GOLFMK8
GOLFMK7
GOLFMK6
GOLFMKV

Tuning Choice

CarlosCanizares

CarlosCanizares

Autocross Newbie
Location
Surrey, BC, Canada
Car(s)
Mk7 Golf R
Most of you know me as one of the early adopters of Eurodyne for the GTI. Went from stock to a Stage 2 after 10K kms until I traded the car in for a CPO R that’s running a custom Map 6 on the JB1.

For those of you that tuned your cars (which I assume
is most), what’s your exit plan in the event of a costly warranty denial? I’m honestly just curious.

I thankfully had funds to cover a full motor and tranny swap had it come to that with my GTI. But my wife and I started a business, so life priorities happened. Once, we’re settled, the boss has allowed me to tune again.

Been meaning to post this but I keep forgetting.

Cheers.
 
Last edited:
I

iTsLiKeAnEgG

Ready to race!
Location
Bay Area
If the trans or engine goes I will be buying a used one to replace it with. I know it will be costly and I've accepted that lol.
 
GTI Jake

GTI Jake

Autocross Champion
Location
Charlotte, NC
JerseyDrew77 said:
You're definitely pushing it with 456 wtq on stock internals.
Click to expand...

Maybe, nobody’s really gone looking for the breaking point it could be 800 for all we know.


Anyway if mine pops the engine I’ll buy a used one since I don’t plan to build this car to the point of needing a stronger bottom end. Unless it’s something minor were the cost wouldn’t likely exceed a used engine (no labor cost for either outside of machine shop work in the case of a rebuild)

If the transmission gets hurt I’ll take it as an opportunity to do a proper LSD and rebuild it myself. I’ve rebuilt a manual before, it’s no where near as difficult as you’d think.

I keep plenty in savings to cover the worst case scenarios, but would really rather not considering wife/two kids/house/ect rely on that as emergency money as well. I actually was just telling the wife today when the time comes for a turbo replacement I’ll be going with a L450...she wasn’t happy, but this isn’t new news just reminding her lol
 
C

Crackness1

Ready to race!
Location
Sunny Florida
I plan on keeping my Gti to stage 2 levels, but I also don't plan on actually going with a "tune" until the warranty is gone anyway so the point is moot. The plan also involves a milder tune (as if that guarantees anything).

Working 2 jobs and being single sometimes isn't very fun... Until you notice you've got money in the bank and feel like splurging on mods :D

2nd job $$ goes to savings, and if the engine blows, it will hopefully be 200k miles away... and even if it is sooner than that, I've got the funds set aside to cover a replacement (begrudgingly).
 
J

Jovian

Drag Racing Champion
Location
Denver, CO
Car(s)
2016 VW GTI
Im already out of warranty at 75k miles. But when I did still have one and was tuned plan wasnt really anything. If something broke (which it didnt) I would revert everything and attempt dealer (no harm in trying). When I get denied (and im sure I would) I would go to a third party shop and get a used engine/trans to replace what ever broke.

I hate the term but it is appropriate in this situation. You have to pay to play.

If you are at all worried and cant afford a new engine/trans, I would not mod.
 
CarlosCanizares

CarlosCanizares

Autocross Newbie
Location
Surrey, BC, Canada
Car(s)
Mk7 Golf R
jovian said:
Im already out of warranty at 75k miles. But when I did still have one and was tuned plan wasnt really anything. If something broke (which it didnt) I would revert everything and attempt dealer (no harm in trying). When I get denied (and im sure I would) I would go to a third party shop and get a used engine/trans to replace what ever broke.

I hate the term but it is appropriate in this situation. You have to pay to play.

If you are at all worried and cant afford a new engine/trans, I would not mod.
Click to expand...

I’ve been around tuned cars (and this forum) long enough to know the “play to play” phrase. I hate it too coz I hear/see it all he time lol.

I was just really curious what people’s plan b’s were. I had mine which went towards the business. Once it’s built up again, I’ll tune the R. But then the boss might override that to start a family lol. Nothing a new Kate Spade bag can’t fix :)

That said, the JB1, Boomba Adapter and driving loafers already make his car so much more fun, I really just need the HPA DB to make it all I need as a summer-only car. Can’t see any more benefits of a Stg2 tune for my needs.
 
P

pieguy

Ready to race!
Location
Bay Area
Gti jake said:
Maybe, nobody’s really gone looking for the breaking point it could be 800 for all we know.


