newbie69

Cheers. Seems like he's leaning towards the Superb Estate SportLine in the end as he prefers the SportLine's looks and touches over the L&K and they end up being identical in price anyway (for the same equipment) with the current campaigns of Skoda Sweden.

That was when comparing DCC Superb to DCC Kodiaq? Mine is a SportLine DCC and I've had the most comfortable miles ever in it by far, I can't recall a single occasion where I thought it was crashy really, and that remains true even after Eibach lowering springs.

A friend of mine wants to change from his Qashquai to something bigger and more comfortable and, understandably , is eyeing up a Superb or Kodiaq. He is after decent performance and he is some rather long road trips (on top of his annual mileage) at least once or twice per year so I would push him towards the 2.0 TDI 190 instead of the 272/280 TSI. Obviously I can tell him all he wants to find out about the Superb's ride, cabin, options etc. but the question is how does the equivalent Kodiaq compare to it? He likes it equally, (although not dead set on a SUV) but he is worried about a worse ride, in terms of comfort and driving especially on those 10hr long drives he'll be doing. I think he has got that impression from the Qashquai but I would bet the Kodiaq is much different to it and it should be just as comfortable as the Superb on long journeys or...? What's the verdict from people that have driven both cars extensively? How would they rate them? Then there's the point of extra weight, worse behaviour and fuel consumption on the Kodiaq, which even though I haven't driven a Kodiaq all seem like fair points considering the extra size and weight, compared to a Superb. So unless someone really just prefers an SUV or the Kodiaq looks in particular (which I do find very good) over a wagon/sedan are there any other good reasons to consider it over the Superb would you say?

This took a couple of years but it's finally out. REVO now offer a Stage 2 pack for GPF cars with a claimed 400PS / 562Nm These are just incredible figures because they are achieved without upgrading the downpipe and without removing the GPF's as REVO aimed to keep the cars fully road legal and avoid MOT issues. In some countries it's suspected that removal/absence of GPFs could result in direct MOT fail so maybe they wanted to play it safe? Essentially this "stage 2" is only backed up by an intake kit, an intercooler and a charge pipes upgrade, I'd personally call it a stage 1+++ more likely as there is no modification on the exhaust system whatsoever. Now, I'm still trying to get my head round what magic REVO did to hit such figures, and in particular to achieve more torque on a GPF car (562Nm) than what a pre-GPF stage 2 with upgraded catalyst (!!!) was making (520-540Nm) ... I've seen hybrid turbo MQBs at 460-480bhp that don't make much more torque than that to be honest. I don't take dyno figures too seriously as they don't always reflect reality, so I'd like to see some road performance data between stage 1 and stage 2 GPF cars to quantify the performance upgrade but since I have an intake kit already on mine and the remap for upgrading customers is reduced to a mere 100EUR currently, I'm only looking at the cost of the intercooler, charge pipes and installation to switch to Stage 2 which I think would be reduced to around 1K so this sounds extremely tempting... https://www.onlyrevo.com/product-details/mqb-20tsi-is38-gpf-performance-pack

Why would it? MPI was added for emission reasons in the first place, not to prevent carbon build-up. With GPF's present now there is no need for additional costs hence the MPI removal.

I see no 272 engine on the German website so I'm guessing the 280PS/400Nm will be the "high performance" option in the Superb's TSI range from 2021 onwards and 272 is just left-overs? Performance wise, I don't see a 0-62mph time for the new 280 but I seriously doubt 50Nm more would make any real difference, the claimed figures with VAG's engines shared across multiple brands like this one vary mostly for marketing purposes as has been seen in the past and don't really reflect real world performance (anyone remember the discussions about the supposed "drop" of performance when going from the 280PS/380Nm to the 272PS/350Nm? ), and since it will still have GPF's in it's hardly a game-changer. The only intriguing bit here is whether the new 280 is the gen4 EA888 found on the upcoming Mk8 Golf R or just another gen3 revision. Considering even the latest Audi S3 launched this year hasn't got the gen4 either but a gen3 revision as found on current engines (up to the 272) I'd say the odds are rather slim for the Superb to get that but you never know.

Meaning your own old turbo is used as the base, right?

So you went for a complete new unit instead of sending yours in for an upgrade?

Well here I need to drive at least 30min to find a proper twisty b-road to begin with, everything is so annoyingly connected via straight lines...

