Pet Peeves with your MKV

[bwen]

Just to get the ball rolling, what do you find annoying about your MKV?

Personally for me the main thing would be when it is just slightly drizzling or raining and I like to open the windows a tiny bit just so there's some ventilation and water drips in. It's been so annoying the past few days here in the rainy Brisbane weather I've even tossed up getting one of those weathershield things (even though it makes the car look less attractive)

[Justin Fox]

That would be the situation with most cars bwen. I've had weathershields on some cars and they do work nicely but they're also another annoying thing to keep clean (on both sides).

Whilst I don't own a MKV (yet) I drive Christina's one a fair bit so here are a few of my comments:

- You can't lift the wipers up when washing the car (what the?!).
- I HATE the ugly plastic plate holder at the front of the car (damn dealers!).
- The handles on the shoulder of the seats to push the seats forward on a 3 door are not intuitive (everyone grabs the bottom handle which folds the seat but doesn't move the seat on it's rails).
- The rear seats when folded do not fold completely flat.

Small peeves! :)

[Tim]

I agree with the above points especially the 3 door seat handles. Not a brialliant design.

My biggest gripe however is the engine mounts. Especially on the manual cars the amount of drivetrain shunt is ridiculous. Very poor design in my opinion. Unfortunately engine mounts have never been a strong point for VWs and are generally prone to premature failure on many models.

[Paul_OH]

Really just the dripping in wet weather into the fron windows, this is the only car I've had this issue with. Funnily enough the only carryover panel to the Mk6 is the roof.




- You can't lift the wipers up when washing the car (what the?!).


This can be done, turn the key off and within 20-30 seconds or so press down the wiper stalk and the wipers will stay in the upright/vertical position where they can be lifted off the screen. It's an anti-freeze measure, a pain in the butt but works well.

[Justin Fox]

This can be done, turn the key off and within 20-30 seconds or so press down the wiper stalk and the wipers will stay in the upright/vertical position where they can be lifted off the screen. It's an anti-freeze measure, a pain in the butt but works well.

Now THAT is cool! :cool: thanks for the tip.

[Justin Fox]

PS: In regards to the motor mounts. This is news to me. Is anyone making aftermarket ones? I know the Honda guys love replacing their ones with solid motor mounts for more engine response.

[10d]

PS: In regards to the motor mounts. This is news to me. Is anyone making aftermarket ones? I know the Honda guys love replacing their ones with solid motor mounts for more engine response.
Yes they do. Many. I found the VW Racing ones to be the best quality ones. Expensive though.

[Tensixty6]

I have always found the auto headlights to be somewhat inconsistent in their operation. At work, my car is parked in a darkened area under a first floor office space. The lights are on as soon as I fire up the engine. Sometimes they'll go off as soon as I drive out into "daylight", other times they'll stay on even in bright sunshine. OK, I know I can manually turn them off, and I do, but they don't work as consistently as they should.

[prae]

Like previously mentioned, the water pouring in when the windows are opened and the inconsistency of both the auto wipers and headlights. The dust collector that is our hatch gets on my nerves sometimes as well.

[RobR32]

- You can't lift the wipers up when washing the car (what the?!).


Small peeves! :)

turn the ignition on then off, and press down on the windscreen wiper control and the wipers move so that you can move them and wash the windscreen

[Big Yellow]

Yes they do. Many. I found the VW Racing ones to be the best quality ones. Expensive though.
Also vf engineering and bsh.

[Cam]

Not many pet peeves with mine.
Water dripping down is a pretty standard thing (even happens with the mazda 6 I drive for work)

I was going to say rattles in the doors but my GTI doesn't have many. My Comfortline on the other hand (which was an 07 model, the GTI is an 05 model) had a lot of rattles and significantly less kms as well.

[G-rig]

- The center air vent is a pretty bad design, so many hard plastic bits and rattles. Did some foam taping the other night and much better. The mk6 is a lot better in this regard and quicker to get the headunit out.

- The grindy noise the steering wheel makes.
- The passenger seat best can rub against the leather when someone is sitting in the seat.
- build quality in general average compared to Audi (mostly interior quality of plastics around the a/c control area).
- RCD500 looks like a POS. Worth upgrading to the new RCD510 touch screen for looks and extra features, or the RNS510.
- Part vinyl passed off as leather on the seats, bit rude for the price.
- Crappy stereo heaps worse then the Bose in my 1997 Audi A4.
- Speakers are boomy and rattle the door cards.
- No Bluetooth, ipod or usb connection standard. Should be there for a $60k car.
- R32 too heavy and underpowered
- No .:R dead pedal.
- Dunlop Sportmaxx are crap and noisy after 15,000km.
- Europlate holder is too big for normal plates.

[10d]

When you go to D after reverse. The clucth disengage for about a second causing the car to roll back on a hill

[SUGA]

The cup holders are crap, I've split drinks so many times :mad:

[Rayjuice]

My top 2 must be:

- Got 3 door MKV and Recaro seats.....soo to let people in the back u first scrolling the seats forward then pressing the release (2 step process) *so annoying when people pull lever to jack up seats*

- I got the dodgy half MFD unit soo half the buttons on my steering wheel dont work =( cant change music have to do it manually on deck

[Cam]

Hey Rayjuice, you should still be able to change tracks via the steering wheel. I've got the half height MFD with RNS510 and I can change volume/tracks and even use the bluetooth buttons on mine. A little bit of vcds coding was required to get it working, but its certainly achievable. What headunit do you have?

