DCC system, is it a must have on the MK8?

[SRGTD]

My friend is potentially considering a Mk8 GTI CS. Difficulty is finding a car with DCC, sub 30k miles within budget. So my question is - is it necessary? From my TCR, I would say DCC is a must have, but not sure if the Mk8 CS differs and if anyone who has experienced no DCC would argue it’s not necessary. He is coming from a polo which is soft (I forgot how soft they are!) - this also means test drives aren’t an option (age and insurance…). For reference he is currently leaning towards a TTRS (which I thought the ride quality was pretty smooth but he thinks otherwise). He would ideally like Harmon Kardon also on the car if he got one - is this also necessary? How is the sound in a standard car? 

Any thoughts welcome 

Speaking as a non mk8 Golf owner, IMHO whether DCC is a must have or not is subjective - we’re all individuals so in terms of ride quality what is considered acceptable or unacceptable will vary from one person to the next. Some owners actually prefer a non-DCC an equipped car to one with DCC; I might have got it wrong but I seem to remember forum member @Exonian is one such person. Other factors (particularly on a non-DCC car) might also be relevant to ride quality - e.g. wheel and tyre size and brand of tyres. DCC may make a car easier to sell come resale time, due to the perception of some potential buyers that it’s a must have. Bear in mind though that if DCC shocks need replacing they’ll be more costly to replace than non-DCC shocks, and replacement might not be covered under warranty if VW considers the reason for failure is wear and tear.

You’ve said test drives aren’t an option - I’m assuming your reference to age and insurance means your friend is considered to be a young driver from an insurance perspective. Is it just one VW dealership who has said ‘no’ to a test drive or is it now a general VW policy that they don’t permit test drives for younger drivers, even if accompanied by a salesperson? It’s a long while since I was a young driver but I was fortunate enough to own a couple of performance hatches in my early 20’s and never had an issue with getting a test drive - even an unaccompanied test drive, although I do accept things might have changed since then.

As for Harmon Kardon and whether or not it’s necessary, some will say it is and others will be perfectly happy with the standard system. As individuals, we hear things differently, and what we listen to on a car’s audio system (e.g. the music genre, the audio source) can also have a bearing on a person’s opinion. IMHO a car isn’t the ideal environment for listening to music due to the many other noise sources that affect the listening experience - e.g. noise from wind, road / tyre, engine and passengers. I the had Dynaudio upgrade in a mk6 GTD I owned some years ago and I was underwhelmed (disappointed) by it, whereas other forum members at the time were singing its praises. In cars I’ve owned since then I’ve always just stuck with the standard system.

[jcrollie]

Regarding test drives - all dealer insurance policies mandate that you have to be 21 or over to test drive. I am sure he could sit as a passenger though I just don’t think he would go through all that effort just to sit as a passenger.

I agree it is subjective. I imagine Harmon Kardon would be a nice bonus if the car has it but by no means the end of the world. The Dynaudio in my car is amazing however and I don’t know how standard speakers compare. Ride quality is of course subjective, I am more tolerable but I don’t think he is. So I am just curious how firm/comfortable is the ride without DCC. I probably would tell him not go for a car with 19” unless it had DCC, unless the standard damping is good enough (hence the curiosity). I throw that TTRS suspension in the mix just to give an idea of what he might find firm, versus others (i.e. myself). So long as the ride is good without DCC I don’t think it will be the end of the world if he choses to get a Mk8. Of course all of these options are ideal and make the car more sellable, and would want as many of them as you could get but the dealer networks are pretty lacking in terms of big spec cars at least within his budget.

[karlos]

Bear in mind though that if DCC shocks need replacing they’ll be more costly to replace than non-DCC shocks, and replacement might not be covered under warranty if VW considers the reason for failure is wear and tear.

Fortunately the cost of DCC shocks, at least for Mk7/7.5, has come way down and you can now get OEM Monroe front struts for a little over £100 each. I believe there used to be some sort of exclusivity arrangement between VW and Monroe that has now expired.

[evo1986]

Really difficult pretty much most cars out the factory available to dealers were bog standard things then we went intoCOVID  lock down and then total carnage new car supply so dealers couldn’t even order nicely spec’d stock cars. For  quite a chunk of the MK8 clubsports life cycle only customers could order cars or lease companies would have ordered the odd batch of bog standard ones aswell….before we went into lockdown.

So will be very slim pickings of any nice one private own spec’d cars….