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SEAT Alhambra 2.0 TSI Style Business Intense common faults.

2015–2019, MPV, petrol, 220 HP.

The fault list covers: DEDA engine, DQ250 transmission.

What you save stays on this device only. My saves

7 fault write-ups. 5 important. 4 recalls.

If you know the year, pick it. Faults for other years drop out of the list.

Before you buy

Known faults

5 important faults

expensive5

DQ250 (6 speed wet DSG): mechatronics and clutch pack

expensive

The solenoids of the mechatronics unit wear out: slow or harsh shifting, then limp mode. A characteristic sign is the partial or complete loss of reverse. Wear of the clutch pack or the wrong spring force causes jerking and slipping. Because of the wet design it fails less often and at higher mileage than the dry DQ200, but when it does fail, it is expensive.

above 150,000 km

What to check

  • Pull away slowly from standstill and watch how smooth the 1 to 2 and 2 to 3 shifts are
  • Select reverse several times, cold and warm: is it delayed, does it engage at all
  • Under load (on a slope) watch whether the clutch slips
2 more steps in the write-up

EA888 (1.8 / 2.0 TSI): water pump and thermostat housing leak

expensive

The combined housing of the water pump and the thermostat is plastic, and it is bolted directly to the hot engine block. The many heat and cool cycles warp it, it becomes brittle, and then it develops a hairline crack: the fault is almost always the housing, not the pump itself. The signs are slowly disappearing coolant with no visible puddle, the coolant level light, a sweet smell from the engine bay, and later a pink stain under the car. The repair means replacing the pump and the housing together, and the intake manifold has to come off for it: 4 to 6 hours of work. It shows up on model years 2015 to 2025.

What to check

  • Check the level in the expansion tank, and ask whether it needs topping up
  • With a cold engine, smell the engine bay: a sweet smell means a coolant leak
  • Shine a light under the intake manifold, on the right side of the engine: dried or pinkish deposits
2 more steps in the write-up

EA888 gen3: crankcase ventilation, oil in the intake

expensive

The crankcase ventilation (PCV) of the third generation 1.8/2.0 TSI fails less often than its predecessors, but it is not faultless. After sustained full load acceleration, under hard braking, the return branch of the ventilation can be overloaded, and the oil ends up in the intake instead of draining. The symptoms are oil consumption, blue smoke after load, and deposits in the intake.

Show the rest

This also reinforces the other, already known phenomenon: because of the direct injection, the coke building up on the intake valves grows faster with oil reaching the intake.

What to check

  • After a test drive under load, look at the exhaust: it should not smoke blue under hard braking after sustained acceleration
  • Ask about topping up between two oil changes: adding oil every 1,000 to 1,500 km is not normal
  • Look at the intake connections and the ventilation hose: oily deposits mean oil in the intake
1 more steps in the write-up

FSI direct injection: intake valve coking

expensive

With direct injection the fuel does not wash the intake valves: the petrol goes into the cylinder, not behind the valve. The oil mist and soot arriving through the EGR and the crankcase ventilation therefore build up on the valve stem and head, and from 80,000 to 100,000 km they restrict the flow. Symptoms are hesitation, loss of power, a rough cold start and misfire. It is not a part failure: it is a consequence of the design, and therefore it comes back. Cleaning (walnut or dry ice blasting) helps for a few tens of thousands of kilometres.

What to check

  • After a cold start watch the idle: rough running and shaking point to coked valves
  • Under load at low revs watch for hesitation
  • With a code reader look for per cylinder misfire (P0300 to P0304)
1 more steps in the write-up

Powered tailgate: erratic operation

expensive

The powered tailgate often fails: it does not respond at all, opens only halfway, or stops while moving. The repair is replacing the drive motor or the control unit.

What to check

  • Open and close the powered tailgate five times, from the button and the key
  • Watch whether it stops halfway or reverses
  • Try it by hand too: a door that moves stiffly points to the gas strut
1 more steps in the write-up

cheap repair2

DSG selector lever: failure of the P position switch

cheap repair

The dash shows "Error: Workshop! Only leave vehicle in position P" with an audible warning. The message appears in whatever language the car is set to, for example "Fehler: Werkstatt! Fahrzeug nur in Stellung P verlassen" in German.

Show the rest

The message points at the gearbox, but the fault is not there. A tiny switch sits in the module under the selector lever and signals that the lever is in park (P). Its contact wears and can also burn. That makes the signal unreliable, and the car warns you. The fault codes appear as 617752, P173400 or B116229.

At first it is intermittent. Sometimes the message comes up, sometimes not, so a short test drive easily misses it. Later it becomes permanent, and the gearbox can drop into limp mode.

This fault looks more expensive than it is. The maker released a separate retrofit switch kit for it (5Q0713128A for the black module, 3Q0713128 for the white one), which can be fitted in half an hour. The kit costs 70 to 100 pounds. At a franchised dealer, however, the whole selector lever module sometimes gets replaced, which costs 626 to 1,000 pounds there. So the difference between the two routes is roughly tenfold.

The affected group is post 2013 MQB platform Volkswagen, Audi, Seat and Skoda cars with a DSG gearbox. The switch is in these gearboxes, because that is what these cars have in common. The part itself is not part of the gearbox but of the module under the lever.

