Audi seems to be getting more strict with TD1

[maxhawk]

My S6 is tuned, as well as my previous B8 S4 and B5S4. I've always accepted the fact that you gotta pay to play and accepted that I would have to foot the bill if something in the engine or drivetrain broke.

Fast forward to today and it seems Audi is really putting their foot down on any warranty items if you're flagged TD1. My car is at the dealer getting a mysterious issue looked at where the engine will sputter and die after filling the tank while the car is hot. This email is not about the root cause of this (dealer is still looking at it) and no, I'm not overfilling the tank.

The issue is the parts that are suspect have nothing to do with the tune: bad fuel tank or charcoal canister in the evap system. My SA says Audi will not cover any of this since the car is flagged TD1. My guess is that VAG's loss from Dieselgate has caused them to deny any repair on a TD1 flagged car to save some bucks. I haven't looked at Audi's fine print to understand how Magnuson-Moss applies or does not apply to this.

Anyways, this is just a heads up on my new experience with Audi warranty.

[Dguth]

This happened to me when I had my S4. Known sensor issue with the mechatronic but my car was flagged TD1 and they denied any warranty work irregardless of cause.


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[yeuchau]

how do you find out if car is flagged TD1 or not.
I alwasy flash my car back to oem before going in to dealer for a fix.
So far I've replaced water tank (half year ago) and replaced both engine mounts this week and all were covered by CPO warranty.

[VVG]

My S6 is tuned, as well as my previous B8 S4 and B5S4. I've always accepted the fact that you gotta pay to play and accepted that I would have to foot the bill if something in the engine or drivetrain broke.

Fast forward to today and it seems Audi is really putting their foot down on any warranty items if you're flagged TD1. My car is at the dealer getting a mysterious issue looked at where the engine will sputter and die after filling the tank while the car is hot. This email is not about the root cause of this (dealer is still looking at it) and no, I'm not overfilling the tank.

The issue is the parts that are suspect have nothing to do with the tune: bad fuel tank or charcoal canister in the evap system. My SA says Audi will not cover any of this since the car is flagged TD1. My guess is that VAG's loss from Dieselgate has caused them to deny any repair on a TD1 flagged car to save some bucks. I haven't looked at Audi's fine print to understand how Magnuson-Moss applies or does not apply to this.

Anyways, this is just a heads up on my new experience with Audi warranty.

The problem here has to do with the "Hassle Factor". Your issues have nothing to do with the tune, but what hassles are you willing to go through to fight Audi on it. Hire a lawyer, etc, etc. How much time, effort and money will that cost you? Likely much more overall headache than to just flip bill for your repairs.

Herein lies the biggest issue with any mod you do. Even if the mod has nothing to do with the failure, how much headache are you willing to go through to fight the issue.

My biggest issue with Audi is that the cars serve as phenomenal modding platforms in that they can really be transformed by relatively simple and/or inexpensive mods. Why, then, couldn't they come this way out of the box. By contrast, both my old BMW M3 as well as my current Cayman GTS need absolutely nothing done to them whatsoever. In fact, I felt that any major mod would detract from the superb balance of the cars.

[codrus]

My biggest issue with Audi is that the cars serve as phenomenal modding platforms in that they can really be transformed by relatively simple and/or inexpensive mods. Why, then, couldn't they come this way out of the box. By contrast, both my old BMW M3 as well as my current Cayman GTS need absolutely nothing done to them whatsoever. In fact, I felt that any major mod would detract from the superb balance of the cars.

The M3 and GTS were naturally aspirated cars, the available gains from tuning the engine are small.

A C7 S6 is a turbo motor, there's lots more power to be had by turning the boost up and running more aggressive timing. They don't come that way "out of the box" because on average it hurts longevity, thus raising repair costs. That's also why they deny warranty claims on cars with these mods.

[schaNYC]

Question to OP:

Did the car get flagged despite you flashing back to stock file or some other way? Just curious as I am interested in tuning but have a few yrs warranty left.

[VVG]

The M3 and GTS were naturally aspirated cars, the available gains from tuning the engine are small.

A C7 S6 is a turbo motor, there's lots more power to be had by turning the boost up and running more aggressive timing. They don't come that way "out of the box" because on average it hurts longevity, thus raising repair costs. That's also why they deny warranty claims on cars with these mods.

First of all, there is plenty of headroom left in these tunes in terms of safety and reliability. That is not the issue. My old stage 3+ B5 S4 went well over 130,000 miles with no issues whatsoever. Many thousands of tuned engines have proven to be very reliable. Then how about the fact that Audi, themselves, tunes newer model year cars for more power with no change in the hardware.

As with everything, it is about money, and nothing more. Do you think any manufacturer would even offer a warranty if they legally didn't have to? Any reason to deny a claim is reason enough. They know that most people don't have the time, energy, or resources to battle over it, even if it is a legitimate battle.

