# My 2015 Audi A3 Prestige Monsoon Gray



## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

I've had the car since September but never had a chance to post it up. 

What's been done:
APR Stage 1
VWR R600 Intake
Opti-coat
Xpel wrap the entire front clip










There are still some things I'm considering but kind of torn:

Lowering the car with coilovers or with just springs/shocks/struts. Really just worried road conditions here in NY. 
Front and/or rear sway bars
Changing the stick brake pads/fluids and lines

I don't really plan on tracking there car 

Any insights or opinions are appreciated


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## gamegenie (Aug 24, 2014)

Does your license plate position blocked your headlight washer from detracting and doing it's job?


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## CbutterK (Feb 27, 2015)

Finally another monsoon Grey! Nice!

If you don't plan on tracking the car, don't bother with sway bars or brakes, lol. Save your money for stuff that will have a visual impact instead, IMHO.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

gamegenie said:


> Does your license plate position blocked your headlight washer from detracting and doing it's job?


TBH when I first got the car I was wondering if they were even there. I've read a lot of mixed things about them being there in some and not in others. I don't think I have the washer on mine. Which Im ok with since I rather not have some spray my headlights and just drip down my car and leave water marks


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Installed the APR Turbo Muffler Delete and CTS Turbo Blowoff Valve yesterday 










I took a short video earlier today m, sorry for the wind advance 

http://youtu.be/xGSzyP0KTDM


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## MkvMikeD (May 3, 2012)

Did yours come with those fog grilles? If not where did you get them? I can't find them anywhere besides ebay


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

MkvMikeD said:


> Did yours come with those fog grilles? If not where did you get them? I can't find them anywhere besides ebay


Mine came with them.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Went to Eurotech Motorsports today to have some toys installed










Before and after

Installed:
H&R Sport Springs
H&R Rear Swaybar
Eurocode front and rear endlinks
ECS 10mm (front) and 15mm (rear) spacers


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## vwjunky18t (Mar 18, 2002)

DeadBoltPoison said:


> Went to Eurotech Motorsports today to have some toys installed
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Looks great! Got any angled pics?


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

vwjunky18t said:


> Looks great! Got any angled pics?












Took these right before heading to waterfest yesterday.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Installed the p3 card VIDI just now. Looks sweet and is a real easy install.


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## vwjunky18t (Mar 18, 2002)

DeadBoltPoison said:


> Took these right before heading to waterfest yesterday.



:beer::thumbup:


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## vvhiskey (May 24, 2015)

Are you still able to move the air vent with the VIDI installed?


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## markn1689 (Aug 25, 2007)

why is the license plate like that?:what: at that point id say screw it and just mount the front plate holder on the grill.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

vvhiskey said:


> Are you still able to move the air vent with the VIDI installed?


No you can't move the vent. You're only able to open and close it.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

markn1689 said:


> why is the license plate like that?:what: at that point id say screw it and just mount the front plate holder on the grill.


To each there own dude


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Installed the RS3 grille from USP today


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## 15whiteA3 (Mar 1, 2015)

Car is looking good! What's your opinion on the springs since you have had them a month now? 
I like that grill too, tempted to order it for the wife's car since she like that one more than the one with Quattro on it.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Put on the new wheels today. VMR V710s


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Billy boat turbo back exhaust, BFI Stage 1 dogbone and, Giac stage 2 installed yesterday.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Here is a crappy short clip of the tbe right after install

https://vimeo.com/138938603


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## kevinlee709 (Nov 9, 2013)

Nice build! You did most of the things I plan on doing in the future 

Do you have anymore video of the car after installing the Billy Boat TBE?


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## ENV² (Jan 2, 2011)

Just got the wife a 2016 monsoon Grey on black A3 premium with Nav+.

We plan on doing many of the same mods to hers. Im glad I found your thread. Think we will be doing tint first. Then in spring drop, wheels, bov, and tune.

