Skoda Fabia (2000 – 2007) Review

• January 0001
• November 2015
• February 2016

Make sure the 1.4 8v is not losing coolant and has not overheated through loss of coolant in the past, possibly due to friction on the bottom hose as a result of soft engine mountings. Seems to be an engine management problem with 2006MY Fabia VRS 130s. Check a/c because faulty a/c temperature sensors prevalent in July 2006 and parts "on back order".

Reports of ECU failures. ECU is mounted on the engine compartment scuttle and could be subject to moisture ingress.

Wiring looms can get wet, possiblly due to blocked vent plenum chamber drains. Skoda has recognised the problem and will replace the part FOC (providing the car has been serviced by its dealers) although the customer has to pay the labour cost which takes at least 1 day. The part costs about £700 and takes about a month to make before it can be shipped over.

Very soft engine mountings result in occasional 'clunks' and affect the steering.

Complaints of water leaks from ventilation plenum chamber into driver's footwell (cured by removing plastic liners of plenum drains which easily clog and making sure waterproof cover is fitted properly over pollen filter). Inadequate drainage from door bottoms leaves water slopping about in there causing condensation. Can help to use a bit of wood to poke through any wax that is blocking the drain holes.

Head gasket failures and misaligned auxiliary drive belt on 1.4 8v. Further complaints about 1.4 8v include mechanical unreliability, fuses blowing in immobiliser circuit due to a fuel pump fault, engine coolant loss due to bottom hose seal failing and, in around 5% of cars, coolant loss through head gasket due to insufficiently torqued stretch bolts. (Coolant loss meant one owner needed a new waterpump, cylinder head gasket and coolant reservoir as a result of overheating.)

Several incidences reported of glass in rear hatchback shattering.

One report of a mis-build: petrol front springs fitted to diesel engined car.

Below minus 8 degrees centigrade, condensation in sumps of 1.0 and 1.4 engines emulsifies and blocks crankcase breather pipe leading to lack of engine lubrication and engine failure. Reports of repeated windscreen washer pump failure. Same ABS fault as on other VAG cars can lead to underbonnet fires. This fault is not acknowledged by Skoda. Air conditioning condenser is vulnerable to road debris and costs £500 to replace (Skoda will not contribute).

Power loss on TDI 90s and 110s over 3,000rpm can be cured by replacing a thin hose that runs from the exhaust, near the turbo, to the ECU.

Problems reported with hydraulic clutch master cylinders where fitted rather than cable clutch.

Reports of timing belt failures of 1.4 16v due to plastic timing belt tensioner failing, but luckily the belt can stay on and valves not hit pistons. All apart from the 1.2 chain-cam three-cylinder engines need new timing belts and tensioners every 4 years or 60,000 miles whichever comes first.

Increasing reports of power steering failures.

Another cause of damp inside the car, especially the rear footwells, is the old VAG problem of failed plastic damp proof membranes inside the doors.

On early 2000 and 2001 build cars the rubber ends of the anti roll bar mountings fail and the anti roll bars themselves can rust (this fault also afflicts Audi 2s).

Skoda Fabians with erratic a/c, usually, it works when the engine is first started, and then not again till tomorrow, have weak evaporator switches. Located somewhere grim of course. These would be labour intensive for a specialist to carry out, but Skoda insists that this little job can be done in 3 hours, and dealers have to abide by that, so much cheaper to go to the dealer who will carry out the work through gritted teeth. This fault does show up on OBDII diagnostics. At first glance this behaves rather like a weak compressor clutch, except the compressor on the Skoda Fabia is clutchless."

Timing chains of 3-cylinder chain cam petrol engines are snapping, possibly because they need cleaner oil than VAG anticipated with its service regime, or possibly because the wrong oil has been used. iming chain tensioner problems on 2002-2003 1.2s, usually caused by not changing the oil and filter often enough. Cured on later engines by a more substantial tensioner.

Lumpy running of early 1.2 Fabias can be due to timing chain stretching and jumping a tooth. Unexplained problems with fuel systems of 1.2 petrol models that seem to overfuel sporadically for no apparent reason might be due to stretched timing chains.

Reports of repeated trouble with the EGR valves of 1.2 3-cylinder engines.

'Drive shaft Hub Nuts' coming loose is a common problem with early Fabias. Modified sets available from Skoda and require a 19mm allen key to install. This can be done while the wheels are still on the car.

Faults after 60k miles on an 02 5-year-old 1.9 TDI estate reported in June 2007:

Loud knocking suddenly started from the front suspension, traced to an anti-roll bar failure O/S end only, necessitating dealer replacement at £160. The powder coating on the bar had totally flaked away leaving the bar to corrode and rapidly wear the bushes. Followed by total power steering failure, expected to be the steering angle sensor, another known weak point.

Like contemporary Polos, 2005/2006 1.4 16v engines are suffering severe bore wear at around 40,000 miles. If no help forthcoming from Skoda and the engine is beyond saving by this can effectively write off the car. If the engine is rebuilt it is ESSENTIAL to renew the injectors as well.

ESP warning light can indicate Fault Code "Boost Pressure Sensor G201". This is embedded inside Teves Mk 60 ABS systems and requires replacement of ABS control unit/pump. Seems to be age-related, occurring mainly in 3 - 5 year old cars. Does not necessarily lead to an MoT failure. £1,500 cost of replacement.

Paint comes off spoilers of VRS models.

In common with most VAG cars, the control unit for the windows and locking lives inside the driver's door, which is a very wet place and where it is vulnerable to moisture ingress and often fails.

Reader report of 2005 1.4 16v 100PS Comfort, bought March 2008 at 13k miles, since spent £1,987.43 on repairs to 41,000 miles: failed oxygen sensor,recirculating gas valve, throttle housing, boot would not open, the bushes and rubber mounts replaced at 36411 miles ,two cam belts replaced.

Manual transmission of Fabia 1.2 failed at 60k miles. Quoted £2k to replace, which is more than the value of the car.

Report of 2006 Skoda Fabia automatic having a change of transmission oil on advice of dealer and 1 month later losing reverse gear. Dealer now wants £4,000 to replace the transmission for a fault that could have been caused by it changing the transmission oil. This must have been a 4-speed torque converter auto, not a DSG.

Clogged EGR reported on 2004 2004 Skoda Fabia 1.4 16v driven about 3k miles per year.

Windows of my Fabia 1 started opening of their own accord and the doors kept locking and unlocking causing the indicator lights to flash and thus draining the battery. Owner got it to Skoda dealer who performed work on it (changed a loom in the door) which he said had solved the problem. Owner paid £300 for the repair and drove home. Parked up and happened to look out the window and the windows were down again. The door locking and unlocking and the flashing indicators had been cured however. Took it back 6 weeks ago and has only now been told that they have isolated the problem. Seems it is a central control unit and it will cost another £498 parts and labour. (Usual moisture ingress problem to locking and windows ECU inside the driver's door.)

Report of failure of ABS modeule on 2003 Skoda Fabia estate at 72,000 miles. Driver's foot has gone down to the floor three times when braking. Quoted £700 by local garage to replace. We speculated it will probably be an ATE Teves Mk 60 ABS/ESP module and the brake pressure valve is prone to failure. But at 13 years old, contaminants in the brake fluid could have caused further damage. http://www.ecutesting.com charges about £400 to recondition an ABS/ESP module if it is repairable, plus the cost of removing, carriage and re-fitting. The trouble is we don't know if it is repairable.