Initial musings

[Flumper]

So I had a B7 for 6 years - bought it new in 2007: saloon, SS+ suspension and no mods.

Bloody loved that car and did 50k of hassle free miles after DRS was replaced early on.

Picked up my (Spider-Man) B8 about a month ago and am currently on a UK holiday in the SW of the UK and able to drive it properly for the first time. So initial thoughts:

On the cruise down here in comfort mode it ate up the miles at a good pace with good economy with a level if refinement well beyond the B7. As a practical family motor it beats the B7 all hands up with the adjustable suspension and long 7th gear. So far so good.

Once decamped at the accommodation I have had a chance to play a little. First up - all this moaning about about dynamic being too harsh. Utter ball bags. After the B7 I would say that they are comparable when you stick the B8 into dynamic and I lived quite happily with the B7 for 6 years.

Gearbox - lovely. First automatic I've ever owned and was a little nervous about it. But after an extended ru. I love it - am still learning the use of the paddles but it's marvellous so far.

Sound - glorious in dynamic when you kick down and have a guilty pleasure in the throttle blips which are completely unnecessary....

Handling - does seem to be better balanced than the B7 and not as nose heavy into corners. Had the winks in the back so haven't really pushed it yet.

So initial impressions are good - seems a better all rounder as a day to day car and still has the ability to move very quickly in a very assured manner when you want it to. But.....

I still miss a certain raw quality that my B7 had. It felt rougher and more urgent than the B8 and I quite liked the urgency about the B7. Don't get me wrong: I am delighted with the B8 and it makes me grin like a pilled up clubber in the 90s, but maybe I am looking for faults where there aren't any.

[Brooner]

- all this moaning about about dynamic being too harsh. Utter ball bags

Totaly agree there

[RSQ]

I went from an S6 (the v10 one) which I found a "quite" hard ride, to our Discovery, which obviously is like riding on a waterbed...

Now I have an RS4 coming, it replaces a Golf GTI which has a moderate ride.

When I took the demonstrator out which had 19 inch wheels the dynamic ride was really bad, this was on a country road in Suffolk, the car just bounced so much it was hard to handle. On a track or a new smooth road it would probably be amazing.

Despite that, the salesman tells me that everyone he knows who comes from a B7 RS4 tells him in Dynamic it is too soft...

I have ordered mine with 20 inch wheels so do worry I will find it hard even in Comfort, every journalist who drives it rants about a hard ride which makes me twitchy.

But then you two guys come along and say it is actually fine which makes me feel much better about what I ordered - thanks!

[Graeme4130]

I went from an S6 (the v10 one) which I found a "quite" hard ride, to our Discovery, which obviously is like riding on a waterbed...

Now I have an RS4 coming, it replaces a Golf GTI which has a moderate ride.

When I took the demonstrator out which had 19 inch wheels the dynamic ride was really bad, this was on a country road in Suffolk, the car just bounced so much it was hard to handle. On a track or a new smooth road it would probably be amazing.

Despite that, the salesman tells me that everyone he knows who comes from a B7 RS4 tells him in Dynamic it is too soft...

I have ordered mine with 20 inch wheels so do worry I will find it hard even in Comfort, every journalist who drives it rants about a hard ride which makes me twitchy.

But then you two guys come along and say it is actually fine which makes me feel much better about what I ordered - thanks!

Personally, I find the dynamic setting on the suension to be too hard for even fast driving on smooth roads.
However, the comfort setting is not far off the compliency and control of the suspension on my last B7, which for me, makes it about ideal
Mine's on 20" VSpokes though and I'm yet to try one on 19's

[535dboy]

I too find the ride too harsh in dynamic.

Not a lot different to my track focused lotus tbh

[Flumper]

You sir, have the arse of a 20 year old nun who joined a convent which specialises in soft cushion manufacture. Man up and appreciate the " feel" of the road....

(Joking aside, I asked Mrs Flumper her opinion today and she thinks it ranks along side the B7. In the absence of definitive scientific tests I reckon this subject is set to define the B8)

[Graeme4130]

You sir, have the arse of a 20 year old nun who joined a convent which specialises in soft cushion manufacture. Man up and appreciate the " feel" of the road....

(Joking aside, I asked Mrs Flumper her opinion today and she thinks it ranks along side the B7. In the absence of definitive scientific tests I reckon this subject is set to define the B8)

If mrs flumpers arse is in agreement, then who are we to argue )

Seriously though, I'm yet to take it on a track, so I'll see if dynamic suits it better then

It's entirely possible that mine and 535dboy's driving style is just different to yours and you're actually ok with occasionally hitting your head into the roof lining or loosing a filling when running over a white line

[Flumper]

You sir, have the arse of a 20 year old nun who joined a convent which specialises in soft cushion manufacture. Man up and appreciate the " feel" of the road....

(Joking aside, I asked Mrs Flumper her opinion today and she thinks it ranks along side the B7. In the absence of definitive scientific tests I reckon this subject is set to define the B8)

If mrs flumpers arse is in agreement, then who are we to argue )

Seriously though, I'm yet to take it on a track, so I'll see if dynamic suits it better then

It's entirely possible that mine and 535dboy's driving style is just different to yours and you're actually ok with occasionally hitting your head into the roof lining or loosing a filling when running over a white line

I'm a strapping 5' 8" and have always used Colgate!

[Flumper]

Oh my f**king Christ. Today I hit 1200 miles and have decided to allow myself to push towards 8k revs and floored pedal.

Clear stretch of road and a pedestrian old fart in front of me so I decided to push it fully for the first time. Dropped a gear on the paddle and floored the pedal to over take......

Make the jump to light speed Chewie.

Wow. The acceleration. The smooth and rapid gear change. The noise. Marvellous. Laughing like a loon for the next few miles.

Mrs Flumpers' arse was firmly planted in the passenger seat and enjoying it as well.

The B8 - She's a grower.

[Graeme4130]

Blimey, you managed to wait this long to floor it
Dealer told me to probably avoid track days in first 500 miles, but that it was run in on a bench, so not to wait
I hit 8300rpm about 10mins from the dealership once it was warmed up