SEAT Cordoba 1.4 tdi traction control and engine warnings

Hi all,

This is my first post here but I've been trying everything I can think of to sort this out.

I have a 2005 SEAT Cordoba 1.4 TDi Sport (82 bhp) It is fitted with a traction control system to try and keep all those 82 horses under control.

Anyway what has been happeniing is I'll be driving along minding my own business when the traction control warning light comes on and stays on. I tried pressing the TCS switch on and off but it makes no difference it stays on until I switch the engine off. (bizarrely enough my cigerette lighter stopped work dispite the fuse for it being fine and I've noticed a tendacy to go through side lights as well)

I took it to a main SEAT dealer as my normal mechanic said they didn't have the necessary tools etc to fix the issue, but they were useless, they carried out a normal service on the car, replaced the front bushes which they said were done, told me I'd needed new tyres which they wanted to charge a fortune for and said they're was no issue with the traction control. I though to myself that maybe the front bushes being worn had caused the traction control to play up so I left it at that but didn't even get out of their forecourt before the warning came on. they then took my car for another day trying to analyse the fault I brought it in with in the first place

After a day with them they said they briefly got a reading about alternator load but were getting a steady current from the alternator so they cleaned all the earthing points on the car but that made no difference. By this stage I was loooking at a €500 bill. I was then told they could replace the alternator for another €500 which may or may not fix the issue or they may have to re[place the cars diagnostic computer which was going to be a major bill..

I decided to take it home and buy a full set of new tyres fitted and balenced from my local tyre fitters at a considerable saving from what they were quoting.

I bought a VAG fault diagnosis kit on ebay for €20 and scanned the car myself I got these two faults (one more than the trained professionals):

Address 01: Engine
Controller: 045 906 019 BG
Component: 1,4l R3 EDC 0000SG 5180
Coding: 00105
Shop #: WSC 06402
VSSZZZ6LZ5R187756 SEZ7Z0E2935233
1 Fault Found:
17911 - Load Signal from Alternator Term. DF: Implausible Signal
P1503 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent
Readiness: N/A
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Address 03: ABS Brakes
Controller: 6Q0 907 379 AB
Component: MABS 8.0 front H03 0001
Coding: 0000008
Shop #: WSC 06403
1 Fault Found:
18265 - Load Signal: Error Message from ECU
P1857 - 000 - -

I then got my local independant auto electrician to recondition my alternator he fitted new bearings, a new regulator and even changed the pully belt (apparently it should slacken under deceleration and mine was locked up) that was Friday evening, I took it home and everythng was great until Saturday morning where I had to drive down to another town and the warning light came on again.

I took it home rescanned it with my diagnostic kit and got the same errors. I took a voltage reading from the battery and it was a steady 14 volts.

I spent yesterday afternoon with the car sitting and the engine running which I had the diagnostic kit and volt meter hooked up. I got a steady 14 volts all afternoon but the faults were where it got interesting...

The diagnostic kit would clear the ABS fault and the traction control warning light go out but when I went to clear the other Engine alternator load fault, it would immediately reappear and also trigger the ABS fault and the warning light would come on.

If I switched the engine off then restarted and rescanned, the faults would be gone for a while then reappear with the same results. If I kept trying to clear the results eventualy I'd clear the engine alternator load fault then the ABS fault and it would stay fine for a about ten minutes or so then they'd both come back and the same thing would happen again.

I'm fairly sure the ABS / traction control issue is a reaction to the first fault but I don't know what is causing the first fault - the alternator has been rebuilt..

I have my NCT (National Car Test) due this month and I think they'll fail it on this. I can't afford a new car and I can't afford to keep throwing money at a six year old car with 170K+ KM on the clock so I'm left with these options:

1. Put it through the test and hope it doesn't show up
2. Disconnect the warning light in the dashboard and put it through the test
3. Park the car in the seediest part of town with a can of petrol and a packet of matches next to it - i'm joking about that one

Does anyone else have any ideas? I'd really like the issue resoplved I'll pop back into the guy who fixed the alternator on Monday but he really specialises in alternators etc I'm not sure if he is that familiar with VAG stuff. I refuse to go back to my local main SEAT dealer as they seam to want to get as much money out of me as is possible and I'm wary of going to any other main SEAt dealers now too.

http://wiki.ross-tech.com/wiki/index.php/17911/P1503


Check the fuses on the battery, the ones on top apparently, the traction control could either be the abs ecu thing or maybe a sensor is on it's way out, not sure though but I know the TC uses the same sensors as the ABS. I would chuck it through the test and see how it goes, I can't see anything being that pricey tbh, the abs ecu is normally in the centre behind all the trims somewhere and I would've though it'd be an easy thing to get from a breaker, it's most likely the same one as loads of other vag cars but try your fuse tray thing and clean any connections around there. Must be a wire that specifically goes to the ecu to tell it the voltage from the alternator.

