R.I.P. - My engine (2009-2013)

[Martin]

once the valves have finished "clearancing" themselves it wont necessarily make much noise and you will have no compression.

Indeed - the pistons normally win due to the angle of the valve
The valves get bent thus avoiding another interaction with the piston next time around

A very common outcome...

[Gaz]

Well, Skoda have been getting the workshop to take apart the engine, bit by bit and send photos of various components. It has been a lengthy process, but I am hoping this is a good sign. They may be ready to respond tomorrow, so fingers crossed.

As hard as it is to believe, I had no warning of the failure, and there was no unusual noises as I tried to start it. Mind you, it was a very wet night, but still it all seemed remarkably like I'd run out of petrol. I was convinced the workshop was talking about someone else's car when they told me the engine had some serious problems.

[MJKooLio]

R.I.P. - My engine (2009-2013)

In a case like this, do you have another car? Did you go and buy a new one and the Skoda is being looked at? I would die if I had to get a rental car! Money down the drain!.....

[wai]

Well, Skoda have been getting the workshop to take apart the engine, bit by bit and send photos of various components.

I would love to see the head before they start taking the valves out, the pistons, and the timing end with what happened to the timing chain, sprockets and tensioner.

[gavs]

Urgh, this is horrible Gaz, I'm really really sorry to hear that you're going through this. For this day and age, for a tensioner to fail like that in an engine supposedly built so the timing system never has to be fixed or replaced is a bit of a joke. If you are out of pocket fro ANY expenses whatsoever, i would be taking them for all you can.

Not trying to be a fear-mongerer any more than I already am but this is exactly the reason why i'm jumping off the VAG ship asap. If this is a known issue and there is a TPI for it, if this is the result then surely, surely this would instigate a servie campaign.... I guess they just figure that in most cases it fails outside warranty so the new owner is stuck having to pay for a whole new engine due to their design flaws

I commend you in your principles to hold onto the car too mate, a lot of respect there mate. Fingers crossed it all works out. My girlfriend's 207 recently had a fairly major trans failure a few weeks back and it's 6 months out of warranty. Because it was a known issue and she had it service on time, every time at a local Pug dealer, there was no hassles in getting Peugeot aus to cover the costs of the repair AND offer a new warranty on the component. VAG could take a leaf out of the frenchie's book RE customer service

[Antiplastix]

I ve been watching this issue for a while as my vRS seems to be one of those affected. (09 build MY10 model)
As far as I know the cam chain tensioner is hydraulic in its adjustment, with a ratchet to hold the tensioner in place when there is no oil pressure. The failures occur on start up when the ratchet fails and there is no oil pressure to take up the slack on the chain. VAG redesigned the tensioner in the MY11 model.
Surely this is an admission that the previous model was faulty.
I m not sure what the failure rate has to be for a recall but obviously it hasn t reached that level yet. Maybe VAG just planned on ignoring the issue till all the affected vehicles were out of warranty.

[Gaz]

Okay, so it's been a little while but finally I have some good news.

A rep from VW Australia called and confirmed that Skoda/VW will cover 100% of parts and labour, I may have to pay for some consumable items, but everything else will be paid for. What is more, there will be 2 years warranty on the new parts and labour, which is a fantastic result.

Now I must say, Belbowrie Motors in Coffs Harbour have been excellent during this process, I owe the warranty repairs manager a better than average bottle of scotch.

All going well, the car will be back home on Monday, I'm paying them to change 2 tyres, and give it a full detail. Then it's back on the market...unless I change my mind...

[zei20t]

that's fantastic news! couldn't ask for a better outcome.

im glad belbowrie motors is still there. my grandfather gave them lots of money over the years lol

[ChrisSkodaEngineFail]

This is not a happy day...

As I type this, my RS wagon (which is still for sale ) is getting an autopsy done on the engine.

The other day I tried to start the engine and it just turned over without firing. I knew I was low on petrol, but I thought there was enough to get me to the servo. So, assuming it was completely empty, i put about 10 litres in from a jerry can.

Still nothing..

I called the NRMA who put another 10 litres in

Still nothing, the engine turned, but would not start. The mechanic assumed it was a fuel pump failure and we got it towed to the local Skoda dealership.

I called later in the day and the the engine has no compression, on any cylinders, and the probable cause is the timing chain tensioner failing and the chain shipping a few teeth on start up. If this is true then a new engine will be needed.

My factory warranty expired in August '12, but it has always been serviced at Skoda dealerships. So who knows how much this is going to cost.

I'll keep you posted, but for now the RS is off the market...

Hi there. This exact same problem occurred with my 2009 Skoda Octavia. It's been at the service centre for almost four weeks now, and I've just been advised that there is significant damage to the piston and so on. Skoda have advised that if I pay for labour they will pay for parts. Does anyone have any advice about whether this is reasonable? Thanks.

[MGV]

In my case, VW deemed it cheaper to provide me with an entire new engine rather than replace the bent bits. I was off the road for around 6 weeks. The entire job was under warranty, i was about 2 1/2 years into the 3 year warranty period.

I would imagine you may still be up for around $2000 in labour, at a guesstimate...

[wai]

Skoda have advised that if I pay for labour they will pay for parts. Does anyone have any advice about whether this is reasonable? Thanks.

If the vehicle has undergone scheduled servicing since the warranty expired, Skoda should pick up the entire tab. Consumer warranties will not accept that once the manufacturer's warranty has expired that the engine can "fall apart" and the manufacturer accepts no liability.

Undergoing scheduled servicing, a vehicle engine should be able to operate for more than 2 years past its warranty period.

I know that VGA will try and stall. I've gone through something similar where the high level brake light on my Caddy cracked for the second time. The light was inspected by a dealer who agreed it was not as a result of being hit. They submitted it to VGA on August 25, and they have sat on it for close on 6 weeks now. They are hoping that I will go away and buy a replacement myself.

[daft1014]

My cam chain tensioner failed and I got a new engine via Brisbane Prestige in my 2009 FL RS model earlier in the year.

I didn't have to pay anything out of pocket.

Skoda Aus paid for the engine and labour (for installation) but refused to pay for the diagnosis (which was ~$1000). I made it clear from the start that I would be seeking any out of pocket expenses back via QCAT if they didn't come to the party. The dealer came to the party and wrote off part of the diagnosis costs with part being handled via the extended warranty that came with the car (which initially claimed that it would not honor anything to do with cam chain tensioners). Its funny though as Skoda Aus would not pay for the engine under goodwill until they pulled the head off to do a diagnosis - resulting in high diagnosis costs.

Once diagnosed and approved for goodwill replacement it was sorted very quickly as they had a spare base engine in Sydney. If I remember correctly I got the the car back within 2 1/2 weeks - maybe it was three...

Backing what Wai said above, Aus consumer law means products must be of acceptable quality irrespective of any manufacturer warranties. A cam tensioner failing is a case of a product not being fit for purpose.

One thing to note however, due to the cost of the replacement base engine (notionally more than $15K) Skoda Aus needed to get permission from Skoda CZ. In my case the back and forwards added about a week to the approval process - even with a very proactive dealer.

Fun fact - my new engine originally shipped from Gyor Hungary - its listed as an Audi factory...

Anyway hope this resolves itself painlessly for you.