# Brennan610's Black B5



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Back in November of 2011 I got my B5. I picked up a 2001 2.8 sport cold weather package, pretty much bone stock except for the wheels.










It had the typical problems of a b5, trim missing, ripped seat, pixelated lcd cluster.










First thing I did was get the timing belt and water pump done at shop because I didn't know anything about cars at the time. I also debadged the trunk, painted the grille surround black, I got yellow lamin x for the fog lights and some super white high beam bulbs. I also got a short shifter off ebay at some point as well and did the clear corner mod. I did a bunch of basic maintenance like oil change, air filter, cabin filter etc.










Here's a few pictures of me an my brother, he got his 02 wrx bone stock the a month before I got my b5.










I then picked up a set of b6 sport wheels of craiglist and refinished them. They had almost new snow tires on them which I put on the infamous mb tucsons and got new tires for the b6 wheels. Various things broke and got fixed along the way which was a great learning experience. Valve cover gaskets, cam tensioner gaskets, coolant o-rings, axles, control arms, tie rods, and much much more which I did all myself with the help of google.














































That winter I picked up a set of oem mud flaps and a roof rack with snowboard attachments and I painted the tucsons gold because subaru. 










I finally got coilovers, and of course I went with racelands because hey they're cheap and I'm an idiot. Well I put them all the way down and they were really bouncy. But still, I finally had my car looking the way I wanted it.



















Finally low










Me and my brother getting ready for cars and coffee.










At cars and coffee. (oh the rock chips)




























This was mid way through doing my cam seals, I made my own cam sprocket lock bar because **** spending $100 on a piece of metal. And I also replaced my disgusting coolant tank and painted the caps black.

I also got a buddy to cut out my resonator on my stock exhaust. Immediately regretted that and it sounded like ****. (and I scraped through it from it hanging so low)










I drove that around for the summer, and got an obx cat back exhaust, which by the way sounds amazing on the 2.8. 










It fell off on the test drive haha but it got fixed










This is a skid plate me and my buddy made, it's great










Winter came and I decided I've had enough of the racelands, I sold them and bought st's during the black friday sale for a good price.










Rode around on stock sport suspension all winter which sucked but was great for all the snow we got










That's my sisters b5 in the background, bone stock, triptronic 1.8t.










One of the warmer days at the end of winter so I did some cleaning, still on stock suspension 



















Spring time finally came, coilovers went on and I was on the look out for new wheels



















Found a set of 18X8.5 rotiform blqs with 215/35/18 tires on them for a steal. 



















Did some waxing at my friends house





































My brothers wrx, my friends civic and my b5.

And now this is where it sets currently, I'm in need of spacers though




























This is me an my friends 2.5 rs


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## JJ. (Aug 15, 2012)

Looks clean :thumbup:


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Nice! Those rotiforms look good :thumbup:


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## aledelic42 (Jul 28, 2008)

where in 610 are you?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I'm located in orefield, real close to allentown


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## thepirate (Jun 6, 2008)

Welcome :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Looking for a set of new wheels and getting rid of the rotiforms


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Rotiform Blq
18x8.5 5x112 et35
Tires: 215/35/18 with decent tread left
Small amount of curbage, one has a slight bend but was balanced out by a shop and holds air fine, one tire has bubbles in the inner sidewall and is currently not on the wheel


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Rotiforms are now gone and picked up a set of bbs lm reps, 18x8 18x9, I'm loving them


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

thepirate said:


> Welcome :thumbup:





CactusAvant said:


> Nice! Those rotiforms look good :thumbup:





JJ. said:


> Looks clean :thumbup:



I forgot to mention but thanks guys!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Shot some pictures tonight, here's a few. More to come once I edit them. 



















That's me haha


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

A couple more from the other day


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Looking good :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Looking good :thumbup:


Thanks man!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Flexing?
















Added some lens flare in photoshop, I think it turned out pretty well

















:wave:


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## aledelic42 (Jul 28, 2008)

much better :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

aledelic42 said:


> much better :thumbup:


Thanks! I definitely like these much more than the rotiforms.


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## crazexr7 (Nov 10, 2011)

Very clean 2.8 

like the new wheels :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

crazexr7 said:


> Very clean 2.8
> 
> like the new wheels :thumbup:


Thanks :beer:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Shots from the other day, I lowered the rear down three threads too.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Just picked these up for my center caps 








And I got some s4 interior goodies


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Looking good :thumbup::thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Just picked up black s4 side skirts for a pretty good price. I still have to trim my lower moldings though.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Quick wash and put on my new center caps


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Got my cam chain tensioner and seal today, going to be doing that tomorrow.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Progress pics from doing my cam tensioner, since I actually remembered to take pictures this time. 








While doing that I was helping my buddy do his timing belt on his 7th gen








Cam out








Old vs new








There was pitting on the underside shoe but nothing was broken thankfully








All fixed









I actually had to take my skid plate off for the first time since I put it on last year. 








1/4 inch diamond plate steel :laugh: It's saved my oil pan a good amount of times


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Shot some pictures the other day, I went to my own sowo 


























This is my car at cult classic


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

This picture really shows how bad the rock chips are on the front of my car.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Shot of the Homegrown Garage crew


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

I swear I'm looking at my own hood in some of those pics. Aside from those chips the car looks super nice


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## P_Roc (Dec 11, 2011)

Love wut you did with the car so far!! hopefully once my car is fully operational I can actually do the stuff I want to do!! 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> I swear I'm looking at my own hood in some of those pics. Aside from those chips the car looks super nice


Thanks man I really appreciate it, your car has been a big inspiration for me and is still one of my all time favorites. And yeah hopefully I can get around to getting the front resprayed at some point. Once I get the $$$




P_Roc said:


> Love wut you did with the car so far!! hopefully once my car is fully operational I can actually do the stuff I want to do!!


Thanks! Get that b5 on the road haha :thumbup:


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Loving the car, and sweet pics :thumbup:

Besides the chips, very clean looking :thumbup:


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Brennan610 said:


> Thanks man I really appreciate it, your car has been a big inspiration for me and is still one of my all time favorites. And yeah hopefully I can get around to getting the front resprayed at some point. Once I get the $$$


I always think its crazy people use my car as inspiration, because I used soo many cars for inspiration for my build.

One thing I think you should try is take the turn signal bulbs and lightly dust them with some silver spray paint. Gets rid of the amber reflection in the housings but they still blink amber.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Few more shots from the other day.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> I always think its crazy people use my car as inspiration, because I used soo many cars for inspiration for my build.
> 
> One thing I think you should try is take the turn signal bulbs and lightly dust them with some silver spray paint. Gets rid of the amber reflection in the housings but they still blink amber.


I've been thinking about getting the bulbs that look metallic but glow amber. I've just never got around to buying them because they were never a necessity. I'm going to look into getting them soon though. 



CactusAvant said:


> Loving the car, and sweet pics :thumbup:
> 
> Besides the chips, very clean looking :thumbup:


Thanks man! :thumbup:


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> One thing I think you should try is take the turn signal bulbs and lightly dust them with some silver spray paint. Gets rid of the amber reflection in the housings but they still blink amber.


I did this same thing too, works really well


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> I did this same thing too, works really well


I might give it a shot, the orange film on my bulbs are peeling off as it is haha


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I took pictures of my car and my brothers car two years ago in the same spot. What a change.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Shot of my brothers wrx


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## lazermkiv (Feb 28, 2010)

rad


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I went down to Waterfest 20 this year and met some really cool people and had a great time. 
I actually met CactusAvant and his brother, both of which are super cool dudes. 








Few shots of some other cars in the show. 


























Pretty sure this is MarcMillers car, super clean as well. 

This was definitely my favorite car at waterfest.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Pics look great man :thumbup: Thanks for getting that one of all of ours, I need to lower my car more looking at that haha


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Thanks man! It's nice we had a little line up of b5s haha. :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

So I haven't updated this in a little while. Not much has happened except for some more maintenance and stuff like that. 

First I had to change my front perch and bump stop because they both pretty much disintegrated. 








Old









New









You can see the old bump stop/dust cover vs the new one


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Next on the list were my rear strut mounts, I've had a knocking noise in the rear for maybe two months now, after seeing a dime sized hole of rust on the front of the mount I assumed that was the cause. It was worse than I expected. But changed them out fixed whatever was knocking previously.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

It was my birthday last month so my friends got me a kick ass present.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Just a shot from exploring back roads the other day. :wave:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

About a week ago was the first time my b5 left me stranded, fuel pump died.









Quickly got a new one from a fellow b5er, super awesome dude. He drove about an hour to my house at 11:00 pm to help me out.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I've been doing some thinking, I was getting bored with the 2.8 and how there were very limited options in terms of increasing the power. 
After looking for a while I finally pulled the trigger and bought one. 



















It definitely needs some work but I have some big plans for it. And soon my 2.8 will be up for sale.










The drive way is starting to fill up, both my b5s, my sisters b5 and the 240sx project car me and my brother are working on.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Nice! The 1.8 you got to work with looks pretty good :thumbup: I think you'll really start to like the 1.8

Nice 240 project too, thats sweet :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Thanks man, definitely loving the 1.8t so far. Should have paid less for it, now that I'm digging into it and seeing all of its faults. But you live and learn I guess. 

Here are some pictures of the 240sx project. 
Tubbed bay and some other stuff. This winter break is going to be solely focused on the 240 so I'll end up making a thread on zilvia or something at some point. Big plans for it, but it's a work in progress.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Guess this will be a 1.8t thread now, since I mean they're both black b5's.

Over the past two weekends I've been swapping some stuff from my 2.8 and doing some maintenance on the 1.8t. 

First thing I noticed was it was leaking powersteering fluid profusely. 
One of the spots it was leaking out of was the connection coming from the ps cooler to the lines that lead to reservoir. 
I replaced the lines and added a brass barbed fitting and new hose clamps. The PO has some rigged up junk that was making it leak. 









On a positive note I have an 034 ps cooler.










Then I noticed my rack was leaking so that should be here by the end of the week. :facepalm:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I also replaced the valve cover gasket and cam tensioner gasket since that was leaking pretty bad too. The spark plug wells had a lot of oil in them along with oil all around the valve cover. 









Cleaned everything up and painted my vc gloss black while it was off.









(Sorry for the crap cell phone pics, I'll need to get my real camera out next time I decide to do this stuff)


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I also swapped my short shifter from the 2.8.








And some goodies arrived in the mail. I'm way more excited about headlights than I should. 









Euro spec depo ecodes


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## crazexr7 (Nov 10, 2011)

Make sure those headlights are sealed good. I had to put some silicon around mine a couple times to keep moisture out. I'd also suggest maybe getting clear laminx too. I wish I did because they haze up in about 2 years.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

crazexr7 said:


> Make sure those headlights are sealed good. I had to put some silicon around mine a couple times to keep moisture out. I'd also suggest maybe getting clear laminx too. I wish I did because they haze up in about 2 years.


Thanks for the tip, I'll be sure to check the seals. I was actually thinking of running yellow film for the winter but then I could switch to clear in the summer.


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Great another black 1.8t a4. I should paint mine bright green


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> Great another black 1.8t a4. I should paint mine bright green


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Realized my cv boot was ripped and I had an extra laying around, so I decided to get it done and out of the way. 
Cv joints are definitely one of my least favorite jobs.

















It actually came apart like it's supposed to since it's OEM and not chinese junk.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The other day I got some more work done on the 1.8t. 
Excuse the terrible phone quality photos.

I got a re-manufactured power steering rack, s4 grille, 034 main breather hose, and some gaskets



















The s4 grille is going to replace the god awful kamei grille that came on the car


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

After having to use some heat and liquid wrench to get the tie rod ends off I decided to re-thread the tie rod and apply liberal amounts of anti seize.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The s4 grille I picked up second hand was unfortunately cracked a little bit. It's covered by the chrome surround piece so it's not visibly noticeable. 










Little bit of jb weld solved the issue.










I'm repainting the grille and the surrounding chrome piece black and keeping the rings chrome.










I use this paint on almost everything and it always comes out very nice and with a nice shine, and it's heat resistant so you can use it on engine components.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Then it was time to replace the breather hose and replace any old crusty vacuum hoses.










Old



















New










I also replaced the hose coming off the check valve with a new hose and new hose clamps all around.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Got some more work done today while I wait on parts coming in the mail. 
I decided to clean everything up and paint some stuff.

The support bracket for the intake manifold was especially crusty so I took it down to bare metal and gave it a fresh coat of paint.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Cleaned up the intake manifold and got it ready for paint. I'm using VHT black gloss engine enamel for the manifold.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Then I got to work on my s4 grille. 

Part of the chrome was peeling and since I'm not really a fan of the chrome surround to begin with I sanded it down and painted it black. 

