Case Study: why I harp on getting electrical parts from the dealer

[Jef]

ST?ID=116086

For any one who has had the misfortune to talk to me on the phone, then odds are I told you "anything with an electrical connect on it, GET....IT....FROM....THE....DEALER!".

2015 Audi S3. Owner of car was driving home, car dies. 10 minutes later car is running again and makes it home. Scan for fault codes (unclear what codes were there) and decided to replace the Fuel pump control module (J538). Still having issues and car is dropped off at the repair shop.

Current codes at time of phone call:
14994 - Fuel Pump Control Module P025C 00 [00100000] - Short to Ground
14995 - Fuel Pump Control Module P025A 00 [00100000] - Electrical Fault

I suggest to check wiring for J538, that checks out all good. I suggest to get new J528 and this is when I was told owner of car put in a new factory unit. Hmmm... ok, so I says PL24 that would be part number 5Q0 906 093 C, can you verify that? I'm being told there is no part number on it, looks like part of a sticker has been cut off.

Send me a photo of that and here is what we find:

Click on the images to see the full size. So that is in fact some sort of "OE" part, but 85% of the factory decal has been removed, you can see cut marks in the plastic. This is not a good sign folks. Here is what it should of looked like:

So removed part numbers can happen for a few different reasons, none of them good reasons. It could of been from a failed production run. It could be recalled parts. If you get get an "OE" part, and the VW/Audi part number has been removed, I would suggest you not waste your time with it.

The tech gets a new unit from the dealer... and still has issues... ugh... come to find out the owner replaced the lift pump from sketchycrap.com after swapping the J538 didn't fix the issue. Thankfully the owner still had the original lift pump so the shop put it back in and with that, the car was fixed and running great again.

So... it would seem that the original problem was a bad J538. Had the owner of the car got the J538 from the dealer at the start of all this, the car would of been fixed early on. Stepping over dollars to save dimes is not the way to go.... that cheaper J538 ended up costing the owner a lot more. So again I say... anything with an electrical connect on it, GET....IT....FROM....THE....DEALER! All of us at Ross-Tech have lost count the number of times that a good diagnosis was ruined by a substandard part.

 

[Ziddywerks]

Most shops want to maximize profit by using cheap china garbage or parts that do not fit per vin. I laugh hard every time I am told "yes factory part same part number but the end is different." Most of the time the part is a China clone or just straight cheap China garbage. It's indy shops like that and customers as well that bring me the most joy. I often tell them right off the bat the cold hard truth. Cheap and German are never used in the same sentence. We do alot of exotics and high end cars clientele with deep pockets normal are not a problem, but those ballers on a budget driving vw, audi, bmw and benz vehicles are always up to something.

 

[Dr Sheldon]

GET....IT....FROM....THE....DEALER!".

Still more to a good diagnosis than that !!

I have a few Rules / Methods that keep me in good stead with an immaculate first time fix rate.

1:
Genuine parts from a dealer can be faulty too !! I am sure I have documented that in the forum here !! Delicate parts can damaged as they travel from the production line to your car - I dont for sure know how but parts can be faulty !!

• A Porsche Level Height Sensor from the dealer - Faulty out of the box
• A VW Golf door lock - Faulty out of the box

That is just two recently - It does happen !!!

2.
I almost always, if it can paint a clearer picture, use a scope - No Excuses No Exceptions.

3:
Once I have diagnosed and condemned a component I give my self 2 choices

1. Replace the Component
2. or - Ask my self what actions will i take if the component does not fix the car - Take those Actions now !!

4:
If I fit a new component that I have correctly diagnosed does not fix the car it takes me no time to condemn the new component - I DO NOT waste time looking elsewhere - No Need !!

5:
Always use Factory Wiring Diagrams - Tech Info, TSB's

 

[Uwe]

Genuine parts from a dealer can be faulty too !!

Yes, but chances are far better that you'll get a quality, properly functional part, rather than some fake C.R.A.P.

Always use Factory Wiring Diagrams - Tech Info, TSB's

These can also have errors, but again, the chances are better that they are correct than aftermarket documentation that has been subject to "whisper down the lane" effect.

-Uwe-

 

[Dr Sheldon]

This my whole point !!!!

but chances are far better

the chances are better that they are correct

They are just chance and chances and more chances - Piss poor way to work !!

Nothing beats Methodical, Robust testing with an oscilloscope and accessories !

 

[Uwe]

They are just chance and chances and more chances - Piss poor way to work !!

Everything in life involves chances and odds. I mean there's a chance you'll get run over by a bus today, right?

-Uwe-

 

[NZDubNurd]

part same part number but the end is different.

The number of people who ASSume it's just a newer version if the letters are higher

 

[Dr Sheldon]

Everything in life involves chances and odds. I mean there's a chance you'll get run over by a bus today, right?

-Uwe-

No chance

I live in a gated environment and in the Uk there so many local spending cuts that there are just a few buses. - Mostly for show I think !!

However we do have an abundance of Dedicated Bus Lanes, halving the road capacity, that the general motoring public cannot use.

Perhaps @Crasher may chime in here !!

 

[Crasher]

Ohh I have opinions on everything but bus lanes and especially cycle lanes make me fume, one near me turned a right turn into a mile long traffic jam as the right filter lane was too short to stack the waiting cars so those wishing to go straight on could not get through. And 24 hour bus lanes, like WTF! The buses don’t run 24 hours so why? I challenged the council over a proposal to turn a part time one into full time and was told it was a “heath and safety issue”.

 

[Dr Sheldon]

Ohh I have opinions on everything but bus lanes and especially cycle lanes make me fume,

I thought you would !!

 

[Mike@Gendan]

And 24 hour bus lanes, like WTF! The buses don’t run 24 hours so why?

[Devil'sAdvocate] But, aren't the roads quieter anyway at the times when buses aren't running, so fewer lanes needed... [/Devil'sAdvocate]

 

[Dr Sheldon]

[Devil'sAdvocate] But, aren't the roads quieter anyway at the times when buses aren't running, so fewer lanes needed... [/Devil'sAdvocate]

Yes - Wise Words !!

The problem is during Rush Hour - If a Bus lane is required then build one, dont go thieving a lane from the motorist !!

 

[Crasher]

Most of the bus lanes I came across just cause congestion, bus lanes are Communist! One that really prickles though is people not using a part time bus lane when they can, moronic sheep!

 

[PetrolDave]

One that really prickles though is people not using a part time bus lane when they can, moronic sheep!

Totally agree! I used to use the part time bus lane on Bursledon Road in Southampton to/from work in Hamble, it saved me easily 15 minutes driving past the sheep!

 

[Mike@Gendan]

Most of the bus lanes I came across just cause congestion, bus lanes are Communist! One that really prickles though is people not using a part time bus lane when they can, moronic sheep!

Signs like this don't help...

 

[Crasher]

No that one doesn't help at all (in fact leads me to suspect entrapment) but the one that winds me up in Nottingham says Mon-Fri 4 - 6pm, 10 hours of the week so the other 179 hours a week it isn't.