t5 / vxr ???

[domhart10]

Yeh mine before all the mods could never really hear the turbo only after the initial heavy load and would disappear more as it went up the rev range. These are very quite cars standard and you shouldnt really hear anything apprt from a slight turbo whistle.

now with further mods mine chatters like anything on and off throttle, struggle to pass cyclists quietly without a psssssst, pfffft, tssssss or band or pop.

..... Cant wait to get it back.

[LizardOfBodom]

Originally Posted by Welton

Mmmm, strange, I picked up my T5 when it had 24K miles on it and have never heard the turbo boosting at higher revs, I can only hear the warble of the engine ....

Thats exactly what we are saying, Welton turbo spool is only heard at low revs when you gently operate on acc pedal, once it starts revving its no longer heard unless you coung air intake woosh sound.
Maybe you just didnt notice, some people dont actually hear it as its faint and high pitched. Try this - start driving, put it on 3rd and keep steady 2000rpm. Then gently start accelerating but really just feather-press gas pedal, you should be able to hear whizzzz of spooling turbo before its overshadowed by engine noise. Its audible in the cabin with windows closed

[mobile]

Originally Posted by T5R92011

Mine definitely doesnt sound like Car Cleaning Guru's T5, his makes quite low frequency whining noise. Mine just sounds like normal 'low pressure' turbo boost, its not loud at all. You have to be paying attention to hear it but it is there.

Anyway with regards to OP VXR vs V50.... well some stats compared to an S40 (V50 is obviously a bit heavier):

hmmm so hits the same torque figure but a lot sooner than the vxr does yet doesn't feel like it real time. i hope my car isnt sick and its just all in my head.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by mobile

hmmm so hits the same torque figure but a lot sooner than the vxr does yet doesn't feel like it real time. i hope my car isnt sick and its just all in my head.

Not much in it really , Volvo usually put a higher final drive in their more powerful cars which dulls things a bit , see if you can notice differences in cruising rpm and mph in the upper gears especially top gear .. what rpm are they doing at 70 mph for example in top and 3rd gear ?
Its high pressure frantic turbo ,smaller engine and low pressure big capacity engine which makes it feel more relaxed , yet performance numbers are just about equal ...
Volvo's Polestar engine software takes the S40 T5 to "Traditional " T5 power levels of 260 bhp , that should do the trick :-)
Try an 850 T5 if you ever get the chance , It is a very urgent car,you could pick one up for £500 and give the vauxhall a better run for your money, ..:-)

[mobile]

yeah been in the proper t5s in my old dealer days when they first came out but thats a long gone distant memory. the v50 is doing 70 @2k rpm in 6th. i have the vxr out tonight so ill zip down the motorway and see what it does for comparison. as i said earlier its probably all in my head and the fact the v50 is alot more comfortable

[domhart10]

Yeh as Clan said these cars are better at the cruising than the start or initial hit of power.

I had my T5 standard on a 1/4 mile and it was incredibly slow leaving the line and any real power it had only came on towards the end which was useless (but again these cars are just cruisers) I would stick a map on the car, will make it a lot more responsive and a nice power increase with that as well (I feel like the car should of come out the factory with that extra mapped power as it deals with its weight a lot better)

[Clan]

Originally Posted by mobile

yeah been in the proper t5s in my old dealer days when they first came out but thats a long gone distant memory. the v50 is doing 70 @2k rpm in 6th. i have the vxr out tonight so ill zip down the motorway and see what it does for comparison. as i said earlier its probably all in my head and the fact the v50 is alot more comfortable

I would think the VXr is doing more rpm at 70 ...

[T5R92011]

Do you enjoy driving the VXR? I have a regular 1.6 16v Astra and despite it feeling quite substantial and refined, it feels very disconnected in the bends. Can't see it handling 240bhp very well.

[FunkyMelon]

Originally Posted by T5R92011

Can't see it handling 240bhp very well.

It doesn't, they're an absolute mess , 240hp was always too much for that chassis.

I remember looking into buying one a few years ago and they're a hoot for power and the engines are fairly tunable but they cant handle a bend at all. Plenty of reviews about it online.

The thing that put me off buying though was the gearbox, it's made of cheese and has some fairly expensive design flaws which in time break it. You then require a new box or a rebuild at great cost. This is more a case of 'when this happens' not 'if this happens' so I left it.

Shame as they're great looking cars in my opinion.

[mobile]

Pretty good through the corners now it's got a rear anti roll bar, totally changed the drive but torque steer is mental and before the bar spirited driving was an education 😂