[Vwdiesel] A4 handling issues

[Nate Wall]

I'll chime in here. A few days ago, I posted this on
Fred's TDI forum:

"I'm not real happy with the steering on my '04 Jetta
TDI. It is hard to describe, but it feels vague and
tends to oversteer. If I glance away from the road for
a couple of seconds, like trying to fiddle w/ the
radio, the car tends to veer or wander off the road
slightly, mostly because its hard for me to get a feel
for the direction the car is heading w/out keeping my
eyes constantly on the road. I almost had one accident
because of this! At first I equated this to the power
steering and my unfamiliarity w/ the car, but now I'm
not so sure. After five months I'm still having
trouble with it. I've never experienced this with any
other car I've driven and I am wondering if the front
end has too much positive caster. It feels that with
slight steering inputs at moderate speeds causes quite
a bit of change in direction. It also feels as if
through the steering wheel I can not get a good feel
for the direction the front wheels are going. I recall
someone else commenting something to this effect. I
consider this condition unsafe and rather anoying.
Anyone else experience this? I'm wondering if I should
take it to the dealer and have the alignment checked,
although the caster is not adjustable on these cars.

--Nate"

That's my thoughts and experience.

--Nate

--- Matt_Lisa <matt_lisa at sprynet.com> wrote:
> I've taken my Golf TDI on 8 trips to the west coast,
> and I can tell you 
> without a doubt that it handles 10x better than my
> Rabbit did.  And 
> this is back in the day when my Rabbit wasn't a
> beater!  Sorry, but I 
> really don't have the issues that you do in my Golf.
>  The only 
> complaint that I have about it is the suspension is
> a little floaty.  
> That will change when I upgrade it (after the OEM
> suspension wears out).
> 
> Matt
> http://matt_lisa.home.sprynet.com/
> 
> On Saturday, March 6, 2004, at 09:25 AM, Shawn
> Wright wrote:
> 
> > On 6 Mar 2004 at 10:58, Val Christian
> <val at swamps.roc.ny.us> wrote:
> >
> >> A year later, I was still frustrated (this really
> annoys me when
> >> roads are icy).  I talked with the alignment
> specialist.  He 
> >> essentially
> >> confirmed that my observations are common with
> all A4s.  He doesn't
> >> drive his A4 on long trips, and ops for his Lexus
> instead, for just
> >> that reason.  He says that VW went to the new
> suspension to simplify
> >> repairs and keep the cost of ownership down.  (No
> need to set camber
> >> after a strut replacement, for example.)  He says
> they went to the
> >> increased forward caster to make the car feel
> more "responsive" for
> >> young drivers interested in a sporty feel.  My
> old Rabbits were plenty
> >> responsive.  And they didn't need power steering.
> >
> > Val,
> >
> > (I changed the title since I can't stand seeing
> H*nd*s discussed 
> > here... ;-)
> >
> > Interesting comments on the A4s. My parents are on
> their second one 
> > now, this one
> > a 2002 (I think, it could be an '03) Jetta TDI
> Auto. First was a 2000 
> > Jetta TDI 5sp.
> > They have driven to and from Yuma, AZ to VI, BC
> several times per 
> > year, ~1500
> > miles, done in 3 days, sometimes 2 days. My Dad
> has always raved about 
> > how nice
> > the car is on the highway, usually he sets the
> cruise at 140 km/h, or 
> > about 85-90
> > mph.
> >
> > The previous cars were: 91 Jetta GTX, 89 Jetta
> GTX, and a handful of 
> > earlier A2
> > Jettas. Both of the Jetta GTXs have been on this
> same trip at least 
> > once, so I'll have
> > to ask him how they compare.
> >
> > I do recall him saying the 91 GTX handled better
> than the 2000 TDI 
> > when he got it,
> > even with 16" wheels on the TDI, vs 15" on the GTX
> (and 300k kms on 
> > it!). I
> > attributed this mainly to weight and suspension
> differences. The GTX 
> > handled like it
> > was on rails, and you felt every nuance of the
> road. The first time I 
> > drove the TDI, I
> > tore down a local backroad and was doing well over
> 100km/h before I 
> > noticed the
> > speed. (I would normally do 80 km/h on this road
> limit is 60.) This 
> > kind of scared me
> > - I'm used to feeling the road, not being
> insulated from it. I haven't 
> > driven the A4s
> > enough to experience the problem you mention
> though.
> >
> > I still love the A2 feel, but would like to see
> some improvement in 
> > the suspension
> > components, especially the upper strut mounts. I'm
> so tired of 
> > changing them - I
> > have another set waiting to go in at the moment.
> One day maybe I'll 
> > try the A3 style
> > mounts, which apparently can work in an A2.
> >
> > --
> > Shawn Wright
> > http://Zuiko.sls.bc.ca/swright
> > ~This message sent by Pegasus Mail, the safe
> E-Mail alternative~
> > "Friends don't let friends use Outlook"
> >
> > _______________________________________________
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> > Vwdiesel at vwfans.com
> > http://www.audifans.com/mailman/listinfo/vwdiesel
> >
> 
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