Not the ideal occasion for more throttle then! One good thing about south Sweden being so flat though is you can at least ensure visibility for miles Hoping we'll get a bit of snow this year, last year there was none where I live, now I can only guess that would make for an interesting occasion with a Haldex controller on

Think you might be right, hence the "lately" thing I mentioned. We're having 4 degrees here early in the morning or late in the evening the last couple of weeks. Thing is, during the beginning of drive there's a few messages overlapping (user welcome message, Kessy not found etc) that could prevent the big message of "Temperature warning" showing up in the center, but the snow-flake should be up there somewhere, will confirm it later today

Does the car have KESSY and do you maybe go out of the car to close a garage door or similar that triggers the "Key not found" alarm initially? (I know I do when I'm alone in the car). Thinking now the ping might be the acoustic confirmation of key found again (if there's such a thing...)

Funny I'm hearing this too lately soon after I set off but no dash message comes up so I have not bothered more, interesting...

Clearly a bad day! the car would need a set of Eibachs to sit that low Here's a more accurate image of the end product:

I suspect that's more up to each owner and their use of the car. Agreed that even for me who was after an extra level of playfulness and adjustability, I won't have the chance to exploit it that often on the typical public roads. I would have to "chase" these conditions (right place, right time, right environment) to be in place so it's more of a luxury. For track use it would be excellent and with all the modifications I have done and plan to do, going back to the track is not ruled out (need better brakes first). Till then, it will mostly serve for the occasional "sensible" play, like for example (this is a completely theoretical situation), a tight, low speed round-about in Swedish suburbs, at mid-night, after it's rained, you can get round at least half of it with continuous opposite lock... Not as intense, intimidating or hard to manage as with a RWD, but still an extra amount of fun the stock car was not able to provide.

This is a rather special tuning field and there's no "back to back" comparisons really to evaluate fully as with other modifications, so I did as much as I could by finding out where (in what cars and for what sort of driving) they have been used, contacting owners and finding out how each controller can be set up. I liked the DSA offering for a number of reasons, a very important one being that the car still always drives as stock by default, but if you want more rear wheel bias you can simply push the ESP Sport button, that's a very OEM integration. I also liked that it respects the stock decoupling in a number of occasions despite what you set up and that essentially, it amplifies an already built-in and exercised feature of the stock system (rear axle engagement), rather than introduce something completely different. For changing the ESP button operation from the stock: TCS OFF (short press) / ESP SPORT (long press) to: ESP SPORT (short press) / ESP OFF (long press): * Mine is a MY19, don't blame me if it doesn't work on yours * (speaking in general here) Module 03 Brakes "Long coding" Locate "Byte 29" and change value from "A9" to "A8" Dash will show a few errors momentarily, like no Brake servo available, as with other adaptations in the Brakes module, turn ignition off and on and they will be gone. *** From what I have read you can also change it to "A6" and this is the true ESP OFF option (even though A8 also results in saying ESP OFF but I found out after I had done mine and haven't got round to try it yet.*** I didn't care about ESP OFF in particular, I actually wanted to be able to switch to ESP Sport (and Haldex controller ON) immediately with one push of the ESP button instead of long pressing. In stock form sometimes you realize you've already pressed it once, so pressing it reverts to being ON, then you long press again to switch to ESP SPORT, too much hassle for no reason, I never found TCS OFF useful anyway, I either drive with ESP ON or with ESP SPORT if i want to have some fun.

Forgot to say the DSA unit ships with a full replacement plastic cover (the one for sealing the cabin from the outside) with an integrated cable for the controller. It is the OEM part (same part number) but pre-modified to host the extra cable needed. Like this you only remove the stock grommet with the stock wiring loom and re-fit it into the replacement cover without the need to modify anything or leave holes to the outside of the car. A detail that showed attention to the installation.

Yeap that's the VdV controller. Similar in principle but there's a few differences, to my understanding, in the way the system enforces the locking values and how much deviation it allows from them. Regarding reliability, I spoke with a couple of owners that have really been beating their cars on track and running close to 700Nm (modded TT-RS) with the DSA controller, which is nowhere near the occasional usage I will be asking from mine, and they have had no issues yet. Another thing which I found out during monitoring the behaviour of the stock system, and surprised me, is that contrary to what people (myself included) believe, there is quite some locking of the rear axle taking place even in stock form when you use the throttle around a corner. In some cases even, the locking requested from the stock management was surpassing my minimum locking value (60%) momentarily. Surely, with the controller you are requesting more locking more often (depending on your settings also) but my point is it's not as if the stock system leaves the rear axle alone around corners, far from it.

