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Model specific boards => Golf mk7 => Topic started by: Mr Savage on 17 February 2015, 07:03
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Hello guys.
Drove an R the other day without Adaptive Chasis Control and was surprised to see you still get Race Mode in the driving profiles and the suspension in race mode wasn't harsh at all.
After speccing this on my GTI I've never felt any difference in any suspension setting (maybe very slight when being pushed) and ive asked all my passengers if they feel any difference while I switch modes, to which they say "no" so...
Adaptive Chasis Control, a bit crap for £815? I'd say so...will not be speccing this again.
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Opinion is very much divided on this one.
Personally I like it and would spec it again...
PS its "dynamic chasis control" (DCC) - ACC is the cruise control :)
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Very divided….
But most that splashed the cash are loathed to tell you that it didn’t do much for them.
After having it on 2 Sciroccos (as standard equipment), I didn’t feel the need to spec. Someone is bound to chip in and say the 2 systems aren’t quite the same – the newer version on the MK7 is a little better, not much. The Scirocco and MK6 Golf benefitted from DCC because the standard ride on the MK5/6 Golf was so much crashier than it is on the MK7 (and I’m assuming it would’ve been just as bad on the Scirocco if it didn’t come with DCC as standard.
Unless you’ve got back issues, or are speccing it to stop your great Aunty Maud moaning in the back when you take her out for Sunday lunch 4 times a year, I could easily do without it on a ride as comfortable as a MK7, on 18” wheels at least. Hopefully mine on the 19” wheels won’t be much less compliant than my current 18” Nogaros on Flintstone tyres if it comes with decent rubber or I swap out early days.
It can be a little confusing that VW used to call it ACC, but now call it DCC as they now call the radar/cruise system ACC.
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If you can't feel any difference at all then I'd be checking if it's actually working properly. I can definitely feel the difference in mine especially between comfort and sport mode.
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If the car does not have DCC then the modes will not change the suspension, only other systems in the car (engine, sound generator, gearbox etc..)
It is a lot of money and if I had to give up one option in the car I would give the DCC up. Having said that, it makes the ride with VWR springs very comfortable. I run the suspension in comfort 95% of the time and I do notice when I select ECO in the drive modes as this brings normal firmness in the suspension. Sport mode make the ride very rough over sharp bumps.
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Thinking about it just now, its not like say not having a sun roof or two bar - if you don't have a sun roof or tow bar, you don't have a sun roof or tow bar.
With DCC you still have suspension.
Its also not like not having 19" wheels or metallic paint, because you can see those things externally.
Its like all of the convenience electronics - lane assist, parking, keyless or even the rear view camera - its stuff that you can still do but maybe not as conveniently and electronics does help.
That's how I would describe it and you either love convenience technology or you don't.
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Do not compare the system on the 7 to the Scirocco and Mk6, the 7 system takes this on a level
Was woeful on the Scirocco and why I never had it on the Mk6, the flaw was the steering could not be adjusted separately from the damping, so comfort meant lighter steering
Our mike 5 always road better and had far better steering feel
I had a 7 GTI on loan with this and actually liked it so much it has been specced on both Rs
The individual setting is what makes the difference as you can set the car how you like, also with the lowering springs its damping set to comfort for most of UK roads
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I have similar views to 'monkey hanger' on this. I had DCC as standard on my Scirocco. You could feel the different settings but the ride was always very firm, noisy and crashy even over fairly minor bumps in the road. This was mainly due to the wider spec tyres and the older platform it ran on.
This experience is why I decided not to spec DCC on my new GTI. And I don't regret it one jot. The ride, noise suppression and ability to cope with large bumps and poor road surface are night and day compared to the old Golf platform. This MQB platform has brought the car up a level.
I say save yourself £815.
However this topic will prove very divisive :wink:
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We've discussed this quite a few times before.
Being now 15 months in on my GTI my opinion is still the same - DCC makes a noticeable difference but not enough to be excited about. I would probably rethink having it again.
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Comfortable cruiser, everyday hatch or go kart - the choice is yours.
Worth every penny to me. I had it on my last GTI, I have it on this one and will have it on the next.
To me it's about the flexibility it adds, it's very much a mood thing.
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Have benefit of a colleague who has a vanilla GTI and my DCC optioned GTD to which have been in both decent anount of time.
