T5.1 SE 180hp DSG

[willwander]

The principle is the same. With the right tools and experience it shouldn't be any more difficult.

Easy till you break one. Then, not so much.

 

[Corradobrit]

Easy till you break one. Then, not so much.

Not something I would do myself in the garage.

 

[Steve1]

Not something I would do myself in the garage.

Some of this is an education to me, I am amazed that anyone selling a vehicle would allow any of these things to be done. Most won't have even heard of the problems described on here and surely would be surprised to be asked for something like this wouldn't they. I know it's a bit different with a trader, but if I was selling a car / van and someone asked me if they could take it to a garage for a compression test or oil sample I would think they were trying to con me. I would be too embarrassed to ask the other way round, I would expect to be told where to go.
Do people really ask for these things and get a positive reaction from sellers ?

 

[Corradobrit]

Some of this is an education to me, I am amazed that anyone selling a vehicle would allow any of these things to be done. Most won't have even heard of the problems described on here and surely would be surprised to be asked for something like this wouldn't they. I know it's a bit different with a trader, but if I was selling a car / van and someone asked me if they could take it to a garage for a compression test or oil sample I would think they were trying to con me. I would be too embarrassed to ask the other way round, I would expect to be told where to go.
Do people really ask for these things and get a positive reaction from sellers ?

Maybe a regional thing. It's common to get a PPI (pre purchase inspection) when buying a used vehicle (from dealer and private sale) in the US. For 90 quid its cheap insurance that there are no hidden issues.

 

[WelshGas]

Maybe a regional thing. It's common to get a PPI (pre purchase inspection) when buying a used vehicle (from dealer and private sale) in the US. For 90 quid its cheap insurance that there are no hidden issues.

Common in the U.K. as well, but doesn’t include Oil analysis or Compression check.

 

[willwander]

Some of this is an education to me, I am amazed that anyone selling a vehicle would allow any of these things to be done. Most won't have even heard of the problems described on here and surely would be surprised to be asked for something like this wouldn't they. I know it's a bit different with a trader, but if I was selling a car / van and someone asked me if they could take it to a garage for a compression test or oil sample I would think they were trying to con me. I would be too embarrassed to ask the other way round, I would expect to be told where to go.
Do people really ask for these things and get a positive reaction from sellers ?

Do you need a positive reaction from the seller? It’s the buyers money and quite a lot of it.

 

[Steve1]

Do you need a positive reaction from the seller? It’s the buyers money and quite a lot of it.

No but you do need permission to take a vehicle away and let someone they don't know take a set of spanners to it without paying any money for it. That's alot more than a pre-purchase inspection. That's what I mean by positive reaction rather than telling you they are not interested. Perhaps these things are common place though, I am genuinely interested if people have been successful with this in the UK as I guess it may be different in other countries ? Who pays for the work ? Who pays if the work leads to a more expensive bill than expected because of stuck or broken parts ?

 

[BerndRos]

Buyer Beware !

SO, a buyer has the right to inspect prior to purchase and handing over hard money

 

[2into1]

No, It's not normal to do all those checks, but the OP wants a 180 and is aware of the risks.... So finds themselves in a dilemma. They won't know the seller's response until they ask. If the seller refuses the checks then the OP will have to weigh up their next move.

 

[Ozzy Pete]

Why put yourself under all this stress when you can get a 140 and remap it to a 180 without the future worries. you don’t need over 200 BHP and a top speed of 120 mph. It’s a campervan. Speed limits in the UK are 70 mph and in most of Europe 80 mph.
Here in Wales most built up areas from September will have a speed limit of 20 mph. Many sections of the M4 are 50mph with Average speed cameras everywhere. In France apart from motorways most roads are 80 klms an hour. And will only get lower.
Buy a 140 get it remapped and enjoy your investment.

