Torsion Beam rear end Estate handling

[MC Bodge]

I've been lucky with cars over the years. This one just doesn't suit my needs, hence moving it on after less than a year. I'm sure the next owner will think it is fine. 

 

I'm looking forward to driving along a particularly bumpy, local, road without wincing and gritting my teeth again. The thud/boom issue doesn't appear to bother everybody. My wife (blocked ears problem) doesn't notice it, but my daughter does. 

 

Handling and steering won't bother many people. 

 

My Father in Law's hatch rides much more comfortably. 

Edited 3 February, 2020 by MC Bodge

[cr_2dman]

1 hour ago, MC Bodge said:

I've been lucky with cars over the years. This one just doesn't suit my needs, hence moving it on after less than a year. I'm sure the next owner will think it is fine. 

 

I'm looking forward to driving along a particularly bumpy, local, road without wincing and gritting my teeth again. The thud/boom issue doesn't appear to bother everybody. My wife (blocked ears problem) doesn't notice it, but my daughter does. 

 

Handling and steering won't bother many people. 

 

My Father in Law's hatch rides much more comfortably. 

 

i'm very interested in the economy of the ford mk5 mondeo. I have the same issue as you. Booming noises. horrible ACT noise. i've redid:

the trunk alignment

added bmw dampers on the back torsion beam.

added rubber on the inner doors and trunk.

bought a odbeleven, so i can now close the trunk from inside the car and some other tweaks

tweaked the dsg so it won't low on the rpm. (now it stays around 2000 rpm)

tuned out the ACT

winter tyres with new Rims (which now the vibrations are gone while driving)

 

which made it somewhat OK.

 

now i want to tackle down the steering wheel vibrations when the car is just idling.

Edited 3 February, 2020 by cr_2dman

[MC Bodge]

2 hours ago, cr_2dman said:

 

i'm very interested in the economy of the ford mk5 mondeo. I have the same issue as you. Booming noises. horrible ACT noise. i've redid:

the trunk alignment

added bmw dampers on the back torsion beam.

added rubber on the inner doors and trunk.

bought a odbeleven, so i can now close the trunk from inside the car and some other tweaks

tweaked the dsg so it won't low on the rpm. (now it stays around 2000 rpm)

tuned out the ACT

winter tyres with new Rims (which now the vibrations are gone while driving)

 

which made it somewhat OK.

 

now i want to tackle down the steering wheel vibrations when the car is just idling.

As much as I like tinkering.... And I did spend quite a while trying sort it.... There is a phrase about "not being able to polish a... Something"

 

The alternative cars I drove all felt much better out of the box. 

 

I don't expect the economy to be as good as the Octavia.

Edited 3 February, 2020 by MC Bodge

[pist0nbr0ke]

Really hope the 1.5 in the Mondeo doesn't disappoint you. I had a Kuga Titanium X hire car for a month recently with that engine and the auto box. It was dire, absolutely horrific.

 

On paper, it should work ok - it supposedly has 178bhp - but you had to rag it to make any progress, and the auto box was really cr4p - jerky and indecisive, often held a gear to 5k revs for no apparent reason even when not in sport mode. Wife drove it most of the time, yet it only did 25mpg over nearly 5,000 miles.

[Ootohere]

5,000 miles in a month is a fair mileage especially if only getting 25mpg.

[Kental]

16 minutes ago, pist0nbr0ke said:

Really hope the 1.5 in the Mondeo doesn't disappoint you. I had a Kuga Titanium X hire car for a month recently with that engine and the auto box. It was dire, absolutely horrific.

 

On paper, it should work ok - it supposedly has 178bhp - but you had to rag it to make any progress, and the auto box was really cr4p - jerky and indecisive, often held a gear to 5k revs for no apparent reason even when not in sport mode. Wife drove it most of the time, yet it only did 25mpg over nearly 5,000 miles.

 

The 180ps auto petrol Kuga is a 4wd auto SUV so will be worse economy than the lighter Mondeo.  Mondeos are 160 or 165ps so completely different state of tune.

[Guest]

On 30/01/2020 at 06:35, logiclee said:

 

Who said I didn't test drive?

 

You miss the point about having confidence in a brand. If I was going for a Kia that I've never owned before then yes I'd be wanting extended test drives.

