O.K. Next dumbass question (Tune)

[rocky raccoon]

I have a 2014 JSW TDI purchased about 6 months ago from a reputable non-VW dealer. It has been dead nuts reliable, performs very well and with good fuel economy. In fact, it performs so well I am beginning to suspect it has an aftermarket tune.

How can I tell if it is so blessed?

 

[PRY4SNO]

Maybe get some 0-60 times and people can compare.

 

[rocky raccoon]

Thanks for the suggestion but I would like something more definitive than that.

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

You can open the engine module in VCDS and a tuned car will usually have an identifier in the first screen. But maybe not, since most owners don't want tunes discovered.

Did the car receive the emissions fix? If so, it should have a sticker on the radiator core support stating when it was done.

"Performs very well with good fuel economy" would not be unusual for a stock, emissions fixed, CBEA engine, which is what your car has.

 

[Thunder Chicken]

If I remember right, VCDS just shows how many times (counter) the ECU has been flashed/programmed. Not gonna tell ya anything as the car would have had an update or 2 before dieselgate perhaps, then the dieselgate..... so showing 2-3-4 on the counter wouldn’t mean much.
I had my car tuned/deleted. Then I untuned for the fix. Then retuned/redeleted. Then the dealer needed a reading off the ecu for something to do with their paperwork for the fix..... I refused for quite some time for obvious reasons.... they really wanted it scanned so I finally did and whatever they read they were happy with, they got their warranty work money, and the car was not effected by their scan nor did they care if they noticed.

 

[rocky raccoon]

Indigo: Yes, the car has had the "fix" and I am told the engine is CJAA. I am satisfied with performance and economy so if not Tuned, I really would have no intention to do so.

My previous Diesel experiences have been with later (1983 and 1984) Benz OM617A engines. On both of those, eliminated the EGR system in order to keep my intake manifold crud-free. I was advised to leave it alone on this engine.

 

[PRY4SNO]

@rocky raccoon what is your mileage? That should be a good clue...

 

[rocky raccoon]

If you are speaking about miles driven, the answer is about 89000. If mpg, the answer is 45mpg on country road driving and up to low 50s on a long trip.

 

[Matt927]

Is that hand calculated at the pump or MFD numbers? Those seem very high for a stock vehicle running the fix.

 

[rocky raccoon]

Those numbers are MFD (I think). What does MFD mean? Few cars seem to be as acronym-rich.

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

Everything is acronym rich. Welcome to the new millennium. MFD=Multi Function Display. Those numbers are usually up to 10% high. So if those are what you're using, you're getting about 40 MPG in regular driving, 45 on a trip. Sounds about right for a stock car.

 

[JELLOWSUBMARINE]

The biggest reason I tuned was to preserve the life of my expensive DPF. Your mph suggest you are tuned.

A great addition that may help by seeing the soot output is a Polar f.i.s. It post dozens of useful p.i.d.'s of info. to the m.a.f. , especially the e.g.r. and soot m gr. .load... Ha, Sorry messing with these stupid acronyms.

Are you within the emmision warranty miles. I believe your still covered with some pretty expensive repairs

 

[rocky raccoon]

Yes, my warranty is still in effect. I guess I will ultimately have to get a VCDS. I just hate needing it. The Diesel is such a basically simple engine if they could only leave it alone. I miss my stone-age OM617, a real zombie apocalypse car. I just got tired of spending a couple of hours under it every week to make it a reliable Daily.

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

From an OM617 you went to the other end of the spectrum, although VCDS has been a valuable tool for VW diesel owners for over 20 years. The older (pre-2004) TDIs are pretty simple. Newer ones not so much. In some ways my '93 300D is more complex than my '02 Jetta.

 

[JELLOWSUBMARINE]

I know what you mean I've still got my 1.6 idi pickup. That's MY zombie apocalypse car that'll run on peanut butter.This JSW is definitely "refined". This even makes my ex 04 tdi seem primitive. I love the car and hope to keep it around for a long time. That's why I went with a non delete tune and the basic Polar FIS for my anal retentive curiosity mostly. I'm happy to just use it now. BUT One big loss now is no coal rolling up hills on Prious's... Damn PDF

 

[PRY4SNO]

That mileage seems pretty high for a stock tune. Also agree that I wouldn't trust the MFD for mpg figures.

