annabrown1

Skoda Praktik Diesel Cold Start Problem

I'm having a bit of a headache with my 2010 Skoda Praktik diesel. It's got 183215 km on the clock. Lately, it's been running rough during the cold start phase. I've also noticed a bump in fuel consumption. Plugged it into a diagnostic tool, and it's throwing up an error related to the PTC heater. Could a defective electric auxiliary heater really be the culprit here?

4 comment(s)

Sounds familiar! Had a similar issue with my old Opel Astra, diesel as well. Poor engine running in cold starts, especially during winter, was driving me crazy. Error codes pointing to the heating system too. Have you checked the heating element itself? Is it getting power?

Interesting! How did you figure out it was the heating element? And what exactly did you do to fix it? Any specific tests I can run?

Well, in my case, the mechanic suspected the PTC heater right away because of the symptoms and the error code. A multimeter test confirmed it wasn't getting power, or was showing a very high resistance, indicating an electrical fault within the heating element itself. Honestly, diagnosing electrical faults can be tricky without the right equipment. I'd recommend taking it to a workshop; they can pinpoint the issue properly.

Took it to the workshop, and you were spot on. It was indeed the PTC heater. Cost me around 350€ to get it sorted, but the car's running much better now. Thanks for the help!

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