Buying prevously tuned 15 Golf

kdawg89

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15 Golf DSG 06 Jetta (sold)
Hi All,

I am thinking of purchasing a 15 Golf DSG with 30,000 miles from a friend of mine, he is going to move to a Q5 TDI.

The car has stage 1 kerma tdi tunes on it. It has only had the tune for about 4000 miles.

Does anyone have any experience with VW denying warranty on a car that has been previously tuned even if it is returned to stock?

The car has had Phase 1 modification completed. I would probably plan to take the car in for phase 2 modifications a little before 40k so that it will get a new free DPF later in its life. I can’t imagine VW can deny doing the emissions fixed due to tune. Anyone have any experience with that?
 

turbobrick240

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VW has demonstrated a propensity for trying to weasel out of warranty claims in the past. Usually not tune related. I doubt it would pose a problem as long as you don't advertise the altered parameters.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

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I can’t imagine VW can deny doing the emissions fixed due to tune.
Imagine it. Folks have been denied warranty coverage on cars pre-emissions scandal because they have tunes. I wouldn't change taking a tuned car to a dealer for work that requires them looking at the ECU.

However, if you like the car I'd have the PO flash it back to stock (or make sure you have that capability) and go for it. Dealers can see how many times the ECU has been re-flashed but it's doubtful they'll check. And even if they did they may not be able to tell if it's been flashed somewhere other than at a dealer. At this point all these cars have been re-flashed multiple times.

IMO the tune is a plus. These cars drive great with a tune. I think people who are avoiding tuning the cars because of warranty concerns are missing out.
 

Dubin20th

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2015 Jetta
Some cars still get flagged as tuned even when flashed back to stock once they are scanned by the dealer.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
 

IndigoBlueWagon

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Some cars still get flagged as tuned even when flashed back to stock once they are scanned by the dealer.
Haven't heard of that happening with a TDI, much less with one that's undergoing a fix, either Stage 1 or 2. My '15 GSW had been re-flashed several times prior to my purchase. I doubt dealers have any accurate record of the number of flashes a dieselgate car has had at this point.
 

kdawg89

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I’m going to go look at it today and scan it with VCDS to make sure it doesn’t have any stored codes. If I end up buying it and VW gives me trouble I guess I’ll just delete it and move on. My BRM is pretty significantly modified so I doubt I’d be able to switch to a new one and not end up tuning it eventually anyways.
 

Dubin20th

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Haven't heard of that happening with a TDI, much less with one that's undergoing a fix, either Stage 1 or 2. My '15 GSW had been re-flashed several times prior to my purchase. I doubt dealers have any accurate record of the number of flashes a dieselgate car has had at this point.
Dealers can check if they really want to since every warranty scan get uploaded to the servers or they run a TD1 check. The info that the servers have is how it determines if the car is tuned. May not be as common with tdis but I seen it with newer mqb cars.

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Discovery

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. I think people who are avoiding tuning the cars because of warranty concerns are missing out.
x2
Tuned my GSW in less than 6month of ownership.
Now it's a mean daily driver/family hauler.

You need to find a vw dealership who is "ok" with tuned car.

My friend had a tuned GTI and his dealer was cool with that. Car was take in for all scheduled service and staff where aware to notice the owner if the car need to be "plug in", so he can flash it back.

It's his 3rd Golf he bought at this dealer and afterall they want his business.

He just traded in for a R and stage 2 is undergoing.
 
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kdawg89

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Yeah, I think when I’m deciding where to take it I might try to talk to the tech, maybe leave him a $50 and some snacks on the seat or something.
 

Discovery

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Yeah, I think when I’m deciding where to take it I might try to talk to the tech, maybe leave him a $50 and some snacks on the seat or something.
Lol@ bribe the tech

I don't think a successful dealer would go out of their way, like searching for proof of flash etc, to cause you trouble.
But I'm sure a little conversation can go a long way.

They have nothing to gain, will sure lose your business and when people get f***ed over they have a tendency to talk alot about it.

