I purchased factory struts/shocks from my local VW dealer as i was sick of local sellers not wanting/being able to sell me the correct parts. The car has now been blue slipped and now has NSW rego
It cost an arm and a leg but it had to be done before the ACT rego ran out and all tempts at buying anything else from anyone else failed. It was a case of do it or be without a car till the suspension could be sorted enough to pass rego.
The car passed without changing the strut tops somehow. Must have been a squeak free afternoon for them lol.
Now it is time for some better suspension
It took a while to find the right parts from the right supplier that was willing to deal with me. It seems i had some bad luck with people wanting to sell me things locally. Either they took a week to reply to my emails/messages or they simply did not return emails at all so they left me no choice but to hit the International parts distributors.
I initially made a purchase from FK but they messaged me back after payment to tell me that the coilovers i purchased had just ran out of stock and would not be available for 8 weeks. After going through the other options, my order was simply canceled with a general explanation. I did not bother reordering and waited 2 weeks to get my paypal refund.
Eventually i ordered from ECS like i should have done 2 months ago instead of attempting to buy local.
ST X Performance coilovers with fixed dampening were my first choice but after ordering, i was informed that ECS have a deal with ST whereby they will not sell their products to buyers outside of the USA. The same applied to KW products unfortunately.
Koni 1150 series were my second choice but the sale price had returned to the regular price the day prior to my order mix up so they had returned to $1411.00 which was outside of my budget.
H&R Street Performance with adjustable dampening is what i ended up purchasing. Unfortunately, they had to get them in stock before shipping so i had to wait 10 days.
Along with the coilovers, i also purchased the following...
Headlight lens replacements(i had the foggies).
Ariel replacement (mine had snapped off).
Cabin filter replacement.
ECS Billet Hood pull(currently latch is zip tied)
Strut top Nut Wrench(may as well for $16 while i am ordering)
Factory replacement strut tops and bearings.
I was not sure if i needed these in addition to the coilover kit and my current strut tops squish, sqeel and squeek really bad so i figured it would be wise to have them around regardless.
My order is set to ship Monday US time and if the USPS shipping quoted time is to be believed, i could have the shipment by Friday which means i could possibly be fitting the parts withing a few days which coincides with my birthday! yay!
Other than all that news, i replaced the centre console latch and springs with a $3 ebay unit. Best $3 i have spent on the car so far lol.
I also found some 2004 Jetta tailights on ebay.com that i picked up for what i would call an acceptable price considering the $60 postage price so in they went.
I am still not sold on the grill style or color...
Oh yeah! and yesterday after work i dropped into the local exhaust shop and had the factory rear can hacked off and replaced with a right to left strait though(ish) muffler and dual 2" tips. The decision to do this was entirely based on me barely being able to hear the car and nothing to do with any possible power increase. To be completely honest, i have not even looked to see what size inlet or outlet the muffler had but the shop told me that it was the same diameter as the factory piping(whatever that is). They did mention that there was a really badly beaten section of piping between the resinator and the rear muffle. Apparently it has a really flat bottom
I will be paying the exhaust shop another visit to get that sorted some time in the non too distant future.
Needless to say, i can now hear the car and some of the potentially awesome sound the VW V6 is known for. It is a little bit "boomy" down low which i do not like at all but it does have some nice growl above 2500rpm and then again at around 4000rpm. I have not revved it over 5500rpm as yet lol.
I am considering deleting the resinator or at least flanging either side of it so i can try a few different options in there. When initialy considering a new exhaust and thinking about the possible end result in exhaust note, i thought i would hate the crackling and popping related to not have a res but now i am thinking that might solve my "boomy" note albeit with a possibility of being more annoying but i am willing to try it out.
Not much else to report for now until my ECS order arrives so i will just put up a pic of the new tailights which also includes the new white plates that i opted for...
So this is my old car. Still miss it every day, even after all the trouble it caused me.
I bought it from a German guy in Bilgola in June 2011, he was selling it because his daughter was about to get her Ps and he didn't want her driving a car that fast. It had just got a new clutch and some suspension work done before I bought it. It had 167,000kms on it at that point. I had looked at much lower mileage Boras but they all seemed thrashed.
In the 17 months I owned it I had the rear diff rebuilt twice (first guy managed to press the bearings in crooked), engine mounts replaced after the engine tried to get out (guy who changed the clutch forgot to put two of the bolts back in), all the worn bushes replaced, Haldex serviced and more.
I discovered after buying it that all of the recent services had been done by a mechanic who believed that anything done at service interval other than an oil change and maybe some spark plugs was just the evil car companies trying to rip you off. I had it serviced at Canberra VW Centre Belconnen and did 5000km oil changes myself.
All up I spent about $7000 on the car in the time I owned it. I painted the grille because I think body coloured grille's are an abomination best left in the 90s, would have to sand it and touch up every few months. This was just before the plastidip craze. I also did the Joey mod headlights. The original headlights were foggy so I found a pair of almost brand new ones on eBay for $200 (thank-you mis-spelled eBay listing), and did the joey mod on them. I also removed the badges from the boot, never seen a road car with some much writing on it, still have all the letters in my toolbox.
When I bought the car I had a nice cushy corporate job in Sydney with a cruisy 30km daily commute, but 6 months later I was in Canberra starting up a new business and driving 500-700kms a week. I probably wouldn't have bought the car if I had known where I was going to end up.
