2012 Volkswagen CC – Slightly Larger And More Dynamic Performance (Part 2)

DYNO

While HPA doesn’t really advertise the gains from its K04 turbo kit, 3ZERO3 Motorsports had built several similarly equipped TSI cars. They were confidently expecting at least 300whp, as they strapped it to the dyno one warm afternoon in June to see what the CC-R had.

Unfortunately, high summer temps inside the facility limited boost, and while the P3 gauge didn’t see more than 14.8psi, the car made an impressive 309hp and 317 lb-ft at the wheels.

Using a 15% calculation for drivetrain loss from the DSG transmission, the tuner estimated power at the crank was close to 355hp and 360 lb-ft.

What was most impressive about this K04 kit was that it relied on the stock fueling. That meant, if Peter could behave himself and stay out of the boost, the CC-R could still return 30mpg in mixed driving. You have to admit that 350hp and 30mpg is pretty remarkable!

Driving

Driving impressions didn’t disappoint, either. Once on the throttle, the Carbonio intake made some great induction sounds on part throttle – hissing and sucking as air was drawn through the carbon fiber pipe.

We took it easy for the first few miles to earn Peter’s trust and, operating on part throttle, the car behaved almost as stock. Perhaps there was a whisker more lag from the larger K04 turbocharger, but these units spool so quickly it was never a point of contention.

As we found some open road and transitioned to WOT, the boost came on smoothly but the traction control light was flashing as the front tires clawed for traction.

The exhaust tone was throaty, yet restrained. But our favorite noise was the DSG-induced ignition cut between shifts.

As we came around a slow corner, we manually downshifted into second at 25mph, then stood on the throttle. The CC-R delivered tenacious acceleration and we can attest that its 355hp was present and accounted for.

After a few upshifts and gurgles from the DSG, we looked down and discovered we were going criminally fast. Fortunately, the HPA brakes shed the speed and returned us to legality.

The HPA DSG software seemed to improve the shift logic in auto mode, but the coolest feature of stage 2 tune was the launch control. Following Peter’s instructions, we disabled the traction control, left foot on the brakes, then went WOT. Once the throttle was pinned for a second time, we released the brakes and the car rocketed off the line. With the windows down, the cabin was filled with tire smoke and the sound of grown men giggling. Launch control is wildly entertaining.

Of course, the lack of AWD makes this a flawed masterpiece, although the factory Scirocco R is also FWD… And Peter’s CC-R represents a daily driver with a reliable 350hp that makes no compromise for reliability or economy, yet can shred tires at every stop sign.

And despite those rubber-band 30-series tires, the VW remained surprisingly compliant. We expected the tires to rub on the fenders, but it never happened. The suspension also coped with city potholes and broken pavement, with the Passat chassis clearly adept at accommodating larger wheel and tire combinations than earlier versions. And with the Bilstein struts adjusted to level six all round, we were expecting a slightly harsh and choppy ride, but it was far from the case.

So we can attest to the flexibility and prowess of this R-themed VW sedan that again makes us question why VW has never created its own performance version of this cool coupe.