03/10/2026
Car cut out while driving then became a non start...
Upon getting the vehicle recovered in we 1st scanned for faults, camshaft/crankshaft correlation. Not uncommon on these 1.2 vw/audi/skoda engines as the timing chains are a poor design this one covering only 65k miles. 1st job, check the timing. The camshaft was over 90° out as shown in the second picture - not a good start.
After a leakdown test we found every single cylinder had excessive leak down. This turns a simple timing job into a cylinder head rebuild, every single inlet valve had bent damaging the valve guides in the process. 6 new valves, 6 valve guides, headgasket and timing chain replacement.
If your car has a rattle noise on start up, get it checked as it WILL save you a lot of money in the long run.
