Variocam thoughts and questions

[Homeoboxter]

Sorry for the bad news. Did you get the alleged faulty solenoid back?

[sfkjeld]

Originally Posted by Homeoboxter

Sorry for the bad news. Did you get the alleged faulty solenoid back?

Naw, am sure they tossed it the first moment they could. Found a 5 year old recommendation for a shop nearby, on this forum. Called him, talked a pretty good game. Totally trashed the engine flush strategy. I should have trusted my hunch..... Made an appt to see him.

[blue62]

Originally Posted by sfkjeld

Naw, am sure they tossed it the first moment they could. Found a 5 year old recommendation for a shop nearby, on this forum. Called him, talked a pretty good game. Totally trashed the engine flush strategy. I should have trusted my hunch..... Made an appt to see him.

Keep us posted on the diagnosis and such.

[Homeoboxter]

Originally Posted by sfkjeld

Naw, am sure they tossed it the first moment they could. Found a 5 year old recommendation for a shop nearby, on this forum. Called him, talked a pretty good game. Totally trashed the engine flush strategy. I should have trusted my hunch..... Made an appt to see him.

Sounds great. Make sure the new shop documents what the previous shop (S Car Go in San Rafael?) did on your car. Using that you may want to file a claim to Better Business Bureau. A friend of mine got his money back in a similar situation when the shop charged him for replacing an expensive part in his car that was not faulty in the first place.

[sfkjeld]

Originally Posted by Homeoboxter

Sounds great. Make sure the new shop documents what the previous shop (S Car Go in San Rafael?) did on your car. Using that you may want to file a claim to Better Business Bureau. A friend of mine got his money back in a similar situation when the shop charged him for replacing an expensive part in his car that was not faulty in the first place.

Latest installment of the P1341 cam timing saga. After wasting $1500 for a solenoid I prob didn’t need and another $500 on a “engine power wash” that Prob no one ever needed, I Decided to ditch S Car Go. I took the car to Modderman Porsche in Mt View. Gave them the whole ugly story. The shop manager brought the car into their garage and came out 5 mins later with the explanation. The cam timing is 6deg off at idle. Needs adjustment, that’s all. Has nothing to do with the vario cam actuation. He explained why the CEL was thrown only when hot (I thought it was oil pressure) and why it was never thrown on a freeway. He did not understand why S Car Go didn’t pick it up. And unlike S Car Go he was confident enough to stand by the diagnosis.

Another annoyance was that I was never able to get the old solenoid from S Car Go, despite my documented request to receive all parts, made prior to work beginning. They “forgot”.

Was thinking of giving S Car Go a chance to make it right tho. Explaining all this to them. At least asking them to Cover the costs to R/R the valve cover. That cost is nearly $1000 alone in these shops. Or should I just have Modderman Porsche do the job and go the Better Business Bureau route to reclaim some of my loses?

[flmont]

I would give them the chance to refund some of the $$,.If you don't get the parts you requested ( I forgot ) isn't your problem,.so I think you should be compensated, I know modern engines can be difficult to diagnose but that's their world I'am not sure why they would charge you 500.00 to clean your engine,( seems a bit greedy).But that solenoid should have been in the trunk !

[Homeoboxter]

Originally Posted by flmont

I would give them the chance to refund some of the $$,.If you don't get the parts you requested ( I forgot ) isn't your problem,.so I think you should be compensated, I know modern engines can be difficult to diagnose but that's their world I'am not sure why they would charge you 500.00 to clean your engine,( seems a bit greedy).But that solenoid should have been in the trunk !

I agree, I would get it all refunded. The solenoid plus the labour. This particular part is very easy to inspect, even in the car, no need to remove it. So, they pull it (allegedly), and then instead of testing they just toss the old one, and then charge it on the customer... Amazing. Great service. At least now you know a reliable shop in MV. And we know which shop to avoid. Give them a chance to refund and if they disagree just go straight to BBB.

[sfkjeld]

Originally Posted by Homeoboxter

I agree, I would get it all refunded. The solenoid plus the labour. This particular part is very easy to inspect, even in the car, no need to remove it. So, they pull it (allegedly), and then instead of testing they just toss the old one, and then charge it on the customer... Amazing. Great service. At least now you know a reliable shop in MV. And we know which shop to avoid. Give them a chance to refund and if they disagree just go straight to BBB.

Getting my case in order to go back to the original shop. I just scanned thru this thread because I thought I read somewhere whether you need to r/r the cam cover to replace the solenoid. Can’t find it. Can the solenoid be replaced externally? Thanks again.