You can see in the upper right hand corner how the clear was flaking off.










Sanded it down, along with the rest of the grille so the paint would adhere better.










I then did a coat of glazing putty to smooth it out. 










Painted










All together. I think it turned out great and you can only see a slight imperfection by area it was flaking but it's not really noticeable unless you're really looking for it.


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## [email protected] (Apr 9, 2004)

Brennan610 said:


> Then I got to work on my s4 grille.



Build threads are cool. Want a car cover? Will send PM.


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## crazexr7 (Nov 10, 2011)

^ sooo jealous


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

[email protected] said:


> Build threads are cool. Want a car cover? Will send PM.


Thank you so much! 




crazexr7 said:


> ^ sooo jealous


I can't believe that just happened, I never win stuff haha.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Picked up new tie rod end bolts from the dealership today to replace some "hardware store special" bolts the PO used. 

On the left is the completely wrong bolt and on the right is the shiny new OEM bolt. 










I decided to re-thread the lug bolts because they were pretty crusty.










Left is before, right is after. 










Also degreased my thor skid plate to get all the PS fluid and oil. 
The skid plate actually came on the car when I bought it. It seems like solid quality. Unfortunately it's missing the two wing pieces on the sides.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Good call on cleaning the threads up on the lugs. I had a problem with my dirty lugs not going in all the way, and my wheels wouldn't sit perfectly flat, I thought it was a wheel bearing that went bad, but just old bolts.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Good call on cleaning the threads up on the lugs. I had a problem with my dirty lugs not going in all the way, and my wheels wouldn't sit perfectly flat, I thought it was a wheel bearing that went bad, but just old bolts.


Yeah they were pretty bad, I still have to do the rears though. Loose lugs are really scary haha, that's why I always double check all the lugs.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Went ahead and replaced my coolant flange while I had the manifold off. 
Glad I did because it was pretty gross and the o-ring looked like it was on it's way out. 










All back together










Unfortunately I got the wrong coolant tank


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I also replaced the cabin air filter

Old and gross










New










Got my VDO boost gauge in the mail so that should be going in soon


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Filled it up today with some fresh g12 and distilled water.










Bled the coolant










All together 










The new power steering rack feels amazing. Huge improvement over the old leaky one.

Immediate plans
-inspection
-alignment
-swap coolant tanks for the right one
-install 
-boost gauge
-silicone TIP
-pod filter
-heatshield
-enjoy the 1.8t finally 
-thor skidplate

Future plans 
-new front brakes
-fix the brake wire
-ss brake lines
-wrap headliner in black suede 
-led interior lights
-porsche oil cap


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

My Audi car cover came in today that I won in the fortitude give away. I'm super excited about the whole thing and the car cover is extremely nice quality. 
I also got a nice letter and some fortitude stickers.



















I'll post some picture of it on the car soon.


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## ray4624 (Jul 23, 2010)

Looks awesome man. I got that same coolant tank. I just ran a jumper wore across the plug to the coolant level sensor and just monitor my coolant levels manually 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## jamerican1 (Dec 8, 2005)

Strong work and congrats on the car cover! My B5 has over 250k miles and I know I'm due for a lot of the stuff you just did!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

ray4624 said:


> Looks awesome man. I got that same coolant tank. I just ran a jumper wore across the plug to the coolant level sensor and just monitor my coolant levels manually
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Thanks! I'm just going to return the tank and get the correct one, not to big of a deal haha.




jamerican1 said:


> Strong work and congrats on the car cover! My B5 has over 250k miles and I know I'm due for a lot of the stuff you just did!


Thanks man! These cars are definitely maintenance queens once the up in the higher mileage like that.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Put the car cover on the b5 today.



















The quality is outstanding, it fits perfectly and the material feels thick and sturdy. It also has a clear plastic section on the back so you can see the license plate. I wish the Audi rings were bigger on it but that's not really a complaint.


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## Robp17 (Dec 20, 2014)

*B5*

Im glag to see you loving the B5. I was never a vw/audi lover until I got a great deal on a 97 a4 b5 1.8t quattro. I loved driving the car right away and immediately starting doing upgrades. I dont want to hijack youre thread with pics but I will say I did a giac stage 1 tune, h&r coil overs, h&r rear sway bar, fmic, boost and a/f ratio gauges, 19" wheels, brembo 18z 6 piston calipers with mercedes gl450 front rotors. I liked the 97 so much that i just bought an 01 with a blown turbo. replaced turbo and did a gonzo stage 2 tune on it. Getting ready to put gonzo's new big turbo upgrade on my 97. God I love these cars. The b5 is just sexy looking. :laugh:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I hear you on that one! I absolutely love these cars and everything about them. I've had the 2.8 for about 3 years and it was my first car and I learned how to work on cars because of it. But I've always wanted a turbo so I just got the same car with a 1.8t in it. 
I've realized with these cars that you might as well just do all the maintenance sooner than later.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Replaced my turbo inlet pipe with a black silicone one.
Feels good and fit pretty well. And it looks very nice in the engine bay.



















Running the stock airbox for now, but I plan on getting a pod filter and fabbing up a heat shield soon.
Any recommendations on a filter? I know I should get a dry flow filter.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Got an awesome present from my buddies for christmas.
White leather grip royal wheel and a japanese head band, perfect for the 240sx build.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The car cover is definitely doing it's job.


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Is that car cover b5 specific? Because I need one for my a4


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> Is that car cover b5 specific? Because I need one for my a4


Yes it is. Fits perfectly.


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Brennan610 said:


> Yes it is. Fits perfectly.


Was it one of those you had to go searching for it kind of deals or can I buy it somewhere?


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## ray4624 (Jul 23, 2010)

^^he won it in the fortitude give away.
Thing looks dope.


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

ray4624 said:


> ^^he won it in the fortitude give away.
> Thing looks dope.


That bastard


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## ray4624 (Jul 23, 2010)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> That bastard


seriously lol
im jealous.
my b5 barely moves it would be nice to have some protection.
iirc yours doesn't move either lol


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Yea I haven't moved my a4 in about 3 months


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

ray4624 said:


> ^^he won it in the fortitude give away.
> Thing looks dope.


Yeah, just got lucky haha. It's so nice though. 



NeedingAnAudi said:


> That bastard


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> Was it one of those you had to go searching for it kind of deals or can I buy it somewhere?


I actually looked them up on Audi's website and the cover I have is around $300. I lucked out haha.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

My rear view mirror finally came. After a month and a half of waiting and a PayPal claim. Have to love sellers on Facebook.


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## P Q (Feb 4, 2009)

Brennan610 said:


> This was definitely my favorite car at waterfest.



Just saw this thanks man:thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

P Q said:


> Just saw this thanks man:thumbup:


Hey no problem! I was drooling over your car for about 25 minutes. I absolutely love it.


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## P Q (Feb 4, 2009)

hahaha thanks bud


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I finally got around to installing some speakers and a new head unit into the 1.8t. Because it came with nothing, there was literally zero audio equipment in the car. The previous owner took out all the speakers, the head unit and even the factory amp. When I was first looking at the car I asked him why he took them all out and he replied with "religious reasons" :screwy:

Any way I got a kenwood head unit, 6.5" kennwood speakers for the deck, and 4" sound ordinance speakers for the front.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I was able to fit the front door speakers into the factory bracket with slight modifications. This was the whole reason I bought 4" speakers for the front because I wanted to be able to install them in the factory location with out a lot of trouble.



















Wiring the rear deck speakers was a pain in the ass. I first tried to by-pass the factory amp by tapping into the rear speaker wires that are on the plug that plugs into the factory amp. This worked but resulted in the rear speakers crackling at a higher volume. I ended up just running new wires straight to the head unit and everything worked out. I will be adding a small sub in future to give it a little more bass.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I finally got to replacing my rear view mirror. It was pretty haggard and the previous owner thought double-sided foam tape was the answer to all his problems. 










I used a heat gun and a razor blade to scrape all tape off.










All clean!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Then I got some 2 ton epoxy from the hardware store. It says it bonds well to metal, glass, etc so I hope it should do the trick.










Then I just taped it on up there and let it sit all night.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Then I started mounting my VDO boost gauge in the center vent. I started taking pictures half way through because I forgot.










I cut the vent with wire cuters first, and then finished them off with a dremel and a sanding bit.










Trying to unplug the wires for the vent lights is probably the most frustrating thing ever.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

All done. I cut the top vent bar a little too small, but it's not really noticeable.










I then spliced the wires for the gauge light into the wires for the vent lights.
Yay for soldering!:wave:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Got some more accomplished today.
I finished fitting the boost gauge and routed the line to tap into the intake manifold.

Then I did an oil change with 5w40 Rotella T6 synth, mann oil filter and an ecs magnetic drain plug.










I also took advantage of autozones warranty and got a new battery because mine wasn't holding a charge. I love free stuff


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The boost gauge all mounted up. The bulb it uses is an incandescent bulb and is sort of yellowish in person. I'll probably switch to an LED bulb soon. Other than that, the VDO gauge works well and in my opinion looks great.










Draining the oil, it was pretty black and nasty.










Here is shot of the old oil drain plug. Looks like **** if you ask me. I wish I did a side by side comparison with the old vs new plug. The ecs magnetic drain plug seems to be good quality and looks nice as well. Is it necessary, no, but I was in the christmas spirit when I bought all my parts last month and thought **** it, why not.










Should be on the road with in the next few days all I need is an alignment and an inspection. 

Next on the list is -
-pod filter
-custom made heat shield
-get started on the headliner rear deck, etc
-swap out the track density trans mounts for stock ones


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Be careful with the ecs drain plug. They are quite soft and if you can strip that b*tch real quick if you aren't paying attention.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> Be careful with the ecs drain plug. They are quite soft and if you can strip that b*tch real quick if you aren't paying attention.


Thanks for the tip! I was surprised that the ECS plug is a 14mm bolt compared to the stock 19mm ones.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Got my alignment done today and they could only do align the front because the rear camber bolts are seized. :facepalm:
In the spring I'm going to get new camber bolts and nuts and get the bushings for them as well, and then get it aligned when I lower it down more.
Tomorrow I get my inspection and I should be able to start driving it daily. 
Other than that I just need to get rid of the trans mounts because they annoy the hell out of me.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I wrapped my headlights in yellow lamin x today. This will protect my brand new headlights from all the salt/rocks and general ****tiness of roads in the winter. These will come off in the spring but for right now I dig the look. 
Also I finally got the 1.8t inspected last week and have been driving it daily now, it has so much more pick up than the 2.8 and all around feels much better. However the solid trans mounts are annoying when it's cold out, they're not terrible once the car warms up but I plan on replacing them with stock ones soon.

Immediate plans for the 1.8t now include
-front pads and rotors
-trans mounts
-new cam eccentric bolts for the rear


The plans for the spring:
-new coolant tank
-034 coil pack cover
-wrap headliner and rear deck/pillars
-get speaker covers
-get a sub of some sort
-get coilover wrenches for my H&R's because I didn't get them with the car
-fix the tint on my passenger window
-test pipe
-pod filter and heat shield
-ss brake lines


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Both b5's getting gas. 
The 2.8 will be up for sale soon :wave:


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Looking good dude. I wish I would have put something over my headlights. 

If I still have it and you are still looking for a sub by waterfest (or another car show I may see you at because of shipping costs), I have a brand new 12" Alpine sub, 250w amp still new in box, and a box for the sub that I won at a car show but never installed because I don't want to take up any trunk space since I use it all the time. Id give you everything for like $125 or something if you're interested.

Also, for the coiler wrenches, try to get your hands on some raceland wrenches. They have a slot where you can put a wrench on the end of it for better leverage if your coils are hard to spin. :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Thanks man. If you do get any kind of film for the headlights get laminx brand, yeah it's $40 but it's about 100 times better than the chinese stuff on ebay. I'll let you know about that sub, I debating on what to get because I don't want to take up any trunk space either. But maybe we could work something out. 
And would you know if the raceland wrenches would fit on the h&r's because one collar is smaller than the other. I tried putting my st wrench on them and it didn't fit either collar.


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## crazexr7 (Nov 10, 2011)

Headlights look good. Wish I did clear laminx on my headlights before they got pitted and fogged up.

Also I was always a big fan of the way this guy set up his sub in his avant. I'd probably never get a sub this big though.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

crazexr7 said:


> Headlights look good. Wish I did clear laminx on my headlights before they got pitted and fogged up.
> 
> Also I was always a big fan of the way this guy set up his sub in his avant. I'd probably never get a sub this big though.


That set up does look really nice. But holy hell that sub is massive. 

