My other German fling: Mk6 GTI

[Lucas_R]

In Jan 2014, this MK6 GTI was traded in at my brothers work (local Skoda dealership) and he rang me to see if i might be interested. A candy white, 2010 Mk6 GTI with manual gearbox had just been traded in on a new Octavia. It was a 1 owner vehicle, older couple owned it, a local Newcastle car, completely stock standard, 55,000km, had full service history and all the bodywork and interior were tidy - needed a good clean but no accidents etc. The only options were a reverse camera and genuine towbar kit. (towbar kit and since been removed and sold....that was a fun job).

So we bought it for the trade in price and off we went. As it was purchased for the trade in price, the car was not cleaned or serviced etc like you might expect. I actually prefer it this way as I can see how the car was treated previously and clean it my way.

Upon driving it, I noticed the RCD510 would turn off and then back on every minute or so. Hmmm what’s going on here. I took my VCDS cable out and it diagnosed a faulty ignition switch. Apart from the ignition switch errors (4 errors in total relating to the switch) the VCDS scan came back clear. An initial order with ECS Tuning was made for the ignition switch and several other items like a fuel filter, spark plugs, air filter, cabin filter etc. Took about 3 hours to replace the ignition switch (absolute bitch to get it out) but all is now good and the RCD510 no longer turns off.

After getting the car home, the cleaning begun. I removed the seats (front and rear) and they all got a shampoo, scrub and blast with the Gerni. They weren’t too dirty, but I wanted them as clean as I could get them. Taking the seats out also allowed me to give the carpet a really good clean too. The seats came up really clean and bright, but they took AGES to dry. The foam must be really dense. I have cleaned many car seats in the past and nothing has ever taken as long as these ones to dry.

The engine was also degreased and high pressure cleaned. It wasn’t too grotty, mainly dust and dirt from normal driving. Most people never open the bonnet so the engine is normally pretty dirty.

The paintwork was washed, degreased, clay barred, buffed with 2x different compounds and pads, then hand polished and then finally waxed. I will wax it again soon to make sure it’s perfect.

I removed the wheels to clean then thoroughly, and while they were off I took the time to paint the hubs as well as clean all of the inner guards and shock absorber/suspension pieces etc.

Now that the car is clean, it’s time to look at giving this engine a service and then start with some light modifications. I replaced the spark plugs, ignition coils, fuel filter, cleaned the MAF sensor, fitted a new AFE Dry panel filter (much better than K&N), did a DIY carbon clean with the Nulon cleaner and did an oil change. I have already enquired with DNA Tuning about a tune and waiting to find out whether my ECU is encrypted or not. Apart from a stage 1 tune, I think I will ghetto DIY remove the top catalytic convertor (closest to the turbo) to free up some flow, and work on some intake mods. The car goes well already, so not really chasing too much power, but would like to hear the turbo some more as it’s basically silent.


Spec:
2010 VW Golf GTI
Manual
Reverse Camera
Tartan "Jacky" seats
OEM 9w7 Bluetooth (retrofitted)


Mods:


Engine & Transmission:

- DNA Tuning Stage 2 tune (+40kw and +90nm)
- Unitronic 2.0TSI intake with custom carbon fiber air filter shroud
- EuroJet 3" dump pipe
- CTS catback exhaust
- Unitronic DV relocation kit
- NeuSpeed style alloy charge and discharge pipes
- Spulen turbo muffler delete
- OEM Turbo wastegate rattle clip
- 42DD gear shifter bushings and Verdict Motorsports bracket bushings
- BSH dog bone mount 70 duro
- GFB DV+ diverter valve upgrade
- Audi R8 red ignition coil packs
- Revised timing chain tensioner and associated parts fitted Sept 2014 due to stock tensioner failing and timing chain becoming noisy.
- Rear main seal replaced Jan 2017 as original one was weeping oil.
- PCV replaced 2016
- EVAP valve and charcoal canister replaced 2016


Exterior/Lighting:

- OEM Golf R LED tinted tail lights
- OEM twin reverse light conversion with Bold Sport LED reverse lights (awesome and super bright)
- Golf R style headlights with Morimoto 35w Canbus HID kit 5500k (Eagle Eyes headlights)
- MTEC Fog light bulbs (4750k)
- Bold Sport T10 LED Parker Lights
- JOM Germany replacement LED number plate lights with Canbus


Interior:

- OEM VW 9w7 Bluetooth kit
- Stainless steel GTI door sills
- Stainless steel GTI seat handle inserts
- GTI "Jacky" ignition bezel cover
- Updated GTI lower steering wheel emblem (grey and chrome from 2012+ models)
- Custom black floor mats with GTI logo, red border and heel pad
- JPM Coachworks leather gailter/gear boot
- CarStyle4You GTI button and garage opener button


Exterior/Brakes/Wheels/Suspension:

- Remsa brake pads (disks machined before fitting pads)
- New rear OEM valance/diffuser
- Brake hubs/disks painted silver
- VMR V705 rims in gunmetal grey 18x8 ET50
- Michelin Pilot Sport tyres 225/40/18
- McGard wheel bolt kit (M14x1.5) in gloss black
- SPM lowered springs (approx 28mm drop and no scrubbing with my wheel/tyre specs)
- Koni Sport (Yellow) adjustable shocks
- Solid rubber OEM lower control arm bushes (rear ones)


VCDS Tweaks:
- Needle sweep on startup
- Horn beep when locking/unlocking
- Brake light flash during emergency braking
- XDL diff adjustment
- Coded out the towbar from the Canbus (towbar was removed)


As it was traded:








The car on the day i picked it up (had already washed it when i took this photo):




Unitronic Intake:










Interior pulled to bits for shampoo and high pressure clean:






42DD shifter bushings and Verdict Motorsport bracket bushings:




Dirty Exhaust Tips (don't think they had ever been cleaned). Took about 15 mins each to get them clean again.

