Tune or Don’t Tune your Mk7

[GroceryGTIer]

No one tunes a car because they NEED more power. Who said anything about need? It's fun, a hobby, etc. Pretty sure they aren't selling hellcats based on need for more power.

I think it’s safe to say that a quicker car CAN (at times) be a safety feature. No one needs a BBK either, but I’m glad I got the 2019 that has the larger calipers up front.

 

[Jacobmk7]

Painfully slow?!?!? Are you fucking kidding me?

You don’t know what painfully slow is, we have a transit connect as a work vehicle, and the 0-60 UNLOADED is 14 seconds flat. Load it up with tools, I timed it at 18 seconds. A wheezy, busy, loud engine and a clunky 4 speed auto, truly the worst.

 

[robmarktoo]

A stock GTI is by no means fast. Maybe it's fast to you but it's not fast by what is considered fast to most car enthusiasts.

Yes, I'm sure "FAST" can only be defined as less than 2 seconds 0-60 to you.

 

[RichardCranium]

I traded in a Mustang that was faster but the GTI feels faster and has better driver feel.

I had a 2011 5.0. It was a fun car, but the GTI is more fun. The GTI is fun to throw around on the street whereas the Mustang really wasn’t. I had handling mods on my Mustang and it handled well, but it was still a bit floaty and boat like. Hitting a mid corner bump at 9/10s was a butt puckering experience where my GTI just soaks it up.

The GTI has the power down low where you need it and where it’s fun, where you sort of had to wind the Mustang out because of that smaller V8. And once you wound it out, you were going stupid illegal speeds.

Long story short, the Mustang was certainly faster, but the GTI is much more fun to drive at much slower speeds. Plus the practicality aspect of the hatch and the fact that it doesn’t murder me at the gas pump. And the attention from insecure assholes that I don’t get in my GTI. It was a good car, but I don’t miss it.

 

[jimlloyd40]

this (both of them) reasonably fast...feels fast....how fast do you want to drive on the street?


I traded in a Mustang that was faster but the GTI feels faster and has better driver feel.

How fast do I want to drive on the street? Fast!

 

[jimlloyd40]

Yes, I'm sure "FAST" can only be defined as less than 2 seconds 0-60 to you.

0 to 60 in less than 2 seconds isn't possible in a GTI or any other production car except for a Tesla which clocked 1.9 seconds 0 to 60.

 

[jimlloyd40]

I have been going back and forth with the Tune decision as well. It's not that i would want more outright power necessarily, just maybe have the car act in a more aggressive manner.


When my mk 6 was tuned it was faster, but honestly a bit too fast to fully enjoy on the street. I enjoyed the feeling of beating on the car to get the power rather than effortlessly being at 70 mph by the time 3rd gear came around. Last last update from my particular tuner(popular brand) also added all sorts of quirks to the cars performance that also hindered driveability, and did not give me confidence in its long term reliability.
If you have a strong budget, and can throw time and money at whatever issue might arise then maybe go for it. Stage one tunes are mostly safe but absolutely not fool proof. Please don't let anyone convince you that it is...its not. IF there was zero chance of any issues, and it did not affect an aspect of driveabilty, reliabity, or economy, than VW would tune like this from the factory. There will ALWAYS be risk.



"As of now" i plan on staying with the stock tune...or maybe a dsg tune at most. If your unsure if you need the extra power....perhaps you don't. In 90 percent of situations(purely street use) the car already has more power than i can actually use. Its more fun being able to use all the cars power than to have to constantly reign yourself in(in my opinion). Plus I also don't have tons of amazing back roads to open it up and really enjoy myself in Southern NJ. Its not a slow car....its no drag racer, but its not intended to be.



Im going to focus on a few small handling mods, wheels, and call it a day

If you want your car to drive in a more aggressive manner you should consider a BMS Pedal Tuner. It allows you to adjust the throttle response so it feels more aggressive. Responsive without actually being faster.

 

[VWTURBOFAM]

You dont realize how much funner/faster ur car is until u take the tune off (or JB4) before getting work done at the dealership, as soon as I drive home, I put the tune right back on. It's worlds different.

 

[alemk7gti]

Jb4 all day as long as you have a warranty. Once you run out of warranty and/or have paid the car note off,only then would I do a pro tune. unitronic/APR and maybe Cobb are the only ones I would consider.

 

[GroceryGTIer]

You dont realize how much funner/faster ur car is until u take the tune off (or JB4) before getting work done at the dealership, as soon as I drive home, I put the tune right back on. It's worlds different.

There’s no such word as “funner” lol

 

[Strange Mud]

like Urano is a word.....





Mud

 

[GroceryGTIer]

like Urano is a word.....





Mud

Could be like a Uranos? Since it is a Mexican made car now

 

[gtwhy]

I bought a GTI because it's an amazing daily driver and has what I want out of the box. At the same time, I like that this is a popular modding platform because there's a lot of knowledge out there that makes solving issues easier and helps with DIYing even if you're completely stock.

I think another 50whp would be super fun, but frankly a stock GTI has no problem exceeding speed limits quickly, and I would probably just speed more than I already do and get into trouble.

 

[travis.tkc]

I bought a GTI because it's an amazing daily driver and has what I want out of the box. At the same time, I like that this is a popular modding platform because there's a lot of knowledge out there that makes solving issues easier and helps with DIYing even if you're completely stock.

I think another 50whp would be super fun, but frankly a stock GTI has no problem exceeding speed limits quickly, and I would probably just speed more than I already do and get into trouble.

Same here


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Josh64]

Pretty happy with JB4. Also, taking out the spare tire, cargo floor and back seats feels like adding another 15HP. 5HP from the loss of weight, 10HP from the loss of sound dampening. Good tires are the best performance upgrade for the money you can get. There's a lot you can do without affecting your warranty.