Adaptive Chassis Control

[monkeyhanger]

Ging-Ho:

If you're after "extra" stiffness in Sport mode then you'll be disappointed. Sport is still a smidge softer than standard set-up 15mm lowered VW suspension, and the other 2 settings are softer than that.

[Gryzor]

Ging-Ho:

If you're after "extra" stiffness in Sport mode then you'll be disappointed. Sport is still a smidge softer than standard set-up 15mm lowered VW suspension, and the other 2 settings are softer than that.

Straight away that works for me!  But, in the case of having ACC/DCC, surely sport being slightly softer than standard doesn't automatically translate to inferior handling?  If anything, it should feel softer due to it adjusting to the road conditions, yet at the same time offer a slightly more focused drive.

[Gung-Ho]

Ging-Ho:

If you're after "extra" stiffness in Sport mode then you'll be disappointed. Sport is still a smidge softer than standard set-up 15mm lowered VW suspension, and the other 2 settings are softer than that.

  thanks monkeyhangar... You've really made my day!!!  let's hoping its not a total waste of money on my part haha

[monkeyhanger]

Gryzor: Can't comment on any detrimental handling from having the ACC, my Roc certainly feels sharper than my last MK5 Golf did around the bends when you fling it about, but some of that will be down to the XDS and a lower centre of gravity i'm sure. Sport is the stiffest endpoint of the adjustability spectrum, so there is no adjustment going on in "Sport", if you want adjustment you'll be putting it in normal. For me though, I just pick between Sport and Comfort, ignoring "Normal" where all the adjustment is (this is the one that feels most fidgety and less predictable). All this advice is subject to the assumption that the system hasn't had any appreciable positive changes in it's second geeration (which it might've done). If you're after a car that can change from wallowy cruiser to sharp and sporty at the press of a button then get the ACC. ACC is primarily for the passengers benefit and not the drivers.

[Hawaii-Five-O]

Sport is still a smidge softer than standard set-up 15mm lowered VW suspension, and the other 2 settings are softer than that.

Monkeyhanger: Just out of interest, how do you know 'Sport' on ACC is still a tad softer then the standard 15mm lowered set up?

I don't want it that hard!

Have a blundered not ordering the ACC

I have ACC on my Scirocco but maybe I've never appreciated it.

[monkeyhanger]

Had a quick go in the MK6 GTI 35 at Benfield yesterday when doing my Red or Black comparison, so my assumption is based on MK6 GTI feeling exactly like MK7 (I wonder how much the MQB platform and weight savings will have on any changes to standard suspension feel between 6 and 7). I only managed to get about 4 miles out of the trip when the dealer wanted me to get back to the dealership. There is a long, bendy and insanely steep sliproad up to the A1 above Scotswood road - a real test of torque and power shooting up there.

Used salesman was a little huffed after the "test drive" when I said I was mainly in it to get a feel for suspension ride for a new GTD (which I know will be a little different to a GTI due to the slightly heavier engine, but not that much). He fess huffed when he realised the Benfield new car sales weren't getting my business either - seems a little bit of unhealthy rivalry between used and new sales there.

[Gryzor]

Thanks monkeyhanger.  For the mix of driving I do and the passengers I carry, having that flexibility is definitely something I'm looking for, hence why I opted for it.  For the most part, on my own I don't mind the relatively hard ride in my Mk5, but it's nice to be able to switch.  Chances are that mine will spend most of its time in Comfort to be be honest.

[monkeyhanger]

Comfort still isn't supersoft, I would say it's like 10mm dropped suspension on 17" wheels compared to 15mm dropped suspension on 18" wheels. You will appreciate the difference on crappy roads and your back seat passengers will appreciate it when you show them what "sport" is like in comparison. It is a "nice to have", but all "nice to haves" have their price and £800 is beyond my price for it, that;s not to say it's not worth £800 to you, especially as you'll get at least 5 years benefit from it, not 3.

[Gryzor]

Oh for sure I'm not expecting it to be super-soft, it's a GTI after all, and the springs are 30% stiffer regardless of how the dampers operate!

[Sootchucker]

To be honest guys, I don't think we will really know what the ACC is like until one of us actually gets to drive it. Don't forget that the ACC is all new on the MK7 platform (ACC MK2) and now has the ability to regulate the dampers individually (rather than across a single axle like the previous incarnation), so my guess is that it won't compare to the MK6 or Scirocco systems, but instead will feel totally different.

Judging by the reviews on the GTI, all seem to heavily praise the GTI's ride (and all seem to be fitted with ACC). Not one journalist I could see, and commented it's too hard or too soft, most have said, it's perfect !