 

Having 13 Skoda's over a few decades as well as Passat's and Golf's and three models of the Octavia you could say you gain a high confidence in a product. A standard test drive with the salesman (Which I had) would probable give most people with that level of confidence enough information to make a purchase. Would you really insist on a 6 hour test drive and try motorways and your usual 2 hour round trip commute? I doubt most people would.

 

Eh?  You've just finished saying you assumed the car would be OK because you've owned previous products.   You've lost me now - are you saying you did test drive it?

 

I wouldn't insist on a 6hr test drive or a 2hr commute, what I would do tho is do some due diligence ( some may say common sense ) by working out my route for the test drive that would take in the typical driving I do. If you often drive on motorways then yes, I would insist I drive the car on the motorway - why wouldn't you? 

 

When I test drive cars in my area, I have a route which takes in town driving, a few miles on a twisty A road, drive between two junctions on the motorway, go along a road which has traffic calming measures ( that defo shows which cars have a crashy suspension ) and then back to the garage. It's about 10 miles in total, takes no longer than 30mins.

 

PS - what exactly is a standard test drive with the salesman? My standard test drive with the salesperson is he or she sits in the passenger seat and goes where I go. if you're implying it's the other way round and the salesman dictates the route then more the fool the customer.

 

I hope you find a car that suits. 

 

PPS - have you ever heard f the expression two steps forward, one step back?  Then why automatically assume that a newer model ( doesn't have to be a car, could be a phone, a TV, a pair of running shoes - anything ) is an improvement or at the very least maintains the status quo? 

Edited 3 February, 2020 by Guest

[MC Bodge]

On 03/02/2020 at 18:17, pist0nbr0ke said:

Really hope the 1.5 in the Mondeo doesn't disappoint you. I had a Kuga Titanium X hire car for a month recently with that engine and the auto box. It was dire, absolutely horrific.

 

On paper, it should work ok - it supposedly has 178bhp - but you had to rag it to make any progress, and the auto box was really cr4p - jerky and indecisive, often held a gear to 5k revs for no apparent reason even when not in sport mode. Wife drove it most of the time, yet it only did 25mpg over nearly 5,000 miles.

Mine is a manual. I've only given it a bit of a run out around the bumpy, twisty local lanes, and a short squirt down a couple of back roads, but it's actually not too shabby performance-wise. 

 

Economy seemed good tootling along the 30/40mph limits, but I suspect that such a big car it will use a bit of fuel if driven enthusiastically. It will get a longer run out tomorrow. 

 

It almost goes without saying that it rides, handles and steers very well. 

 

 

Edited 4 February, 2020 by MC Bodge

[logiclee]

On 03/02/2020 at 20:12, Scot5 said:

 

Eh?  You've just finished saying you assumed the car would be OK because you've owned previous products.   You've lost me now - are you saying you did test drive it?

 

I wouldn't insist on a 6hr test drive or a 2hr commute, what I would do tho is do some due diligence ( some may say common sense ) by working out my route for the test drive that would take in the typical driving I do. If you often drive on motorways then yes, I would insist I drive the car on the motorway - why wouldn't you? 

 

 

 

Yes I did the usual dealer test drive route which lasts about 20 minutes. 

 

To get a motorway run I'd need at least 2 hours.

 

And why didn't I? Because all my previous Octavia's had been great, I didn't expect Skoda would take such a backward step.

[MC Bodge]

Economy around 41mpg average compared with 45mpg for the Octavia on the same toured. The Mondeo is much bigger, heavier, more refined, comfortable, though. It is also better to drive and ride in. 

[Paulius55]

I am also moving away from my Octavia, picking up a Ford S-Max (Mondeo on steroids) next week. It is a 2.0 TDCi auto, just like the Octavia, but the difference in ride and noise /vibration suppression is amazing. It is hard to tell that it's a diesel at all. I have enjoyed the Skoda for 6 years and it has always had a very firm ride - unlike a previous Mk1 Superb that I had which was very comfortable indeed. The space inside has always been a very welcome feature and it cruised well enough on motorways, but road noise on rough surfaces is significant, although I have added sound-deadening materials to improve it successfully, but not enough. The suspension crashing over potholes and other similar obstructions is a little unsettling. I was considering going back to a Superb, but the Ford is so good to drive and has more than enough space.

