# Cam follower early replacement FSI



## bradeholley (Aug 11, 2016)

So I read enough cautionary tales about the cam follower in the 2.0T FSI motor (BPY engine code) that I figured I would get it replaced as a preventative measure by my trusted non-VW mechanic. 

Below are the photos of the follower removed at 84,000mi. The second photo is from Google and suggests my follower was a late stage 2 condition. Imminent failure was unlikely, but I slept a whole lot better knowing it was replaced. 

Purchased the part online and my mechanic charged one-hour labour. There are plenty of DIY videos out there and I would have done it myself if it wasn't the day before my summer vacation.


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## NotoriousVR6 (May 11, 2012)

Saved yourself a nightmare there. I didn't a few months ago, lol. Bought my 07 GTI in May, drove it for 2 weeks and was gonna do the cam follower but it had already failed and broke into pieces. Did some research, found out there's an extended warranty on the cam follower til 100,000 miles or 160,000 km. Mine was at 154,000 km luckily and I went to the dealer and they confirmed it's broken and under warranty. Then they told me they can't do the warranty work because my car is from the U.S originally and I live in Canada, so I'd have to go there to do it. I was pissed off. Called VW Canada and USA, both were useless and shoved me away pretty much, and said that I'd have to go to the states unfortunately. Did some more research and found out VW NA split to Canada and USA in 2008 or 2009, therefore my 2007 warranty should be honored. Called them back and told them that and they opened a case. A week or so later I get a call from VW USA, some lady who's been looking into my case and says sorry for everything that happened, the person you spoke to must have been new... and she tells me the best option she could give me is to do the work here, pay for it and then she'll reimburse it after I send her the receipts. I chose to do that, had my car at the dealer for like 4 days got a new head cylinder, hpfp, gaskets, etc.. came up to $7500 CAD. Reimbursement check took about 3 weeks to come in the mail but it was all there


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## bradeholley (Aug 11, 2016)

NotoriousVR6 said:


> Saved yourself a nightmare there. I didn't a few months ago, lol. Bought my 07 GTI in May, drove it for 2 weeks and was gonna do the cam follower but it had already failed and broke into pieces. Did some research, found out there's an extended warranty on the cam follower til 100,000 miles or 160,000 km. Mine was at 154,000 km luckily and I went to the dealer and they confirmed it's broken and under warranty. Then they told me they can't do the warranty work because my car is from the U.S originally and I live in Canada, so I'd have to go there to do it. I was pissed off. Called VW Canada and USA, both were useless and shoved me away pretty much, and said that I'd have to go to the states unfortunately. Did some more research and found out VW NA split to Canada and USA in 2008 or 2009, therefore my 2007 warranty should be honored. Called them back and told them that and they opened a case. A week or so later I get a call from VW USA, some lady who's been looking into my case and says sorry for everything that happened, the person you spoke to must have been new... and she tells me the best option she could give me is to do the work here, pay for it and then she'll reimburse it after I send her the receipts. I chose to do that, had my car at the dealer for like 4 days got a new head cylinder, hpfp, gaskets, etc.. came up to $7500 CAD. Reimbursement check took about 3 weeks to come in the mail but it was all there


Wow, what an ordeal! Good that you were persistent, but it shouldn't have to be that hard to get warranty work done. I bet it's running like a top now. 

I'm also in Canada, had the corrosion warranty (12 year) evaluated last week. Getting 4 new doors, hood, hatch, fender, both rear 1/4 panels. Looking forward to having a new body on this car. Though new under the hood would be nice too!


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## K2Keith (Sep 11, 2006)

Were you getting a code? My 07' gti at 88,433 miles is in limp mode with codes for high pressure fuel pump, fuel too lean and low fuel pressure. Called the dealer, confirmed the warranty is good to 120,000 miles or 2017. Said if that's what it is I will be covered. I had it towed with AAA so it's there for them first thing in the morning. I didn't want to drive it any more in case it makes things worse.


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## K2Keith (Sep 11, 2006)

Dealer called me and said it's all covered under warranty. She said just over $1000 in parts. Camshaft, cam follower, fuel filter, high pressure fuel pump.

She suggested to get timing belt done too while they were in there, but that's gonna cost $1300. I opted out for now because that just seems really high. There's some smaller VW shops around that are competitive that I think I'll shop around at if I keep the car to 100k.


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## bradeholley (Aug 11, 2016)

K2Keith said:


> Dealer called me and said it's all covered under warranty. She said just over $1000 in parts. Camshaft, cam follower, fuel filter, high pressure fuel pump.
> 
> She suggested to get timing belt done too while they were in there, but that's gonna cost $1300. I opted out for now because that just seems really high. There's some smaller VW shops around that are competitive that I think I'll shop around at if I keep the car to 100k.


