Flashing/Chipped stg 1 and lower the car

[Avantmaniac]

its' 2011 A4 Avant with current miles 52K, I'm planning to have it chipped stg 1. What do you guys think? local APR dealer quoted me $599 plus $75 install fee. I also plan to lower the car with either Eibach pro kit or H&R OE sport , will need to see if my current shocks are fine, no coils for now (not in the budget). Any advise on the lowering option? should I replace the shock at the same time with either OEM or aftermarket?

[pierreb]

Don't flash it until you're 100% sure it had no oil consumption or turbo wastegate arm issues as any claim for those will be denied.

[Avantmaniac]

Should I go to dealer for a test? are they covered by AOA? I have extended warranty running too (FIDELITY).

Don't flash it until you're 100% sure it had no oil consumption or turbo wastegate arm issues as any claim for those will be denied.

[kdaffy]

$75 install fee on the tune is BS. I never got charged anything except for the cost of the tune ($599) - check APR's dealer locator for other options near you.
Consider Stage 2, because you will want it in the end, and you'll save yourself the upgrade fee down the road ($149).

Agreed on what pierreb said. I waited until I took care of as much as I could under warranty before flashing. Its the prudent way to go about things. Otherwise, keep in mind you pay to play...

[kdaffy]

Should I go to dealer for a test? are they covered by AOA? I have extended warranty running too (FIDELITY).

will probably be a waste of your time. They wont replace the turbo unless you get the P0299 code (i think thats it), and they will need to have proof you are burning oil outside the normal parameters for the oil consumption stuff. There is a lot of info on here regarding both these issues.

[pierreb]

If you have even a hint of those issues it's best to hold off on the tune until they get bad enough to be covered. The waste gate is covered by TSB I believe so just having a decent dealer check it should be enough without the thing throwing a code first. Ymmv. My dealer is awesome. Other dealers suck. If you're burning oil at all between changes you should get your case started.

[Avantmaniac]

Thanks for the info! any huge difference between stg1 and 2?

$75 install fee on the tune is BS. I never got charged anything except for the cost of the tune ($599) - check APR's dealer locator for other options near you.
Consider Stage 2, because you will want it in the end, and you'll save yourself the upgrade fee down the road ($149).

Agreed on what pierreb said. I waited until I took care of as much as I could under warranty before flashing. Its the prudent way to go about things. Otherwise, keep in mind you pay to play...

[pierreb]

Stage 2 will require a DP and therefore a little more emission aggravation. Is it worth it? It sure makes the car a lot more fun.

[earhythmic]

^^^ I paid for 1 hour shop time when I got my APR tune. The local dealers are selling the product, but the car is still sitting in their bay, which they charge for. Thought this was the norm (quoted from 3 local APR dealers), unless you pop your ECU out and ship it to ECS.

[kdaffy]

Thanks for the info! any huge difference between stg1 and 2?

Pretty significant improvement in low end torque IMHO.

[kdaffy]

^^^ I paid for 1 hour shop time when I got my APR tune. The local dealers are selling the product, but the car is still sitting in their bay, which they charge for. Thought this was the norm (quoted from 3 local APR dealers), unless you pop your ECU out and ship it to ECS.

they get a commission from APR though. And its a flash via the OBD port. I get your point on the time using the bay which could be billed. I guess it depends on the dealer.

[bakedziti]

It all depends on the dealer doing the work, and while I think it's sort of bogus, I do understand the car in the bay argument. Ultimately, I wouldn't let a labor fee keep me from getting a tune, but it did make me consider other companies that potentially had dealers that didn't charge a labor fee. In the end I paid the fee due to dealer proximity, and I'm still happy with it.

I would strongly suggest you get to your closest dealer to figure out the Oil Consumption first though.

[ToddBrunswick]

Not sure why they need a bay. My tuner did it while my car was parked out front. No need to take up a bay.

I was also able to pay a one time fee for unlimited reflashes. That may be something worth asking around for if you'll want to flash back to stock before taking it to the dealer.

[Shimmy]

Don't flash it until you're 100% sure it had no oil consumption or turbo wastegate arm issues as any claim for those will be denied.

There are plenty of people who have flashed then removed the flash to address the oil consumption issue without dealer issues.

[pierreb]

Plenty of people have been caught with unexpected TD1s too. Just be careful. Most people flashing for the first time don't know all the tricks.