Anyway if mine pops the engine I’ll buy a used one since I don’t plan to build this car to the point of needing a stronger bottom end. Unless it’s something minor were the cost wouldn’t likely exceed a used engine (no labor cost for either outside of machine shop work in the case of a rebuild)

If the transmission gets hurt I’ll take it as an opportunity to do a proper LSD and rebuild it myself. I’ve rebuilt a manual before, it’s no where near as difficult as you’d think.

I keep plenty in savings to cover the worst case scenarios, but would really rather not considering wife/two kids/house/ect rely on that as emergency money as well. I actually was just telling the wife today when the time comes for a turbo replacement I’ll be going with a L450...she wasn’t happy, but this isn’t new news just reminding her lol
Click to expand...

I think IROZ tested this already which is why we parrot the "nobody over 420wtq" thing over and over? 450+ wtq on Ed's dyno is probably a lot closer to 420 wtq.

For me, once the engine blows, call up IE and hope I can get their crate engine asap.
 
Twist1

Twist1

Autocross Newbie
Location
Breaking Mustang Hearts
I really do like the gti. The more I work on these cars for other people the more I realize vw really did design it to the nth degree for STOCK power levels.

Pushing based 400hp is going to roll a dice. Just like the ihi turbos, it may be bulletproof, it may blow. Being is38 on a reasonable tune, if I'm feeling lucky I just stack it with jb. But all these people going protunes and turning everything up ALL the time on is38s , eqts, hybrids, etc. It is not going to last forever. The party will end. When? We don't know.

Pros for longevity with big power:
Iron block
Alloy aluminum head
Forged crank
Forged pistons
Forged rods? Still unclear on this

Cons:
Thrust bearings robotically installed , ie crank walk
Razors edge AFRs usually
Not a lot of engine buffers to prevent a boom
 
G

Gvazquez

Go Kart Champion
Location
North Carolina
Twist said:
I really do like the gti. The more I work on these cars for other people the more I realize vw really did design it to the nth degree for STOCK power levels.

Pushing based 400hp is going to roll a dice. Just like the ihi turbos, it may be bulletproof, it may blow. Being is38 on a reasonable tune, if I'm feeling lucky I just stack it with jb. But all these people going protunes and turning everything up ALL the time on is38s , eqts, hybrids, etc. It is not going to last forever. The party will end. When? We don't know.

Pros for longevity with big power:
Iron block
Alloy aluminum head
Forged crank
Forged pistons
Forged rods? Still unclear on this

Cons:
Thrust bearings robotically installed , ie crank walk
Razors edge AFRs usually
Not a lot of engine buffers to prevent a boom
Click to expand...

So you've confirmed we get forged pistons from factory?? I didn't know I just thought the crank was forged.
 
swcrow

swcrow

Autocross Champion
Location
Virginia
Car(s)
7.5 GTI
Really tough question.

I've NEVER owned a car with a warranty, so whether to tune or not was an easy answer. With this '18, I actually HAVE a warranty, which makes the call tougher.

I've walked the path of having an engine blow up on me (B5.5, https://www.passatworld.com/forums/volkswagen-passat-b5-discussion/294145-oh-crap-greta-died-me.html) and bringing it back to life. It was an expensive lesson that I won't do again.

I've ran APR, GIAC, REVO and Unitronic before as well (in no specific order).

Do I go with stage 1 Uni ECU/DSG for 1200?
Do I go with APR+ for 1000 and keep a warranty of sorts?

Like Jake mentioned, I like to have a month or two of mortgage payments in the bank, so replacing an engine or tranny isn't an outright option for me.

I think since the uni stage 1 is so mild, I lean that ways as I doubt it would do any damage, but there's always that tinge of anxiousness as I know I'll be voiding my warranty (most likely answer should anything go wrong).
 
SugarMouth

SugarMouth

Drag Race Newbie
Location
Nevada
CarlosCanizares said:
For those of you that tuned your cars (which I assume
is most), what’s your exit plan in the event of a costly warranty denial? I’m honestly just curious.
Click to expand...

If something happens to my vehicle that can be related to a change that I made I won't even see the dealer, if not then I will.

Example:

Engine water pump leaks: I see dealer.
Turbo blows: I fix myself.
Interior trim defective: I see dealer.
DSG clutches slip: I fix myself.

It is really simple. I don't try to make VW pay for something I am responsible for.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top