Lazy car.. why is it soo bad ?

[Antuk]

Ive had my new superb now since end of march and have done almost 17000 miles. I have to say its the laziest car I've ever owned. Its slow to respond for the throttle and engine. Ive had less powerful and more powerful cars and this for me is the slowest and most unresponsive I've ever owned. Ive had golf gttdi 130, 150, Ive had Passat 140 & 170 mostly estate and always dsg. I did have an octavia VRs 174 prior to this one and I honestly have never felt like I'm flogging a car so much just to get it to move. I feel unsafe moving from Junctions and roundabouts.. (its either not moving or it just screeches the tyres like a boy racer) more than I ever have in anything before and this is having already had the direct throttle and Audi throttle mod done. don't get me wrong I can certainly tell the VCDS changes which have made a difference and before this I tried a DTUK CRD3+ chip which was fine for almost 6000 miles and then it decided to go into limp mode and for 4000 miles after that it would sporadically lose power or go into limp mode. as much as 5 times in one day. I finally gave in and sold the unit. It did however really show what the car is capable of and imo should be more like. I remember having a new shape Passat back in 2005 as a 140tdi and that thing flew! 

My question is do they dumb down the superb because its said to be more of an old mans car.. or is it because of emissions or something else? 

 

 

[RicardoM]

Let me check if I got it straight. So you're basically saying that after you messed with the electronics of the engine, the car lost power and went into limp mode. Now you're wondering if Skoda capped the power from factory? Is that what you're saying?

[310golfr]

is the problem lack of response when pulling away or lack of response from mid range acceleration ?

 

[Antuk]

12 minutes ago, RicardoM said:

Let me check if I got it straight. So you're basically saying that after you messed with the electronics of the engine, the car lost power and went into limp mode. Now you're wondering if Skoda capped the power from factory? Is that what you're saying?

The car was a little slower than I wanted/ hoped in the first week or so of ownership so I got the DTUk chip.. it made a big difference and was going great then out of nowhere it started giving limp home or reduced power/ error messages and no matter of adjustments. Im wondering why it feels nothing like a passat 140 Dsg that I had 14 years ago! this is def a lot less responsive at getting moving and changing through the gears.. not sure if its all gearbox or if engine is restricted too somehow. I find it frustrating because you can't go off BHP / PS anymore as it clearly doesn't mean anything from my experience with this car. 

[Antuk]

11 minutes ago, 310golfr said:

is the problem lack of response when pulling away or lack of response from mid range acceleration ?

 

its definitely pulling away.. but even that I feel that the passat tdi  140 I had 14 years ago was much faster on pull off and midrange acceleration and I can understand if that's the difference in the gearbox or engine or electronics.. 

don't get me wrong I use to get through tyres back then as it was so nippy id leave tyre marks but there's no real chance with this! 

 

[310golfr]

Just now, Antuk said:

its definitely pulling away.. but even that I feel that the passat tdi  140 I had 14 years ago was much faster on pull off and midrange acceleration and I can understand if that's the difference in the gearbox or engine or electronics.. 

don't get me wrong I use to get through tyres back then as it was so nippy id leave tyre marks but there's no real chance with this! 

 

have you tried a pedalbox ?

[Antuk]

1 minute ago, 310golfr said:

have you tried a pedalbox ?

no I haven't but was unsure if this would end up giving me error/ warnings on the dash like the engine chip did >? Have you got one ? 

[310golfr]

1 minute ago, Antuk said:

no I haven't but was unsure if this would end up giving me error/ warnings on the dash like the engine chip did >? Have you got one ? 

yes i have a pedalbox  on my arteon plus the direct i think they call it vdcs mod, i tried the audi mod but i reckon it made things worse so changed it  back to vw.

you wont get any error/warnings with the pedalbox

[Antuk]

16 minutes ago, 310golfr said:

yes i have a pedalbox  on my arteon plus the direct i think they call it vdcs mod, i tried the audi mod but i reckon it made things worse so changed it  back to vw.

you wont get any error/warnings with the pedalbox

I had the Audi and direct throttle done through VCDS and it made a slight difference. I’m pleased to read that the pedalbox won’t give any issues then. 

I will have a look at getting one of those. Thank you. 

