Golf suspension question

2010Jetta TDI

Active member
Joined
Jan 11, 2014
Location
Missouri
TDI
Jetta
I drive a 2010 Jetta TDI and my wife has a a 2012. The is a noticeable difference in the handling. I'm looking to sell back my 2010 Jetta and get a Golf but I don't want the crappy rear suspension her 2012 has. What year did the Golf and GSW go to the new style rear suspension that the Jetta received in 2011?
 

turbobrick240

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 18, 2014
Location
maine
TDI
2011 vw golf tdi(gone to greener pastures), 2001 ford f250 powerstroke
All mk6 golfs/jsw -'14 have independent rear suspension. The mk7 '15 golf/gsw tdi's have torsion beam, while the mk7 golf/gsw gas models have IRS. I think the torsion beam on the mk7's is much better than the beam on the ncs jettas though. Drive one and see what you think.
 

ksing44

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 13, 2010
Location
Southeast PA
TDI
2010 Golf TDI
I was confused when I saw the original post this morning. The 2010 Jetta and the MKVI Golf have essentially the same suspensions. One difference, on my 2010 Golf TDI, is that I supposedly have a "Sport" suspension. It's clearly a bit lower and firmer than a gasser Golf from the same year. I also bought a 2010 Jetta gasser for my son. It's pretty good, but not as nimble as my car. Part of the difference in my son's gasser is the 16" wheels vs the 17" wheels on my car, but my son's car also has a slightly higher ride height and it seems to be sprung and damped a bit softer than my car. I'm not sure what's on the 2010 Jetta TDI, if it's like my 2010 Golf TDI or like my son's 2010 Jetta gasser.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
I drive a 2010 Jetta TDI and my wife has a a 2012. The is a noticeable difference in the handling. I'm looking to sell back my 2010 Jetta and get a Golf but I don't want the crappy rear suspension her 2012 has. What year did the Golf and GSW go to the new style rear suspension that the Jetta received in 2011?
The short answer is they didn't. But don't attribute your impressions of handling feel to the rear suspension on the 2011-13 Jetta Sedan. That car was made to a different set of specifications than the 2010 sedan. They wanted to attract buyers who were cross shopping Toyotas and Hondas. So the car is softer, less responsive. Does the rear suspension make a difference? Sure, but not that big a difference.

In 2015 the Golf and Golf Sportwagen got a trailing arm rear suspension similar to the MKIV and earlier cars, because of the need to find space for the Urea tank in the TDIs. All the other Golfs and GSWs in the US have IRS. The 2011-2013 Jetta Sedan had a Torsion beam rear suspension, quite different from the trailing arm suspension in the 2015s. And in 2014 the Jetta Sedan got IRS (GLI always had it). The 2015 sedan also has IRS.

I've owned a 2006 Jetta, 2012 Golf (IRS), and now a 2015 GSW (trailing arm rear suspension). And my daughter had a 2013 Jetta 2.slow for a while with the Torsion beam rear, which I used to drive a fair amount. I've also had a bunch of earlier TDIs (still have 3) with trailing arm rear suspension. I've driven them hundreds of thousands of miles, and many miles on race tracks. With the right dampers the trailing arm rear suspension works very well. And it has the added benefits of being simple and durable.

Drive a new Golf or GSW and see what you think. I suspect you'll be pleasantly surprised.
 

turbobrick240

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 18, 2014
Location
maine
TDI
2011 vw golf tdi(gone to greener pastures), 2001 ford f250 powerstroke
I'm fairly sure '11-'13 ncs jettas have both trailing arms and a torsion beam as components of the rear suspension. Same goes for the mk7 golf/gsw tdi's. It's just of better quality/engineering on the mk7's.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
I'm not sure how to get the image from PartsLink here, but it looks like the later (and earlier cars) but backwards. Instead of the axle attached to the body with the arms going to the wheels there are arms that are attached to the body and the a straight axle between the wheels. Certainly doesn't behave the same: not "semi-independent" as the trailing arm suspension is usually called.
 

turbobrick240

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 18, 2014
Location
maine
TDI
2011 vw golf tdi(gone to greener pastures), 2001 ford f250 powerstroke
It's not all that bad, but I think it's a stretch to say that the mk7 golf tdi's we get aren't torsion beam rear suspension. There are pros as well as cons. It's cheaper, lighter, and better suited to pulling farm implements(haha). Most people wouldn't notice the difference- though I think a high percentage of golf tdi owners are enthusiasts. I'd wager that if the euro spec mk7 golf tdi's had required DEF, that VW would have found a way to fit IRS on them.
 

2010Jetta TDI

Active member
Joined
Jan 11, 2014
Location
Missouri
TDI
Jetta
I planning to sell back my 2010 Jetta with 135,000 for a few reasons. It has a slow DSG leak at the electrical connector. I'm told I would have to replace the megatronics unit to fix it. I think the part alone is $500 and I would assume the trans would have to be pulled to replace it. Next It has an illusive check engine light that seems to be caused by a wiring problem because I replaced the exhaust pressure sensor with a known good one from the 2012 and it will not fix it. I had planned you do a stage 2 tune on the 2010 and had already bought a complete turbo back exhaust when the emissions scandal broke. I like the look of the Golf and was thinking of getting one instead of another Jetta. I was just trying to decide on a 2014 or 2015 Golf and was going to base my decision on which rear suspension is better. Is there any other big differences between the two years?
 

turbobrick240

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 18, 2014
Location
maine
TDI
2011 vw golf tdi(gone to greener pastures), 2001 ford f250 powerstroke
Yes, there are huge differences between the '14 and '15 golfs. Completely different chassis platform, completely different engines, virtually no parts interchange between the two besides wheels. I would drive both before deciding one is better than another.
 
Top