A Reckless V10 Purchase
Discussion
Soon i'm starting a business where I'll need to tow 3.5 ton regularly so I wanted to get a tow car. I didn't have a set budget but the cheaper the better to leave me with more money to get a trailer. I've always been aware of the VW Touareg with the 5 litre V10 engine, so that's where my mind started wandering. It makes 750nm of torque at 2000rpm, a beast of a diesel engine.
Now we all know a V10 Touareg is a stupid idea, they are very thirsty and early Touareg's have unreliable electrics. The V10 is a bit of a maintenance nightmare as lots of jobs require the engine out. I'd be better off with something Japanese (or being more realistic, a van).
The thing is, i've got a mental health problem, I can't buy a mundane car that doesn't interest me. I can always find something I think is interesting, quirky or cool at any budget. With that mind set I was always going to take the stupid option and here it is...
The market for a V10 Touareg seems to start at about £3500 for a ropey one. I usually look for cheap cars that are spares or repair that need some work. There was one for £2000 on ebay that had low oil pressure, didn't fancy that much. I looked at the completed listings and there was one 2 hours away that had been up on ebay auctions twice before (this was before i'd been looking for one). It had sold for £1800 the first time, £1750 the second time. I messaged the bloke on the off chance he still had it and he did, the winner hadn't contacted him. I arranged to come down the next night for a look. He told me he'd take £1700 for it, the fact it was a runner for that money meant I was willing to ignore all the issues with it, and it's got plenty!
The GOOD - matching Goodyear tyres with loads of tread, tow bar, air suspension works, early model so cheaper road tax, engine sounds sweet, gearbox is fine. £950 bill for a pair of rebuilt turbo actuators last year. Long MOT and 2 new batteries fitted recently.
The BAD - 190,000 miles!!! no service history other than a few invoices. Here is a list of the things that are wrong with it (to be fair to the seller he told me about the majority)...
Fuel cap catch broken
Rusted and snapped fuel tank strap (MOT advisory)
Blocked fuel tank breather (hiss when removing the cap)
The dash display stops telling you what gear you're in after a about 20 minutes of driving
The lights in the foot well stay lit up when driving
Parking sensors don't work
Starter button doesn't work
Steering Angle Sensor
Tracking is out
Knocking wishbone
Smashed up mirror casing
Drivers seat doesn't move down, motor runs but sounds like something is jammed under it
Glove box has a broken manual holder inside it so once opened that comes down and you need two hands to close it
Arm rest is missing the clip to hold a drinks holder up, again two hands to close it
A/C doesn't work
Struts to hold the glass on the split rear boot are weak and don't hold
Every interior button is worn, typical VW
Those were the bits I knew about, have got a few extra ones after a vagcom scan which I did before I test drove it.
Engine
18360 - Turbocharger Control Module 1
P1952 - 000 - Defective - Intermittent
Freeze Frame:
RPM: 1386 /min
Torque: 189.6 Nm
Speed: 65.5 km/h
Load: 16.9 %
Bin. Bits: 00000000
Bin. Bits: 00010000
Absolute Pres.: 1132.2 mbar
Absolute Pres.: 1122.0 mbar
This has been replaced recently and probably under warranty still. I cleared it before the test drive and it didn't come back when I checked after the test drive. It had come on by the time I got home and checked again. One to keep an eye on...
Auto Trans
01871 - Steering Wheel Tiptronic Switch (E389)
010 - Open or Short to Plus - MIL ON
It's not got steering wheel tiptronic?!
ABS
00778 - Steering Angle Sensor (G85)
003 - Mechanical Failure
This was a fault that came up before as intermittent and would clear. On the drive home it decided it wanted to be permanent and brought a traction control light up on the dash.
00003 - Kessy Control Module
012 - Electrical Fault in Circuit
This is part of the immobilizer, maybe something to do with the starter button.