I was thinking about something like this but I'm not sure how loud it would be, I don't care about face melting bass I just want the sound to be balanced. 
Or maybe I'll do something like a sing 12" in a shallow box and a smallish amp.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Brennan610 said:


> And would you know if the raceland wrenches would fit on the h&r's because one collar is smaller than the other. I tried putting my st wrench on them and it didn't fit either collar.


Yeah, I have H&R coils, and I always use raceland wrenches for them. They fit both sizes. Pretty convenient


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Yeah, I have H&R coils, and I always use raceland wrenches for them. They fit both sizes. Pretty convenient


Nice! Someone's bound to have some extras laying around.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Two days ago I sold my 2.8. It was hard selling my first car but there is a lot in store for the 1.8t, and I mean it's basically the same car. :wave:.










This is the last picture I took before leaving the notary.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

My brothers wrx had a burnt valve so we're swapping out his motor for one with fresh rebuilt heads that we picked up from a buddy.
It held up pretty well for 221xxx and being "stage 2".


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## xdewaynex (May 25, 2009)

Seeing your wrapped headlights really makes me want to do mine and the fog lights. For some reason Ive always been a fan of the yellow lighting. My headlights currently have a light blue film over them.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

xdewaynex said:


> Seeing your wrapped headlights really makes me want to do mine and the fog lights. For some reason Ive always been a fan of the yellow lighting. My headlights currently have a light blue film over them.


Go for it! I'm happy with the way it turned out and the visibility of the snow has actually improved a lot, so that's a plus.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Brennan610 said:


> Go for it! I'm happy with the way it turned out and the visibility of the snow has actually improved a lot, so that's a plus.


Ive only got yellow fogs, and yellow high beams, and I've noticed the same thing, helps you see the snow a lot better


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## P Q (Feb 4, 2009)

I too have yellow fogs and high beams. I had yellow bulbs for the headlights at one point and they do help but boy oh boy did balls get busted by cops. at least hear in NYC. 

I would like to do something like that with my sub in my trunk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Not much has been going on except for my dirty/salty car and lots of snow. 
Snow tires and quattro make for a lot of fun in the snow and never having to worry about getting stuck. I have to say snow tires are probably one of the best investments I've made. I've never gotten stuck or lost control or even slid with out me being in complete control of the car. 
The only thing wrong right now is one of my fog lights are out, and I still need to change my spark plugs and air filter, along with the whole list of stuff that I want to do in the spring.



















Here's the dirty turd.


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## Mk3madnesss (Mar 30, 2013)

Wow I just read this thread from very begining to end. I must say it was awesome. Keep it up 👍
From a fellow b5er


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Mk3madnesss said:


> Wow I just read this thread from very begining to end. I must say it was awesome. Keep it up 👍
> From a fellow b5er


Thanks! I really appreciate it! :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Not much has been going on recently. The snow is finally starting to melt and show season is right around the corner and there is still a ton of work to be done.

I sold the LM reps


Got new wipers +5 hp


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Here are some snowy shots from the past few weeks 



















Obligatory gas station shot.


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## xdewaynex (May 25, 2009)

Hope you have better luck out of the those Rain X wipers than I did. They were skipping on my windshield making them pretty useless. I ended up swapping them for some Bosch Icons that are doing great.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I used to have Bosch but cheaped out and got these because they were cheaper. They look stupid because they don't have covers where they attach to the wiper arm. Guess I'll see how they hold up.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally got my stock trans mounts to put in, and I got some new spark plugs as well.










Mounts going in



















Stock vs track density mounts.
With the new mounts there are no more rattles or vibrations and everything is very smooth. It actually feels like an Audi now!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Spark plugs were gross from the bad vc gasket I did when I got the car.










I used anti seize on the threads and torqued them to spec with a torque wrench, have to have that European precision.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Rear view mirror fell off again. Now I'm trying to find some better glue/adhesive to use for it.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I also swapped the casing for my fob since it was pretty gross.
I picked up a new case off ebay for $3.50 with free shipping :laugh:
Then I swapped the circuit board and just used the original key up top so I didn't need to get a new one cut, it's not OEM perfect but it's a big improvement. And looks much nicer now. 

Old is on the left the new is on the right. This was during reassembly.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

I can't wait to change my engine and trans mounts this spring.... 176k on original mounts is just awful. I might have to do what you did with that key fob too, mine is so messed up. Keep the updates coming :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> I can't wait to change my engine and trans mounts this spring.... 176k on original mounts is just awful. I might have to do what you did with that key fob too, mine is so messed up. Keep the updates coming :thumbup:


It's a huge improvement with new mounts. Everything feels so tight and smooth. The previous owner had solid mounts on the car and all it did was rattle and vibrate everything. I have a lot more planned for this spring. I can't wait for car show season!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I haven't updated this in a little while but some things have been happening over the past few weeks.

First off, my rear view mirror fell off again.....Then I proceeded to drive around for a week with no mirror because I figured I would glue it back on when it was somewhat warm out.










Then I got some actual rear view mirror adhesive. So far so good!










Then I got pulled over for my headlight tint. I knew that was coming. I ended it pulling it right off my head lights right then and there. No tickets here!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally picked up a new set of wheels. I decided to get alphards. 










Got the tires mounted
205/40's all around

This is a 205 on a 9.5 and I like the look so far.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Freak snow storm on March 31, you too cool mother nature.










Then I lowered my coils pretty much all the way down. I had to raise it a few threads because when I would turn the fender would sit on the tire. It still rubs a little when I corner hard.










How it's sitting right now










:wave:


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## ray4624 (Jul 23, 2010)

Looks awesome! 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

ray4624 said:


> Looks awesome!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Thanks!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

This hose piece ripped causing a massive boost leak and causing the car to be in limp mode most of the week.










but then I got a new one and some other miscellaneous bolts from the dealership


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## Volar (Jan 2, 2007)

Great progress with both cars man I also have a black a4 and I have the b6 sport wheels and yellow head lights!! I've been driving around Philadelphia for about a year now with the yellow head lights and no troubles yet! " knock on wood"


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Looks awesome dude :thumbup: I've always wanted some alphards


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Maybe I should have given my alphards more than a 2 week chance lol


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Volar said:


> Great progress with both cars man I also have a black a4 and I have the b6 sport wheels and yellow head lights!! I've been driving around Philadelphia for about a year now with the yellow head lights and no troubles yet! " knock on wood"


Thanks man! And that's awesome. I was fine for almost two months but you know how college police are haha. 



CactusAvant said:


> Looks awesome dude :thumbup: I've always wanted some alphards


Thanks! I've wanted them for some time and I'm definitely loving the look of them so far.



NeedingAnAudi said:


> Maybe I should have given my alphards more than a 2 week chance lol


Then we would have really been twins haha.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I hit this gem the other day. Cruising down the highway at 1:00 am and I was right behind my friend. He rolls over it just fine but I didn't have enough time to react and dodge it. Hit this ****ing thing and dragged it 100 ft until I was able to quick pull into a parking lot. I had to drive in reverse around the parking lot until it finally got unwedged.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Here's the damage to the skid plate. Luckily it didn't bend any where close to the oil pan. I ended up just taking it off and banging the dent out with a big ass mallet. I'm very impressed by how strong the thor skid plate is.



















ft. the #1 dog - bella


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Hell yea man. My panzer has saved me more time than I can count.


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## meloman (Mar 23, 2010)

I was just looking for a set of alphards too.

Looks killer man :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

meloman said:


> I was just looking for a set of alphards too.
> 
> Looks killer man :thumbup:


Thanks man! I like the alphards more and more each day.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

My car has been in limp mode for the past week and with work and school I haven't had much time to diagnose it properly. Today I had a free moment and decided to see if I could finally locate the problem. I checked all the hoses coming off the n75 valve and low and behold the one was ripped. Swapped it out for a new hose and new hose clamps and it's working perfectly again.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally got around to taking some real pictures of my car. I shot these with a 50mm lense I picked up recently, I really like shooting with it so far and I really like how much shallow depth of field I can get with it. The semester ends in about a week and a half so I can actually start to make some progress on my car now.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I really like how the rear is sitting right now




























This was before I banged out the dent in my skid plate, but you can see the big dent right where the square is in the center.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Here's a shot of my friends 2.5 rs that we're going to be doing a manual swap to in a few weeks.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Wow, looks great man. That fitment/setup is perfect :thumbup::thumbup:


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## crazexr7 (Nov 10, 2011)

How the hell does that thing end up on the highway? It's awesome to see the thor completely protect your pan like that though. I love my skid plate, I don't see me ever giving it up even if I go air.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Wow, looks great man. That fitment/setup is perfect :thumbup::thumbup:


Thanks! I really appreciate it.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

crazexr7 said:


> How the hell does that thing end up on the highway? It's awesome to see the thor completely protect your pan like that though. I love my skid plate, I don't see me ever giving it up even if I go air.


I have no idea, and I didn't see it because my friend was in front of me and he was able to roll right over it and I had about 2 seconds to go OH **** and brace for it. The plate is way stronger than I thought, which is awesome. I scrape and bang it everyday and I never have to worry about cracking pan.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Took a few photos here and there at night. 










My friend just picked up a b5 the other day.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Does anyone know what this color is called? I actually really like it and I didn't even know this was a stock color.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I got front ss brake lines to replace my old, worn out ones. I'll be doing the tt/a8 brake upgrade soon, but I have to wait to exchange my rotors because I got the wrong ones .










They definitely needed replacing. Thankfully they didn't start leaking yet. 










All nice and shiny.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I picked up some black forest industries ball seat lugs for my 15mm spacers up front. I got these to replace the conical lugs I was using temporarily. 










I tried tightening up my ebay short shifter, because it has been forever loose. This helped a bit but it's still not as solid as I would like. I just can't justify the $250 for a JHM shifter, just not yet atleast haha.










I finally picked up these bad boys. $3.99 at harbor freight! I mean the quality reflects the price, but for the amount I use them it's fine. Now I don't have to struggle with needle noses any more.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Washed my car at work the other day. 










I picked up a bunch of random stuff the other day. 
The license plate holder is absolutely mint, all the screw holes are intact and the rear speaker covers have all the tabs intact, they're just a little dirty.










Old vs new ps reservoir caps


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I picked up an ATP test pipe the other day, so that will be going on soon :wave:


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Nice progress! Looking great dude. 

Its hard to tell from the pic, but it looks like that color might be sable brown, which is a stock, but extremely rare color. Special order only I think


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I guess that's what it is. I've never seen a b5 that color before but I seriously love the color. The guy my friend pick the car up from said he had another one the same color.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I put my test pipe on today. It was one of the most frustrating and annoying things I have done to the car. The bolts that connect the cat were completely rusted out. In addition to that it was in the tightest, most inaccessible place. I ended up having to take the cover off for the cv boot, then the entire trans bracket, and then some how work out cat with the entire exhaust still attached to it. I can assure you there was a lot of cursing involved. Luckily the O2 sensors and the nuts for the turbo came off like butter.

My general feelings toward then entire process.










Stock cat vs 3" test pipe










I noticed the spool up is much more even now and it now has boost all the way up to redline now instead of dropping off.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I welded a nice little plate over my already disintegrating flex pipe. This is only temporary until I get a new down pipe/flex pipe welded up. That and this ****er will throw some sparks.










While I was under the car putting on my test pipe I noticed my skidplate hardware has been taking a beating.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Polished up the tips too. The only thing I don't like about the apr cat back is that it's way to quiet. even with the test pipe it's barely loud at all. I'll probably end up getting the resonator cut out.










The other day all the auto dim liquid leaked out of my rear view mirror and onto my hand. I'm pretty pissed since I just bought this mirror a few months ago.


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## gallhue (May 29, 2009)

What LEDs do you have for your rear plate


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I got them of super bright leds.com


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I swapped out the license plate bracket a few days ago and got new hardware for it. I also anti seized the bolts so they won't rust and get seized in there.










Obligatory sheetz picture with a nice mk3 in the background.










I went to east coast bash on sunday and had a blast. It makes me even more motivated to finish my s13.











Two ae86's at east coast bash. The one on the left was full on initial d spec and was even right hand drive. I thought smelled a hint of tofu too .


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The other day I was at sheetz and this older guy (maybe 45-50) started talking to me about my car. I was talking to him for a bit and he was saying how much he liked my car, which I thought was really cool. Right before he leaves he waves me over to his car and hands me this mix tape. That was definitely one of the weirdest things I've gotten because of my car haha.










If you're wondering what kind of music was on it, it's a bunch of like latino rap and reggae. Esse I be bumpin fo realz


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I finally got around to wrapping my disgusting headliner. I chose to go with black suede this time and it turned out amazing. On top of that the fabric was half off so it was $10 a yard instead of $20 a yard. I got 3.5 yards and that was enough to do wrap pretty much everything. I did go back the next day to buy another yard and used that to wrap one a pillar, I could have gotten away with just the 3.5 yards if I measured it out a little bit better. 










