2019 GTI 6MT Performance Issues I'd Like to Correct

[dosjockey]

I'm about to go out and try it soon.

I wanted to spend some time playing around with the interface to "map" the software in my head. I'm less likely to make a mistake if I understand how the bits and pieces go together.

Looked over the warranty information, and I personally do not believe it will cause an issue. This is no endorsement. It's just my own estimation at this time.

 

[dosjockey]

Well, response is better.

Quick blips are now quick blips, and the car is more linear, but I get the feeling the rest of the system is expecting the delay; as if the other computers are a bit frustrated that they aren't getting their way anymore.

Acceleration is still a touch "notchy"; like occasional (but very subtle) sharp peaks and flat spots in the power band. I feel like those are deliberate adjustments happening. It was doing this before, as well, but with the additional throttle precision, it's a bit more noticeable.

Yes, the gearing is part of the problem with the vehicle, but they're killing torque in lower gears to prevent something. That's a fact. Power output is still being manipulated. With the gearing that thing has, even everyday spirited driving should be engaging traction control, but it's just a tractor in first and second. Doesn't matter how much you give it. Makes a lot of noise, but doesn't go anywhere; and with those gears, it should be bucking like it's balls are tied up.

The thing is, the chassis is good enough to handle that power, so what's the deal? Why the nerfed juice?

I'm going to say it: This is not actually a particularly good car out of the box. It's a bit like a poor tuner job from 1998; as if VW went for too much grunt, grabbed any old transmission off the shelf, and then just managed the hiccups with a computer. It's got a bit of an identity crisis; the car doesn't know what it's supposed to be.

It's a hot hatch, but it's set up for GT use. It's set up for GT use, but it's got the transmission of a hot hatch. It's got the transmission of a hot hatch, but it accelerates like a minivan. It accelerates like a minivan, but...

...and so on.

I'm not sure what the designers were thinking, but they were clearly drunk. You know, I didn't get it before, and I didn't think I ever would, but now I see why everyone tunes these things: It's necessary.

 

[dosjockey]

Oh my word...

You know what's better than sorting the throttle out?

Lowering the fake exhaust note.

I didn't realize just how much that was messing with my head. The car still needs sorting, but holy shit this is much better from a purely mental perspective.

It has this "on/off" personality that kind of bypasses part of the driving experience.

Now, I actually thought it was really cool, mind you. I'm not being pompous about "purity of experience", here. It's a much more relaxing drive when the sound rises and falls properly with what the car is doing and comes out of the proper end. It was causing me to focus more on the driving and less on the drive. Without the drive, you're just sitting in a chair turning a wheel and moving levers around, which isn't fun at all. It's just a hassle.

It is not an exaggeration to state that the removal of that sound made the cabin almost seem to disappear. Instantly.

Interesting result, there. It was pulling my imagination off the horizon and back into the chair. Damn that's interesting.

 

[Carlosfandang0]

The designers weren’t drunk, they’d just eaten too much bratwurst! (VW make their own bratwurst for employees on site at Wolfsburg)?‍

 

[tknj99]

In case it wasn't mentioned already, look into a pedal tuner.. i was also very frustrated with the throttle response and did every OBD11 mod possible for it and still wasnt enough so i bought the BMS pedal tuner and it fixed all of the throttle lag and input delays that were driving me nuts.. i currently have it on race mod +2 and very satisfied.

Link: https://burgertuning.com/products/bms-pedal-tuner

 

[dosjockey]

In case it wasn't mentioned already, look into a pedal tuner.. i was also very frustrated with the throttle response and did every OBD11 mod possible for it and still wasnt enough so i bought the BMS pedal tuner and it fixed all of the throttle lag and input delays that were driving me nuts.. i currently have it on race mod +2 and very satisfied.

Link: https://burgertuning.com/products/bms-pedal-tuner

I might try one at some point, but at the moment I want to look around a bit more and see if there's a computer cutting in and just removing input in lower gears.

Hey, at least it's more linear now. That "direct" mode switch makes a difference; as does turning off the speaker.

I need to drive it a little more like it is now to determine my next step. I'll probably end up getting a pedal box. To be honest, I had no idea what that was when it was suggested a while back.

Thought is was a joke on me being short, and in my little pea brain, it was a funny joke. ...I was imagining putting a box on the throttle pedal so I can reach it better.

