Drive by wire, ESP, TCS, and VVT
FUCK ALL THESE THINGS. I used to have a 1996 GTI VR6, and I loved it. I traded it in for a 2003, thinking it would be an upgrade. NO!! The suspension is so soft I can’t feel the road. It has an electronic throttle, so there is no throttle spring to give feedback as to where the throttle is. Electronic Stability Program, Traction Control, and Variable Valve Timing all add to the computer’s taking over control of the vehicle. I was almost killed on the highway the other day when I tried to accelerate and the fucking traction control closed the throttle on me. Oh yea, and the gears are WAY to short and the clutch is very vague, which makes for a very awkward car to drive.
Bottom line is this. The Mk4 GTI VR6 is not meant to be driven. It is all looks.
This kind of product development is due to the stupidity of American consumers, who don’t want to actually drive their cars. They just want to ride in them as the car does everything for them. This is bullshit, and it is DANGEROUS.
Subscribe by RSS
297 Said,
October 27, 2006 @ 6:03 am
- This type of product development caters to the lowest common denominator. Most people want road comfort. Computer controlled vehicles are safer, less prone to human error, which is much more dangerous. For the car enthusiast, which you seem to indicate that you are, you can disable traction by simply pressing the ASR/ESP button. You can get stiffer springs. Drive-by-wire is the future, this you’ll have to get used to, I know many motorheads cannot. If you really miss the way things used to be, find another pre-97 VR6. I’m looking for a Corrado SLC, myself….
burns32958 Said,
October 27, 2006 @ 7:47 am
- you can turn off the ESP, but not the ASR Theres not even a fuse for it. I looked in the manual, and on the fusebox.
Its also impossible to disable the stupid v-tec crap. At about 4 grand, it decides to open the intake valves all the way. That really fucks with me if I’m trying to hold a rev in a corner. (which is very necessary since the body roll is ridiculous)
Also I think there’s some sensor or something that chokes the throttle between shifts. Now I have to drive like a goddamn rice-boy, granny shifting with the car lurching forward and back every time I upshift. And forget heel-toe on the downshift. The drive-by-wire has about a half second delay, so its difficult to blip the throttle.
I reiterate my argument: The Mk4 GTI VR6 is all looks. It’s a wannabe sports car. It was designed to appeal to suburban white youth who wear baggy pants, sideways ballcaps, listen to linkin park, and begin every sentence with the word ‘mad’ and end it with the word ‘yo’. (for example: ‘Mad styalz, yo!’)
As for finding another Mk3, good luck. They’ve all been beaten to a bloody pulp by now. Or have ugly tail-lights, cut springs, 45 degree camber, a fartmaster muffler, and doors that open like a fucking delorean.
297 Said,
October 27, 2006 @ 8:37 am
- Every complaint you have is an attempt to defeat a modern system designed for safety and computer-controlled performance. In all honesty, why didn’t you realize this BEFORE buying the car? You do realize that any modern car today will come with pretty much all those computery goodness, right? To be honest, all your complaints would apply to any modern sports car.
ASR only operates at speeds less than 25mph, but I’m pretty sure it disables. I don’t have ESP (I have a 2001), but I have ASR defeat as a switch. Still, this only affects launches.
The 24V VR6 VVT provides a long power curve. The Jeckyl/Hyde response of Honda iVTEC does not exist in the VR6. I’m really not sure what you are describing at this point.
As for body roll, you might want to read this thread on handling to understand why the roll in the MkIV isn’t much to worry about and is actually there to HELP you make that corner.
Drive-by-wire is an electronic system. Electrical response is instantaneous for the distance we are considering. You are experiencing foot training, learning how to blip the throttle with DBW versus DBC.
You have valid complaints, but they apply to pretty much any post 2000 performance vehicle. All of them have some form of VVT, all of them have an increasing number of sensors to control the vehicle’s performance, and all of them are drive by wire. Handling characteristics will, of course, vary, but I’d read that thread on TDIClub that I linked to if you are sincerely interested in optimizing your car’s suspension to match your driving.