Everything was gross and dirty. 










Finally took this turd off my rear window. It's probably a gps tracking device so that the previous owners always know where I am so they can steal the car back once I'm done with it. Or it's just for a satellite radio, who knows.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The disassembly continues. 










Turns out my windshield was replaced, and whoever did it sucks at their job. Seams sealer was over flowing out of the sides and was actually stuck to the fabric on the a pillars.










I trimmed it down so it doesn't look like poo and so it didn't interfere with the a pillars anymore.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I actually got these triangular pieces out, with out breaking them!
I scuffed them down with scotch brite and then painted them black.










Everything out.










Took the whole sun roof out to get the visor out. I hate doing this part more than anything. I was really trying not to break any of those plastic sliders but unfortunately ended up breaking one of them during reassembly. It still works fine and there's no noise when I slide it so I guess it's fine


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The b pillars are ****ing disgusting. I cleaned them with purple power multiple times and yet they're still sticky. I think the PO smoked in car, even though there isn't a hint of smoke smell in it. I plan on getting s4 b pillars but I had to have everything done in two days to be ready for a show I was going to. 

Before cleaning










After 










I did paint them black after this but I don't have a picture of it in the process. I still need to get a full shot of the completed interior.


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## Johns00 (May 25, 2013)

Where'd you get the headliner so cheap? What thickness foam did it have?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Wrapping the deck.










I got all this done in two days after working 10-7 both days. I worked until 2:30 am both nights and then up until the last minute to get it done right before the show I was attending that day. It was a lot of work but it definitely paid off. I'll get some full shots of the interior soon.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Hanging out at the meet. It was small little meet but was still pretty fun. 
Except that there was a fight, and then the cops had to show up and all the drama that went along with that. 










I took first place for best static car there! 
I mean almost everyone else was on air but it's still a good feeling to win something for my car. 
And the trophy was really cool.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Did some maintenance and upgrades yesterday. 
Oil change with rotella t6 5w-40
new coolant expansion tank
zimmer man 312mm rotors 
TT carriers 
Hawk HPS pads 










Comparison of the new rotors vs stock


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Stock










Upgraded 










The brakes feel amazing. The pads are definitely worth the money as well. It's been raining for the past two days so I haven't had a chance to properly test them out yet but so far they are so much than the mushy stock set up I had before. 

I also found this, which I now have to take care of. It's not leaking air so that's a plus but I need to get it fixed as soon as possible.










Also found my inner cv boot is torn. Luckily I caught it before it started clicking so I don't have to replace the OEM axle with chinese piece of garbage. The boot is already on the way from germanautoparts so it should be here tomorrow or the next day.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Johns00 said:


> Where'd you get the headliner so cheap? What thickness foam did it have?


I got it from Joan Fabrics, it's like a chain fabric/arts and crafts store. It actually didn't have any foam on it, it was just the fabric.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Shot of me during limbo. I was surprised I was keeping up with cars that were on air lol. 










I tied with this girl with bagged blob eye wrx for 3rd place and we did a clown car challenge as tie breaker. I managed to fit 14 people in my car but she some how also fit 14 people in her wrx. We then settled it the only way we could... Rock, paper, scissors. And unfortunately... I lost. But I didn't really care becuase it was fun 










Sitting fender to lip with the help of 13 other people lol


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## BOOSTADCT_B5 (Mar 4, 2015)

congrats on trophy:thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

BOOSTADCT_B5 said:


> congrats on trophy:thumbup:


Thanks man! :thumbup:


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Nice work really digging the set up. :laugh: about the mixtape


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Looking good man, did you swap the 2.8 doors onto your 1.8?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Nice work really digging the set up. :laugh: about the mixtape


Thanks! I keep the mix tape in my car now. Never know when I'll need it :laugh:



NeedingAnAudi said:


> Looking good man, did you swap the 2.8 doors onto your 1.8?


Yeah I did, that's why I still have that chrome strip along the window. I was planning on either just vinyl or swap them for 1.8t trims. But I kind of like them, but I guess it looks a little goofy just being on the doors.


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

You can always remove the chrome strips and install 1.8 black strips. It's a little tedious but the reward is worth it.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Yeah I need to get around to doing that haha


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## thepirate (Jun 6, 2008)

I kind of don't mind the chrome just on the doors. haha


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

thepirate said:


> I kind of don't mind the chrome just on the doors. haha


Me too haha. I'm debating on whether or not to keep it or not. I actually really miss my chrome trim from my 2.8. I thought it went really well with my wheels and broke up all the black towards the top of the car. I do see a lot of cars with just the trim on the windows like this so I don't know. Eventually I'll get the 1.8t trims though so it's all the same. 

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Picked up a new coolant reservoir a week ago. I installed it when I did my brake upgrade but forgot to post the pic.

New vs old










Here's a picture mid cv boot change. 
I hate axle grease so much. But luckily I caught it before it started clicking so I don't have to put a ****ty autozone axle in.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally took some pictures of my interior today. I still need s4 B pillars and s4 visors to finish it off. What sucks is that the back of the headliner is sagging a little because the suede isn't really stretchy, so it's pull taught and lifted up off the foam headliner. Shouldn't be too hard to fix it I just wish I didn't have to lol. 










The rear deck turned out awesome. I even got oem speaker grilles and painted the little hooks that bolt the deck to the body.










s4 grab handles










Painted the airbag plastics on the A and C pillars. And didn't break any tabs this time!










I also took out the triangle piece that surround the small window and painted that black.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Neat shot from a few months ago. I need to start working on this car more. All my time has been going into my 240sx build.










Small glimpse of my 240sx project. Been welding in tubs/shaving the bay, tucked wiring harness, paint soon and much more. 
If you want to take a look I made a thread on zilvia for the car. There's still so much work to do!

http://zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=585885


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Brought my car into the shop at work to vacuum it after my shift one day. I love how it looks under all the florescent lights.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Cut and polished my car recently. 
I used Meguiar's 105 cut, 205 polish and then Meguiar's gold class wax. I could still spend a lot more time on it but the inital pass made a world of difference. It took out a ton of the tiny scratches in the clear and really shined up the car. I plan on going back again and working on more of the problem areas.










Before










After


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## BOOSTADCT_B5 (Mar 4, 2015)

Looks awesome


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Had to buy new led license plate bulbs since they were going bad and flickering like crazy.

This is just a comparison of LED (left) vs incandescent (right)










I also lowered the front down 3 more threads.
I'm sitting at 22.75" in the front and 23" in the rear. I might go a little lower, I don't know yet :laugh:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I finally got around to using a wet vac on the car. 
It was pretty cheap to rent and I got it from Weis, but I'm sure they rent them at any other large grocery store branch. 










Before (even thought I did the front)










After










I scrubbed the whole carpet and mats with a bristle brush and carpet cleaner too. The water was disgusting afterward, and I consider my car usually very clean. 
It really cleaned up the interior of the car and just makes everything feel a little bit cleaner.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

On to more cleaning I polished the barrels of the alphards with a dual action polisher and Meguiar's 205 polish. I wanted to get rid of all the brake dust stains and just general dirtiness.
It worked pretty well, I wasn't able to get all the little dots of tar off. I mean I could have but I wasn't about to spend 6 hours picking away at every little spec of dirt just so it can get dirty again the next day. Then I waxed them afterwards to help with cleaning and keep them shiny.

Before



















After










You can see theses are all little turds of tar and I could have gotten them all off but I didn't really have 6 hours to devote to picking off dirt only I would notice. Maybe one day I'll get around to it 









Then I just waxed the faces too.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I wanted to modify the cigarette lighter to have two usb's in it and still be able to close. I ended up just finding a slim usb charger off amazon for $10.










And it closes perfectly!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Yesterday I made a nice little discovery. I was rerouting breather lines and such to get my pod filter all situated. I pulled off the turbo inlet pipe and all that to make room for what I was doing. Out of curiosity I wanted to look at the turbo and check for shaft play. I look at the tag on the front of it and there it is.... K04. Well ****. I've had a k04 on the car this entire time and I never knew :banghead:. It has stock injectors though and I'm unsure of the specific tune now other than it is an APR Stage 1 tune. He did give me the apr booklet and has a receipt from a shop that installed the tune for him, so now I have to dig through that. It's weird though, because the PO never mentioned anything about turbo nor does he have any receipts for it. But at least I don't have to buy a $800 turbo now. And yes it is a borg warner turbo, I checked the numbers on the tags.

So now I need to get some supporting mods for the k04.
-find out what tune I have and if I have to get a tune for a k04
-fmic (I can feel it get heat soak when I rip on it for a while)
-injectors
-fpr?
-upgraded downpipe


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

This is one of cars the owner of the BMW dealership I work at has. He has probably 6 or 7 of these mini 1300's 
I don't know too much about these cars but it looks amazing.


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## Wisco (Nov 7, 2011)

Brennan610 said:


> Well ****. I've had a k04 on the car this entire time and I never knew :banghead:]


Goes in to find shaft play...finds K04. Why doesn't that happen to me :laugh: :thumbup: :beer:


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Check out the tread stone fmic on audizine. It's a nice part that was designed to fit behind a4 bumpers


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Cleeeeeeean:thumbup:

Just casually finding a K04.....:laugh:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Cleeeeeeean:thumbup:
> 
> Just casually finding a K04.....:laugh:





Wisco said:


> Goes in to find shaft play...finds K04. Why doesn't that happen to me :laugh: :thumbup: :beer:


I know right haha. I've had the car 8 months and never knew haha. It did have a little bit of shaft play but I think it's fine for now.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> Check out the tread stone fmic on audizine. It's a nice part that was designed to fit behind a4 bumpers


Thanks :thumbup:, I'll have to look into that because I don't want to hack the **** out of my bumper and I don't have money for an s4 bumper. And I definitely don't want to run an rs4 rep bumper.


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## MetalMan1 (Dec 19, 2011)

Pretty sure you'll still need to hack the crap out of the stock bumper (including aluminum crash bar) to make the TR18T fit properly. You will need to for any decent FMIC besides Racetec.


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## RodgertheRabit II (Sep 13, 2012)

Brennan610 said:


> Thanks :thumbup:, I'll have to look into that because I don't want to hack the **** out of my bumper and I don't have money for an s4 bumper. And I definitely don't want to run an rs4 rep bumper.



Nice find on the K04. Get some 630s and tune the crap out of it. and no, 630s are not too big. Firey Hot little turbos love a little extra fuel.

I have a MINT APR FMIC kit gonna post for sale soon...PM Me:wave: Its all 2in pipe with a very efficient intercooler. Its been on My PagParts BT set up for a while and no heat issues. just changing up the bay.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

MetalMan1 said:


> Pretty sure you'll still need to hack the crap out of the stock bumper (including aluminum crash bar) to make the TR18T fit properly. You will need to for any decent FMIC besides Racetec.


I guess it's inevitable haha. 




RodgertheRabit II said:


> Nice find on the K04. Get some 630s and tune the crap out of it. and no, 630s are not too big. Firey Hot little turbos love a little extra fuel.
> 
> I have a MINT APR FMIC kit gonna post for sale soon...PM Me:wave: Its all 2in pipe with a very efficient intercooler. Its been on My PagParts BT set up for a while and no heat issues. just changing up the bay.


Just pmed you. :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I've been doing a lot of work to get ready for waterfest in the next couple days.

I finished my heat shield.

When I first made it I cut it too short so I had to extend it. I used some rivets which look better than a bunch of bolts. I plan on getting some heat tape and covering the side next to the turbo. 
I used a piece of aluminum sheet I picked up from lowes and some aluminum bar as well, that way it won't rust. 
I was surprised the heat shield actually made a significant difference in air temps.





































I put some rubber hose on top to clean it up a bit too.










How my bay sits currently.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I regapped my plugs down to .28.
In the picture they are at .36 which they were originally.










I also picked up one of these bad boys the other day. No more scratching up my wheels.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I lowered the whole car down 2 more threads. I need to remeasure the gtf now.










Noticed I've been banging a little bit.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I have 2.8 doors on my car because I swapped them over when I got the 1.8t. I never swapped the chrome trim because I was lazy and I sort of liked the single line of chrome trim. Well I wanted it to all match and got tired of the chrome. I was thinking about getting some vinyl tape to wrap it in to hold me over until I actually got 1.8t trims. I got to thinking I saw some electrical tape and it was the perfect color and size, so I just went with it. It actually turned out really well, I put it on yesterday so I'll have to see how well it holds up but right now it looks awesome.



















