I have owned a 2003 4.4 petrol for the last 3 years and now looking for something newer. So today I tested a 4.4td on a 61 plate with 50k miles. I simply can't get over the fact that from standstill the car seems limp! The throttle response is slow and somehow disconnected from the engine. My 2003 seems more responsive and alive....is it me? Don't get me wrong, when the diesel got going, it really went, but somehow by then the fun had already gone. Am I just imagining it?

Funnily enough i think quite the opposite. A high end motorcar should feel un-hurried and comfortable to travel and be driven in! Everytime i jump in a BMW engined 4.4FF (not the jag engined) i have to physically think for the first few minutes when pulling off so as not to break my bloody neck!

Go and drive any other engined FF and if you like the 4.4's throttle action, IMHO you will be just as disappointed with every other engine as you seem to be with the 4.4TDV8...

Hay, just my two penneth worth sir

How does the 5.0SC compare? Is this more comparable to the old 4.4 petrol?

Very few & far between around these parts Andrew... Most of our work is on pre 2011 FF's and 95% of them are derv

A remap will quickly cure this!

A lot of the 2012 disco 4 sdv6's suffered a similar lag(though I wasn't believed at the time!) but I believe they were flashed and the issue went away. You expect a bit of lag with a diesel and a turbo unit as well but not too much considering how quickly the electronics can respond to the request. FFRR MY06 facelift With TDV8 Alloys Zeros/ATR's
Mantec Sump Guard, Rigid Load liner, MY10 BT upgrade.

andrew-a wrote:

How does the 5.0SC compare? Is this more comparable to the old 4.4 petrol?

It's the same with any diesel turbo fitted to an auto box, you start off from tickover and have to wait for the revs to build a bit before the turbo's come in and give all that torque, even if the stall speed of the torque convertor is raised you still have to wait for turbo lag...

My old Volvo XC70 was terrible for it, if you needed a quick getaway you had to left foot brake and build the revs and then go.... not a good idea if you want your TC to last long though.... Pete
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2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand Sold
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

I underestand completely. When I pull out the drive in my 4.4 V8 Petrol I often get a surprise as I put my foot down and the car surges forward and the revs build quickly as it literally shoots forward - and the noise! Makes me smile every time as its somehow not expected by my brain sitting in a Range Rover.

I always thought my 4.4 petrol was quick off the mark but find the present 4.4 tdv8 even quicker.

I often get a glare from the passenger seat as we launch, might just be my size 11s though.

Ian

Gazellio @ Prestige Cars wrote:

I underestand completely. When I pull out the drive in my 4.4 V8 Petrol I often get a surprise as I put my foot down and the car surges forward and the revs build quickly as it literally shoots forward - and the noise! Makes me smile every time as its somehow not expected by my brain sitting in a Range Rover.

The Jag engined cars don't do this though... SC or NA don't... Maybe they mapped it out during the design phase?

^

The Jag ones build very linearly. No surprises. If you want fast, NOW you plant your foot and get it. Otherwise, they're very easy to drive comfortably.

Yes for me its a good argument for the cheaper 4.4 BMW V8 as it a VERY free revving engine but overall the Jag engined car is obviously a better buy.

I find the 5.0 SC quite instantly there when you want to and also able to drive "smoothly" and "stately" if you like .

If you felt the 4.4 TDV is not too responsive, maybe try to compare it to others and see if it is just the one. Also when you drove it, did you give it a bit of welly for a bit so see if it was "coked up" (if that even happens to the modern diesel FFRRs). MY 2010 5.0 SC Galway green and sand interior!!
Have the Faultmate MSV2 Extreme to be tinkering with the settings etc. !!