How heavy is the rear Haldex unit in an R?

[fredgroves]

Just wondering if placing a similar amount of weight in the rear would improve ride... the R always seems more stable over bumpy roads, even in a straight line.... wondering if its just the weight effect as a GTI/GTD is very very light in the rear.

[Watts]

Have a heavy mate sit in the back all the time? In the middle of course....

[bgbazz]

Before going to trouble and expense, just try a few bags of sand in the boot...one at a time and see if that makes a difference. Thinking about it, maybe try placing the bags under the rear seat...one on each side. Failing that, just get two mates to sit in the back and go for a spin.

I'm being serious.

[JoeGTI]

Something I noticed too.

I drove a friend's GTI a few weeks ago and it was the first thing I noticed. The car felt noticeably lighter going over the bumps. Some would say thats a great thing but I think I prefer the more planted feeling of the R.

[golfdave]

The Haldex unit is in a big block known as the final drive unit..which also house the "diff" which splits the central drive shaft to the two stub axles..

So also have the weight of the cardan shaft (front to back), plus the fact the fuel tank is a saddle type so the weight balance is better..

My estate handles way better than the hatch version....rear is planted & because of CSS front ARB (factory fit) & very soft rear ARB it rear steers..& can oversteer..so very neutral..

[bgbazz]

Don't forget that if you increase the weight in the rear end...by whatever method, you will almost certainly have to beef up the rear suspension to cope with it.

[Exonian]

Just wondering if placing a similar amount of weight in the rear would improve ride... the R always seems more stable over bumpy roads, even in a straight line.... wondering if its just the weight effect as a GTI/GTD is very very light in the rear.

It’s the rear suspension design that makes the difference on an R, not the weight. You can feel the weight at the rear of an R but it’s not what’s responsible for the ride quality. It’s more the rear suspension design and settings. Even on 19’s my R was smooth. Both my PP GTI & Ed40 CS feel/felt far more nimble than an R but lack the composure.

[fredgroves]

Thanks folks. Some interesting comment.

I was going to try sandbags actually, but was wondering if anyone guessed how much would be the approximate amount.

And then Exonian says about suspension.... how is it different?

[golfdave]

And then Exonian says about suspension.... how is it different?

VW brochure for MK7 2014 GTI manual UL weight 1351kg.......R manual 1476kg

As for different rear suspension...not really

The arms, links & wishbones are the same, subframe is different because of AWD....dampers & springs have their own settings to accommodate the extra rear weight of AWD.

[fredgroves]

So 125kg difference... some of that will be the prop shaft, if we said it was 50kg for that, thats still 75kg over the back wheels, which is a lot.

Quite tempted to try some experiments this weekend