I also had to redo the back half of my headliner because it was starting to sag. (first time I ever had a headliner sag on me) 










I should be getting my s4 visors in the mail today or tomorrow so my interior should be completely done before waterfest :wave:


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## P Q (Feb 4, 2009)

see you there looks good


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## thepirate (Jun 6, 2008)

Very clean dude :thumbup::thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

P Q said:


> see you there looks good


Thanks man! I saw your car there and it's looking gorgeous as always. I didn't see you around it or I would have said hi. 




thepirate said:


> Very clean dude :thumbup::thumbup:


Thanks, that means a lot! :thumbup::thumbup:


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## P Q (Feb 4, 2009)

thanks man


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

So I haven't updated this in a long time. Nothing to exciting has happened recently. 
I finally bought some s4 visors to complete my interior. 










The next day we went down to waterfest. 










Had some fun and met some cool people. 
The only big downside was how hot it was. It was pretty much 100 degrees out both days.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Then the internet arrived and I saw CactusAvant and his brother, both of which are super cool dudes. :thumbup:










I also got parked next to MarcMiller. Cool dude as well :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Looks like my brand new coolant over flow is developing some hairline cracks on the inner layer. It's not leaking or anything but something I bought a few months ago should not be doing this. Should have just bought OEM. :thumbdown:










For a while my car felt like it would lose boost at around 4500 - 5000 rpm. Then I noticed a hissing noise somewhere in my bay. I finally found the issue!
This hose had a tiny hairline cut in the corner of it.










This is what it looks like when it is spread apart. When there was no pressure on it you couldn't even see the tear.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The car was down for the count... again. This time it wouldn't start. After hours and hours with a multimeter and even a new starter it turned out to be a faulty ignition switch. Which I just replaced 6 months ago! 


















New starter










Putting this in was a huge pain in the ass

The reason I replaced the ignition switch in the first place was because I thought it was causing my car not to shut off when the lights were on. But that didn't fix it and I don't know exactly what that issue is. I'm thinking it has something to do with the cruise control/light switch stalks. But that ignition switch was brand new from german auto parts (thanks!). 
I ended putting the oem one, that I took out previously, back in and started up just fine. 


Also on a side note the main reason I like buying from ecs (apart from their costly shipping prices) is that they actually list the brand of the product, the manufacturer number and their site as a whole, is much nicer to use. Germanautoparts fails in all three of these categories and I still don't even know what brand the ignition switch I got was, all it says on their site is "ignition switch".


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Then it was time to say my goodbyes. I'm going to school in philly now and bringing my car would be more of hassle than it was worth. 
But on the bright side this will give me time to clean up some stuff, do some more maintenance and get it to be 100% for next spring. 
Big plans for this winter!:wave:

Last wash right before I left. 










All wrapped up in my oem car cover. Thanks again fortitude!


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## P Q (Feb 4, 2009)

want that cover:banghead:


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## Mikemcdonald403 (Mar 10, 2015)

I saw your car at Waterfest this year, we parked only a few rows over. Unfortunately i wasn't able to bring my B5
You have a very clean car. I'm looking forward to seeing it in person again, especially now that i know the time put into it. 

This being the second B5 build thread iv'e came across in the past couple days that are similar to mine, its tempting to make a thread for my car. Maybe soon i can make the time for it.


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## King_Life (Jul 25, 2014)

Brennan610 said:


>


Sweet car cover! I want.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Mikemcdonald403 said:


> I saw your car at Waterfest this year, we parked only a few rows over. Unfortunately i wasn't able to bring my B5
> You have a very clean car. I'm looking forward to seeing it in person again, especially now that i know the time put into it.
> 
> This being the second B5 build thread I've came across in the past couple days that are similar to mine, its tempting to make a thread for my car. Maybe soon I can make the time for it.


Thanks man I really appreciate it! You should make a thread! It's really cool being able to see the progress you made all laid out in order. I really wish I took more pictures and made a thread when I got my first b5.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

King_Life said:


> Sweet car cover! I want.





P Q said:


> want that cover:banghead:



I was so fortunate to win it when fortitude was doing a give away. It's so nice and I actually have a good reason to put it to use now haha. Even though I don't get to drive my car


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## King_Life (Jul 25, 2014)

Brennan610 said:


> I was so fortunate to win it when fortitude was doing a give away. It's so nice and I actually have a good reason to put it to use now haha. Even though I don't get to drive my car


got a high rez of that photo? want it for my background.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

King_Life said:


> got a high rez of that photo? want it for my background.


Which one?


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## King_Life (Jul 25, 2014)

Brennan610 said:


>


A high rez of this one.


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## Mikemcdonald403 (Mar 10, 2015)

Brennan610 said:


> Thanks man I really appreciate it! You should make a thread! It's really cool being able to see the progress you made all laid out in order. I really wish I took more pictures and made a thread when I got my first b5.


Maybe when I get the extra time, I can use that time to get more pictures together haha.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I went home the other week for labor day. It's weird driving when you haven't driven in 2 weeks. And very very depressing. I hate not being able to drive haha.



















Inside shot of the car cover. It looks kind of cool.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Cruising with my buddy earlier this summer.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

H2Oi is in a week and you know what that means? The car is broken! Haven't touched it in two weeks and I come back to both tie rod bushings completely split and the power steering rack leaking fluid like crazy from one of the inner seals. The tie rod ends I don't really care about, but I'm seriously pissed about the rack. I just put it in 8 months ago and now it just randomly goes on me. I'll be getting a new one as soon as possible from rack doctor, so we'll see how that goes. But I decided I'm just going to suck it up and still go to H2Oi, I already have a hotel booked and everything, **** it. 

Completely shot. These were just fine two weeks ago. My only guess for these is because it was sitting, even though I don't consider sitting for 2 weeks a very long time. 










This is where the leak is coming from on the rack. This was the same exact place as it was before when I first did it. I don't see how having it sit would cause this to go bad. I feel like lowering can't put that much strain on the rack because it sits above most of the suspension components. I could be wrong, but that's just my thoughts on it. 










These were untouched when I put them on this spring. :laugh:










My "skidplate" for my flex pipe. I had to do this to get me through this summer. Next spring I plan on getting a new exhaust from down pipe back to a 14816 magnaflow muffler fabbed up to replace the apr exhaust. The APR exhaust will be up for sale next spring as well. It's extremely nice quality it's just way to quiet.


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## P Q (Feb 4, 2009)

Brennan610 said:


> These were untouched when I put them on this spring. :laugh:


these are grinded down flat on my car lol


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## alexandermjoyce (Feb 24, 2011)

Where are you going to school in Philly?

I want one of those OEM covers - where'd you snag one?
:beer: Alphards are cool.


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## P Q (Feb 4, 2009)

word on the street is finding that oem cover is like finding a 1 owner b5 s4 with 5k miles on it


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## crazexr7 (Nov 10, 2011)

I found an OEM sedan cover for sale on craigslist in NY for 10 bucks. He didn't want to ship though so it was a no go. Hell of a deal to whoever picked it up though. 

I'm thinking about buying an OEM one for my avant on Amazon but I think they may be out of stock right now.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

alexandermjoyce said:


> Where are you going to school in Philly?
> I want one of those OEM covers - where'd you snag one?
> :beer: Alphards are cool.


I'm going to temple. I actually got the cover from a give away that fortitude was doing. I guess I just got lucky haha. 




P Q said:


> word on the street is finding that oem cover is like finding a 1 owner b5 s4 with 5k miles on it


I've never seen them for sale used before. I looked them up on Audi's website and it's like a $300 cover.




crazexr7 said:


> I found an OEM sedan cover for sale on craigslist in NY for 10 bucks. He didn't want to ship though so it was a no go. Hell of a deal to whoever picked it up though.
> 
> I'm thinking about buying an OEM one for my avant on Amazon but I think they may be out of stock right now.


$10! That guy had no idea what he had! I would definitely pick up an OEM cover. The quality is extremely nice and it fits perfectly for the car. I have a $60 universal cover for my 240sx and it doesn't even compare to the Audi one.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Brennan610 said:


> I'm going to temple.


I'm at Penn State, and I'm still mad you guys beat us in football lol

I need to find a cover for mine as well. It just sits at home now


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Got home from school earlier this week for thanksgiving. 
I pull off the cover and find some real nice key marks. Great....










I had to do some work on my sisters b5. Her rear strut towers pretty much fell apart.



















The whole back was literally gone. 
Luckily no one has been driving it since she has been away at school.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I figured this would be a good time to get my timing belt done. The previous owner said it was done but I would rather just do it my self and make sure everything was done the correct way.










Also going to be raising the car up and putting on my snows to get ready for winter.










In the garage and ready to get some work done.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The parts are coming off.



















After breaking one star bit and then stripping them out I had to drill out these core support bolts.










Everything stripped down.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Then I found out that even though my vin is a late model awm vin the motor is an early model awm. 
So I ended up getting the wrong tensioner and roller.  Luckily germanautoparts' warehouse is close enough to my house that I get items shipped in one day. 










While I was waiting for parts to come I took the time to clean some stuff up in my bay. 
I started with the power steering reservoir. 

Dirty.










Cleaned. 










I also replaced the lower pressure line with some hydraulic hose to replace the heater hose I was using before.
I don't have pictures of it but I cleaned the intercooler hoses and diverter valve and used a brass wire wheel to get off some of the corrosion on some of the aluminum brackets.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I got this oil cap seal for a couple cents. 










I also did the oil cooler seal because I know they are known for going bad.










Then I started work on the intercooler pipe/support. I was really rusty and looked awful.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

This is what I was dealing with.










Midway through grinding.










Then I coated the whole thing in por-15.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I painted some other stuff while I was there.
Crank pulley
Powersteering pulley
A/C pulley and tensioner
Serpentine belt tensioner
Alternator

Before










After










Before










After


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Before










After











Powersteering pulley and A/C tensioner










I also painted the pulley the clutch fan bolts too.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Looking good man, I need to do the same thing to that bar that holds the snub mount and stuff on my car too, once I get my car running again. Good call on the oil cooler seal. Mine went bad randomly one morning before I went to school last year and oil spewed everywhere.....


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Looking good man, I need to do the same thing to that bar that holds the snub mount and stuff on my car too, once I get my car running again. Good call on the oil cooler seal. Mine went bad randomly one morning before I went to school last year and oil spewed everywhere.....


Yeah I figured I would just do it and get it over with before having to deal with something like that.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

After a day and a half of waiting I got the new tensioner and roller and then I could finally start putting things back together. 










I painted the lower timing covers with por-15 too.










Belts are on 










Put the core support back on, it's starting to look like a car again!










Put the air ducting and rerouted a new low pressure line for the power steering.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Filled it up with only the best. Oem g12 and distilled water.










Bleeding the coolant and just have to reinstall the headlights.










Raised it up and put on my winter wheels. I'm ready for the snow!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The work that was just done includes
-timing belt
-water pump
-thermostat/gasket
-serpentine belt
-ac belt
-oil cap gasket
-oil change (Rotella T6)
-oil filter
-painted all the pulleys and intake/snub mount support
-greased the polyurethane snub mount
-raised the car 
-put on winter wheels/tires

Work that needs to get done.
-replace powersteering rack
-new tie rods
-get an alignment
-reattach driverside s4 side skirt


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Back from school now that the semester is over. 
Got a lot of work done yesterday. 
-Power steering rack (rack doctor)
-tie rods (lemforder)
-serpentine belt tensioner (meyle)
-A/C belt tensioner (meyle)

Got everything laid out.










Tie rods and tensioners










I'm pretty impressed with the lemforder tie rods. They look pretty solid and they even came with all the hardware to install them. And they are made in Germany which is a big plus.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Tie rods threaded on










My 10 month old reman rack. :thumbdown:
It was leaking out of every seal. Shows the quality of rack doctor. 










Old tie rod boots completely destroyed.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The workshop 










Rack is in and bled, now it was time to take care of the tensioners.











Old A/C tensioner VS the new one


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

New serpentine tensioner in.










It's so nice having power steering again. This is one heavy ****ing car so every parking lot was a struggle. 
The rack works well so far and hopefully I won't be replacing it again next year. :banghead:
I honestly would not recommend rack doctor to anyone. The only benefit is that they are pretty cheap, but I guess you get what you pay for. I bought the rack in December of last year. It worked great up until the week before H2Oi. I let the car sit for maybe 2 weeks since I was at school and I come back and the whole rack is leaking. It's coming out both sides and would drain the whole reservoir of fluid in a 15 minute drive. I thought **** it I'm still driving down to H2Oi anyway, and surprisingly I had no other issues other than not having power steering. After all that I give rack doctor a call asking if I can get a replacement since I've only had it for 10 months before it started leaking. They said they would replace it but I would have to pay shipping if I wanted it replaced. I guess it's not the biggest deal but I didn't even have the rack for a year before it completely failed and making me pay shipping on top of that seemed like an extra **** you since I also have to buy new tie rods, put the rack in and now pay to get the car aligned. I would think if a power steering rack, an item that should not fail for years, fails with in the first year then I should get a new one free of any charge.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally put my s4 side skirt back on since it fell off. I really need to paint these this summer and get s4 lower trims.










