Campaign to make ACC an option in the UK

[wigit]

7 months in and 13k miles i'm not convinved by ACC, i've made comments elsewhere why (mainly due to steering feel or lack of), also been having the debate with potential owners of mk6 GTIs as to whether they tick the box or not given its a £700 option, this has been linked to me doing some research on coilovers and ditching it all together

this got my thinking, i've paid £700 built into the list price for the ACC on the Roc and £300 (including labour and springs) to lower it to what it should have been when it left the factory and no more

so make it an option save the £700 for ACC and £300 on springs (you'd spend) and you have £1,000 to the coliover fund

[maisbitt]

What setting do you leave ACC in on your Scirocco? If it is permanently in Sport then this is a fair comment, as it'll be set to the hardest setting (or limited range of auto adjustment at the top end of firmness?).

If you've left yours in "normal" then you've had the ACC full benefit, with full adjustment happening in the background.

I've driven a MK6 Golf on 18" wheels without ACC, and the difference between my Scirocco GT and that car is massive in terms of composure and ride comfort. Before experiencing ACC, I wouldn'r have bought it, but I would definitely pay for it now if it wasn't standard.

The Scirocco with 18" wheels and ACC is infinitely better than my crashy ride MK5 Golf GT Sport on 17" wheels.

We're pretty lucky in the UK at the moment - VW prices are amongst the lowest in Europe and our spec is the highest standard in GT form. A lot of Europe doesn't get the RCD510 as standard, don't get ACC, don't get 18" wheels, dont get multifunction steering wheel, and pay more than us for the privilege.

If VW take ACC off UK spec, they won't drop the price by the corresponding option amount, you'll be lucky to see £400 off. Standard equipment on a higher trim is always much cheaper than speccing up a lower trim.

We pay less than the Germans for VWs right now - 5 years ago, they got theirs 20% cheaper than us.

If you're after a bone-shatteringly firm ride and look to throw the car around corners then maybe ACC shouldn't be on - maybe it wont be for the "R".

[pat15312]

i couldn't disagree more! i think that ACC is excellent!
i had some people in the back of the roc the other day and we were on a bumpy road. i changed it from COMFORT to SPORT and they almost immediatly they asked me to change it back or they'd be sick! lol. Even as the diver, i think the difference is certainly noticeable.
Also, its not only the suspension setup that changes but the steering heaviness. i don't think i could manage the steering wheel weight of SPORT mode in everyday town driving. likewise COMFORT setting is a bit light for enthusiastic driving. NORMAL is a bit rubbish as its neither one nor the other and i can't think why anybody would ever use it. Who wants to be NORMAL?!?
If ACC was an option, i think a lot of people would ask for it which, like you said, would add £700 to the price of the car! maybe we already paid that in ther base price of the car but in certainly wouldn't want to have had to pay another £700 for my roc.
i was genuinly looking at a coilover setup from K&W but i love the flexibility that ACC gives to the driving experience.
the only gripe i have is that the button is so far away! also, if you in 3rd its well hard to see which mode your in!

[maisbitt]

Normal is the mode with all the adjustment, it is proactive in maintaining a "normal" balance between comfort and poise. Normal is so good at it's job, it is taken for granted and no-one even knows it is doing its stuff in the background.

Comfort and Sport are just the 2 extremes of the adjustment range available to ACC in normal mode. I suspect that normal doesn't go too close to either extreme.

[Kev]

I leave mine in normal 99% of the time.

I must admit I went to Wales and back at the weekend and completely forgot to switch it to comfort for the motorway but it's perfectly pliant in normal mode anyway.

When I go to my parents there's a cracking road I drive for an hour that I tend to do in sport but I dunno if I'm the kind of driver that would really notice the difference. I drive keenly enough but not to the limits of the car. I'm not sure if you notice a difference like that.