Firstly there is a difference between Sport and Comfort on the GTD its very noticeable. You get a decent firm ride in sport and a really cossetted ride in comfort which is perfect for local and motorway driving - Normal is far closer to comfort side than Sport.
The 'normal' GTI ride from my experience is between normal and sport on the GTD so just a little harder than GTD normal setting.
Which means the GTI ride is more than acceptable and when I am out in the GTI there is certainly no feeling that this is a car with a ride thats too hard such as would expereince in an Audi S Line.
There is a difference though between settings with cars that have DCC and between cars with and without this option.
Roads are bad in my area and since had this option then its not something causes me an issue so for me it was ££ well spent for the extra comfort though its not a decision that has such a contrast you can ever get wrong, hence the divided opinions.
So end oif day, you have £800 to spend, depends what little extra comfort you value more on how spend it. I went for DCC over the upgraded stereo as standard decent enough, but thats another debate done to death :wink:
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It's a hot(tish)hatch not a luxury barge.
The suspension on the standard car is perfectly acceptable in comfort terms and I'm not exactly a youngster.
For those that are too fussy about the suspension settings you're either buying the wrong type of car for you and getting it purely because of the badge or needing stiffer damping for track work. :tongue:
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I've got it on my R at the moment and think it's worth the money, mine spends about 70% of the time in comfort but only about 2% of the time in race mode because i don't like what it does to my moobs! :grin: but as Wigit says it's the indivdual mode that makes it, you can have the sound and steering from race but set the suspension to normal so it doesn't make your spleen come out your mouth!
The standard setup on both the GTI and R is perfectly adequate if you're not too fussy but imo if you're spending 30k+ then it's a small price to pay to have so much choice.
And Chris Harris likes it so it must be good..... :rolleyes:
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Handling characteristics by their nature are subtle,
I wouldnt expect the car to go suddenly very floppy ( comfort ) or bone shakingly hard ( sport ) just so a difference becomes noticable.
The ride in Normal is excellent. Comfort is excellent for motorways and long journeys as it adds a wafting characteristic and Sport firms things up a little over Normal if you fancy a bit of a 'spirited' drive.
Is it worth it?
Well if like me you do many miles then i get value from the comfort setting alone during the time i have the motor.
I hardly ever use sport but so what? 30K miles a year and the ability to flick between comfort and Normal is good enough for me.
Im sure the standard set up is great also though as it certainly was in my MK6 GTD.
Id certainly recommend test driving both set ups though!
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I specced it and I like it so far. I mainly use comfort but I also like sport. As others have said it isn't bone crunching in sport, even on some of our Devon country lanes. I like that the steering stiffens up more on twisty lanes. And the engine sounds gruffer.
I like to be in Sport on long motorway drives as I use the Adaptive Cruise Control. In comfort I find the pickup in acceleration back up to the set speed after a slower car has moved out of the way is sluggish whereas with sport its back up there much quicker. If I've a car behind me and I'm in comfort they will be pressing for me to get out of their way but in sport it's cya later :grin:
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Good post Fabio, and others. I deliberated long and hard over this one, for most of the buying process I opted without it, and then I suddenly decided to add it post-order. Cost £700 with the Carwow discount. And....still not sure! One thing that bothers me is the longevity of the DCC system, how robust is it compared to normal dampers? Currently at "build week confirmed" stage on the Tracker, is it now too late to change ?
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I wonder what the Polo GTI version offers for just over £200?
Surely all the GTI would need in reality would be a 'Normal' setting and a 'Sport' setting for track work which needn't cost £800 odd.
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One thing that bothers me is the longevity of the DCC system, how robust is it compared to normal dampers?
I've had it on other (non-VW's) before... ok so it was a company/lease vehicle but I didn't manage to break it in three years and 150k miles....
I suspect that if it was to break outside of warranty then it would be more expensive to replace than a normal damper - and probably only OEM will work.
Probably not an issue for most but maybe a problem for someone buying a second/third hand one in 5-10 years time.
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I wonder what the Polo GTI version offers for just over £200?
Surely all the GTI would need in reality would be a 'Normal' setting and a 'Sport' setting for track work which needn't cost £800 odd.
Probably a cheaper/less functional thing on the Polo?
DCC is not just a push button stiffness control, it is actually dynamic... people forget this.
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I wonder what the Polo GTI version offers for just over £200?
