Writeup award gift certificate through sponsor KermaTDI

[chittychittybangbang]

This is more of a forum announcement: The site has seen steady growth and I really appreciate any contributions by the users. The FAQ and "how to" cover a lot but there's a lot of stuff that I can't do or don't have access to do. To encourage lurkers to sign up and contribute here and document the stuff that they already do, I am starting a bimonthly contest for excellent writeups. There is lots of good work going on but most don't document it because it does take some effort and time. This website is regularly updated and your contribution will be recognized, get a lot of visibility, and help others.

As a thank you from myturbodiesel.com and kermatdi, the reward for winning the contest is 1 $20 gift certficate awarded about bimonthly to 1 writeup according to writeup quality, difficulty, thoroughness, and impact. It's an electronic gift certificate, no cash value, 6 month expiration date, and terms set by kermatdi.com. Edit: It's currently $25 and a $25 donation to St Jude / or MD Anderson cancer research thanks to kermatdi.com!


Here are some guidelines to be considered for the bimonthly contest:

• The writeup should include notes on bolt/nut sizes, pictures of each step, and possible pitfalls/costly mistakes. These are things that usually aren't in the service manual.
• Be prepared to spend significantly more time taking notes on each bolt size and taking pictures. It takes effort but your work will help many and have excellent visibility through the FAQ.
• It should be original content and and not a mirror of someone else's existing work. If you find really good misc. information somewhere, free to post it anyways. It should cover something that doesn't have an exisiting writeup. Even if there's an existing writeup feel free to document your work if you can signficantly improve it.
• Don't take it personally if your writeup doesn't win the bimonthly contest because all contributions are valued and will help others for a long time. Don't be offended (it's the internet) by minor edits when it goes into the FAQ. I try to keep the FAQ in a consistent format (introduction, parts, procedure).
• If you want to be considered for a certificate, please include this comment when you post your writeup. This will let others who do want it, take it.
• The more impact and difficulty a writeup has, the more weight it will be given. A really good writeup on how to change a headlight bulb will be helpful and will make it into the FAQ but a writeup on how to do something that many people will need to do and is more complex, like changing the brake rotors and pads or DSG transmission and DSG flywheel removal will be given more consideration.

Guidelines for pictures:

• Pictures should be in focus and well lit. This sounds simple but if you see enough writeups on misc. sites and take enough pictures you'll see that it's not.
• Take multiple pictures of each step. I usually take 3 pictures of each step from slightly different angles and frame. This results in almost always having a usable picture. Too many pictures are better than too few pictures and you can always delete extras later.
• A camera flash can wash out detail because you're so close up when working on a car. Try to avoid taking pictures head-on or too close. If the object is reflective like smooth metal, all you'll see is a shiny object. When using a flash, take the picture from a slightly off axis angle and try to back up a little. It will light the whole picture better and avoid reflections.
• When possible, pictures in the article should be from about the same orientation to reduce confusion.
• The goal of composing pictures for a writeup isn't artistic appeal, it's to describe an element of a technical article. Sepia tone and funny angles are not encouraged because it makes it harder to orient the object and see detail. Frame each photo so that the target is in context. For example, a closeup of a bolt means nothing. Somethings you need to have a closeup of the target but try to have an earlier picture which references it against a landmark like the oil pan or wheel well. It's best to have it all in 1 picture vs. 2.
• Bigger frame is normally better since you can always crop it. Most digital cameras also take big images which will let you crop without too much loss in quality.

[chittychittybangbang]

I didn't want to say this on April 1st, April fools day, but fahrenheit351 is awarded the first certificate. Please send me a PM with your email address to pass onto Kerma for your electronic gift certificate.

To get it started I put it together from other sources like photobucket with permission but in the future please post the info here for easier viewing.
It was given based on scope and thoroughness. http://www.myturbodiesel.com/1000q_h...3oilchange.htm and http://www.myturbodiesel.com/1000q_h...liperPaint.htm were done by fahrenheit351. Both articles are useful but the "how to change the engine oil" article on the 2.0 L CEBA, CJAA, VW and Audi TDI engine how is something that virtually all owners who DIY maintenance will do, so it won on scope.

