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AMD stage 2 reliability


Zenyck100
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been to a VW dealer today and agreed to buy a 53 plate silver R32 with AMD stage 2 on it. the comes with the remaining warranty and i asked the question "what happens if the engine goes bang and VW try to blame it on the remap and exhaust?" the replied with that they work hand in hand with AMD, AMD covers the warranty on the ECU software and the miltek exhaust while VW covers the rest of the car. they said that if a drive shaft popped or summit that they wouldnt check the ECU it would just get fixed under the warranty. should i worry or am i just being over cautious???

the car im in the process of buying is originally from reg vardys of leicester and it used to have a private plate on it, its now in VW in worcester. anyone know this car or the previous owner??

Zen

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DEFINITELY, ABSOLUTELY, 100% you HAVE to get it WRITING!!!

They will tell you ANYTHING to sell you that car!

Think of the warranty as a bargain-basement, basic insurance policy only, at best, then dial in what you think the 'word' of the salesman is worth.

Assume that you will get NO warranty work done where there is ANY doubt as to the cause of the fault. (We call it fault, they will call it damage).

PLEASE go in with your eyes open here.

I assure you I am not a raving lunatic. I do have a lot of experience in this area.

The car will be fantastic, I hope you buy one and really enjoy it - good luck.

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[ QUOTE ]

Ring AmD, give them the plate number and they will tell you when it was modded. You'll have the balance of their 12 month warranty on the upgrades.

[/ QUOTE ]

good point lol.gif

I really don't see you having a problem, most dealers know about AMD, my VW dealer are fine about it. An exhaust is not going to effect anything and for the chip much the same....if you have a real problem just take it to another VW Dealer or the one near AMD.........i would not worry...get the car and enjoy....just look for signs of abuse..... 169144-ok.gif

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I'm with english68 on this - Eyes Wide Open mate. Dealers are NOT your friends, they are in business and they do a damn fine job at it as well.

Some VW dealers are fine with certain mods others are complete t***s, but will try an convince you otherwise.

Be wise, be smart and be cautious - but don't let that stop you buying the car. We've all got R32s and quite a few have them modded, just make sure you know what / who you are dealing with - Car Salesman, they get paid when you buy a car smile.gif

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i suppose at the end of the day theres no record of our conversation so if i did have a warranty problem down the line i can prove that VW sold me an approved used car which carrys thier warranty and the AMD stage 2 was done way before i purchaced to car.

i could contact VW UK and say that dealers shouldnt be selling approved used cars which have been modified as the warranty they state these cars have is not fully valid.

im going to phone VW uk tommorrow and put the exact question to them.

anyone know the number??

do you think that will help?? maybe that way i get an official answer.

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I dont see how that helps, all VW are going to do is say the corp line which is "if its modded and goes wrong and if the mods cause the problem then your warranty won't cover the damage" - the legal fact. Telling them the dealer is selling a modded car second hand wont make a blind bit of diff as it is the dealer that picks up the warranty (if its offered) not VW so they couldn't give a toss.

There are literally hundreds of modded R32's and I've no heard of one going bang (regardless of tuner) mainly cos the car really needs tuning to get the best from it, talking to VW won't suddendly get you a "oh of course sir, we'll sort you a special warranty on it" jump.gif

If you're concerned about it, don't by it, asking questions of VW won't get you any nearer to feeling happier.

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[ QUOTE ]

well i even got the sales manager in on it too, he spoke to someone else and told me that they dont see a problem with a warranty claim if things did go "bang"

[/ QUOTE ]

I would get it in writing from the service dept manager as he will be the one who will ask VW to cover the costs....if VW refused it will be back to the dealer to cover the costs.

