DCC - Broken?

I bought my Beach with DCC. Previous owner raved about it. The van sits on 17" Goodyear 4Season SUV.

What does it do?

Have had Audis with Drive Select and there is clearly a difference between 'comfort' and 'sport' but as far as I can tell DCC in the Beach does absolutely nothing.

The car is unbelievably uncomfortable over bad road surfaces (why are the UK roads so dreadful?). The ride is exactly the same whether DCC is on C, off or S.

I can feel no appreciable difference in the steering either.

Any suggestions, other than DCC is a waste of money? As per above, the car came with. It was not my choice.

Seems to answer your question. I don’t have it on the Cali but it is on my Tiguan where it makes a noticeable difference.

Consensus above is on a Cali it does not.

@dspuk I have seen comments like "Comfort setting most of the time, makes a noticeable difference to smoothing out rumble noise and that roughness you feel from poor road surfaces," but this is not what I am finding at all. It's like it's in 'S' all the time judging by how bad the ride is.

This made me question my own experience of DCC. After all, whether it works or not is about feeling, not seeing, so do I just have confirmation bias and want to believe that VW have an OEM solution to the wallowing etc that is a real complaint, that people spend thousands to improve the suspension?
Luckily I can leave my own certainty that DCC is money well spent, and rely on my passengers testimony, so much so, my Mrs bothers to use it.
Shortly after I bought the Cali, when I was still obsessed and wanted to understand the how all the features would work for us, I had the dog on the front seat and my Mrs and 12 year old jumped in the back. I set the ACC to 20mph down a long road with nice new smoothly graded speed humps on it in Hackney. I had assumed we should use Comfort setting in town, but that rebounded and was uncomfortable for rear passengers who bounced more off the bench seat. Normal was better, but Sport was best. If I’m pressing on down a B-road, Sport is also the choice - feels more precise and pointed, more planted round the bends.
On the motorway, Comfort is the way to go, wafting along and reducing crashing over imperfections.
The steering does weight up too, not significantly, none of this turns a 3 tonne van into a Lotus, but enough for me to use the Individual(?) setting to have both Comfort suspension and Sport steering.
So I’d say if this sort of thing might improve your journeys, or you’re just interested in ensuring everything works, try the 20mph test and setting up Individual as above. If you can’t perceive anything, I’d be down to VW to ensure it isn’t faulty.
(Is the button lighting up orange when set to anything other than Normal?)
Be interested to hear how you get on.

scimmiamagia! said:

I bought my Beach with DCC. Previous owner raved about it. The van sits on 17" Goodyear 4Season SUV.

What does it do?

Have had Audis with Drive Select and there is clearly a difference between 'comfort' and 'sport' but as far as I can tell DCC in the Beach does absolutely nothing.

The car is unbelievably uncomfortable over bad road surfaces (why are the UK roads so dreadful?). The ride is exactly the same whether DCC is on C, off or S.

I can feel no appreciable difference in the steering either.

Any suggestions, other than DCC is a waste of money? As per above, the car came with. It was not my choice.

Click to expand...

Can't answer your DCC query, but what size tyres do you have 215 or 235. Both sizes run at very different pressures and can make a difference.

dspuk said:

Advice on DCC option

Hi everyone. Having followed this forum for over a year now its time to make an introduction and hopefully get some advice at the same time.. Thank you to all the members who have contributed to this forum I have found their advice very helpful and invaluable to my choice in which California...

vwcaliforniaclub.com

Seems to answer your question. I don’t have it on the Cali but it is on my Tiguan where it makes a noticeable difference.

Consensus above is on a Cali it does not.

Click to expand...

Likely worth checking the pressures then as @WelshGas says. Tyres make a massive difference as well as type and size. The steering should "tighten" slightly in S, at least it does in the Tiggy.

Thanks.

The tyres are 235 55 R17.

They are goodyear 4season SUV with DOT from 2019

They are inflated to The pressure indicated on the sticker on the door.

I’m wondering whether the SUV variant of that tyre has stiffer side walls and therefore compromising the right quality.

TBH, I would not have chosen these tyres either! I’m just contemplating getting a set of rims for summer tires and to change these for dedicated winters.

scimmiamagia! said:

Thanks.

The tyres are 235 55 R17.

They are goodyear 4season SUV with DOT from 2019

They are inflated to The pressure indicated on the sticker on the door.

I’m wondering whether the SUV variant of that tyre has stiffer side walls and therefore compromising the right quality.

TBH, I would not have chosen these tyres either! I’m just contemplating getting a set of rims for summer tires and to change these for dedicated winters.

Click to expand...

I have SUV version of Michelin tyres but in a a 60 profile.

Main difference noticed with the SUV tyre there was more positive steering and less wallowing.

the 5% more sidewall does help with potholes but as these are becoming so widespread I've noticed that even our Citroen with it's forgiving suspension is finding the roads beyond it's comfort capabilities now.

Try dropping the tyre pressure by 2 psi as that helps without any issues on mine.

ps I also have air suspension and the roads now cause that to thump/crash quite a bit.

I'd assume that a Beach being lighter than an Ocean would be more prone to rear end hopping/skipping over bumps. My Ocean does seem better loaded than empty.

scimmiamagia! said:

Thanks.

The tyres are 235 55 R17.