 

[dosjockey]

The designers weren’t drunk, they’d just eaten too much bratwurst! (VW make their own bratwurst for employees on site at Wolfsburg)?‍

I'll give them that one, then. The morning after too much bratwurst isn't too far removed from the morning after too much bitter.

Funny he didn't visit the plant where mine was made in Mexico. Those two don't always get along.

 

[vulticGTI]

I might try one at some point, but at the moment I want to look around a bit more and see if there's a computer cutting in and just removing input in lower gears.

Hey, at least it's more linear now. That "direct" mode switch makes a difference; as does turning off the speaker.

I need to drive it a little more like it is now to determine my next step. I'll probably end up getting a pedal box. To be honest, I had no idea what that was when it was suggested a while back.

Thought is was a joke on me being short, and in my little pea brain, it was a funny joke. ...I was imagining putting a box on the throttle pedal so I can reach it better.

They are limiting torque in 1st and 2nd gears and this can be disabled in OBD11.
Traction control is also limiting torque so you want it fully off if you want a direct feel to what your wheels are doing. Don't expect the computer to not interfere when traction control is still on.
I personally didn't experience this lugging you're talking about but if you're hoping that power comes out below 3k rpm then maybe turbo cars aren't for you.

In the end, the US still has it's priority on safety and "driveability" for average drivers. Especially in an economy car and although its an enthusiasts platform a majority of owners are actually casual. Things like nannies, traction control, XDS and all kinds of other stuff are in place to make it easy for people that don't know how to handle power on a FWD.

They trust that an enthusiast can figure it out but they main objective is to get large amounts of sales and the best way is to appeal to the larger market. Not you unfortunately.

 

[dosjockey]

They are limiting torque in 1st and 2nd gears and this can be disabled in OBD11.
Traction control is also limiting torque so you want it fully off if you want a direct feel to what your wheels are doing. Don't expect the computer to not interfere when traction control is still on.
I personally didn't experience this lugging you're talking about but if you're hoping that power comes out below 3k rpm then maybe turbo cars aren't for you.

In the end, the US still has it's priority on safety and "driveability" for average drivers. Especially in an economy car and although its an enthusiasts platform a majority of owners are actually casual. Things like nannies, traction control, XDS and all kinds of other stuff are in place to make it easy for people that don't know how to handle power on a FWD.

They trust that an enthusiast can figure it out but they main objective is to get large amounts of sales and the best way is to appeal to the larger market. Not you unfortunately.

Yeah, I'm getting the impression they expect people to tinker with these things.

I find the turbo on this vehicle spools rather quickly, actually. It's got a good feel, as well; like a slingshot instead of a kick in the pants. They did very well with that. Looking at actual charts showing where this engine is generating power, though... I can see it should be pulling at the reins instead of just making noise.

Do you know where to adjust this limitation in first and second gear? I've got a VCDS interface here now.

I've been turning everything I can off when I drive it, and it does make a difference. I don't know how far the traction control is actually disabled, though; nor what it's tied into in regard to the rest of the system. It's possible that's sending information back to whatever nerfs output in lower gears. The vehicle isn't intervening when it detects low traction; it's entirely preventing the issue in the first place by making it essentially impossible to get to that point. No idea what would happen if I properly launched it; maybe it would just let me go, but that's not really important, because I'm not going to do that in everyday driving and I'm not keen on drag racing.

I live down a gravel road, so the first and second issues are jumping right out and slapping me in the face every time I pull out of the driveway. I may as well be on dry tarmac at 110 degrees on a sunny day. The car just won't give me the power where I know damned well it has it. I don't even see why the heck it needs traction control at all in lower gears because you can't get yourself into any trouble, unless that system is partially responsible for controlling actual power output.

I do understand that with such a short first gear, people could very easily over-rev their engine; but I'm not going to do that.

 

[vulticGTI]

Yeah, I'm getting the impression they expect people to tinker with these things.

I find the turbo on this vehicle spools rather quickly, actually. It's got a good feel, as well; like a slingshot instead of a kick in the pants. They did very well with that. Looking at actual charts showing where this engine is generating power, though... I can see it should be pulling at the reins instead of just making noise.

Do you know where to adjust this limitation in first and second gear? I've got a VCDS interface here now.

I've been turning everything I can off when I drive it, and it does make a difference. I don't know how far the traction control is actually disabled, though; nor what it's tied into in regard to the rest of the system. It's possible that's sending information back to whatever nerfs output in lower gears. The vehicle isn't intervening when it detects low traction; it's entirely preventing the issue in the first place by making it essentially impossible to get to that point. No idea what would happen if I properly launched it; maybe it would just let me go, but that's not really important, because I'm not going to do that in everyday driving and I'm not keen on drag racing.

