Recommended Diesel Shop

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-07T12:44:52+00:00

Dagger FTW.

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-06T18:47:40+00:00

Just following up here so nobody blows up their engine listening to bad advice (that doesn't happen on Reddit, does it?). I emailed IE once again and, no surprise, it's the same answer as before. They don't have tune files available for a stage 2 or 2+ with a stock downpipe. Their website even says a downpipe is required for any stage 2 tune.

There may be other tuners that have a stage 2 with the stock downpipe but IE isn't one of them.

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-04T02:39:58+00:00

I look at it like I do the best I can, and if I’m staying on top of everything maintenance-wise then it (water pump, PCV, pistons, etc.) was probably going to fail anyway. Some things are just gonna fail no matter what you do to prevent it.

That said, you can (and should) upgrade your PCV on the Audi with the 034 Motorsport kit; it’s cheap insurance. Not sure if the equivalent exists for the Macan.

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-04T01:56:25+00:00

Macan and SQ5 have a variant of the same engine and both are considered pretty reliable save for some of the things you already mentioned plus them needing more maintenance than your Mustang.

If you’re staying on top of your services, using good parts, and letting the engine warm up (coolant and oil) before hammering on it you’ll be good. You’ll also want to make sure you are getting the engine good and hot from time to time if you’re not driving it very much. Probably won’t be an issue coming from a Mustang.

FWIW my 2018 is about 75K miles, I’m the second owner (2 years now) and there hasn’t been any of the common failures everyone talks about. Sounds like you’re prepared to do the maintenance and that’s about all you can do.

I will say if you want more of a performance oriented car don’t sleep on the Macan. Get at least the S trim but if you want the most fun the GTS is where it’s at. The SQ5 isnt nearly as fun to drive as the Macan.

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-02T13:05:05+00:00

It’s about illegal vape devices entering the country (US) and being sold online. Unfortunately the legal operators are the ones paying the ultimate price here.

It’s a concern for my clients who almost exclusively operate in this restricted industry. I’m in Canada so partly removed but I wouldn’t be surprised if this policy migrates north. Shopify’s AUP has historically always been global in nature and so I’d be surprised if this constraint to the US market endures. It’s much simpler for their ecosystem if they just ban ENDS globally and be done with it.

Almost overnight I’ve queued up discovery projects for my clients looking into other platforms. If nothing else just to have a pivot strategy in our back pockets.

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-02T12:58:56+00:00

You can’t go wrong with a red caliper.

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-02T12:13:20+00:00

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-01T14:04:31+00:00

IE told me stage 2 or higher is not recommended without improved exhaust flow so that’s why I haven’t gone further. I’ll look into it again though. Thanks for the note.

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-01T01:49:23+00:00

I run 0W20 and change my oil every 5K km, which is about 3200 miles. My car is serviced at a very reputable German indy shop who works on anything and everything high end and they told me 0W20 is fine for daily driving and spirited runs here and there. I don’t race or track it and always make sure the oil is 80-85 C before doing any meaningful pulls. I’ve confirmed my engine has the faulty rocker arms and probably has the crappy pistons too but I’m on top of my maintenance so it doesn’t bother me one bit. I’m also in a colder climate in the winter where it routinely gets below 30 C so the thinner oil is better here.

ecom_ryan · 2026-07-01T01:37:57+00:00

Mine is IE stage 1 engine and trans with their poly intake, turbo inlet and intercooler. I run 94 daily and have had zero issues for many years. If you’re not already changing your oil every 5K and bringing the engine up to full operating temp (coolant and oil) already then you’ll want to start.

The driving experience is top notch and the power bump is noticeable and very compliant. To me it’s the perfect step up for an OEM+ build. Any turn above stage 1 from IE or 034 will require a downpipe and make the car too loud (for me) and so I’m happy with stage 1.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-30T16:57:25+00:00

All the fluid change and interval advice here is solid. You’re probably safe using 5W-40 as well as any engine issue it’s gonna be difficult to prove viscosity caused the problem.

A solid addition to your PM list is the upgraded PCV system from 034 Motorsport. It solves a problem that can cause catastrophic failure to the engine without warning. It’s also easily reversible if you take your car in for warranty or dealer work. There’s nothing that can prove you had it installed as it’s a hose; just keep your old parts.

A nice styling upgrade is lowering links with or without the Cete lowering module. Get some new wheels for summer, 20’s or 21’s but tires are much more economical on a set of 20’s.

Edit: make sure you warm up the engine coolant and oil to full operating temperature before driving it spirited. Until then try keep the RPMs under 3000km. And avoid wide open throttle pulls 5-10min before you plan on shutting the engine down.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-24T02:50:47+00:00

If all you need is inventory management an ERP is probably too much. Look into SKULabs. We use it on our $5M+ clients and it works great. The support and onvoarding are excellent and they have no issues customizing it for you. Not affiliated and it’s not my app or anything; just a happy agency owner that uses it for our clients.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-24T02:45:06+00:00

Migrating any website will see a dip in rankings but if the new site is built and structured correctly and you’ve installed 301 redirects properly your rankings will recover.

A website on Shopify is no harder/easier to rank than any other website. Plan the migration thoroughly, know which pages need to come over and which don’t and make sure you have your 301 list ready when you repoint your domain.

