My mechanic claims that the whole airbag control module requires replacement.

BHPian Ashwintona675 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I own an Audi A3 35 TDI MY2016. Recently while moving out of a parking spot, I had a minor collision with a bike that was reversing out of his spot at the same time. There was just a small thud but there were no scratches or dents on my fender. The front right fender had hit the footpeg of the bike.

About an hour of driving later, I got an Airbag sensor warning light on my dash. It was yellow.

Now upon scanning my FNG, there is a Faulty control module error. Please find an image of the error attached below.

My mechanic claims that the whole Airbag control module requires replacement. Is this true based on the error code or could it be any other issue (Example: Sensor related)

Has anyone else faced the same issue? I am quite sceptical about how a small collision bricks a whole control module. I want to be double-sure before I go for the replacement as it is quite an expensive affair. Thanks in advance.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Post the remap, the car should be able to push 192 BHP and 450 Nm.

BHPian Eagle1234 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello folks,

I recently bought a well-maintained 2019 Audi TDI A3 with 80,000 km on the odo. The previous owner had used it extensively for his weekly runs between Bangalore - Chikmagalur. The car was serviced exclusively at Audi, Bangalore. The service records are clean and I did an extensive test with an FNG too for peace of mind. This is going to be my only vehicle in my garage as I recently sold my Rapid.

The stock output is 143 BHP and 340 Nm. I feel the engine is much more capable than these numbers on paper. I got in touch with the team in Engineering Exponent and they suggested ECU + TCU remaps. Post the remap, the car should be able to push 192 BHP and 450 Nm. These numbers look very tempting indeed!!! I have a few questions and I was hoping if few members could throw light on these:

• Does TCU + ECU remap increase the general wear and tear, engine issues, clutch assembly etc?
• This is DQ250 so it's a wet clutch. I assume this is a less problematic gearbox from the VAG stable. Should I be mindful of DSG issues cropping up later
• This car has completed 4 years and 80k km, so should I go slow on remaps and run stock alone?

Will be helpful if members might throw light on anything that I might have missed.

Here's what BHPian suhaas307 had to say on the matter:

Congratulations on your latest acquisition!

80,000 km may seem like high mileage for a 4-year-old car. But if most of these kilometres were covered on the highway between BLR - CKM, your car is probably healthier than an A3 TDI of similar vintage that has been driven exclusively within city limits, with 20,000 km on the odo.

Tuning your car is therefore not going to be a problem despite the higher mileage indicated. Wolf Moto is a great tuning outfit and one of the best in the country, in my opinion. Don't focus on numbers, and instead, request for better drivability and midrange punch. Also, do ask them to keep the black smoke to a minimum, even if this means compromising a little bit on outright performance.

Ensure that your car has undergone a thorough check-up with the authorized Audi service centre as well. Some weak points include the water pump and injectors. That said, these engines are quite robust, with plenty of headroom and potential for more power. So you should be fine.

EDIT: What I would focus more on are suspension and chassis components like the bushes, mounts, links, ball joints and even the dampers, considering the mileage done. Give them a once-over because the roads between Hassan and Chikmagalur are not in the best state, and frequent highway drivers don't bother too much about ruts and potholes after a point.

Have fun with your new car and tuning it, and drive safe!

Another thing to consider:

Please do not get TCU tunes.

I have cut my teeth with them, and although it was for a Polo GT TSI, I would not recommend TCU tunes generally.

Reason: The TCU is perfectly set up from the factory to provide a good balance between efficiency and performance. Messing with the TCU may disturb this balance and your car may not be 'happy'.

For instance, I flashed Polo's TCU with stage-2 software, which essentially altered the shift points and sharpened the gear changes. While the quicker changes were nice, it will wear the clutch pack far quicker. And the altered shift-points meant the car never felt "settled" or relaxed in traffic in 'D'. I reverted to the stock TCU map very quickly.

TCU tunes are great for track days and getting the most out of your box, but for daily driving, it's not something I would personally recommend.

Here's what BHPian vattyboy had to say on the matter:

You can drive the car for at least 1 year in stock power outputs and when you are bored of it you can tune it later on.

