yes. agreed.

 

Why even bother with a VW, they're unreliable and they have completely lost their way IMHO. Unfortunately I speak from experience, but never again.

 

Brian, consider a Mazdaspeed3. Turbo 260hp/280tq, ~3000lbs and only $22k!!

 

Kirt
One of those was at the track last time.....its pretty darn quick really.......but damm are they UGLY......

The R32 was disappointing.....plain and simple.......once you've driven a 928 in its element (in ORR or on a big track) everything else just feels so boring.... Well except for the new Vette....which is pretty sweet

 

The problem with this or a chipped GTI is torque steer. The R32 at least mitigates this with AWD.

For a little while I had no FWD cars. After a while you forget about torque steer and think it's not so bad. Then you get something with FWD that has a lot of power, and you remember why you drive RWD cars.

 

Whats funny is I DID notice torque steer.....not bad...but you can feel it.......

 

Thats because most of the power still goes to the front axle. Take a look at the size of the rear diff, its tiny. I would bet it dosent put more then 50% of torque to the rear wheels. In fact I imagine it puts out much less then that. I will check the VW website and take a look.

 

It is still a FWD platform really, with AWD added later on, so it will still have some torque steer. I suppose in a transversely mounted engine, you can never really eliminate it. Holy crap is it a handful in my Mini in 1st gear.

 

Ok i just checked it out.

The 2004 version "could" transfer up to 50-50 front to rear.

the new 2008 version can transfer "up to" 100% to either front or rear axle. I think that figure is in there specifically for ice or wet weather situations. I would be curious to see the torque split between front and rear under acceleration runs on a dry track. VW is vague on this in its literature, I honestly dont think most buyers really care either so just as well.

 

To be more specific than what I said earlier, and to add on to what I just posted, AWD won't cure torque steer in a formerly FWD car (note I did say mitigate in my initial post ).

But splitting up the power, even 50/50, will make a huge difference over sending all that power to the front wheels. Brian, you can comment on the difference between the torque steer on the TL and the R32 - I'm betting it's significant.

AWD Cars with longitudinally mounted engines (Pretty much all RWD with AWD added, and Subaru and Audis), should for the most part not have torque steer, although putting any power through the wheels that steer will cause some effects. Ryan your point is well taken still - Cars that are FWD to start typically aren't given a rear diff meant to handle more than 50% of the torque - probably because turning the power 90 degrees from the engine presents issues. And most RWD cars adapted with AWD usually don't send more than 20-30% of the power to the front, although some due in certain circumstances.

Long story short - I'd rather avoid AWD regardless.

 

Hmm, maybe this isn't much of a problem anymore then.


Hey Brian - the reviews I've read of the DSG said it will still shift up for you if you don't and are in manual mode. Have any issues with this? It irritates the hell out of me on the Steptronic.

 

I have to say the overall formula is much more attractive in the Passat R36 version. Of course I'm more partial to "sleeper" family sedan types.

 

The TL is fast......really only a tick slower in acceleration than the 928 below about 60mph...above that the 928 runs away.....the 928 will pull .3g at 60mph vs maybe .2g in the TL.... the 60-80 passing time in the 928 is about 1/2 the TL too

However if you really stand on the TL and turn at the same time anywhere under about 30mph....it will nearly yank the wheel out of your hands!!! Its almost scary....trying to merge onto a highway at 90 degrees and flooring it is downright scary...the traction control cuts in way too abruptly and causes the car to buck....or if you turn the traction control off you just destroy the inside tire and don't really go anywhere until both wheels are straight.....

The same 90 degree corner from a stop in the R32 is better...but you still feel the car fighting you a little bit.......not like the 928 where I would just leave one nice long black stripe behind me...BWWAAAAAHHHHHH :>)

As a comparison....the 07 Vette automatic (400hp) that I drove was about perfect....I had the traction control in "Competition mode" so it allows a good amount of slip before it cuts in.....nice smooth slight drift the whole time, with not abrupt loss of power when the traction cuts in...... Of course with the traction control totally off....it just smoked the hell out of both wheels, which was fun!!

 

I have a 2004 R32. It too can transfer "up to" 100% of the torque to the rear wheels, but that is only if the front wheels have absolutely ZERO traction. That is about the most unlikely scenario ever.
I think VW is being purposely misleading by promoting the "up to" 100% statement. It looks to me like they're hoping people will think it has a RWD bias which it definitely does not have.

Off of the showroom floor, it places 100% of the torque to the front wheels until it senses a loss of torque to either, or both, front wheels; and then transfers the balance of power to the rears.

I have an aftermarket AWD controller software module that makes it think it's losing torque as soon as the front wheels start turning, which engages the rears almost instantaneously. But the AWD still cuts out on braking and heavy deceleration, just like the stock software. There's a different software controller that cancels that function, but I'm happy with it the way it is now.

And to answer to someone else's statement, I've never experienced any torque-steer in this car, either before or after upgrading the AWD software. I've had plenty of FWD cars, so I am quite familiar with torque-steer.

And, as was pointed out before, this isn't the car for everybody.
It has a fair amount of luxury and creature comforts, it has good handling and performance, and it sure comes in handy when you need to put a big-screen TV or a lawnmower in the hatch.
But while it wears a lot of different hats, it doesn't excel in any of those categories. If I wanted a strictly performance oriented car, I'd be greatly disappointed. But it does what I need it to do, and performs well enough to keep me from getting bored.

--Chuck--

 

The rear differential is smaller than most because it's a 1:1 ratio. There is no need for a large ring gear. The pinion and ring gear are equally sized.
The final drive ratio is determined by the front differential, and the rear diff is driven off of the front diff, not a transfer case like conventional 4WD.

--Chuck--