got two for my sins. Anyway, I'll take your advice and check out the other links. I didn't think you were being unfaithful to this forum, that's what forums are all about and in fairness to you, "alexperkins" is arguing the point of people not fixing their own from a weak point, I got one reply and it was from you so all those fixers must be on holiday Thanks again!