My A6 C8 is a lovely car but regularly throws up warnings. Most are spurious but some have resulted in real failure. The recent one was an air suspension fault which the local garage fixed but they say some of the faults need the main dealer to diagnose as their system cannot read all the details. I was thinking of buying the Ross Tech software so when I get a fault I can do the first diagnostics myself and then decide if it’s a job for the local garage or the main dealer. Both are good but one is more expensive. So the question is can the Ross tech Software get all the information and if not what are the limitations? For example I need a new front parking sensor, can it identify which one and calibrate it?

Ross-Tech is VCDS, available from Gendan. Starts around £225 for USB dongle and lifetime updates for 3 VIN licence. You’ll need an old laptop to run it on.

When you scan the car then VCDS reads all the modules and you can clear DTC codes if present, then rescan. It the DTC fault remains (it lists priority and when it first occurred), then there’s a physical fault, mechanical or electrical and it will need resolved.

I moved away from main dealers years ago. They are £180 an hour and most of the techs these day lack the investigative nouse to diagnose and instead work from an Audi technical script or throw the parts cannon at it in the hope it resolves the issue.

First thing would be to scan the car, ensuring battery is in top condition. These cars are sensor heavy, so any drop in power will throw up an issue.

Regards parking sensors, not unusual to have a defective one. They are made by Valeo. It’s plug and play, clear faults and see if that resolves it. Normally front bumper off to fit (easier than you think). You can swap sides too. No coding as such to calibrate. 

Certain components are security protected, such as certain second hand parts, MMI, ECU, etc.  That needs dealer level ODIS to remove.

If you’re not particularly tech savvy you can post error codes on Ross Tech forum and wait for a response.

Thank you. You say ‘an old laptop’ is that because of compatibility or just that using it in the garage is detrimental?

I will definitely buy the Ross Tech software, I wish I had years ago as it would have saved me a load of time 

1 hour ago, Ian123 said:

Thank you. You say ‘an old laptop’ is that because of compatibility or just that using it in the garage is detrimental?

I will definitely buy the Ross Tech software, I wish I had years ago as it would have saved me a load of time 

Hi Spartacus is correct on every level even the suggestion of using an old laptop the reasoning behind this is that an older laptop equipped with windows eleven and used solely for your diagnostic program will run much faster than if you had it on say a Mac with all your personal stuff on it plus uploading your VCDS is more straightforward, I have an old DELL Latitude which works really well, fortunately your car is pre 19 when all the SFD bull started so you will be amazed by what you can do.

Steve.

Old laptop, in the respect, I’m out on the driveway and VCDS doesn’t need anything fast to run it.

To be fair, VCDS updates pretty much every time I use it, so top tip, run it in the house before you use it, rather than braving it on a Baltic day while it searches for a signal!

Thanks. Now ordered a three vehicle license. 

Interesting software seems to be able to get loads of diagnostic information from the car but I am struggling to find where to turn this data into information to fix it.

So from the main scan the error B10FC F0 comes up and if i clear it and drive the car it comes straight back, so a real error.

So if I get the data from the actual controller  even more data. But not sure where to look to find out what the data means - its likely to be a hardware fault but which bit! 

I tried the Ross Tech Wiki but this doesnt seem to give any simple way to translate, am I missing something obvious?

So the actual controller data appears to be mainly the firmware updates rather than diagnostic fault data. 

So the info from the main scan is:

233472 - Parking Sensor(s); Front 
          B10FC F0 [00001000] - Function Limitation due to External Factors
     

I assume the B10FC F0 is the useful data, web based AI suggests the F0 means all the sensors are good!

2 hours ago, Ian123 said:

So the actual controller data appears to be mainly the firmware updates rather than diagnostic fault data. 

So the info from the main scan is:

233472 - Parking Sensor(s); Front 
          B10FC F0 [00001000] - Function Limitation due to External Factors
     

I assume the B10FC F0 is the useful data, web based AI suggests the F0 means all the sensors are good!

Sorry my old fruit you often have to google fault codes but at least you have real codes to google, these cars are always full of erroneous codes, in fact I think they have a code for the wind blowing the wrong way LOL.

Steve.

Thanks. It does seem a bit annoying to have some much data available but no central reference but that seems to be the norm with German software 🙂

19 minutes ago, Ian123 said:

Thanks. It does seem a bit annoying to have some much data available but no central reference but that seems to be the norm with German software 🙂

Hi it gives you the code and when it occurred, what time it occurred, and how many times it has occurred as well as an unlearning counter which gives the amount of drive cycles before it deletes itself, can't ask for more really.

Steve.

Indeed VCDS is a very valuable bit of kit, but the data only gets you far. 

For front sensors, remove the bumper. Not as scary as it sounds. You can check wiring especially connectors for corrosion. In the meantime, order a genuine replacement Valeo front PDC sensor. They come unpainted, but more on that later. 

If the wiring checks out, replace the sensors individually with the replacement one. Ignition on and check VCDS for errors. On PDC sensors, there's a slight pulse to touch.

I spent ages on my wife's BMW i3 tracing similar fault. It has PDC and PMA (park maneuver assist) sensors as the damn thing can park itself. 

To paint the sensor, remove the rubber ring on it first. Wipe with rubbing alcohol. Use a cardboard cut out as a mask. Couple of light coats of plastic primer. 2-3 lights colour coats. On last colour coat, before it flashes (dries) apply first lacquer coat. Apply a further 2 coats. Leave to dry for 24 hours in warm room. Add rubber ring on it. Job done.

All now fixed. The sensors can be replaced without taking off the bumper. In my case the actual faulty one was on the corner, just take the 6 visible torx T25 screws out of the lower side and corner of the wheel arch liner and put a hand in the gap; unclip the sensor (took a bit of effort as the clips are strong and difficult to get purchase, see note below). Then withdraw and unplug. Plug in the new one and refit. A bit of silicon grease helped the new one in as it was a tight fit.

The inner front one was damaged but still worked; but replaced just in case. Can be accessed thru the grill with small fingers.

For both a bit of strong nylon string looped around the clip and pulled from below gently allowed the sensor to be pushed out, on the one in grille it was simple but for the one on the corner fed it up thru a handy slot in the plastic.

Overall time to change about 10mins each one.

Congratulations.