FYI, Petrol TSI350 Multivan impressions.

[Tig-uan]

In case someone is wondering what the TSI350 Petrol multivan is like, I bought a demo MY12 TSI350 about a month ago, here are my impressions:

Couple of years ago, I almost bought one of the first MY10 TDI103 but did not go ahead because there was too much vibration at idle, the diesel engine was a bit loud, and there was noticeable tyre noise on freeways. It was still a great product, nothing else like this, but I could not part at that stage with $50k for that level of refinement.

TSI350 mostly addresses all the issues I had with the TDI 103.

Engine:
- the engine is smooth at idle, and not noisy at any revs, likes to rev, revs out cleanly.
- although, similar to other 2.0 TSI, it has a spot in the range from 1,300 to 1,600 revs where it booms/vibrates/shudders a little.

Performance:
- there is a good pull form very low revs, then accelerates effortlessly from above 2,000 revs onwards.
- performance is very accessible, often the first car from the lights, while not even trying.
- if taking off a bit faster (but not even flat-out) it will break traction momenterary around 35km/h, when most power comes on.

Economy:
- Cruise-control cruising at 90km/h on a flat, it sits at 8.0L/100kms average. I think this is its best.
- Around town, 14.5L to 15.3L if enjoying the car (but not hooning). I think this is because power is so readily accessible and one tends to used it often.
- Around town, 12.5L can be achievable if really trying by watching your acceleration. That is, accelerating slow on purpose everytime, keeping the revs in 1,500-2,000 band. Can be done if you have self-restraint of a robot.

DSG:
There is no dreaded DSG lag on take off, none at all, which is good.
On the negative side, there is a bit of mismatch between DSG shiftpoints and the engine characteristics.

In "Drive", DSG tries to keep the engine in 1,300 to 1,600 revs band, where the engine is a bit boomy and vibrating and feels like it is labouring. So, on occasions like cruising up a small incline, I would drop down a gear manually to increase the revs towards 2,000 to stop engine boom/vibration.

"Sport" position would resolve the above, were it not for a small thud when slowing down from S3 to S2 gear. The thud is due to increase in revs as it downshifts slowing down. I was under the impression that DSG will blip the throttle and rev-match when downshifting. This does not seem to happen when it shifts from S3 to S2 while slowing down, hence a small thud as the revs climb as it goes from 2,000 revs in S3 to 3,000 revs in S2. It is not a big thud, but considering DSG reliability paranoia, I am staying away "Sport".

***Anyone else with DSG, do you get the same thud slowing down from S3 to S2 in "Sport"? Does yours ever rev-match when downshifting?***

Road noise.
This car is quiet. Much quieter and smoother than the MY10 TDI103 I originally tried. I think it is mostly due to tyres, as on 17"s it has a passenger car derived tyre. Comfortlines on 16"s have van-tyre variations. I think one big improvement you could make to your multivan if it is on 16", is to swap for 17" rims purely because you can then fit a variety of quality passenger car derived tyres which are much quieter and smoother. This one came with Dunlop Sport 01 R17 XL 103W.

Radio.
The standard RCD310 is the latest generation with white-on-black LED lettering. The quality of sounds is now much better than that of the earlier variations of RCD310 (black-on-blue letters, or black-on-grey). I would even rate the sound as Very Good if you turn the treble down.

Ride/Handling.
This feels more like a refined limo, than a warm hatch. While steering is precise and measured, it is not crisp. While handling is steady and assured, it is not chuckable. During RWC inspection, it was commented that the suspension rubber bushes are very soft. This is what might be giving it that civilised feel, but a lack of a hard edge at the same time.

In conclusion,
I am happy with TSI350 even though fuel use is more than advertised.
Having now owned the Multivan, I think I'd have been happy with a TDI as well.
Any (working) Multivan is better than no Multivan.
(I had an iMax during the past year and got enough of (a) jiggly and bumpy rear seats at freeway speeds, that live rear axel must be heavy and (b) iMax seatbelts are mounted on door pillars, not on seatbacks like in a Multivan, this make it very hard to line up seat belts correctly with kid bodies in 2^nd and 3 rows, kids were falling out of seatbelts all the time.)

[Sharkie]

Very good feedback mate, matches my impressions of my test drive as well. If not for my serious DSG dislike and concerns, we'd have a TSI multivan now too .... Loved our 103TDI in all aspects but performance and the DSG.

For what it's worth, a TDI multivan if driven enthusiastically (or at least attempting to) will return 15l/100km in town easily .... I always thought the TSI would be no worse. Where the TDI comes to the fore is when cruising on the highway where 7.5l/100km is easily do-able.

I'd recommend you fit a RNS510, it transforms the radio experience and can be done for less than $1k .....

and lastly, APR has a tune for the TSI that will release 190kw/450nm to really transform the drive .....

[IN2VWS]

Speaking APR tunes.
On the APR tunes etc......Not sure about VW yet, but if an Audi goes in for any work at an Audi centre, and they detect a chip tune, the warranty on the whole car is void. The cars VIN is sent to Germany where is is black flagged.
We could discuss the legalities of this for months.....but who can afford to take on a manufacturer in court?

The advise from an Audi tech, is to remove the tune before going to Audi, then get it reinstalled after.

I had a similar experience with a BMW motorcycle I recently owned. I put an aftermarket exhaust on it. When BMW saw it, they informed me that the warranty on the bike was now void. Put me off buying a BMW again.

[Sharkie]

Speaking APR tunes.
On the APR tunes etc......Not sure about VW yet, but if an Audi goes in for any work at an Audi centre, and they detect a chip tune, the warranty on the whole car is void. The cars VIN is sent to Germany where is is black flagged.
We could discuss the legalities of this for months.....but who can afford to take on a manufacturer in court?

The advise from an Audi tech, is to remove the tune before going to Audi, then get it reinstalled after.

I had a similar experience with a BMW motorcycle I recently owned. I put an aftermarket exhaust on it. When BMW saw it, they informed me that the warranty on the bike was now void. Put me off buying a BMW again.

If any manufacturer tried that with me, I'd see them in court. Legally they have no leg to stand on by declaring the entire warranty void. At best they'd be able to argue that any component that needed warranty repairs that may have failed as a direct result of the ECU tune would be fixed/replaced at your cost.

And this applies to all ECU tunes, not just some. And they would have to prove to the court that the tune in fact did either cause or contribute. Same principle applies to any modifications you make.

I'd take a hardline with BMW if I were you ......

[IN2VWS]

Too late with the Beemer.....I sold it. Left a sour taste in my mouth.
The BMW was a first generation s1000rr. These first lot, apparently had soft cams in them. The first signs of the cams going was a ticking noise that gets louder and louder, until finally the engine seizing. This happened quite a lot in the USA.
Maybe I was being paranoid, but mine was starting to tick louder. I couldn't afford a $10,000 bill.......or court battle.

My view......the exhaust sytem I fitted, would not be covered under warranty, also any items that my exhaust causes to fail.
Same goes for the chip tune.......if it can be proved that a chip tune causes a failure.
It is wrong to void the warranty on the whole car/bike.

I wonder if there is any fine print in the warranty the folks do not know about, that mentions any modifications etc.??????