BAD THROTTLE BODY SYMPTOMS-SKODA,VW,AUDI,SEAT -

In this article, we’ll state some common bad throttle body symptoms.

We’re showing this on a Skoda Fabia Mk 1 but this can also be applied to other same-generation VW group cars (so Volkswagen, Audi, Seat).

The throttle body is a vital part of your car’s air intake and is in charge of the car’s acceleration.

So, knowing these bad throttle symptoms is not only useful but also a matter of safety.

You’ll read later why this is so.

Besides this website, you can also watch our YouTube channel where you can find lots of useful car and driving tips.

INTRODUCTION

The engine we’re talking about here is the 1,4 16 valve 100 bhp petrol engine.

It is a fairly common, good, and reliable engine within the VW group provided you do proper maintenance.

The bad throttle body symptoms we’re talking about here are specific and have given a lot of headaches to Skoda owners.

Mainly because it is easily mistaken for other problems like a bad lambda sensor, map sensor, gas pedal sensor, or else). This then leads to expensive and unneeded repairs which yield no results and the problem appears again and again.

One more downside of this problem is that the car tends to lose power suddenly while driving. You’ll agree, this is pretty scary since you lose engine power at a moment’s notice.

Also, worth mentioning is that there was no error code for a bad throttle body on the OBD tool.

At least this is what happened to me.

To conclude on this part, what you’ll see here comes from first-hand experience and offers a solution to the problem.

BAD THROTTLE BODY SYMPTOMS

1. SLOWER GAS PEDAL RESPONSE

The first thing I noticed is that the Fabia had a somewhat sluggish response to the gas pedal.

This is common with Fabia’s (I guess it’s because of the “fly-by-wire” gas pedal system), but this was significantly worse.

The car was perfectly driveable in this phase of the problem but there was always that awkward extra millisecond of delay.

2. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT APPEARS

Another one of the bad throttle body symptoms is the appearance of the check engine light.

At first, it appears rarely, but later it starts to appear more frequently and in a random manner.

At this point, try to pay attention if the light appears only when you try to accelerate (like when overtaking for instance ), or when you suddenly press the gas pedal fully and put a sudden load on the engine.

If the check engine light comes up when you do this, you should inspect the throttle body, mainly if it’s filthy.

If it is, you can try to use a spray and clean it without removing it from the engine and perhaps solve the problem.

We’ve made a separate video on this topic, click here to watch it.

You can also read our article on the same topic by clicking here.

3. THE CAR SUDDENLY GOES INTO LIMP MODE

As the problem gets worse, the car may, without any previous warning, go into limp mode.

This is one of the bad throttle body symptoms where the engine suddenly loses power, there is no throttle response whatsoever and the car is practically undrivable.

This, sadly happens at a moment’s notice, while you’re driving and is a pretty scary experience, especially for less experienced drivers.

On this part, best stay calm, and when it happens pull over as soon as possible.

You’ll later see some tips to get out of this situation.

4. THE CHECK ENGINE, EPC, AND TCS WARNING LIGHTS ALL APPEAR AT THE SAME TIME

Last on our list of bad throttle body symptoms is the simultaneous appearance of the check engine light, EPC light, and TCS light on the dashboard.

This appears at the same time that limp mode kicks in and the engine loses power.

At least from what I’ve seen, this combination of warning lights is exclusive to this problem.

Also, it is the definitive sign that the throttle body is the problem.

CONCLUSION

For the end one more tip: when limp mode happens, when you lose engine power suddenly there is a way to help yourself.

Pull over to a safe place and take off the minus battery clamp. Wait for a couple of minutes and then try starting the car again. In my case, the car started without any problems, everything returned to normal and the car was driveable.

The check engine light was still on after this but all of the other warning lights disappeared.

Have this tip in mind, it might get you out of a tight spot with this problem.

In the end, what is the reason? I think but cannot confirm that the reason is the faulty electronic part on the throttle body (the black box on the side of it).

I think that the inner components (a sort of potentiometer) get worn and damaged over time, start losing contact, and cause trouble.

This is just a guess.

But what I do know for sure is that replacing the throttle body with a brand-new one solved the problem completely.