I go to Eurotech as well.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

kevinlee709 said:


> Nice build! You did most of the things I plan on doing in the future
> 
> Do you have anymore video of the car after installing the Billy Boat TBE?


Thanks!

I took some video with my gopro while at H20i, haven't had the chance to go through it but I fear the wind it going to make the sounds pretty bad.

Wish I took some video today, I rolled with the guys in the Long Island Exotics Club earlier in the day.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

BaLLZDeePNYC said:


> Just got the wife a 2016 monsoon Grey on black A3 premium with Nav+.
> 
> We plan on doing many of the same mods to hers. Im glad I found your thread. Think we will be doing tint first. Then in spring drop, wheels, bov, and tune.
> 
> I go to Eurotech as well.


Yeah the guys at Euotech are legit, Danik and the crew are awesome


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## davera3 (Jul 26, 2014)

DeadBoltPoison said:


> Yeah the guys at Euotech are legit, Danik and the crew are awesome


Another Eurotech customer here as well! They do excellent work. I did my H&R sports springs, rear sway bar, and S3 brake kit with them, plus they tech inspect my A3 for all of my track events.
ALso asked them to confirm some dealer service warranty work, which they found the dealer broken some wire harness clips and didn't bother to replace/fix them!


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

davera3 said:


> Another Eurotech customer here as well! They do excellent work. I did my H&R sports springs, rear sway bar, and S3 brake kit with them, plus they tech inspect my A3 for all of my track events.
> ALso asked them to confirm some dealer service warranty work, which they found the dealer broken some wire harness clips and didn't bother to replace/fix them!


Are you running 18s or 19s inch wheels? Was looking at the S3 brake kit as well but I have 18s


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Installed the Unitronic intercooler yesterday










Also went to GIAC Stage 2+ 

Car definitely feels like it pulls in more air and breaths better. 

My P3 readings have been around the same as stock but I only ran it last night and it was in the low 30s. I was averaging about +10-20 degrees more then outside air temp


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## MuchoQuattro (Feb 1, 2015)

DeadBoltPoison said:


> Installed the Unitronic intercooler yesterday
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Great build! Subscribed and following!

Just curious, what made you go GIAC versus Uni or APR? Are you thinking about doing a DSG tune?

For your RS3 grille, isn't the Adaptive Cruise blocked with the new one, or do you have this option?

Cheers!

Sent from my SM-N920W8 using Tapatalk


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

MuchoQuattro said:


> Great build! Subscribed and following!
> 
> Just curious, what made you go GIAC versus Uni or APR? Are you thinking about doing a DSG tune?
> 
> ...


Thanks for the kind words!

I originally had APR Stage 1 on my car but just found the RPM range to high for my liking but overall it was a great tune. I was interested in Unitronic and of course Uni-Connect but as far as I know Uni-Connect does not reset the flash counter. GIAC just gave me the balance I was looking for plus it so easy to contact and interact with the guys over at GIAC. 

I will be looking at a DSG tune once GIAC has it out heard it might be soon but not enough details as of yet.

I dont have the adaptive cruise on my car, but from what I understand there arent any RS3 grilles out that have the cut out for it.


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## hassenrennen (Jan 5, 2004)

Looks good. Getting my intercooler in a couple weeks along with the GIAC stage 2. Cant wait. How do you like your BB exhaust. Any new clips of the sound?
Keep up the good work.


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## Diztek (May 27, 2004)

With all the money spent so far, why wouldn't you just get an s3?


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

hassenrennen said:


> Looks good. Getting my intercooler in a couple weeks along with the GIAC stage 2. Cant wait. How do you like your BB exhaust. Any new clips of the sound?
> Keep up the good work.


I love the BB exhaust, I did take some new clips a month ago but I haven't had time to sit down and go through it.



Diztek said:


> With all the money spent so far, why wouldn't you just get an s3?


I would have done the same upgrades with the S3, so saving a few grand and using that on the upgrades seemed like a better fit for me.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Did a brake upgrade the other day. 