HVAC
3 Faults Found:
01592 - Air Quality Sensor (G238)
014 - Defective
01336 - Company Data Bus for Comfort System
004 - No Signal/Communication - Intermittent
01207 - Control Module for Auxiliary Heater (J364)
004 - No Signal/Communication
There are also a load of other codes for the passenger seat, passenger door actuator, speaker not working, and 4 parking sensors out.
Some pictures of the less impressive stuff, taped up mirror, little bit of rust, small coolant leak, exposed +12v jump start post and some rips in the leather.
On the way back home it did 23mpg but I did poke it with a stick a few times. Poor for a diesel but I knew it anyway. It drives really nice, engine is smooth and punchy, gearbox shifts nicely. There is some method to my madness, i've got lots of spare parts in my garage so can sort of the majority of issues cheaply. I won't go over board with it, i'm not bothered about cosmetics, just need it running and driving nicely which it currently does. Anything big goes wrong and that'll spell the end of it. I'm not one for throwing good money after bad.
I'm willing to take bets on how long it lasts. Will it see 200,000 miles?
Now we all know a V10 Touareg is a stupid idea, they are very thirsty and early Touareg's have unreliable electrics. The V10 is a bit of a maintenance nightmare as lots of jobs require the engine out. I'd be better off with something Japanese (or being more realistic, a van).
The thing is, i've got a mental health problem, I can't buy a mundane car that doesn't interest me. I can always find something I think is interesting, quirky or cool at any budget. With that mind set I was always going to take the stupid option and here it is...
The market for a V10 Touareg seems to start at about £3500 for a ropey one. I usually look for cheap cars that are spares or repair that need some work. There was one for £2000 on ebay that had low oil pressure, didn't fancy that much. I looked at the completed listings and there was one 2 hours away that had been up on ebay auctions twice before (this was before i'd been looking for one). It had sold for £1800 the first time, £1750 the second time. I messaged the bloke on the off chance he still had it and he did, the winner hadn't contacted him. I arranged to come down the next night for a look. He told me he'd take £1700 for it, the fact it was a runner for that money meant I was willing to ignore all the issues with it, and it's got plenty!
The GOOD - matching Goodyear tyres with loads of tread, tow bar, air suspension works, early model so cheaper road tax, engine sounds sweet, gearbox is fine. £950 bill for a pair of rebuilt turbo actuators last year. Long MOT and 2 new batteries fitted recently.
The BAD - 190,000 miles!!! no service history other than a few invoices. Here is a list of the things that are wrong with it (to be fair to the seller he told me about the majority)...
Fuel cap catch broken
Rusted and snapped fuel tank strap (MOT advisory)
Blocked fuel tank breather (hiss when removing the cap)
The dash display stops telling you what gear you're in after a about 20 minutes of driving
The lights in the foot well stay lit up when driving
Parking sensors don't work
Starter button doesn't work
Steering Angle Sensor
Tracking is out
Knocking wishbone
Smashed up mirror casing
Drivers seat doesn't move down, motor runs but sounds like something is jammed under it
Glove box has a broken manual holder inside it so once opened that comes down and you need two hands to close it
Arm rest is missing the clip to hold a drinks holder up, again two hands to close it
A/C doesn't work
Struts to hold the glass on the split rear boot are weak and don't hold
Every interior button is worn, typical VW
Those were the bits I knew about, have got a few extra ones after a vagcom scan which I did before I test drove it.
Engine
18360 - Turbocharger Control Module 1
P1952 - 000 - Defective - Intermittent
Freeze Frame:
RPM: 1386 /min
Torque: 189.6 Nm
Speed: 65.5 km/h
Load: 16.9 %
Bin. Bits: 00000000
Bin. Bits: 00010000
Absolute Pres.: 1132.2 mbar
Absolute Pres.: 1122.0 mbar
This has been replaced recently and probably under warranty still. I cleared it before the test drive and it didn't come back when I checked after the test drive. It had come on by the time I got home and checked again. One to keep an eye on...