At that point the service dept will ask the sales lot to cover the costs...ie shtf.gif

good luck 169144-ok.gif

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Whilst I don't want to dissaude you from buying a modified car you have to note that you have, in fact, answered your own doubts with your first post

[ QUOTE ]

AMD covers the warranty on the ECU software and the miltek exhaust while VW covers the rest of the car. they said that if a drive shaft popped or summit that they wouldnt check the ECU it would just get fixed under the warranty

[/ QUOTE ]

Read those 2 sentences carefully. What they are saying to you is that AMD will make good the REMAP or EXHAUST if they go faulty. That's fair enough. The 2nd sentence is where the reality lies - they'd fix it because they wouldn't know it was remapped. Not that they wouldn't have a problem with it being remapped and would pursue a warranty claim for you regardless. Its all there. Its a smoke and mirrors claim and the salesman should know better.

I wouldn't want to hazard how many dealers out of ten would tell you that the driveshafts are designed with a certain amount of torque in mind and that the remap has added torque over and above this normal operating level and that the damage is therefore caused by the remap and that they won't touch it.

I don't want to put you off buying and enjoying a modified car, in fact quite the contrary, its just very important that you go into this with your eyes wide open and a clear understanding of what that salesman is telling you in a very underhanded way.

In all likelihood you will enjoy the car and have no problems, but you shouldn't be told what you have been told. Its all down to dealer discretion, simple as that. And on the basis of what you said, you have nothing in writing. Tell them to put exactly what they said in writing or you don't complete the deal. Watch their faces and enjoy smile.gif

Oh and the other thing you aren't aware of is how many unrelated problems an unsympathetic dealer can relate to a remap!! smashfreakB.gif

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Actually Milltek themselves pick up the warranty on the exhaust but its not just the exhaust. If the sytem is shown to have 'caused' the fault then they will pay for the repair as well (never happened in 21 years mind). Same applies to AmD, they cover the bits they change (obviously) but also if those bits are shown to have 'caused' any damage then they pick up the responsbility for that too - same with all tuners (although some are a little more tight than others) frown.gif

Specifically for the R32 AmD's stage 3 (as this is what we're talking about here) doens't exceed torque limits on any componant to the driveshaft issue could really apply in the analogy you give, however overall your sentiment is right beerchug.gif

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i think im going to cancel the deal. at the end of the day i am not comfortable with what ive been told and noone will give anything in writing.

its a £22k car and it should be an enjoyable time but ive got doubts.

i think my best bet is find a standard one and get the 6463 update on it. at least il be 100% happy then.

thanks guys for all who replied

Zen

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[ QUOTE ]

Specifically for the R32 AmD's stage 3 (as this is what we're talking about here) doens't exceed torque limits on any componant....

[/ QUOTE ]

Never knew that 169144-ok.gif ..a further comfort blanket for those pondering this fettle on their 32..now where's those scissors to attack my c/card & cheque book before I'm tempted any more

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Zenyck:

I'll bet there are a dozen cars owned and for sale by people here that will be exactly what you want (including mods if required).

You will pay around £2,000 less than buying from a main dealer.

You WILL be able to sell your current car for what they are offering you in p/ex.

Whatever it costs you to borrow the extra money to pay for the new car and wait until the old one is sold will be covered in your savings.

IMO it is just not true that we all have to buy from main dealers to get a good car, or good back-up, or a good price for our old car.

It is more difficult, true, but how hard do you have to work to save up £1,500 out of your net income?

Of course, if you earn £5k/week ignore all this, go for a swim in your pool and tell the house-staff you're off out to the Lamborghini dealers!

Good luck

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Here's an extract from this mornings private sellers R32 on Auto trader.

Try doing it with your post code and it will search the R32 dbase of cars in area.

Are you okay with travel? Cause I think you will have to spread your wings beyond Wales to find a good one.

The first one, very low mileage looks good!

