Twelve Rings

So I'm poised to order an Abt Stage 1 from Strat, but after perusing the forums and some of the archives, I am still unsure about a few of the necessary/unnecessary processes that go along with it. So here's the deal:

They tell me I can just swap it out and I'm ready to go, but don't I need to sweep codes et al prior to taking it in for service? If so, who in the hell can I get to do that if Strat is in NY and the car is out here in NorCal? Is a VAG purchase my only option? I mean, I've got Garret (DynoSpot) and MTM (Terry in Berkeley) here locally, so is it absolutely critical that I have support close to home? What else, if anything, do I need to do?

Also, the Strat rep mentioned that "you will have a power-fault code trapped in the ECU after the swap, but this will clear after several days of use, start-stop actuations." What exactly does this mean (in non-techy terms)?

Any feedback ASAP would be much appreciated. Need to make a final decision on this by Monday.

Muchas gracias.

WYSIWYG

go to the A4 forum and ask for the VAG tool locator database

xr4tic

Every time you swap, you'll get the power-fault code, but it does clear by itself eventually after a certain amount of driving cycles (not sure how many, a weeks worth maybe)

Ideally, you don't want that code stored when going for service, so you could either get your hands on a VAG-COM, or just drive stock for a week or two before you go in for service.

4kq

ask. Mine never have. The only smoking gun is if you trash the ecu cover screws. And, yes, you can buy them without trace.

Twelve Rings

the two remedies are to either drive stock for a week or two prior to service, or locate a VAG. Apprecite the info.