Auto Trans
01871 - Steering Wheel Tiptronic Switch (E389)
010 - Open or Short to Plus - MIL ON
It's not got steering wheel tiptronic?!
ABS
00778 - Steering Angle Sensor (G85)
003 - Mechanical Failure
This was a fault that came up before as intermittent and would clear. On the drive home it decided it wanted to be permanent and brought a traction control light up on the dash.
00003 - Kessy Control Module
012 - Electrical Fault in Circuit
This is part of the immobilizer, maybe something to do with the starter button.
HVAC
3 Faults Found:
01592 - Air Quality Sensor (G238)
014 - Defective
01336 - Company Data Bus for Comfort System
004 - No Signal/Communication - Intermittent
01207 - Control Module for Auxiliary Heater (J364)
004 - No Signal/Communication
There are also a load of other codes for the passenger seat, passenger door actuator, speaker not working, and 4 parking sensors out.
Some pictures of the less impressive stuff, taped up mirror, little bit of rust, small coolant leak, exposed +12v jump start post and some rips in the leather.
On the way back home it did 23mpg but I did poke it with a stick a few times. Poor for a diesel but I knew it anyway. It drives really nice, engine is smooth and punchy, gearbox shifts nicely. There is some method to my madness, i've got lots of spare parts in my garage so can sort of the majority of issues cheaply. I won't go over board with it, i'm not bothered about cosmetics, just need it running and driving nicely which it currently does. Anything big goes wrong and that'll spell the end of it. I'm not one for throwing good money after bad.
I'm willing to take bets on how long it lasts. Will it see 200,000 miles?
BIG DUNC said:
You are a brave man, but I am really interested in how it goes.
Assuming you don’t throw it away for something trivial I reckon over 300k Miles, but it will be pretty Ropey by then.
Good luck with the business.
Thanks. It's pretty ropey now! The issue is the engine is massive which means there are loads of trivial parts that can fail which will require the engine to be pulled, I feel like that might be the line in the sand where I decide not to bother. Time will tell, maybe i'll have bonded with it and want to fix it.Assuming you don’t throw it away for something trivial I reckon over 300k Miles, but it will be pretty Ropey by then.
Good luck with the business.
Nunga said:
Awesome; I thought this would be for towing the Boxster but glad that was the wrong assumption. Only better tractor would be the Q7 V12, but that’s impossibly reckless, right?
They are another league completely. Very rare and they've held their value quite well. A used engine is 10k on ebay. Now that really would be a crazy prospect to own. If you needed spares you'd struggle to source them. At least VW sold lots of the V10. silentbrown said:
Pretty sure that's configurable with Carista or similar.
From some of the codes maybe a previous owner has tried enabling features with Vagcom the the vehicle doesn't have the hardware for...?
Thanks, i'll look into that.From some of the codes maybe a previous owner has tried enabling features with Vagcom the the vehicle doesn't have the hardware for...?
james_tigerwoods said:
This has money pit written all over it - Hats off to you 
It does but I won't let it be, it'll be on a short leash first major failure and it'll be toast. Sometimes the bills can creep up on you, lots of smaller ones that soon add up,Jimmy Recard said:
I only know one person who had one of these and he replaced it with a used TDV8 Range Rover Sport because of all the Touareg bork 
This must be the only 4x4 in the world where a Range Rover is considered the reliable alternative. ChocolateFrog said:
I've been tempted by these a number of times. The gearboxes seem fragile and are expensive which is what has put me off.
I've heard that. I'm going to give my gearbox an oil change to give it a fighting chance. Hereward said:
Well done, OP.
I’ve run a 2003 petrol V8 Touareg for about 12 years and cannot bear to part with it. If you’re handy with the spanners and have a good local Indy you’ll be fine.
Epic engine from the height of Piech vanity project era.
Somewhere on the internet is a fascinating blog of a French guy who took the V10 out to change the turbos.