This friend sure contributed in my decision on buying my first VW.
 
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Lightflyer1

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The tech doesn't matter as the computer tells the home office, which will decide warranty coverage. There is at least one story here of someone who bought a buyback car (IIRC) that had been tuned before the owner got it and was turned down for warranty work after buying it due to previous tuning. Replacing the stock tune also doesn't matter, it will still be seen. I have said this many times here and it still holds true, If you value the warranty leave the car alone and stock. If you don't then tune away and take what comes when/if the dealer refuses warranty work. No crying, whining or threatening to sue when you have full knowledge of the circumstances. Being dieselgate just happened it is my belief VW will come down hard on anything that will allow them to cancel or get out of warranty repairs on these cars. Each one they can refuse potentially saves them thousands of dollars. If your car is stock you have some recourse. If tuned I doubt you will get any sympathy or help from anyone to get VW to reverse their decision. Once found out it will be in the history for that car forever at VW.
 
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kdawg89

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I called a local VW dealer and asked some questions and the guy told me no matter what software is on the car they will over write it when they do phase 2 mods and they would complete phase 2 regardless of tune status, that is also what Kerma told me. So it doesn't sound like they will deny the initial phase 2 fix, but he said after that point if the car gets tuned again then the warranty would be void, which also made it sound like the warranty is "reset" when phase 2 is completed. It also sounds like once phase 2 is completed your warranty is 5yr/60,000 from that point. What isn't clear is the part where if you get the phase 2 fix done before 40K on a DSG will you still get an additional DPF later the future at 70K plus.


It also says this which seems to confirm they will still do Phase 2 on a tuned vehicle if it is flashed back to stock before it arrives at the dealer.



If the vehicle has been modified by the customer prior to receiving
the emissions modification in a manner that may yield a non
-
compliant
emissions system (for example, removal of a catalyst, installation of
parts that impact emissions or emissions
-
related parts, or modifications
to the ECU or computer software of the vehicle), Volkswagen may not
be able to perform the emissions modification until the customer
corrects such modification.
 

kdawg89

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The only thing really wrong with the car is the sunshade doesn't slide properly, it gets stuck about half way open. Does anyone know how they work and what would possibly cause that?
 

Lightflyer1

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Go for it then. You are the one who has to deal with it later if issues arise. Just remember it isn't the dealer you will be dealing with, it is VW the company. Anything the dealer tells you isn't gospel. What you posted about the warranty isn't correct either.
 

johnnloki

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The dealership can't choose to not report a software modded car, no matter how nice the bribe.



A few years back, some Audi Dealerships were selling "Stasis" brand tunes, and performing warranty work on the cars, billing VWOA for the work when things went boom due to the aggressive tuning that Stasis had (a pretty shady tactic, if you ask me).


Corporate got wind of that, and decided to update their diagnostics systems (similar to BMW) to keep count of flash scans vs expected flash count. If your ECU says it's been flashed a different number of times that the company's database says, your car is branded as TD1. TD1 cars will have warranty work issues. This applies to all MQB and newer cars. No one's managed to defeat this yet. A tuning box is your only option if you don't want to have a TD1 branded car. Flashing back to stock will not help. Bribing will not help.


If you software mod a newer VW, you are the warranty.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

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That's one person's experience, over four years ago. Take it with a grain of salt. There are plenty of people here who've had cars re-flashed to stock and had warranty service completed, including my nephew on his '15 Golf, recently. Is there a risk that the work will be denied? Sure. Is it a certainty? No.
 

kdawg89

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That is true, what are your thoughts on parts availability for these cars? I worry a little about the low VIO. What I don't want to have to do is have a voided warranty and have to buy parts from the dealer lol, that just adds insult to injury. I am a Bosch WD and in Bosch Advantage they show the injectors and HPFP but both are out of stock. What do you think about components like the DPF, HP fuel lines, etc? I don't specialize in diesel or euro so I am sure you have much better connections that I do in that aspect.
 

turbobrick240

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If you're really nervous about the warranty, don't get tuned. It's that simple. Parts should be available for quite some time. Most of the tdi's were and are sold in other markets. So Europe for instance will have most any part you'd need.
 