[Lucas_R]

More random dirt inside and engine bay (all clean now):








Time for some service/maintenance items:














Painted brake hubs and cleaning all the inner guards/suspension parts (removed lining to access):

[AusScare]

Minty fresh! Nice one on the refresh.

[AdamD]

That was one dirty car - especially the exhaust tips - eurgh! Great work on cleaning her up!

Any plans for rims, Lucas?

[Lucas_R]

Minty fresh! Nice one on the refresh.

That was one dirty car - especially the exhaust tips - eurgh! Great work on cleaning her up!

Any plans for rims, Lucas?

Cheers. Yes she was a bit grotty - nothing a few hours of TLC can't cure though. It looks much cleaner now.

Regarding rims, yes we will get some 18's when these tyres wear out. So we will just run the stock rims for another 6 months or so while i find some rims that i like. Will probably get a nice charcoal colour rim.

[Dutch77]

Regarding rims, yes we will get some 18's when these tyres wear out. So we will just run the stock rims for another 6 months or so while i find some rims that i like. Will probably get a nice charcoal colour rim.

I'm biased Lucas, but if you vaguely recall my red GTI I fitted charcoal OZs - it was actually a white GTI in the USA that swung me over as below. Might be more than you're willing to spend, but sensational wheel and suits the white beautifully.

[Lucas_R]

Easy on the Octavia -assume Golf is similar.

on Octavia:
Remove the end plate of the dash on the LHS to allow access to the single glove box screw underneath.
Remove the 3 top glovebox screws inside the glovebox & 2x bottom screws outside the glovebox.
Remove glovebox - disconnect glovebox light wiring.
Remove HVAC outlet (1 screw)
Remove fan connector wiring
Twist & remove fan (no screws usually, just a locator tab)

15m removal, 20m cleaning, 20m refit.

Thanks for the info Brad - ill look at doing this over the next few weeks. The car is currently on jack stands in my shed, so a perfect time to do the a/c fan....but there is bugger all room on the passenger side to open the door. So it will have to wait until i get my ECU back and can roll the car out into the driveway.

I'm biased Lucas, but if you vaguely recall my red GTI I fitted charcoal OZs - it was actually a white GTI in the USA that swung me over as below. Might be more than you're willing to spend, but sensational wheel and suits the white beautifully.

Hi mate - yes i do remember your MK6. I see you have a MK7 on order now - nice. Yes those rims are classic and classy - i like them. There is actually a rim made by VMR that is very similar to those, and ive been eyeing them off. See here: Velocity Motoring -- Wheels

The others i really like are these: Velocity Motoring -- Wheels and these will be easy to clean too. I really like a clean 5 spoke design - always have.

[Dutch77]

Hi mate - yes i do remember your MK6. I see you have a MK7 on order now - nice. Yes those rims are classic and classy - i like them. There is actually a rim made by VMR that is very similar to those, and ive been eyeing them off. See here: Velocity Motoring -- Wheels

The others i really like are these: Velocity Motoring -- Wheels and these will be easy to clean too. I really like a clean 5 spoke design - always have.

Yep, circumstances changed family wise so the modded GTI had to go.. but got bored and decided a new GTI would fix that. Sold the idea on the basis the pram fits in the back more easily than in the wife's Polo.

The VMR wheels always look good and are sharply priced. Both of your selections would suit, I did have my heart set at one point on the V710s - probably overplayed in black these days, but the charcoal on white will always work and look fresh - especially in your choices.

Look forward to the progress in your build, I wish I was 1% as useful as you in doing this kinda work.. (although am staying stock this time around!).

[Lucas_R]

OEM dump pipe ghetto mod:

I know this won't be looked upon favourably by some....BUT i have an OEM dump pipe sitting in my garage off a GTi that is no longer needed. So this "mod" will cost me no money and i still have a stock (untouched) dump pipe if i ever need to revert back to it. If there's horsepower to be had, and you can have it for free - then why not. So....let's play.

I decided yesterday afternoon to bash out the top catalytic convertor and only retain the bottom one. This should remove quite a bit of restriction from the OEM dump pipe.

Until i get a tune, i will use a 42DD spacer to prevent a CEL.

Took all of 5 mins to knock it out with a hammer and pry bar.

[SchittyTimeTraveler]

Hey Lucas,

did you ever run into any issues after removing the front cat on the oem downpipe? Was the o2 spacer required?
My front cat has melted, blocking exhaust flow and killed the performance of my engine. I'm looking at different fixes at the moment. My mechanic has recommended not removing this cat for emissions and CEL reasons. Based on what you've done here, do you think a partial removal is possible? As in scrape off the melted parts and leave the non affected cat sections, or is it the sort of material which would fall apart? cheers.