[MC Bodge]

4 hours ago, Paulius55 said:

I am also moving away from my Octavia, picking up a Ford S-Max (Mondeo on steroids) next week. It is a 2.0 TDCi auto, just like the Octavia, but the difference in ride and noise /vibration suppression is amazing. It is hard to tell that it's a diesel at all. I have enjoyed the Skoda for 6 years and it has always had a very firm ride - unlike a previous Mk1 Superb that I had which was very comfortable indeed. The space inside has always been a very welcome feature and it cruised well enough on motorways, but road noise on rough surfaces is significant, although I have added sound-deadening materials to improve it successfully, but not enough. The suspension crashing over potholes and other similar obstructions is a little unsettling. I was considering going back to a Superb, but the Ford is so good to drive and has more than enough space.

Good stuff. The differences are enormous. The again, the current Superb is also very good 

[Kental]

Another thread on here had a guy with a pre facelift Octavia and a mate with a facelift one and he says the difference is so noticeable he wondered if Skoda changed suppliers for suspension parts.  May explain why I find mine not great, but far better than most of you describe. 

[MC Bodge]

1 hour ago, Kental said:

Another thread on here had a guy with a pre facelift Octavia and a mate with a facelift one and he says the difference is so noticeable he wondered if Skoda changed suppliers for suspension parts.  May explain why I find mine not great, but far better than most of you describe. 

Possibly. The engineers at Skoda must have been aware of how poor it was on the estate. 

 

The steering, especially through a constant sweeping bend would still be vague, though. 

Edited 10 February, 2020 by MC Bodge

[Kental]

4 hours ago, MC Bodge said:

Possibly. The engineers at Skoda must have been aware of how poor it was on the estate. 

 

The steering, especially through a constant sweeping bend would still be vague, though. 

 

Before the Skoda, I've spend the last 30,000 miles in a Kia Niro PHEV so steering feel is not top of my priorities.  However the other half commented the ride on the Kia was better on motorways than the Octavia after a 400 mile trip with 2 adults & 3 17 year olds along with luggage in just over 24 hours.  The Niro did have IRS......

[MC Bodge]

On 10/02/2020 at 13:30, Kental said:

 

Before the Skoda, I've spend the last 30,000 miles in a Kia Niro PHEV so steering feel is not top of my priorities.  However the other half commented the ride on the Kia was better on motorways than the Octavia after a 400 mile trip with 2 adults & 3 17 year olds along with luggage in just over 24 hours.  The Niro did have IRS......

My Octavia rode best when loaded to the max with camping gear, full roof box and family.

 

Our Fiesta has a torsion bar rear and rides firmly, but smoothly. 

 

The Mondeo is in a different league to the Octavia. 

[Kental]

18 hours ago, MC Bodge said:

My Octavia rode best when loaded to the max with camping gear, full roof box and family.

 

Our Fiesta has a torsion bar rear and rides firmly, but smoothly. 

 

The Mondeo is in a different league to the Octavia. 

 

My hatch appears to ride better empty compared to laden, whereas the estate I had as a loaner I only dove empty.

 

I used our Fiesta yesterday, and I have to say I was not as aware of the potholes on my commute

[MC Bodge]

19 hours ago, Kental said:

 

My hatch appears to ride better empty compared to laden, whereas the estate I had as a loaner I only dove empty.

 

I used our Fiesta yesterday, and I have to say I was not as aware of the potholes on my commute

As I've pointed out before, my Father in Law's hatch rides better than my former estate did (and didn't produce the horrible pressure wave).

The Octavia estate suspension and excitation frequency response is obviously a compromise resulting from using VAG parts bin components designed primarily for other cars.

 

Which Mk of Fiesta are you driving?

 

I've not noticed any road bumps since I traded in the Octavia. 

[Kental]

6 hours ago, MC Bodge said:

As I've pointed out before, my Father in Law's hatch rides better than my former estate did (and didn't produce the horrible pressure wave).

The Octavia estate suspension and excitation frequency response is obviously a compromise resulting from using VAG parts bin components designed primarily for other cars.

 

Which Mk of Fiesta are you driving?

