118TSI - General Discussion

[Rawcpoppa]

Questions about this engine. It has a knock sensor which adjusts engine firing I believe when it senses knocking. A friend of mine used Ron 92 octane mixed with Ron 95 octane (even though the manual states 95 is required) for about a year. He now has a cracked piston.

Are the two related? He argues that the engine will sort out itself and run with less power to avoid knocking. I'm thinking that the engine isn't a magician and knock still occurs but just reduced leading to his cracked piston. Engine is basically one year old.

Thoughts?


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[Ryan_R]

If he's going to ignore the fuelling instructions then of course he can expect issues, and he won't be covered by warranty either. I don't know anything about the knock sensor though.


Personally I only fill up with 98 RON, and would only put in a small amount of 95 to get me to the next metro petrol station.

[Diesel_vert]

We selected the Golf for its supposed reliability, but we were starting to really doubt this claim.

One buys a Euro car for many, many reasons.
Reliability is not one of them, however.

But rest assured, you are not alone - many owners of Audi, BMW, Mercedes and Mini are certainly not immune from motoring troubles either - and these marques aren't exactly unknown for expensive diagnosis and repairs for nothing, especially when the warranty expires!

Questions about this engine. It has a knock sensor which adjusts engine firing I believe when it senses knocking. A friend of mine used Ron 92 octane mixed with Ron 95 octane (even though the manual states 95 is required) for about a year. He now has a cracked piston.

Are the two related? He argues that the engine will sort out itself and run with less power to avoid knocking. I'm thinking that the engine isn't a magician and knock still occurs but just reduced leading to his cracked piston. Engine is basically one year old.

Thoughts?

Only to a certain extent.
He would definitely have to keep the engine revs down and the engine load to a minimum. Otherwise, engine damage is a near certainty - as the cracked piston illustrates.
Has your friend worked out whether the cost savings of using a blend of 92 & 95 RON petrol was worth it?

[Rawcpoppa]

One buys a Euro car for many, many reasons.
Reliability is not one of them, however.

But rest assured, you are not alone - many owners of Audi, BMW, Mercedes and Mini are certainly not immune from motoring troubles either - and these marques aren't exactly unknown for expensive diagnosis and repairs for nothing, especially when the warranty expires!



Only to a certain extent.
He would definitely have to keep the engine revs down and the engine load to a minimum. Otherwise, engine damage is a near certainty - as the cracked piston illustrates.
Has your friend worked out whether the cost savings of using a blend of 92 & 95 RON petrol was worth it?

Well the car is under warranty and I am not sure if the dealer has a way of knowing he used super unless the knock sensor readings are stored in memory.

Anyways he definitely did not keep revs to a minimum and I am sure he put the engine under high or max loads daily to and from work.

Here is the bit about the knock sensor for the 1.4 tsi engine





I'm surprised by the number of sensors and fail safes this thing has. Then again I am no car buff.

To the poster before Diesel_vert our country only has Ron 95 for our highest spec fuel and theses engines are built to suit. They aren't built for Ron 92 though. I guess he figured once the car "felt" ok with Ron 92 then he was in the clear...guess not!



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[kaanage]

The problem with rely on the knock sensors to allow running on lower octane fuel (than what the engine was designed for) is that the ECU will keep trying to run at its normal timing (and boost for a super/turbo charged engine) and will detune itself as a RESPONSE to knocking - it doesn't just stay detuned as it will keep testing to see if it can run as it is supposed to. This means that the engine will knock at a reduced rate just as you have surmised and damage will only be slowed, not prevented.

What your friend needs is a remap that runs with retarded ignition and lowered boost.

[Diesel_vert]

Well the car is under warranty and I am not sure if the dealer has a way of knowing he used super unless the knock sensor readings are stored in memory.

Anyways he definitely did not keep revs to a minimum and I am sure he put the engine under high or max loads daily to and from work.

I'm surprised by the number of sensors and fail safes this thing has. Then again I am no car buff.

To the poster before Diesel_vert our country only has Ron 95 for our highest spec fuel and theses engines are built to suit. They aren't built for Ron 92 though. I guess he figured once the car "felt" ok with Ron 92 then he was in the clear...guess not!

Yes, as long as you use the correct grade of fuel required (min. 95 RON) you can safely operate the engine without causing any undue damage.

But using the wrong grade or type of fuel is not a warrantable claim, and your friend should be praying that the dealer doesn't find out.

Though if the dealer feels inclined, I suppose they can just get a test sample from the fuel tank...

[Rawcpoppa]

Lol what my friend needs is a swift kick to the head. The money spent to remap would probably take a long while to be recouped in cheaper fuel.

I hadn't even considered the dealer taking a sample of his fuel to make a diagnosis. Initially I would say this dealer wouldn't go through the hassle but I realize alot of the procedures they do are simply done because VW insists that they do them...

On another note, not trying to stir up trouble but are there any known issues with the 118kw 1.4 tsi engine? I'll be receiving a mk6 Jetta in march and I would just like to know of what I should look out for as well as proper way to break in the engine.


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[brad]

Questions about this engine. It has a knock sensor which adjusts engine firing I believe when it senses knocking. A friend of mine used Ron 92 octane mixed with Ron 95 octane (even though the manual states 95 is required) for about a year. He now has a cracked piston.

Are the two related? He argues that the engine will sort out itself and run with less power to avoid knocking. I'm thinking that the engine isn't a magician and knock still occurs but just reduced leading to his cracked piston. Engine is basically one year old.

The knock sensor needs to detect a knock before it sends a signal to the ECU. The ECU will (probably) richen the mixture, wind the timing back & reduce boost pressure. After that it will try & put all these parameters back to the datum until it gets a knock signal again. Therefore your mate was driving along with the engine detonating most of the time (you can't hear it).

Minimum fuel requirement really is a minimum.

He must have been going through fuel like a crazy mofo because when my dealer gave me a free tank of fuel they put in 92ron & fuel consumption increased about 2L/100km & torque was noticeably reduced.

92ron is false economy from every aspect.

[Rockman]

Plenty of issues with TSI118 and DSG gearbox. If you do a search you will read all about the VW Golf lemons and lack of customer satisfaction that exists in the market.


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[Ryan_R]

So much for this being the *appreciation* thread