Surely all the GTI would need in reality would be a 'Normal' setting and a 'Sport' setting for track work which needn't cost £800 odd.
Probably a cheaper/less functional thing on the Polo?
DCC is not just a push button stiffness control, it is actually dynamic... people forget this.
Yes, it's the dynamic thing that makes me think it just needs a Normal and Sport setting, the latter for track use and the former for everyday driving.
Do those of you that have it actually adjust it very often? I know I wouldn't, I think I'd just leave it in normal, the same as the other settings. I did play with them at first but thought all of them were a bit rubbish.
Eco I only tried once and just found it annoying.
Sport just makes the car sound like it has a misfire and doesn't make the throttle anything like as responsive as a PedalBox.
Maybe my Soundaktor is faulty?
Mines a manual non DCC btw.
Minimal extras for maximum power to weight as a GTI should be! :laugh:
Or in my case (hopefully) minimal depreciation which is meaningless to those who have someone else pay for their cars I guess.
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Some good points here both for and against, Mrs D has it on hers as she wanted the option to soften the ride, not too sure myself it has any major effect.
One interesting thing is that on 2 major car valuation sites, this option is not listed when you adjust for mileage and extras, they consider it has no value at all on resale.
Based on this I am tempted to say it's not worth it, it's not a cheap option!!!
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The thing is I have it right now on my GTI (DCC) and I never, ever change my driving profile. It stays in sport profile, all the time and that's because I've tried it in the other settings. The suspension feels the same in comfort mode as it does sport, maybe mines not working then.
But as I say I drove the R that didn't have DCC and it wasn't a harsh ride at all.
I even used to change the car from sport mode to comfort while going over those yellow lines they put down on the road to slow you down. And it didn't feel any more "comfortable" at all.
Since the Stig got his fastest lap time around the Top Gear track in Comfort mode and not "Sport" mode though then I guess I should just drive around in Comfort all the time :P
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Worth every penny to me too. Huge difference in ride between the modes. Comfort is wallowy, lots of roll, ideal for speed bumps, but I don't like it otherwise. Normal is what I use 90% off the time, good overall compromise. Sport is too stiff for British roads.
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I must be driving a different car then because I've never thought to myself that the ride is too stiff and it's been in Sport mode pretty much permanently for the last 6 months atleast.
I think people are experiencing a placebo effect. It would be an interesting experiment for VW to disable someone's DCC without them knowing and see if they notice :P
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You can't really compare a non DCC car to a car with dcc as the dcc is working all the time even in normal mode. Options are subjective to everyone and it's what makes us individual by choosing different ones. Are any options really worth the money, no.
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If it feels the same in sport and comfort I think there has to be something wrong with your car Mr Savage! Or perhaps you have perfect roads where you live :) I've shown my DCC to dozens of passengers and I've never had anyone not immediately notice the difference, with a "oh yeah, wow" or similar.
And they werent being polite as they often havent seen what I've changed it to :) It's not a placebo at all, and I switch between comfort and sport daily (and occasionally normal for motorways where comfort is a bit too wallowy).
Speed bumps in sport is bone shaking!!
If I would buy it again is another question. Personally I love it and budget allowing would get again. If I wanted to reduce my budget I would consider not having it over some of the other options, but I would certainly miss it.
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I have DCC and love it I live on the Isle of Wight which has the most awful roads. In comfort mode the car rides fantastically. If I want something feeling more sporty I simply select sport mode. I would not be without it :)
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Race mode or sport is not the best way to go point to point in Blighty, you need that extra bit of articulation side to side and front to rear, normal is a bit pants and never likes you pressing on
Mrs Wigit also specced it on hers, I may get to drive its some day
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Hello guys.
Drove an R the other day without Adaptive Chasis Control and was surprised to see you still get Race Mode in the driving profiles and the suspension in race mode wasn't harsh at all.
After speccing this on my GTI I've never felt any difference in any suspension setting (maybe very slight when being pushed) and ive asked all my passengers if they feel any difference while I switch modes, to which they say "no" so...
Adaptive Chasis Control, a bit crap for £815? I'd say so...will not be speccing this again.
Was the R you drove on 18s or 19s? What size wheels on your current GTI? If you're on 18s perhaps that's why you don't feel the need to make use of it, as arguably they give the optimum ride and as you say, the standard setup is pretty good anyway.