Extract->

2003 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF R32, 53 reg. 2100 miles, 3 door, deep blue pearl, heated leather sports seats, xenons, 6CD system, one owner, UK car, no . . . . (private)

£20,500

168 miles

2003 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 3.2 V6 R32 3dr Hatchback extras:SKN tuned to 263 bhp,full leather,6cd/cass/rad,sunroof,12m tax,15m warranty,spotless car. 20450 miles. . . . . (private)

£20,500

12 miles

2003 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 3.2 V6 R32 4WD, 53 reg. 13500 miles, 3dr, 6 speed, deep blue metallic with grey leather, alcantara h/seats, 18 Aristo wheels, full winter pack, cd, cl/control, VW warranty left on this stunning vehicle, no . . . . (private)

£20,595

49 miles

2003 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF R32, 03 reg. 16000 miles, Pearl Blue Metallic, 3 door R32, 1non-smoker owner from new, UK car, unmodified, VW warranty, full black leather interior, cruise control, climate control, 6CD etc, immaculate condition. . . . . . (private)

£20,750

135 miles

2003 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 3.2 V6 R32 3dr Hatchback Black, Full black leather, Oct 2003, Air conditioning, Security glass, ABS, Alloy wheels, Anti theft system, 6-stack CD, Sunroof, balance of warranty, immaculate, must be seen. 17000 miles. . . . . (private)

£20,750

11 miles

2004 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF R32 3.2 V6, 53 reg. 3DR. Red, leather interior, A/C, 18 alloys, 2yr warranty, only 6500 miles, rare car in immaculate condition, no . . . . (private)

£20,800

249 miles

2003 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF R32 3.2, 3 doors, manual, petrol, 19k miles, Deep Blue, FVWSH, Black leather, alarm, 18 alloys, climate control, heated front seats, 6CD changer, bluetooth phone prep, 4WD, . . . . (private)

£20,995

36 miles

2003 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 3.2 V6 R32 3dr Hatchback DIAMOND BLACK, BLACK LEATHER, 6 SPEED, 240BHP, 4WD, KOENIG HEATED SEATS, 6 DISK CD, AIR CON, 18" WHEELS, TWIN EXHAUSTS, RAIN SENSOR, ZENONS, 9500 MILES, ZYMOL POLISH, ALWAYS GARAGED, LIKE NEW, 1 OWNER. . . . . (private)

£20,995

338 miles

2003 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 3.2 V6 R32 3dr Hatchback Reflex Silver. Black Leather, Heated Recaro Sts, Climate control, Sunroof, ABS, Traction control, 18" Alloy wheels, Anti-theft system, Central locking, Xenon lights, 6 CD autochanger, Hands free kit. . . . . (private)

£20,995

44 miles

2003 VOLKSWAGEN Golf, 4200 miles, dry miles only, custom indigo blue, 4x4, air con, ABS, ESP, anti theft, heated sport seats, 6CD, garaged from day one, . . . . (private)

£20,995

45 miles

beerchug.gif

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[ QUOTE ]

Actually Milltek themselves pick up the warranty on the exhaust but its not just the exhaust. If the sytem is shown to have 'caused' the fault then they will pay for the repair as well (never happened in 21 years mind). Same applies to AmD, they cover the bits they change (obviously) but also if those bits are shown to have 'caused' any damage then they pick up the responsbility for that too - same with all tuners (although some are a little more tight than others) frown.gif

Specifically for the R32 AmD's stage 3 (as this is what we're talking about here) doens't exceed torque limits on any componant to the driveshaft issue could really apply in the analogy you give, however overall your sentiment is right beerchug.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

Thorney,

I think, and I'm being very honest here, it gets very tricky when trying to prove specific responsibility for a particular failure. A dealer is 99% unlikely not to wash their hands completely, VW will not be interested in the slightest and the onus will be down to the tuner to disprove any dealer/manufacturer allegations. This will most likely entail a cost and simple economics suggests it will be a stressful time for the owner.

Anyway, lets not forget that failures are very rare on properly tuned cars and they're so much more FUN 169144-ok.gif

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Says it all about the dealer really that they weren't prepared to put it in writing. That's playing on people's good faith and trust. Sad really.

You might want to pm 'fatcat' as he has a rather tasty AMD Stage III R32: he will be able to offer you first hand advice on dealer issues with it and you might also want to make him an offer wink.gif

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