Even with the stock RCD300 I could change tracks.

[chris32]

The holes in the grille when you remove the euro plate holder :(

[Rayjuice]

Hey Rayjuice, you should still be able to change tracks via the steering wheel. I've got the half height MFD with RNS510 and I can change volume/tracks and even use the bluetooth buttons on mine. A little bit of vcds coding was required to get it working, but its certainly achievable. What headunit do you have?

Even with the stock RCD300 I could change tracks.

Yeah i got the RCD300...all i can do is change volume/mute and then change display of trip comp.

[chris32]

Rayjuice, I had that problem when I upgraded to the rns510, just need someone with vag-com to help you out. Works fine now. :)

[SUGA]

When you wash the windscreen and have your windows open, the water sprays everywhere and even into the car.

[Cam]

Yeah i got the RCD300...all i can do is change volume/mute and then change display of trip comp.

If you can find someone with vagcom they will be able to make the necessary adjustments.
The RCD300 will need to be coded, and possibly the correct steering wheel coding done also (to tell the car it has a MFSW installed). Has it always been like this since you've had the car?
A dealer can do it as well, although they will charge you for it.

Should just be a simple coding change, I don't think it would be anything too dramatic. If someone can do a scan for you it should show up that it is incorrectly coded.
The coding you would be looking at is in VCDS - Radio module and Steering module.

[G-rig]

When you wash the windscreen and have your windows open, the water sprays everywhere and even into the car.

That's true, it also messes up your car from the headlight washers.. goes everywhere!

[ml16]

When you just wash your car, and within hours a bird shits all over it, or you park under a tree which has berries and stuff dropping all over it...

[bigwill]

When you wash the windscreen and have your windows open, the water sprays everywhere and even into the car.

its a pain, especially when there is also a puddly of water on the roof, doesnt want to go anywhere but in the car :/

[bigwill]

mine include: little rattles that occur inside the cabin and how hard the paint is on VW cars, correcting the paint, u need to be patient

[Pharkus]

1. No red leather as an option
2. Recaros had a pos black plastic backing prone to scratches (also didn't come with an option for red)
3. No option for alcantara dash and headliner (I mean cmon!)
4. Wipers don't lift up (I hate this as well)
5. Was Capristo an option???
6. Rattles and vibrations from stock speakers once youo turn the volume up
7. What is going on with the stock Omanyts? Worst designed wheel ever with stupid plastic bit in the middle (Mazda make the same style of wheel but without the plastic bit)
8. Rain sensing wiper doesn't really do what I want it to
9. No option for Dynaudio for MkV (definitely would have ticked this one)
10. When using the washers the vents are supposed to close so you don't get that window wash smell in your car, but it doesn't
11. The owner is a bit picky isn't he?

[bigwill]

advice to have the wipers lift up when washing is turn the car on and manually turn on the wipers than turn off the car as it slide up and it should remain in the upright position that way u can bend it back to wash.

[G-rig]

I have updated my peeves on page 2.

Pharkus i dont mind the window washer fluid smell.

[Pharkus]

I have updated my peeves on page 2.

Pharkus i dont mind the window washer fluid smell.

Much like I don't mind the smell of my wax!!!

[Justin Fox]

I forgot to add this one:

The boot/hatch is hard to close as it so wants to just spring back up. This is an issue they have resolved on the MK6 which has a much lower pivot point so the boot goes down with some momentum and shuts with much more force.

[Rayjuice]

Omg i don't if its just me but does anyone find the car jack provided HARD TO USE?
I tried to use it for a good couple minutes
until i just gave up and decided to use my old honda one :D
stick in then start cranking it up =]

[scotty1991]

Omg i don't if its just me but does anyone find the car jack provided HARD TO USE?
I tried to use it for a good couple minutes
until i just gave up and decided to use my old honda one :D
stick in then start cranking it up =]

I changed my wheels twice today, thats 2 times per corner... 8 times overall, using the stock jack, and yeah, it sucks

[mikinoz]

I forgot to add this one:

The boot/hatch is hard to close as it so wants to just spring back up. This is an issue they have resolved on the MK6 which has a much lower pivot point so the boot goes down with some momentum and shuts with much more force.

I will add having no where apart from the badge to push on to close the boot without putting finger marks on the paint. :/

[S&H]

- The center air vent is a pretty bad design, so many hard plastic bits and rattles. Did some foam taping the other night and much better. The mk6 is a lot better in this regard and quicker to get the headunit out.