S3 calipers, 340mm slotted Ecs rotors and, ebc redstuff brake pads


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

Diztek said:


> With all the money spent so far, why wouldn't you just get an s3?


Some of us got the S-line when the S3 wasn't even available and couldn't wait for its arrival.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Next phase:
Bilstein B14s 
H&R Front Swaybar
BFI Engine and Transmission mounts
Unibrace UBQ










Installed the BFI engine and transmission mounts on Saturday as well as the H&R front swaybar. I wanted to feel the vibration difference before and after the unibrace is installed. So far I definitely do notice more vibrations in the cabin. Also note I held off doing an alignment till I put in my coilovers which should be this coming Saturday. 










Forgot to take a photo of the front sway bar before I took the car off the lift. The transmission mount looks like the oem mount so didn't feel like there was necessary to take another photo of that.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Winter mode:
Blizzak WS80's on my PC'd oem wheels


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## DarthVWer (May 18, 2015)

DeadBoltPoison said:


> Installed the APR Turbo Muffler Delete and CTS Turbo Blowoff Valve yesterday
> 
> 
> 
> ...


What does the turbo muffler delete do? 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

DarthVWer said:


> What does the turbo muffler delete do?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


The Turbo Muffler Delete eliminates the vented OEM muffler tube, allowing air to pass uninterrupted through the compressor outlet. This increasein air flow allows the turbo to operate more efficiently while enhancing the sound characteristics of your engine.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Installed Bilstein B14 coilovers and the Unibrace UBQ today.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

Nice!

How is the ride vs. the H&R sport springs with stock shocks?


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

I wanted to get some miles on before I wrote any sort of review on the last few mods installed (BFI Engine and Transmission Mount, H&R Front Swaybar, Unibrace UQB and, Bilstein B14 Coilovers)

I first installed the BFI Engine and Transmission mounts and H&R Front sway bar. In hind sight I probably should have just installed the mounts and left the swaybar till the coils went in since an alignment would be required because, the sub-frame has to be lowered to install the swaybar. The reason I wanted to have the mounts on first were to see the difference in the amount of vibrations I would be getting prior to having the Unibrace installed. I just say this. Holy vibrations. There was a very noticeable amount of vibrations in the cabin after the mounts were install. More so when idle at a red light in D or S mode. If I threw the car into neutral you would not feel it as much. One other thing that I did notice is when initially pressing the gas on the car the in reverse or in D/S the initial load of the car would make it vibrate a lot. Overall the mounts do what they are intended to do, prevent excessive engine and transmission movement. and I am happy with them.

The follow week after driving about 400 miles, I installed the remaining mods (Bilstein B14 Coilovers, H&R Front Swaybar and, Unibrace UBQ)

Overall I have noticed my chassis is a lot stiffer and cornering ability has improved. With the Unibrace installed have noticed a signification drop or any drop what so ever in vibrations in the car? Yes, I have it is definitely a world of difference with and without it. It does not 100% eliminate vibrations I get in the cabin but it has significantly dropped it. Cornering and handling performance has gone up. I feel more planted and agile. There has been less rolling on sharper turns. Im not saying day and night difference but a good improvement. 

Ill post a photo next week after the car settles a bit more from the coils. I have it sent about 2 finger gap for the winter.



-LoneStar- said:


> I totally understand where you and Spoooolin are coming from. Different strokes for different folks. Also you knew what you were getting into when you started. I don't like the people who don't do their homework and then seem pissed when they look at how much they spent when they were trying to save a buck at the beginning of their build.
> 
> Also I went through your build and had some questions. How do you like your Unibrace UBQ? When I back my wife's car into the ally I can hear the car flex as it goes over the uneven surfaces. I know the chassis is plenty stiff as is. I'm sure you noticed this when you jack up the front of the car and the rear lifts with it with ease. Can you feel a difference with the Unibrace UBQ?
> 
> Also where did you score the red S3 calipers. My wife has the black calipers and she's always saying how nice the red ones look. How much did you pay if you don't mind me asking. I know I can always paint them with caliper paint but that will never look as good as the factory coating. Feel free to post your response in your build thread if you don't want to muddy up this thread with off topic discussions.


