# Mag ride problem.......Audi seem not to be able to fix it.



## whipitup (Feb 13, 2017)

Firstly I hope this is the right section......

I've had my TTS for all of 2 months, and up until last week used only for commuting, last week I had the opportunity to finally try out the suspension in sport mode (mag ride).

So.....no change, no difference, nothing happened!
The switch lit up, a message appeared on the dashboard, but no change in the ride at all!.......I then googled the issue, and apparently the difference between normal and sport mode is like night and day.

So, it seems it's not working, so took the car to Audi Manchester for a tech to look at, he agreed with me, and the car was booked in for a diagnostic - today.

Audi have had the car all day, when I called this evening I was told it was fixed........after another phone call it actually seems they cant find anything wrong with it.

So, questions:

Should I be able to tell if the sport mode is actually on/working?
Should Audi be able to (through diagnostics) work out what the problem is?
Is this a common problem?

Sorry for all the daft questions, but this is my first Audi, and first car with sport or mag ride.

TIA....roger

PS, they have the car all day tomorrow as I cant pick it up till after work, so I am told they will have another look at it.


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## hooting_owl (Sep 3, 2008)

Audi dealers are only interested in taking money out of your pocket. Warranty work doesn't pay well and they will defer, ignore and generally do everything possible to avoid wasting workshop hours on warranty items.
They would have done a fault code scan and that is about the limits of their fault finding abilities.

Tell them that you will take it to an independent specialist for a second opinion and that you will send them a bill if they find something wrong.


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## whipitup (Feb 13, 2017)

hooting_owl said:


> Audi dealers are only interested in taking money out of your pocket. Warranty work doesn't pay well and they will defer, ignore and generally do everything possible to avoid wasting workshop hours on warranty items.
> They would have done a fault code scan and that is about the limits of their fault finding abilities.
> 
> Tell them that you will take it to an independent specialist for a second opinion and that you will send them a bill if they find something wrong.


Thanks for that, but should I be able to tell if it is working by the change in the ride?


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## JohnnyFarmer (Aug 19, 2016)

Hi Roger - Welcome. Now you have me concerned too - but to ad my experience, I have A 2007 V6 Roadster with mag ride. Living in Wiltshire the roads are a moonscape of pot holes & tramlines - on normal mode the suspension is stiff and I feel every small bump - sport mode tightens it some more in a way I will not use unless on smooth tarmac - I don't find it night/day but it does inspire more confidence & a flatter ride round some of the tight bends where the surface is good. 
Let's hope that's was it's supposed to feel like - otherwise I'll be in that queue for the independent suggested above.
Enjoy the TTS
Jonathan


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## whipitup (Feb 13, 2017)

Cheers for the reply Johnathan, I figured you should be able to tell if it was in sport mode, with mine you cant.

There is something wrong with it, I just need Audi to find the issue and fix it!


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## pazaz29 (Oct 10, 2016)

I read that mag ride lowered the car by 10mm. I don't know if they mean it's always 10mm lower than standard or 10mm lower when mag ride is turned on. Either way when mines on you feel less roll when going around corners as it's tighter and you can feel every bump in the road a lot more than with it off.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## FNChaos (Nov 30, 2016)

I can definitely tell when mag-ride is engaged. Bumps in the road become jarring.
Additionally, with mag-ride off I occasionally get a bit of wheel rub on my rear tires going over a dip (10mm spacers + 19x9 ET52). With mag-ride on there is no rub due to reduced bounce.



pazaz29 said:


> I read that mag ride lowered the car by 10mm. I don't know if they mean it's always 10mm lower than standard or 10mm lower when mag ride is turned on. Either way when mines on you feel less roll when going around corners as it's tighter and you can feel every bump in the road a lot more than with it off.


Mag-ride doesn't lower the car. A TTS is 10mm lower that a TT. Mag-ride changes the dampening characteristics of your shock absorbers.


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## Gray79 (Feb 10, 2017)

I wouldn't say it's like night and day, but there is a noticeable difference when I press the button on mine. You probably wouldn't notice imidiately on a smooth road, but you certainly would on a rough one.