- The grindy noise the steering wheel makes.
- The passenger seat best can rub against the leather when someone is sitting in the seat.
- build quality in general average compared to Audi (mostly interior quality of plastics around the a/c control area).
- RCD500 looks like a POS. Worth upgrading to the new RCD510 touch screen for looks and extra features, or the RNS510.
- Part vinyl passed off as leather on the seats, bit rude for the price.
- Crappy stereo heaps worse then the Bose in my 1997 Audi A4.
- Speakers are boomy and rattle the door cards.
- No Bluetooth, ipod or usb connection standard. Should be there for a $60k car.
- R32 too heavy and underpowered
- No .:R dead pedal.
- Dunlop Sportmaxx are crap and noisy after 15,000km.
- Europlate holder is too big for normal plates.

What?! this is a first. Normally, you'd be the defending the R32 against comments like these.
Selling your R32 hasn't had something to do with it has it?

[Big Yellow]

Omg i don't if its just me but does anyone find the car jack provided HARD TO USE?
I tried to use it for a good couple minutes
until i just gave up and decided to use my old honda one :D
stick in then start cranking it up =]
They dont call them widowmakers for nothing lol!! Stay clear unless unavoidable!!

[GBJ-R32]

What?! this is a first. Normally, you'd be the defending the R32 against comments like these.
Selling your R32 hasn't had something to do with it has it?

i find that it is to heavy and underpowered too,
but this will all change once uni is over with forced injection going in :D only time is holding me back now

[S&H]

i find that it is to heavy and underpowered too,
but this will all change once uni is over with forced injection going in :D only time is holding me back now

LOL - I was just having a go at Greg. He would normally be all over someone who posted something like that on the other forums (defending the R32 cause). To read that he thinks likewise is a surprise.

[10d]

What's with the rear hatch that always get so dusty before anything else. Ugh. Airflow. Hmmph.

[benough]

I will add having no where apart from the badge to push on to close the boot without putting finger marks on the paint. :/

Yo. You pull it down with the inside handle in a big sweeping motion and the boot will shut itself. Otherwise put your hand on the badge or the inner tailight.



• How hard it is to unplug the Xenons!


Dude. I finally figured it out. You just pull it with your thumb and it comes in instantly. Figured it out with Jasons car.

[stephen8512]

- I love the 17" classix the jetta TFSI comes with as standard. What I dont like is when I have to clean the f**ker...so many spokes!!! grr!!!

- I don't like how when u turn the A/C on, it sometimes goes crazy and increases the speed of the A/C blasting out, resulting in adjusting it down manually.

- I don't like how my jetta makes me want to plant my foot down and go nuts as it has the APR reflash stage 1 done to it.

- When I'm dropping off my friend and when i'm a few metres from his house, he sometimes releases his seat belt before i pull into his driveway so that he can get ready to just hop out. I hate how the seat belt chime keeps chiming away until it detects that there is no weight on the seat. It will chime away and annoy the F**K outta me. (i think u can fix this with VAGCOM though)

- The standard DV is just plain shithouse. Am going to promptly upgrade to a FORGE or the REV D piston model

- As someone said earlier, the RCD300/500 looks cheap compared to the RCD510/RNS510 units, which is what VW SHOULD have released as standard to begin with, instead of the MFD2 GPS.

- I don't like how my jetta TFSI is basically a golf GTI with a boot as it has the same engine and turbo, but it misses out on the little cosmetic nicities the GTI has. (e.g flat bottom steering wheel, paddle shifters, nicer looking cluster, red stitching, aluminium pedals, nicer seats, different shifter knob for DSG, etc)

- I don't like how there is a gay black strip on the back of my jetta which is unpainted. It also sucks how the Golf GTI sideskirts and rear bar were unpainted, making it look shit. Glad to see they made the effort to colour code the MK6.

- I don't like how the centre console is so tiny. My accord euro could fit a regular size tissue box perfectly and it was nice and big. And if u have a KUFATEC media IN or an ipod integration system attached, u cant utilise the centre console to put stuff in.

- I don't like how the recommended servicing intervals for the jetta, (and the GTI im assuming) is every 15K kms. This is very excessive IMO. My last service was at 30K kms. A turbo car IMO should have its fluids changed every 5000/7500kms. I changed the fluids and oil filter every 5K kms on my accord euro and then every 10K kms had a service.

- I don't like that even though VW recommends 15K kms service intervals, my CHECK ENGINE OIL light came on twice.....both after approx 7000kms. I've been changing oil fluids and filters every 5000kms from then

- I don't like the OEM speakers and sound system. It's in a word....shit.

- I don't like how the glovebox is so narrow and small. You cant fit much in there!

- I don't like how the boot in the jetta has one tiny little light on the right hand side. If you've seen a jetta's boot, its spacious as F**K, bigger than my old accord euro! The provided light isnt strong enough to light up the entire space

- I don't like the cupholders, how it's adjusted nor do I like the fact that it's being divided by a bottle opener? I've never used the provided bottle opener ever. AND the cupholder sucks at holding the cups in place


Thats about it so far.

Don't get me wrong though, I love the jetta. =D

[stephen8512]

bump for the newbies

[scotty1991]

The bottle opener is win

[Capercat]

Having owned the 2007 GTI, with the added 250watt amp under the passenger seat, the stereo still sounded crap!

The MK4 standard stereo without an amp sounds better.

[G-rig]

Having owned the 2007 GTI, with the added 250watt amp under the passenger seat, the stereo still sounded crap!