My brother got me the Porsche oil cap for christmas. What a guy :wave:.










I'm planning on powder coating the valve cover and intake manifold this spring.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I haven't posted in here in forever. 
I have two weeks of class left until I get to start working on this thing again. I'm excited.


----------



## ajd5 (Mar 25, 2003)

looking good.


----------



## rockbeau25 (Sep 28, 2014)

just read start to finish, incredible work :thumbup:


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## clarkson (May 1, 2009)

Just read through this and will be following! 

Sent from my ONE E1005 using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

ajd5 said:


> looking good.





rockbeau25 said:


> just read start to finish, incredible work :thumbup:





clarkson said:


> Just read through this and will be following!
> 
> Sent from my ONE E1005 using Tapatalk


Thanks guys! :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I picked up a few small parts at the junk yard the other day. 









This head light clip is $80 from the dealership. I got it for 50 cents.









I also picked up both fuse panels because I cracked them by taking them out before.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I snapped a few photos the other day.


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## alexandermjoyce (Feb 24, 2011)

Brennan610 said:


>



I'm always going to love Alphards.


----------



## alexandermjoyce (Feb 24, 2011)

How was doing the steering rack? I picked up a reman. steering rack this week and I'm going to put it in - not really having problems driving but it's leaking all over.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Makes me want to go finish mine up.

Looks great man :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

alexandermjoyce said:


> How was doing the steering rack? I picked up a reman. steering rack this week and I'm going to put it in - not really having problems driving but it's leaking all over.


It's not too difficult, but I would recommend getting some of those really long extensions for a ratchet. That's the only way to get to the bolt that holds the rack on from the bottom. An extra set of hands is really helpful when putting the rack back in as well.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The other day built a full exhaust from the test pipe down. I used 2.5 inch aluminized steel pipe from summit racing. I also got some 45 degree bends, flex pipe and a really nice clamp. I used a magnaflow 14816 muffler and it sounds awesome and looks even better. 



















This is the start of the custom down pipe.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Close up of some of my welds. They're not perfect but I'm pretty happy with how they turned out.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

This is the full exhaust all welded up. 










It fit pretty well except the tips are a little crooked so I need to fix the hangers so that everything lines up properly. 
I'm pretty happy with the way it worked out and it was really fun building myself a custom exhaust. I'll have to get some sound clips soon.


----------



## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The other day I was vacuuming my car and my driverside carpet was soaked.... Great.
I pulled it up and there was a lot of rust residue and water.

This was after a light wire wheeling to see what I had to deal with. 
I was able to punch a tiny hole in the floor with a screw driver. Yay rust!










It wasn't really bad, it was pretty much contained to that small triangle section.

This was after more grinding and pushing with the screw driver.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I figured I might as well fix it so it was time to break out the angle grinder and the welder!

Cut out the rusted part.



















The welding was eh but it'll do.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I put a dehumidifier in the car and had it running for a day and a half. The foam under the carpet sure can hold a lot of water. 










Sprayed the inside and outside with a couple coats of undercoating.










All fixed :thumbup:


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Dang, I'm surprised that rusted through so badly. My floor was soaked a while back.... I'm afraid to look under the carpet now


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Dang, I'm surprised that rusted through so badly. My floor was soaked a while back.... I'm afraid to look under the carpet now


I think it was because the water has been there since I bought the car and god knows how long before that, I just never noticed it. I had a water leak like this happen on my 2.8 and it didn't do any damage like this. Just make sure those rain tray drains are clear!


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## GorgeousRandyFlamethrower (May 6, 2016)

Sick thread. Read from start to finish; Great work dude.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

GorgeousRandyFlamethrower said:


> Sick thread. Read from start to finish; Great work dude.


Thanks man! :beer:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I still have to fix the hangers to make my exhaust sit straight, you can see how it's slightly off. 










I love the tips on this muffler.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Did some measuring.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I finally got the license plate lights so that I was able to put on my 96 trunk.

They had some kind of spray tint on them.











A little denatured alcohol and scotch bright took care of that.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I didn't want to cut the harness so I used wire connectors to attach to the lights and then I soldered the tips of the wires and stuck them in to the oem connectors. After that I heat shrunk everything to keep it all together.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I also had to replace my coolant temp sensor since it stopped working.
Quick easy job.










My pressure control valve broke a little while ago. I was able to pick one up from the junkyard for next to nothing and put it on today. 
You can see that I just put a hose in it's place temporarily.


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## Sycoticmynd29 (Jan 17, 2011)

Brennan610 said:


> Did some measuring.
> 
> http://i.imgur.com/oKfN5u1l.jpg
> 
> [img]http://i.imgur.com/ZQAz1yTl.jpg


What's your FTG like that?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

22 and 3/4 if I remember correctly 

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk


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## tesh0boy (Dec 7, 2009)

Clean car! I'm from the Allentown area and never see many b5's around. I remember seeing the car at cult last year or 2 years ago. I've got a 00 casa white 1.8tQMT with similar bolt ons. :wave:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

tesh0boy said:


> Clean car! I'm from the Allentown area and never see many b5's around. I remember seeing the car at cult last year or 2 years ago. I've got a 00 casa white 1.8tQMT with similar bolt ons. :wave:


Thanks! I'll be at cult classic again this year! Hopefully I'll see you there


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Brennan610 said:


>


That ass looks familiar.........


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## meloman (Mar 23, 2010)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> That ass looks familiar.........


If only I didn't run the rings.......


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> That ass looks familiar.........


The legacy lives on!


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## tesh0boy (Dec 7, 2009)

Same only without the car since it's at the body shop. I'll track the car down there I'm sure. If you see a guy with a bandaged up arm then that's me.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

About a month ago I cut and polished my car. The car cover put a lot of micro scratches in the clear coat from flying around in the wind.

Before polish.










After. 



















I also put a new drivers side axle in. 
Fun fact, napa has remanufactured axles that use the oem shafts and lobro joints. So it's all oem spec and it only cost me $66.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I tried replacing the center lcd in my cluster. It ended up not working out, which I'm still pretty pissed about. Now I don't know what to do because I really want to retain my mileage on the cluster. 










I replaced my clock spring because the horn wasn't working and the air bag light was on. I also have had this issue where I can turn the car off and pull the key out and the car will keep running, but as soon as I turn the lights off the car will turn off. I thought it was the light/blinker stalk assembly so I also replaced that. Unfortunately it didn't fix the issue. I'm thinking the previous owner must have messed with the wiring, that'll be a project for another day I guess.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I finally painted my s13 earlier this month and got it running and driving. After 3 years it's nice to finally have it on the road.


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## xdewaynex (May 25, 2009)

Clean S13, nice to see one thats not turned into a "drift missile" as the kids are calling them these days. Sucks about the cluster. Ive been wanting to send mine off and have it fixed, but will wait until I get my Golf done.


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## King_Life (Jul 25, 2014)

Brennan610 said:


> I tried replacing the center lcd in my cluster. It ended up not working out, which I'm still pretty pissed about. Now I don't know what to do because I really want to retain my mileage on the cluster.


Contact stephen Murphy on Fb or murph_129 on az to get a repaired cluster or to get yours repaired. Mileage will be easily retained.


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## MetalMan1 (Dec 19, 2011)

Brennan610 said:


> I tried replacing the center lcd in my cluster. It ended up not working out, which I'm still pretty pissed about. Now I don't know what to do because I really want to retain my mileage on the cluster.


Same thing happened to me.
I bought another cluster off Ebay, and swapped the EEPROM chip between the clusters which retains mileage information.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

MetalMan1 said:


> Same thing happened to me.
> I bought another cluster off Ebay, and swapped the EEPROM chip between the clusters which retains mileage information.


I didn't know this was a thing! Do you have any pics of which chip it is or do you know of any good write ups on it?


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## MetalMan1 (Dec 19, 2011)

Brennan610 said:


> I didn't know this was a thing! Do you have any pics of which chip it is or do you know of any good write ups on it?


Don't have any pics or info, sorry.
It's an 8-legged SMD chip, square in shape. Think it's on the front of the cluster, but I could be wrong...

Don't remember its part number either, however, if you see a chip which matches my description, you can take its part number and search on Google. You'd want to look for results containing keywords like "serial" and "EEPROM".

To replace it you need to either have a hot-air rework station, or use a product called "Chip Quik". And of course you need good soldering skills and a decently fine-tipped soldering iron to work with such a small SMD chip.


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## LameS4 (Apr 25, 2015)

Brennan610 said:


> I finally painted my s13 earlier this month and got it running and driving. After 3 years it's nice to finally have it on the road.



89? I had the same year in a coupe. I regret selling it almost daily hah. Props for keeping it clean:thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

LameS4 said:


> 89? I had the same year in a coupe. I regret selling it almost daily hah. Props for keeping it clean:thumbup:


Yup it's an 89. My brother and I swapped in a dual cam KA and got rid of the single jingle. I hate seeing thrashed up 240s and our goal was to keep it clean haha. Hopefully I'll own a coupe someday. :thumbup::thumbup:


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## 91tbi4.3 (May 4, 2012)

Looking good Brennan!


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## Sycoticmynd29 (Jan 17, 2011)

You still looking for S4 door trim?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

91tbi4.3 said:


> Looking good Brennan!


Thanks! :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Sycoticmynd29 said:


> You still looking for S4 door trim?


I actually just bought some the other day. Thanks though.


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## migaellefebvre (Sep 8, 2015)

Sycoticmynd29 said:


> You still looking for S4 door trim?


Do you have any!?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

It's been slow, you know how it is. 
I raised my car up a little bit and put my snow tires on in preparation for winter. 

Summer tires on.










GTF from the summer. 22.5" 










Time to lift that bitch.










Got the winter tires on. It's looking beefy.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

It snowed a couple weeks ago.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Here's my buddies b5 that I help him out with. They're twins!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

It's been sort of slow, but a lot should be happening this week.

Snagged a few photos over the past weeks.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I installed a 19mm neuspeed sway bar with poly bushings a few weeks ago. It's really nice and keeps the back end flat through the corners.
It was pretty rust when I got it, but a little work with the angle grinder fixed that.



















19mm (left) vs stock (right)


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I also picked up some 17x7.5 and 17x8.5 clk amg wheels for a steal the other day. 
They should be going on soon.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Nice :thumbup: Isn't a bigger sway bar like one of the best mods? Did you put on any kind of reinforcement brackets with it?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Nice :thumbup: Isn't a bigger sway bar like one of the best mods? Did you put on any kind of reinforcement brackets with it?


It really is. I don't have any reinforcement brackets yet.
I saw this on a 4.2 build thread on audizine so I might try and make these just like he did.


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## MikkiJayne (Jan 1, 2007)

I made something very similar to that to go with my 034 rear bar :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

MikkiJayne said:


> I made something very similar to that to go with my 034 rear bar :thumbup:


Oh nice, got any pics?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Got my tires mounted on my new wheels.
17x7.5 17x8.5 clk amg wheels


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## MikkiJayne (Jan 1, 2007)

Simple, but it stops any movement


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

MikkiJayne said:


> Simple, but it stops any movement


Nice! I'm going to have to make some of those soon.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Got my hubcentric rings for the amg wheels the other day.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Picked up an 034 map sensor flange for my intercooler piping. 










All welded up.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I had to reattach my A pillar because it was falling off. 
It's surprising how faded the suede got from only being on the car for a year or so, the rear deck is just as bad.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## vaglove (Oct 31, 2012)

Looks great! Those wheels are such a simple nice design that goes well on these cars


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

vaglove said:


> Looks great! Those wheels are such a simple nice design that goes well on these cars


Thanks! I've always loved mercedes wheels on b5s, especially the five spokes.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally got the fmic on. It was a pain in the ass. I had to cut a lot of the bumper and I'm not really digging the way it looks. Guess I'll have to get a S4 bumper soon.










I got the right size bolts for the bracket after I took this pic. The long ones were just for the test fit.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The s13 and the b5 both made it to cult classic. It was great to finally be able to show off the s13.


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## vaglove (Oct 31, 2012)

Looks so good


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

vaglove said:


> Looks so good


Thanks man :beer:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally replaced the exhaust manifold gasket, no more exhaust leaks.


