WA GTi Caddy...and others

[GTREA]

Hello,

I run a small transport company here in Perth, and currently have about 3 VW's in the Fleet....including my little runaround below....and some Crafters.



Joined up here as I am looking to get into a MKVI GTi.

I drove the MKV GTi at the Nurburgring (Below) and was pretty impressed with it!





I was going to buy an R36 Wagon, but I cannot get the Mrs out of her Pathfinder which is due for replacement soon as we have two kids and we 'Need' 7 seats!..?

Still I have fun in it




so I figure she can keep that till it dies and I'll get the Golf GTi instead

I also have an R32 GTR




But it rarely see natural light....infact I think its service intervals are every 6 months at 0kms!

Anyway expect to see me in the MKVI Golf section asking Noob questions

[phaeton]

Welcome to VWW

Please post pics of the Crafter we have none on here

[GTREA]

Dont have to many of the Crafters unfortunately.



This ones a 2007 Crafter 35 LWB 100kw 6spd Manual......as this was the 1st Crafter I ordered I originally specced it up with everything ie 120kw, 3 seats, driving lights, overhang etc etc.....but the wait was getting rediculous so instead I just had to take this rather basic one from stock in Melbourne.

Electrics / lighting seems to be a problem with it, as I have been thru maybe 10 -15 headlight globes now, 5 or so clearance light globes, a few pan light globes, 2 sidelight globes....and one indicator globe last week.

VW say there is no problem however.................


Other than that a very good van........heres another (dodgy) pic I took when someone suggested his Hiace 6.0 was a big van.......ummm......No

[Treza360]

Welcome aboard. A nice collection of cars and photos there. Got a chuckle out of the big van photo down the bottom. Good stuff.
Cheers,
Trent

[Driven Threads]

Welcome GTREA.

Its always nice when newbies put effort into their first posts with pics and background info.

Good luck in your purchase of a mk6...I don't think you could go wrong with your choice.

[phaeton]

Yay a Crafter on VWW

I messaged someone on a Sprinter forum who knows these vans inside out hopefully he'll post a response about the light issue.

ps have you seen the Caddy Sportline ? http://vwgazette.blogspot.com/2008/0...ne-for-uk.html

[GTREA]

Thanks Phaeton

There has to be some sort of electrical spike / short somewhere?

It affects nothing but the lights.....I just bought another 5 x Headlight globes for it which reside in the glovebox (about $15 a pop from Supacheap)........I have changed that many now, although I can do it in the dark in under a minute....the connector is getting very loose and bent

I will have a new Crafter 50 here very soon....with all the fruit on it, I ordered it about 4 months ago....I'll be sure to post up some pics so as to make up the Crafter shortfall

As for the Caddy...yes I have seen the sportline and the TDi one they race in the UK....but it is my Neighbours recent aquistion of a Silver Caddy Maxi, with body coloured bumpers and soon to be R32 18" Wheels that will spur me on to finish mine off.

Y'know I cant be "Out Volkswagened" by my Neighbours

[Altered Sprinter]

Dont have to many of the Crafters unfortunately.



This ones a 2007 Crafter 35 LWB 100kw 6spd Manual......as this was the 1st Crafter I ordered I originally specced it up with everything ie 120kw, 3 seats, driving lights, overhang etc etc.....but the wait was getting rediculous so instead I just had to take this rather basic one from stock in Melbourne.

Electrics / lighting seems to be a problem with it, as I have been thru maybe 10 -15 headlight globes now, 5 or so clearance light globes, a few pan light globes, 2 sidelight globes....and one indicator globe last week.

VW say there is no problem however.................


Other than that a very good van........heres another (dodgy) pic I took when someone suggested his Hiace 6.0 was a big van.......ummm......No

Message received Thanks Ben;DRL burn outs globes headlamps etc is an indicator of the incorrect filament may not be the exact bulb so post numbers and I will match them up to OEM
I'd be interested as to which country they are manufactured in the print is on the bulb.
However Voltage spikes may be evident under-load and is a possible indicator as to brown out's
Test your voltage when lights of and nothing else is running at alt 14.2v full charge.
Turn lights and Drl's on and watch what is spiking on voltage if dropping below and staying at 12.4v down to high 11's then either your original battery is on it's way out or your alt may not be fully charging.
Suggest you go to a beattery shop and get a full prognostics check on both battery and alt trough it's charge holding sequences as to it's overall condition.
Note: providing you have not tapped into your Crafters electronics and added something else such as extra lighting internally,I'd suggest the wrong bulbs are being used.
This shows up consistently in the N/A NAFTA market in Winter periods in part heat on cold can create a premature failure due to extreme temperatures inside outside, again wrong bulb by wrong manufacture =poor quality or wrong wattage etc.
Sorry no pics or PDF's as I do not use a third party after-link such as image shack that can not be uploaded from my pc direct to the forum. PS aviator what's a dubber:>?
Richard

[phaeton]

That was quick posting Richard thanks

Good to hear from you (Hope yourself and the Sprinter is going well)

[Altered Sprinter]

That was quick posting Richard thanks

Good to hear from you (Hope yourself and the Sprinter is going well)

Thanks Ben Yes my 2005 is now five years old and not a single issue with it ever Just one fog brake lamp browned out plus a set of pads and rotors, that's when I noticed different manufactures from Orginal OEM lamps sold via mercedes of course but no issue with the different 5w lamp bulb.
I could suggest with the DRL side lamps dump them and put in LED as they last longer and use less wattage and they don't overheat either.
PS no Crafty Crafters sold in Hobart of late all campers are bought in from mainlands sales outlets. Jackson's problem no one know how to sell them
Richard

[GTREA]

Thanks for the reply Mr Altered Sprinter.

