Questions from a new Arteon owner

[gableguy]

Hi all, have just picked up a secondhand 2018 Arteon yesterday. Very happy boy. I upgraded from a 2011 V6 Passat Highline and I'm amazed by how much quicker the Arteon is - on paper they appear very similar, but the Arteon trounces it. Either it's been tuned already (I bought it from a dealer) or my old Passat has lost its edge...

Couple questions as I get to know the thing. Apologies if they've been answered elsewhere - I've read a lot of the threads here but I didn't have the requisite seven years to read & absorb every comment:

- the stupid little phone holder under the aircon controls. Did anyone find a way to make this actually useable whilst plugging a phone into the USB port? Or do most people just use the centre console storage section?

- the boot kick-to-open thing works to open, but appears not to close that way...? Surely that can't be the case, can it? How am I doing it wrong? Opens perfectly, immediately, every time.

- plugging the phone in works great with Android Auto, but leaving it unplugged it wants to pair anew every time I get in. Is there an easy fix for that? Or is it an issue with my particular phone (2yr old Pixel)? Any suggestions?

Also interested in doing a stage 1 tune, but slightly hesitant to do anything that's going to dramatically shorten the life of the engine & drivetrain. How much risk is there involved with the APR stage 1? Reckon the standard parts can handle the extra load?

Finally, also interested in getting into OBD11 to some extent, but I've only got a very vague idea what it is, how it works and what it can achieve. If someone can point me to a rundown of the basics, and how it pertains to an Arteon, that would be great.

Thanks in advance all. Nice to be part of what seems like a fairly exclusive but appreciative club. Helluva car.

[Buzy_Robot]

Welcome, mate! Congrats on your choice of car!

The phone holder? Never used it as I have a iPhone 13 Pro Max so it's the centre console for storage.

Boot kick-to-close? Don't think so. I just reach up and press the button to close.

With my iPhone it automatically connects to Bluetooth and that's because I paired it like that to begin with. When I connect with the cable it disconnects from Bluetooth and switches to Apple CarPlay. As soon as I disconnect the cable it switches black to Bluetooth. So, it's connected either way and don't receive any connection prompts.

Tuning? I'm of no help there as I haven't checked those out.

[Lucas_R]

Congrats on the new car. Regarding a stage 1 tune, there are thousands of these engines running around with stage 1 tunes. From the factory, manufacturers have to dull down the potential of an engine to account for differences in different climates, fuel quality, lack of servicing, owners who have no mechanical sympathy etc etc. A stage 1 tune simply allows the engine to perform to its ability safely. In 99.9% of cases, there are no downfalls to having a tune carried out on your car. There is however, always a very small chance you might have an issue due to an underlying mechanical fault etc.

And because of the extra power and torque, you will find the car is more effortless to drive and in many instances, you will actually find a small improvement in fuel economy as the engine is not working as hard to move the car.

[SHANEO79]

Hi gableguy, welcome and congratulations

What has been mentioned above is true, can't kick to close and yep, current phones are way too big for the wireless charging so centre console is it. I have an android, galaxy s21 and no connectivity issues at all but previously android auto was finicky to say the least.

OBDEleven works well, I've done plenty of tweaks and enhancements. There's plenty of examples on this forum but for me I've;

disabled the annoying stop start - car never goes into stop mode, no need to press a button to deactivate
changed the AC to "hot country mode" - here in Qld this made a noticeable and big change to how quickly the cabin is cooled
changed the inside colour lights to red. From factory only 3 colours
changed the coming home lights to only be the led strip and not headlight, looks great a night
turned on heated seats memory
turned on puddle lights on when mirrors unfold/car unlocks
turned on traffic sign recognition
increased engine responsiveness
added pulsation of the start/stop button
added all wheel drive to added traction
deactivated the exhaust flaps to always be open
turned off the fake engine noise in the cabin - the soundaktor
changed the comfort turn indicators from 3 blinks to 5
activated throttle pedal response to responsive

There are so many more and the OBDEleven device and app are, in my case, terrific - OBDEleven PRO Pack – OBD2 Australia VW, Audi & Skoda

Hope this helps

Shane

[Guest001]

Hi gableguy, welcome and congratulations

What has been mentioned above is true, can't kick to close and yep, current phones are way too big for the wireless charging so centre console is it. I have an android, galaxy s21 and no connectivity issues at all but previously android auto was finicky to say the least.