My car won't be going to an Indy, it's all on me. VW did release a few interesting engines around this period. I think if they released a 5L V10 Diesel in the current climate there would be outrage. I need to plant some trees to offset my carbon footprint I’ve run a 2003 petrol V8 Touareg for about 12 years and cannot bear to part with it. If you’re handy with the spanners and have a good local Indy you’ll be fine.
Epic engine from the height of Piech vanity project era.
Somewhere on the internet is a fascinating blog of a French guy who took the V10 out to change the turbos.
carinaman said:
Escy said:
bungz said:
A business plan that starts with Buying a semi borked V10 Toureg is amazing 
When you put it like that... hopefully not too much adventurePh1listine said:
Always wanted one of these, so interesting!
What's the remap capability like on these, any limiting factors hardware-wise?
Funny you should ask, a local remap company popped up on a Facebook advert earlier and I sent them a message. £160 for a stage 1 remap and they'll come to me. 308bhp - 370bhp and 553ft/lb to 690ft/lbWhat's the remap capability like on these, any limiting factors hardware-wise?
That's great gains for such little outlay. The question is, do I double down on my stupidity?
Will turbos with 190k miles on them appreciate the boost increase?!MattCharlton91 said:
Love it! There’s a chap who drops his kid off at my daughters school with one, sits there sounding all angry and powerful!
I’ll be interested to see what the economy is like when towing. My auto Navara does about 17/18mpg towing, and 21mpg when not. 24mpg is possible on a run!
I'd have expected a Navara to do better than that. I think the Touareg should do similar to your figures. Another member posted on a different thread saying the MPG with his V10 didn't drop much when towing. I’ll be interested to see what the economy is like when towing. My auto Navara does about 17/18mpg towing, and 21mpg when not. 24mpg is possible on a run!
Ph1listine said:
Worth a look: https://car-recalls.eu/liters-of-water-can-be-hidd...
Thanks, i'm aware of this. I had a 3.2 V6 Touareg a few years back that had got wet inside due to this (before I owned it)TonyRPH said:
Is this the same vehicle?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls23tHPX8mQ
5th gear towed a jumbo jet with one a few years back.
It is indeed the same vehicle. Crazy isn't it?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls23tHPX8mQ
5th gear towed a jumbo jet with one a few years back.
DanG355 said:
If it all goes horribly wrong and the electrics give up then I'd love to see the engine transplanted into an early 986! After all, it is a VAG product so surely it wouldn't be much more difficult than the V6 TT right??
p.s. - thanks for your help regarding the 986 handbrake cable replacement. It was a doddle other than slotting both cables into the end of the handle mechanism at the same time but got there in the end!
Glad you got it sorted out. I think the Boxster suspension would collapse under the weight of the big V10.p.s. - thanks for your help regarding the 986 handbrake cable replacement. It was a doddle other than slotting both cables into the end of the handle mechanism at the same time but got there in the end!
Loads of replies, it seems like the Touareg V10 leaves an impression on anyone that's owned or driven one.
Looked at it for the first time since buying it this afternoon. Trying to work through some of it's issues.
First up was the steering angle sensor fault. It was MOT'd 4 months ago and the garage that did the MOT also changed the track rod and track rod end on the right hand side. They seem to have ripped off the guy I bought the car from. The invoice shows the track rod £29.16 and the track rod end £45. Underneath the car, there is a brand new inner track rod and the end looks like it's been on the car 100k miles, rusty and covered in grime. Definitely not been changed. If you live in Taunton, have a good look at that invoice before you chose your next garage.
Not fitting parts they've charged for is probably the least bad thing they did. They let Stevie Wonder fit it the inner tie rod. This is the left hand side which they hadn't touched, nice and straight.
This is the right hand side. I've never seen a wheel so obviously out of line, it's like they didn't even look at it after fitting. Not acceptable, more dangerous than the track rod end being worn. Tracking wasn't on the invoice but even so you'd expect better.
This is the angle of the steering wheel to make it drive straight. A bit of a clue here. I can't believe the last owner paid up and took it away like that. He did say he wasn't happy about it.
