Multiple Errors On Dashboard, Dealer Traces It To Coolant Shutoff Valve alone?

[allycat45]

I would be grateful for any advice on this subject please guys ...

My wife was driving the GTI ten days ago and parked the car and when she tried to turn it off she started getting multiple serious error messages on the dashboard and the car thought the ignition was still on even when she turned the car off and took the key out. It happened three times and she managed to video it on the last occasion. I have put a link to the video here, its about 3 minutes long with the errors starting at about 30 sec in:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/sj11ohyfajx9ae6/YX63WLA%20Golf%20GTI%20Errors%20Feb%202018.mov?dl=0

The errors coming up were, in order: Fault: Damper Control, Error: Bend Lighting (AFS), Error: brake. Workshop!, Error: electric parking brake, Ignition on!, Error: brake. Workshop!, Ignition on, Error: brake. Workshop!, Error: electric parking brake,

After getting out of the car and locking it, it seemed to right the problem before then repeating again after startup.

The following day the car seemed to have righted itself properly and the breakdown guy read the error codes and said there were some errors but he couldn't read them all and advised taking it to a VW dealer for a full diagnostic.

So a few days later I book it in for a £60 diagnostic and they call back for authorisation for 1.5 hours extra diagnostic at £150 which I gave them the go ahead for. After that they call to say there are signs of leakage around the coolant shutoff valve and that there is an N82 error code indicating there has been a problem there. They asked if I have been losing lots of coolant and I told them we had one warning a few months back about low coolant and that I topped it up with no more than a cup of water, and that is all. They recommended replacing the coolant shutoff valve for £103 part plus £150 labour plus VAT and said they would need to do more diagnostics after that to see if there were any other errors, but they would do that at no extra charge.

They have completed the work and asked me to come and collect it and when I asked what the full diagnosis results were, all the service lady will say is "the coolant shutoff valve was the problem and since all the systems are electric and linked then that is why you got the other messages. It's because it's all electrics." After asking to speak to a technician or the service manager, she put me on hold and then just repeated the same spiel. Now call me cynical, but is "It's because it's all electrics" a bit of a fobbing off in 2018 ?

Should I believe them ? Should I push for more explanation as to why all the serious errors came up ?

It seems odd that there were so many serious error messages but none of them were about coolant levels. I have had to replace the bend lighting bulbs on 2 occasions, plus the main xenon bulbs once, so is the car just throwing up an old fault into the dash becasue it has never been cleared in the memory ? I haven't had any of the other faults about brakes or dampers. I did have the low coolant warning, but it didn't throw that one back up with the others.

Did the car just have an epileptic fit of some sort but actually there is nothing else wrong ? VW say they are happy that there are no other faults and the car is fit and safe to drive, but of course "they can't guarantee that anything else won't go wrong as soon as I drive away".

Any thoughts or advice gratefully received. Thanks in advance

[golfdave]

This is why you buy VCDS or OBD11 pro...

you can fault log to dealer level...& more...

Those fault codes stated EPB etc are all for the ABS module ...& the damper control might throw the ABS codes also...but it cold & if the DCC throw a fit as its cold which they can do then it might throw the ABS unit codes...

I think the dealers ripped you off IMHO based on the warning messages you posted...

[mcmaddy]

Without knowing fully what's been done you can't just say the dealers ripped the OP off. Try speaking to the service manager and get him to explain fully what's been done. Did you not get a receipt?

[golfdave]

Without knowing fully what's been done you can't just say the dealers ripped the OP off.

Look at the video & look at the warning messages which apper in the MFD...all as the OP states....& the TPMS symbol is flashing in the dash...

Those are faults generated by the ABS unit...NOT the coolant system....

I know that certain systems are interlinked, but that means warning messages wil appear for all the interlinked systems including the primary fault system...if the coolant system is the primary soruce of the fault it would generate a warning mesage for the colant system....it did not....

Therefore the fault is in the ABS unit...especially to cause a flashing TPMS sysmbol....

I have had 9 control modules generate fault codes all becuse of the external air temp sensor was broken...all becuase they are interlinked...but the MDF was showing fault temp sensor ----- C...& the other 9 modules do require the temp sensor info....the DCC & ABS unnits DO NOT require the coolant sensor info...

Therefore the dealer ripped him of or gave him BS...

[mcmaddy]

I would agree with BS but the OP needs to get back in touch to find out for certain what's gone on. I hate it when you ask the service receptionist what's been done and they just look at the notes. I always ask to speak to either the master tech or the service manager.

[allycat45]

So here is the update ...