The MK4 standard stereo without an amp sounds better.

Yeah the amp must have been piss weak or didn't do much, as my new GTI sounds better and doesn't have an amp.

[Byza]

mine are...

- door/interior rattles
- how even the dealer cant remove the engine cover without breaking it... they have broken it twice now
- the plastic on the window button easily marks and never looks clean if you use your windows daily
- front very prone to stone chips
- newer models didnt have open vents
- not colour coded from factory or an option

[HercMax]

I don't how you guys close the boot with one sweeping motion because I pull down quite hard and it just "clicks" onto the boot latch but not fully closing it. Consequently I have to close it again. It's the hardest boot I've ever had the displeasure of closing.

[Longwall.:r32]

rattles.......

[i-vtec]

sometimes over certain speed humps on an up or downhill the thing that lifts your parcel shelf up, when closed and the swinging of the rubber ball hits the trims in your boot and makes a noise.

[mshl1979]

Stick the rubber ball in the cargo net.... problem fixed!!

[Sammy]

Stick the rubber ball in the cargo net.... problem fixed!!

genius.

[G-rig]

Maverick has a fix too..

http://www.my-gti.com/1751/knocking-noise-from-retaining-band-on-luggage-compartment-cover

[i-vtec]

Stick the rubber ball in the cargo net.... problem fixed!!

cheers for that

[i-vtec]

also after searching high and low and found that with the heater turned on, when coming to a halt i would hear a very light/faint knock knock knock 3 times and repeats itself again and then disappears. hard to distinguish the sound but like a tock tock tock but not overly loud but can be heard over moderate volume

have read from others report it only happens when the heater turns on.

when the knock knock knock occurs, if i turn of the climatronic it just disappears.

[Paul_OH]

^^ Yup, I have the same. I originally thought it was an engine or gearbox knock until I realised one day it also did it with the engine off and the key in the acc position. Weird!

[gmc]

also after searching high and low and found that with the heater turned on, when coming to a halt i would hear a very light/faint knock knock knock 3 times and repeats itself again and then disappears. hard to distinguish the sound but like a tock tock tock but not overly loud but can be heard over moderate volume

have read from others report it only happens when the heater turns on.

when the knock knock knock occurs, if i turn of the climatronic it just disappears.

Stepper motors in the HVAC system. Adjusting flaps/doors and heater valve.

[i-vtec]

Stepper motors in the HVAC system. Adjusting flaps/doors and heater valve.


ahh thanks for that ... so nothing to worry about thens. very strange and unusual noise.

[Cam]

Yeah those are the Actuator motors for the climate control system.
The left actuator motor in mine actually died so it was nearly constantly making that noise. It got annoying real quick!

[satz]

my main issues with my 2008 build GTI are:


wind noise from exactly 100kmh, regardless of road surface!

I can't see what's causing it. Been over all the door, window, sunroof, windscreen rubber seals! Maybe it's the design, but i


Also the fit of the doors. Not just on mine (mostly fixed now), but on many I've seen (including mk6). Worse than any Japanese or even Aussie new cars!


Rattle/creak from the centre air vent. Done the taping/blu tacking but still cracks (esp at night when it cools down from the day's expansion I guess)


Minor one: wish the remote closing/opening would work just on a double-tap of the remote button, rather than having to hold it down for the whole process...

[funny]

my main issues with my 2008 build GTI are:


wind noise from exactly 100kmh, regardless of road surface!

I can't see what's causing it. Been over all the door, window, sunroof, windscreen rubber seals! Maybe it's the design, but i


Also the fit of the doors. Not just on mine (mostly fixed now), but on many I've seen (including mk6). Worse than any Japanese or even Aussie new cars!


Rattle/creak from the centre air vent. Done the taping/blu tacking but still cracks (esp at night when it cools down from the day's expansion I guess)


Minor one: wish the remote closing/opening would work just on a double-tap of the remote button, rather than having to hold it down for the whole process...


Wind noise is the mirror design. They rejigged it in the MK6.
I must have a freak then as my doors were nicely aligned!

As for remote - you need to find a VAGCOM/VCDS friend. Changing the 2-stage unlock takes seconds!

[funny]

Just reading back thru the thread.
It's funny how many of the comments could be responded with RTFM or can be changed with VAGCOM!

[satz]

hi Funny

sorry, was referring to the remote closing/opening of windows and sunroof, not the double stage door unlock


Not sure if the windnoise is the mirrors, as the noise seems to come across the windscreen, and is quite a 'roar' rather than the hiss you get on some cars


cheers

Satz

[MarcsGTI]

Mine is... Water dripping in and

SOUNDS LIKE A DIESEL!!!!

[Big_Al]

Yes the OEM water fall when its raining and having a the window a little bit open at the top!