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## ScoTTS... (Apr 16, 2016)

pazaz29 said:


> Either way when mines on you feel less roll when going around corners as it's tighter....


Hi whipitup, completely agree with pazaz29 statement about taking corners, feels a lot more like being on rails. I also tend to find the bumps in the road are more noticeable with magride switched on.

Scott


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## Danny1 (Sep 2, 2010)

Best thing you can do with Mag ride is to get rid of it imo.  Not worth using it at all on our roads, better off getting some nice coilovers.


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## Gray79 (Feb 10, 2017)

Danny1 said:


> Best thing you can do with Mag ride is to get rid of it imo.  Not worth using it at all on our roads, better off getting some nice coilovers.


I've only ever had one car with coilovers (although driven plenty of others) and I'll never have another, more suited to track use than for the road.


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## BMTTS (Jan 29, 2016)

If you found yourself an uneven side or back road you will tell the difference for sure. Its isn't exactly Jag to GTR but it feels a lot harder to the point of discomfort where as standard mode is pretty good for a sports car.
I might be taking out my ar*s now, I thought the mag suspension was active at all times & the switch just firmed it up a bit before the active part firmed it up automatically around corners etc? If so I guess your handling could be compromised?


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## Danny1 (Sep 2, 2010)

Gray79 said:


> Danny1 said:
> 
> 
> > Best thing you can do with Mag ride is to get rid of it imo.  Not worth using it at all on our roads, better off getting some nice coilovers.
> ...


Not at all, they are just bad coilovers. Mine are easily as comfortable as standard ride.


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## Jesney (Sep 25, 2016)

When I turn mine on in the TTS it goes from fairly smooth and comfortable to feeling the large majority of imperfections in the road and the difference is noticeable immediately. 
When I bought the car it had the rear shocks replaced as they "no longer functioned correctly" but not sure if it was the mag ride not functioning or whether it was the shocks had failed.


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## pazaz29 (Oct 10, 2016)

States here that the magnetic fields are adjusted all of the time even if not in sport mode which is what the mag ride button activates.

https://www.audi.co.uk/glossary/a/audi- ... -ride.html

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## sukrw (Jan 10, 2017)

When I had my TTS with mag ride I wasn't impressed when I pressed the button. If I really tried hard I could sort of tell it was a bit firmer but only cos I pressed the button. I always thought it was more a mind trick that I could feel the difference. I think if some else had put it in either standard or sport mode without me being in the car and no visible indication I would not have been able to tell which mode it was in. It had the 19 Inch wheels so they would make the ride firm too.

Don't get me wrong, it was very firm regardless of the mode and handled like a dream but my current TT SLine with 19 inch wheels feels just as good and that has no mag ride.

Don't flame me, just how I felt it and my views. I was disappointed with mag ride and don't miss it.


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## Dash (Oct 5, 2008)

I very rarely switch to sport mode (mag ride is always on, just the firmness is adjusted). I find it waaay too firm for me, it's fine on a smooth A road, but roads round here are rarely smooth. It gets very tiring very quick.


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## Philx4 (Jul 12, 2015)

There must be a lot of smooth roads around the UK, or a lot of city driving as although the switch between Sport Suspension on and off isn't "night and day" it IS very noticeable and not just in corners. Once activated, the ride should feel firm regardless of 19's or whatever diameter of rim, and the slight 'floaty' feel you get with standard, is eliminated. I keep mine on 99% of the time. When the central ECD unit fails to get the right signal from one of the 2 vehicle level senders, or adjustment valves on the shocks, an error will flag. The system is off and dash warning symbol (shock absorber) stays on. This can also effect the ESP.


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## booree (Aug 22, 2011)

I use S mode a lot.

In my experience ( TTS 2012 19" ) the suspension is then rather firm and the car feels shaky on the 2 grade roads. 
Also the steering wheel feels very tight (turns aren't as smooth as normal)
Plus the sound of my exhaust gets a bit louder ...

... and what is my favourite feature ...
the acceleration characteristic gets pumped up ( almost linear ) so the gas pedal makes the car and the engine much more responsive. Even a slight tap on the pedal gets a straight response. Would love to have the later also as a separate button.


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