Astra 1.6 2001 - ECU fault?

Billy-no-Money

Hi, my stepson bought a 2001 Vauxhall Astra 1.6 from a dealer last week (a franchised Ford dealer as it happens), and the engine management light came on before he got home.

He immediately contacted the dealer and it's booked in this week for a 'diagnostic check'. I test drove the car before he bought it, covering about ten miles in varying traffic conditions, and the light didn't appear.

We're hoping there'll be no trouble with the dealer, but if there is am I right in thinking the Sale of Goods Act should cover it? As the warning light only appears intermittently (seems to be related to engine temperature) I think it's possible the dealer didn't know about it, but I also think it's unlikely the dealer could claim the fault didn't exist.

The car only cost £1100, and reading on the forums the combination of fault codes (1120, 1122, 1550, 0220, 0230) isn't always a simple thing to fix and can be an ECU failure. Given the value of the car I can't see the dealer being too keen on fixing it.

Should we end up getting our money back or being offered an alternative car, we'll incur insurance costs even if it's just an admin fee - should we expect those costs to be covered as well?

I hate buying old cars - but when insurance for a 21-year-old is nearly £2000 there's not much money left for the car itself!

vax2002

These codes in this area are often symptoms of a dirty throttle body, usually caused by a blocked breather pipe.
A code reader in the wrong hands is a recipe for disaster.
For a start it needs a reset and plugging in as soon as the light comes on, however the real fault can lie in an area where there is no sensor so throws multiple codes.

colino

As above, you really need a competent independent to sort this out, take heart though an experienced trader would be worried if an 11 year old Vauxhall didn't throw up a MiL!

Premier_2

Billy-no-Money wrote: »

Hi, my stepson bought a 2001 Vauxhall Astra 1.6 from a dealer last week (a franchised Ford dealer as it happens), and the engine management light came on before he got home.

He immediately contacted the dealer and it's booked in this week for a 'diagnostic check'. I test drove the car before he bought it, covering about ten miles in varying traffic conditions, and the light didn't appear.

We're hoping there'll be no trouble with the dealer, but if there is am I right in thinking the Sale of Goods Act should cover it? As the warning light only appears intermittently (seems to be related to engine temperature) I think it's possible the dealer didn't know about it, but I also think it's unlikely the dealer could claim the fault didn't exist.

The car only cost £1100, and reading on the forums the combination of fault codes (1120, 1122, 1550, 0220, 0230) isn't always a simple thing to fix and can be an ECU failure. Given the value of the car I can't see the dealer being too keen on fixing it.

Should we end up getting our money back or being offered an alternative car, we'll incur insurance costs even if it's just an admin fee - should we expect those costs to be covered as well?

I hate buying old cars - but when insurance for a 21-year-old is nearly £2000 there's not much money left for the car itself!

What Ford franchised dealer is selling 11 year old Vauxhalls??? :huh:
Please name & shame.

(Unless your stepson was posing as a trader and it was a 'round the back' b2b deal to dispose of a trade-in, in which case the SoGA will not apply)

mikey72

Is it a drive by wire on this model?

Most of those fault code refer to the pedal position sensor, and the electronic throttle control.
As Vax2002 has said, cleaning the throttle body is the first thing to have done normally.

Billy-no-Money

Premier wrote: »

What Ford franchised dealer is selling 11 year old Vauxhalls??? :huh:
Please name & shame.

(Unless your stepson was posing as a trader and it was a 'round the back' b2b deal to dispose of a trade-in, in which case the SoGA will not apply)

legitimate deal, I won't name the dealer until I know what the result is - name and shame or praise.

I only know the fault codes as you can get them flashed by holding the accelerator and brake down - all I can see from forums is that these codes are very common and can mean lots of different things!

s_b

proper equipment to read vauxhalls and live data is quite reasonable these days and you can bet the selling dealer will have or know someone who has the right equipment to do this car (i have) because as said it is the law that vauxhalls after 2000 flash their light of doom to tell the driver who is actually in charge here

let the dealer do his stuff and if it does need an ecu (these were £400 from andrew pages last time a friend needed one) then the dealer will offer a substitute or a refund and this car will go to auction for a mug and his daughter to buy
well done for supporting your dealer because use him or lose him and as said to sell a car at this price in their opinion it will have been a good one but they obviously didnt give it a long enough test drive

ive started reading any errors on all cars i get in now but unfortunately if a customer walks in they think im either clocking the thing or trying to problem solve so sometimes you cant win