If you tune the car to its maximum potential just after buying it then you will get bored with it very early.

Instead, I will suggest driving the car for 1 year and putting your money on regular maintenance items which the car will demand in the coming months.

And talking about the tune don't worry, it will not harm the engine. The same engine is tuned to deliver 188 bhp in A4 and A6. There are 2 good tuners in Delhi which I know - Gt Tunez and Auto Psyche.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

An ageing high-mileage diesel German has me fearing about a huge depreciation in the future.

BHPian IanNazareth recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Greetings everyone!

I've been stuck in a dilemma over the last few weeks and have listed my car on sale and off sale multiple times.

Currently, I own a 2017 Registered Audi A3 that I bought preowned in 2021 - 2 years ago. Its odo is now at 61,000 km and was 35,000 km when I bought it. Not been to the garage at all over 2 years apart from routine oil changes and replacing a headlight, more about this could be found on the ownership thread that keeps updated.

Situation:

My factory is in Kolhapur and I reside in Mumbai. Earlier I used to make a week-long trip once a month by car and back to sort out all matters. This allowed me a nice drive as well which I thoroughly enjoyed. Off late I have been making the trip by overnight bus and have kept my 12-year-old Spark at the factory to use while I'm there. Mostly as the A3 is racking up kms pretty quickly. 1,000 km+ two-way trip

Hence, the Audi isn't being used much apart from the Weekly Sunday morning drives 100 or so kms around the Mumbai coast.

Question:

Fearing a huge depreciation dip in value being:

• An ageing diesel car.
• High mileage German.
• Maintenance-related nightmares in the future.

I have a good opportunity to sell the car right now while it's in pristine condition and move on to something that will be:

• Fun to drive.
• Won't take a massive hit in depreciation doing 20k kms a year.
• Budget of max 30L

Twist: I have also considered adding a pre-owned under 10L car to the garage and retiring the A3 for more weekends or Important business occasions.

Conversely, I have test driven the updated Tata Safari last week and I truly enjoyed trampling over potholes that I so feared in the Audi, felt bloody great.

Forgive me for I seem as confused as this thread does.

What would you guys do? I plan on adding a Sports car to the garage in 2-3 years' time for the Sunday morning duties, so I need preferably something that I can retain for all work and travel, hence the Safari, just unsure about it being a diesel long term and living in Mumbai with the impending 10y ban coming to us too.

Thanks for your reading!

Here's what GTO had to say on the matter:

Don't worry about racking up the km. In Europe & elsewhere, this engine & gearbox do well over 200,000 - 250,000 km. You've bought an Audi. USE IT. Especially since you:

Retain your existing car, keep it in top shape and enjoy it. Will be way cheaper than buying a new Safari / any other car.

Option 2: Alternate between the Audi & overnight bus. Many times, when in doubt, a 50:50 approach works too. Let's say I'm trying to lose weight, but am craving a pizza and it's not my cheat day. I'll eat half a pizza. Let's say I'm feeling a bit off, but it's my workout day. I'll work out 50%. A workout for 45 minutes is still better than no workout at all.

Here's what BHPian Rajeevraj had to say on the matter:

In today's day and age, where only SUVs rule the roost, sedans themselves are a rare commodity. The A3 is a lovely compact, high-quality car and hence I don't think you should sell it. Since it is a diesel, has the more reliable DSG gearbox too. In addition only 6 years old.

Also, after driving the A3 for a long, I don't think any of the current crops will satisfy you.

Here's what BHPian Ashwintona675 had to say on the matter:

Hey, I have a preowned A3 as well 2.5 years old. I bought it in 2021 at 50,000km odo reading. Now it is at 80,000km. I have the timing kit replacement incoming next service which is quite a bit expensive. I was in the same boat as you a few months back, thinking of upgrading with a budget of 30L (preowned luxury sedans only).

But the problem now is, the used car market is at an all-time high, im not even getting a 2019 model 320d for 30L, let alone a new shape (2020+). So I decided to wait for 2 more years, my fingers are crossed the used car market cools down and I get a G20 BMW in the 30L price range. A3 is a very underrated car. Absolutely can be used as a beater, with insane torque and a sweet gearbox. Has the snob value as well. So I would suggest retaining the A3 for a couple of more years, diesel Audis are still in demand and you will definitely get a good bargain and won't regret keeping the car either. Cheers mate.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Crete is the largest island in Greece & definitely the best island to drive.

