P0124–P0229 Throttle/Pedal Position Sensor/Switch A Circuit Intermittent
The fault comes and goes, which points at a connection that only breaks under vibration, heat or load.
Can you drive it? The engine light will stay on and the car may run in a reduced-power mode. Read the freeze-frame data to see the conditions the fault was logged under.
Which code is which
Same fault, different cylinder or bank — diagnosed the same way. Several set together usually means one shared cause.
| Code | Definition | Severity |
|---|---|---|
P0124 | Throttle/Pedal Position Sensor/Switch A Circuit Intermittent | Investigate soon |
P0224 | Throttle/Pedal Position Sensor/Switch B Circuit Intermittent | Investigate soon |
P0229 | Throttle/Pedal Position Sensor/Switch C Circuit Intermittent | Investigate soon |
The definition
P0124: Throttle/Pedal Position Sensor/Switch A Circuit Intermittent.
P0124 is a powertrain code (the engine or gearbox), defined by the SAE standard - it means the same thing on any make of car, and any generic OBD-II reader will decode it.
What to check first
Cheapest and fastest checks first:
- Read the freeze-frame data stored with the fault - engine speed, load and temperature at the moment it logged tell you whether this happens cold, hot or under load.
- Check the connector at the part for corrosion, and that it is fully seated.
- Clear the code and see whether it returns, and under what conditions.
What actually causes this on a VAG
This is the same drive-by-wire hardware as the other throttle and pedal codes, but with one important difference: the fault came and went. The ECU caught a momentary dropout or a jump in the signal rather than a steady wrong reading. Owners often describe a brief flat spot or dead pedal, or an EPC light that appears once and clears itself - though plenty of cars store this with no symptom the driver ever noticed. Because it is intermittent, the car may well drive perfectly when you take it to be looked at.
Most likely causes, in order
- A connector or terminal problem. By far the most likely cause of any intermittent electrical fault. Look for a plug that is not fully clicked home, spread or pushed-back terminals, green corrosion, or water sitting in the connector. Confirm by watching the throttle angle and pedal value in live data while gently wiggling the plug and the first few inches of loom - a flicker in the reading is your answer.
- A wire broken inside its insulation, or chafing. Common where the harness flexes as the engine rocks on its mounts, or where it passes a sharp bracket or heat shield. It makes contact most of the time and opens up over a bump or under load, which is exactly why the fault will not sit still. Inspect the loom along its whole run rather than just at the ends.
- A poor earth or an unstable sensor supply. Corroded earth points, loose battery terminals or a failing battery can drop the sensor supply momentarily. If other unrelated modules have also logged odd intermittent faults around the same time, treat the electrical supply as the prime suspect before blaming any one sensor.
- The throttle body or pedal sender beginning to fail. A worn track inside the sender can give brief dropouts long before it fails outright. Treat this as the conclusion you reach after the wiring has been proved good, not the starting point - these are the expensive parts in the chain.
Worth knowing: Resist replacing parts on spec for this one. An intermittent fault that is not present when you test is a lottery, and it is entirely possible to fit a new throttle body and still have the original broken wire. Get it logged in live data while the fault is actually happening. In the meantime, take the possibility of a sudden drop into limp mode seriously - leave yourself room when pulling out into traffic until it is fixed.
Reading the code is the easy part
A code names the circuit that complained. What tells you why is watching the sensor behind it while the engine runs — and that is where a code reader stops and a diagnostic tool starts.
VAGPULSE reads every module in a VW, Audi, Skoda or SEAT — not just the engine — shows the live measuring blocks behind this fault, gives you the freeze-frame conditions it was logged under, and clears it once you have fixed it. It also does what a generic OBD reader cannot on a VAG: service resets, coding, adaptations, and Stage 1–3 flashing with your original file saved first.
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Common questions
What does P0124 mean?
P0124 means Throttle/Pedal Position Sensor/Switch A Circuit Intermittent. The fault comes and goes, which points at a connection that only breaks under vibration, heat or load.
Can I drive with P0124?
The engine light will stay on and the car may run in a reduced-power mode. Read the freeze-frame data to see the conditions the fault was logged under.