# ESP warning light on VW Passat



## duchalla (31 May 2011)

Hi, 

The ESP warning light (the one with the car skidding) came on in my 06 VW Passat 1.9tdi this morning.  The manual said the ESP is either turned off or there's a fault with the ESP.  When I tried to turn the ESP back on, nothing happened, so I'm suspecting some kind of fault.  Basically, I'm looking for a heads up before I ring the garage, probably have to do a diagnostic.  I know it could one of a number of things, but has any other Passat drivers have this problem and what was the cost to fix it?!

duchalla


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## rosco (8 Jun 2011)

had similiar problem with an 06 vw Golf , cost of replacing faulty sensor €1800. Ph VW ireland and throw rant , you might get them to cover some of the cost. good news is that it's not an NCT failure issue


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## billb (8 Jun 2011)

rosco said:


> good news is that it's not an NCT failure issue



From NCT website "An additional 7 inspection items were added to the NCT in April 2010,  these included: Clarity of windscreen and front side windows, Vehicle  exhaust noise, Rear fog lamp, Reverse lamp, Rear registration plate  lamp, *Tyres and Malfunction indicators for Airbags, ESC and ABS*"

I had the same problem with a Touran and it cost me about the same as Rosco paid - I got a small contribution from VW after complaining but had to escalate the issue to Germany as VW Ireland tried to avoid contributing.

If you look on Google you will find that this is a very common problem with VW models once they get over 4 years old but there has been no recall


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## overdraftman (9 Jun 2011)

How many miles up on it?

The Passat electronics start needing work after about 100k


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## duchalla (9 Jun 2011)

nearly 90k up.  The light hasnt come on since I posted, so hopefully it just a loose connection, service due in couple of weeks, so I'll mention it to the mechanic then.


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## Guest125 (13 Jun 2011)

It's usually an abs sensor or it's connection that causes this problem.


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## Troy McClure (13 Jun 2011)

I know with volvo cars, where an ESP warning comes up, they will do repairs for free on a car thats up to 5 years old. They pay 50% on cars from 5 to 7.5 years old. The warning they have says skid 'service' which is confusing when there is actually a fault. This may cause some to ignore it when they shouldn't. 
The ESP unit is usually to one side away from the engine. I think these systems are made by a different company who have a patent on it, who produce it for car makers so it may be that VW have a similiar protocol to volvo.


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## comraid (27 Dec 2011)

*VW Touran - ESP WARNING LIGHT*

Hi

We recently had the same issue with VW ESP warning light appearing on the dash. We went to two garages for quotes and they were both looking for over euro1200 to fit a new ABS pump which would fix the problem. As the car is 2007 model we felt this was unreasonable. We did some research and found this was a very common problem with Tourans and other VW models. As this was a fault which we reckoned VW had to answer for we contacted their head office at Liffey Valley. We found them helpful and co-operative. They arranged a diagnostic at Brady's Castleknock who confirmed the ABS pump had to be replaced. The cost of the part plus labour was euro570.00 of which VW agreed to pay half. This was a satisfactory outcome for us and meant we got some satisfaction from the manufacturer and saved almost euro1000.00 on the original quotes. I would urge anyone with this problem to go straight to VW and not shell out for an expensive repair for what is essentially a factory fault.


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## AlbacoreA (28 Dec 2011)

Had the same fault with a touran, but its common to a lot of VW. Ours was under warranty. 

VW should have done a recall. I doubt I'll buy another VW tbh. Nothing like as reliable as they claim. 

More on it here
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056345292

Its all over the web though.


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## Ancutza (30 Dec 2011)

http://www.sinspeed.co.uk/blog/volk...-brake-pressure-sender-sensor-switch-failure/

Can't hurt to give these guys a call.  No interest to declare I just googled it for you.  I know that when the Airflow Mass Meter on my VW Golf went a few years ago I found a secondhand replacement in the UK much, much, much cheaper than quoted by the main dealer.


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