[gkrishk]

I sent my Polo TSI 2013 for its 4th service yesterday. Along with the expected unnecessary wind shield cleaner concentrate for ₹ 327 I found a new item: multipurpose additive for ₹ 1447. Upon questioning the SA said its added to fuel for cleaning the injectors. Am I being taken for a ride? Is this a VW approved/mandated service item? Grateful for your views.

[FanaticOnWheels]

Originally Posted by gkrishk

I sent my Polo TSI 2013 for its 4th service yesterday. Along with the expected unnecessary wind shield cleaner concentrate for ₹ 327 I found a new item: multipurpose additive for ₹ 1447. Upon questioning the SA said its added to fuel for cleaning the injectors. Am I being taken for a ride? Is this a VW approved/mandated service item? Grateful for your views.

I got the exact same additive during my second service. I argued with the SA, he mentioned that this is a required every 30,000 KMs. So next I would have to use this in my 4th service apparently.

[WhiteFang]

Originally Posted by Vandit

Alright. Thank you. Haver informed them I will not be opting for their AMC.

I'm glad that you didn't opt for it. Autobahn (Kurla) offered me something similar which I rejected outright. Now after experiencing their service quaility, I couldn't be more happy about what I did.

Everytime I go for service, they set Service reminder for 181 days. Is it compulsory to get the car check up every -6- months eventhough manufacturer recommended interval is -12- months?.

Someone please shed some light.

[Beerus]

Unfortunately, today I managed to back end a cabbie, right after a signal turned green. the cab driver suddenly came to a halt and as I was checking my mirrors, my reaction times were poor and I couldn't stop in time. The collision was approximately at 10-15 kmph. Fortunately, no airbags were deployed, there is also no visible damage to the front bumper. Only my number plate has cracked and there is a small gap (0.7-1cm) between the bumper and the headlight on the left side compared to no gap on the right.

Similarly the cab had no back end damage but still he was able to extort Rs.500 from me on the grounds that the bumper was now riding too close to the wheel and it needed to be rectified. I called this theory crap, but within seconds all other cab drivers on that road stopped and I was now out-numbered 5-1. I gave in paid 500 against the 1000 he was asking for and left the scene.

I want to know what other structural members behind the bumper, if any, I should be worried about. It would also be helpful if I could be guided to a photo of polo without the front bumper or if it could be posted here.

[isodope]

Originally Posted by Beerus

Unfortunately, today I managed to back end a cabbie, right after a signal turned green. the cab driver suddenly came to a halt and as I was checking my mirrors, my reaction times were poor and I couldn't stop in time. The collision was approximately at 10-15 kmph. Fortunately, no airbags were deployed, there is also no visible damage to the front bumper. Only my number plate has cracked and there is a small gap (0.7-1cm) between the bumper and the headlight on the left side compared to no gap on the right.

Similarly the cab had no back end damage but still he was able to extort Rs.500 from me on the grounds that the bumper was now riding too close to the wheel and it needed to be rectified. I called this theory crap, but within seconds all other cab drivers on that road stopped and I was now out-numbered 5-1. I gave in paid 500 against the 1000 he was asking for and left the scene.

I want to know what other structural members behind the bumper, if any, I should be worried about. It would also be helpful if I could be guided to a photo of polo without the front bumper or if it could be posted here.

No structural damage. Check bumper clips where it is misaligned.

[hangover]

VW dealers have to meet fixed targets each month. Same as the local pandu havaldhaar in your areas.
Look at this as gambling odds,

Talk to people who own similar cars and extended warranties. How , any actually used It?

Probably none.

So its mathematics and probability again. The chances of you ever using that "extended" warranty are zero.

Don't waste money on such gimmicks.i only take 3 Rd party insurance on all my vehicles. I've only spent 5-15 k since 30 years of driving for accident damages,

[CANPUSH]

In my Polo ABS light is coming up. I checked with VW dealers, One of the sensors is damaged. However, replacement is not readily available and may take some time to replace it.

How safe is it to drive Polo in such condition on highways? What Precautions must be taken if it is driven like that?

Can anyone help?

[saket77]

Originally Posted by CANPUSH

In my Polo ABS light is coming up. I checked with VW dealers, One of the sensors is damaged. However, replacement is not readily available and may take some time to replace it.

How safe is it to drive Polo in such condition on highways? What Precautions must be taken if it is driven like that?

Can anyone help?

Means your normal braking should be fine, but ABS will not work. So, better to take it easy until the sensor replacement. This is generic advice, so, read the manual regarding the same. The implications of this light coming up in your specific vehicle will be covered better.

Any estimate on the cost of the sensor?

Regards,
Saket

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by CANPUSH;4306876 ... One of the [ABS

sensors is damaged. However, replacement is not readily available and may take some time to replace it.

That's disappointing news. They build the cars here: how hard is it to have a stock of spares for just about everything... And shouldn't they have a responsibility to do so?

But I should know better than to ask. One of the reasons not to restore my 2015-flooded Polo was lack of availability of the ICU.

