Recently needed VCDS Diagnostics and was very frustrated to find no mobile mechanic able to offer me that service around my area - not even Collumpton, Newton Abbot or Torquay. No-one I could drive to and no-one who could come to me. I got so frustrated I dipped into my overdraft to buy a very expensive piece of kit, which to be honest is absolutely excellent but very old-style GUI and mysterious. Anyway after being disappointed it wasn't just an easy thing to run the diagnostics properly, I have learned it and now I am thinking I might like to offer a service to others who are in the same boat as I was, and hopefully recover some of my cost by offering fairly priced service complete with logs of reports. Would members here express whether VCDS service from a mobile owner is something that would interest them. I can't say I can get to everyone who might want such a service. It may be the case, that as I could not get such service myself, there's actually little call for it and others have already explored this. Certainly interested to hear from all you guys interested and those who have benefitted from using VCDS. You might perhaps say what you were able to achieve with your car, Do say what car as different models and variants can have very different options available for VCDS to access.

You probably want to get yourself added to the VCDS owners list and map:

- https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/262215-list-of-vcds-owners-previously-known-as-vag-com-vcp-owners/

- https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/224376-vcds-owners-map/

 

 

That way, if other local members are looking for a few VCDS tweaks or a diagnostic scan, they'll be able to find you more easily 

 

I've used VCDS for a few years now, mostly for retrofits/tweaks on friends, briskoda members and my own vehicles. What's possible will depend on which platform the car is based and what modules are fitted - it's down to you or the person asking for help to have done some research for a particular car/configuration. There are plenty of guides online

 

My only real advice is to take backups first and not touch anything potentially irreversible, for example, byte 18 on PQ35 cars or speed limiters...

Many thanks for that guidance langers2K. Its a great help. I didn't know the group existed.

 

The byline in your profile about increasin mileage is interesting. I had to get a replacement cluster because the leds were failing, or rather the solders were bad and they'd flicker on an off, but when I asked different workshops to do this, they either wouldn't or I got the impression they thought I was up to something. But I've never heard of clocking cars up!