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New MK7.5 GTI owner looking for advise

Ghost GTI

Drag Racing Champion
Location
Cockpit
Car(s)
'19 GTI SE DSG
I've owned a couple of 5.0 Mustangs and I owned 2003 Corvette. Much heavier cars and not as tossable...but plenty of Torque :)
Gotcha. I will say this though, the GTI is my first fast-ish car, and I was plenty happy with it before I even put on a JB4 on it (though now with Stage 1 from EQT). It wasn't until I did the JB4 that I realize how much better the car was (even better after with Cobb/EQT). So I would suggest you try at least a JB4. I really think you will be surprised and will recant what you said 😛
 

Ridebjj

Autocross Champion
Location
lasVegas
I’m sorry... but unless you’re in a 2200 lbs car “over 300” is far from a reference of a fast car 😂😂

Stock is indeed quiet slow to me... granted I’m mid 400s in my 7.5 and I’m not satisfied yet 😂
This man is a crazy person. Crazy, I tells ya!

I've spent the last few days at around 400 and ye gods it can be a handful just at that level.
 

Keehs360

Autocross Champion
Location
Denver
Car(s)
Mk7.5
Hello All,

Not entirely sure where to post this so I figure id start here.

Just picked up a new 6MT MK7.5 GTI autobahn and so far things are meh to say the least. Don't get me wrong, its a great car, but coming from a stage 2 DSG MK6 GTI autobahn, you can see why the thrill is not exactly on point with my previous vehicle. I still do have the previous vehicle and boy is it still a joy to drive. Now that you know the back story, let me get to the point.

I have noticed a few things I am wondering if I am able to change/modify without voiding my warranty.

1. Is there a way to tighten the steering? When compared to the MK6, the MK7.5 just seems sloppy to say the least. I want more of a driver feel and less of an artificial feel when driving, especially around the bends.

2. Anyway to increase power without a JB4 or tune? Saw somewhere you can do this with an OBDeleven mod, but after extensive research chalked it up to placebo. Any other suggestions?

3. Is there a way to have the infotainment save my changes? For instance, when I turn off park assist and lane assist, they automatically turn back on when turning on the vehicle again. When I change the dashboard to display gas consumption, it will swap back to its default on start up again. This is a bit frustrating

4. I am noticing less than 300 miles to a tank of gas. is this normal? On my MK6 even with a tune I was getting in the 300 range easily.


I will note the vehicle is now at 700 miles, not sure if it maybe still needs to fully break in before things will start to get better?

Thanks,
1) get tires. The stock ones are shit in the dry. Shit in the wet. And shit in light snow.

2) for power you’ll want a jb4 since you’re so conscious about the warranty. Though a smarter dealership can detect previous use of a piggy back by looking at fault history that’s stored and inspecting the sensor clips.

3) no. Maybe some coding can help.

4) depends. If all you do is city driving then that’s about as good as it gets. Give or take 10%. The gli used to see about 95% highway miles and it would get closer to 420-440 miles a tank according to the lie o meter.
 

jimlloyd40

Autocross Champion
Location
Phoenix
Car(s)
2018 SE DSG
This man is a crazy person. Crazy, I tells ya!

I've spent the last few days at around 400 and ye gods it can be a handful just at that level.
You'll get used to it and soon will want to become a crazy person also. 😂
 

gdub09

Ready to race!
Location
Omaha, NE
4. I am noticing less than 300 miles to a tank of gas. is this normal? On my MK6 even with a tune I was getting in the 300 range easily.
I noticed this with my MK7 coming from a stage 2 MK6 as well. I believe the fuel tank is a gallon smaller in the MK7 but you can still get 300+, just tough with city driving. I took mine on a 600mi road trip and range went from sub 300 to 450, ideally maxing to 400.
 

VDubberinDE

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Delaware
Car(s)
2018 VW Golf R
Hello All,

Not entirely sure where to post this so I figure id start here.

Just picked up a new 6MT MK7.5 GTI autobahn and so far things are meh to say the least. Don't get me wrong, its a great car, but coming from a stage 2 DSG MK6 GTI autobahn, you can see why the thrill is not exactly on point with my previous vehicle. I still do have the previous vehicle and boy is it still a joy to drive. Now that you know the back story, let me get to the point.

