Not as smooth as she used to be

C

CHICO2003

:
MSP & MS3
Earlier today I went to my local dealership for some routine maintenance. I've got an '07 MS3 with about $4k worth of mods... so it's not goin anywhere. But I figured I'd check out the '10 model anyway.

I don't want this to turn into a review of the new model... but overall, I was pretty impressed. In some ways it's an improvement over my car... but not even close to enough to make me consider getting one. Thing that struck me the most while test driving it was just how smooth the engine ran. I remember my car running that smooth before I got bit by the mod bug so I'm wondering if it's just a coincidence. After all, a car with 40k miles on it can't possibly run as smoothly as a car with 10... but the difference was night/day. Like comparing a silky smooth honda engine to a mack truck's diesel.

So my question to some of you experts out there is this. Could any of these mods have affected the 'smoothness' of the engine? If at all possible, I'd like to get some of that back. My car felt like a freakin AC Cobra after I got back in it. Hmm... 2nd thought! maybe I should leave it the way it is. Seriously though...

Injen CAI, SU testpipe, medieval turbo pipe, SU TMIC, Denso K2 plugs, Cobb AP (stage 2 TMIC), BOV Might be forgetting something but that should do it. Thanks
 
Knew I forgot something! Yeah, I've got a SU rear mount. I guess that can be a factor... sort of hard to tell if it's the mount or engine that's causing the rough feeling.
 
I think you hit the nail on the head. The more I think about it... the more that makes sense. I've babied the hell out of this car so the idea that something major could be wrong is hard to believe. Guess that's the price you pay... Damn that 2010 was smooth though.
 
I have no idea how people install rear mounts and say 'oh there are no noticable vibrations.' Give me a break, I had mine installed for two days before I pulled that b**** back off. The car squeaks and rattles enough as it is! Saskatchewan is right, the mount is certainly the difference between your car and the new one.

I drove one of the new cars too and was most impressed by the clutch pedal feel. It wasn't buttery smooth and linear, but they improved it substantially over my 08. The clutch is the one thing that makes me resent my car.
 
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Mount, noise from aftermarket intake and test pipe and engine response to BOV if not in full recirc all will contribute in separate ways to NVH (noise, vibration, harshness). Also stage 2 AP tune on those mods might be a bit too aggressive for smooth, stock like engine response, IMHO.
 
I immediately noticed in my MS3 after getting the clutch replaced at the dealership how much smoother engaging it was over the original clutch. New part number perhaps?
 
^What were the circumstances leading up to your clutch replacement, joe? I don't think it's likely, but if there's any way I can get my clutch replaced, I'd like to look into it.
 
bacarl said:
I have no idea how people install rear mounts and say 'oh there are no noticable vibrations.' Give me a break, I had mine installed for two days before I pulled that b**** back off.
Click to expand...
Which mount did you get? If you didn't get inserts, you have to let the motor mount break in first. Usually it takes a good 500-600 miles.
 
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