[VeeDubbinJetta]

I was going to hold out another year until my warranty was fully gone but I decided what the hell. Best purchase I've made on the car. Stage 1 APR tune is amazing! I fully understand the consequences of TD1 for power train at this point. I'll certainly flash back to stock if something comes up, but if I get flagged, I can't blame anybody but myself

[ToddBrunswick]

I was going to hold out another year until my warranty was fully gone but I decided what the hell. Best purchase I've made on the car. Stage 1 APR tune is amazing! I fully understand the consequences of TD1 for power train at this point. I'll certainly flash back to stock if something comes up, but if I get flagged, I can't blame anybody but myself

Couldn't agree more with all of this.

[Avantmaniac]

Well, I talked to the guy/shop again and theyr'e gonna give me 1st time customer discount which is a free installation :)

[Avant Sailor]

its' 2011 A4 Avant with current miles 52K, I'm planning to have it chipped stg 1. What do you guys think? local APR dealer quoted me $599 plus $75 install fee. I also plan to lower the car with either Eibach pro kit or H&R OE sport , will need to see if my current shocks are fine, no coils for now (not in the budget). Any advise on the lowering option? should I replace the shock at the same time with either OEM or aftermarket?

You have until 17JUL2016 to take your car into the dealer to have it checked out. If it burns oil at all, I would do it.

Oh, and nice car man! Avants kick ass!

[Avantmaniac]

You have until 17JUL2016 to take your car into the dealer to have it checked out. If it burns oil at all, I would do it.

Oh, and nice car man! Avants kick ass!

Tks man! I called my dealer and based on my VIN, it's not on recall list. But wasn't it no recall in regards of excessive oil consumption on B8, is it just based on car per car cases?

[pierreb]

Tks man! I called my dealer and based on my VIN, it's not on recall list. But wasn't it no recall in regards of excessive oil consumption on B8, is it just based on car per car cases?

Car by car basis absolutely. Does your oil level go down between oil changes?

[Avantmaniac]

Since I just got the car at exactly 51.2k and now it's 52k (3 weeks ago), I haven't seen any reduced oil level. The dealer had the oil changed before I purchased the car.

Car by car basis absolutely. Does your oil level go down between oil changes?

[pierreb]

Since I just got the car at exactly 51.2k and now it's 52k (3 weeks ago), I haven't seen any reduced oil level. The dealer had the oil changed before I purchased the car.

Keep an eye on it in the mmi. Most people that had a problem noticed very quickly. The worst cases would ask for a quart every 800-1000 miles. In the mmi display, every tick down is a 10th of a qt or so. Both of my cars were like that.

[Avantmaniac]

Keep an eye on it in the mmi. Most people that had a problem noticed very quickly. The worst cases would ask for a quart every 800-1000 miles. In the mmi display, every tick down is a 10th of a qt or so. Both of my cars were like that.

Will do, but anyway I forgot to mention, I have comprehensive warranty for 4 years or 50k miles, would it matter?

[pierreb]

Will do, but anyway I forgot to mention, I have comprehensive warranty for 4 years or 50k miles, would it matter?

Not if you get flagged TD1 because of a flash. If the car is at 50k miles already, it most likely will have shown an oil issue by now. Same thing with the turbo waste gate arm play. If neither is happening, you could feel free to flash but remember to get flashed back to stock before trips to the dealer.

[A4x]

I would recommend to hold out for another couple months on the tune. Closely monitor the oil consumption. Check the service history with the dealer to see if it already had stage 1 or stage 2 of oil consumption repairs. If your MMI oil level moves at all within 1000-2000 miles, you should take it to the dealer and claim it is burning oil. They should do the stage 1 fix without many questions asked (new PCV, new crank seal, and software update). This will improve the oil consumption slightly.

I had stage 1 oil repairs on my 2011 6 months ago and it has been remarkably better. Most people here will tell you it's only a matter of time until it starts burning again. I will install a HFC next week, but no software tune yet until I'm sure of the issues and ride out my CPO warranty.

[kdaffy]

Well, I talked to the guy/shop again and theyr'e gonna give me 1st time customer discount which is a free installation :)

good stuff.

if you do bring it to a dealer, make sure that you flash it back to stock before going in. dont put it in "stock mode" with your cruise control, go back and have the tune removed from your car. this will help minimize the risk of TD1.