[GTI-DSG]

For me, its the placement of the right hand side air-con vent in relation to steering wheel. I want it pointed at me, not somewhere away so I feel nothing... but its positioned just so perfectly in-line with where I hold the wheel, so it freezes my fingers... never had that problem in any car I've owned before.... lol

[jesse085]

Based on a 06 mkv gti 5dr 6spd Manual:

*sun visors are way too small! its just dangerous
*tiny center console barely fits anything
*glovebox too small
*no real cup holders in the car
*tartan seats are showing signs of wear (drivers side only, has hole in side bolster)
*half sized mfd, cant control much with out a vag com
*24hr clock!!!! (cant change to 12hr on half mfd).
*fuel economy could be better (avg 10.5/100)
*cabin rattles
*clunky manual g/box

[MarcsGTI]

How much room do you need? lol

Its a hatch at the end of the day - Maybe youy should buy a saloon?

[jesse085]

How much room do you need? lol

Its a hatch at the end of the day - Maybe youy should buy a saloon?

its a big hatch! quiet porky as well 1300kg's.. the least they could do is throw in some decent cup holders! if you sit in anything jap around the same age like an 07 wrx impreza hatch you'll find it has good size sun visors, glovebox etc. I could understand if it was a Polo i owned!

[iluvbrownale]

aw what da heck:

1) Indicator stalk creaks when used. The last GTI did this and it was seriously the BEST thing about my new one. Until a week later it went creaky...
2) An odd knock/creak when I got through some sharper turns at moderate speed. Sounds like it's down near the passenger footwell-ish. Any ideas?
3) The STUPID boot unlock button. Why would I ONLY want to unlock the boot?? Is it any different to unlocking doors & boot (same effort)? Solved with some new struts from ECS and hopefully someone can help me with VagCom so I then get auto boot opening. Any volunteers near the Gong?
4) Having a sunroof although that's totally my fault, not VW's.
5) Having the water squirter for the rear window squirt down - A3 has this incorporated into the wiper - neat.
6) Tyre pressure warning system that promises much but failed to deliver when I tried to drive off with the flattest of flat tyres. Half way across the carpark "what the hell is that scraping sound?" Get out, expecting something caught, then "that'll be my fkin rims. Thank goodness my tyre pressure warning system didn't tell me....."
7) The Climate control Auto function: yeah, I know it's 22 in the cabin and I set it to 21 but did you really have to blow like Hurricane Katrina in an effort to reduce temperature as fast as possible?
8) Having the World's Hardest to Replace Air Filter (honest, it's in the Guiness Book of Records).

[GTI-DSG]

I agree about the auto climate control, though I hate it in all cars.

Must commend the GTI's auto-wiper's though. Coming from an RS Clio, the auto wipers in that car were idiots. They didn't wipe the sensor, so even if the window was dry, the part where the sensor was wasn't, so they'd be going at maximum attack on a dry window, squeak squeak squeak new wiper blade time. So auto mode was never used. The GTI's know when it is or isn't wet which is excellent.

[78AGU]

AXLE TRAMP!

oh well hopefully my new coilovers and engine mounts will sort this.

[sammy82]

most annoying thing for me is the front windscreen that fogs up occasionally when u start the car up. The aircon is weak too, the front cupholders are not very good either(u can use the ones for the back seat but that would require a chiropractor's appointment).

[MarcsGTI]

sammy82 I have to disagree with you on the aircon being week.
Anyone that jumps in my car says I have THE BEST aircon they have ever felt. lol

Maybe get a re-gas?

[Cam]

Agree with you Mike on the air filter.
Fark what a job!! Took me an hour just to get the stupid engine cover off.
:p

My tyre pressure warning has worked once, just after I had my tyres replaced. It must have detected the change and beeped to warn me.
Never heard it since.

Sam, I've found similar with my aircon.
I mean..it works reasonably well but doesn't work as well as my brothers MKIV. Turn the air on in the MKIV and its icy cold within about 20 seconds.
I've found with mine it doesn't get really cold until you've been driving for a few mins (its got a new compressor as well). Don't get me wrong, it still works pretty well but still seems weak compared to the MKIV.

[iluvbrownale]

On the tyre pressure thing: was driving back late about 50 kays sth of Goulburn and the light pinged on. I pulled over and convinced myself that I had a slow flat and that it was defo low on air. Car even felt sluggish. At the prospect of an 80kmh space saver drive I drove at about 90 to Gunning and some cops at the pub and I decided I was imagining it. Sure enough it was 39psi when I got home. Hmmm, not lost any air.

Four weeks later, same drive, same spot - PING! Tyre pressure warning.

2 weeks later, same drive, same spot - PING!

The sensor that cried wolf or some weird German in-joke that I don't get?

Stupid Germans

[G-rig]

The pressure sensor didn't lie on mine (MK6), sure enough one tyre was only 15PSI and i'd got screwed! Fairly slow leak but kept an eye on it till i got it repaired.

[satz]

Poor ac, esp the nearly useless flow from the rear vents!

[funny]

Poor ac, esp the nearly useless flow from the rear vents!

Front and rear centre vents off the same outlet, which being so close to the fronts means fronts get 95% and rears almost nothing. If you want more rear flow, close up more of the front vents. If you want more from both, close more and turn fan up...

[JTW]

Unfixable faulty o2 sensor... Been replaced twice, A couple weeks later another CEL pops up with a faulty o2 sensor again...
I don't feel the affect of it, So I'm used my CEL now.

