The "What would you have done different" thread...

[R34]

Not sure about the R32 but it's definitely different to the R36

[Steve]

Yeah, they're different engines but share the same narrow layout.

[Lance B]

A mate of mine has a 335i and I'd say the r36 wouldn't see which way it went (and that's without a $2k chip giving the 335 around 280kW)

And for the price it'd want to be that way!!

I know it's subjective, but it also looks as boring as bat excrement.

[R34]

From what I've been able to find out is
The A3 3.2V6 , R32 and R36 share the VR6 Iron block 15degree format
The A4 3.2V6 is a 90 degree all alloy engine

This could explain why (to me)the R36 feels nose heavy after driving my wifes A4

[MJW]

Standing start would be no contest...V6 everytime. In gear, particularly over 75 kph, I would back the MPS.

So would the V6 win a stop light drag race

[kleung]

Standing start would be no contest...V6 everytime. In gear, particularly over 75 kph, I would back the MPS.

You might be surprised. The 6 MPS got beaten by a Honda Accord Euro in the 80-120 rolling acceleration test by almost 0.3s. That's a 190kw 2.3T AWD vs 140kw 2.4NA FWD.

euro and mazda 6

I wouldn't have believed it either had I not known the poster (yfin) to be a scrupulously objective poster... Sadly the links are broken now, but that was a surprising result.

[MJW]

Wow!! Excuse my hesitation to accept this fact but I find that very hard to believe from a NA engine with less power that needs to rev to 7,000 rpm & then can only produce 234nm of torque. Bit suspect. If this was the case then I wonder why Honda don't produce any readily available performance figures given these amazing numbers?

Are there any offical times for the 3.6l V6 Passat 80-120kph acceleration times?

You might be surprised. The 6 MPS got beaten by a Honda Accord Euro in the 80-120 rolling acceleration test by almost 0.3s. That's a 190kw 2.3T AWD vs 140kw 2.4NA FWD.

euro and mazda 6

I wouldn't have believed it either had I not known the poster (yfin) to be a scrupulously objective poster... Sadly the links are broken now, but that was a surprising result.

[wandersen]

I have a blue R36 wagon with satnav and a magic tailgate. I'd like a white wagon with satnav, magic tailgate, sunroof, Dynaudio, KESSY and adaptive cruise control. Unfortunately white wasn't an option when I ordered mine (!), Australia misses out on KESSY, the factory forgot to attach the rear view camera and I tried to amend my order to include Dynaudio but the car had already been built! Maybe park assist 'cause I like gadgets...

The new CC has KESSY standard in Aus.

[wandersen]

Double post..

[R34]

Yeah I'd like to see them prove that is a repeatable time for the Euro against an MPS ( or try again with the Mazdas handbrake off )

[booba]

I have heard this too, do you have any idea if my13 passat has kessy option?

The new CC has KESSY standard in Aus.

[Lance B]

Wow!! Excuse my hesitation to accept this fact but I find that very hard to believe from a NA engine with less power that needs to rev to 7,000 rpm & then can only produce 234nm of torque. Bit suspect. If this was the case then I wonder why Honda don't produce any readily available performance figures given these amazing numbers?

Are there any offical times for the 3.6l V6 Passat 80-120kph acceleration times?

I think we need more facts. If they were both manuals and they were both in top gear or 4th gear or something (ie where the Mazda was off boost), then I can definitely imagine that the Honda could beat it.

[kleung]

Wow!! Excuse my hesitation to accept this fact but I find that very hard to believe from a NA engine with less power that needs to rev to 7,000 rpm & then can only produce 234nm of torque. Bit suspect. If this was the case then I wonder why Honda don't produce any readily available performance figures given these amazing numbers?

I absolutely understand your skepticism. It's a shame that the original link is now broken, but I do remember seeing the article myself, way back when it was first posted. Yfin also established a reputation for himself on OzHonda as a knowledgable and objective poster, and was (maybe still is) a moderator on the Euro forum. I would have dismissed it as rabid fanboi-ism if it hadn't been posted by someone reputable like him.

It is also a fact that the Euro has an uncharacteristically (for Honda) fat midrange, so the result is at least possible.

Furthermore, you can do a bit of verification yourself - in 2 minutes of searching, I've found a number of videos of acceleration tests on Youtube of the CL9 Euro that show it accelerating between 80-120kmh in comfortably less than 6 seconds. A couple have some minor modifications (CAIs, exhausts, etc), but those mods would contribute a few points of a second at best.

Just out of interest, I did a bit of googling for the R36 80-120 acceleration tests as well, and got unverifiable results of between high 3s and mid 4-seconds.

[FSI 220]

This wasn't what I had in mind when I kicked this thread off.... "What you would have done differently" when buying your Passat....

But what the hey....

I have stepped out of turbo Subarus into the Passat after four long years walking through the valley of despair. (Toyota Kluger AWD, simultaneously the best car I have ever owned, and the least involved/most boring appliance I have ever driven... which makes it the perfect wife's car - safe, big, strong, reliable, set and forget for 400k km - unlike a volksie).

The Passat is equally the quickest humane car I have owned (on par with my boostmodded WRX), but feels much slower, much much slower. half of it is in the box. And yes, I eat my words from a few months ago...

You don't get that feeling of vertigo you get with boost, shift, boost, shift, boost, from a manual turbo... you don't even get that manual throwback of the neck on a manual NA shifting from the top RPM into the meat of the torque curve... the revs drop so quickly and the box shifts it just winds out.

My theory is that the gearbox is so good that each shift gains an average dumb punter like me a quarter of a second per shift... so if it is three shifts to 100, it would place a Passat as a 6.25 car... that would be slower than my REX was and about right for the KW graph numbers...

I also think the torque curve of a Passat is constrained, it doesn't look like a natural curve...

Also, when you own a turbo, you learn how to drive it... you don't get to know one intimately with a drive here and there... And if you really want to live with a dog, own a carby fed, ported, atmo, 13b in a 78 mazda coupe! (and try driving that in the rain!)

[MJW]

Enough said & well put.

This wasn't what I had in mind when I kicked this thread off.... "What you would have done differently" when buying your Passat....

But what the hey....

I have stepped out of turbo Subarus into the Passat after four long years walking through the valley of despair. (Toyota Kluger AWD, simultaneously the best car I have ever owned, and the least involved/most boring appliance I have ever driven... which makes it the perfect wife's car - safe, big, strong, reliable, set and forget for 400k km - unlike a volksie).

The Passat is equally the quickest humane car I have owned (on par with my boostmodded WRX), but feels much slower, much much slower. half of it is in the box. And yes, I eat my words from a few months ago...

You don't get that feeling of vertigo you get with boost, shift, boost, shift, boost, from a manual turbo... you don't even get that manual throwback of the neck on a manual NA shifting from the top RPM into the meat of the torque curve... the revs drop so quickly and the box shifts it just winds out.

My theory is that the gearbox is so good that each shift gains an average dumb punter like me a quarter of a second per shift... so if it is three shifts to 100, it would place a Passat as a 6.25 car... that would be slower than my REX was and about right for the KW graph numbers...

I also think the torque curve of a Passat is constrained, it doesn't look like a natural curve...

Also, when you own a turbo, you learn how to drive it... you don't get to know one intimately with a drive here and there... And if you really want to live with a dog, own a carby fed, ported, atmo, 13b in a 78 mazda coupe! (and try driving that in the rain!)