BHPia  karan561 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

The video covers a brief discussion on some unknown facts of the Indo-Greek History, the cars i drove in Mykonos, Santorini, Crete & Athens also I review this entire Greek Holiday to help enthusiasts plan their trips.

Video

The video is divided as per the following Time Stamp chapters below;

• 00:00 - Intro
• 01:06 - History Lesson
• 03:11 - Driving In Greece
• 06:28 - Temple Of Poseidon
• 07:27 - Holiday Review

The first car I want to talk about is the Audi A1 Sportback:

I rented this car in Mykonos:

Interestingly looking like GTO in this pic

The A1 came with a nomenclature of 30 TFSI.

30 TFSI sounds serious, but it isn't as it had a small 1L 3cyl Turbo petrol motor packing 115 HP but the torque number of 200 NM was impressive and kept me going.

The handling dynamics kept me entertained as the package felt tight & robust:

Perfect for exploring the small streets of the island.

For the island of Santorini I had booked the same small category car which I had booked in Mykonos, but I was offered an upgrade at a very nominal price & the upgrade was a new 2023 Skoda Kodiaq:

Manual:

Had some sorta anti stall tech, good implementation.

Slick Shifting box, loved it:

The upgrade came with a price as the Villa where we were staying:

Had very narrow lanes:

Like these:

Overall driving the Kodiaq was fun as the car was very comfortable. Interestingly it had just 215 section tyres. Also it was a 1.5L Turbo Petrol, enough for the island but clearly it was felt that the chassis could handle more. A big Diesel was missed.

Hope miraculously Skoda brings back its Diesel + M/T combos.

Continue reading BHPian Karan561's travelogue for more insights and information.

I have driven the Cooper S (3 door) and thought it was a brilliant handler but it was also a little too stiff and didn't feel like it was a league above the Octavia vRS in terms of premiumness.

BHPian mango_pal recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

There are four of us in the house, my parents, my partner & I.

We have three cars at present, largely because of legacy: both my parents and I used to commute to work every day.

Now however, we don't need three cars. The last time all three of them were used at the same time was in 2020!

This is the garage:

• 2016 Vento 1.2 TSI (run 25,000km); bought new
• 2016 Audi A3 TDI (run 45,000km); bought used in 2018
• 2017 Octavia vRS 230 (run 42,000km); bought used in 2021

All three cars are in immaculate condition.

So we are looking to downsize the garage to two cars and these are the options that we were considering the following options:

Option 1: Sell the A3 and the Vento, buy a used Mini Countryman S

• The reason for this option is that both my parents love the Mini Countryman and as both of them are driving enthusiasts, they want the S or the JCW.

• This option also means that the capital outlay post selling the two cars will be ~15 lakhs which is acceptable.

• The downside of this is we have two relatively premium cars in the garage: the Mini and the vRS and no real workhorse / beater car.

Option 2: Sell the A3, keep the Vento and the vRS, don't buy another car

• Financially, this is just more sensible. Pocket the money from the sale of the A3 (depreciation of the car is next to 0 considering the current market) and use the Vento for city pitter-potter and the vRS for longer drives.

• The downside of this is that they don't get the car that they love (or think they love).

This brings me to a few questions: is the Mini Cooper Countryman S worth it (leaving price aside)? I have driven the Cooper S (3 door) and thought it was a brilliant handler but it was also a little too stiff and didn't feel like it was a league above the vRS in terms of premiumness. What does the Coutryman offer that the vRS doesn't?

Would love the community's thoughts on the above two options, feedback on the Countryman S, and if there are any other cars that we might be overlooking which could be better than the Countryman (compact and fun to drive!)

PS: Selling the vRS is not an option!