[78AGU]

Unfixable faulty o2 sensor... Been replaced twice, A couple weeks later another CEL pops up with a faulty o2 sensor again...
I don't feel the affect of it, So I'm used my CEL now.

tried asking APR to disable it?

[zogger]

Tyre sensor worked for me, driving home the sensor light came on and i just drove to my local tyre shop. Told them that I suspect a slow leak on one if the tyres, 20 min later he comes back with a screw from the front left. I use nitrogen so perhaps that increases it's accuracy due to the effect of heat on pressures?

[HOTHATCH]

KO3 is too small and runs out of puff too early.

I hate that the hatch locks itself even if the doors are unlocked. Probably fixable with vagcom.

[jesse085]

KO3 is too small and runs out of puff too early.

I hate that the hatch locks itself even if the doors are unlocked. Probably fixable with vagcom.

The Ko3 is probably one of my favorite things about the gti, nice low down torque which is smooth and usable. Unlike bigger turbo's which may offer huge puff up top but nothing down low.. Also my hatch always unlocks when the passenger doors are unlocked, so maybe check yours out with a vagcom.

[Howie]

Don't know if anyone has mentioned this yet but this:

Horrible air buffeting with the sunroof open to normal full (not the max by holding the switch past max). There's no real air diffuser on the leading edge of the sunroof like those found in other designs, so at certain speeds the resonance can be so bad the standing pressure waves that result start affecting my inner ear. I have to equalize every time the resonance changes when changing speed range!

[G-rig]

The Ko3 is probably one of my favorite things about the gti, nice low down torque which is smooth and usable. Unlike bigger turbo's which may offer huge puff up top but nothing down low..

Agree perfect for a street car and there is hardly any lag and plenty of torque (stage 1) and responsive. Outright top end speed would be good for the track though.

RE: buffeting, it's not very good with the windows down either so I never bother, but is probably designed to be more economical and quieter with the windows up so i don't bother rolling them down much these days. Glad i didn't fork out more for an R or a sunroof.

[jazd]

Sunglasses holder that doesnt fit normal sized sunglasses.. What is with that?

[Sammy]

Sunglasses holder that doesnt fit normal sized sunglasses.. What is with that?

i understand they are more for reading glasses than fashion sunnies.

[GTI-DSG]

The GTI actually does lag quite a bit. That's if you're talking about actual turbo lag, which is the time it takes between putting your foot on the throttle and the exhaust gas being created and spinning the turbo vs what people think is lag, which is when in the rpm range the turbo is at peak boost pressure.

Lined up my GTI with a mate's 1.6L 5sp man Renault Clio to actually test how much it does lag, short spurt both from 60km/h in second gear. Clio pulls away initially, GTI cannot overtake until 110km/h & 3rd gear. That's a 79kW 1.6 supermini that it struggles against from a roll like that. Once its actually stopped lagging and is on the power, it can pass it easily, but while you wait for it to spin up, its a bit embarassing. And yes, it was done on a road where it was within the legal speed limit.

[G-rig]

Compared to other turbo cars it's not much lag at all, but YMMV.

Just a question are you retuned? The car is quite responsive and perfect around town after the APR tune.

[bwen]

The GTI actually does lag quite a bit. That's if you're talking about actual turbo lag, which is the time it takes between putting your foot on the throttle and the exhaust gas being created and spinning the turbo vs what people think is lag, which is when in the rpm range the turbo is at peak boost pressure.

Lined up my GTI with a mate's 1.6L 5sp man Renault Clio to actually test how much it does lag, short spurt both from 60km/h in second gear. Clio pulls away initially, GTI cannot overtake until 110km/h & 3rd gear. That's a 79kW 1.6 supermini that it struggles against from a roll like that. Once its actually stopped lagging and is on the power, it can pass it easily, but while you wait for it to spin up, its a bit embarassing. And yes, it was done on a road where it was within the legal speed limit.

That's because you're comparing it to a car with a much smaller turbo and higher compression ratio. Compare the GTI against an Evo and STI and you would also see the same issue, they would even suffer from slower rolling acceleration speeds because of their AWD system. I mean if you think the k03 powered GTI suffers from turbo lag I would hate to hear your opinions on other high powered factory turbocharged cars. k03 is a tiny turbo. The mini cooper S also uses it on their 1.6L engine

[aaaaah]

Lined up my GTI with a mate's 1.6L 5sp man Renault Clio to actually test how much it does lag, short spurt both from 60km/h in second gear. Clio pulls away initially, GTI cannot overtake until 110km/h & 3rd gear. That's a 79kW 1.6 supermini that it struggles against from a roll like that. Once its actually stopped lagging and is on the power, it can pass it easily, but while you wait for it to spin up, its a bit embarassing. And yes, it was done on a road where it was within the legal speed limit.

60km/h rolling start in 2nd gear and the GTI is experiencing lag and being beaten by a 1.6 Clio? You're doing it wrong...

[jesse085]

The GTI actually does lag quite a bit. That's if you're talking about actual turbo lag, which is the time it takes between putting your foot on the throttle and the exhaust gas being created and spinning the turbo vs what people think is lag, which is when in the rpm range the turbo is at peak boost pressure.