I straightened it out by eye and then used my tracking plate to confirm it was right. Once that was done the steering wheel was straight again. I then re-calibrated my steering angle sensor on VCDS that was showing a malfunction before. This reset and that's a major fault (2 warning lights on the dash and limp mode when it first came up) sorted for zero cost, one nil to me!
A few parts the car needed that I happened to have in the garage. Jump start post cover. A boot handle, I didn't know it was dodgy when I made by original assessment of the car at the start of this thread, it takes some fumbling about to get it to open. Struts for the rear glass screen as the originals are weak and can't hold it open. The little square thing is an air quality sensor. If the car detects pollution it stops drawing fresh air into the cabin, this means when it's hot all you can do is re-circulate hot air which isn't much fun. Now I can draw in cold air but the A/C isn't working. The system is pressurised and i've got no faults for the system, i'm starting to think I might get away with a simple re-gas. Fingers crossed on that one.
I have the small coolant leak I photographed in the original post. I also have a tiny one on this plastic section coming from the radiator top hose, you can see the 2 little spots where it's seeping through the seam. This and the other leaking pipe which seems to be a complicated one are probably where the Touareg bites back and hits me with a hefty bill. I'll call TPS tomorrow and find out the damage.
Looked at it for the first time since buying it this afternoon. Trying to work through some of it's issues.
First up was the steering angle sensor fault. It was MOT'd 4 months ago and the garage that did the MOT also changed the track rod and track rod end on the right hand side. They seem to have ripped off the guy I bought the car from. The invoice shows the track rod £29.16 and the track rod end £45. Underneath the car, there is a brand new inner track rod and the end looks like it's been on the car 100k miles, rusty and covered in grime. Definitely not been changed. If you live in Taunton, have a good look at that invoice before you chose your next garage.
Not fitting parts they've charged for is probably the least bad thing they did. They let Stevie Wonder fit it the inner tie rod. This is the left hand side which they hadn't touched, nice and straight.
This is the right hand side. I've never seen a wheel so obviously out of line, it's like they didn't even look at it after fitting. Not acceptable, more dangerous than the track rod end being worn. Tracking wasn't on the invoice but even so you'd expect better.
This is the angle of the steering wheel to make it drive straight. A bit of a clue here. I can't believe the last owner paid up and took it away like that. He did say he wasn't happy about it.
I straightened it out by eye and then used my tracking plate to confirm it was right. Once that was done the steering wheel was straight again. I then re-calibrated my steering angle sensor on VCDS that was showing a malfunction before. This reset and that's a major fault (2 warning lights on the dash and limp mode when it first came up) sorted for zero cost, one nil to me!
A few parts the car needed that I happened to have in the garage. Jump start post cover. A boot handle, I didn't know it was dodgy when I made by original assessment of the car at the start of this thread, it takes some fumbling about to get it to open. Struts for the rear glass screen as the originals are weak and can't hold it open. The little square thing is an air quality sensor. If the car detects pollution it stops drawing fresh air into the cabin, this means when it's hot all you can do is re-circulate hot air which isn't much fun. Now I can draw in cold air but the A/C isn't working. The system is pressurised and i've got no faults for the system, i'm starting to think I might get away with a simple re-gas. Fingers crossed on that one.
I have the small coolant leak I photographed in the original post. I also have a tiny one on this plastic section coming from the radiator top hose, you can see the 2 little spots where it's seeping through the seam. This and the other leaking pipe which seems to be a complicated one are probably where the Touareg bites back and hits me with a hefty bill. I'll call TPS tomorrow and find out the damage.
TPS will sell to me, they want £105 plus VAT for the plastic hose at the top and the other one he couldn't find. I'm going to buy second hand ones from ebay, have found a breaker that's got them for £40.
I've done a few little jobs on it. None of which are important but help make it a bit nicer
Replacing the dodgy boot handle.
Replacing the fuel cap lock, had to remove quite a few things to get access. I did worry there might be a wiring fault which would explain why it was broken in the first place. Luckily that wasn't the case and it now works fine.