Here's what BHPian sunikkat had to say on the matter:

Option 3: Sell the Vento, keep A3 and vRS. Do a stage 1 remap for A3 and you have 2 totally fun to drive cars + Audi badge

No additional cost, but will save some money too

Here's what BHPian dipen had to say on the matter:

Option 1

Sell the Vento and buy no new car. The A3 can be a good beater. Its a TDI, is fast, is frugal, relatively compact and handles decently well. This way all drivers in the house will be happy as both vRS and A3 are enjoyable to drive so no one feels the pinch in picking either key. Issue with this option is that its so easy that you wont feel any change in life (change is the spice of life). No new toy to play with.

Option 2

Sell the Vento and A3 though I wouldn't recommend the Countryman S. The ride quality is just abysmal for the price across all Coopers. You already have one stiff car in the Vrs. Buy a comfortable luxury SUV (compact / semi-large) as the next. Since you are happy with pre-owned options earlier, the choices are plenty. Whole idea is the upgrade or change should feel like one both engine and ride wise and features wise or at least overall. The variety of cars will add spice and depending on the mood, road trip; the choice will be made.

Here's what BHPian shancz had to say on the matter:

The cars you've mentioned fall beyond my means so the below suggestions are primarily driven by numbers and guesswork.

Some observations:

• The A3 TDI should be the one to go.

• The Vento TSI, bought new, should serve as an excellent beater till it lasts. No point taking a hit by selling it and buying something else.

• If your parents love the Countryman then get it, no point playing practical on it. If you look at the alternatives all I can see is the Kodiaq and the Tiguan which according to me aren't really a competition as the exclusivity of the Countryman is unmatched. Plus would be a nice change to welcome something outside the VW-Skoda family

Which option to go with is your call but I see another option, with a 3 car garage, where the Vento as the beater, the Countryman for your parents and the vRS for you.

I don't think that the savings in selling the Vento and buying another beater car would exceed 2-3 lakhs and this doesn't include the steep downgrade you'll feel when you step out from the vRS or the Countryman into the beater which isn't the Vento. Not to forget the safety angle as well.

Here's what BHPian lamborghini had to say on the matter:

Sell the Vento, keep the A3 & the vRS :

Biggest downside of the Vento is the dry clutch DSG especially since yours is pretty much city run. The A3 is fairly easy to drive around the city, and is a very nimble handler (without compromising on the ride) not to mention wouldn't feel as aged as the vento.

A remap would give the A3 the added punch too.

The money from the sale of the Vento would look after the maintenance of both the vRS and the A3 - and in Bombay, the A3 can function as a beater - get PPF on the bumpers + mirrors and you are good to go.

Similarly the vRS is a legend in it's own so I'd keep it and enjoy it and maybe after a few years upgrade to a 330 / Mini.

That being said, I'd actually consider selling this off and picking up a pre-owned Cooper / Countryman S or JCW if the heart desires instant gratification along with the Vento as both the vRS and Mini have a lot of similar qualities - fun to drive, petrol powered, stiff ride.

This way you have a fun car (vRS / Mini) + a cruiser (A3).

Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.

When I drove a Honda city for close to 10 years, never had this anxiety coz I mostly did city driving and had a full size spare tyre.

BHPian Dracoon recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I bought Audi Approved A3 about 3 months back and have had 2 incidence of tyre puncture. The first one was a side wall rupture, I do not know how it happened, as I was driving and suddenly TPMS warning came. Since I wanted to claim warranty for tyre, I could not even get it repaired and had no other option but to use the space saver tyre.

What I realized from that experience is space saver tyre sucks. So essentially, I kept getting TPMS warning, I could not use cruise control, had to drive below 80 km. on empty highway, central locking did not work. In summary the driving experience was very poor and unsafe. To add it, the car looked ridiculous.

Recently I noticed that I am loosing pressure at a very slow rate (drop from 36 psi to 25 in 2 weeks) and got it checked, it was a puncture. There was a board pin (like we used in our classrooms), have no idea how that thing ended up on road and in my tyre.

Now with 2 instances in 3 months, I have developed an anxiety specially because of the poor experience of drive with space saver tyre . When I drove Honda city for close to 10 years, never had this anxiety coz I mostly did city driving and had a full size spare tyre. The condition of Indian roads are not confidence inspiring. So I need to have a solution, as of now I have considered the following solutions:

• Portable tyre inflator - I have already bought it works like a charm. For small punctures I can keep filling the tyre and not worry too much till I get a puncture repair shop. However the first instance when I had a side wall tear, I did not work because the rate of loss of pressure was very high.