 

[montyburns1982]

Why put yourself under all this stress when you can get a 140 and remap it to a 180 without the future worries. you don’t need over 200 BHP and a top speed of 120 mph. It’s a campervan. Speed limits in the UK are 70 mph and in most of Europe 80 mph.
Here in Wales most built up areas from September will have a speed limit of 20 mph. Many sections of the M4 are 50mph with Average speed cameras everywhere. In France apart from motorways most roads are 80 klms an hour. And will only get lower.
Buy a 140 get it remapped and enjoy your investment.

It’s not really about top speed but more about torque and acceleration, that’s why I always have the biggest engine I can afford. It helps massively when overtaking pulling out of junctions etc.

I’ll know more when I’ve test driven it, so far all I’ve ever done is sat in the drivers seat of a Cali.

Also, the only half decent ones I’ve seen within reasonable distance have all been 180s, I don’t fancy buying from a dealer 100s of miles away.

In an ideal world I’d get. 204hp T6 but they are about 10-15k outside of my budget.

 

[Steve1]

Also, the only half decent ones I’ve seen within reasonable distance have all been 180s, I don’t fancy buying from a dealer 100s of miles away.

That's exactly the point that is often missed here.
Unless you want to drive 100s of miles, it's nice to pick from a reasonably local van that you can go and look at and take your time with, and when doing that, choice is obviously more limited. When I was looking I would say that most of the 2014/2015 SE vans available were the 180, I guess lots of people buying an expensive van must pick the top engine option.
When we went to view our one, it was so nice and well looked after and nice to drive, that we would have taken it home whatever engine option it had.
I do occasionally have that slight worry in the back of my head about it, but only because I keep coming on this forum and clicking on posts like this. It's a bit like poking yourself with a needle and then wondering why it hurts In the real world most people haven't even heard of this problem, including our local independent VW specialist who have a good reputation and have been trading for years. Their comment was, lots of cars can develop oil burning issues and require engine work as they get older, sometimes you just get unlucky, but they have seen no more 180s than any other vehicle they work on. That was good enough for me.

 

[Vagophile]

It helps massively when overtaking pulling out of junctions etc.

Don't want to add to your concerns, but there's quite a bit on here about sluggish reaction of DSGs, especially pulling away from junctions. (There are remedies)

 

[Corradobrit]

Don't want to add to your concerns, but there's quite a bit on here about sluggish reaction of DSGs, especially pulling away from junctions. (There are remedies)

Doesn't happen all the time, but its a thing. I just drive accordingly.

 

[WelshGas]

Most owners don't understand what and how the DSG works. It is not an Auto box with a torque converter but basically 2 sequential gear boxes with automatic clutches computer controlled depending on engine and road speed.
If its not in the correct gear when you put your foot down there will be a lag while it changes to the correct gear. This can be easily overcome by adapting your driving style to work with the DSG.

 

[montyburns1982]

Don't want to add to your concerns, but there's quite a bit on here about sluggish reaction of DSGs, especially pulling away from junctions. (There are remedies)

People say the same about the lag on the Jag box, I must have adapted really quickly to it as I find it's excellent.

 

[montyburns1982]

That's exactly the point that is often missed here.
Unless you want to drive 100s of miles, it's nice to pick from a reasonably local van that you can go and look at and take your time with, and when doing that, choice is obviously more limited. When I was looking I would say that most of the 2014/2015 SE vans available were the 180, I guess lots of people buying an expensive van must pick the top engine option.
When we went to view our one, it was so nice and well looked after and nice to drive, that we would have taken it home whatever engine option it had.
I do occasionally have that slight worry in the back of my head about it, but only because I keep coming on this forum and clicking on posts like this. It's a bit like poking yourself with a needle and then wondering why it hurts In the real world most people haven't even heard of this problem, including our local independent VW specialist who have a good reputation and have been trading for years. Their comment was, lots of cars can develop oil burning issues and require engine work as they get older, sometimes you just get unlucky, but they have seen no more 180s than any other vehicle they work on. That was good enough for me.

Steve, I saw a really nice Cali Berghaus exceptional condition with all the original accessories, but its over 100 miles from my house.

I'm not bombing up and down the M5 if I have a fault, I'd rather buy from a local(ish) dealer so if, worst comes to the worst, I don't have too far to travel.