Getting under the headliner to replace the struts for the boot glass, you can see the strut is leaking. The ones i've got were the wrong size so had to order them off ebay.
I've done a few little jobs on it. None of which are important but help make it a bit nicer
Replacing the dodgy boot handle.
Replacing the fuel cap lock, had to remove quite a few things to get access. I did worry there might be a wiring fault which would explain why it was broken in the first place. Luckily that wasn't the case and it now works fine.
Getting under the headliner to replace the struts for the boot glass, you can see the strut is leaking. The ones i've got were the wrong size so had to order them off ebay.
I'm not currently driving it as i'm waiting to sell my current car first but I have been sorting out a few jobs.
It had a faulty parking sensor at the front and one at the back. I removed the bumpers to replace them and I noticed there was a bowed out radiator at the front. On a closer inspection the metal pipe running from it was crushed completely flat. The car must have run over something to have done that. The build up of pressure in the radiator must have caused it to go out of shape, it also explains the small coolant leaks I found elsewhere. The radiator is for engine coolant but I don't know what exactly it's purpose is. Whatever it is, it's no longer doing the job. Luckily I found a replacement radiator on ebay for £40 posted that includes the metal pipe that's been crushed. Another nice cheap fix. The parking sensors now also work.
It had a faulty parking sensor at the front and one at the back. I removed the bumpers to replace them and I noticed there was a bowed out radiator at the front. On a closer inspection the metal pipe running from it was crushed completely flat. The car must have run over something to have done that. The build up of pressure in the radiator must have caused it to go out of shape, it also explains the small coolant leaks I found elsewhere. The radiator is for engine coolant but I don't know what exactly it's purpose is. Whatever it is, it's no longer doing the job. Luckily I found a replacement radiator on ebay for £40 posted that includes the metal pipe that's been crushed. Another nice cheap fix. The parking sensors now also work.
Michaelbailey said:
Just realised its you with the 2.7 S4 engined boxer off audisrs. Didn't realise you were a complete nut case! Good to see you making your way through the niggles. It's the fixing of the small stuff that really makes the difference I think on these types of projects.
edited to correct typo
Yeah, sorting out the little things makes a difference. edited to correct typo
Edited by Michaelbailey on Wednesday 31st July 12:03
Hereward said:
Water-cooled alternator?
I don't think so, Cayenne's have water cooled alternators and they don't have this seperate radiator. I'm thinking it might have something to do with the auxiliary heater MrNoisy said:
Great purchase op, watching with interest.
I too am on a hunt for something to tow my car trailer. Bizarrely I already have the trailer but the car to go on it and tow it are still slightly distant works in progress.
I was mega interested in these but then an article pushed me to the 4.2 TDI Q7. Then the man maths really started to kick in as I was comparing the fuel costs of a 24 mpg Derv to a S/C FFRR - I gave up at that point and refocussed on reality for a bit.
Good luck, keep the info coming.
Don't let reality get in the way of a daft purchase, I didn't. I too am on a hunt for something to tow my car trailer. Bizarrely I already have the trailer but the car to go on it and tow it are still slightly distant works in progress.
I was mega interested in these but then an article pushed me to the 4.2 TDI Q7. Then the man maths really started to kick in as I was comparing the fuel costs of a 24 mpg Derv to a S/C FFRR - I gave up at that point and refocussed on reality for a bit.
Good luck, keep the info coming.
Max5476 said:
Does this then need a tachograph as you will be over 3.5T total weight?
This is something I wasn't aware of. I should be ok under the distance exemption.Edited by Max5476 on Friday 2nd August 14:59
I sold my previous daily driver and have started using the Touareg. It quickly became apparent that it loves limp mode. When I bought it the owner told me it did go into limp mode but it didn't do it on the test drive and it only happened once on the drive home. It would happen 3 or 4 times on my 10 mile drive to work (would need to stop and turn the engine off to clear the fault).