They are goodyear 4season SUV with DOT from 2019

They are inflated to The pressure indicated on the sticker on the door.

I’m wondering whether the SUV variant of that tyre has stiffer side walls and therefore compromising the right quality.

TBH, I would not have chosen these tyres either! I’m just contemplating getting a set of rims for summer tires and to change these for dedicated winters.

Click to expand...

I’ve run that size tyre for the last 8 yrs and 124,000 miles. Initially Goodyear All Season and now Michelin CrossClimate SUV.
Have served me well in all weathers included in Scandinavian snow storms. Good grip and comfortable ride. Oh, and standard, original suspension.

scimmiamagia! said:

I bought my Beach with DCC. Previous owner raved about it. The van sits on 17" Goodyear 4Season SUV.

What does it do?

Click to expand...

Not trying to be funny but are you 100% sure that you do really have it?

I presume you have the extra button on the dash? does the multifunction display do anything when the button is pressed?

Is this the thing that changes the oil viscosity in the dampers with electrical coils etc?
Had it on an RS3, barely noticeable in my op.

andyinluton said:

Not trying to be funny but are you 100% sure that you do really have it?

I presume you have the extra button on the dash? does the multifunction display do anything when the button is pressed?

Click to expand...

andyinluton said:

Not trying to be funny but are you 100% sure that you do really have it?

I presume you have the extra button on the dash? does the multifunction display do anything when the button is pressed?

Click to expand...

Ha! It feels that way! Perhaps someone was having a laugh and fitted a pretend switch on the dash that illuminates the C and the S from behind to complete the illusion that the van had a grand’s worth of sophisticated chassis control system…

scimmiamagia! said:

Ha! It feels that way! Perhaps someone was having a laugh and fitted a pretend switch on the dash that illuminates the C and the S from behind to complete the illusion that the van had a grand’s worth of sophisticated chassis control system…

Click to expand...

Tbh the switch does look a bit Mickey Mouse so perhaps it is a toy one?

scimmiamagia! said:

Tbh the switch does look a bit Mickey Mouse so perhaps it is a toy one?

Click to expand...

I was only asking as there was a similar discussion on here a while back & they didn't have the button but were going to the Sport / Comfort settings etc in the vehicle settings & that is where the adaptive cruise settings are not the suspension.

Have you looked underneath the van - the original shocks would have wiring to them.

scimmiamagia! said:

pretend switch on the dash that illuminates the C and the S from behind

Click to expand...

The button says Mode
When pressed it also pops up this on the infotainment

And there’s a symbol next to the temperature on the digital dash that changes

Thanks @66tim99 we have a T6 if that makes any difference? We have the C/S button on the dash like this



It is very unconvincing and as mentioned seems to do absolutely nothing.

I will check there are wires connected to the shocks as suggested. I think the shocks might have been replaced recently.

scimmiamagia! said:

Thanks @66tim99 we have a T6 if that makes any difference? We have the C/S button on the dash like this

View attachment 114983

It is very unconvincing and as mentioned seems to do absolutely nothing.

I will check there are wires connected to the shocks as suggested. I think the shocks might have been replaced recently.

Click to expand...

Ah ok, so the steering won’t weight up if it’s a T6, as it has hydraulic steering. Looks
Like you just have Comfort and Sport suspension modes? The difference between those modes on my 6.1 is noticeable and useful.

What cables should I be able to see from the shocks?

scimmiamagia! said:

What cables should I be able to see from the shocks?

Click to expand...

Normal shocks do not have any electrical cables connected .

Normal NON DCC

DCC

I don't know - but there has to be an electrical connection. every vehicle I have had with DCC or equivalent has had an extra bit on the side of the shock absorber - presumably an electronically controlled valve.

The parts book shows a connection to a shock absorber on the wiring diagram, the one below is for the left rear, connection 9 is for the shock absorber.

Also a pic of a set of upgraded suspension parts that are supposed to be plug & play compatible with factory fit DCC - might assist as to what to look for.

There's also a pic from VW showing the connections on a similar vehicle just to show how it all links up.

Update... It's the tyres. Or at least mostly the tyres. Still not sure if the DCC actually does anything but have just swapped the Goodyear for Michelin Crossclimate + and the van is transformed! A puncture forced the change. Someone 'up there' must have been watching this thread!

So, as a consequence, I have two Goodyear Vector 4Season SUV 235/55r17 103 tyres up for grabs, not that the above comment is a great advert for them!

So next stop is trying to find out if the Dcc is faulty…

Are there any simple tests that would show if dcc is doing it’s job or not?

I am beginning to wonder if the shocks are oem or not.

Do Bilstein and the like do dcc compatible kit or am I better sticking with vw?

scimmiamagia! said:

Are there any simple tests that would show if dcc is doing it’s job or not?

Click to expand...

Drive at 20mph over speed humps first on C, then on S. if you can’t perceive any firming up it is not working as it should.

scimmiamagia! said:

So next stop is trying to find out if the Dcc is faulty…

Are there any simple tests that would show if dcc is doing it’s job or not?

I am beginning to wonder if the shocks are oem or not.

Do Bilstein and the like do dcc compatible kit or am I better sticking with vw?

Click to expand...

There are a number of DCC replacements by a number of manufacturers.

Google or eBay will show you the range/manufacturers.

Any faults with the system may show up by scanning the OBD with Carista or similar.