Wow, lucky catch with the warranty. Put some $ away for the timing belt though. Mine is due within the year.

No fault codes on my cam follower. I changed it early and glad that I did. The damage that can come from such a simple part, no wonder there is a warranty for it.

Best of luck!


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## K2Keith (Sep 11, 2006)

It took a day and a half but car is running great. They also change the oil and oil filter for free as a part of this tsb.










Here is a link to the TSB from goapr 

http://tinyurl.com/zrqox57


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## NotoriousVR6 (May 11, 2012)

so wait, was your cam follower broken? or was it just concaved in?


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## K2Keith (Sep 11, 2006)

They didn't say. I'm not sure but it runs smoothly. Though just today I got a new code:
P0100 Mass or Volume air flow "A" circuit .

Pending code:
P0171 System too lean bank 1.

Gee what's the coincidence that there's a hairline crack in the MAF sensor wire and moving it from doing the repair plus 24 hours of driving was enough to break it?

I guess a common problem is right at the bend where the MAF cable clips it sometimes breaks. It never ends.


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## NotoriousVR6 (May 11, 2012)

I hope your cam follower was in one piece and not broken. Cuz once it breaks, they gotta change your head cylinder as well. Unless they actually find the tiny metal pieces which is doubtful.


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## Sandman333 (Oct 28, 2002)

I changed mine at ~60K miles and it was Stage I. I just changed it again at 114K miles and again it was Stage I. APR Stage I tuned since 5K miles. I think 60K miles is a safe interval for my engine.


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## Fogcat (Apr 29, 2015)

Changed mine at 120K. It was not in the later stages. I checked it again at 135K, it is slightly worn. I think a replacement by 150K. Just wagging a stick at it here but the wear rate seems quicker than 60K.


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## thegave (Dec 22, 2008)

Why doesn't the tsb cover the Mk6 R? Same engine right


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## K2Keith (Sep 11, 2006)

Well they never said anything to me if it was in a million pieces. It did take a day and a half but nothing about a new head on the work order. I came back yesterday for the mass air sensor code and they fixed that for free. The sensor wire was broken behind corrugated sheeting it said. No cost and I had a 2016 Passat for the day which was pretty nice.

So with the new revision "b" cam, follower and hp fuel pump, will I have to do this again some day like around 160-170k (if I even have the car that long)?

Today I got a fuel too lean code bank 1, cleared it and it didn't come back. I've been battling that for some time and I just thought maybe it was this particular fix... but I guess not. I'm going to try a new fuel filter to make sure I'm not starving it.

For the mk6, I don't think that's this FSI engine. TSI right? I think VW engineering learned from this design flaw and it only affected FSI engines from 06-07 (correct me if I'm wrong).

Anyway, OT... the one tech there was a beautiful female with a really colorful tattoo on her right arm. Black hair and just amazing to think she works on VW's. I'm sure she's taken and her S.O. Is one lucky SOB. I wish I knew her name, hard to find employees of that dealer on facebook. Volkswagen itself is too broad of a search term!


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## Sandman333 (Oct 28, 2002)

K2Keith said:


> Well they never said anything to me if it was in a million pieces. It did take a day and a half but nothing about a new head on the work order. I came back yesterday for the mass air sensor code and they fixed that for free. The sensor wire was broken behind corrugated sheeting it said. No cost and I had a 2016 Passat for the day which was pretty nice.
> 
> So with the new revision "b" cam, follower and hp fuel pump, will I have to do this again some day like around 160-170k (if I even have the car that long)?
> 
> ...


I have an 08 Passat with the FSI (BPY) engine, and even though it's the same part and I've worn out two cam followers in 114K miles, my car is not covered. There is no valid reason for VW not to cover this, but they refuse. It kind of sours me on buying another VW when I decide to replace this car...

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## K2Keith (Sep 11, 2006)

Sandman333 said:


> I have an 08 Passat with the FSI (BPY) engine, and even though it's the same part and I've worn out two cam followers in 114K miles, my car is not covered. There is no valid reason for VW not to cover this, but they refuse. It kind of sours me on buying another VW when I decide to replace this car...
> 
> Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk


Wow, I don't blame you for your feelings on this issue. Same engine, same design flaw, it should be covered. Did you try to escalate this to VWoA corporate? Believe me when I read the numerous posts about this very issue (not only here on vortex, but other sites at well) it left a very sour taste in my mouth as well. I was grateful that VW covered this repair 100% under an extended warranty. That reinstated my confidence in VW and I would consider VW for future purchases. Had they known about this defect and not covered it... I surely would go a different route for the next car.

The dealer even repaired a break in the MAF signal wire "just behind corrugated sheathing" because it could have gone bad from moving the cable during the repair. I only have a fuel too lean bank 1 code currently, but that is for a different conversion.


