rev limiting

[DavidB]

hi, i have just bought a 2003 53 reg 3.2 petrol touareg. when the car is in N or P (neutral or park) the engine will not rev over 4000 rpm however when in drive it will accelerate all the way to the red line. is this normal? is it a rev limiter working or should it be looked at? thanks for your help.

[SLEACH]

I'm far from an expert on this but surely revving an engine when there is no load on it is not the thing to do:beerchug:

[DavidB]

probably not but most engines rev limiters start around 6-7000revs. i have just sold my a3 3.2 (the same engine) but that did not limit at 4000. i'm just interested to know if this is normal?? i only did this as i thought it felt as though the engine was holding back a little.

[Eshrules]

id probably say its an inbuilt feature, as above, revving engines when idle, especially attempting to rev to red line,does not do the engine any good, if it runs fine when being driven i probably wouldnt worry too much ;)