When I bought the Jag I broke this rule and bought it from Poole (I'm in Leics!) my thought process was that it came with a Jag warranty, so I could take it to my local garage if I had issues.

I won't have this luxury with the Cali. I went to see an approved used 180 SE at Parkway Leicester and frankly, for 41k, I thought it was quite shabby (some questionable mods too). Most others I'm interested in are at independent dealerships.

 

[ArunAlec]

I've had a T5.1 180 since new from 2015.
I would not bother with a re-map; at the end of the day its a camper van and its surprisingly quick off the mark anyhow - try it in Sport mode and it will outrun any other van.
Buy a control panel and tap as these will fail, otherwise had no issues.

Agree, my 2013 DSG 180, was plenty fast enough. I rarely used the power available and when I did the sound of crockery and tins crashing against cupboard doors made me ease off!

 

[WelshGas]

Agree, my 2013 DSG 180, was plenty fast enough. I rarely used the power available and when I did the sound of crockery and tins crashing against cupboard doors made me ease off!

Half a dozen large car wash sponges will solve that and allow the horses to gallop.

 

[Ozzy Pete]

It’s not really about top speed but more about torque and acceleration, that’s why I always have the biggest engine I can afford. It helps massively when overtaking pulling out of junctions etc.

I’ll know more when I’ve test driven it, so far all I’ve ever done is sat in the drivers seat of a Cali.

Also, the only half decent ones I’ve seen within reasonable distance have all been 180s, I don’t fancy buying from a dealer 100s of miles away.

In an ideal world I’d get. 204hp T6 but they are about 10-15k outside of my budget.

I can assure you the difference is quite dramatic. Whereas the original 140 torque reading was around 335 Nm + 2300 revs it is now 440 Nm + 2300 revs which is over 30% improvement. And is more torque than the standard 180 by 40 Nm.
Don’t expect it to be like driving a Jag because it won’t be. It is a campervan that weighs 3 tonnes after all.

 

[montyburns1982]

I can assure you the difference is quite dramatic. Whereas the original 140 torque reading was around 335 Nm + 2300 revs it is now 440 Nm + 2300 revs which is over 30% improvement. And is more torque than the standard 180 by 40 Nm.
Don’t expect it to be like driving a Jag because it won’t be. It is a campervan that weighs 3 tonnes after all.

I'm not expecting it to drive like the F Pace, only an idiot would think that it will!

However, it looks to me like going for the 180 engine with the potential future Pendle remap to 205hp+ will meet my needs.

Many thanks for the advice.

 

[Ozzy Pete]

I'm not expecting it to drive like the F Pace, only an idiot would think that it will!

However, it looks to me like going for the 180 engine with the potential future Pendle remap to 205hp+ will meet my needs.

Many thanks for the advice.

One thing I’m not is an idiot neither are most on this site. Just experienced with everything California.

 

[montyburns1982]

One thing I’m not is an idiot neither are most on this site. Just experienced with everything California.

Not sure I said you were? Just making the point that nobody with a working brain would think a 3 ton van will drive the same as a sporty SUV, regardless of engine fitted.

The reason I'm on this site is to seek guidance from Cali owners like yourself.

 

[sbmcd]

I have a 2014 180 bi turbo with 125 k miles on a D EGR. .25 - .5 lit of oil between 12k services and still drives like new.

An oil test will be useful providing the oil has done a decent milage, useless if not.

If it was me I'd be interested to know what service intervals it's had, if it's 12 monthly of 12 k miles I'd be comfortable with that, I'd not be so happy if it has been getting extended service intervals.

I decided to fit an EGR emulator to mine at 117k as a precaution. Oil test before fitting was within spec for the EGR issue.

I love my van, and expect to see over 200 k from this one.

 

[derek_j_buchanan]

The “issues” referred to with the 180 are overstated in my opinion and amongst mechanics I have spoken to. All diesel engines need regular servicing and oil changes - the introduction of long life service intervals gives rise to issues which is why I have always had mine serviced annually. My 180 has been an excellent vehicle and trouble free.