Polo 9N AWY 'check engine' light on

Acme said:
Have driven another 50 miles or so since the light came on and everything still seems absolutely fine.

What cheap OBD reader would you recommend? I would just get a VAGCOM cable, but I don't actually have a laptop. :p
Click to expand...

If its the post cat lambda sensor it does literally nothing apart from monitor the fumes in the exhaust, hence you won't notice a difference.
 
[TW]Fox;27124100 said:
Your car has illuminated a light telling you that there is some sort of engine fault. You don't yet know what this fault is, so your idea is just to... keep driving the car? Really?
Click to expand...


This made me chuckle. :D

Well the folks over at ClubPolo and Pistonheads (including a VAG techie) said that it would "probably" be fine to drive if there are no noticeable symptoms, because it almost certainly means that it is just a sensor.

To be perfectly honest Fox, I couldn't care less at the moment... OBD reader is coming tomorrow so I'll soon know where the problem lies, and in the mean time, I'll continue to drive it unless it sounds or feels like it is about to blow up. :rolleyes:

I am pretty sure that it is just the post-cat lambda anyway. It makes sense because:
A.) they tend to go after about 10 years, it has been 12.
B.) there are no noticable symptoms whatsoever
C.) the cable for the sensor is in terrible condition and looks like it got pinched in the accident, with the insulation shredded and some of the wire strands severed

If it does blow up or break irreversibly, then the risk of driving it didn't pay off, and I'll look like a ****, and thats that. :)
 
Last edited:
[TW]Fox;27124100 said:
Your car has illuminated a light telling you that there is some sort of engine fault. You don't yet know what this fault is, so your idea is just to... keep driving the car? Really?
Click to expand...

If VW owners stopped driving their cars whenever the CEL was on, the Golf would probably become one of the rarest cars on the road :p
 
acemastr said:
Super unleaded... you crack me up.
Click to expand...

I ran it for a while in a 1.6 Bora. The mpg increase on a 500 mile round trip home for the weekend more than covered the cost of V-power when it was a couple pence a litre more expensive. As soon as the price went up I was back on 95.

Kenai said:
If VW owners stopped driving their cars whenever the CEL was on, the Golf would probably become one of the rarest cars on the road :p
Click to expand...

LOL. Oddly mine threw the light only once for a coolant temp sensor. A couple of years later it happily logged a MAF fault, crank position fault, the lambda and something else engine related I can't recall right now and the CEL stayed resolutely off. Luckily I knew the car was broken as it kept cutting out when you backed off throttle at anything over 30mph...
 
Last edited:
Anything is better than supermarket fuel. Long term your engine will stay cleaner, even if there is no short term benefit
 
Simon said:
Anything is better than supermarket fuel. Long term your engine will stay cleaner, even if there is no short term benefit
Click to expand...

But it's had like 14 past owners, surely it's too late. If its a new car and you intend to run it to the ground then I could see a point...
 
acemastr said:
As is running it in a 1.6 Bora.
Click to expand...

Worked out cheaper, got 38 vs 34 to the gallon on a repeatable 250 mile journey. Manual said anything above 91 RON, preferably 95. Didn't say don't run Super Unleaded.

If that's your definition of hilarious then knock yourself out. ;)

Before you all go nutty about me doing this in a old sheddy VW, I was the first owner after the dealer, the car had 30k on the clock and it was 2002...
 
MagicBoy said:
LOL. Oddly mine threw the light only once for a coolant temp sensor. A couple of years later it happily logged a MAF fault, crank position fault, the lambda and something else engine related I can't recall right now and the CEL stayed resolutely off. Luckily I knew the car was broken as it kept cutting out when you backed off throttle at anything over 30mph...
Click to expand...

At that point the bulb had gone ;)
 
So it would be better for me to use Shell or Esso 95 than Tesco 99 then basically? :p

I use Momentum cos I fill up at stupid hours when Tesco is the only place I can buy fuel, and when I'm there I can choose between 99 or 95 so I go for the 99 in the hope that its better quality than the 95. :p

Also I'm the 6th or 7th owner, not the 14th lol.
 
Last edited:
Acme said:
So it would be better for me to use Shell or Esso 95 than Tesco 99 then basically? :p

I use Momentum cos I fill up at stupid hours when Tesco is the only place I can buy fuel, and when I'm there I can choose between 99 or 95 so I go for the 99 in the hope that its better quality than the 95. :p

Also I'm the 26th or 27th owner, not the 14th lol.
Click to expand...

Like a well worn in work boot.
 
Acme said:
So it would be better for me to use Shell or Esso 95 than Tesco 99 then basically? :p

I use Momentum cos I fill up at stupid hours when Tesco is the only place I can buy fuel, and when I'm there I can choose between 99 or 95 so I go for the 99 in the hope that its better quality than the 95. :p

Also I'm the 6th or 7th owner, not the 14th lol.
Click to expand...

Ahhh crud :p Was a guess :(
 
Come on then... Has the code reader arrived or what?


Boss has just bought his lad one of these for his first car.

£400 quid and there is plenty wrong with it that we are going through at the moment.
So far I've seen my colleague..
Change the rear wheel cylinders
Rear shoes and drums
A rear wheel bearing
Front discs and pads
Complete cat back exhaust to replace the bird **** welded boom box thing hanging out the back
Drive belts / tensioner
various bits of garden hosepipe and brake servo pipes
Full fluids and filters service with an extra engine oil flush as the oil in it stinks of being well past its sell by date.

Can you tell this ones been thraped to within an inch of its life and never serviced or looked after too :D

Oh and try sticking to BP or shell fuel. No need to worry about 97 RON though LOL
 
Last edited:
Kenai said:
If VW owners stopped driving their cars whenever the CEL was on, the Golf would probably become one of the rarest cars on the road :p
Click to expand...

This,

I had a 2002 16v Polo for 4 years, for 3.5 of those the check engine light was on. No amount of checking changing sensors etc would turn it off for any more than a few hours. To be honest the electrics were shocking reminding me of my 80's Alfa rather than a modern German car. For example it developed a fun fault of when you unlocked it the electric windows would wind down. Great on a hot day, not so good when there was snow...

I am sure there are ways of fixing the light, mine was to part ex the car for a Ford.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom