1.5 tsi reliability

Jan 20, 2019
2
0
Is the new engine reliable?? I read lot of issues of" kangaroo effect" and now I am afraid of buying a new car. Should I worry or not????
 

SRGTD

Active Member
May 26, 2014
2,388
1,279
The ‘kangaroo’ effect seems to be an issue when this engine is paired with manual transmission. It has been acknowledged by VW that they were aware of a possible issue and they were working on a fix.

https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/news/o...-acknowledges-problem-with-15-tsi-evo-engine/

Don’t know if it’s been sorted though, and I’m sure any Seat salesperson would deny all knowledge of there being an issue to avoid jeopardising a potential sale!

Apparently, the ‘kangaroo effect’ doesn’t exist when this engine is paired with a DSG transmission.
 

Sword

Active Member
Apr 22, 2019
105
43
Winchester
I think it's a bit early to say if it's reliable or not.

I own a 1.4 tsi 150 and was given a 1.5 as a courtesy car while mine was in for repairs and I wasn't impressed, only had it for a couple of days so not the best to pass judgement on it but the ACT seems to kick in less than my 1.4 and that has 20 hp more :/
 

robby71

Full Member
Sep 3, 2005
653
91
Yorkshire, UK
I was looking for a 1.5 Ibiza FR before i bought my 1.4 leon FR
I read a lot online about the 1.5 problems - kangarooing, stalling, loss of power pulling out of junctions, etc and numerous links went to the T-Roc forums showing numerous owners returning their cars for a refund and cancelling orders on new cars as there has been 2 software updates which haven't cured the problems and dealers don't know what else to do
 
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Yern

Active Member
Apr 25, 2019
625
311
I also read the reports about 1.5 engine issues and did have some doubts but thought this may have been sorted by the time I got my MY19 FR 130. So far 3,500 miles with no kangarooing/stalling. The only 'loss of power pulling out of junctions' has been down to me trying to go in too high a gear :drive1:.
 

Owen83

Active Member
Feb 9, 2018
77
20
I have the 1.4 ACT (150BHP) in both my Leon ST & Audi Q3 which really is a cracking engine.... my mate has the 1.5 (150BHP) in his Audi A3 with no problems to date (only had the car since March) all manual gearboxes
 

'& Son' managed

Third Party
Mar 2, 2018
269
89
South Coast
Briskoda have many posts with tales of woe about the not-so-new 1.5 litre petrol engine,
along with links to other VW/Audi sites with similar threads - but certainly not all cars so
equipped have issues.

Main concern would be that no-one seems to believe that VAG have found a real solution
for those cars that are troublesome and they are still churning-out engines by the thousand
regardless.

Many VAG dealers are still in denial of course, but part of that might be them just following
an official line dictated from the importers...
 

BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
I have the 130 1.5tsi evo engine with manual box

Kangarooing is only in 1st gear on a stone cold engine so first pull away of the day its a bit jerky but other than that its acceptable

Never owned the 1.4 tsi so obviously cant compare to that but its the new engine it has to be better surely plus its going in absolutely everything across the VAG range
 

LouG

Active Member
Dec 1, 2017
1,319
481
Nelson, New Zealand
The internet amplifies everything. Our GT86 was supposed to eat it's bearings at 50,000 km's according to interwisdom. It didn't.
Quite a lot of problems are incorrect use/abuse, I doubt there are any manufacturers that turn out pure crap like the days of BMC.
Mini idler gears for one example.
 

Vag8

Active Member
Jul 5, 2019
57
34
I have the 130 1.5tsi evo engine with manual box

Kangarooing is only in 1st gear on a stone cold engine so first pull away of the day its a bit jerky but other than that its acceptable

Never owned the 1.4 tsi so obviously cant compare to that but its the new engine it has to be better surely plus its going in absolutely everything across the VAG range

I also have a 1.5 evo (130) in fr guise.
Previously I owned the 1.4 evo (150) tech model - that was a cracking car, had it for 4 years and it never needed anything apart from routine services and replacement tyres (37k over 4 years) the 1.4 (150) is responsive and efficient, as happy to dawdle in 3rd all day as it is to be thrashed within an inch of its life!! If it had been an option I’d have rolled into the same spec car.

Having bottled it with 2 weeks to go on a factory build Arona fr 1.6tdi I was able to switch for a ready built Leon fr (130) think this would be similar enough that i wouldn’t notice the difference....

But the 1.5 is a different beast, although the 130 & 150 essentially share the same engine the turbo set up is very different.
I can’t vouch for the 1.5 150 as I haven’t driven one, but I find the 130 underwhelming ☹️, not sure how they managed it but the 130 has just 200Nm torque, the same as the 1.0 3cylinder 115 bhp used in an Ibiza or Arona and these are both lighter!! Somehow the VW Tiguan has an extra 22Nm outta the same 1.5 130

There is power there but it’s not instant as per the 1.4 150 - you have to plan things as bit more and the the turbo takes a bit longer to build up momentum, I also find it noisy when pushed.