 

I've not noticed any road bumps since I traded in the Octavia. 

69 plate mk 8 on 16” wheels and comfort suspension 

[gregoir]

On 15/02/2020 at 08:18, MC Bodge said:

As I've pointed out before, my Father in Law's hatch rides better than my former estate did (and didn't produce the horrible pressure wave).

 

I was driving around in my Combi yesterday and belatedly noticed the discrete tailgate open sign. No noticeable noise even with it cracked open. 

[StriderDog]

7 hours ago, gregoir said:

I was driving around in my Combi yesterday and belatedly noticed the discrete tailgate open sign. No noticeable noise even with it cracked open. 

My boot takes several thumps shut before it finally closes.😁

[logiclee]

On 03/02/2020 at 18:17, pist0nbr0ke said:

Really hope the 1.5 in the Mondeo doesn't disappoint you. I had a Kuga Titanium X hire car for a month recently with that engine and the auto box. It was dire, absolutely horrific.

 

 

 

Was that the 180PS Diesel?

 

The 1.5 Ecoboost has a totally different gearbox. It's smooth and refined, they don't use the dual clutch box.

[cr_2dman]

19 hours ago, gregoir said:

I was driving around in my Combi yesterday and belatedly noticed the discrete tailgate open sign. No noticeable noise even with it cracked open. 

 

same thing here. With it cracked open, even less than one inch, no booming, noises, waves, whatever.

 

[Guest]

2 hours ago, logiclee said:

The 1.5 Ecoboost has a totally different gearbox. It's smooth and refined, they don't use the dual clutch box.

 

Yeh, and drinks fuel at an alarming rate. Even the diesel isn't anywhere near where the Mondeo used to be on the economy stakes.

 

Last time I drove a Mondeo was in 2016. It was certainly quiet, but drove like the barge it is, never had the performance of the earlier Mondeo's and as I say, I couldn't believe how much fuel the car used and the estate boot is almost 100L less than the smaller Octavia.

 

That said, are you still able to buy 1.5T?  Ford are very clever - try building a new Mondeo on their website and you'll see you're offered a 2.0L Ecoblue 150ps - but doesn't mention it's a diesel engine. They provide an mpg figure based on WLTP but it's only in the small print they state the emissions are based on the old system.

 

Even under the old system, the 1.5T was a dirty engine producing 150g/km Co2 - which I suspect under WLTP would have meant a very high 1st year tax. Perhaps that's the reason you can no longer buy it? By comparison, the Octavia 1.5tsi produces 113g/km Co2 under the same old system yet has slightly better performance figures.

 

I'll have my Octavia any day thanks.

[MC Bodge]

39 minutes ago, Scot5 said:

 

Yeh, and drinks fuel at an alarming rate. Even the diesel isn't anywhere near where the Mondeo used to be on the economy stakes.

 

Last time I drove a Mondeo was in 2016. It was certainly quiet, but drove like the barge it is, never had the performance of the earlier Mondeo's and as I say, I couldn't believe how much fuel the car used and the estate boot is almost 100L less than the smaller Octavia.

.......... 

 

I'll have my Octavia any day thanks.

My Mondeo is a 2017 Titanium Estate. 

It is not as economical or throttle responsive as my Octavia was. but not slow. (The VAG TSI 150 1.4 is a fantastic engine. The 1.5 TSI gets mixed reviews). NB. The TSI had resonator pipes that added significant intake roar, which made it sound good/faster. 

 

Despite it steering more lightly than the Mk4 Mondeo, the ride, handling feel, consistency and composure, especially in non-super smooth roads, on undulating roads and on fast bends is vastly superior to the Octavia, even with a much heavier body and 2" bigger rims. It can be hustled down back roads much better, despite the extra bulk. 

 

The boot space claims is a bit puzzling and I suspect inconsistent. I suspect that Octavias are measured with no Vario floor and no spare wheel, quoting total gas volume. I fitted the things I kept under the Octavia floor into the underfloor pockets around the Mondeo spare, which are possibly not included in the volume. The Mondeo boot is large, albeit narrower than the Mk4 was. 2m+ length with seat down was handy for Ikea and tip runs this weekend. 

 

Each to their own, but I was glad to see my Octavia go. 

Edited 17 February, 2020 by MC Bodge