Now I haven't tried the DCC (formerly ACC) on mk7, but if you have 19s maybe that's where it becomes a worthwhile option, as we know they give a harder ride, whatever the car. I have ACC (albeit on a mk6) so the poorer cousin, but even that takes a slight edge off the harsh ride on the bigger wheels. By all accounts the 2nd generation on the 7 is a different beast, a distinct improvement with greater adaptability so reason enough to spec it if you are going for 19s?
I have specced it again on my R primarily as I'm sticking with 19" wheels, and, if they come on the woefully hard Bridgestones, coupled with our crappy UK roads, I might be even more thankful for it :grin: (not that they're likely to stay on for long)
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Spec'd up an Audi S4 last night, did you know Audi are doing a 5k deposit contribution on the model, anyway, the damper control was only £300!
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Well worth it for me. I love it, and regularly change between Comfort and Sport modes, there is a huge difference in my car.
90% of the time it stays in comfort mode for the dreary commute and general driving, but I do use Sport when I want to press on. That said, the narrow B-Roads roads round my way are that bad, I tend to use Individual where I leave the Suspension and Steering in Comfort, everything else in Sport. With Sports suspension it looses a lot of the fluidity and feel and becomes a bit skittish. Of course, well surfaced roads bring the best out of Sports suspension but it's rare up where I live.
If I'd have wanted a 'hot-hatch' purely for driving terms I'd have bought the most focused one on the market (Renaultsport Megane 265 Trophy) - but I didn't. I wanted the best 'all-rounder' so it plays the luxury barge all day long in Comfort mode, and is very nicely entertaining when the mood/conditions require.
It would be the first option I'd tick again without a shadow of doubt.
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If I'd have wanted a 'hot-hatch' purely for driving terms I'd have bought the most focused one on the market (Renaultsport Megane 265 Trophy) - but I didn't. I wanted the best 'all-rounder' so it plays the luxury barge all day long in Comfort mode, and is very nicely entertaining when the mood/conditions require.
It would be the first option I'd tick again without a shadow of doubt.
I'm sorry but I find the GTI to be the same ride in all settings. It can get quite crashy over poor road surfaces regardless of what setting the DCC is in. It's a reasonable ride but it will never be a great ride which is fine and expected.
I have been fortunate enough to drive my GTI for 14,000 miles with DCC, an R without DCC and my brothers R with DCC and I can tell you that it is in my opinion a complete waste of money.
I was going over a very bumpy, poorly surface in my fully loaded GTI last week. (As in 5 passengers). The road was rough and crashy and so I took the car out of sport mode and into comfort to which the road was not even the slightest bit more comfortable. Infact even one of the passengers commented "well that didn't help!". This is on 18" Austins, my brothers R is on 19" Pretorias and while the ride of the R is less comfortable again I was changing the suspension settings in his car and noticing no difference at all.
People will continue to say it's a great option, the difference is night and day ect but really I think you're kidding yourselves. I'm sure DCC must do something as otherwise they wouldn't beable to sell it but at best it makes a reasonable ride ever so slightly more reasonable and not "great".
I'm trying to give potential new buyers some useful advice here and my advice is spend that £815 on Pretorias or the bigger Sat Nav screen.
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I have toyed with the idea of getting a Golf R next time. I currently have a GTI PP without DCC and have been on the configurator to see if with DCC the price was over my potential budget for getting a Golf R. The only reason i would think about getting DCC was to get Race Mode. However if you are saying I would get Race Mode without DCC, then it is a no brainer for me. The ride in my current GTI PP is more than fine without DCC I do not even miss it.
I am one of those potential new buyers you speak of, and thank you for making some of the facts regarding Race Mode and DCC clearer. :smiley:
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Suspension is harder in race mode than in normal.
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Maybe the DCC works perfectly Mr savage but the issue is you. Do you granite a4se cheeks or something haha :grin: :grin: nearly everyone else can feel the difference but you can't even on two different cars. Maybe the roads are worse where you are so no amount of soft suspension will help.
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Maybe the DCC works perfectly Mr savage but the issue is you. Do you granite a4se cheeks or something haha :grin: :grin: nearly everyone else can feel the difference but you can't even on two different cars. Maybe the roads are worse where you are so no amount of soft suspension will help.
Everyone else apart from half the other people on this thread including Monkeyhanger & Hawii-Five to name a couple that think it's not worth it you mean?