Low battery voltage could be an issue with mine as some clown (one of my drivers) left side lights on all weekend not long after purchase.

Sure enough come Monday morning battery was flat...a push start got it going that time, but has had two callouts since for flat batteries.

VW assist very good btw, with a 16 and 9 minute response time respectively!

As for the bulbs I have used various brands...initially from VW spares themselves.

BTW, I see a person in town who has an 08 LWB Sprinter, he had to replace his Brake 'discs' at 25'000kms...at some hugely exorbitant cost (which I forget now) and Mercedes would'nt cover under warranty!?

Is this an issue with Sprinters?

[Altered Sprinter]

Battery's life span whilst idle is dependent on what voltages trickling out./You have heard of the old Castrol adds Oils ain't oils and never are the battery's based on what you were given or on some rare occurrence custom ordered direct as to options for a delivery from overseas.
Battery size75 amp to 100amp,AGM or deep cycle White case Verda pre charged made in Argentina last up to ten years Black case Chinese made and charged in Oz before delivery.
Here is a link for voltage meters
www.master-instruments.com.au/news_article/46...
This one does almost the lot for under thirty two dollars shows battery start voltage from cold crank start,through to charge at idle. plus alt and temputure of battery in both c and F
What you need to be careful with is crank starting if lights are on and your battery will drop on a cycle start cold of 11.2-4v it will drop for a few seconds down to below 10.2 to high nines this cooks bulbs especially if heater is running and or air-con.
Brakes on the NCV Tin Mercedes and Crafters are all Mercedes either dual Bosch pistons or the huge single piston caliper on ATV non electronic ABS braking Note: the latter is not ESP ASR LOC ABS .such as from 2006 September onwards all are now full ESP Bosh electronics operated.
There is no warranty on brakes as to what is deemed fair wear and tear as to singular driver operations ,however on the 3500kg single wheel unit the pads are rated 2T series on the older mercs and Crafters 2006 backwards.
They can last on a hot footed get me here quick stop brake go around town runabout terrifying the neighborhood and wear out real quick Europe has three designated pads one Urban quick stop and the Highway longer term suitability but only for this operation. n 3 is what we got 2 T designed for passenger cars such as the Mercedes Vito or Transporter up to 3.2 T

Cost at the dealerships vary for replacement of [A] pads sensors and Rotors plus brake line flush, plus cleaning and inspecting the park brake drum and shoes plus changing of DOT 4 fluids and recalibration of the braking system prior to a ten minute break in period with on roads testing for bedding in the brakes via the ECU for best brake operation it's a two man job takes an hour to do, Price is almost 2000 dollars from a dealership totally of the show.
Save a dollar and by at the parts counter Fleet or trade discount 20% less go back to the service department and ask for labor only! Gee the price drops like a brick
Seriously MB do not make the rotors or pads Neither does MB go aftermarket A.OEM yes these are identical and carry after market warranty with them either 12 or 20 K can't remember or 12 months which ever comes first.The company MB VW uses is called Balfer Germany Pads front non metallic made in Italy rear made in Austria and those are metallic which contravenes Australian law as to asbestos content but less brake dust
However going to an authorized dealership fro servicing out side of Your local VW dealership cost for front and rear 1200 to 1350 dollars max now that is a huge difference,of course you need to trust the outlet. or do it your self if you have the knowledge and right tools to work with then the price is about $850 for the lot or less if you are able to get trade pricing.

Front brakes by rule of thumb wear two thirds quicker than the rear brakes
senors pick up maximum wear as the sensor wears to the wire and thus you have your dash board icon showing a circle of both rotor and pads,you have approx 300k before failure to replace: Note providing you have the same identical composite of pads on front and rear, otherwise both need to be replaced as the rear brake warning pads show up in less than 500 Kilometers.
Notation of interest and a warning to others beforehand If you have an older Crafter 2006 backwards with ATV brakes ,and the sensor wire is on the inside of your pads! When the light warning for brakes shows, you have less than one hundred kilometers before total failure,if front brakes goes metal to metal,and sounds like it's jamming up rotors, they will ether collapse the pads and weld them together thus requiring a caliper replacement.
Reason: the front outside pad wears before the inside pad on the front disc ,therefore the sensor wire ,rightly belongs on the outside pad facing the road,this can not be done on the rear! But it's not required.
Hope that explains brakes ,it's something dealerships will not tell the customer. We have movie clips on how to adjust that rear brake pad too ,Sprinter but it is the same as VW.
PS: without my pictures.
Richard

[tinto]

Welcome!
are the gtr pics from a superkhana? (speed dome?)
I've done a few of those

looks like a good collection of cars!

[MattyT]

Welcome to the forum, glad to have another WA member on board

Dare you to bring the crafter to the next vww crooze!

[geoff_gti]

Hahaha yep, what matty said
Welcome aboard!