OBDEleven works well, I've done plenty of tweaks and enhancements. There's plenty of examples on this forum but for me I've;

disabled the annoying stop start - car never goes into stop mode, no need to press a button to deactivate
changed the AC to "hot country mode" - here in Qld this made a noticeable and big change to how quickly the cabin is cooled
changed the inside colour lights to red. From factory only 3 colours
changed the coming home lights to only be the led strip and not headlight, looks great a night
turned on heated seats memory
turned on puddle lights on when mirrors unfold/car unlocks
turned on traffic sign recognition
increased engine responsiveness
added pulsation of the start/stop button
added all wheel drive to added traction
deactivated the exhaust flaps to always be open
turned off the fake engine noise in the cabin - the soundaktor
changed the comfort turn indicators from 3 blinks to 5
activated throttle pedal response to responsive

There are so many more and the OBDEleven device and app are, in my case, terrific - OBDEleven PRO Pack – OBD2 Australia VW, Audi & Skoda

Hope this helps

Shane

Strange that the aircon wasnt on Hot Country mode as both my cars are from the factory

[SHANEO79]

Strange that the aircon wasnt on Hot Country mode as both my cars are from the factory

Yep, weird, not activated from the start it would seem. Plugged in the OBDEleven and it said it wasn't activated when looking at that particular app so now enabled.

[gableguy]

Thanks for the replies folks! Much appreciated! Gonna get an APR stage 1 tune next week. Performance is already pretty good but if it speeds up the throttle response & reduces lag a bit, that'll be worth the $1k it costs.

Couple more questions:

- How do you engage launch control? In my old Passat you simply put it the transmission in S and turned off ESC. Seems significantly harder to do in this one. (Not something I use often but I was keen to try it when showing off the car to a mate recently...)

- Can you program each of the two keys to specific driver profiles? My Passat moved the seat position to either #1 or #2 depending on which key you used. This seems to just default to whichever profile was last used, regardless of key.

- Does anyone else find the Dynaudio system ridiculously bass heavy? And a bit lacking in clarity? I've cranked the treble to max and put both sub & bass on about -5... could be my ears have been destroyed by 20 years as a professional musician, or it could be my tweeters and/or crossovers need replacing...

- How hard is it to remove door trim? Keen to eliminate a bunch of rattles in the doors. Dash seems fine but the doors rattle like mad, particularly with any bass-y tracks. Some cars are relatively simple to do this stuff; others are a nightmare. Anyone done that with a 2018 Arteon?

Thanks again all!

[gableguy]

Hi gableguy, welcome and congratulations

What has been mentioned above is true, can't kick to close and yep, current phones are way too big for the wireless charging so centre console is it. I have an android, galaxy s21 and no connectivity issues at all but previously android auto was finicky to say the least.

OBDEleven works well, I've done plenty of tweaks and enhancements. There's plenty of examples on this forum but for me I've;

disabled the annoying stop start - car never goes into stop mode, no need to press a button to deactivate
changed the AC to "hot country mode" - here in Qld this made a noticeable and big change to how quickly the cabin is cooled
changed the inside colour lights to red. From factory only 3 colours
changed the coming home lights to only be the led strip and not headlight, looks great a night
turned on heated seats memory
turned on puddle lights on when mirrors unfold/car unlocks
turned on traffic sign recognition
increased engine responsiveness
added pulsation of the start/stop button
added all wheel drive to added traction
deactivated the exhaust flaps to always be open
turned off the fake engine noise in the cabin - the soundaktor
changed the comfort turn indicators from 3 blinks to 5
activated throttle pedal response to responsive

There are so many more and the OBDEleven device and app are, in my case, terrific - OBDEleven PRO Pack – OBD2 Australia VW, Audi & Skoda

Hope this helps

Shane

Yeah I'm considering getting that exact unit. Can you tell me how it works with several different cars, any dramas there? I'd be going halves with my Dad who's got an Audi A6...

[SHANEO79]

Yeah I'm considering getting that exact unit. Can you tell me how it works with several different cars, any dramas there? I'd be going halves with my Dad who's got an Audi A6...

From what I can see when opening the app, you have a "garage" section where I can see my Arteon and I assume I can add other compatible vehicles for this device - Audi, VW, Seat, Skoda, Lamborghini and Bentley. I would take a look online on their website or send them a query about setting up multiple vehicles for your "profile" as I only have my vehicle that is compatible I'm sorry.

