My other German fling: Mk6 GTI

[CrusadeR]

Well i've been lazy and only installed the rear shocks so far, but so far so good. Definitely a firmer shock setup with more rebound, feels really sure footed on the road. Hopefully the fronts will be the same once i work up the energy to install them.

I'll be waiting patiently for the fronts to go on Very interested to hear your opinion on the combo once the full install is done, especially what it does to ride height and also ride comfort. Going from 17" to (lighter)18" and then onto SPM springs, my handling has improved but as one would expect, ride comfort has also decreased and I want to stem that decline as much as possible.

[Lucas_R]

Hey Lucas, did that softer lower engine mount insert work out how you hoped? Noticable vibration reduction? I'm happy enough with the 80 durometer one, but the 70 may still do what i needed it to do with a bit less buzzing at idle... Although, i've only done a couple of hundred k's since installing it, it may still wear in a little...

Sorry Matt - i didn't see this post. I'll actually be installing the new engine mount insert this weekend so ill let you know.

I'll be waiting patiently for the fronts to go on Very interested to hear your opinion on the combo once the full install is done, especially what it does to ride height and also ride comfort. Going from 17" to (lighter)18" and then onto SPM springs, my handling has improved but as one would expect, ride comfort has also decreased and I want to stem that decline as much as possible.

Fronts are done. Ride is stiffer but i need to play with the settings on the shocks over the weekend. Car feels a lot more composed and controllable. Steering feels better too. No difference at all in ride height - the springs determine that.

[Lucas_R]

Finally got the enthusiasm to install the front Koni struts this week. Installed the rear ones a few weeks ago.

All new strut tops, bump stops, bearings, bolts etc etc. Set the rebound to 1 full turn up from soft - feels firm on the road so i might wind it back 1/2 a turn on the weekend and see if i can feel the difference.

Car feels really tight now though - i had some creaking from the front with the stock shocks when going in/out of driveways, but that's gone now with the new ones.

[Lucas_R]

Finally it stopped raining for a few hours yesterday, so I decided to get busy installing some mods I purchased recently for the GTI.

First up was the Unitronic DV relocation kit. What a beautifully designed and engineered piece of kit this is. Everything fits perfectly, and everything is of very good quality.

While installing the Unitronic DV relocation, I thought it was timely to install the NeuSpeed copy hard pipe kit I purchased recently. This is the turbo discharge pipe kit and the throttle inlet pipe (replaced the factory plastic ones with a larger diameter and smoother flowing alloy pipe). This all fitted up nicely with the Unitronic DV gear.

Lastly was my BSH dog bone insert 70 duro. Previously I had a Spulen 80 duro mount fitted, but found it was too hard which resulted in a lot of vibration being transferred into the rest of the car. So I purchased the softer 70 duro version from BSH.

So far so good – took the car for a spin and those alloy pipes make a difference. Without a doubt in my mind it pulls harder now. Doesn’t seem to be leaking any boost as it pulls hard and smooth all through the rev range. I actually thought the alloy pipes and DV relocation might make the turbo whistle louder (similar to my R which sounded awesome) but I don’t think it’s any different.

Only slight issue is have is a vibration/rattle coming from the CTS cat back exhaust when it gets hot. I guess ill jack the car up this afternoon to see if I can make an adjustment.

Booked in for the dyno later this week – hoping for 165kw and 340nm. Same dyno ive used several times before with my R. The GTI is a dyno virgin, so I have no idea what to expect.


Some random pics of the Unitronic DV relocation:






Unitronic DV kit nearly installed (the actual DV and GFB DV+ was not fitted yet)




DV block off plate for the stock K03 compressor housing:

[Lucas_R]

Took the GTI to my local dyno this morning to check how its running and see what kind of power its making. Anywhere between 160-165kw is about all you see out of a k03 turbo on a MK6 (without resorting to an expensive custom tune), so i was quite pleased to see 161.6kw and 330.4nm - as both these figures were very close to what i was expecting the car to make. The car is just about to tick over to 70,000km, so it's not a young engine either.

Don't forget this is a generic "internet file" stage 2 tune from DNA Tuning that only cost $800.

My only area of concern is that it looks to be running a little too rich for my liking at about 10.2:1, so i will do some logging with VCDS over the coming week or so and see what VCDS tells me. I'd like to see the AFR's up around 11.5:1 to 12.0:1 for a more neutral AFR. If necessary, i'll have a chat to DNA Tuning and get a revised file off them that's a bit leaner.

[HaydEn]

Nathan said he was thoroughly impressed! Even more so by your mates R.

Love how it just keeps making power till high up

[Lucas_R]

Yeah the Mk7 R made good power (230kw). Its quick too. That's just a stage 1 tune and an intake too.

Did you call into Newcastle Dyno Centre today?

[HaydEn]

vr is there to be tuned.

[Lucas_R]

Twin reverse light installed over the weekend. New tail light sourced from BKS Tuning which has a reverse light component instead of the fog light.

I can now see when im reversing. This is the same mod i did on my old Golf R and it worked really well. Using Bold Sport LED's for the reverse bulb which are super bright.

LED bulb: Bold-Sport.com :: NEW item - CREE LED Reverse Light

New light housing: OEM VW Golf MK6 LED reserve lamp (choose the dark red option to match Golf R LED tail lights)

The car now looks balanced from the rear (i hate the single reverse light on euro cars), and the extra light output along with the reverse camera make for really good visibility at night.

[VR28LT]

Hi Lucas the GTI is coming together nicely.... one question though why is the DV needing to be relocated? is it not in the right position from factory?