So far I like the Unibrace UBQ. I have not had to lift my car one side at a time in awhile. I usually go over to my friends shop and use his lift to do the work that is needed. But I do hear some flexing on some uneven roads and when pressing on the gas pedal the initially cause of the load. So far I can feel a difference in what I was experiencing before, with the vibrations from the BFI mounts and some vibration from the exhaust. Once I installed it those were significantly reduced. I did take the car on some back twisty streets and usually I couldnt break 3rd gear but since the brace and swaybar has been put in I have been able to stay in 4th comfortably. I hope that answers your question. If not let me know Ill try to elaborate further.

I scored by S3 brakes from ECS during the holiday sale. It was the Stage 1 kit they had so it included the S3 red calipers and carriers, EBS redstuff brake pads and the OE 340x30 rotors which I swapped out for the ECS slotted rotors. After a mix up with my order and inventory they compensated me by reducing the cost of the everything under $1400


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## oblique (Jan 10, 2016)

How did you get your stocks 18's powdercoated? Did you do it yourself or a shop?
Looks good, Thanks!


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

oblique said:


> How did you get your stocks 18's powdercoated? Did you do it yourself or a shop?
> Looks good, Thanks!


I gave them to my detailer who had them done.


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## -LoneStar- (Aug 5, 2015)

DeadBoltPoison said:


> I wanted to get some miles on before I wrote any sort of review on the last few mods installed (BFI Engine and Transmission Mount, H&R Front Swaybar, Unibrace UQB and, Bilstein B14 Coilovers)
> 
> I first installed the BFI Engine and Transmission mounts and H&R Front sway bar. In hind sight I probably should have just installed the mounts and left the swaybar till the coils went in since an alignment would be required because, the sub-frame has to be lowered to install the swaybar. The reason I wanted to have the mounts on first were to see the difference in the amount of vibrations I would be getting prior to having the Unibrace installed. I just say this. Holy vibrations. There was a very noticeable amount of vibrations in the cabin after the mounts were install. More so when idle at a red light in D or S mode. If I threw the car into neutral you would not feel it as much. One other thing that I did notice is when initially pressing the gas on the car the in reverse or in D/S the initial load of the car would make it vibrate a lot. Overall the mounts do what they are intended to do, prevent excessive engine and transmission movement. and I am happy with them.
> 
> ...




Yes this certainly answers my questions perfectly. I suppose I'm stuck with the black calipers as its just not cost effective to track down some red ones. I suppose if I got them from a salvage yard but I don't see too many S3 being totaled out as there aren't too many on the road anyway. 

I was curious about the BFI engine and transmission mounts. They seem like a nice product but I was afraid of the vibration. Lets be honest any time you go to a stiffer motor mount this will have the most effect on vibration in any vehicle. Maybe it will be less in some vehicles such as a BMW with an I6 since they are so balanced anyway but I'm sure it will still show some. Can you tell a difference with them in throttle response? Other then keeping the motor from moving around I feel this is the reason why people replace them to begin with. 

The Unibrace UBQ seems like a real winner. If it dampened the vibration then it must be fairly ridged to keep flex in check. Seems like a pretty solid piece for someone looking for a little stiffness to the chassis. One thing I have noticed on my GTO is that I can faintly, and I mean you really have to know its there, see the body seams on the rear where the fenders and roof get tied in together. I've always wondered if this was caused by 10 years of flexing and the body moving some. Wondered if sub-frame connectors would have stopped this from happening. My point is I don't know if my wife will keep her S3 for 10 years, probably not, but if some sort of chassis bracing such as the UBQ will help keep everything tight and neat. Now my GTO chassis was designed in the mid 90's so that may have something to do with the flex as chassis have come a long way since then 

