Hi.

I drive a X reg Polo 1.4 engine.

The "exhaust emission warning lamp" came on today not so long after i filled up the tank from a petrol station I don't usually go to, it was Sainsburys, I usually go to BP or Shell.

The car drives fine but in the manual it says to go to the nearest dealer as soon as possible?

Any suggestions? is this a serious problem? will it cost £££'s to fix?

My 2001 Polo Match 1.4 has been getting that the last few months. The light seems to only come on just after starting up from cold (either after work, or first thing in the morning) and goes off again after a few days. I called the dealership and was told to bring it in and they'd have a look, but that there was no rush as long as the car wasn't smoking, losing power, revving abnormally, sounding bad, etc. As long as it was behaving normally it was fine to keep driving it. I'm gonna leave it til the next service (quite soon now) and see if they can pick up any fault codes off the ECU.

My 2001 Polo Match 1.4 has been getting that the last few months. The light seems to only come on just after starting up from cold (either after work, or first thing in the morning) and goes off again after a few days. I called the dealership and was told to bring it in and they'd have a look, but that there was no rush as long as the car wasn't smoking, losing power, revving abnormally, sounding bad, etc. As long as it was behaving normally it was fine to keep driving it. I'm gonna leave it til the next service (quite soon now) and see if they can pick up any fault codes off the ECU.

Thanks mate.

I've been researching all night, going over loads of forums.

So far I found this out.

- There is around 40 different reasons why the light can come on, from the fuel cap not being tightened properly, to calyst problems, to air issues and even faulty lights!!!

- If the light isn't flashing the situation isn't critical

- Its best to get it checked out early but to use somebody whose got the proper equipment, supposedly theres specialist diagnostic software that the WV dealers use they attach a laptop and run some tests.

You said your going to leave it to the next service, do they do these checks and tests in a service? mine needs a service now, will they check it for this problem aswell?

Thanks mate.

I've been researching all night, going over loads of forums.

So far I found this out.

- There is around 40 different reasons why the light can come on, from the fuel cap not being tightened properly, to calyst problems, to air issues and even faulty lights!!!

- If the light isn't flashing the situation isn't critical

- Its best to get it checked out early but to use somebody whose got the proper equipment, supposedly theres specialist diagnostic software that the WV dealers use they attach a laptop and run some tests.

You said your going to leave it to the next service, do they do these checks and tests in a service? mine needs a service now, will they check it for this problem aswell?

I haven't done as much research as you have, but yeah it seems to be the general purpose engine warning light and could mean any one of a number of things. My understanding is the dealer/workshop will need the VAG-COM software to read and reset the fault codes on the ECU, but I don't know if they would normally do this as part of a service. I was going to mention it specifically when I book it in. The fault code should hopefully indicate the reason the light came on in the first place and you can go from there in figuring out what (if anything) to do about it.

Edited 12 December, 200718 yr by steveeeee

How much does a standard service cost Steve? sorry I'm new to cars So once they find the problem you have to pay them extra to fix it.

What if you get hold of the VAG COM software and plug it into the car yourself? is it safe to do or could you mess it up.

From reading another thread, apparently one of these will let you read and clear any fault codes yourself. Doesn't look too bad for £25. The full-on VAG-COM software can be had for about £50 on eBay and you'll need a laptop to run it on and a cable to hook up to the car. Not really worth it for most people IMO.

Servicing costs depend on age/mileage of the car and where you get it done (and obv if anything's gone and needs fixing). A quick Google says it should be in the region of £120-150. I recently swapped cars with my wife and this'll be the first time I've got the Polo serviced so I'm not sure what to expect either :)

From reading another thread, apparently one of these will let you read and clear any fault codes yourself. Doesn't look too bad for £25. The full-on VAG-COM software can be had for about £50 on eBay and you'll need a laptop to run it on and a cable to hook up to the car. Not really worth it for most people IMO.

Servicing costs depend on age/mileage of the car and where you get it done (and obv if anything's gone and needs fixing). A quick Google says it should be in the region of £120-150. I recently swapped cars with my wife and this'll be the first time I've got the Polo serviced so I'm not sure what to expect either :)

Took it to the local garage today, the guy in there is a life safer, I was panicking about this problem, he said its nothing plugged in the equipment and sorted it in a few minutes. It was an intermediate small problem, one of the cables somewhere was a bit loose, now the lights off and I'm a happy man haha wooooohoo

Thank you local Garage!

mines been on for just over a year!

theres a way to turn it off.

very handy when it comes to selling.

but i wont give it away :p