Sports Pack

[ozgti]

I found the ACC made little difference in the sport pack. The ride is still abit jarring, but that's what you'd expect from a lowered vehicle. Small stutter bumps makes you talk like a darlek!

When I test drove the non sport pack, I found it was a bit too soft, the sport pack too firm. Somehwere in between would be nice.

[soogs]

It also corners much flatter. Agree with ozgti the stock suspension is too soft and bouncy. The sports' ride is not as harsh as some other cars. Good choice.

[BBP]

Adaptive Chassis Control works a treat. If you can't live without the Sports Pack, I would definitely get ACC to soften up the ride when you are going over poor surfaces.

[GTI6]

when I test drove the golf 118 tsi I found the acc whilst it did make a difference between the normal setting and sports, I could not feel a difference in ride quality between the normal and comfort.

Maybe the roads where too smooth in that area

[trueman]

I have ordered ACC but I wonder if most the time it will stay "off" .......

[WhiteJames]

A low speeds the DCC in NORMAL mode may revert to COMFORT and at higher speeds NORMAL mode moves into SPORT mode. Choosing suspension depends on where you drive & how you drive. If it's in the country on rougher B-grade roadways, maybe the softer stock suspension is the go. For better roadways, Sport suspension is the pick. Sport suspension may give a stiff legged ride at low speed, but softens up at higher speeds. Standard comfort suspension would be better around town at lower speeds, but you'd lose some control & agility at higher speeds or when pressing on around corners. I went for DCC to receive the best of both worlds - soft for town / hard for freeway or tight twisties. I didn't notice too much of a difference in spring rate between a STD 118TSI and STD Golf GTI suspension - maybe 10-15% in spring rate. DCC makes the difference in damper rate with spring rate staying the same.

Cheers.
WJ

[JIMMYP]

Yeah, am loving my new wheels Coreying. VW seem to have kicked some big goals with the 118 TSI!

[cameronp]

Thanks for all these replies, that pretty much confirms what I was hoping to hear. Surprised to see so many comments about the ride quality being affected and most people finding the ACC useful (which I didn't get on mine - I had assumed it was just a gimmick). My previous car was a Focus XR5 which had pretty stiff suspension and I found the ride quite acceptable. Guess that would be pretty similar to the GTI and, from what people have said here, also the TSI with the sports pack. Being in my mid-twenties I expect I have more tolerance for hard-riding cars than some people here!

[ozgti]

But with ACC, you can't change the suspension... Is that correct?

[G-rig]

Re: Sports pack: just for looks or actually better handling?

But with ACC, you can't change the suspension... Is that correct?

I got it so I wouldn't be tempted to change it haha. However, OEM is the best and enjoying the good ride with ACC and no noise issues or niggles like with most aftermarket suspension.

I'm not sure but think there will be more aftermarket suspension coming out that can utilize this technology, nice if you can get slightly lowered springs to suit but not going to stuff around with the car too much this time when it's perfectly fine.

[vwsp]

I love the 118TSI with Sportpack. When I purchased mine i drove most other versions (standard, sportpack with acc, and sportpack without acc) and honestly while I could tell differences between acc or no acc it felt more of a novelty and not much difference and certainly not worth the difference.

I live in Richmond (Mel) and we've got speed humps, pot holes, cobblestone, you name it (don't get me started!!!). Never do I think the Sport suspension is too hard. Taut/firm yes - but never rough or uncomfortable. Unfortunately I can't comment in relation to a GTI.

Anyhow, you'll love it!! Enjoy.

[G-rig]

I think ACC is worth it if you're going for 18"+ wheels as it can get a bit firm with the ride (apparently) on the stock suspension if you go for bigger wheels. Other than that it was something i may not have normally ticked, but the car was ready for immediate delivery instead of 6 months so wasn't arguing . So far i've mostly left it in standard mode anyway, pretty comfortable and calculates the dampening at 1000 times/sec.

[prise]

I have to do occasional driving on unsurfaced roads so I gave the sports suspension a miss. I've had two previous cars with sports suspension (99wrx and 2006 Mazda 6 MPS) and I would end up doing large detours to avoid any length of corrugated dirt road.

Suspension tuning is a compromise and ride preference is a personal thing - one persons Limo is another persons go-cart.

Enjoy your wheels.

[MkVIGTI]

Thanks for all these replies, that pretty much confirms what I was hoping to hear. Surprised to see so many comments about the ride quality being affected and most people finding the ACC useful (which I didn't get on mine - I had assumed it was just a gimmick). My previous car was a Focus XR5 which had pretty stiff suspension and I found the ride quite acceptable. Guess that would be pretty similar to the GTI and, from what people have said here, also the TSI with the sports pack. Being in my mid-twenties I expect I have more tolerance for hard-riding cars than some people here!

Having had my GTI for 2 and a half weeks, I have to say that the ride on the GTI with the standard 17 inch rims is surprisingly supple. You can feel the bumps but they are never harsh. I did notice that the rear suspension is definitely stiffer than the front set up but overall I'm pretty happy with the ride/handling combination on the GTI

[MIRSAD]

Nov 2009 - Jan 2010 .... 17 inch
Jan 2010 - today.... 18 inch

Same car ... not much difference for me.