Dynamic / Adaptive chassis control (DCC / ACC)

[langers_sydney]

So glad I ticked this option. The way you can 'Feel' the R when its running in Sport is just brilliant. Took it for a good run on the F1 down the coast and I love the way the steering wheel gets nice and heavy and the way it leans into curves.

For me that is the best thing about my new R. When the missus is in it, its in D and comfort, rides bumps easily and is as 'docile' as it can get....

But flick it into DCC Sport and S transmission, and you have a whole new car........

Love. It.

LS

[SilvrFoxX]

Ran a GTI with ACC this weekend (loaner for our daughters 21st)

Flicking between the modes, I can't see anything I am missing on my R without it other than a button to play with (a lot of placebo effect as well). Unless Sport mode is your thing and the difference in that mode could be useful on track.

Kept it short.

Not sure a test run hitting a button will give you the experience you are expecting. Once you are accustomed to your own car you know when something is different. The ACC on the R is quite substantial in its morphing the car when you know how you usually have it set up.

Like others have said, if you have it then you know and enjoy the cars personality change, if you don't then you wont miss it

[Candyman]

Was a full weekend drive mate

Sport was over the top for road but good for track I suspect

Other two settings, meh.

Driving in normal was subtly annoying as it seemed to change the cars behaviour on runs unexpectedly at times

Not sure what you mean by setting up though.

[SilvrFoxX]

Yeah I don't think i have ever run it in Normal.. it sits in comfort most of the time, but if you want to give the beans on the twisties then SPORT mode on both the DSG and suspension make it a billy cart.. glad I have it.. should have been standard rather than an option.. i suspect it become so at some stage.

My reference to set up was merely saying that I am sure every driver has the car set for them.. if you make any change ( and this could be the missus changing the seat position ) you notice it straight away. The ACC is like that and the more time you spend with it the appreciation grows.. not to Whitejames levels , too much navel gazing there

[WhiteJames]

Don't know how to post pics on this site.
Posted pics on WJ Suspension Review site on other forum.
The White GTI is not my GTI - it's a demo Manual version that is for sale apparently as is the Red 3 door GTI non-DCC.
You have the luxury of test driving a manual and DSG back to back if your desire.
The final pics of the Silver Golf R and Red Golf ED35 are also apparently for sale at Sutherland.

WHITE JAMES: Suspension & Wheel Reviews - Page 18 - VW GTI Forum / VW Rabbit Forum / VW R32 Forum / VW Golf Forum - Golfmkv.com

Cheers.
WJ

[Mariani]

WJ

Reckon the dealer will let you take the ED35 for a quick spin to the boat shed? Would love to hear about the comparison.

Good write up mate.

Mic

[WhiteJames]

A GTI Ed35 -v- GTI Std would make for a good review. Perhaps the next test drive may be the Polo GTI -v- Golf GTI - Is the Golf worth the extra 15K?. Polo GTI's are a bit hard to come by in my local dealership atm. Wouldn't mind comparing the new BMW 118i hatch -v Golf GTI as they are around the same price point. Anyway ... here is a re-post of the GOLF GTI: DCC -v- Non DCC Summary from the previous page:

The DCC –v- non DCC comparison leaves me with a real quandary.

The non-DCC Golf GTI is softer in the suspension and even softer in the steering department. The softer suspension tune I could live with as it offers extra comfort for extended drives of greater than 2 hours. The softer steering is a disappointment that I would find difficult to live with. It leaves me thinking that Volkswagen has pandered to the largest market outside of Europe and Americanised the steering, making it lighter. For drivers looking for improved handling, Volkswagen have tactfully introduced a DCC option that gives both steering and suspension a harder edge. Another part of me takes that view that Volkswagen is attempting the pitch the standard non-DCC Golf GTI to a wider audience, in other words: Toyota-rising their product to in an attempt to be everything to everyone, broadening the definition of the hot-hatch.

The DCC equipped Golf GTI on the other hand offers a sporty & agile chassis and with a touch of a button, a more comfortable ride or somewhere in between if you desire. But there is a trade-off for all this electronic wizardry – the driver’s skill & inputs become a lesser factor in obtaining the best from the great little Golf chassis. Substituting the driver’s ability & skill to adjust the chassis attitude with clinical & technical efficiency leaves me a little cold in respect to the DCC. The efficiency is great for user friendliness, long trips and for those that are uninitiated in the art of muscling around a little hot hatch, but fast doesn’t necessarily mean fun when driving on public roadways. Is the DCC equipped GTI a better car to own? Yes ... but not necessary a better car to drive in the context of driving as an art-form.

Cheers.
WJ

[WhiteJames]

Picked up a copy of the Sept 2011 issue of CAR Magazine as they have several interesting reviews: Megane RS265 Cup -v- Sirocco R where the Renault is best drivers car and Sirocco best in every other endeavour; BMW 118i M-Sport Manual ... and a non-DCC Golf GTI -v- Audi TTD Awd -v- Peugeot RCZ -v- Mini Countryman -v- BMW X1 -v- Range Rover Evoque (don't ask me why) written by journo Chris Chilton. Chris Chilton echoes my own views on the non-DCC Golf GTI when he says,

"In insolation the (non-DCC) Golf GTI is perfectly judged ... It's only when you get to driver the (non-DCC) Golf GTI back to back against other cars that you start to wonder if Volkswagen could speed up the (steering) rack a little, sharpen the turn-in and dial out a bit of body movement through quick direction changes."

It also has me wondering if the non-DCC Golf GTI uses a different ratio steering rack compared to the DCC equipped GTI?

Cheers.
WJ

[WhiteJames]

The earlier CAR Magazine (U.K.) I referred to written by Chris Chilton suggested that the standard non-DCC Golf GTI was a bit on the soft & lazy side in the context of a hot-hatch. The Nov 2011 issue of CAR Magazine has Ben Pulman driving another GTI in as many months, albeit a Golf GTI Ed35 equipped with Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC).

In the later issue of CAR Magazine that tests the GTI Ed35 DCC for the title of ‘The Year’s Best Sportscar (under 50K GBP)’, he also forms the opinion that the DCC Ed35 feels sharper and firmer than the standard non-DCC GTI on the road and was surprised at how the Golf GTI Ed35 DCC felt on the track (Megane RS265 still kills it for lap time).

This further cements in my mind that the chassis tune between the non-DCC and DCC Golf GTI involves a little more than simply adding electronics to the standard non-DCC tune. The DCC tune seems to be that one notch higher in terms of sportiness over the standard and reasonably soft non-DCC Gofl GTI damper & steering tunes. The Golf GTI Ed35 runs the same suspension tune as that of any other Golf GTI – no difference in that regard.

The Golf GTI Ed35 GTI equipped with DCC did so well in the comparison (Cayman R aside), that Ben Pulman states:

Golf or Megane? It’d usually be the Megane getting the nod, but the Edition 35 now has an edge to counter the all-roundness that too often counts against it in road-test situations.

Pulman also goes as far as to state:

It just makes the Audi RS3 absurd. If you took your Audi RS3 in for a service and got a GTI Ed35 DCC as a courtesy car, you’d feel terrible.”

Mmmm ... I wonder if that Red Ed35 GTI at the local dealership has DCC?

Cheers.
WJ

[Corey_R]

But WJ! That Ed 35 has that gawd awful EA113 engine that you have been piling on for the past 12 months!