lol i have the same problems alias, except mine is much slower than pretty much every other car out there, i mean 0-60 takes like 15 seconds instead of like 9-10 as it should. Do u hear a rattling noise from the engine? like a metal chain? oh yeah i have been getting crap gas mileage to.. just like u

 

My 03 1.8t with tip is a dog off the line too. Stock 1.8 has a lot of weight to pull. Chip it!

 

Just to address the combination issue of sluggish acceleration and low gas mileage, check the condition and/or age of your primary (upstream) O2 sensor - that's the one that is mainly used to control fuel mixture. If that sensor is old, or carbon'ed up, and is not funtioning right, your ECU may interpret it as being faulty and therefore not trustworthy. If that's the case (at least in the other cars I've owned), the ECU will more or less disregard the signal from the O2 and instead fuel the car based on a preprogrammed fuel map that is artifically rich (it would do so as a safeguard to the engine, rather than risking it leaning out). Rich A/F mixture will hurt power/performance and fuel economy. Just as a quick idea, how carbon-coated is the inside of the tailpipe on your car? Swipe a finger in there and see - if it comes out really sooty, you're definitely running on the rich side, which would explain both of your noted problems. That's classic O2 sensor indication.

 

Yeah i was going to follow the troubleshooting guide at the top and check all the sensors under the "bad mpg" symptom, and see if I can't find anything. I have a vagcom so that should help too. Lol, although I don't know how to use it that great... [&:]

Anyway, would I want a testpipe or a downpipe? Seems the downpipes are cheaper. Here in Minnesota our cars don't have to go through inspection, so I don't think I have to worry.

I kinda had a feeling I would open a can of worms with the chip thing.Searching, I found MANY a thread in the past that burst out in a chip argument. lol. Geez you guys are just confusing me more! [sm=smiley29.gif]

 

yeah my car stock was quick but off the line between the weight and the turbo lag it was pretty slow. My car is the fast accelerating from a 45 mph roll. It will throw you back a bit. But when I got my falsh and intake and everything it kinda solved that problem. The car as soon as tyou hit the gas still seems a little luggish then a split second later the turbo spools up and BAM you feel like you were pulled by something else like a tubo deisel doin 80. Big Difference! I dont know if anything is wrong with your car but if there is when you get it fixed you should definately look at a chip. Noi wont find anyone who will say thay are upset they bought it.