As for the kangaroo effect - yeap I have that too, usually the first drive of the day, or when it’s been sat around for a few hours, I found it is more prominent in sport mode so I keep it in normal most of the time, I’m keeping an eye on the t roc/briskoda forums for the confirmation of the fix as so far my dealer has denied the issues or blamed it on my driving style.
 
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Jaco2k

AWD FTW
Mar 11, 2018
1,037
633
Tampere, Finland
www.youtube.com
Maybe when they "dumb down" the mapping it causes the issues, since we have the 1.5 150hp and usually people just talk about the 1.5 engine in general, without specifying power, gearbox, etc.
...or fuel used.
 

BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
I also have a 1.5 evo (130) in fr guise.
Previously I owned the 1.4 evo (150) tech model - that was a cracking car, had it for 4 years and it never needed anything apart from routine services and replacement tyres (37k over 4 years) the 1.4 (150) is responsive and efficient, as happy to dawdle in 3rd all day as it is to be thrashed within an inch of its life!! If it had been an option I’d have rolled into the same spec car.

Having bottled it with 2 weeks to go on a factory build Arona fr 1.6tdi I was able to switch for a ready built Leon fr (130) think this would be similar enough that i wouldn’t notice the difference....

But the 1.5 is a different beast, although the 130 & 150 essentially share the same engine the turbo set up is very different.
I can’t vouch for the 1.5 150 as I haven’t driven one, but I find the 130 underwhelming ☹️, not sure how they managed it but the 130 has just 200Nm torque, the same as the 1.0 3cylinder 115 bhp used in an Ibiza or Arona and these are both lighter!! Somehow the VW Tiguan has an extra 22Nm outta the same 1.5 130

There is power there but it’s not instant as per the 1.4 150 - you have to plan things as bit more and the the turbo takes a bit longer to build up momentum, I also find it noisy when pushed.

As for the kangaroo effect - yeap I have that too, usually the first drive of the day, or when it’s been sat around for a few hours, I found it is more prominent in sport mode so I keep it in normal most of the time, I’m keeping an eye on the t roc/briskoda forums for the confirmation of the fix as so far my dealer has denied the issues or blamed it on my driving style.


Yeah im in normal mode all the time too

Eco mode is dangerous
Sport mode amplified the kangarooing

Waiting on a remap to come out but still nothing :(
 

BigJase88

Jase
Apr 20, 2008
3,767
1,069
Any particular reason? I use Eco just me (most of the time) and Normal when friends in the car.
Just the lag between hitting the go pedal and it actually moving especially when coming out of junctions or trying to overtake
 

Yern

Active Member
Apr 25, 2019
625
311
Ah ok. I find need to be in 1st when pulling out or yes, you expect it to go but...nothing.
 

Leonfr140

Active Member
Aug 18, 2013
420
65
East Sussex
Have had issues with stalling, coming from a 1.4 ECOTSI ACT 150 to the EVOTSI 130, my partner who doesn't drive felt that it was more jurky than the last car, also noticed that New Audi A4 doesn't come with either 1.4 or 1.5 now 2.0 same with Arteon, which did come with 1.5, so conspiracy?? Also Leon configirator no longer has 1.5, mind you nor does it have 2.0!

Also does that explain why Skoda Scala 1.5 is DSG only??

Sent from my SM-G973F using Tapatalk
 
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G.P

Active Member
Sep 3, 2011
1,241
38
Worcestershire
I use Eco just me (most of the time) and Normal when friends in the car.

Out of interest why go back to normal mode when you have friends in the car if you normally use Eco mode?

For me Eco mode uses around 3-4 mpg more fuel over a 150 mile A road journey as it uses fuel when going down hill to keep the engine running whereas in normal mode no fuel is needed to keep it running..
 

Yern

Active Member
Apr 25, 2019
625
311
Out of interest why go back to normal mode when you have friends in the car if you normally use Eco mode?

For me Eco mode uses around 3-4 mpg more fuel over a 150 mile A road journey as it uses fuel when going down hill to keep the engine running whereas in normal mode no fuel is needed to keep it running..
Not quite sure I understand this...although I've never compared journey MPG against Eco or Normal Modes, both Driving Modes offer a 'normal' mpg when driving then an increased MPG when ACT is active and if on overrun via gear engine braking or going down hill with foot off accelerator engine fuel shuts off completely. You can see the reading and effects using Instant Consumption selection.
Unless of course I'm reading GP's response wrongly.
 
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