Tune and warranty

[Golfer883]

Say you get a 2018 or 2019 gti with the 6 year warranty. What tune can you get away with that won’t void the warranty?

 

[vulticGTI]

https://golfmk7.com/forums/index.php?threads/the-mk7-gti-r-holy-bible-commandments.330437/
JB4 kind of. You will need to do your research and understand warranty cause it looks like you aren't quite sure how it works.

 

[JerseyDrew77]

The only one is APR Plus but your dealership has to be an authorized dealer of APR otherwise they won't honor it and void your warranty. If they do have it, make sure you bring tons of lube because it's not cheap.

 

[YamR1rider]

If they do have it, make sure you bring tons of lube because it's not cheap.

Depends on your perspective I guess. It's $400 bucks above a regular stage 1 tune (which is what it is - their most conservative one). $400 over a 5 or 6 year period to retain a powertrain warranty is cheap if you ask me.

And the claim procedure is take it where you got it tuned not the dealer (although could be one and the same). As it's a replacement powertrain warranty underwritten by APR not the factory warranty.

 

[swcrow]

None except APR+

 

[777-300ER]

APR Plus voids your warranty it's a 3rd party warranty.

 

[tigeo]

The amount of misinformation on this topic is unreal. Nothing "voids" your warranty. Adding a flash tune (APR etc.) to your car *may* cause issues with powertrain warranty claims. VW gets to make that call, not your dealer, regardless of what they tell you. APR Plus is a third-party warranty that will cover what VW won't (b/c you have tuned your car), it obviously has stipulations. Read the warranty 101 post that is sticky'd on this page. Example - I have a tune and had no issue getting an HVAC issue covered under the warranty. If I blow my DSG, that may not get covered. You can not modify your car and expect VW to cover everything, period. If you can't afford to deal with a costly repair warranty claim that will be denied, don't tune your car.

 

[Sparky589]

The amount of misinformation on this topic is unreal. Nothing "voids" your warranty. Adding a flash tune (APR etc.) to your car *may* cause issues with powertrain warranty claims. VW gets to make that call, not your dealer, regardless of what they tell you. APR Plus is a third-party warranty that will cover what VW won't (b/c you have tuned your car), it obviously has stipulations. Read the warranty 101 post that is sticky'd on this page. Example - I have a tune and had no issue getting an HVAC issue covered under the warranty. If I blow my DSG, that may not get covered. You can not modify your car and expect VW to cover everything, period. If you can't afford to deal with a costly repair warranty claim that will be denied, don't tune your car.

Basic rule of modding, you gotta pay to play.

Know your budget, or at the very least have a backup set of wheels in case things go south.

 

[JerseyDrew77]

The amount of misinformation on this topic is unreal. Nothing "voids" your warranty. Adding a flash tune (APR etc.) to your car *may* cause issues with powertrain warranty claims. VW gets to make that call, not your dealer, regardless of what they tell you. APR Plus is a third-party warranty that will cover what VW won't (b/c you have tuned your car), it obviously has stipulations. Read the warranty 101 post that is sticky'd on this page. Example - I have a tune and had no issue getting an HVAC issue covered under the warranty. If I blow my DSG, that may not get covered. You can not modify your car and expect VW to cover everything, period. If you can't afford to deal with a costly repair warranty claim that will be denied, don't tune your car.

Exactly what I said.

 

[DiscusInferno]

Exactly what I said.

No it's not. APR+ can land your car with the TD1 flag. This is why APR offers a third party warranty with APR Plus program, because APR knows the risk of the TD1 flag. Warranty claims against APR plus will be handled by APR, not VW.

 

[jimlloyd40]

Depends on your perspective I guess. It's $400 bucks above a regular stage 1 tune (which is what it is - their most conservative one). $400 over a 5 or 6 year period to retain a powertrain warranty is cheap if you ask me.

And the claim procedure is take it where you got it tuned not the dealer (although could be one and the same). As it's a replacement powertrain warranty underwritten by APR not the factory warranty.

A srage 1 tune with warranty from APR is on sale for $989.

 

[cb1111]

The amount of misinformation on this topic is unreal. Nothing "voids" your warranty. Adding a flash tune (APR etc.) to your car *may* cause issues with powertrain warranty claims. VW gets to make that call, not your dealer, regardless of what they tell you. APR Plus is a third-party warranty that will cover what VW won't (b/c you have tuned your car), it obviously has stipulations. Read the warranty 101 post that is sticky'd on this page. Example - I have a tune and had no issue getting an HVAC issue covered under the warranty. If I blow my DSG, that may not get covered. You can not modify your car and expect VW to cover everything, period. If you can't afford to deal with a costly repair warranty claim that will be denied, don't tune your car.

Yeah.... uhhh, no. There are several things that can "void" your entire warranty (salvage, water damage, heavily modded to the point that virtually every system is touched, odometer fraud etc.) but you're right that the "tune" isn't one of them.

That said, the popular conception that piggyback tunes are 100% safe is inherently wrong even if there
is little evidence on the forums.

We know that VW can and will flag a car that has been flash tuned with a TD1 flag. This flag is place by the computers in Germany following a scan and is not disclosed until a warranty claim is submitted and declined.

There is another, more little known flag, that is placed when a dealer finds evidence of a piggyback tune. This TD4 flag has the same end effect as a TD1 with the exception that there can be little or no evidence to support the flag.

The ECU tracks the number of times it has been altered, so a flash will always leave a trace behind and the TD1 can always be supported. The TD4 relies on a report from a dealer/mechanic and may rely on seeing an actual piggyback installed or evidence of a prior installation. I don't believe that there is a requirement to provide photos, so it is somewhat subjective.

There are numerous reports of TD1 warranty service denials, but very few TD4 denials, but the mere fact that it exists and VW has asked dealers to report piggybacks is sufficient to say that a piggyback is not 100% safe.

The APR warranty has enough loopholes to drive a semi through, so one can't really assume that is 100% sure either. Read the provisions of the warranty and you may be surprised.

If you mod, you need to mentally and financially prepared to pay for whatever the mod breaks - or what the dealer says the mod broke. You can then be pleasantly surprised when VW does cover the failure.

 

[goodvibes]

That's great but if you pull your piggyback before any dealer visit, why would they get suspicious?

 

[JerseyDrew77]

No it's not. APR+ can land your car with the TD1 flag. This is why APR offers a third party warranty with APR Plus program, because APR knows the risk of the TD1 flag. Warranty claims against APR plus will be handled by APR, not VW.

Man, you guys take things way too damn serious on this forum sometimes. Don't get your panties in a bunch, I was joking around.

 

[cb1111]

That's great but if you pull your piggyback before any dealer visit, why would they get suspicious?

Your car is scraping the weeds, you have a bunch of "go fast" stickers and it is obvious that something was removed along with a hole in the firewall where the cable went through.

Or..... you just acted like a fool and pissed off the tech or SA.

It clearly isn't very likely that (if you remove the piggyback) your car will get flagged TD4, but the possibility exists. While a piggyback tune is essentially safe, the possibility of a problem exists.