New FRONT wheel drive 118TSI Tiguan...any feedback???

[203132]

I'm sure VW has put a large amount of effort in materials research to handle the high stresses in each component. I guess it just took the 118 as the guinea pig. I'm sure they know what they are doing

[brad]

I'm sure VW has put a large amount of effort in materials research to handle the high stresses in each component. I guess it just took the 118 as the guinea pig. I'm sure they know what they are doing

Funniest thing I've read on this forum in a while.

[iamthestig]

I'm probably going to order one. Funny comparison that even with the Comfort Pack, it will be cheaper than the FSI Jetta (manual, no options) that we bought new in 2006 and has nothing missing feature wise.

[jimbomort]

While the 1.4 might be a bit small for some - they are the folks that would pay the extra & choose a bigger engine.

For many (people like my father or one of my kids), the 1.4 would be a better choice than most. Surely choice of engine boils down to fitness for intended usage?

agree, and while I understand to some degree Team V's concerns with the smaller engine, a number of us are all running around in our new VW's with 2.0 litres putting our more torque and almost as much power as a falcon 6, and we are all doing that happily by choice. The 1.4 has been an option in the Tig in the UK for years - so the first question is have they got any problems? If not I wouldn't be worried.

[203132]

Funniest thing I've read on this forum in a while.

Do explain, not quite following

[MariusGT]

correct me if i'm wrong but the 1.4 TSI (if the same block as in my GT SPORT) is cast iron? and has a timing chain rather than belt?

surely that helps in terms of concern over stress on small capacity engine pulling a 1.5t car?

[iamthestig]

With downsizing, let us not forget that even Mercedes Benz use turboed 1.8Ltr motors in vehicles like 1700+ KG E Class Estates...

[brad]

Do explain, not quite following

plenty of examples where it appears VW engineers don't know what they are doing (eg: all the engines that were breaking rings or the ones that are burning oil, or the diesels with injector issues), or more probably, the bean-counters have vetoed the engineers design/wishes/strategy, etc.

[NZTiguan]

I don't think that there's any doubt that the more technically advanced engines get, the more likely they have some component failures, but on average now smaller engines produce more power and torque and still manage a life span that would put older vehicles to shame (with the exception of the odd sensor failure etc that allow them to perform as well as they do). My Dad had a new 1958 Austin A55 Cambridge and he used to do a valve grind every 15000 miles and rings and bearings every 30000 or so. Todays engines are much harder to diagnose and repair simply because of their complexity but truth is lifespan for your dollar is about as good as its ever been.

So, occasionally somebody gets a lemon and we all hear about it (don't get me wrong I'd yell if I got one too !!) but overall we're all pretty well served by our engines and vehicles in general. Let's face it most of us don't keep a car longer than a few years anyway !!

Cheers

[brad]

. Let's face it most of us don't keep a car longer than a few years anyway !!

NZ economy must be going much better than all my Kiwi mates keep telling me.

I used to turn my cars over fairly quickly. From 1978-1988 i probably owned 15+ cars. From 1988 onwards I had my Barina for 8 years; U13 Bluebird 8yrs; Gen2 Liberty 3yrs (lemon); MK3.5 Cabrio 3 yrs (concurrent with Liberty) & the Skoda is now 3 yrs with another 3yrs envisaged. Most of my friends stick with their cars even longer. I'd assume there are 2 types of owners - the quick turnover folk & the "drive them until they are worthless" brigade.

My point about engineers being right all the time (and I'm an engineer myself) is that they often get things wrong or the reality of everyday use doesn't corelate with all the testing that was done.

[iamthestig]

Well, I have ordered one - but don't expect a review until after arrival in 2Q 2012...

[Jad]

Should be picking ours up next week. We'll be doing a bit of longish distance driving over the Christmas break and towing a trailer for a chunk of it. I'll post my impressions after we've played with it a bit.

[iamthestig]

Excellent - Might be enough time to change our order if it is a bad thing !

[Jad]

Picked up the car on Friday and have been busy clocking up the KMs to run it in before our big road trip after Christmas. We got the bog standard 118TSI with only the VW Towbar and carpet mats installed. The handling is firm on the road and very quite in the cabin. The daytime lights are configured to always be on when the car is running which is nice ( you can change this in the MFD). The feel of the manual shift is probably the nicest I have ever used, the throws are short and positive and the gear stick has a nice meaty feel to it. 1st gear still catches me out sometimes, especially with auto-hold on. You need to give it a bit more throttle to get it moving but once rolling its smooth driving. I like the fact that the Start/Stop feature also works to restart the motor if you stall it out on a bunny hop. If you're outside the car while its idling you can hear the supercharger whining away. The car is very zippy and I'm sure will only improve as the engine loosens up. When you get the revs up to around 3200-3500rpm when both the supercharger and turbo are both going the car really takes off. 5th & 6th gear are definitely for cruising as you need drop back to 4th if you want to overtake and get any timely response from the motor. Can't say we're going to miss any of the optional add-ons as the car as is ticks all our boxes. It would be nice if VW produced a long wheelbase variant though to address the functional but smallish boot.

[iamthestig]

Thanks for your feedback. We have a 6 sp Manual Jetta already and that has a lovely gearbox too. Any fuel economy info yet ?