The fault is -
18360 - Turbocharger Control Module 1
P1952 - 000 - Defective - Intermittent
I believe the issue is due to carbon build up on variable geometry vanes in the turbo exhaust housing. I've not looked yet but my understanding is you can't get the turbo off or even the downpipe off with the engine in the car. I won't be pulling the engine on this car to replace or clean up the turbo, it's not worth my time or the effort. I've bought a couple of bottles of Wynns turbo vane cleaner, it's probably snake oil but it's worth a try. Just add it to the fuel tank and i've been giving it an Italian tune up every time I drive it. It does seem to be improving, the last time I drove it the power delivery felt different, more lively at low throttle so maybe it's done the trick but I won't hold my breath.
I love driving it, it's very smooth but the torque is crazy. With the air suspension on soft the front end lifts up and the back sinks down when you gun it. The torque makes it feel faster than it is but it does pick up speed quickly. The only criticism is the sound track, you can't tell it's a V10 from the engine sound, it just sounds like a big diesel engine (more like a lorry than a car). Maybe some K&N panel filters would improve that.
I replaced the radiator and kinked water hose, I also noticed the oil had been massively over filled, I sucked over 4 litres out of the sump.
The dipstick is a bit odd on these, when you pull out the dipstick it shows nothing on it at all, if you wait a few seconds, put it back in and pull it out again, it then shows the level. I think as the oil gets pumped around the engine, the level drops and the vacuum inside the dipstick tube stops it the level showing correctly when the oil level settles, bit odd but it must have something to do with the way they've routed the dipstick tube inside the engine. Someone has pulled out the dipstick, seen no oil and put a load in so it then registered oil the first time you pull out the dipstick.
I had a chance to look at the limp mode problem over the weekend. I'd been a bit thick before when scanning the car for fault codes with VCDS, i'd forgotten this engine has an ECU for each bank and i'd only been scanning one of the ECU's. Once i'd scanned the bank 2 ECU it also had a fault code for the turbocharger control module, but unlike the code on bank 1, this would not stay cleared. Every time it was scanned it would show back up straight away and that's without the engine being run. The code said defective rather than the intermittent that bank 1 says. You can run an output test on VCDS which I did, bank 1 worked but bank 2 did nothing.
A year and a half ago it had a pair of re-built actuators fitted at the cost of £440 from BBA Reman. Fitting was another £600 on top.
The plan was to remove the actuator arms and manually move the turbo vanes to free them up. I did this, the turbo on bank 2 was a little stiff at first. I knew the bank 2 actuator was goosed so I removed that. Luckily it's the easier side to access.
You can see in the picture i've removed the actuator arm. You can see it's all oily, the car is filthy due to oil leaks.
With it off the car I opened it up, tested the motor on a battery and it worked, all the plastic gears were fine. I put it back together and re-fitted it on the car and suddenly the fault code was able to cleared. It's late so i've only had a chance to take it for a little blast around the block for a test drive but the code has stayed off so far. I didn't really do anything so i'm not convinced it's sorted. If it isn't, i'll replace the unit.
I took off a boost pipe, plenty of cack in it, the joys of a high mileage diesel.
A year and a half ago it had a pair of re-built actuators fitted at the cost of £440 from BBA Reman. Fitting was another £600 on top.
The plan was to remove the actuator arms and manually move the turbo vanes to free them up. I did this, the turbo on bank 2 was a little stiff at first. I knew the bank 2 actuator was goosed so I removed that. Luckily it's the easier side to access.
You can see in the picture i've removed the actuator arm. You can see it's all oily, the car is filthy due to oil leaks.
With it off the car I opened it up, tested the motor on a battery and it worked, all the plastic gears were fine. I put it back together and re-fitted it on the car and suddenly the fault code was able to cleared. It's late so i've only had a chance to take it for a little blast around the block for a test drive but the code has stayed off so far. I didn't really do anything so i'm not convinced it's sorted. If it isn't, i'll replace the unit.