• Puncture repair kit - Flipkart has some really cheap ones, not sure if they are any good. But thinking of keeping them just in case as back-up

• Changing space saver tyre to a regular size tyres - Audi gave me a estimate of ~70k for change of alloy wheel and tyre. Checked with FNG, he was offering allow wheel of a different car (Nexon i think) for 4.5k and with tyre it would have costed like 12-13k. The allow wheel looked different but I would have taken it. However, when I put the full size wheel in the wheel well, the boot floor raised quite a bit (more than expected). No way I'll keep the boot like that forever. Could be an option for only long trips. But i don't have a place to store spare tyre (Living in rented accommodation)

• Puncture Sealant: When I went to get the 2nd puncture repaired, the FNG suggested I get the puncture sealant added to the tyre. It would cost me 600 bucks (including labour) for each tyre and then the sealant would seal any punctures going forward. The mechanic even claimed it would work on side wall punctures. Now if it does work like he says, it is indeed very enticing but I did not want to get if filled in only 1 tyre as I felt it would affect the wheel balancing. And if I do it, will get it filled in all tyres. I wanted to check with this group if this is indeed a good idea. What are the pros and cons of adding puncture sealant in the tyres? Attaching the pics of the ones FNG was showing. Do let me know if anyone has had an experience with these things

Also to mention, I am using Pirelli Cinturato P7 tyres and I was not happy when they flatly refused to replace the tyres which I drove for less than 300km and it got side wall puncture (not repairable as per dealer). After some angry mails, as a good will gesture I got 70% discount on the replacement. Next time I am thinking of going with a Indian manufacturer who has a unconditional warranty like CEAT or JK (though not sure if they make good enough tyres). Anyways will come back for guidance when my tyres are worn out.

So folks, do let me know what else can I do to reduce my anxiety about tyre punctures. I do want to take my car on long trips but not get stuck/ drive with space saver tyres because of punctures. Should I go for puncture sealants? If yes any good brand or place you would recommend in Pune?

Here's what BHPian RubberGuru1113 had to say on the matter:

Okay first and foremost - I'm a tyre industry professional - aftermarket tyre sealants do more harm than good when used as a preventive measure. And no, they are absolutely useless when it comes to sidewall injuries. Let me explain why.

The idea of using these sealants is that they would form a thick, viscous film on the tyre's inner liner, and would seep into any gaps created by an external injury - if you notice, the can itself mentions a maximum injury size of 6mm - we will get back to this point later, remember this.

This is a great solution in theory, in fact, it is a slightly watered down version of something many tyre manufacturers offer abroad (JK recently launched it in India) which is a similar sealant which is applied right after the tyre is manufactured. Sealants applied at the point of manufacturing are of much better adhesive strength and quality compared to what we can buy in the aftermarket like the product you mentioned - they are imported as blocks, liquefied in the factory with heat, and then sprayed on to the tyre in an automated process which ensures that the coating is even throughout the inner circumference of the tyre. Most importantly, the coating is applied only on the tread part. In most cases, manufacturer-applied sealants last as long as the life of the tyre due to the material quality and automation involved. Plus, when applied on brand new tyres, there is no dirt or contamination on the inner surface which can reduce the adhesive strength, whereas no amount of cleaning even on lightly used tyres will remove all the dust and dirt that has accumulated. Hence, aftermarket sealants such as this would eventually solidify into balls on losing their adhesive strength, eventually fall off the inner surface, and would rattle around inside your tyre. Any sealant applied on the sidewall will be the first to fall off due to the combination of the effect of gravity and the constant flexing it goes through compared to the tread portion which is relatively rigid. Even without this issue, like I mentioned before, these work on an injury size of max 6 mm, and sidewall injuries are typically much larger, which makes it a moot point. On top of all this, most tyre manufacturers have it in their T&C that usage of aftermarket sealants would void warranty. This clause would be usually mentioned as "chemical application/contamination".