Cheers

Cheers,

I looked at the fuses on the battery top but never thought to follow them through to the ECU - I'll have a look and see which if any lead direct to the ECU - I think the ABS/TCS error is actually the system switching itself off becuase of the engine error I've found a few other posts about the place from people saying they put in new light bulbs, fixed something else electrical or found some dodgy wiring and that error went so maybe the ECU shut off the traction Control to protect it or something....

Did you go with the Red or blue car in the end?

Blue, I just really like the colour these days lol, I used various trims from the red one to fix my interior but yeh, kept it.

Ooooh...(yes, I'm excited )

Tell me this: Turn the ignition on (without starting the engine). Does the battery/alternator idiot lamp in the instrument cluster light up at all?

And why the hell did they decide to offer TCS as an option on the 1.4 TDI? Even with a remap, it's hard for me to light up the tires with my 105 rampant German horses under the bonnet (oh, the irony) unless I stomp on it in 1st and 2nd gear.

Ash

Hi gwaddell,
any joy with the issues on your ABS / traction control light?
I have the same issues on my SEAT Cordoba 1.4 TDI Sport.
Would love to hear a good outcome!
Dano

hi all,this is my first post on this forum and your problem caught my eye, because i had the same 2 faults on my 05 cordoba 1.4 tdi and i solved the problem. the code that reads load signal from alternator is the main one. jack the car up at the front left and remove the engine undertray,obviously put axle stands under it, now get under the car and look up between the gearbox and the radiator,halfway up the gearbox under the battery tray there is a small bracket with an electrical plug connection with 2 wires coming out of it,one is blue and the other is purple,on my car the 2 wires were snapped off at the connector plug. this is what causes the load signal from alternator signal problem. i think what the problem with my one snapping was there was not enough slack in the wiring loom at that point and it put a strain on the wires at the connector ,therefore snapping them. so, i cut the plug off completly and join the wires back together with bullet connectors and voila! both codes gone and have not come back. i hope this helps you out.

been busy!!

Hi All,

Been a bit lazy / busy so haven't too much news on this issue. Basically I followed my local independent mechanics advice of sticking through the NCT and hoping it does come on during the test.... the result car failed NCT but for a blown side light!! replaced the side light bulbs with LED's because they are a pain in the hole to replace.

Last month I had to get the tracking realigned again as it had ate the two front tyres...

Then last Monday the glow plug warning light started flashing I got a tow home with the AA and the cars been parked up since. I read in a forum about the brake light switch failing causing this behaviour so I got my glamour assistant (the wife) to go in the car and press the brake pedal and no lights so I can fix that easily enough...

I will definately try jacking the car up while i'm at it and look for those loose wires - thanks for that!

Jacked the car up and looked underneath, and there it was exactly as you said! one of the two wires going into the connector had snapped (purple one)

I've joined the wire back together but I can't take it for a run because I've no brake lights (ordered the replacment switch on Ebay). So I'm not 100% sure we've solved it.

Thanks to dump valve for solving a problem that the so called professsionals couldn't.

05 cordoda 1.5tdi Traction control light

Hi Dump Valve

Many thanks for that info re the purple and blue wires on the 05 cordoba tdi, yes the purple wire was severed, just stripped and soldered it and as you said " Voila prob solved, this problem has been ongoing for past 18months.
I changed the front rubber bushings which were worn and thought this might solve this traction control light but no, have to say little bit dissapointed as to why these bushings went as I also have a seat van with higher mileage and this problem is non existant, I do think it is a design fault on the cordoba
Also had the foot brake switch problem but I sorted this out myself replacing the switch, however I think it is very unusual that a diesel heating coil light should flash with a brake system fault this is an engine item and should not be tied into brake switch malfunction as both these items are polls apart,it would make more sense to show a brake system fault light.

Once again many thanks for the info

glad to have been some help.