I took off a boost pipe, plenty of cack in it, the joys of a high mileage diesel.
After using it to go to work I scanned the codes. It went into limp mode plenty of times so I knew it wasn't sorted. Bank 2 is now fine so that's a result. Bank 1 is the problem child. The fault is classed as intermittent on VCDS. Every time I run the output test on it, it works fine. The turbo vanes move freely so that's not the issue. I'm a bit stumped on it, getting the bank 1 actuator off is a big job, I think i'd probably need to drop the subframe which I can't be arsed to do. I'm not sure what the plan is now.
I'm just limping around everywhere in it currently.The good thing is, as it's 5 litre you don't really notice it's in limp mode unless you get to a hill. I can't get the turbo actuator on the drivers side unless I drop the front subframe. I'm in two minds about doing it, it's quite a bit of work and I haven't decided the plan of action if I did. It's recently been rebuilt and works intermittently, I don't think it's faulty unit, could be a wiring issue but it seems like a lot of effort for a look if I don't find anything. I've not got the time or space to do anything with it at the moment.
on my commute to work (don't use it that often). JimbobVFR said:
I'm going to make a lot of assumptions about the car you will be towing and what you're doing with said car. I'd recommend a JDM imported Toyota Alphard, the 3.5 V6 with an engine closely related to Lexus and Lotus Evora's specifically.
Van like levels of space but luxury car levels of performance and refinement and possibly a bit daft to boot. What's not to like.
They are a pretty interesting suggestion. The 3.5 V6 produces 330nm of torque, that would be perfect if he wants to tow go kart or dirt bike Van like levels of space but luxury car levels of performance and refinement and possibly a bit daft to boot. What's not to like.
The Touareg has 750nm, if he wants to tow a Boeing 747 that'll be the choice (providing it's not in limp mode)
Yeah, i'll test the wiring with a multi meter, if I do decide to fix it.
I've had a nightmare this evening, collected some cardboard from Halfords, the boot wouldn't open (from the key, handle or button inside), so I put the back seat down and was crawling through to see if I could open it from inside, I couldn't but when I got out of the car, closed the door and then the doors locked. That's strange because they don't usually self lock. Predictably the keys had fallen out of my pocket when I was crawling around in the boot and now I was locked out. I don't have a spare key so knew straight away I was going to have to break in. As I was at Halfords I could borrow a hammer and screwdriver, I made the wrong choice to try and hammer the door lock. I mashed it up, dented the door in and didn't get anywhere so plan B was to put the window through (this would have been plan A but it was raining). Smashing a window with a hammer isn't as easy as i'd expected. I had a few strikes and it bounced off. A shady looking bloke about 60 on a mobility scooter came past and wanted to have a go, I let him and he did it first time, I think he's done that before! It's made a right mess, the glass goes everywhere.
I also noticed it's developed an air leak from the drivers side front shock. I'm starting to think it's time to strip it for parts and get my money back out of it.
I've had a nightmare this evening, collected some cardboard from Halfords, the boot wouldn't open (from the key, handle or button inside), so I put the back seat down and was crawling through to see if I could open it from inside, I couldn't but when I got out of the car, closed the door and then the doors locked. That's strange because they don't usually self lock. Predictably the keys had fallen out of my pocket when I was crawling around in the boot and now I was locked out. I don't have a spare key so knew straight away I was going to have to break in. As I was at Halfords I could borrow a hammer and screwdriver, I made the wrong choice to try and hammer the door lock. I mashed it up, dented the door in and didn't get anywhere so plan B was to put the window through (this would have been plan A but it was raining). Smashing a window with a hammer isn't as easy as i'd expected. I had a few strikes and it bounced off. A shady looking bloke about 60 on a mobility scooter came past and wanted to have a go, I let him and he did it first time, I think he's done that before! It's made a right mess, the glass goes everywhere.
I also noticed it's developed an air leak from the drivers side front shock. I'm starting to think it's time to strip it for parts and get my money back out of it.
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