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## Sandman333 (Oct 28, 2002)

My dealership has been fantastic. They have repaired a couple things for me at no charge, including some inexpensive parts, while having other work done. Unfortunately, their hands are tied by VW corporate. The cost of the part isn't enough to be worth the aggravation of fighting with VW to cover their design flaw. In both cases, I replaced the cam follower myself, so there was no additional labor cost.

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## thegave (Dec 22, 2008)

Mk6 R uses same block design as Mk5, but with forged rods and more aggressive intake cam. Mk6 GTI had newer engine with roller follower for pump. This is very disheartening.


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## sastanley (Apr 28, 2009)

I realize this is a slightly old thread, but no sense in starting a new one.

I have an '07 A4 2.0T with about 107K miles. I bought the car at 40K and I know I have never checked the cam follower. Car is totally stock..so maybe I have been lucky, and I guess I haven't been paying attention to this particular issue.

How do you know if you have a revision A or B? Is this B revision a different cam shaft? 

I also need to figure out this triple square banjo bolt thing too. I assume that is different than like a Torx??


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## GTI's (Nov 27, 2011)

sastanley said:


> I realize this is a slightly old thread, but no sense in starting a new one.
> 
> I have an '07 A4 2.0T with about 107K miles. I bought the car at 40K and I know I have never checked the cam follower. Car is totally stock..so maybe I have been lucky, and I guess I haven't been paying attention to this particular issue.
> 
> ...


At this point I would not be worried about a or b cam but with checking the cam follower asap. In the vw fsi b cam came into use with MY2008, audi is probably the same. Torx has six points triple square has twelve.


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## kjr6306 (Sep 12, 2007)

And don't try using torx bits on triple square fasteners. You will not like the outcome....ask me how I know.


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## sastanley (Apr 28, 2009)

Thanks for the responses, guys. It is nice when a noob isn't totally bashed when asking a question that everyone else dealt with years ago (well..first posts, been a member and lurking for several years). This is my wife's car and our trip vehicle, so it generally gets easy miles...we're in our late 40's too so we don't beat on 'em like we used to either..our cars gotta get us to work on Monday morning!

This discussion came to light when I was scanning thru my Bentley manual for any gotchas on replacing the valve cover gasket (leaking & burning oil on the manifold), and moved to the cam adjuster valve, to the HPFP and subsequent cam follower issues scanning the forums. I'll order up the cam follower kit here soon so I have it ready to throw in..I don't see any reason to not replace it once I get that far into it. Thanks for the tips on the tools, too..need to find 12 point 'triple square' drive bits. I guess from what I've been reading, you want to pick up the kit with just the bits, and not bits inside sockets due to clearance issues. I don't even presently see where the 12-point bolt is, but I have the PCV and fuel line and stuff in the way..just a visual check today to familiarize myself with the HPFP.


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## GTI's (Nov 27, 2011)

One way to do it on your Audi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyPt6ytPt8Y with banjo bolt.


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## low_passat (Sep 11, 2010)

Are you sure you have the banjo bolt?

On Vw's only 2006, and really early 2007s had the banjo bolt. After that it was changed to a rubber hose with a clamp.


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## sastanley (Apr 28, 2009)

low_passat said:


> Are you sure you have the banjo bolt?
> 
> On Vw's only 2006, and really early 2007s had the banjo bolt. After that it was changed to a rubber hose with a clamp.


That you tube says it has an 8mm triple square and banjo bolt..The car's date stamp is Nov 2006.

(edit - my Audi has rubber hose w/ clamp...still a PITA)


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## sastanley (Apr 28, 2009)

Got the parts and tools in today...after a snow squall blows thru here in Maryland, it should be warm enough this weekend to tackle the cam follower. After the cam follower horror stories, the leaky valve cover is a nuisance problem I'll deal with later. Thanks to all who answered my Q's in an old thread. I'll post a pic of my 107K cam follower in a few days I hope.


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## sastanley (Apr 28, 2009)

*Old vs new*

Ok, well..here is the old follower on the top and a new one on the the bottom. The top follower has at LEAST 68,000 miles on it because that's how many we've put on the car when we bought it with 40K on it.

BTW - my '07 A4 2.0 FSI Quattro 6MT built in late 2006 has the rubber hose and clamps (no banjo w/ triple square) - I probably would have preferred the banjo bolt, the clamps and stiff ass hose were a giant PITA. Thanks to low_passat for alerting me to the difference or I would have been blindly looking for the banjo bolt.

Thanks for all the help. I am keeping the old one in case the new one goes bad sooner rather than later.


