US GTI - Warranty Voided - ECU Reprogramming Detected

[RedHotVAG]

A guy in the US from another FB page had his warranty voided for modifications. While he kept the FMIC when he brought it to the dealer, which wasn't the best way to get a claim approved, the technician did leave an interesting note:

He posted a copy of the technician's report and this is what it said "I checked for programming attempts and found 2 attempts, both successful, I wasn't able to tell if the car was tuned when they broke it and then returned back to stock."

Perhaps they have updated their system and at the dealer level they are now able to see that your ECU has been flashed, with what they don't know, but it looks like they will have grounds to void your warranty for tuning your car.

The guy tuned with APR.

See his post HERE, this is a closed group.

I think at this point, we shouldn't be telling people it's OK to tune it, they won't find it. At the very least, we can stop encouraging people to delude themselves and think up made up reasons why everything is going to be ok. Buyer beware, don't cry if it blows up in your face. Tune at your own risk. I think most people has advocated this, but we definitely should not tell people not to worry.

 

[bigdaddyvoodoo]

I thought we were all aware this was the case?

 

[dn0]

When did he get the flash? I thought APR resets the flash counter after each flash.

 

[RedHotVAG]

When did he get the flash? I thought APR resets the flash counter after each flash.

I thought this was the case. That VW would only find out if they sent the ECU out to look at fuel trims. But what's happened here is it was detected at the dealer level.

 

[clickclickw00t]

I've been following this thread closely. The most concerning thing for me is the fact that the note from VW said: "advised the tech to check on module programming following a recent tech talk video." AKA: they know people are tuning and are starting to check for it, or they've figured out other ways to determine whether you have tuned or not.

 

[Brinkmen]

This is interesting to know. Makes me more glad I got the R because I would have wanted extra power with the GTI. I still want extra power with the R, just not as much. Its certainly faster than my Stage 1 GTI was.

What are your guys thoughts on the Neuspeed Power module? They seem to be selling like crazy. Mainly because of all this stuff happening with ECU tunes, etc. Also because it can be removed and resold whenever, unlike an ECU tune.

 

[Stage2Sasquatch]

I can't login to that Facebook group. Did he say what dealer it was,if so please put that dealer under NOT mod friendly in the dealer thread.

 

[George Smooth]

I've been following this thread closely. The most concerning thing for me is the fact that the note from VW said: "advised the tech to check on module programming following a recent tech talk video." AKA: they know people are tuning and are starting to check for it, or they've figured out other ways to determine whether you have tuned or not.

The flash counter can be seen on the diagnostic level. The module programming they mention might be the full ECU interrogation where stored values are seen.

 

[Baldilocks73]

This is interesting to know. Makes me more glad I got the R because I would have wanted extra power with the GTI. I still want extra power with the R, just not as much. Its certainly faster than my Stage 1 GTI was.

What are your guys thoughts on the Neuspeed Power module? They seem to be selling like crazy. Mainly because of all this stuff happening with ECU tunes, etc. Also because it can be removed and resold whenever, unlike an ECU tune.

From the thoughts I have been reading from others, the power module may harm the engine over time. (shrug). Not really sure myself.

As far as more power goes, my VW dealership is an authorized APR and performance shop as well. They honor their lifetime engine warranty even if it's related to the tune. So, even before I pick my new R up tomorrow, they are already going to have the Stage 1 tune on it for me.

 

[Brinkmen]

Interesting. I don't think we have any VW dealers around NorCal who are also APR dealers. Doesn't VW determine what if a warranty claim is approved or denied? I was thinking about the NPM because I can remove it completely whenever I want. So put it in for a weekend when I want a little extra power, the remove for the week.

 

[Baldilocks73]

Interesting. I don't think we have any VW dealers around NorCal who are also APR dealers. Doesn't VW determine what if a warranty claim is approved or denied? I was thinking about the NPM because I can remove it completely whenever I want. So put it in for a weekend when I want a little extra power, the remove for the week.

Their engine warranty is something the dealership does. Don't think they even go through VW if it's related to their tuning center.

 

[Brinkmen]

Oh so thats over and above your factory warranty then. I paid a bit extra for the 72month/100k warranty since this is the first car I've bought new in my life. I'm a bit more wary about things that may void that since it came out of pocket.

 

[Universal_Remonster]

Should have gotten the Eurodyne. Their flash counter reset is almost ready. No more warranty issues.

 

[Unclespud]

From the thoughts I have been reading from others, the power module may harm the engine over time. (shrug). Not really sure myself.

Really? The NPM will harm the motor? First I've heard of this. If piggyback ECU's are dangerous, then why would a respected company like Burger Motorsports coming out with a plug and play piggyback ECU unit next week?

 

[Baldilocks73]

Really? The NPM will harm the motor? First I've heard of this. If piggyback ECU's are dangerous, then why would a respected company like Burger Motorsports coming out with a plug and play piggyback ECU unit next week?

Like I said, those were thoughts of others, not myself. But there has been some speculation that the way in which they operate may not be necessarily the best.

This is the thread I am referring to: http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?7031982-A-Noob-Review-Neuspeed-Power-Module