MarkyG82

@TDIMachoMan Read again. @Carlstonis talking about 235/40 not 235/45. The superb wheels should fit just fine. They will stick out a bit more and actually be further from the suspension so no issues mechanically.

Ok so it's one gauge and goes right to left.

You have separate water and oil temps. Could be that. Or could one be oil pressure?

The bit with lines (up to just after 103) is the normal operating temperature. The red to the right is overheating. The red lines show the current temperature. 103 could be the current temperature or the mark just before the red overheating section. Does that number change? Yes it's all one gauge.

@Rooted clearly that table above is out of date as the cambelt info is off. No mention of VAQ either. Assuming it's similar to Haldex, are the intervals the same for both?

It's due to the emissions. To comply with euro6 (?) it needs to default to something. So they chose to default to normal. Depending how you drive different people prefer normal or eco for economy.

I always thought the time based interval on the diff to be a bit questionable given the distance based interval on the DSGs. With the table above readable at 40k on DSG could you also read it as 30K for haldex?

I have had that discussion a few times. Partly due to me having a PHEV so the engine isn't always running. My opinion is that transient revs (constant gear changes) puts a larger strain on the belt than a constant cruise. High revs affect it too, so cruising in 4th or 5th compared to 6th or 7th would out more strain on the belt too. Possibly even more than transient revs. To be clear, power output doesn't put a more strain on the timing system. So remapping should have little affect to the belt and cams. Valves may get hotter which introduces other issues but the belt itself should be fine. In your case, high motorway miles, if driven normally, should be low wear and tear on the timing system.

Not necessarily. Yes modern engines are interference design so the valves overlap into the space that the piston accommodates at top-dead-centre. However I have seen some occasions of belts breaking and the engine just needing a new belt and timing done. Often the head is designed to be a weak link so that a head rebuild can be done in the case of a timing belt failure.

On the back of my own comment and @Rooted's comments I certainly wouldn't be taking it any further than 100k.

Current advice is no time limit and 140k miles. Changed middle of 2023.

OK. The fact that you managed 40 years ago is irrelevant now. Tyre design has changed to go along with the average car. Cars are heavier and wider tyres help with that. They are also more fashionable. Argue about that if you wish but fashion drive markets. The "standard summer tyre" is absolutely valid. Just look at manufacturers websites, they often list them as summer, all season, winter, off road. The R&D over the last few decades has gone into the compounds of the rubbers. they are more synthetic and more effort has been put into making them perform best in specific conditions but also as safe as possible out of those conditions. Cars are also safer than they were and easier to drive in slippy conditions due to stability systems. My opinion is that the average driver now is less skilled than 40 years ago and they have to deal with more traffic, more powerful cars, heavier cars, reduced patience. The list goes on. Driving like you described above clearly resulted in you getting to your destination unscathed. I doubt that would be the same had someone near you had a blowout or other unpredictable event. I will continue to have the best possible tyres on my car for the conditions for everyones safety, not just my own. The fact that you don't have your winter tyres fitted is irresponsible in my opinion and I'm sure the Gendarme would have similar to say given my experience of being stopped for tyre checks.

I'm sorry @J.R. I bow to your driving superiority. I hate to think what would have happened if you needed to do an emergency stop.

As standard it uses FM/DAB mode so that if using a radio station that is both DAB and FM it can revert to FM if the digital signal is weak. Cant help with the DAB only bit, but that gives you insight into why it is like it is.

Modern cars are bigger and heavier with wider tyres. It's not a valid argument that you managed 40 years ago rain or shine. Roads are busier, cars more capable of higher speed, people think they are indestructible (cars or drivers). Also tyre technology is more specific. A modern "regular" tyre is now summer biased. A touring tyre is arguably worse in the winter than a performance tyre yet even less likely to be swapped out. All the above feeds my theory that UK cars should come with all seasons as standard.

@Rooted I think you are aware that I'm in the south. If not then hi, I'm in the south. My route to work is often icy at times through the colder months so the use of winter rated tyres is very useful. I have enjoyed having cross climates as winter tyres for the last 2 winter seasons (including the current one) and I'm now thinking I'll replace like for like when worn.

I would not trust a mechanic to give you advice on whether insurance or finance companies are ok with a shock change. Only those companies can give you that information. Just read back your original question and I think a wheel change would do what you want. I also think the B6 would improve the ride as it will control the car better. However it does make the transmission of small bumps to the car more apparent. But in a controlled way. It's hard to describe unless you experience it. More rubber is what you want I think.

Looks like you may be borrowing it. Why not jack the car up and try it. If you have a decent jack and a gun for the bolts you could have it back on its feet in 15 mins.

To those running 2 sets, are you using all seasons or winters this time of year? I have cross climates currently on the winter wheels. I had always planned to change them for winters when worn but seeing a few here with all seasons in winter gets me thinking.

The dpf is another good point. A bad map will likely lead to increased regenerations at the very least. Worst case it will block the filter in short time. A good map may well be cleaner than the stock one depending on how you drive so the dpf could last.

Apologies if this has been suggested already. Could you take a look at the B4 models for all track and superb scout to see if they are similar. If they are then I would say the B6 for all track will work with the scout.

This is common for the B6. When I got a set for my octavia I was certain the front shocks were 50mm but the mechanic said they should be 55mm. Ended up with a shock that fitted a different spec (1.4 dsg I think, mine was 20.tdi dsg). Confirmed with bilstein that the valving was very close to the 55mm version for the petrol manual vrs. They then ended up listing a part for the 50mm cars with 2.0tdi.

To complement the revo discussion above: don't go chasing peak power. Often a high peak power comes with bad delivery through the rev range. A good map with improve the peak power but produces it in a smooth way with a good increase across the revs. As for companies, go for Revo, Racingline, TVS, APR. They all have their differences. TVS is expensive but a very good map. Revo and APR have a good reputation for getting the most from a car safely. Racingline don't go hunting for power but have a really smooth delivery. If money no object I'd go for TVS.

I have an extra large rear view mirror that goes some way to solving this. It also happens to be my dash cam but the mirror size is the biggest benefit for daily driving. I struggle when driving a "normal" car now. You can get curved mirror add ons for rear views that do a similar job too. I've been on the look out for one that I like due to my camera needing to be replaced.

B6 is available as damptronic which is Bilsteins version of DCC.