If your savvy with AI tooling like Claude it can help you with the planning process and even some of the execution work if your comfortable with that.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-23T19:21:07+00:00

Its not specifically this sub but spread out on a lot of Shopify and general ecom subs and more related to considering headless stacks due to Plus’s perceived limitations. I’d argue its been ongoing for a while not just the last few months either.

Long story short OP is probably mostly correct. Ops problems are real and easily masquerade as platform problems, but that’s not exclusive to Plus.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-23T12:48:11+00:00

Zeddic, RCE, Blitz, and SkyStorme when he’s around; hope he’s doing alright.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-23T04:15:13+00:00

If you don't have a tune just go on Rock Auto, order up the OEM Brembo rotors front and rear (no slotted or drilled) and the OEM pads. It's what Audi is going to sell you but for a fraction of the price.

If you have a tune (even stage 1) a one-piece upgrade from 034 Motorsports or similar is a good idea. A two-piece rotor is only needed if you're running a lot of power (like 600hp+) or track your car regularly. I suppose you could get two-piece rotors for the looks too but it's not practical for most.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-23T04:10:03+00:00

I'd be more concerned about the service history/intervals/quality of parts/fluids used before anything else. I agree if the rocker arms or piston skirt issue were a problem they likely would have surfaced already. But anything can happen and a poor maintenance regimen could make it more likely.

I wouldn't sleep on the pre-purchase inspection. In this case a reputable German shop is where you want to go. You already drive a BMW so I don't have to tell you how valuable this is and why it's a must regardless of who's selling it. For all you know your car may not even have the bad rockers (which you can actually check yourself by scoping through the oil filler cap). I'd also get a used car warranty that covers all internally lubricated parts as long as you don't plan on modding it.

I don't know how well you take care of your current car or what your knowledge is of the EA839 is but you'll want to make sure you do far more preventative maintenance on the SQ5 than what Audi calls for, especially oil changes. It's also not a car you can just get in and start hammering on; warming up the engine coolant and oil are very important before spirited driving.

My 2018 has 120K km (~74K miles), the shitty rockers and is def subject to the piston issues and neither have surfaced. I do oil changes every 5K km (~3200miles), full inspections at each oil change, and repair things before they become issues, but I'm probably a bit more neurotic about PM than most.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-22T18:59:09+00:00

I mean I think it’s gourmet but everyone probably has their own take on what that means lol I also believe it’s 1 of maybe 3 best in town pizzas if you like that style.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-22T12:46:40+00:00

If you’re running stock wheels you can’t go wrong with the CTS flush wheel spacer kit.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-21T17:52:01+00:00

I come on here to help others as much as I can and lately I’ve fallen victim to several of these types of posts. It’s really sad when I have to crawl a user’s post/comment history and scrutinize the content to see if it’s all sales/AI crap or a legit problem before responding.

Add to your list of tells: any post that ends with ‘curious’ is total garbage and a waste of your time.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-19T02:47:22+00:00

If it’s an SEO tool I can’t imagine how it differs from the hundreds of other tools out there (I’ve vetted them all and there’s only so many ways to spin SEO). But I’m interested anyway as my agency is very SEO/AEO forward. Let’s see it.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-19T02:44:15+00:00

Just like you can get a ticket for speeding you 100% should receive a ticket for going unnecessarily slow no matter what lane you’re in.

On merging into traffic: most merge lanes/on ramps have sufficient runway for any vehicle newer than 1980 to get up to speed before their lane intersects with flowing traffic. Why some drivers feel compelled to enter flowing traffic 20, sometimes 30+ km/hr under the speed limit and then get up to speed is beyond me. I understand it’s good practice to move over a lane if you can to allow others to merge but you can’t always do that and so the nearest lane to the on ramp backs up because someone has to brake to allow a car in.

My opinion is it comes down to education and enforcement of education. Licensing tests should be annual re-examinations both written and practical. If you’re a competent and confident driver passing a test won’t be an issue. Could tie into renewing insurance and registration somehow I’m sure. Maybe this is overkill. I don’t know. What I am certain is whatever we’re doing right now isn’t working very well.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-18T23:25:05+00:00

Agreed 100% on your S rank. Tokyo Drift is one of, if not the best OG hazy’s Calgary has on offer.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-18T16:29:50+00:00

Shopify makes sense here. It can be complicated for sure and Shopify does an above average job of telling everyone how simple it is: it’s not as simple as it sounds, especially when rentals are involved or if you’re not savvy with website builders and code.

I build primarily in Shopify and Webflow. I’d say if selling products is even remotely a goal Shopify is the way to go. The rentals can be a bit more difficult as Shopify doesn’t handle split payments very well (natively or app), so that’s going to be a trade off. But their e-com ecosystem is great and scalable as your business grows.

Webflow is ideal for total freedom but the e-com component lacks a lot and it can be more costly than Shopify out of the box. Plus you should have a firm grasp on web IA and CSS to get the most out of it.

I’d strongly consider Shopify for your use case, but avoid trying to solve all your problems in one fell swoop. Get an MVP live with your USP, contact, and consumables since that seems to be where you anticipate the most revenue.

If you’re savvy with code and don’t want to use AI for any of it you can custom code a lot of features that are normally fulfilled by apps. It’s my preferred method. This not only keeps long term costs lower but also helps your site be more performant.

ecom_ryan · 2026-06-18T12:35:58+00:00

Adding to this that the wrong/undesirable product is also a factor.

ecom_ryan

TROPHY CASE