Edited 8 September, 2019 by Antuk
Spelling mistakes.

[310golfr]

8 minutes ago, Antuk said:

I had the Audi and direct throttle done through VCDS and it made a slight difference. I’m pleased to read that the pedalbox won’t give any issues then. 

I will have a look at getting one of those. Thank you. 

a pedalbox will make a noticable difference, it certainly has on my 150 tdi engine .

i also have a pedalbox on my vw caddy which has been remapped to 163ps but it does'nt feel as quick as my arteon  150 tdi with the pedalbox , however the caddy has only done 3000 miles so i'm putting that down to the engine not being loosened off yet, but you should'nt have that problem if you've done 17000 miles.

[Antuk]

8 hours ago, 310golfr said:

a pedalbox will make a noticable difference, it certainly has on my 150 tdi engine .

i also have a pedalbox on my vw caddy which has been remapped to 163ps but it does'nt feel as quick as my arteon  150 tdi with the pedalbox , however the caddy has only done 3000 miles so i'm putting that down to the engine not being loosened off yet, but you should'nt have that problem if you've done 17000 miles.

That’s great. Thank you. Did you go for the DTUK one? 

[IJWS15]

20 years ago I had a 150hp Passat Turbo - it flew........................

 

It was probably 1/2 a tonne lighter than the Superb . . . 

 

Cars are getting bigger and heavier, emissions control now means diesels won't overfuel (smoke when you pull away).  This means the throttle response feels slower but at least there is less pollution.  How soon before a throttle box means an MOT fail?

[Lol6]

DTUK Pedalbox transformed the feel of my 150 tdi.

 

Nuff said.

[310golfr]

2 hours ago, Antuk said:

That’s great. Thank you. Did you go for the DTUK one? 

yes dtuk, dont buy direct from them though, cheaper on amazon, the dte pedalbox is the same

sometimes you can get secondhand pedalboxes on here or ebay for aroiund  £100 or less

[boydeee]

Whilst this post won't help your issues; can I point out that comparing it to the Passat 140 is a bit unrealistic. The 140 was a PD engine and the window of available power was tiny but ferocious. This will make it 'feel' considerably quicker albeit for tiny periods. The CR engines have a wider power band and will not 'feel' as quick.

 

The Superb is a heavier car as well unfortunately.

 

Trade in for a 280?! 🤣

[Gerrycan]

There could be something wrong with your vehicle.

Not all issues result in limp mode or warning lights, which is pretty well all the dealers ever look for and respond to.

 

See if you can get a ride in a another 150tdi Superb to get some idea whether your complaints are specific to your vehicle or generic to the type.

Alternatively find a suitable stretch of road to test 0-60 time and compare with published figures. Might need a (small) passenger to assist though.

[penguin17]

Did you test drive the same spec car before buying and on a similar route/roads/conditions to the ones the car will be doing once in your possession? 

 

I had a Mk2 Octavia Elegance with the 140PD engine and DSG box I then had a manual 140 CR in a Passat CC; I think the 150TDI in the Superb 3 is a better engine in every regards.   

 

Do you have steering wheel mounted paddle shifters and if so, do you use them?  What driving mode are you using?  Do you ever take control of the gears yourself? 

 

The DTUK box may not have been the direct cause of the limp mode but could have easily exacerbated an underlying issue with your car. Did you try another box from DTUK or did they go quiet on you when things went wrong, as they usually do? 

 

I'd say you should have your car checked over before doing anything else.  

 

 

Edited 9 September, 2019 by penguin17

[Antuk]

11 hours ago, boydeee said:

Whilst this post won't help your issues; can I point out that comparing it to the Passat 140 is a bit unrealistic. The 140 was a PD engine and the window of available power was tiny but ferocious. This will make it 'feel' considerably quicker albeit for tiny periods. The CR engines have a wider power band and will not 'feel' as quick.

 

The Superb is a heavier car as well unfortunately.

 

Trade in for a 280?! 🤣

Points taken but that Passat used to fly. Even loaded up with kit for my job it used to pull and pull and not once did it let me down. Never did I consider any need to chip or change it. I would have loved a 280 but my budget was £37k and I wanted high spec so the 150 L&k it is. 

[Antuk]

7 hours ago, Gerrycan said:

There could be something wrong with your vehicle.