When I sold the Bora at roughly 185,000kms in November 2012 it had the most savage lifter tick I have ever heard. Loud enough to hear it over the radio with all the windows up at any speed. In the mornings I would let it warm up for 20-30 minutes just so it would calm down a bit before I drove it. The buyer from Murrumbatemen told me it was for his then 17 year old son who was about to finish Year 12 (not sure how he made it to 21 in less than 2 years?) but I suspected that the father is actually a mechanic and wanted a car with low parts cost/high labour cost repairs that he could do himself. You haven't mentioned the ticking lifters and, if it was still there you surely would because it was LOUD, so I'm guessing they fixed it. The buyers (whose entire family of Mum, Dad and 4 or 5 kids, turned up in a trashed landcruiser to inspect the car) looked to me more 'broken down base model commodore with fake HSV bodykit and ridiculous 20 inch rims' than your usual Volkswagen buyer, they said the son had his heart set on a early WRX but had seen the listing for the VW and wanted to take a look.
I did actually come across your threads one day whilst googling candy white VW Bora for some ideas on wheels. I clicked on an image of a slightly off fitted front bumper that looked a lot like my car(or is it still your car? lol) I found it funny that it was on this forum the whole time lol. Dylan did mention that the car was ringing bells for him though.
Judging by your lack of recent activity on the forum, i decided not to bother you
The same guy sold the car to me. A bit of a rough guy buy seemed pretty genuine. I would have liked to meet his son so i had a better idea of how he might have driven the car but he was hungover and it was in his fathers name anyway so i did no need him to be there.
The old man also had a Peugeot 406 coupe there when i arrived. His son wanted to "upgrade" to a V8 commodore with the funds from the VW. Really wise decision on his part lol.
I read that you had sold the wheels prior to selling the car but the main differences were that it arrived with non smoked tail lights and the VW audio setup was not in it also. Just the factory stereo with a stacker full of scratched CDs. I would really like to know more about the navigation setup if you could remember?
The suspension was stuffed when i got it and if you read my entire thread, you'll know that i had some dramas getting the correct components. I eventually got some H&R adjustable street coilovers in there and it sits really nice now. Also feels a lot less boaty on the road without being too crashy on my country pothole ridden roads.
Then i had problems with a wheel shop. Pretty much got that sorted, just waiting for the wheels to be sent back with a more fitting(literally and figuratively) offset on them.
I put some cheap floor mats in on the weekend due to the carpet needing replacement. Out of sight, out of mind for that one!
I had the rear muffler replaced also for some more volume. It sounds ok but i noticed that there is some pretty badly beaten up section of pipe just before the rear silencer that needs replacing. I'll get that done at the same place i originally got the work done who also specialize in radiators. Hoping they can repair and re-gas the air con for me on the same visit.
Replaced the VW boot badge with a blacked out item and put the black grill in it. I still have the factory one that you painted but it really needs to be pulled apart and given a good sanding back.
The rear bar needs a respray. I can see from your photos that the paint was chipped off all the way back then so you'll know that the rear bar is actually gun metal grey under that white.
I have some new headlight lenses here ready to be fitted. I have to remove the front bar to fit them though so i can have a look at putting it back on strait. I'm hoping there is nothing bent under there that will stop it being aligned properly.
Thats about it for now. I want to have the front seats re-trimmed or replaced with R32 items at some point but i am in no hurry for that. It will be more of a right price thing when the time comes.
I will do some photo updates some time over the next week
I think I'll always see it as 'my car', at least until I get another one.
I would be interested in knowing how many kms it has on it now. The suspension was the best part of it when I had it, really taut for a stock set up. Definitely had no damage to the exhaust either, I spent enough time underneath the thing to know. Maybe our friend thought 4 wheel drive meant offroader
Still, as long as the engine is running well, sounds like the last owner fixed more than he broke.
The smoked tails and oem satnav unit got sold off before I sold the car, both to members on this forum. If you are keen on a satnav set up look for grtuned on the forum, he is the mkiv satnav guru and a genuinely nice guy.
It's great too see the car ended up with a fellow enthusiast, I'd love to see more photos.
FYI, the engine still has a badass lifter noise. Not as bad as you say it was but definitely noticeable until it warms up. Something i will look into when i have the timing chain and water pump done in the non too distant future. Hopefully i can sort it out witout taking the head off. I"ll also get the accessory belt and tensioner done while im at it.
I need to check to see if the difference between the R32 engine and mine to find out if it is stroke or bore related for the extra .6L capacity increase. I would consider fitting R32 pistons if it is bore related. Probably not cost effective if i have to fit different rods as well as pistons.
As i mentioned, i'll get some pictures up when the wheels come back. They are only cheapie 18's to keep me tied over till i can afford some custom made Simmons for it and are not really what most people on this forum would put on a VW but they are a start
R32 is different!!
you would have to change pistons, conrods and have the engine bored out,
to be honest not worth the head ache. Easier if you were lucky enough to find and engine and ecu then do the fit. Audi TT v6 is the same engine as r32 the only small differences is pollution gear pipes and so forth possibly,
if memory serves me correct fuel rail lines differ also in the tt
Djorkboy has it goin mate? Still taking a peak at the forums! U thinking of ever buying another VW.
Mate your right about the 3.6 conversion never seen one installed in a bora or a golf here in OZ but pushing stock 220kw would make it a great car to drive. Throw on cams and a tune and it will be Just the right amount of power.
Yeah mate I still lurk around occasionally, would like to buy another VW eventually. Have looked at getting a mkvi gti maybe if my business keeps growing.
I still think the Bora v6 4motion is a future classic, it's the genesis of the R line and, in my opinion, better looking than any Golf since the mkii so it would be nice to pick up another Bora sometime in the next 5-10 years as a weekend plaything.
You should post up some pics of your satnav/steering wheel/dash to show caffeine what's possible...
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