I live down a gravel road, so the first and second issues are jumping right out and slapping me in the face every time I pull out of the driveway. I may as well be on dry tarmac at 110 degrees on a sunny day. The car just won't give me the power where I know damned well it has it. I don't even see why the heck it needs traction control at all in lower gears because you can't get yourself into any trouble, unless that system is partially responsible for controlling actual power output.

I do understand that with such a short first gear, people could very easily over-rev their engine; but I'm not going to do that.

1st and 2nd - Look up "Reduce Starting Vibration" somewhere on the forums. I have mk7.5 so cant do it.

ESC OFF - make sure it says ESC Off not just sport.

Yes they are preventing it by not letting it happen. If you were to launch you can still feel it fight back. Traction control will cut power to the wheels in lower gears since they don't want you spinning in the lower gears for sake of people slipping around and not being able to get up slick hills.

Also the mounts on these engines are very soft. All 3 of them. With upgrade versions the power will also feel more direct to the wheels

 

[dosjockey]

1st and 2nd - Look up "Reduce Starting Vibration" somewhere on the forums. I have mk7.5 so cant do it.

ESC OFF - make sure it says ESC Off not just sport.

Yes they are preventing it by not letting it happen. If you were to launch you can still feel it fight back. Traction control will cut power to the wheels in lower gears since they don't want you spinning in the lower gears for sake of people slipping around and not being able to get up slick hills.

Also the mounts on these engines are very soft. All 3 of them. With upgrade versions the power will also feel more direct to the wheels

I've got a 7.5, as well; assuming that's what a 2019 is. Not sure what you mean; hopefully not that it can't be disabled on a 7.5. That would suck.

I'll check into the forum and various places such as Ross-Tech more; I've seen it mentioned several times, but most of the threads were all over the place.

I'm generally one to move to firmer engine and transmission mounts. I've got solid mounts in one of my cars now, actually, and another with billet aluminum and about a quarter inch poly bushing pressed in.

If I swap mounts, that will be a little later. Right now, it's get the vehicle itself doing what I want so I can decide how much actual modification is required.

Not sure I want this car to vibrate, anyway. We'll see what kind of personality it has after I'm done with the factory settings; then I'll decide if the response is worth the vibration.

 

[vulticGTI]

I've got a 7.5, as well; assuming that's what a 2019 is. Not sure what you mean; hopefully not that it can't be disabled on a 7.5. That would suck.

I'll check into the forum and various places such as Ross-Tech more; I've seen it mentioned several times, but most of the threads were all over the place.

I'm generally one to move to firmer engine and transmission mounts. I've got solid mounts in one of my cars now, actually, and another with billet aluminum and about a quarter inch poly bushing pressed in.

If I swap mounts, that will be a little later. Right now, it's get the vehicle itself doing what I want so I can decide how much actual modification is required.

Not sure I want this car to vibrate, anyway. We'll see what kind of personality it has after I'm done with the factory settings; then I'll decide if the response is worth the vibration.

MK7.5 = 2018 & 2019 models.

BFI Stage 1 mounts are great and won't change much if you still have DMF. I'm getting significant vibrations with a SMF, BFI mounts and upper and lower dogbone inserts. But I kinda like it

 

[Clem604]

I've got a 7.5, as well; assuming that's what a 2019 is. Not sure what you mean; hopefully not that it can't be disabled on a 7.5. That would suck.

I have a 2018 MK7.5 and i'm able to turn off the "Starting Vibration Reduction" and "Torque Limitation" settings on my car. The settings are located in the adaptation menu inside the Braking Module (03).

 

[vulticGTI]

I have a 2018 MK7.5 and i'm able to turn off the "Starting Vibration Reduction" and "Torque Limitation" settings on my car. The settings are located in the adaptation menu inside the Braking Module (03).

Seems hit or miss. https://www.golfmk7.com/forums/index.php?threads/starting-vibration-reduction-on-18-gti.358114/

 

[Twist1]

You're being way too philosophical about this.

Scan the car and see what's wrong with it. You can disable torque nannies in first but what you're describing sounds like something is going on. My brand-new 18 would break loose even at half throttle in first gear and second would be close to traction limit.

If the car is brand spanking new it is quite possible there is an engine break in hard reduction in power. It's more than likely for the transmission more so in high torque gears (1st).