Im just being honest. Not gonna say that I feel the difference when I honestly don't.
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Matt (mh) never had dcc on a mk7 so can't really offer up an opinion. He had it on his previous scirocco but that was the old DCC. Have you not asked VW to check yours out and reset the basic settings on the DCC? You can come and drive my gtd with it on if you want to see it working properly. It must be the roads where you are because I can honestly say the settings on mine do change. They haven't misbuilt yours and not put the dcc on??
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It looks more and more like yours doesn't have DCC Mr Savage.
Is there anyone on the forum near you that has it that can definitely feel a difference, could maybe take you out in theirs and vice versa.
I'd be mightily p!ssed off if I had paid that amount for something that wasn't there.
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Well I must have DCC as I have the comfort and individual options on the driver profile selection. It might be more a case of my suspension being mechanically broken as it's always been noisy at low speeds over bumps. Dealer always denied anything being wrong with it. A typical "It's a characteristic of the car".
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I have DCC and I can't tell any difference. It's the first option that would go if I was to order again.
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So it's not me going mad then.
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I've just had the rear shocks replaced due to them being noisy but it's taken a lot of persuasion from me to even get the dealer to check them out. Also had the front shock boots reattached as they'd been loose for about a year. The car is now quiet driving on roads but still very very crashy over raised table top speed bumps.
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If there is no discernible difference on your DCC I would definitely go for a drive with a VW tech and see what they say.
It is night and day for me. Of course it could be down to how good your roads are, but just find a speed bump and go over it the same speed in sport and then comfort.
In comfort my car simply wallows over most bumps, it can actually be too soft on Motorways at speed and occasionally I will put it in normal (and I can tell a huge difference to normal, let alone Sport!)
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You have checked that the transport blocks have been removed? That would explain the feeling of no difference in ride and suspension noise.
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Yep it's been in the dealers for that already. They repositioned the gaitors which helped for a little while.
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I'm sorry but I find the GTI to be the same ride in all settings. It can get quite crashy over poor road surfaces regardless of what setting the DCC is in. It's a reasonable ride but it will never be a great ride which is fine and expected.
Out of interest Mr Savage, where abouts are you in the country?
I would love you to have a drive in my car and see what you think of the DCC in mine as I honestly can tell a significant difference. Sure, it isn't as marked a difference as it was in my old Passat CC (that car was unbearable in Sport), but there is a clear difference and every passenger I've had in the car has commented on it.
I'm certainly not kidding myself, if I didn't think it was worthwhile I'd be more than happy to be honest and say.
The area where I live has some pretty terribly surfaced B-Roads and in Sport mode the drive is unpleasant, but in Comfort the edge is smoothed off and progress is much more fluid.
As I mention, I'd be delighted for you to drive my car if you're near to me in Lancashire to see if it is a problem with your car or a thing in general.
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I agree its worth the money just to keep the wife happy when alone put it into sport and enjoy.
My wife can tell within 200/300 yards if i have it in sport!
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I'm sorry but I find the GTI to be the same ride in all settings. It can get quite crashy over poor road surfaces regardless of what setting the DCC is in. It's a reasonable ride but it will never be a great ride which is fine and expected.
Out of interest Mr Savage, where abouts are you in the country?
As I mention, I'd be delighted for you to drive my car if you're near to me in Lancashire to see if it is a problem with your car or a thing in general.
I'm in Nottingham/Derby area mate
Appreciate the offer though :)
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For what its worth my opinion when I had a TTS with mag ride was that it was nice to have and you could notice a small difference but I would not have paid nearly a grand for it on my car (or the gti)
Personally if I wanted something where comfort was the priority I would go for an SE model, if I wanted firmer ride and better handling I would have a GTi. I know people will say if you want one car that does it all you need it but I don't think the dynamic difference feels big enough on a hot hatch. Fair enough on a Cayman GTS but a the end of the day you are trying to improve the handling of a car that is much taller and more compromised. When I first test drove a new GTi what I loved was the overall balance between ride and handling and comfort, so much so that I wouldn't have even thought to consider ticking ACC option.
I am a bit old school and prefer more of the analogue driving experience so I never ever spec these kind of options on a car,I just buy a car that has the right ride and handling compromise. If I was going to get something more expensive or proper sports car like them it would be higher up the list, but on a day to day hatch its just something else that inevitably will go wrong at some point !