EGR valve and petrol

[jksgoh]

on a previous thread i had mentione that my girlfriends exhaust gas warning light had come on on her 2.0 fsi, but that thread was predominantly about something else so i thought i'd start a new one.
we eventually got it into the dealer who scanned it and checked the wiring and state that the EGR valve is faulty and needs to be replaced which will cost around $800!
i asked them why it would be faulty and they said it can be due a dodgy batch of petrol, and they recommended to stay away from shell and caltex, and use mobil or bp instead.

I know that everyone seems to have their own opinion on the different fuels available, but has anyone heard of them causing EGR valves to fail?

also the car is out of warranty about 6 months... anyone had much luck in vw aus reimbursing part of the costs?

[DNA Tuning]

The dealer will tell you all sorts of things - in reality the EGR valve probably just failed because it just felt like it, regardless of what petrol you used.

It should not cost $800 however; maybe including labour, but still seems very pricey for what is a relatively simple device.

[HiTorque]

didn't know that fsi has EGR valve. My valve on TDI failed at 60k Km and cost was very close to that figure. If you serviced the car at vw dealerships ask for 50% cover by VWA if your waranty has expired. The main reason - quality of local fuel (imported I guess- ?) and European pollution standards that forced vw to implement this POS design...

[Greg Roles]

I no longer need mine! Sadly the going Aus price on an EGR valve is about a grand, get onto the UK for towards a third the price on genuine parts.

Such a typical fob off from the dealer. EGR valves are a moving part, and when any sort of physical deposit builds up that gets in the way of its normal operation, the motor in it burns out as it stalls. Buildup occurs both from the exhaust soot itself, and it usually mixes with the oil blowby from the PCV system at this point, and a nice thick oily sludge builds up in the area. If that doesn't qualify for buildup to potentially jam moving parts then I don't know what would.

"Bad" fuel is the least of your concerns!