edaniels6902

Believe me, I've tried searching using a variety of keywords and phrases, and just can't find anything that addresses my concerns. Someone may find my answer...so be it.....

2020 A5 sportback, 45tfsi, premium plus. I bought used with remainder of factory warranty about 10 months ago, currently at 59k miles. I love this car, aside from an annoying rear parcel shelf rattle occasionally. I change my my own oil/filter every 5k miles, and the dealer did the transmission fluid change when I bought it. It is current on all recommended service and has no outstanding issues.

My biggest frustration is that it is super sluggish from a stop. I drive in "Dynamic" mode, and went through the 'transmission reset' procedure a number of months ago (I suspect that issue is urban legend anyway). I don't drive it hard, and usually get 32-36mpg, even when commuting. But, sometimes I need to get up to speed quickly to merge into traffic, or pull onto a street and not get t-boned, but if I really get on it from a stop, it's very, very sluggish. It feels like turbo lag, but maybe it's also a combination of fly-by-wire and the way the transmission is programmed.

I drove a 2023 Q5 2.0 as a loaner right after I got my A5 (MMI issue took a few days to iron out) and the Q5 had zero turbo lag and was quick from a dead stop. I don't think my A5 should be such a dog when accelerating from a stop. Is there something I can do, reprogram, upgrade, change to address this?

timmah339

I know the B9(.5) S5 has this lag as well (in D mode) due to transmission quirks. Some people have had luck with a Pedal Commander: https://pedalcommander.com/products/audi-a5

Thread on throttle lag: https://www.a5oc.com/threads/throttl...ad-lag.157577/

edaniels6902

Thank you for this! Reading about the pedal commander and the throttle lag thread, there appears to be conflicting information about every available product and the cause, and that this issue seems to be the way this car is. There are pros and cons to all the stuff (pedal commander, diverter valve, ecu tune, etc...). Seems this issue is a combination of several factors, and I've yet to see someone "solve" the throttle response issue. Perhaps I'm just going to have to learn to live with it. My biggest frustration was how the Q5 felt and drove, and it's basically the same drivetrain isn't it?

Daaavid

I'm pretty certain the 2023 Q5 has the MHEV, the mild hybrid, which also has the newer EA888 Gen 4 engine.

Your 2020 A5, although the "facelifted" variant, still has the EA888 Gen 3 engine, which does not have the MHEV. Don't quote me on it, but I am very certain as the Gen4/MHEV systems did not arrive until the 2021 model years.

mashani9

Your correct, the 2021 was where the mild hybrid was introduced.

As far as the OP... depending on what you mean by "get on it" and lag, my experience with the DSGs (in both VWs and Audis) is if you "get on it" as in using a Gorilla foot, you will always have a 1 second delay in the mix. The DSG has pre-selected gears. "Getting on it" with a lot of throttle from a stop if not in launch control mode, is going to always NOT select the next pre-selected gear and cause that 1 second delay vs. millisecond shifts, and some people seem to confuse this with the turbo lag, even though it's a separate thing. It doesn't matter if you are in D or S or whatever, the DSG is great at what it does, but only if the gear it has next in the queue is the correct next gear. Using more of a "1/3rd throttle, then increase to 2/3rd throttle after it shifts" before you go WOT is going to get you moving a lot faster than putting the pedal to the floor unless you are in launch mode. A pedal commander will increase the responsiveness of the pedal, but it cannot override the underlying DSG behavior.

Z06jerry

The MHEV Gen 4 EA888 has significantly less turbo lag than the previous Gen 3 EA888 . With the Gen 3 I would often put the transmission in "sport" to accelerate quickly from a stop. With Gen 4 that is no longer necessary at all. There is a big difference off the line.

Nappy8

+1 on sport mode when you need to get up and go quickly. I leave drive mode in auto and just push the gear shifter back to activate sport mode. Feels like a different car. Once I'm up to speed or cruising push shifter back one more time to get back to "D".

I came from a MK7 GTI it had way more turbo lag then the A5. As others have said I think its the transmission trying to be "smooth" not the turbo lag you are feeling.

edaniels6902

All valuable and relevant information. If I'm at a stop and just mash the gas pedal in order to get into traffic, it does take a second and starts off really slow, then once revs get to ~2k, it's a rocket ship. If I have room, I'll try to anticipate the traffic opening and creep forward before hard acceleration, which usually yields better throttle response.

I'll play around with using Sport mode if I need to pull into traffic from a stop.

Z06jerry

Also pulling the shifter into "sport" increases the engine's idle speed by ~ 200 - 300 rpm, providing more initial torque and helping the turbo produce boost sooner which reduces lag off the line.

mashani9

The Gen 4s have a completely different turbo and it does give boost sooner.