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SEAT Ibiza 1.2 TSI 105hp Reference common faults.

2012–2015, estate, petrol, 105 HP.

The fault list covers: CBZB engine, MQ200 transmission.

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6 fault write-ups. 5 important. No recall on the list.

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

Before you buy

Known faults

5 important faults

critical1

1.2 / 1.4 TSI (EA111): timing chain and chain tensioner

critical

A few seconds of chain rattle on a cold start, later a permanent noise; the chain stretches and the tensioner does not hold it. If the chain jumps, the engine is badly damaged inside, and the repair is a rebuild. The tensioner is driven by oil pressure, so it does not hold with the engine stopped: a car left rolling in gear is the typical trigger for the chain jumping.

between 65,000 and 100,000 km

What to check

  • Start it cold, and in the first 2 to 3 seconds watch for the rattle from the chain side
  • Ask whether the chain and the tensioner have been replaced, and ask for the invoice
  • Check the oil change history in the service book: stretched intervals speed up the wear
1 more steps in the write-up

expensive4

MQ200 / MQ250 manual gearbox: differential bearing and synchros

expensive

The light, magnesium cased MQ200 and the MQ250, sized for higher torque, are the most widespread manual gearboxes in the transverse engine VAG models. Both have the same two weak points, and both depend on use.

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The first is the differential bearing: as it wears you first get a droning, then a whine from the thrust bearings of the output shaft. Left alone, the planetary shaft can fail and in extreme cases punch through the gearbox casing: from then on it is not a repair but a replacement.

The second is the synchros: they can start crunching at around 50,000 km with aggressive driving. This type does not like dumping the clutch or slipping it, and on a used car that is exactly what you have to listen for.

above 50,000 km

What to check

  • On the test drive with the window down, listen to the gearbox both off and on the throttle: droning or whining is suspect
  • Shift up and down quickly, especially into 2nd and 3rd: crunching means synchro wear
  • Try engaging 1st and reverse when cold: resistance here means wear
2 more steps in the write-up

Bonnet: rust on the folded edge and the front lip

expensive

The bonnet of the 6J Ibiza starts rusting on the folded edge and the front transition lip, from roughly ten years of age. The rust is stronger where there is no underside protection and where the roads are salted in winter.

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The folded edge rusts from the inside out: by the time it shows on the paint, the metal is already weakened. And a bonnet that has been repainted but not repaired brings the same thing back within a few years.

What to check

  • Open the bonnet and go along the folded edge from the inside, all around
  • Run your finger along the transition of the front edge: blistering or roughness under the paint is suspect
  • Look along the surface from outside at an angle: waviness indicates repaired rust
2 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

Rear washer hose: it comes off and fills the boot with water

expensive

The rear washer does not spray, because the feed hose has come off. The water then does not go onto the window but inside, into the boot.

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The water stands under the spare wheel well, the floorpan corrodes, and the connectors running in the boot can get soaked. If the rear washer does not work, check where the water went.

What to check

  • Switch the rear washer on: if it does not spray, check the feed hose
  • Lift out the boot floor and the spare wheel or tool tray: there should be no standing water, water stain or rust
  • Smell the boot: a musty smell stays even when the boot is dry
2 more steps in the write-up

cheap repair1

Electric window: a window that moves on its own or sticks

cheap repair

On the 6J Ibiza the electric window motor develops a short, and the window starts moving down or up on its own, or does not move at all. This is more common on pre-2015 cars, and the door lock actuators fail as well.

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There are four mechanisms in four doors. If a window moves on its own, a locked car can be left open.

What to check

  • Try all four windows, one by one, from their own switch too
  • Run each of them from the driver's side as well: the central switch block can fail separately
  • Watch the speed and smoothness of the movement: hesitation or grinding points to the mechanism
2 more steps in the write-up

Checklist

SEAT Ibiza 1.2 TSI 105hp Reference

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

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Engine and transmission

CBZB · 1.2 TFSI

77 kW (105 HP) · petrol

MQ200 · 5- or 6-speed manual

manual · 5–6 speed

Torque limit200 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
Reference
Body
estate
Fuel
petrol
Transmission
manual
Engine size
1197 cc
Power
77 kW (105 HP)
Drive
FWD
Production
2012–2015

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)

  • 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 IV 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