After my recent contemplation about whether I should stick with the car beyond the upcoming 2yr mark and continue bringing it more to my like, or sell up and try something different, the conclusion was to go with the former option at least till it's 3-4 years old before reconsidering again. One area I always felt it's hard to make a real difference is the inherent behaviour/dynamics of the car during cornering. Which is why when I heard about Haldex controllers being used from some MQB owners (mostly Audi TT-RS) with promising results I decided I had to find out for myself, also as I haven't heard of anyone having explored the impact of such a solution on a Superb yet. After some search I decided to go with DSA mostly due to the background of the developer (previously related with a certain AWD technology of a certain very relevant German manufacturer...), the controller development and tuning done in collaboration with a known German rally racer and the experiences of owners using it that I could read about. Installation: The controller itself is like a small external 2.5" HD, roughly around 15mm x 100mm x 70mm. It connects to the Haldex below the rear left seat and on it is connected a touch screen from which the parameters and different modes are accessed. Installation is very simple as soon as you can figure out how to take off the rear seat bench. After you've unclipped it from the two main clips (they didn't need replacing afterwards as suggested in the service manual) are off there's two brackets (one at each side) that keep the bench down which need a particular way of pushing to go out. Push towards the back of the car and downwards, that way they'll be able to release and the bench can come off. There is the option to fix the controller on the carpet via 3M tape (supplied) that bites into the carpet (kind of opposite to Velcro), but as it is so small I figured I could queeze it in below the seat foam for a cleaner installation. It seems like there's enough compliance in there to leave it in even if a passenger sits above. Regarding the control screen, it is not needed to be always connected after you've set it up to your like but untill setting up or for permanent use you can route it somewhere close to the driver's seat. In the photo below I lift the seat slightly to show the controller below it (not really visible), and the cable going out to the left side of the car, tucked away in that plastic panel which has just enough play to host it nicely until the front dash It then goes up and via the small cubby, over the steering column and in the little centre bottom cubby: Not invisible for sure but I can live with it being something temporary as I said, once I have experimented with all options I guess I will settle with a setup and probably just disconnect the screen all-together, or I can try to leave permanenently inside the left cubby which does not allow the cable to be visible at all, just that for now I needed it to be somewhere within direct reach. Settings: The controller comes with preset values which you can modify to your preference. For starters, the controller is only activated when switching to ESP SPORT or ESP OFF. I have coded my ESP to immediately switch to ESP Sport with one push of the button, and full ESP OFF when holding the button pressed for 2-3 seconds. Regardless of coding, you don't have to worry about forgetting in an aggressive setup during daily driving as the ESP defaults to ON (and thus the controller being OFF) every time the car starts up. The main parameters are the Minimum and Maximum locking values of the clutch (set between 0-100%) that override the stock values. The minimum locking value set is disregarded (locking is reduced 0-10%) when coming to a stop and when creeping forward. Another feature is the steering angle reduce factor (menus are all in German for now). By activating this, instead of having a fixed minimum locking of say 60% at all times, the locking percentage is allowed to drop below the minimum locking value as soon as the steering wheel stops being straight, and the ratio at which this happens can be set from 1 (very slow and little reduction) to 20 (immediate reduction of a larger extent). There's also an option to run the car in FWD mode. I tried that just to remind myself of the misery of my 370bhp GTI in the wet or in general on any road/condition below 60km/h, foot down and... yes, wheelspin bonanza... I also remembered why I had said I won't ever own another FWD car above 250bhp, let alone closer to 400... You can also choose to keep the rear axle engaged during braking (as stock, Haldex disengages the rear axle when brakes are applied), this would work well on track I imagine. Finally there's real-time monitoring of the percentage of locking, to understand exactly what's going on and how the parameters affect operation, as well as of engine rpm, torque, oil and coolant temps. *** A note about locking values: The min/max locking values can be set up to 100%. Setting both at 100% means obviously the clutch is fully engaged at all times. This should NOT be confused with the actual torque split taking place though. Due to the design of the Haldex, there is no way to ever have more than 50% torque at the rear axle because if rear is fully engaged (100%), then both axles share torque equally (50-50). I am thus concluding that any locking value seen at any point, should translate, at best, to half of it in terms of Torque % arriving to the rear axle (minus drivetrain losses where they occur). Still, a greater rear drive bias than the stock management for sure than only momentarily increases clutch locking to anything over 20-30% as I could see from my testing with the controller in stock mode. Driving: As expected, there is no difference under normal driving. This is not a suspension modification that you'll feel as soon as you drove a few meters. However, start using the throttle around a corner and you realize immediately there is unusual agility and willingness from the car to rotate, much more than you ever thought the car had to offer. Before, using more throttle than seemed appropriate for sticking to your track, resulted in fighting with the steering wheel to turn the front end of the car towards the inside of the corner. This is now gone. Up to a point it almost feels as if you've activated some "turning assist" that rotates the rear and keeps you on track but allowing you to accelerate even more at the same time. You simply corner faster. Over-do it, and the tail now easily steps out. Very manageable with a bit of opposite lock and throttle modulation but it will shock you the first few times simply because the car could never do something like that before. It put some big smiles up on my face for sure. I also believe a thicker rear arb as the one I run accentuates the effect, so be prepared, especially when you've set up a large minimum locking value and no/very little steering angle reduction... Impressions: This is an improvement making itself noticeable and appreciated during fast driving (and I don't mean in a straight line). A track is where it would really shine or the right type of b-roads. Used wisely it makes the car faster and more involving, more playful. Used not so wisely it makes it just fun or silly, or potentially dangerous if you don't know what you're doing. So far for me, the Haldex cars I'd driven (all 5th gen) were great point to point cars. Traction under all conditions but not able to carry much speed around the corner neither being particularly involving. The approach to drive them fast was moderate corner entry, steady throttle till the apex or even till a little after it, and then flooring it just as you touch the corner exit. Very one-dimensional and "automated" so to speak. With the controller, they are still no RWD beasts but they can become something better, more satisfying. The way the car responds now you can start applying throttle much earlier without the car washing wide but actually rotating where you're pointing and going even faster without scrubbing speed off. Or you can over-do it ever so slightly (when conditions allow) in order to have some fun around corners. It allows you to take an approach that was previously not accesible with any other modification and even if can only get use of it rarely, it feels very good to have it at my disposal. PS. I do need to do a proactive Haldex oil change now just to be on the safe side. PS.2 My rear tires are not going to be very happy with this mod...