[Guest001]

From what I can see when opening the app, you have a "garage" section where I can see my Arteon and I assume I can add other compatible vehicles for this device - Audi, VW, Seat, Skoda, Lamborghini and Bentley. I would take a look online on their website or send them a query about setting up multiple vehicles for your "profile" as I only have my vehicle that is compatible I'm sorry.

You can have as many cars as you like in the APP. To get rid of any u just wipe them to the left and they are gone.

You just plug it in and it will come up with the stuff for that one. You have to plug it in to get the car into the "garage" and its VIN will be there as well.

[dairyfloss]

Thanks for the replies folks! Much appreciated! Gonna get an APR stage 1 tune next week. Performance is already pretty good but if it speeds up the throttle response & reduces lag a bit, that'll be worth the $1k it costs.

Couple more questions:

- How do you engage launch control? In my old Passat you simply put it the transmission in S and turned off ESC. Seems significantly harder to do in this one. (Not something I use often but I was keen to try it when showing off the car to a mate recently...)

- Can you program each of the two keys to specific driver profiles? My Passat moved the seat position to either #1 or #2 depending on which key you used. This seems to just default to whichever profile was last used, regardless of key.

- Does anyone else find the Dynaudio system ridiculously bass heavy? And a bit lacking in clarity? I've cranked the treble to max and put both sub & bass on about -5... could be my ears have been destroyed by 20 years as a professional musician, or it could be my tweeters and/or crossovers need replacing...

- How hard is it to remove door trim? Keen to eliminate a bunch of rattles in the doors. Dash seems fine but the doors rattle like mad, particularly with any bass-y tracks. Some cars are relatively simple to do this stuff; others are a nightmare. Anyone done that with a 2018 Arteon?

Thanks again all!

Hey gableguy,

- For launch control, you first need to go into Sport mode, then 'long press' the ESC 'OFF' button that you should have next to the shifter, and you will see ESC Sport mode message come up on the virtual cockpit dash. Then from your start position - apply the brake with your left foot, and then after that (simultaneously) put down the throttle with the right foot... then let go of the brake to launch!

- Keys can can be assigned to each user profile, and it recalls a heap of driver settings including seat, mirrors, a/c and more. You can also select any user profile while using either key to activate that profile manually. Spend time on this one in the manual on the set-up to get it of it all done right; it's worth it!

- The Dynaudio system is quite bass heavy, and rattles a bit on culprit tracks, even at low levels. I found the right balance for me using only L1 or L2 subwoofer (whatever the scale is - I'm basing on 0-10 here), L2 or L3 Bass, and then L5-L6 mid and L8-L9 treble. I have also found that switching on Dolby Pro-Logic made a big difference to clarity in the audio, for mine.

- Can't help you on trim, but as above, there's definitely some noise in there with some bottom end tunes on, so let us know if you find anything obvious if you end up breaking in!

Cheers,
Matt.

[dubrav]

I believe that models 2018 and up don't have a ESC button so you'll have to go through the head unit to change to either off or Sports

[dairyfloss]

I believe that models 2018 and up don't have a ESC button so you'll have to go through the head unit to change to either off or Sports

Ahhh yes, this is true - depending on whether you have an earlier build MY18, or an MY18.5, you may or may not have the button in your car. Mine is from the first [MY18] release, so I've got it in mine.

[gableguy]

Thanks again folks! Really appreciate the responses.

Found Launch Control. No ESC button so I guess mine is from post Aug 18, but it's not too hard to find in the settings. Haven't used it yet - seems cruel to the drivetrain - but I now know where it is if I pull up at the lights next to some tosser in an STI or EVO...

Also sorted the stereo. The rear speakers appeared to not be working, or only barely working... ut then switched Dolby Pro-Logic OFF and hey presto they work again. A bit of tweaking and it sounds vastly better without Dolby engaged. Dolby does increase the treble a smidge, but I hate what it does to the low end and the rear speakers! Useful for watching movies on long trips (I guess), otherwise nah.

No luck as yet with programming the keys. I've created profiles for my partner and I, but she has to select hers each time with the steering wheel controls regardless of key. Not sure how to assign a profile to a key. I'll keep trying.

I went to get a Stage 1 APR tune; turns out it already has one - and the DSG tune too! I was both happy to save the cash, and bummed it didn't go faster... but yeah it's already pretty bloody quick.

[BO11OS]

Hi Shane, did adding all wheel drive to added traction make much difference? I thought they where already all wheel drive. Ok the 4 motion gives power to the rear wheels when traction is lost, I would prefer permanent awd

cheers Allan