[wigit]

your're all wrong

i'd just i'd like the choice, first couple of months i thought it was the dogs daggling bits as the damping changing is great, but i'm just for me not a fan of the steering weighting changes, sport is on par with the weighting on a GTI, the others just feel a little woolly

firm doesn't mean poor ride quality, the two coilover equipped cars i've been in the last two weeks whislt firmer the damping set up was absolutley spot on and better than the scirocco on the same roads

don't think i''ve taken mine out of 'sport' for about a month now

[DjIceT]

What setting do you leave ACC in on your Scirocco? If it is permanently in Sport then this is a fair comment, as it'll be set to the hardest setting (or limited range of auto adjustment at the top end of firmness?).

If you've left yours in "normal" then you've had the ACC full benefit, with full adjustment happening in the background.

I've driven a MK6 Golf on 18" wheels without ACC, and the difference between my Scirocco GT and that car is massive in terms of composure and ride comfort. Before experiencing ACC, I wouldn'r have bought it, but I would definitely pay for it now if it wasn't standard.

The Scirocco with 18" wheels and ACC is infinitely better than my crashy ride MK5 Golf GT Sport on 17" wheels.

We're pretty lucky in the UK at the moment - VW prices are amongst the lowest in Europe and our spec is the highest standard in GT form. A lot of Europe doesn't get the RCD510 as standard, don't get ACC, don't get 18" wheels, dont get multifunction steering wheel, and pay more than us for the privilege.

If VW take ACC off UK spec, they won't drop the price by the corresponding option amount, you'll be lucky to see £400 off. Standard equipment on a higher trim is always much cheaper than speccing up a lower trim.

We pay less than the Germans for VWs right now - 5 years ago, they got theirs 20% cheaper than us.

If you're after a bone-shatteringly firm ride and look to throw the car around corners then maybe ACC shouldn't be on - maybe it wont be for the "R".

I would love to have ACC as standard. In Norway we don't get anything as standard except dual climate.
We don't get:
18 " alloys, not even 17"
RCD 510, we get RCD 310
MFSW
And as mentioned above ACC.

And the 2,0 TSI STARTS at £ 41,000!!!!!! If you add dsg and the other things that you brits get as standard, you'll be paying close to £ 50,000!!!!

So stop complaining and count your selves lucky that you have that much as standard at those prices!!!!

[albertz33]

your're all wrong

i'd just i'd like the choice, first couple of months i thought it was the dogs daggling bits as the damping changing is great, but i'm just for me not a fan of the steering weighting changes, sport is on par with the weighting on a GTI, the others just feel a little woolly

firm doesn't mean poor ride quality, the two coilover equipped cars i've been in the last two weeks whislt firmer the damping set up was absolutley spot on and better than the scirocco on the same roads

don't think i''ve taken mine out of 'sport' for about a month now

Ditto,

used to leave it in 'normal' but since comming down to Essex for work ( been here 5 weeks now ) have had it in 'sport' great on the backroads between Waltham Abbey and Hoddesdon, wont be taking it out of sport from now on!

[sashpe]

Before I ordered my Rocco I did a test drive in the UK with the ACC on and in my home country without the ACC. I know it is hard to tell the difference due to the different conditions but I have to say the UK spec had a better ride quality in comfort stetting despite the terrible central London, pot-holed, crap streets and the 18' wheels. What seemed to perfect asphalt back home (and 17' wheels) felt terrible without the ACC. I haven't got much everyday exp with the car but these two test-drives were enough to convince me - imho, thumbs up for ACC!

[maisbitt]

For those with ACC that almost always leave it in "sport", what are you complaining about - that's what it would be like without ACC anyway. If you think VW would make this car without a £700 value option and charge £700 less then you're mistaken.

ACC is essential for me. For everyone else in the UK that doesn't want it, I envy the great, unblemished roads that you must have where you live.

Back in the real UK when the roads are smooth, there are speedhumps everywhere, and otherwise it's like the surface of the moon. It is good to be able to set to comfort going over the speedbumps and particularly bad stretches of road, normal setting for when it's a mixture of moderately good and bad, then Sport for the good stuff. I'd hate to be in sport mode all of the time.

[Andy-GTI]

What needs to be done is speed up the progress of ACC compatible aftermarket suspension.

When someone releases ACC compatible shortened dampers or coilovers for the new cars it will be a step forward.