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## pyongwonse (Oct 16, 2007)

love the wheels (I have the same ones). What tire specs are you running? I'm using 225/45 and still too chunky. I was thinking about going to 215/35 (or 30) next time :beer::beer:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

pyongwonse said:


> love the wheels (I have the same ones). What tire specs are you running? I'm using 225/45 and still too chunky. I was thinking about going to 215/35 (or 30) next time :beer::beer:


I actually have 215/45s all the way around. The wheels are 17x7.5 up front and 17x8.5 in the rear.


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## swansoner (Jun 28, 2016)

I guess mine are a little different, they still look damn close though. 18x8.5 ft and 9.5 rear

Sent from my VS988 using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## xdewaynex (May 25, 2009)

Looking good!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Haven't done a whole lot lately. 
Did some speaker stuff a few months ago that I forgot to upload pictures for.
Since I have 2.8 doors I have spots available to put in rear door speakers. 
Grabbed some kenwoods and put them in and then ran wires to a small 400 watt amp. 



















So I bought this amp for $30 on amazon, didn't even read the reviews, just went for it. I mean I didn't expect much from $30 but it is a real pile of junk. It emits white noise all the time and it changes frequency when you step on the gas haha. Kind of a fail but I guess it works for now.










Tucked everything into compartment in the back so it's all nice and tidy.

I also got this all in one sub from a friend. 










Not really happy with it either but it may just because I have it hooked up to a $30 amp. 
So my whole sound system sounds mediocre now. Oh well.
In the spring I plan on just getting a real amp and probably a new head unit and just call it a day.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

:wave:


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## vaglove (Oct 31, 2012)

Im so glad my car came with Bose. I dont miss the days of wiring for a good sound system. Its so tedious and then when you do all that work and things are junk its no bueno. Still nice looking because you do everything so clean like i try to  awesome job


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

vaglove said:


> Im so glad my car came with Bose. I dont miss the days of wiring for a good sound system. Its so tedious and then when you do all that work and things are junk its no bueno. Still nice looking because you do everything so clean like i try to  awesome job
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Thanks! My old car had bose and I miss it so much, it sounded perfect.


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## xdewaynex (May 25, 2009)

A friend of mine had recently bought and sold an all in one Kicker sub, the quality of it was garbage and the bass was real muddy. Im about to purchase a 5 channel amp to replace my 4 channel amp thats ran to the doors and mono amp for my 8" sub. Clean everything up a bit.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

xdewaynex said:


> A friend of mine had recently bought and sold an all in one Kicker sub, the quality of it was garbage and the bass was real muddy. Im about to purchase a 5 channel amp to replace my 4 channel amp thats ran to the doors and mono amp for my 8" sub. Clean everything up a bit.


I think I may do that too. I was pretty let down by everything I bought haha. I just want to buy some good stuff and never have to touch it again.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

My fitment is whack and I want new wheels.


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## xdewaynex (May 25, 2009)

Im running an 8" Skar Audio sub in a small ported box, sounds good. My friend ended up doing 2x 8" Massive Audio Hippos in a ported box and they slam pretty damn hard. I blew my second 12" sub and just got tired of the box taking up so much space in the trunk so I down graded. The amps are still taking up some room, so I figured Id change them out to a 5 channel at some point. 

Your rear fitment doesnt look bad, fronts just need spaced out.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Yeah I think I may just get a 8" sub. I want something minimal that won't take up to much trunk space. I definitely need spacers up front haha.


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## vaglove (Oct 31, 2012)

b8 s4 wheels would look sick on black imo, and have a nice flush fitment, no rubbing issues whatsoever. Or you could go with the classic ultrasport look 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

So a little update on my cluster situation. 
I failed miserably trying to put in a new LCD screen. I got a replacement cluster with a working screen, but the mileage read 187xxx as opposed to 145xx. In addition to that my tacho completely stopped working when I put in the new cluster.

I did a lot of research trying to figure out how to swap the mileage between clusters. As mentioned earlier in this thread there is a microchip known as the EEPROM chip on the back of the cluster. This is an 8 pin chip that contains the odometer. 



















It is the tiny chip labeled 93C68. 

With a little luck I was able to desolder the chip and transfer it on to the new cluster. 










New chip soldered on. 










Plugged it in and it reads my original mileage of 145xxx!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Now the tacho was still an issue. 
I was able to use a VChecker vagcom tool from a friend. This has the ability to adapt the new cluster to the car. 

The steps for adapting the cluster is as follows using a VChecker Pro. 

1: instrument
2: not can bus
3: adaptation
4: channel 0-255 (put in channel 60)
5 It will say not able to read/not functioning, just press the down arrow (the tacho will start to work), then press okay

This is what worked for me on a 2001 1.8t. 
My issues were non functioning tacho and the "engage clutch to start" message never went away. 
I'm assuming these issues were caused from swapping clusters from a donor car to mine. 

So now I have a fully functioning cluster again with a working LCD and correct mileage. eace:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I also had to deal with rodents eating my aem dry flow filter. Another $60 wasted :banghead:











I am currently redoing my head unit / audio step up once again so some updates will be coming with all that.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Went to cult classic and had a good time as always. 










Went with a good buddy that recently got a b5.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I painted my wheels right before the show just clean them up a little bit. 

And they're fore sale now too. 
$600
17x7.5 // 17x8.5
215/45/17 hankook v4's all around



















Good enough for a little spray paint


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally completed my sound system in my car. 

Got a new Kenwood 4 channel 600 watt amp. 
This fixed the white noise from the cheapo boss amp. 
Everything sounds crisp and clear now which is nice. 



















This amp is TINY. 

Stuck it right in the tool box slot. 










I also got a new Kenwood head unit (DDX375). 
It's bluetooth and touch screen and works pretty well so far. 
The only hang up I had was that it has a spotify app built into it so when it connects it puts spotify on your phone into "dock" mode. Which basically means you can't change the song or control spotify from your phone. 
The work around this is to turn off auto connect for spotify and then connect the phone as a "bluetooth device" and then you will be able to control spotify from your phone. You are also able to change songs play / pause straight from the head unit too which is nice.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Only been doing a few things here and there. 

Changed the oil and put a new oil temp sensor in and changed the oil. 










Turns out it was just a ripped wire the whole time. Oh well.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

After 6 years of running lamin x on my fog lights I decided it was time to take them off. 










I wet sanded my foglights while I was there. Not perfect but an improvement. I may go back and do it again to clean them up a bit more. 
I also got some yellow bulbs off ebay so they still light up yellow. 











Side by side comparison. Still not perfectly clear but a lot better than before.


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## crazexr7 (Nov 10, 2011)

Brennan610 said:


> After 6 years of running lamin x on my fog lights I decided it was time to take them off.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I have to do this to mine as well. It sounds like such a pain to polish those. I found an awesome DIY on how to get them looking really clear with sanding and some special glass polishing powder. Might be worth looking into too. 

https://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/e...3-diy-fog-light-sanding-refinishing-pics.html


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Woah! Thanks for this. I'm definitely going to look into it


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The other day I was driving and had my coolant warning light come on. Pop the hood to see the coolant tank is empty and I hear gurgling around the turbo side of the motor. I filled it up with water and made it back home. After it cooled down I found the source of the coolant leak. Turns out the turbo coolant inlet hose ripped. 










Here's where it ripped. 
(check that rusty wastegate )










So pretty much no one sells this hose aftermarket and the dealer price was a $120 for this little hose. 
I ended up going to the junkyard and snagging a hose for $4 and getting crush washers from the dealer for $2. Not bad.










Junk yard hose.










Had to pull the whole front of the car apart to replace this little hose.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## DUB0RA (Aug 10, 2007)

I had something similar happen to me with that same hose. The rubber elbow was resting on the side of the engine so it burned through the rubber and leaked. I tried replacing it in the service position but there was no way that was gonna happen so I did the same and pulled off the front end. So much work for such a little hose :facepalm: I didn't have the time to go out to the junkyard so I had to get a new one from the dealer and even with my discount it was still a pretty penny


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

DUB0RA said:


> I had something similar happen to me with that same hose. The rubber elbow was resting on the side of the engine so it burned through the rubber and leaked. I tried replacing it in the service position but there was no way that was gonna happen so I did the same and pulled off the front end. So much work for such a little hose :facepalm: I didn't have the time to go out to the junkyard so I had to get a new one from the dealer and even with my discount it was still a pretty penny


I feel you. It was so much work for so little pay off lol.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Bought a new lens for my camera the other day.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Dwaynepool (Jul 14, 2016)

Looks good


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Dwaynepool said:


> Looks good


:beer::beer:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Looking good man. What camera/lens are you using?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Looking good man. What camera/lens are you using?


I have a canon 6D and a 24-70 F2.8 lens. Really dig it so far.


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## DUB0RA (Aug 10, 2007)

^^^
I've been using the nifty fifty 50mm 1.8 and while i love using it, I need something more versatile to carry. Might have to pick one of these up :thumbup:


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## crazexr7 (Nov 10, 2011)

The shots look awesome as hell :thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

crazexr7 said:


> The shots look awesome as hell :thumbup:


Thanks man! :beer:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Sycoticmynd29 (Jan 17, 2011)

That sure is one pretty car


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Thank you :thumbup::thumbup:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

It was finally warm enough to take a few photos. Oh and I got new wheels. :wave:


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## wangerang (Jan 18, 2017)

Drooooool.... those are nice as hell


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

This looks so good. :thumbup: I was satisfied with my setup, but after seeing this, you got me looking for wheels again lol. Are they genuine OZ futuras? 18x8.5 or?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> This looks so good. :thumbup: I was satisfied with my setup, but after seeing this, you got me looking for wheels again lol. Are they genuine OZ futuras? 18x8.5 or?


Unfortunately they're reps, maybe one day I'll own some real futuras haha. They're Avant Garde M240s, 18x9s all around.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Brennan610 said:


> Unfortunately they're reps, maybe one day I'll own some real futuras haha. They're Avant Garde M240s, 18x9s all around.


They look great though :thumbup: I'd love some real ones someday too, but they are just so much $$$


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Nice! I had a set on my a4 for like a day lol


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

NeedingAnAudi said:


> Nice! I had a set on my a4 for like a day lol


You're making me realize how much I need to lower my car haha.


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## Jagla (Sep 21, 2010)

Car looks great Brennan! :beer:

Are you guys not going through wheel bearings like crazy?

I've been through 3 in 6 months... but I drive 100 miles a day 23" FTG.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Jagla said:


> Car looks great Brennan! :beer:
> 
> Are you guys not going through wheel bearings like crazy?
> 
> I've been through 3 in 6 months... but I drive 100 miles a day 23" FTG.


My front right wheel bearing is bad but I don't drive the car as much as you do. I have alway had issues with cv axles. The boots usually rip and sling grease everywhere.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

:wave:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally had time to fix the wheel bearing. It's been getting worse and worse over time. 




























I also need to order new tires for the AG wheels since the one of them are leaking at the bead and the tires are kinda beat. 
Them I'm going to lower it down and get some 15mm spacers for the front.

Also when I was doing the wheel bearing I noticed my power steering rack boot was ripped and the control arms have seen better days so that will be on the list for the future.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

Those uprights look way cleaner than mine lol. Did you press the wheel bearing in and out yourself? How hard was it?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> Those uprights look way cleaner than mine lol. Did you press the wheel bearing in and out yourself? How hard was it?


My friend had a press so I just used that. It wasn't that bad but it was really stuck in there. It took a lot of force to crack it but after that it was smooth sailing.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The car had issues starting and then finally would only crank and not start. I figured it was most likely the fuel pump and since I had the car sitting a lot it was probably worth it to change. After letting it sit for a day I was able to start it so the pump was fine and it was probably a clogged sock or fuel filter. I got a new pump for $50 off amazon so I put it in anyway. Car started right up but I knew I needed to do the fuel filter because I have never done it in the 5 years of owning it. 

When I did the fuel pump I noticed a lot of sediment in the area that fuel pump/cage sits. I sucked out some of it with a pump but I'm guessing there is more in there. 










I went to tackle the fuel filter and I'm greeted with this mess. 
The feed and return line are crusty and knowing my luck as soon as I touch them they will explode. 
I sucked it up and just bought brand new ones so that will get done this week. 










I also got some other stuff to freshen up the rear end.

Here's a cool pic of my car :wave:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally replaced the fuel filter and lines yesterday. 

Old filter










This was the gas that came out of it. I should have replaced this years ago










Old and new fuel line


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Everything back together.










I also replaced the fuel return line


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Both my rear calipers were seized so I decided to upgrade the rear to S4 rear calipers and rotors and do stainless steel hoses. 
Every hardline fitting rounded off so I had to reflare the main lines that go to the front of the car and remake the mid hard line sections. 

Cut all the lines off



















Everything back together










I bought new calipers from autozone for $66 a piece. 
Gave them a coat of paint so they wouldn't rust.