Now, coming to offering you a solution to mitigate anxiety, you have already thought of 2 solutions - DIY repair kit and a portable inflator. The only caveat is that a DIY puncture fix is not easy/intuitive and would recommend that you practice a few times on an old tyre carcass that you can get from a puncture shop. There's also a step-by-step guide on this forum.

Keep in mind that the "outside-in" plug puncture repair is a temporary solution and it is always better to take it to a tyre shop (I recommend any MRF T&S, most of their shops offer this) later for a permanent fix, also called a "mushroom repair" which is repaired from the inside of the tyre. Keep in mind that the sidewall is never to be repaired, and whatever I said is applicable only for the tread portion. Sidewall injuries warrant only tyre replacement.

Regarding tyre replacement - for one, I'd like to go back to the question of the tyre size. If you're using 225/45R17, I'd exhort you to swap to 225/50R17, which has a 10 mm taller sidewall and would exponentially reduce the likelihood of damage. Pre-2012 C Class used to come with 225/45 as well and persistent tyre issues forced Merc to change to 225/50, a size which continues even today. The change in diameter (3.5%) is slightly more than the recommended 3% but I have personally done this upgrade on one of my friends' C Class and there is no fouling even on full load at speed breakers. In any case, I think your A3 would come with wheel stoppers which would prevent this.

Finally, coming to your spare tyre, one of our BHPians, Chethan Sir, has taken the plunge and modified his BMW X1's boot with wooden blocks to fit the full size spare, linking the post

If the official Audi wheels are too expensive for you, there are a few solutions:-

1. Like you mentioned, going for an alloy of a different vehicle. Just take care that the PCD is the same, and that there is no fouling with brake calipers. Do a fitment trial (on both front and rear) before making the purchase.

2. Go for a slightly smaller alloy from Audi - 16 inchers. And do not buy the tyres from them. Go for a tyre size from a cheaper brand like JK or Ceat like 205/55R16 or (which keeps the outer diameter equivalent to the stock tyres) and still wide enough for you to use the vehicle at higher speeds. This would be my recommended solution because cross-manufacturer rim compatibility is a huge grey area and many things can go wrong. Meanwhile you can dispose the space saver on OLX.

Hope I have answered all your queries, do reply here or PM if there's anything else I can help with.

Cheers.

BHPian Dracoon replied:

Thanks for taking time and clarifying on all points. You are totally justifying your username.

To answer your question on the wheel size, it is 205/55 R16 Pirelli Cinturato P7. I think this is a pretty standard size tyre. I know lot of people want to upgrade to bigger or wider tyre, but frankly the current size works for me, looks proportionate.

Now this is the first time I have used Pirelli tyres and when I got the sidewall tear in the 1st month, my confidence in the brand kind of shook. Attaching the pictures of the side wall failure. The company denied warranty saying it is accidental damage, but there was no accident. The shape of the tear is also not a regular cut. Till date no one has told me the reason why it happened. Maybe you can shed some light on the mystery.

On the puncture sealant, I thought it is too good to be true. The FNG was insisting that I get it filled in the 1 tyre he repaired as he had already demounted it. I did not go for it because I did not want to add weight only to 1 tyre and really want to check with someone more knowledgeable. Thank you for detailing the cons of aftermarket product.

I do like it as a concept, and I will seriously consider JK or any another tyre manufacturer which offers this + unconditional warranty.

Thanks for sharing the post by Chethan sir, that is definitely an option I want to consider.

Here's what BHPian el lobo 6061 had to say on the matter:

Pirelli Cinturato P7 are soft tyres and prone to damage. Using them on BMW X1 and face issue of cuts by stones during touring.

I would suggest you to go for Yokohama Earth1 which is available in 205 55 R16 size. Best touring tyres suited for Indian road conditions. Comes with 18 months unconditional warranty.

Intend to use the same on X1.

Here's what BHPian rpunwani had to say on the matter:

I have had experience of sidewall damage on my VW Passat with Pirelli Cinturato P7 tyres (very soft sidewalls). In due course I replaced them with Yokohama Blue Earth, which were very good. I sold the car in 2021, the current owner is still using the Yokohama tyres.

Would highly recommend the Yokohama's.

Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.