Another useful writeup was thermostat replacement on ALH engine http://www.myturbodiesel.com/1000q_h...rmostatmk4.htm by frugality, rehosted and edited with permission. I added some pictures and made some minor edits. This was also an excellent writeup and all contributions are much appreciated.

[fahrenheit351]

Sweet!! Thanks much. I will be sure to put thee certificate to good use.

Miles

[chittychittybangbang]

Rocketeer928 has won the second bimonthly contest for his writeup on injection pump removal without removing the timing belt:
TDI injection pump removal without replacing the timing belt (part 1)
TDI fuel injection pump replacement without replacing the timing belt (part 2)

There were lots of good clear pictures (and one fuzzy one), and detailed instructions with VCDS software screenshots of how to check and adjust injection pump timing on his VW Jetta TDI.

[chittychittybangbang]

This last bimonthly contest award goes to 71sbeetle for his excellent writeups:

How to install 9w7 bluetooth: DIY: 9W7 Bluetooth swap from 9W2 on RNS510 which was turned into: http://www.myturbodiesel.com/1000q/a...oth-module.htm

and how to install a hidden homelink remote in the center console:DIY: Garage door opener for your MK6 - stealth which is now: http://www.myturbodiesel.com/1000q/a...install-VW.htm

and DIY valentine one radar detector installation:
DIY: Valentine One Radar Locator Hardwire and concealed display which is on the side burner but will be made into the FAQ later.

Congrats, they were all very impressive in terms of detail and photo quality. The big difference I made was to reduce and resize the photos for faster page loading.

[chittychittybangbang]

The aug-sep winner is TDI Hoo for the oil extraction writeup on the new common rail engines (vs. oil drain): DIY: Oil Change of 2010 Golf TDI with Oil Extractor which became the FAQ article http://www.myturbodiesel.com/1000q/a...-extractor.htm

While it's a simple writeup and not too complicated, part of the reason it won was scope. Every DIY service will do an oil change and while there's already an oil change article, some of you may choose to do it from the top using an oil extractor.

Some criticism: the pics weren't as focused or sharp as I'd like but there were plenty of them and they were clear enough in that they showed the relevant steps. It looks like they were taken with a cell phone.

Congrats!

[chittychittybangbang]

Thanks to the continued forum sponsorship of Kermatdi.com , a great source for TDI parts, the prize for the writeup contest is now $50!



There is now also a grand yearly prize for best writeups by a single user. This isn't necessarily for the most writeups by a user, it's for a combination of complexity, thoroughness, picture quality/quantity, and scope. Quantity also helps. The prize is a Southbend Stage 2 Endurance clutch and 20 lbs Billet Flywheel for a ALH or BEW 5 speed [ and some earlier AHU /1Z vehicles on a case by case basis ]. The retail price is $630 + $50 shipping!

If this sounds good, I hope to see some good writeups, sponsored by KermaTDI.com!

[FLipped]

Thanks for your hard work and the sponsor for helping out. This is a nice site overall.

[jdpm]

Today, just shy of the 6k mile mark, I changed the oil and filter on the new 2011 Golf TDI. Many, many thanks for the awesome writeup AND photos posted about the procedure as well as tips. THANKS! Fahrenheit351.
All went well. One of the T30 screws on the bottom cover stripped due to being installed so tightly. Got a quick and simple replacement from Home Depot. Not exact but will do the job.
We ordered 3 oil filters from a VW dealer via Ebay. Upon opening the sealed box, they did not look like the factory installed filter despite being genuine VW part number. Instead, they looked like the Mann filter shown in the pic. I hope it is satisfactory.
Also, we had to go the the auto parts store to get the 32mm socket which fit perfectly. We had all the other tools needed.
We took this opportunity to install a magnetic drain plug with crush washer, as well.
The post was very helpful and thanks again. Safe driving, John

[chittychittybangbang]

On a side, note, there have been no really good submissions for october - november. It must be a full writeup procedure with step by step pictures, not a few tips about this or that or something that could be illustrated in one or two pictures, posted in final form so that I don't have to spend a lot of time making small edits, and be original work so that I have permission to use it.

Consider this the official announcement of overtime, first one to meet this criteria (and the other tips in the first post) will win!

Some writeups that are needed and that I know people are working on:
DSG transmission removal
DSG flywheel removal without removing the transmission
step by step screenshots of how to use vag tacho to get the SKC