[CANPUSH]

Originally Posted by saket77

Means your normal braking should be fine, but ABS will not work. So, better to take it easy until the sensor replacement. This is generic advice, so, read the manual regarding the same. The implications of this light coming up in your specific vehicle will be covered better.

Any estimate on the cost of the sensor?

Regards,
Saket

Sensor costs 4500

[CANPUSH]

In my belief, such parts that are electronic and not moving/ subject to wear and tear should never fail. Still for the second time in last 7 years it has failed.

On OBD scan it was also found that coil of cylinder 2 is short and hence giving shudder at cold start in the morning. Rest of the day it is alright!

That also costs 4500 so total setback of 9000!!

[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by CANPUSH

In my belief, such parts that are electronic and not moving/ subject to wear and tear should never fail. Still for the second time in last 7 years it has failed.

Well, yes and no. Contrary to popular belief electronics do wear, albeit very slowly. All those electrons moving about does limit the lifespan of (most) electronic components. To you point, in practical terms it really shouldn’t be an issue on car electronics. Over the years, the base plates, mounting etc might become brittle leading to problems as well, even on non moving parts. A well known problem on some of the 80’s Bosch ECU (and others) was that after 10-15 years the soldering might start peeling away. Easy fix if you open up the ECU as you can still solder this sort of ECU yourself.

Wiring is another problem on cars, over time it gets brittle. Then the insulation start literally to disintegrate with all the associated problems. It really depends on what car/model/year. Some cars are more prone to it. My 2002 Jaguar is known for being fitted with not to good wiring. And 15 years later that starts showing. High ambient temperatures, such as in many parts in India, compared to (western) Europe is an excellent accelerator for this problem.

This aging-wiring problem is not unique to cars. Planes suffer from it as well and we have seen several, very, deadly, accidents because of poor quality wiring.

So, I have said so many times on as many threads; in general it is very unlikely that electronic components on cars break down. What often is called an ECU problem or in your case a poor ABS sensor is often something much simpler. A bad connection/connector. A wire that is chaffed and occasionally touches ground, poor grounding, corrosion or something along those lines.

Incorrect battery voltage will often lead to problems. Could be the battery itself or corrosion on connectors/fusses etc. Somehow the circuit on your ABS sensor builds up a little extra resistance, bingo, your car will throw an error. Not the sensor, but it will look like the sensor is faulty

On ABS sensors, I would always clear the connectors first and see if the problem persists or not, before replacing. A little extra resistance here and there will easily throw a code/alarm. On many cars these ABS connectors are in the open and will get their fair share of water splash, dust etc. So if the mechanic replaces the sensor he will disconnect the old one and reconnect the new one. That is sufficient to clean the connector. And it appear as if the sensor was faulty, but it was just a dirty connection.

Before just replacing parts I would do a very thorough inspection on how the ABS sensor is mounted, how the wire is run (does it touch anything, if so can you see bare metal of the wire or the car), the connector, clean fusses etc. Especially since this is the second time it happens. Statistically it can, shit happens as they say, but it is unlikely.

Good luck,

Jeroen

[saket77]

Originally Posted by Jeroen

Incorrect battery voltage will often lead to problems. Could be the battery itself or corrosion on connectors/fusses etc.

Tell me about it! My Civic played nice tricks on me. Reason: weak battery and grounding. The Honda Diagnostic System, threw an error...and possible causes. Weak battery and poor grounding was there in the list among other causes, but the tech guy ignored those and made a diagnosis that the Gauge Control Module has failed!

On a lazy sunday, I cleaned all Multiplex unit connectors, fuses, battery terminals and upgraded the grounding by adding a thick grounding wire to the chassis running from the battery and drove around for a while. The problem with 'secondary electronics' never returned.

The errors by the diagnostic system scan is just an indication of the problem area. Not saying that electronic parts cannot fail themselves, but many times there can by underlying causes. And you need to have a nice tech guy by your side who is willing to devote time and effort to find the real cause behind the error. I prefer DIY as much as possible as this kind of investigation is generally not possible at ASCs.

Regards,
Saket.

[behaln]

I always make sure to see the copy of the servcie form prior giving the car for service. They would try all their tricks to add the extras, which are not even needed.

I do read the forum for the type of service I am giving my car for and it gives a lots of insights by the real guys.

Once the service staff know that I know what I am talking they do the job precisely as I want them to do. I do follow this ritual for all my cars.

[Ferrariwell]

Hello all,

I have a 2011 Polo and my car needs new brake pads. I am from Bombay and am currently residing in Udupi area. My car needs new brake pads on an urgent basis. The back plate is touching the rotor on the left side. The FNG near my house which services all my relatives cars has never worked on a Polo before. I don't know how it's possible, but they called me twice to ask the name and make of true car inspite of going and showing it to them.

Is it worth risking going all the way to Mangalore which is 60 kms away where there is a VW dealer or should I just get it done here for the time being?

P.S my car has Brembo rotors so I'm pretty sure VW will not skim them for me and make some excuse and try to sell me new rotors as well as pads.