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## VWRally (Oct 7, 2016)

Anyone who is getting near 100k with the original cam follower, go buy a lottery ticket cause you are incredibly lucky!!! We see these fail all the time WELL below 100k, you should be checking the cam follower at every oil change or at the very least before you buy a car, and if not then, immediately when you do buy one. The followers are VERY cheap to replace and doing them before you need to will never be a bad idea. 

When these fail, more often then not they take out a whole lot more in the engine than just the cam, we normally see balance shaft, turbo, or rod bearing failures on engines that have had cam followers worn through and driven until the fuel pump is damaged (you can see on one of the posters who had the items replaced under warranty, they replaced the head). 

Moral of the story, CHECK YOU CAM FOLLOWERS NOW. If it doesn't need replacement, note the wear and monitor until you do need to replace it. Once it is replace DO NOT ASSUME IT WILL GO 40k without issues, CONTINUE to check the follower regularly. Once you have checked it a couple times you will get an idea on how it wears, and can probably go a few oil changes between checking it. It takes minutes and will save your engine.

Also good to note, 10k is not a good oil change interval. If you are using OEM filters and GOOD synthetic oil, 5k is much better. If you want to push the mileage simply get your oil inspected and this will literally tell you exactly when you need to change your oil in your engine. This largely depends on how the car is driven and what quality of oil you use. These engines NEED frequent changes with GOOD oil, don't skimp, a $80 oil change is a whole lot cheaper than a new engine!


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## sastanley (Apr 28, 2009)

VWR, thanks for all the input. I am a car enthusiast, and I try to pay attention to things, but I had no idea the cam follower was an issue on this engine until about 4 weeks ago. I changed it straight away. The car has 108K on it.

Also...regarding oil change intervals...I would think all of these cars we are talking about bitch at us about every 4k - 5k miles for an oil change..do people just reset them and go another 5k in between changes because the text on the oil bottle or filter box says it is OK to go 10K+ miles?? I have let my B7 Audi go to "SERVICE!" only twice, once because I was on a long trip and the other cuz it was snowing and winter, and changed the oil within a week as soon as I could do so. And, always with 0W-40 Mobil1 and Mann or K&N filters. I think the interval in between oil changes on my car has been about 5K max..sometimes less. 

I also try to do 99% of my own service. However, I had a local shop do the timing belt/water pump, etc. around 90K because I did not have the special tools needed (and it was winter, I know the shop owner and service manager personally so that helps), but I try to do everything else that I can handle in a weekend so my wife can drive her car to work on Monday morning without worry. She loves the damn thing, and is now talking about "upgrading" to a Q7 someday. :what:


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## Thy_Harrowing (Dec 7, 2014)

> Also...regarding oil change intervals...I would think all of these cars we are talking about bitch at us about every 4k - 5k miles for an oil change..do people just reset them and go another 5k in between changes because the text on the oil bottle or filter box says it is OK to go 10K+ miles?? I have let my B7 Audi go to "SERVICE!" only twice, once because I was on a long trip and the other cuz it was snowing and winter, and changed the oil within a week as soon as I could do so. And, always with 0W-40 Mobil1 and Mann or K&N filters. I think the interval in between oil changes on my car has been about 5K max..sometimes less.


DO NOT listen to VW's absurd 10k OCI claim. Even if you don't beat on your car, as you stated, you should still follow around a 5K OCI if you want to be kind to your vehicle. I do mine a bit earlier but that's because I beat on it and I don't mind doing them on the earlier side. 5K OCI is fine but I wouldn't push it any further than that, especially with the M1. M1 0W-40 is great oil, good choice, but it shears/breaks down quickly in my experience (many lab analyses to back that up) so you don't wanna stretch your OCIs on that oil. Don't let that sound like I'm saying it's a bad oil, it's not. It's an excellent oil. There is better, but there is not better for the price. It's the best bang for your buck.


Also, for future reference you don't need to remove that hose/clamp to your HPFP for future cam follower changes. The hose has enough flex in it that you can pull the HPFP backward and over enough to get it out of the way and retrieve/replace your cam follower safely. Of course you still need to disconnect the hard line next to the hose.


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## Thy_Harrowing (Dec 7, 2014)

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT:

Just wanna issue a warning to any first-timers at cam follower changes... after you change your follower and bolt your HPFP back on with the three T30 torx bolts, DO NOT overtighten them. I can't remember the factory torque spec off-hand but it is low! I wanna say like 7 ft-lbs! You're threading those bolts into aluminum threads which are very weak. Those bolts basically get tightened until you start detecting light resistance, give them a quarter turn further and that's it!). You should never go to the point that you are actually putting elbow grease into tightening those things or you will strip the threads like MANY people have on these forums. You'll need to rethread them with a helicoil and if you screw that up then you'll have to replace the housing which is $500+


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