JAXRS6
March 2nd, 2004, 23:06
Those of you here for a while may remember my anger over four weeks of beast downtime, mostly waiting for an engine crank pulley from Germany. Turns out that part was in the US all the time, but the dealer and AoA didn't know it.
AoA told my dealer to order the pulley and provided a parts number. The dealer ordered it but Germany refused to send it (and may have taken some time to communicate that to AoA; I don't know, just guessing). Why? Because their records show the US already had the part. Again, my guess is that some time may have passed before discovering why: The part is the same engine crank pulley as is used on the 2.7T.
All this from the assistant service manager at my Florida Gulf Coast dealership, who said he practically pulled his hair out upon learning what happened. "The American and European divisions had bad communication and it trickled down to us, and of course you," he said today. He also said the work could have been done faster, but there was no paperwork to show the compatability of the part between the two engines. One result was a recent memo to US field managers, clarifying that more RS6 engine crank pulleys are right here if needed: Just use the one for a 2.7T.
As for me, I was a little steamed when I learned this, but I got over it quickly after realizing the outcome should help prevent similar mistakes in the future.
:) :)
BAD GAS UPDATE & QUESTION: Another issue I've ranted about is subpar performance blamed on bad gas (because the only computer-recorded symptom is sporadic misfiring of all 8 cylinders, plus there was carbon on the plugs). About a week ago some but not all of the driving symptoms showed up again. Hesitation and surging were there, in mild form, but no shuddering or idling/stalling issues. CEL went on, then off 13 miles later. Seems fine now. But I'm wondering ... does anyone know how/where I can get gasoline tested for water content, other contamination & the like? A Porsche survey of gasoline in the Sarasota market, apparently undertaken because of gasoline quality concerns, showed Exxon as the only acceptable brand there. Heat & humidity create storage challenges. But Exxon, and Mobil, have left my county & my home is about 50 miles from Sarasota -- which no longer has many Exxon stations either. And I wonder why those companies are leaving this growing market....
Then again, maybe this performance issue is more related to my mileage -- over 16K on my odo. My 15K maintenance apparently was the first in the US. Car ran great for first 12K miles, and my RS6 is the only one with this issue among 7 being serviced at this dealership.
But my main question for now is, how I can get proper testing for a sample of local gasoline? Obviously, gasoline cannot just be mailed to some lab. Any guess re cost to do same?
AoA told my dealer to order the pulley and provided a parts number. The dealer ordered it but Germany refused to send it (and may have taken some time to communicate that to AoA; I don't know, just guessing). Why? Because their records show the US already had the part. Again, my guess is that some time may have passed before discovering why: The part is the same engine crank pulley as is used on the 2.7T.
All this from the assistant service manager at my Florida Gulf Coast dealership, who said he practically pulled his hair out upon learning what happened. "The American and European divisions had bad communication and it trickled down to us, and of course you," he said today. He also said the work could have been done faster, but there was no paperwork to show the compatability of the part between the two engines. One result was a recent memo to US field managers, clarifying that more RS6 engine crank pulleys are right here if needed: Just use the one for a 2.7T.
As for me, I was a little steamed when I learned this, but I got over it quickly after realizing the outcome should help prevent similar mistakes in the future.
:) :)
BAD GAS UPDATE & QUESTION: Another issue I've ranted about is subpar performance blamed on bad gas (because the only computer-recorded symptom is sporadic misfiring of all 8 cylinders, plus there was carbon on the plugs). About a week ago some but not all of the driving symptoms showed up again. Hesitation and surging were there, in mild form, but no shuddering or idling/stalling issues. CEL went on, then off 13 miles later. Seems fine now. But I'm wondering ... does anyone know how/where I can get gasoline tested for water content, other contamination & the like? A Porsche survey of gasoline in the Sarasota market, apparently undertaken because of gasoline quality concerns, showed Exxon as the only acceptable brand there. Heat & humidity create storage challenges. But Exxon, and Mobil, have left my county & my home is about 50 miles from Sarasota -- which no longer has many Exxon stations either. And I wonder why those companies are leaving this growing market....
Then again, maybe this performance issue is more related to my mileage -- over 16K on my odo. My 15K maintenance apparently was the first in the US. Car ran great for first 12K miles, and my RS6 is the only one with this issue among 7 being serviced at this dealership.
But my main question for now is, how I can get proper testing for a sample of local gasoline? Obviously, gasoline cannot just be mailed to some lab. Any guess re cost to do same?