[jfeger]

My S6 is tuned, as well as my previous B8 S4 and B5S4. I've always accepted the fact that you gotta pay to play and accepted that I would have to foot the bill if something in the engine or drivetrain broke.

Fast forward to today and it seems Audi is really putting their foot down on any warranty items if you're flagged TD1. My car is at the dealer getting a mysterious issue looked at where the engine will sputter and die after filling the tank while the car is hot. This email is not about the root cause of this (dealer is still looking at it) and no, I'm not overfilling the tank.

The issue is the parts that are suspect have nothing to do with the tune: bad fuel tank or charcoal canister in the evap system. My SA says Audi will not cover any of this since the car is flagged TD1. My guess is that VAG's loss from Dieselgate has caused them to deny any repair on a TD1 flagged car to save some bucks. I haven't looked at Audi's fine print to understand how Magnuson-Moss applies or does not apply to this.

Anyways, this is just a heads up on my new experience with Audi warranty.

Did it get flagged during the troubleshooting process, or some other time? When it was flagged, was the tune removed and back to stock, or did you leave the tune on? Just curious.

[maxhawk]

Did it get flagged during the troubleshooting process, or some other time? When it was flagged, was the tune removed and back to stock, or did you leave the tune on? Just curious.

I was flagged early on late 2014 during my first service. I did not flash back to stock.

[madyspop]

It has a lot to do with the fines they were hit over the head with due to dieselgate. My good friend is a master guild and lead Tech at our local dealership. He says they constantly have underwriters from VAG checking on all open RO's, everything that can be denied is denied.

[Logtec]

My S6 is tuned, as well as my previous B8 S4 and B5S4. I've always accepted the fact that you gotta pay to play and accepted that I would have to foot the bill if something in the engine or drivetrain broke.

Fast forward to today and it seems Audi is really putting their foot down on any warranty items if you're flagged TD1. My car is at the dealer getting a mysterious issue looked at where the engine will sputter and die after filling the tank while the car is hot. This email is not about the root cause of this (dealer is still looking at it) and no, I'm not overfilling the tank.

The issue is the parts that are suspect have nothing to do with the tune: bad fuel tank or charcoal canister in the evap system. My SA says Audi will not cover any of this since the car is flagged TD1. My guess is that VAG's loss from Dieselgate has caused them to deny any repair on a TD1 flagged car to save some bucks. I haven't looked at Audi's fine print to understand how Magnuson-Moss applies or does not apply to this.

Anyways, this is just a heads up on my new experience with Audi warranty.

Never had any problems with my a6 or s7, both are tuned and still under warranty, a6 water-pump and thermostat where replaced when the tune was on. I always tell to the dealer that I have the tune and don't make any software updates.

[mjfloyd1]

My S6 is tuned, as well as my previous B8 S4 and B5S4. I've always accepted the fact that you gotta pay to play and accepted that I would have to foot the bill if something in the engine or drivetrain broke.

Fast forward to today and it seems Audi is really putting their foot down on any warranty items if you're flagged TD1. My car is at the dealer getting a mysterious issue looked at where the engine will sputter and die after filling the tank while the car is hot. This email is not about the root cause of this (dealer is still looking at it) and no, I'm not overfilling the tank.

The issue is the parts that are suspect have nothing to do with the tune: bad fuel tank or charcoal canister in the evap system. My SA says Audi will not cover any of this since the car is flagged TD1. My guess is that VAG's loss from Dieselgate has caused them to deny any repair on a TD1 flagged car to save some bucks. I haven't looked at Audi's fine print to understand how Magnuson-Moss applies or does not apply to this.

Anyways, this is just a heads up on my new experience with Audi warranty.

How did this get resolved?

[14S4GWM]

I was flagged early on late 2014 during my first service. I did not flash back to stock.

Why wouldn't you flash back?

[Brooklyn]

Time, convenience, being told by the SA that a spec actual scan would not be done on the car. Plenty of reasons why a person might not scan back. I would say, however, that unless you are not concerned about your warranty being voided or having to fight Audi should they elect to void the warranty, scan back before any trips to an Audi dealer for service.

Why wouldn't you flash back?

[14S4GWM]

I would say any reason that you don't flash back to go to the dealer is not a good reason at all. Who knows what happens after they drive your car back there. The only reason I wouldn't flash back is because my pockets are loaded with cash and I don't give an eff about my warranty. I hope everything works out for you and the warranty doesn't matter.

[CanuckRS]

The only reason I wouldn't flash back is because my pockets are loaded with cash and I don't give an eff about my warranty.

Lol

[maxhawk]

Why wouldn't you flash back?

I just noticed I messed up the date of my TD1. My first service would have been late 2013 not 2014. Back then the C7 ECU had to be physically removed from the car and you had to ship your ECU to APR to be flashed. Also at the time it was argued by many that flashing back to stock would not prevent a TD1, perhaps because of the method used to reprogram. Although I haven't checked, I would expect that there is some physical evidence that it's been tampered with. Given these circumstances, I did not flash back to stock.