[Avantmaniac]

The dealer said, since it's not under original Audi warranty, a flash cpu will not affect the warranty (my warranty is fidelity). But of course I don't take the advise plainly.

[ChoyV]

I was also able to pay a one time fee for unlimited reflashes. That may be something worth asking around for if you'll want to flash back to stock before taking it to the dealer.

Was this part of APR pricing or with your tuner?

[ToddBrunswick]

Was this part of APR pricing or with your tuner?

My tuner, so I have to go to them, but that way the labor charges won't add up when I have to flash back to stock and then go back and reflash.

[kdaffy]

The dealer said, since it's not under original Audi warranty, a flash cpu will not affect the warranty (my warranty is fidelity). But of course I don't take the advise plainly.

thats good. i would double check the language in the fidelity warranty as well, there is probably something in there about aftermarket modifications. Likely, in the event a rep comes out to inspect your car, i doubt they will have the ability to see whats running in the ECU, but you never know.

Tune it!

[Party_Marty]

Hey guys,
On a related note, I have a 2014 A4 and I have been watching my Oil level, It goes down some but its been seeming to slow down and bounce up now and stay at around 5/8 up the meter on the AMI screen. I topped it off once myself (not knowing to let it go) and then it shot back down again. I called a service tech and he said he hasn't heard of any 14's having this issue. I'm at 30,500 miles so my process was going to consist of: drive it and if a low oil CEL doesn't come by the time I hit 35,000 I'm good and its just regular oil consumption. Thoughts?

P.S. I literally had an 034 HFC in my cart because I want to go stg 2 so bad, but decided to hold off...

[Avant Sailor]

Tks man! I called my dealer and based on my VIN, it's not on recall list. But wasn't it no recall in regards of excessive oil consumption on B8, is it just based on car per car cases?

Like others have said...Keep an eye on it. A good non scientific test is looking for smoke at night, under hard acceleration, when there is a car behind you. If you see smoke, you are burning oil.

Good luck!

[VeeDubbinJetta]

Hey guys,
On a related note, I have a 2014 A4 and I have been watching my Oil level, It goes down some but its been seeming to slow down and bounce up now and stay at around 5/8 up the meter on the AMI screen. I topped it off once myself (not knowing to let it go) and then it shot back down again. I called a service tech and he said he hasn't heard of any 14's having this issue. I'm at 30,500 miles so my process was going to consist of: drive it and if a low oil CEL doesn't come by the time I hit 35,000 I'm good and its just regular oil consumption. Thoughts?

P.S. I literally had an 034 HFC in my cart because I want to go stg 2 so bad, but decided to hold off...

I have a 2014 as well, I've got just about 25k on it and it doesn't seem to be using any oil. Granted I like to do oil changes every 5k but I've never seen the oil level below half on the AMI screen

[pierreb]

I have a 2014 as well, I've got just about 25k on it and it doesn't seem to be using any oil. Granted I like to do oil changes every 5k but I've never seen the oil level below half on the AMI screen

Neither of my corrected cars consumes more than an mmi tick at most between oil changes. Going down half is pretty dramatic and would alarm me.

[VeeDubbinJetta]

Neither of my corrected cars consumes more than an mmi tick at most between oil changes. Going down half is pretty dramatic and would alarm me.

I think half a quart in 5k miles is an acceptable amount. I've never seen it fall below the halfway mark, and it actually may be a little above half. At what point does the car say to add oil? When it falls below the min mark?

[pierreb]

I think half a quart in 5k miles is an acceptable amount. I've never seen it fall below the halfway mark, and it actually may be a little above half. At what point does the car say to add oil? When it falls below the min mark?

Yes essentially that or the equivalent of a qt or so.

This is my wife's q5 at 5100 miles since the last oil change

[pierreb]

P.s. it runs a GIAC stage 1 tune. Pistons were done 30k miles ago.

[Avantmaniac]

So all day today, this is what showing on me. Oil was changed about 1k miles ago, tell me if it's normal. Anyway I called AoA and they said to bring it to dealer to have the oil consumption test.

[pierreb]

Assuming the oil was changed by the dealer I would say there is an oil consumption issue. It may not be piston related but I would say there is one to investigate, absolutely.