VCDS (VAG-COM) codes and programmable options for Golf Mk7

[Ryan_R]

Unsure on the Mk7, but on the Mk6 comfortline they are standard (but turned off by default).

Press 'recirc' once to turn it on (manual), press it twice to turn it on auto detect mode.

[readerr0r]

Unsure on the Mk7, but on the Mk6 comfortline they are standard (but turned off by default).

Press 'recirc' once to turn it on (manual), press it twice to turn it on auto detect mode.

Yup but what the setting does is remember it when you turn off the car. I think a few people mentioned their annoyance that when they switch on their car its forgotten whatever setting it was set to prior. Ie turn on your car it'll always be set to fresh air mode instead of auto recirc

[Ryan_R]

I assume it just remembers however it was set when you turned the car off, just like the 'remember heated seat setting' tweak.

[DV52]

In reading through the posts on this thread, it seems that VW has a real strange philosophy when it comes to optioning their vehicles. What's clear from the many posts here and on overseas forums is that the Golf mk7 (and I assume other VW cars) comes standard with a rich inventory of options already installed in the car regardless of the version purchased. However, many (if not most) of these options appear to be switched-off as a default.

The default-off strategy makes sense if VW then offer to switch-on these hidden options at a further cost to car buyers. However, to my knowledge, VW doesn't appear to do this for most (many) of the facilities mentioned on this thread (one exception being "Voice control" -at the outrageous price of $400-ish).

Why have all these goodies already installed in these cars and then have them switched-off as a default? It doesn't make sense. Can anyone shed light on this real strange sales strategy?

[Blabba]

@ Ryan_R, just let me know where to pick you up but your paying for your own lunch.

[Ryan_R]

You may find them on more expensive VW/Audi/Skoda/Seat cars in other countries. Control modules are often shared between various cars so the abilities are there somewhere.

They could also be disabled for legal reasons. What if someone got their body caught in the window which closed by itself when it started raining? Or ADR type issues. Or some of those features haven't been fully tetsed/QA'd. Perhaps the rain closing feature reduces the car battery life?

Just be happy you can make your car a bit more special than the next Golf.

[Eaglehawk]

Why have all these goodies already installed in these cars and then have them switched-off as a default? It doesn't make sense. Can anyone shed light on this real strange sales strategy?

Could the windows close on rain be an ADR related rule? That's the only reason I could see for such features being "disabled". But then, other features are enabled by default on other VW models...

Edit: Just saw the post from Ryan_R saying the same thing...DOH...should refresh more often

[DV52]

Ryan_R/Eaglehawk: Yeah, you could be correct about the ADR restrictions, but gee-there's lots of other stuff embedded in these cars that appear to have little if any impact on the Aussie design rules.

IMO, it's just a very odd thing to do commercially. Anyhow, I guess that the fact that these goodies have been turned-off has promoted VCDS product sales and it is also responsible for the kind of interest that is evident in forum threads like this one.

And yes, I agree Ryan_R, it does allow us to individualize our vehicles- which is a good thing!

[wasabiz]

But then again, ADR people has done their research to make the car 'safe'. If a kid stick his hands out and it started raining, the window starts to shut, he starts screaming, the parents panic, they try to help, they crash, and in the end, they blame the car manufacturer for having such a feature in the car that is a 5 star ANCAP rating. People in the higher chair would have done their thinking for what to put in and what not to, even though it's screwing us the car enthusiasts over, but they think about those who are not as well.

[Ryan_R]

Just to address that specific scenario, the windows only close automatically when:

(1) You've enabled the feature in VCDS and in the car menu
(2) The car is off
(3) The doors are locked
(4) The wiper stalk is in the Automatic position
(5) The Rain/Light Sensor (RLS) detects rain OR if x hours pass with no rain or no-one interacts with the car. Usually this occurs overnight in my experience.

[bloggo]

I have carried out all the mods for rain closing on my 2013 GT mk7 Golf and still it does not close the windows when wet.
Does anyone know why, as Ross Tech are unable to help?

[DV52]

I have carried out all the mods for rain closing on my 2013 GT mk7 Golf and still it does not close the windows when wet.
Does anyone know why, as Ross Tech are unable to help?

Bloggo: I've been reading about this tweak for some time on the overseas forums. I haven't tried the tweak myself because of conflicting reports made by some folk regarding the (in)ability of the Ross-tech cable to program the "RLFS" (Rain-Light-?-Sensor) unit on the MQB platform. Quite a few forums have made the claim that the only way to program the RLFS unit is via a VCP (VagCanPro) at the moment (i.e. not via Mr Ross's cable). I know nothing at all about VCP units, so I can't comment on this assertion. Also, I don't claim to be an expert on Mr Ross's cable (compared to the awsome expertise of some on VWW). However, purely as an exercise in logic are you using the latest VCDS software? You might try loading the latest Beta SW version and then trying again (in the hope that Mr Ross has updated his latest software to be more compliant with the MQB platform)

As I said, there are many conflicting statements made about this tweak as some have said that the tweak has worked on their Mk7 vehicles.

[bloggo]

Hello DV52, I have the latest software, I have tried beta and still I am unable to get this working. I have seen the reference to VCP but this would mean buying another unit, which is not economical. I am at a loss to understand why VCP can do this yet VCDS can't. I am rather disappointed that VCDS does not work and Ross Tech do not appear to have an answer. I have also noticed that when downloading the adaptation files there are many lines truncated in certain modules.

[bloggo]

Hello DV52, I have received an answer to my thread on the Ross Tech site which may be of benefit.

2013 Golf 7 coding problem

[DV52]

Hello DV52, I have received an answer to my thread on the Ross Tech site which may be of benefit.

2013 Golf 7 coding problem

Bloggo:Thanks for the information. The Ross-Tech posts pretty much confirm the reports that I had read on the European forums (about the VCDS cable's inability to re-code the RLFS on the MQB platform). I guess (hope) that it's just a teething problem with the new-ness of the mkVII chasis. To quote a famous BBC TV series- "in the fullness of time", I'm sure that this issue will be resolved. Until them, I reckon that we will both have to wind-up the car windows manually when it rains!

Edit: Bloggo: just had a better look at you autoscan report. You appear to have a fault on your air-quality -sensor. Why (surely it can't be related to the RLFS)?