Lined up my GTI with a mate's 1.6L 5sp man Renault Clio to actually test how much it does lag, short spurt both from 60km/h in second gear. Clio pulls away initially, GTI cannot overtake until 110km/h & 3rd gear. That's a 79kW 1.6 supermini that it struggles against from a roll like that. Once its actually stopped lagging and is on the power, it can pass it easily, but while you wait for it to spin up, its a bit embarassing. And yes, it was done on a road where it was within the legal speed limit.

your comparing a car that is 300kgs lighter then our tubby golf's, the laws of physics say the lighter the car the quicker off the line regardless of how much power the heavier one may have. Also I feel gearing has a lot to do with it as well, the 5spd will have an advantage over a 6spd for the first few seconds, I cant comment on the DSG but the 6spd man in the GTI has a particularly short first gear so your losing a few valuable milliseconds stuffing around from 1st > 2nd..

[GTI-DSG]

Compared to other turbo cars it's not much lag at all, but YMMV.

Just a question are you retuned? The car is quite responsive and perfect around town after the APR tune.

Nope, car is standard.


That's because you're comparing it to a car with a much smaller turbo and higher compression ratio. Compare the GTI against an Evo and STI and you would also see the same issue, they would even suffer from slower rolling acceleration speeds because of their AWD system. I mean if you think the k03 powered GTI suffers from turbo lag I would hate to hear your opinions on other high powered factory turbocharged cars. k03 is a tiny turbo. The mini cooper S also uses it on their 1.6L engine

A much smaller turbo? Uh? The 1.6 Clio is n/a.

High powered factory turbo cars are different. High powered being the key words. The prescious little they lose lagging against their n/a counterparts they make up for with power once the lag stops. The GTI is the opposite of high powered.


60km/h rolling start in 2nd gear and the GTI is experiencing lag and being beaten by a 1.6 Clio? You're doing it wrong...

How can you possibly get it wrong? Both cars in second gear, 60km/h coast... three, two, one, foot to the floor. N/A 1.6 instantly starts going, no delay. Turbo 2.0 GTI lags, the delay between putting your foot on the throttle & exhaust gas being created and plumbed back to spin the turbo giving the little 79kW supermini enough time to put its front wheels ahead of the GTI's nose, then when the lag finally stops, the 1.6 is reeled in and overtaken. The whole shebang takes 50km/h and a few seconds and a gearchange.


your comparing a car that is 300kgs lighter then our tubby golf's, the laws of physics say the lighter the car the quicker off the line regardless of how much power the heavier one may have. Also I feel gearing has a lot to do with it as well, the 5spd will have an advantage over a 6spd for the first few seconds, I cant comment on the DSG but the 6spd man in the GTI has a particularly short first gear so your losing a few valuable milliseconds stuffing around from 1st > 2nd..

What does a 60km/h rolling start have to do with off the line acceleration? That statement about the laws of physics and weight is very incorrect. Too many variables being ignored.

Fact is, all turbo cars lag, its an inescapable fact and bi-product of the design. I'm still certain many people are confusing real turbo lag with "boost threshold," ie: when in the rev range peak boost pressure is occuring and peak power/torque is happening. The GTI is very, very good in that regard, 280Nm @ 1800-5000rpm. However, that's not lag.

I knew the GTI was going to lag at first, but I thought it would pass quite easily. It didn't. 3 times tried on same stretch of highway. Each time same result, from 60km/h, could not pass until 110km/h speed limit of road reached, 3rd gear.

Agree with person who posted K03 as a pet peeve. :)

[G-rig]

It's probably just power to weight in this example but if you beat the clio who cares anyway. a 1.6 N/A is pretty gutless, i used to have a VTI-R, great engine but still isn't as fast as it sounds.

Rolling starts will favor the turbo in any case unless you have a heap of torque.

[78AGU]

i dont find the lag a problem its the wheelspin.. I've been beaten by prados off the line and gotten up around 80 before I overtook them. FWD sucks. Rolling start should be another story.. spesh in 3rd onwards..

I wouldnt think the GTI's would handle anything much bigger than a k03 on the street very well anyway

[G-rig]

i dont find the lag a problem its the wheelspin.. I've been beaten by prados off the line and gotten up around 80 before I overtook them. FWD sucks.

I was beaten by a Prado in the R32 as well, LOL. They mustn't be much heavier.

[funny]

How can you possibly get it wrong? Both cars in second gear, 60km/h coast... three, two, one, foot to the floor. N/A 1.6 instantly starts going, no delay. Turbo 2.0 GTI lags, the delay between putting your foot on the throttle & exhaust gas being created and plumbed back to spin the turbo giving the little 79kW supermini enough time to put its front wheels ahead of the GTI's nose, then when the lag finally stops, the 1.6 is reeled in and overtaken. The whole shebang takes 50km/h and a few seconds and a gearchange.


I cannot believe that the GTI is so slow from a rolling start in 2nd.
At 60kph a DSG in 2nd gear is doing about 4300rpm, manual isn't much difference. This is well within the torque band and though there may not be a shove, it should be quicker than a 1.6L.
NA will always have instant go, but at 4300rpm the turbo is spooled and should go like a rocket, stock or not. If you are stg1, then there's no excuse.
Excess boost is fed back into the intake by the DV so at 4300rpm boost is on tap, no waiting for the turbo to spool up.