Do you think you get a rear sway bar? I've heard some pretty positive results from a RSB as this will help the car rotate easier minimizing the chance of understeering. I would say your pretty much done with the suspension work after that.:thumbup:


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

-LoneStar- said:


> Yes this certainly answers my questions perfectly. I suppose I'm stuck with the black calipers as its just not cost effective to track down some red ones. I suppose if I got them from a salvage yard but I don't see too many S3 being totaled out as there aren't too many on the road anyway.
> 
> I was curious about the BFI engine and transmission mounts. They seem like a nice product but I was afraid of the vibration. Lets be honest any time you go to a stiffer motor mount this will have the most effect on vibration in any vehicle. Maybe it will be less in some vehicles such as a BMW with an I6 since they are so balanced anyway but I'm sure it will still show some. Can you tell a difference with them in throttle response? Other then keeping the motor from moving around I feel this is the reason why people replace them to begin with.
> 
> ...


There maybe more available down the line as people upgrade their brakes. I feel a very slight difference in throttle response but nothing extravagant. 

The Unibrace UQB is something I would definitely recommend. 

I already have the H&R rear swaybar in. I installed it when I initially had my springs installed. So there isn't anymore suspension work I have to do.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Had some time lastnight and put the flat bottom sline with shift paddles in. Very easy install and no additional coding needed for the buttons or shift paddles to work. Direct plug and play. I will say I had to use vagcom to clear the codes from the airbag


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## oblique (Jan 10, 2016)

DeadBoltPoison said:


> Had some time lastnight and put the flat bottom sline with shift paddles in. Very easy install and no additional coding needed for the buttons or shift paddles to work. Direct plug and play. I will say I had to use vagcom to clear the codes from the airbag


Wow! that looks awesome. Did you get your steering wheel from europrice? That's my next mod I want to do.
I have the exact same car model and monsoon Gray color as you do so your thread has been really helpful for ideas.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

oblique said:


> Wow! that looks awesome. Did you get your steering wheel from europrice? That's my next mod I want to do.
> I have the exact same car model and monsoon Gray color as you do so your thread has been really helpful for ideas.


You can probably source it from Canada as well. Canadian S-line A3 gets the perforated flat-bottom steering wheel standard.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

oblique said:


> Wow! that looks awesome. Did you get your steering wheel from europrice? That's my next mod I want to do.
> I have the exact same car model and monsoon Gray color as you do so your thread has been really helpful for ideas.





VWNCC said:


> You can probably source it from Canada as well. Canadian S-line A3 gets the perforated flat-bottom steering wheel standard.



I actually got it on ebay from Europe and thanks


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

I went down to Virginia on Friday and took some shots. Excuse the dirty car as I drove through snow the day prior to the short. 

But this is how my car is currently sitting after installing the coilovers. I have it raised currently cause of the winter.


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## Kamil Pawlak (Apr 26, 2013)

*TBE*

How hard was the down pipe install? Im planning on getting the same tbe and want to know how you got the stock dp out haha


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

DeadBoltPoison said:


> I went down to Virginia on Friday and took some shots. Excuse the dirty car as I drove through snow the day prior to the short.
> 
> But this is how my car is currently sitting after installing the coilovers. I have it raised currently cause of the winter.


Could you please post a few more pics of your cars at different angles with your new setup?


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Here's some additional shots from that day.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

Nice, thanks.


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

Took this Thursday during a meet/cruise. R8, S4 and everyone else behind us. Including a R8 v10 plus, some gtr's and some audis. 

https://vimeo.com/156402204


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## TRLSTYLE (Sep 27, 2004)

Re: the spacers on OEM...

you went 10mm/15mm front/rear. Do you think 15mm/20mm would have rubbed?


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## DeadBoltPoison (Aug 30, 2014)

TRLSTYLE said:


> Re: the spacers on OEM...
> 
> you went 10mm/15mm front/rear. Do you think 15mm/20mm would have rubbed?


Currently I am 12.5mm front and 15mm in the rear.

From the look of things I could go 15/20.


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