Not all issues result in limp mode or warning lights, which is pretty well all the dealers ever look for and respond to.

 

See if you can get a ride in a another 150tdi Superb to get some idea whether your complaints are specific to your vehicle or generic to the type.

Alternatively find a suitable stretch of road to test 0-60 time and compare with published figures. Might need a (small) passenger to assist though.

I have wondered this myself if I have a Friday afternoon car and it’s just running on 3 cylinders! 🙈.  I will take it to the dealers and see if I can read drive a 150

to compare. 

[Antuk]

7 hours ago, penguin17 said:

Did you test drive the same spec car before buying and on a similar route/roads/conditions to the ones the car will be doing once in your possession? 

 

I had a Mk2 Octavia Elegance with the 140PD engine and DSG box I then had a manual 140 CR in a Passat CC; I think the 150TDI in the Superb 3 is a better engine in every regards.   

 

Do you have steering wheel mounted paddle shifters and if so, do you use them?  What driving mode are you using?  Do you ever take control of the gears yourself? 

 

The DTUK box may not have been the direct cause of the limp mode but could have easily exacerbated an underlying issue with your car. Did you try another box from DTUK or did they go quiet on you when things went wrong, as they usually do? 

 

I'd say you should have your car checked over before doing anything else.  

 

 

I test drove a 190 but that’s because they didn’t have a 150 available and from the research I did everyone said the 150 was more refined and smoother and in some cases felt more powerful. 

i don’t have paddles no. I put it in sport mode to get me going and then go into normal mode once moving as it sits revving it’s crackers off if left in sport mode as it’s in too low a gear for the speed I’m doing.  I rarely take control of the gears manually tbh. 

I did wonder if the DTUK box exaggerated anything which made it an issue. I asked for help and all they could say was that the box needs updating and wanted me to start sending it all back to them.  Not the most helpful and felt I was given the run around as I seemed to be passed to every member of staff that works for them.  So cut my losses and sold the unit on. 

I think you are right.. i’ll Give the dealer a call and ask them to check everything over. 

[Esseesse200]

Then just go get it mapped. Regardless of box or map both will show up on any warrantee claim and if you have a map done properly you are a lot less likely to need Anything doing under waranttee because it won’t damage the engine or sensors or run them beyond their limits !! 

I’m at racingline performance in Milton Keynes tomorrow with my 190 sportline 4x4 so I’ll post figures up on here. Should be around 225-230 and 500+ nm 

[penguin17]

9 hours ago, Esseesse200 said:

Then just go get it mapped. Regardless of box or map both will show up on any warrantee claim and if you have a map done properly you are a lot less likely to need Anything doing under waranttee because it won’t damage the engine or sensors or run them beyond their limits !! 

I’m at racingline performance in Milton Keynes tomorrow with my 190 sportline 4x4 so I’ll post figures up on here. Should be around 225-230 and 500+ nm 

I can guarantee you'll enjoy that once it's done.  The mid-range shove will be addictive! 

[Esseesse200]

5 hours ago, penguin17 said:

I can guarantee you'll enjoy that once it's done.  The mid-range shove will be addictive! 

It’s already mapped and it wasn’t bad at 220 and 470nm but it’s now gone beyond expectations 

235bhp and...:::::: FIVE HUNDRED & FOURTY Nm

[VRS_White_Hatch]

I'm surprised how little extra BHP you got from your map Esseesse +15 is not a lot. I'm sure the torque pulls like a train though, my Saab 1.9TTiD 9-3 mapped to 450nm was a pleasure to drive and every journey at some point you had to use the thrust, it was addictive. That map got +35bhp and +50nm as a comparison. 

[facet edge]

16 hours ago, Esseesse200 said:

Then just go get it mapped. Regardless of box or map both will show up on any warrantee claim and if you have a map done properly you are a lot less likely to need Anything doing under waranttee because it won’t damage the engine or sensors or run them beyond their limits !! 

I’m at racingline performance in Milton Keynes tomorrow with my 190 sportline 4x4 so I’ll post figures up on here. Should be around 225-230 and 500+ nm 

Maybe you won't ruin the engine but if anything else goes wrong (and there are plenty of things that can) and they spot the remap that will be the end of your warranty.