I picked up the car on Saturday morning and had told them in advance I wanted to speak to the technician or the workshop manager and the workshop controller was happy to sit down and talk to me about the car. He said he had viewed the video we sent him and they had run all the diagnostics they could and the only fault that needed any work was the replacement of the coolant shutoff valve.

He gave me a copy of the diagnostic printout which is only 2 pages. It shows the N82 coolant shutoff valve error and then a number of others, including tyre pressure warning which was a real fault and the rear tyres did need inflation, a few days before this issue arose. Not sure what all the others are or how they contributed to the whole picture. I have attached it here for reference:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/jl8cbrhqr2ivq3l/Golf%20GTI%20diagnostic%20printout_VIN%20Redacted.pdf?dl=0

He couldn't explain to my satisfaction why all the errors in the video came up beyond stating that because the modules are linked then that is why they came up. I agree with golfdave and mcmaddy that it sounds like BS, but not much more I can do I'm afraid.

In the end the bill was slightly less than I was expecting: £125 diagnostics, £103 valve, £10 coolant, £140 labour all plus VAT Total £453. It is the first significant bill we've had for the GTI in 5.5 years except two new sets of tyres so I guess it could have been worse.

Thanks for the advice and maybe this post will help someone else out in the future.

[golfdave]

So here is the update ...

I picked up the car on Saturday morning and had told them in advance I wanted to speak to the technician or the workshop manager and the workshop controller was happy to sit down and talk to me about the car. He said he had viewed the video we sent him and they had run all the diagnostics they could and the only fault that needed any work was the replacement of the coolant shutoff valve.

He gave me a copy of the diagnostic printout which is only 2 pages. It shows the N82 coolant shutoff valve error and then a number of others, including tyre pressure warning which was a real fault and the rear tyres did need inflation, a few days before this issue arose. Not sure what all the others are or how they contributed to the whole picture. I have attached it here for reference:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/jl8cbrhqr2ivq3l/Golf%20GTI%20diagnostic%20printout_VIN%20Redacted.pdf?dl=0

He couldn't explain to my satisfaction why all the errors in the video came up beyond stating that because the modules are linked then that is why they came up. I agree with golfdave and mcmaddy that it sounds like BS, but not much more I can do I'm afraid.

Right had a look at that...

Now you stated that the car had lost some small amount of coolant & the fault code is shown there...so they fixed that aspect of the car....

As for the error messages you show in the video relating to the brakes...those would have generated quite a few hard fault codes in the ABS modules & in others. The fact that the only one showing is one TPMS fault code in the ABS module is highly suspicious as that is only liked to the yellow warning light/icon on the dash which blinked..re low rea tyre pressure.

Coolant systems would NOT trip warning error messages in the MDF unless it shouted about the coolant system...yours did not....

Personally I recon they wiped the ABS fault codes for the error messages for the brakes & that's why they are not shown on the report.....again another dealer tech who has no idea how to use the equipment he has..

There also appears to be other various fault codes on the car according to that report....

Get OBD11 pro or VCDS & do your own diagnostics...

[topher]

if the N82 cracks internally and lets coolant in to the electrics you can get all sorts of weird and wonderful faults cropping up. It's on a particular sensor reference voltage circuit from the ecu which will be shared across multiple sensors and actuators. Recently had a seat leon do exactly that which lead to a faulty throttle body and then the o2 sensor died shortly afterwards.

[golfdave]

if the N82 cracks internally and lets coolant in to the electrics you can get all sorts of weird and wonderful faults cropping up. It's on a particular sensor reference voltage circuit from the ecu which will be shared across multiple sensors and actuators. Recently had a seat leon do exactly that which lead to a faulty throttle body and then the o2 sensor died shortly afterwards.

N82 has a two pin connector which further back goes into T14m (14 pin connector) which is one of the connectors in the TML location (under the battery/headlight area front right when looking at engine from front). From there it (N82 wires) only goes to the engine ECU

Can't find any wires for ABS unit connected to the T14m connector or that area at all!. So why is it bringing up ABS unit related error warning mesages???......FUBAR...

[maxie]

So here is the update ...



https://www.dropbox.com/s/jl8cbrhqr2ivq3l/Golf%20GTI%20diagnostic%20printout_VIN%20Redacted.pdf?dl=0



In the end the bill was slightly less than I was expecting: £125 diagnostics, £103 valve, £10 coolant, £140 labour all plus VAT Total £453. It is the first significant bill we've had for the GTI in 5.5 years except two new sets of tyres so I guess it could have been worse.

Thanks for the advice and maybe this post will help someone else out in the future.

this is what gets my goat £125 diog cost wth they plug a computer in ..no?