I tried looking for the eBay ad to link you but it's too old now. It was advertised as a brand new one. Correct part number for his too apparently.
My VAGCOM seemed pretty limited to what it could do beyond autoscan. Wondering if it's the USB lead side of it. He's not looking to spend a lot of money on it though, just enough to get it running right.
So are you saying that it'll likely not need replacing & just programming? IF it was to need replacing, is it hidden away & would require the engine ripping out or is it quite easy to get to?
EDIT: Sorry, just seen you said the problem is that it's not set up properly, not that it's faulty. My apologies - full of cold so am quite zombie like at the moment.