Is this DSG or manual, and if DSG were you in manual, sport or D?
Maybe the DV is torn in the car?? (happens on stock vehicles!)

[aaaaah]

What funny said.

[random]

1 pet peeve for me, something in the boot is loose... i think it is the thingy connected to the hatch, whenever i got through some "rougher" roads it moves and make noises.

[melbv]

x2


When you go to D after reverse. The clucth disengage for about a second causing the car to roll back on a hill

[GTI-DSG]

I cannot believe that the GTI is so slow from a rolling start in 2nd.
At 60kph a DSG in 2nd gear is doing about 4300rpm, manual isn't much difference. This is well within the torque band and though there may not be a shove, it should be quicker than a 1.6L.
NA will always have instant go, but at 4300rpm the turbo is spooled and should go like a rocket, stock or not. If you are stg1, then there's no excuse.
Excess boost is fed back into the intake by the DV so at 4300rpm boost is on tap, no waiting for the turbo to spool up.

Is this DSG or manual, and if DSG were you in manual, sport or D?
Maybe the DV is torn in the car?? (happens on stock vehicles!)

Its DSG... as is highlighted by both my screen name and signature...

It was in manual mode.

The turbo is not spooled when you're coasting. When you have no throttle on, there is little to no fuel burn/exhuast gas happening, the engine is being run by the rolling resistance from the wheels. There is no boost. So what happens? You put your foot down and it starts the process of spooling, which takes time, allowing whatever is next to you that's n/a to, well, pull away, regardless of how much less powerful it is, while you're waiting for the turbo to come back on song. There is no turbo car in the world that does not have antilag (fuel being sprayed into the hot exhaust where it combusts and makes gasses to spin the turbo) or a belt-driven supercharger working with it (VW TSI, the old Delta Group B cars etc) that does not suffer from this problem, period.

The test was done on purpose to see how much the GTI lags, not to 'race' a much slower car that I know it will beat eventually. And it happens to lag quite a lot. Enough not to be able to pass a 1.6L 79kW supermini until you hit triple-digit speeds from a 60km/h roll.

[G-rig]

Agree that N/A would be a bit more responsive off the line but wouldn't take long for the turbo to overtake it. The R32 was good in the fact you could step on it in 4th and would still pull with no lag.. but really the K03 is a small responsive turbo and most don't consider it a problem.

[GTI-DSG]

Agree that N/A would be a bit more responsive off the line but wouldn't take long for the turbo to overtake it. The R32 was good in the fact you could step on it in 4th and would still pull with no lag.. but really the K03 is a small responsive turbo and most don't consider it a problem.

Don't get me wrong, 9 times out of 10 it'll kick the crap out of a car like that Clio, its just in that particular scenario when I'm deliberately trying to find out how much it lags when you hit it from zero load, it actually lags a lot. If you're light throttle accelerating (some load being placed on engine) and then punch it, its very responsive.

[funny]

in that particular scenario when I'm deliberately trying to find out how much it lags when you hit it from zero load, it actually lags a lot. If you're light throttle accelerating (some load being placed on engine) and then punch it, its very responsive.

Bold bits say it all. I was assuming you were on throttle to maintain 60kph (how else do you keep a constant speed before you start? 2nd gear with foot off throttle drops speed pretty quick).
Of course off throttle there will be little boost. I don't really know what you were expecting from a GTI when you mentioned


There is no turbo car in the world that does not have antilag

If every turbo car lags, then why test it on the GTI? NA will win hands down (at least from the jump). I think this is a pointless test other than to point out the obvious...
I think all of the GTI owner enthusiasts could have told you off-boost all turbo cars lag including the GTI!!
There was a Top Gear episode on this or last week showing the Evo 8 (i think it was 8). You think GTI's turbo lag is bad, wait til you see that ep - took forever for the Evo to spool and was miles behind the underpowered NA car it was up against.

[GTI-DSG]

Bold bits say it all. I was assuming you were on throttle to maintain 60kph (how else do you keep a constant speed before you start? 2nd gear with foot off throttle drops speed pretty quick).
Of course off throttle there will be little boost. I don't really know what you were expecting from a GTI when you mentioned

If every turbo car lags, then why test it on the GTI? NA will win hands down (at least from the jump). I think this is a pointless test other than to point out the obvious...
I think all of the GTI owner enthusiasts could have told you off-boost all turbo cars lag including the GTI!!
There was a Top Gear episode on this or last week showing the Evo 8 (i think it was 8). You think GTI's turbo lag is bad, wait til you see that ep - took forever for the Evo to spool and was miles behind the underpowered NA car it was up against.

Coast back down to 60 from a higher speed...

Accelerating and maintaining a speed are two different things. You don't need to place enough load to spool the turbo much (if at all) to maintain 60km/h in 2nd gear on a flat road.

The Top Gear episode with the Evo8 FQ400 is very old. That's not a normal Evo. It has a bigger turbo...

What was I expecting? Once on boost to easily pass the 79kW 1.6L supermini that was next to it, not to struggle on until triple digit speeds...