KERMA

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the Pre-2006 TDIs have been the bread and butter, supporting a nice little niche industry, of which I am proud to have been a participant for what is a very long time now.

But by some accounts, there were more 2015 TDI's sold than all of the pre-2006 TDI's combined. And judging by the numbers of tunes we are currently sending for them, this is likely not an incorrect characterization. The vast majority of them will make it back into circulation, along with the new-old-stock cars that were released post-scandal.

There are still parts available for those older cars, even after 20 years (or more) since they were first around.

The aftermarket will step in and fill the voids where they exist, I can assure you of that. You can't necessarily rely on Bosch though. For example, consider the case of injectors for the 2-spring injectors. They simply did not exist to the aftermarket, at least in any readily accessible and widely known fashion, until kermatdi introduced Bosio to this community back in 2002. By way of contrast, Bosch did not "release" nozzles for those cars until maybe 5 years ago or so. In fact, for the longest time, Bosch insisted they were "not serviceable" at all. Well, we saw about that...

Yes there are several projects in the works. Parts support will not be an issue in the least, be it replacement parts or performance parts. So don't even give it a 2nd thought
 

kdawg89

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15 Golf DSG 06 Jetta (sold)
Yeah, the only part that concerns me is the HPFP, the rest is not terribly concerning. I’ve done countless hours of wrenching on my 06, everything after market done to that car was done by me. Seems like the ea288 fuel system might be a more reliable design than previous years. Car is at the dealer getting phase 2 fix done right now. Probably gonna buy it later this week, stock cars are boring anyways :)
 

KERMA

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HPFP is not an issue, trust me on that. ;) Not saying more at this time, but don't be concerned.

The reliability is a result of the software changes as much as any physical changes to the pumps themselves. It really is a shame the Bin 5 EA288 were cut off after the first year because the software really is a thing of beauty once you dig deep into it below the surfacey "remaps"stuff. So much going on there and so much potential. Such a shame to "delete" because all the so-called "problems" are 100% solvable by recalibrating the ecu.
 

kdawg89

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Very interesting, the car has Kerma tunes and he is selling the programmer with it. Is it true the DSG tune isn’t strictly required on the 15 golf just recommended?
 

KERMA

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I've always thought it was hilarious how everyone runs around citing some supposed "requirement" for "Mandatory" DSG tunes.

There's a simple adjustment in the earlier CR ECUs that completely changes the way the ecu interacts with the transmission controller. This almost completely obviates the need to "tune" the Transmission so the car is liveable with a strong engine tune. Sadly, it's not in Swiftec yet for "one click tuning" availability, so therefore it's generally not known how to do this. And I guess there's an element of wanting to continue to upsell more things that are conveniently "mandatory" products so cha ching. (so why fight it, right?)

The EA288 cars already have said adjustment, besides having a suitably higher torque limit in the transmission already. So let's just say NOT "mandatory" but still "nice to do" for the shift pattern changes and overall drivability improvements.
 

kdawg89

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Good to know, the stock DSG programming does have frustrating shift points. Really likes to lug the engine when I would have downshifted in my BRM like 500 RPMs ago.
 

kdawg89

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Does anyone know if the “lifetime” belt that drives the oil pump can be changed when you do the timing belt or something?
 

turbobrick240

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Does anyone know if the “lifetime” belt that drives the oil pump can be changed when you do the timing belt or something?

I'm sure it could be, but why bother if none of them are failing? The longevity of that lifetime oil drive belt should be better understood in a few years time.
 

kdawg89

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I'm sure it could be, but why bother if none of them are failing? The longevity of that lifetime oil drive belt should be better understood in a few years time.


Just curious mostly, if it’s a $30 belt and an extra 30 minutes that’s the kind of thing I would change while I was there.
 
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