Try doing some hand calculations for a tank or two keeping in mind the ratio of city to highway driving.

On a stock tune I'm seeing about 40 mpg for mostly highway driving (75% or better per tank).

 

[Bob S.]

You can open the engine module in VCDS and a tuned car will usually have an identifier in the first screen. But maybe not, since most owners don't want tunes discovered.

Did the car receive the emissions fix? If so, it should have a sticker on the radiator core support stating when it was done.

"Performs very well with good fuel economy" would not be unusual for a stock, emissions fixed, CBEA engine, which is what your car has.

A great tuner does not leave easily discovered Indctators of their tune.

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

A great tuner does not leave easily discovered Indctators of their time.

Well, not any longer. They used to. But now it's a bad idea.

 

[Bob S.]

Well, not any longer. They used to. But now it's a bad idea.

. How & why a bad idea? They leave identifiers for the EPA to chase them down?

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

How & why a bad idea? They leave identifiers for the eos to chase them down?

Because they don't want to leave a trail identifying the car as tuned, as that can be a negative for both the owner and the tuner, if the EPA gets involved. In the past no one was checking.

 

[Bob S.]

Peter, I think you are saying the same thing I am. A great tuner leaves little or no easily found indicators of their work.

 

[Thunder Chicken]

Rocky, the VCDS is a worthwhile investment!! Mine has paid for itself over and over with saved trips to the dealer, and doing the odd scan for other folks. We even caught a garage in quite a lie about an issue once..... plus there are lots of things you can customize on your car with it if you desire.(silly things like lights and courtesy blinker ).
the only thing that bothers me is not being able to run it on my old MacBook. I have a real old netbook with windowsXP that I use only for VCDS that will no doubt seen need replacing.
just as you need to spend $100’s on odd sized 12pt sockets and triple square bits, the VCDS is good to have if you want to do your own work!

 

[PRY4SNO]

@Thunder Chicken you can use your MacBook with VCDS if you use a program like BootCamp or Parallels to run Windows.

 

[Swinging Steel]

@Thunder Chicken you can use your MacBook with VCDS if you use a program like BootCamp or Parallels to run Windows.

What would really be nice is if someone could figure out to run vcds on android so I dont have to drag my computer to the garage at all.

 

[Thunder Chicken]

@Thunder Chicken you can use your MacBook with VCDS if you use a program like BootCamp or Parallels to run Windows.

Thanks, but I’m not savvy enough to figure that out, and when i looked into it a time ago my old MacBook may not have the capacity .

 

[crustodd]

If I remember right, VCDS just shows how many times (counter) the ECU has been flashed/programmed. Not gonna tell ya anything as the car would have had an update or 2 before dieselgate perhaps, then the dieselgate..... so showing 2-3-4 on the counter wouldn’t mean much.
I had my car tuned/deleted. Then I untuned for the fix. Then retuned/redeleted. Then the dealer needed a reading off the ecu for something to do with their paperwork for the fix..... I refused for quite some time for obvious reasons.... they really wanted it scanned so I finally did and whatever they read they were happy with, they got their warranty work money, and the car was not effected by their scan nor did they care if they noticed.

That was my experience with my Kerma tunes, even when dealing with the HPFP failure. The dealer wasn't interested or concerned.

 

[crustodd]

That mileage seems pretty high for a stock tune. Also agree that I wouldn't trust the MFD for mpg figures.

Try doing some hand calculations for a tank or two keeping in mind the ratio of city to highway driving.

On a stock tune I'm seeing about 40 mpg for mostly highway driving (75% or better per tank).

That's about what Im gettin. Ive seen as high as 44 allmost all hwy and 35-38 in town AFTER I went through the HPFP failure and have driven about 25k since. That was fuel readings in 35°-50° weather last Winter/Spring here in Oregon.