Retrospectively, everybody knows what the signs were, I say don't kick yourself too much. Check the engine is fine, upgrade the turbo, and be happy again with the car.

Hopefully your question concerns equally owners as well as manufacturers and their faulty design/equipment choices. What I'm saying is it's a complicated case this one in general with the blown IS38 turbos on these (even stock) engines. In some cases, remaps surely have provided a get-out-of-jail card to VAG. Imagine the following scenario: A 2018 car soon to be out of warranty and let's assume with a weak turbo from factory. If it blew up (stock) 1-2 years down the road the full repair cost would be down to the owner despite having done nothing wrong. Now let's also assume that a remap may have brought up the issue of the weak stock turbo much sooner while still under warranty. If that particular owner was able to hide his map and have VAG cover the expenses would it really be him not sucking up/commiting fraud or? I mean not typically but ethically... Personally, I wouldn't even bother with claiming under warranty, I'd just upgrade and move on, this was a decision/plan I made before even purchasing the car knowing the probability of a turbo weakness and that I would only increase it by tuning it but if some are failing in stock form i understand it raises the question.

Because people don't know what they are talking about as usual. Maybe at some point back in time removing the map could fool the dealership but not any more in with the modern ECUs and diagnostics systems, at least in this particular platform where this has been discussed and proved many times before. Suggesting removing the map would make it non detectable is somewhat equivalent to suggesting you can drop your mileage if driving in reverse... I mean it's not as if you'd have much to argue on anyway. Once a remap takes place the counter is going to always show it took place so...

Flashing back to stock removes the map but does not reset the flash counter. For any repair needed to be covered by VAG a full ECU readout is requested before authorizing the work and there the counter will show up as something different to 0 and the warranty will be rejected. The only exception would be if somehow the dealership agreed to cover the cost themselves (instead of VAG/Skoda) and they decided to overlook the counter (can't think why) You bought the car used though so you wouldn't know if the previous owner had it mapped would you? You could try and worse case you'd just get the work rejected but it's a waste if time imo.

Thanks for sharing (both). I went ahead and disconnected the Haldex without disconnecting the battery but only after the ingition had been off for a good 15min already. I based that on the JB4 installation instructions which stated either disconnect the battery OR leave the ignition OFF for 10-15min before disconnceting sensors to allow all car's systems to be fully switched off. No errors after re-connecting everything so all good.

Christ, I just went through that thread quickly, full of the typical "internet expert's BS" and why generic forums are not the place you want to be discussing car specific issues as they attract every ignorant to post their crap like you know what attracts flies... Apart from a few ones stating "it's just the turbo, replace it/repait it and move on" there's all sorts of unhlepful non-sense ranging from: "you should have researched more", "you should have bought a faster car", "I would never have tuned my car", "what does your wife think now" and even one very knowledgeable comment indeed saying "well you see it doesn't have the Golf R engine!" (this guy never seen/heard of the dozen's blown IS38's on Golf R's... ) Another, clearly unaware of the OEM turbo issues, suggested buying an OEM turbo and then getting a Racingline map as if that would provide any extra security really, funnily only a few posts below a guy with a Cupra 280 reporting that he blew his OEM IS38 without being tuned, and that the replacement OEM turbo blew also, after just 2 miles it went on the car... Some solid advice from people really into this platform/engine.