I have noticed a few things I am wondering if I am able to change/modify without voiding my warranty.

1. Is there a way to tighten the steering? When compared to the MK6, the MK7.5 just seems sloppy to say the least. I want more of a driver feel and less of an artificial feel when driving, especially around the bends.

2. Anyway to increase power without a JB4 or tune? Saw somewhere you can do this with an OBDeleven mod, but after extensive research chalked it up to placebo. Any other suggestions?

3. Is there a way to have the infotainment save my changes? For instance, when I turn off park assist and lane assist, they automatically turn back on when turning on the vehicle again. When I change the dashboard to display gas consumption, it will swap back to its default on start up again. This is a bit frustrating

4. I am noticing less than 300 miles to a tank of gas. is this normal? On my MK6 even with a tune I was getting in the 300 range easily.


I will note the vehicle is now at 700 miles, not sure if it maybe still needs to fully break in before things will start to get better?

Thanks,
You came from a stage 2 and trying to compare to a stock GTI? Why don't you just add stage 2 to to your new one?
 

gtiGreateness

Ready to race!
Location
Minnesota
You came from a stage 2 and trying to compare to a stock GTI? Why don't you just add stage 2 to to your new one?
I have a 10yr/150k mile warranty which I am trying to preserve, although I am almost certain I will not last nearly that long running it stock. Been burned trying to claim warranty on the MK6 GTI due to the dealer claiming it was the tune that caused the issue.
 

Dog Dad Wagon

Autocross Champion
Location
Go Birds
Car(s)
16 Touareg TDI
Idk why your car doesn’t save settings, I too keep lane tracking and the other ones you named off, and they stay off.

APR Plus retains warranty and gives you 280/320HP/TQ. If you’re DSG, the TCU tune is strongly recommended to pair with ECU tune.
 

SnailpowerMk7

Go Kart Champion
Location
NJ
Car(s)
MK7 GTI SE 6SPD MT
Ok, just because I am satisfied with the power the GTI has out of the box does not mean I have not driven high performance cars. I am 53 years old and have owned a ton of cars including a few over 300 HP. I just don't need to be flying around with the seat of my pants on fire to be satisfied with my cars performance. I don't track my GTI, so really no point.

Yeah I mean going faster isn't for everyone. Totally get it.

Thank you all for your responses,

@SnailpowerMk7 Ive read that transmission adapters can cause issues with the synchros, have you noticed any issues?

Just got the OBDeleven in the mail, however, been reading a lot of the tweaks Grimm the mk7 do not work on the 7.5 :(

I mean I've only had it for a week now so I have no clue how it goes long term but as of now, there is zero difference in shifting performance negatively.
 

VDubberinDE

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Delaware
Car(s)
2018 VW Golf R
Idk why your car doesn’t save settings, I too keep lane tracking and the other ones you named off, and they stay off.

APR Plus retains warranty and gives you 280/320HP/TQ. If you’re DSG, the TCU tune is strongly recommended to pair with ECU tune.
What he said! Go for the APR Tune with warranty and you are safe. My dealer is a VW tune shop, so they deal with any warranty issues when you get tune done there. Try to find a VW dealer like that.
 

Escape Hatch

Autocross Champion
Location
USA
Car(s)
Mk7 GTI
This man is a crazy person. Crazy, I tells ya!

I've spent the last few days at around 400 and ye gods it can be a handful just at that level.

You become acclimated. I feel I could run another 100 to the wheels at this point but am pretty satisfied where I am now. Reliable, fun, good mileage, couldn't ask for much more.
 

2slowvw

Moderator
Location
VA
Car(s)
2022 Tesla Model 3
Good luck coming from a stage 2 car and expecting the same results from a stock GTI. You might as well hold off moding for a few thousand miles then go all in because there is no way you are not going to tune your car for 10 years :)
 

shovelhd

Autocross Champion
Location
Western MA
These cars take a long time to break in. Mine is at 59K and it's pretty easy to get 375-400 miles out of a tank if you're not in it often.
 
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