What to check

  • Watch the dash after starting: the message is intermittent and can be missed on a short loop
  • Move the lever from P to D and back several times, then get out and lock the car
  • Ask whether the selector lever switch has been replaced already, and ask for the invoice
2 more steps in the write-up

TSI ignition coil: misfire, jerking, engine warning light

cheap repair

The per cylinder ignition coil of these direct injection, turbocharged petrol engines fails. According to the Haynes service material this and similar simple electrical faults account for roughly eighty per cent of workshop visits.

Show the rest

In cold, damp weather, on startup, the engine runs unevenly, misfires under acceleration, and the engine warning light flashes or stays on. Do not keep driving with the light flashing: the unburnt fuel destroys the catalytic converter.

What to check

  • Start with a cold engine and watch the first half minute: a rough idle or shaking is suspect
  • On the test drive load the engine at low revs with a lot of throttle: the misfire shows then
  • A flashing engine warning light calls for stopping immediately
2 more steps in the write-up

Checklist

SEAT Alhambra 2.0 TSI Style Business Intense

First what you would check on any car. Then the faults of this model.

Before you buy

Checklist

The printed sheet starts with what you would check on any car. What you tick stays on this device only.

On every car

Ask the owner

Faults of this model

vinkodex.com · Before you buy it, see what can go wrong.

Official recall4 recallsShow

The manufacturer fixes these for free at a franchised dealer. Ask with the VIN whether it was done.

Most recent: 12 July 2024

A12/02776/24Safety recallInjuries12 July 2024 · EU Safety Gate

The propellant in the driver airbag may deteriorate over time. If the airbags deploy, it could result in fragments from the inflator injuring the vehicle's occupants. The product does not comply with the Regulation on the approval and market surveillance of motor vehicles and their trailers, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles.

Remedy: Type of economic operator taking notified measure(s): Manufacturer Category of measure(s): Recall of the product from end users Date of entry into force: 12/07/2024

We could not check this: model year. The authority's notice

A12/00148/20Safety recallInjuries20 January 2020 · EU Safety Gate

A condenser of the airbag control unit might have an insufficient thermal treatment. Consequently, the condenser might fail which could lead the airbag control unit to detect a non occurring frontal collision and trigger the airbags and seatbealt tensioners, increasing the risk of an accident.

Remedy: Type of economic operator taking notified measure(s): Importer Category of measure(s): Recall of the product from end users Date of entry into force: 20/01/2020

We could not check this: model year. The authority's notice

A12/0300/18Safety recallInjuries24 January 2018 · EU Safety Gate

The passenger airbag module may have been produced with an inadequate welded connection between the detonator and generator. In the event of an accident, the airbag may not deploy correctly, reducing the protection of the passenger.

Remedy: Type of economic operator taking notified measure(s): Manufacturer Category of measure(s): Recall of the product from end users Date of entry into force: 24/01/2018

We could not check this: model year. The authority's notice

A12/01630/24Safety recallInjuriesno date · EU Safety Gate

The propellant in the driver airbag may deteriorate over time. If the airbags deploy, it could result in fragments from the inflator injuring the vehicle's occupants. The product does not comply with the Regulation on the approval and market surveillance of motor vehicles and their trailers, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles.

Remedy: Type of economic operator taking notified measure(s): Manufacturer Category of measure(s): Recall of the product from end users Date of entry into force: Unknown

We could not check this: model year. The authority's notice

Engine and transmission

DEDA · 2.0 TSI

162 kW (220 HP) · petrol

DQ250 · 6-speed DSG, wet clutch

DSG · 6 speed

Clutchwet
Torque limit400 Nm
MakerVolkswagen

We built the code from the model and the gear count. The factory sheet does not state it.

Variant data

What is in this version

Factory data

Trim
Style Business Intense
Body
MPV
Fuel
petrol
Transmission
automatic
Engine size
1984 cc
Power
162 kW (220 HP)
Drive
FWD
Production
2015–2019

Factory service interval

The manufacturer specifies this for this version. Of the mileage and the time, the one that comes first is the one that counts.

  • Air filter

    • 60,000 km or 4 years

  • Cabin (pollen) filter

    • 30,000 km or 2 years

  • Engine oil and oil filter

    • LongLife30,000 km or 2 years(valid only with LongLife-approved oil)
    • 15,000 km or 1 year

  • Brake fluid change

    • first: 3 years, then 2 years(first change at 3 years, then every two years)

  • DSG oil change, WET clutch gearbox

    • 60,000 km or 4 years

  • Coolant (antifreeze) change

    • first: 193,000 km or 10 years, then 97,000 km or 5 years(G13 / G12++: first change at 120,000 miles or 10 years, then every 60,000 miles or 5 years)

  • Spark plugs, petrol

    • 60,000 km or 6 years
All II versions

Information, not an expert opinion

We write the descriptions, and we put the source next to them. A person reviews them before they go out. They are still information, not a technical expert opinion.

  • A fault on the list does not mean the car you are looking at has it.
  • A fault missing from the list does not mean the model is fault-free. Write-ups are made model by model. Not all of them are done.
  • You decide whether to buy. This is no substitute for an inspection. That needs a workshop and a history check.
Details in the terms