prn31's Biscay Blue MY10.5 R36 Wagon

[prn31]

For those who haven't seen my posts in the newbies corner where I wrote about the trials and tribulations of finding a late Biscay Blue R36 wagon, I have cut and pasted some of what I wrote there into a dedicated thread on the Passat B4 forum.

So to summarise my hunt. I test drove an MY10 wagon that lasted less than a day on Carsales. I was the second caller and the R36 was sold to the first caller, who posts here. Hi Luongie...

Then there was the Adelaide MY10.5. I made an offer and then the seller decided to keep the car. Seems that he and his wife couldn't agree on a replacement vehicle - so they kept their R36....

In the meantime I was on the trail of an MY10.5 R36 wagon with less than 80K that had been added by a Sydney dealer the previous Saturday evening. No photo or even colour was mentioned, but it had a sunroof, sat nav and power tailgate. It was categorised with the blue coloured cars but I had to get the dealer to send me a photo to confirm it.

We went to the dealer and looked it over before anyone else. The buyer was there and he told us that the blue MY10.5 (4/10 build and 6/10 compliance) and the silver MY09 (wagon) next to it had belonged to directors from the same company. They had both been traded at the nearby Audi dealership the day before. Neither car had been detailed, but the blue R36 was in better condition – plus had more options( MY09’s only option was a powered tailgate) for only $1K more. It also had the dark tint, factory towbar and weather deflectors. The only faults were the driver’s seat bolster which needed repair plus a crank sensor that was going to be replaced. It drove well so we did a deal with 6 months rego (it was about to expire) for the advertised price and I added another 6 months to the price.

That was last weekend and today I picked up the R36 - all detailed and ready to go.

The buyer was pretty upfront with what was done on the car before I picked it.

They effectively replaced the whole bolster - looks pretty good!

They serviced the car - oil and brake fluids, filters plus new front rotors and pads. The rears were good. The other replacement part was the air flow sensor and not the crank angle sensor as previously thought.

The brakes felt a lot better and it drives well - though there are a couple of minor rattles that I need to find.

The other surprise was discovering that it had other options that weren't advertised. It has factory Bluetooth (I presume it is the 9W7) and it has Adaptive Cruise Control with Front Assist - a very expensive option! Sadly there is no DCC or Dynaudio....

Buying from a dealer (an independent prestige one) wasn't my first choice - but I'm happy I did. They have to issue a 3 month warranty so the cars have to be up to the mark - and the guys there knew I was very particular.

The plan is to install an RVC and just enjoy it. So far so good...

[luongie]

Hi Paul, hope you're enjoying the new ride!! I'm looking at eventually getting the bolsters repaired eventually - any chance the dealer shared with you who repaired these and the potential costs? Presumably there may be other people who may be interested apart from myself. Cheers

[snerlo]

Welcome to the 36 club guys. I have personally installed a RVC into my wagon so check my thread out and it'll give you an idea as to what is involved. I have also created several threads on small mods so check them out as well in case you are interested.

[kamold]

I'm going to have to get a scan of parts from you at some point. Pie in the sky I'd like to retrofit radar cruise some day. Need to know what ABS module, gateway, CECM, CCM etc you have.

[prn31]

Hi Paul, hope you're enjoying the new ride!! I'm looking at eventually getting the bolsters repaired eventually - any chance the dealer shared with you who repaired these and the potential costs? Presumably there may be other people who may be interested apart from myself. Cheers

The dealer has an upholstery guy they call up to do rectifications - the buyer showed me a couple of cars on the lot where he had worked his magic.

The cost was $290, which is obviously a trade price. I would imagine any good upholstery guy could do the work. Part of my leather was replaced and I think that is easily matched - I reckon the San Remo micro fibre would be another story. The upholsterer was under strick instructions not to touch this material...

[prn31]

Welcome to the 36 club guys. I have personally installed a RVC into my wagon so check my thread out and it'll give you an idea as to what is involved. I have also created several threads on small mods so check them out as well in case you are interested.

Hi Snerlo, I looked through some of your posts and see that you bought your RVC from Vincent here in Sydney. I will do likewise and get him to fit it too. Whilst I'm handy with some things, electricals is not my forte plus I think it needs a bit of coding.

I note in your signature that you had an AU XR8. I actually have an AU Series III Fairmont V8 wagon - a rare car. Whilst I love it, it is bigger than I really need now (I bought it for towing but ended up carting a baby around - such is life) plus it is really too thirsty. So it is going on the market shortly along with my Honda Integra (DC2) Type R, which I've owned since new. It's a young man's car not really suited for family life. The R36 is a replacement for both of these - the power of the Fairmont and the sportiness of the Integra - all in one car!

[prn31]

I'm going to have to get a scan of parts from you at some point. Pie in the sky I'd like to retrofit radar cruise some day. Need to know what ABS module, gateway, CECM, CCM etc you have.

Sure, not a problem - I don't really know what half of those aconyms are.

I've got to learn how to use the Cruise Control before I even attempt to try out the ACC.

One thing that has got me stumped is the OPS. I know all our cars have front and rear parking sensors, but did the MY09 plus cars get the graphical display, which is part of the OPS? Carsales says it is a standard feature but the MY10 brochure say it is an option. All I know is that when I press the P button and put the car in reverse there is no graphical display at all, infact I don't even think the sensors are working? It does have a factory tow bar, but I don't think that has anything to do with it? Any suggestions?

[kamold]

Might have to check your coding, it should definitely be displayed on the head unit.
Come and see me some time and we can check it out.

[tinto]

$290 is a great price for bolster repair.
I was quoted $700+ so let it slide.

[prn31]

Might have to check your coding, it should definitely be displayed on the head unit.
Come and see me some time and we can check it out.

Thanks kamold, I might take you up on that offer - will send you a PM.

I'd also like to change the digital speedo display in my MFD from miles to kilometres, but I can't see how I can change it...