A4 VS S4 caliper










A4 VS S4 rotor
The S4 rotors are vented and slightly larger


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Also I bought another car. :laugh:










I'll be on the search for a 2.8 subframe if anyones got one.


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## CactusAvant (Jul 6, 2012)

This gives me flashbacks of when I did all this stuff too. My brake lines were just like yours - destroyed. Those were kinda of a pain haha.

I'm so jealous you picked up that A6. How many miles are on it? And how much was the car, if you don't mind me asking? I've been looking for a good parts car for a while now, and they all seem to have 175k+ miles, or are nice, running and driving $3k+ cars. 

Also, I believe you can use an S4 subframe as well. I just swapped my front subframe and did a whole bunch of research, and apparently, all B5 subframes are the same (despite small revisions that don't affect mounting points) except for the manual 1.8t. I used an S4 subframe and it accepted the 2.8 trans mount/bracket perfectly fine.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

CactusAvant said:


> This gives me flashbacks of when I did all this stuff too. My brake lines were just like yours - destroyed. Those were kinda of a pain haha.
> 
> I'm so jealous you picked up that A6. How many miles are on it? And how much was the car, if you don't mind me asking? I've been looking for a good parts car for a while now, and they all seem to have 175k+ miles, or are nice, running and driving $3k+ cars.
> 
> Also, I believe you can use an S4 subframe as well. I just swapped my front subframe and did a whole bunch of research, and apparently, all B5 subframes are the same (despite small revisions that don't affect mounting points) except for the manual 1.8t. I used an S4 subframe and it accepted the 2.8 trans mount/bracket perfectly fine.


I picked up the whole car for $450. It has 190k but the motor sounds really healthy. The guy was the second owner and the first owner was his brother who bought it brand new. He had all the og paperwork, brochures, window sticker etc. The torque converter went bad and then the drains in the firewall clogged and it fried the tcu and the body control module so everything was acting real weird. The guy just didn't want to put anymore money into it.
Also that's good to know about the subframes even though I have never seen a b5 s4 in a junkyard around me haha.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

This is the tcu from the c5. lol

I'm planning on starting the swap towards the end of summer. Just have to gather up all the parts so that it will go smoothly as possible.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Did a bunch of maintenance over the weekend. The goal was to stop any and all squeaks coming from the car. 

I started with the rear upper control arm bushings. Both sides were shot and the car started to sound like an old squeaky mattress over the smallest bumps. 










Not looking too hot.




























All replaced


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I also swapped out my front hawk HP2 pads for a set of stop tech street pads. The hawks work really well but unless you want your car to sound like a school bus then I wouldn't recommend them for street use. 
I also had put a new front hub on the passenger side because the threads were starting to strip out. I blame it on over tightening them too many times so now I use a torque wrench when I put on my wheels. Since I was there I also changed out my wheel bearing as well. 
The car is completely squeak free and it drives super well now. The only thing I really to do next is all the front control arms because they've seen better days.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I finally did it. 
Only took 4 years but I replaced all the chrome 2.8 trim on the doors with black 1.8t ones. 










Got all the trim from a mint car in the junkyard. 










The chrome trim is held in with metal rivets so you have to drill them all out. 










The 1.8t trim is actually held in with these little plastic clips. I was able to save all the ones from the junkyard. 










Now I can finally check that off the list.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## wangerang (Jan 18, 2017)

Dumb clean 



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

wangerang said:


> Dumb clean


Thanks! :beer:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

:wave:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

It's been a minute. Trying to bring this thread up to speed. 
Back in the summer I pulled the v8 out of a6 that I bought. 



















I pulled the core support, wiring, ecus and anything that I might need for the swap. 

The I scrapped the shell. 



















How I left it


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

How the motors been for the past few months. 

I also snagged an entire 6 speed swap. 



















Last time the car drove before I pulled the 1.8t at the end of November.


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## NeedingAnAudi (Feb 3, 2011)

Oh sh*t, now I feel bad


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

In the time that I pulled the V8 I moved shops and I also have been two other b5s in the background. 
The one is my daily that I've had for almost 3 years. I originally bought from my friend after he hit a deer with it. It's a 2001 black 1.8t and 5 speed. My intent was to fix up, drive it for the rest of winter and then sell it. After a few failed attempts at selling it I just continued to keep fixing it. This thing has had a lot of work done to it and over the summer it was starting to misfire really bad every time I started it. Went through all the possible misfire fixes and finally figured it was the bottom end. My plan was to take the 1.8t out of my nice car and throw it in the daily, but it turns out that one had a huge score in one of the cylinder walls. I ended up getting a VW motor and using the 06A block with all my b5 parts. It works, but it's not exactly the same as a b5 06A. 
Anyway, I'm working on finishing that up and it should be done with in the week. 









(How I bought my daily)









(How it looks now)

The second one is a 2001 black 1.8t avant that I bought last year. It had a bad auto trans when I got it but everything looked fairly clean and stock when I bought it. 
This car was supposed to be a quick flip and I was going to sell it to my sister to replace her 98 b5 sedan. 
Instead it turned into a ****ing nightmare. In the past year I have put 3 automatic transmissions in it and finally manual swapped it over thanksgiving this year because I was fed up with putting auto trans in it. 
Also after I put the first transmission in I did the timing belt and all the other normal maintenance stuff. After 100 miles the idler failed and bent all the valves in the head. Don't ever buy a timing belt kit from rock auto lol. I ended up going to the junkyard and scoring a head for $75 and slapped that boy on. 
Now after the manual swap the car has been running pretty well and I've been driving it while my other two b5s are down.









(When I bought the avant)

Honestly I should have taken photos of all these projects but you live and you learn I guess.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

It's kind of crazy to think I got my first b5 9 years ago and I still love these cars. I mean they've been broken for about 9 years straight, but I still do love them. 
I think when the V8 is done I'm going to look for an S4 to replace my daily, but who knows. :wave:


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)




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## xdewaynex (May 25, 2009)

Sounds like youve been staying busy. Car is looking great. Im still debating on what Im doing with my B5, even though I have several items for it just sitting in the garage, but a lot I still need to purchase to finish everything.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

xdewaynex said:


> Sounds like youve been staying busy. Car is looking great. Im still debating on what Im doing with my B5, even though I have several items for it just sitting in the garage, but a lot I still need to purchase to finish everything.


Thanks! The V8 swap plus all the other things I want to get done are starting to add up hah.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Over the past month or so I've been making some progress on the V8 swap. A lot of time has been spent waiting for parts to be honest. 

I started with stripping most of the motor down and cleaning it. Everything was cover in a thick layer of oil. 




























All clean










I also got some new o-rings and pintle caps for the injectors since I broke a few when I took the fuel rails off. 
I got this whole kit for $15 on ebay.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

New diaphragms for the intake manifold. 
I found these on amazon for $60 a piece. OEM these hundreds of dollars new. Crazy. 










Waiting on the cam lock bar to do the timing belt.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

While I was waiting for other parts I figured I'd knock out the heater core.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

The engine bay currently.










I'm relocating my abs module to the battery tray. 
When I had the dash out I rerouted the abs plug up through the abs box. I just have to find a grommet solution to keep the water out. 










I power washed the 01E and the diff. 



















Does anyone know if S4 rear axles will fit into an 01 rear upright? 
The A4 inner cv's are too small for the S4 rear diff.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I took the time to notch my s4 subframe. I've heard conflicting info about having to do this or not, but I figured while it was out I'd might as well just do it. 
From what I understand, if you use A4 mounts it will sit the motor up high enough to not have to notch the subframe but it puts the driveshaft cv's at an angle where they could wear out a bit faster. 
If you use the A6 mounts then you have to notch the subframe but the motor should sit at the right height for the driveshaft. 
Again take this with a grain of salt because I found this info on some pretty old 4.2 swap threads. If I'm wrong, feel free to chime in.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Here's my S13 project that I've been working on with my brother for the past 5 years.


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## xdewaynex (May 25, 2009)

Coming along pretty good. When I was growing up, I remember my neighbor having a mint maroon S13. Always like those cars.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

After way to much work, 3 transmissions and a manual swap I'm finally selling my avant. 
It was supposed to be my sisters car but now that it's manual she doesn't want it.


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## Jettaboy1884 (Jan 20, 2004)

The Avant looks great, it's a shame to let it go (assuming you haven't by now).

Just curious why does it look like it is sitting so high in the rear? Even a non-sport suspension doesn't quite look that tall. Are the tires slightly lower profile?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Jettaboy1884 said:


> The Avant looks great, it's a shame to let it go (assuming you haven't by now).
> 
> Just curious why does it look like it is sitting so high in the rear? Even a non-sport suspension doesn't quite look that tall. Are the tires slightly lower profile?


It was a good car and I sold it to someone who will give it some love, but it was a struggle getting it on the road and reliable. It had went through 3 auto trans missions, a full manual swap and a snapped timing belt due to faulty parts among a ton of other things. 

As for the rear suspension, it was just a non sport car. Not sure why it seems taller in the rear. The wheels are 15s and it could just be how it was parked when I shot the photo, not really sure.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I've been working away for the past few months trying to get everything on the car perfect before the motor goes in. A lot of time has been spent on fixing rust an restoring portions of the car. A lot of "well I'm already here, so why not" type work has been done. 

These photos start at around the beginning of May. 

Pulled the oil cooler off to replace the little plastic fitting with an aluminum one.




























Painted the rear sway bar and brackets


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

This is when I started to do the timing belt/water pump/thermostat. 



















Everything was going well until one of the waterpump bolts snapped.










Tried to drill it out and royally ****ed up. 










Started to clean it up to see what I was working with.










Smoothed it out










Luckily one of my friends TIG welds for a living. 
He was able to help me out and fix my little mistake. 










Good as new 










It's a tiny bit porous but it should be fine. I put a heli coil into the block and everything tightened down nicely. I also put some grey rtv on that area just for good measure.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

With that catastrophe avoided, I got back to some more maintenance. 

Rear main seal cover gasket. 










I also picked up some 034 egr block off plates. 










I couldn't find just the rear main seal with out the whole cover and the whole cover/rear main is $300+. 
Fingers crossed it doesn't leak. 

Cam tensioner gaskets










Timing belt back on. 










Finally all back together


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Picked up an oil pressure sensor










Rebuilt the only oem axle that I had. I bought new ones for the rest. 




























Axle seals on the 01E.



















I also did the seal where the trans meets the driveshaft. 
It was a little more involved than I thought when I ordered the seals, but it went over pretty well.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

So this is where I got side tracked and started taking care of the rust on my car. They car originally was from NY and up until 2 year ago has been driven year round so it was a little rusty in spots. 
First, I focused on the trans tunnel. It wasn't too bad but I wanted to take care of while everything was apart. 

I don't have any before pictures, but this is after hitting it with a wire wheel. All the little dots are where rust was beginning to form.



















I used SEM rust mort on the bare metal to neutralize all the rust. 










Then I used etch primer and seam sealed it with SEM seam sealer. 
Next time I seam seal I'm definitely going to use tape to have cleaner lines, but all this is covered in heat shields so eh.










I'll have to follow up with a photo, but I coated everything with POR-15 so it's all nice an black now.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

While on the topic of rust, I decided to drop the whole rear subframe and spruce it up a bit. I don't have a ton of photos of this so use your imagination. 




























Gas tank heat shield










Again, I have to follow up with some after shots. But I think it turned out pretty nice. 
I also got new rear brake hard lines from rust free junk yard car and got all new clips for the lines in the rear. I also got new rear tie rods and sway bar endlinks.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Finally got my intake manifold and valve covers powedercoated. The black looks really good. I wish the intake was a little more silvery in color but overall I'm pretty happy with it. 



















My brother 3D printed my a plug for where the abs wiring runs through the firewall. 










I also bought the JHM shifter trio for the 01E. 
I've wanted this ever since I bought a b5 and its nice to finally get a hold of one. 

This brings us up to the current day. 
I'm now trying to tackle something that has bothered me about the car for long long time. I used to jack the car up by the pinch welds all the time (stupid I know) and completely mangled the **** out of them. 
For the last few years they have been a rusty thorn in my side that I cover up with S4 side skirts. In addition to the pinch welds the little pocket area about the pinch welds are a little rustier than I would like.
I'm in the process of fixing them now and if all goes well, I'll be able to share some photos soon.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

My brother and I have zero self control picked this up for stupid cheap lol. 
:wave:


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## Jettaboy1884 (Jan 20, 2004)

Awesome progress, you've made a lot of headway!

What are the plans for the box van? Mobile Bike repair? And how tempting is it to lower that thing?


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

So these photos start around August. I decided to tackle the rust in my car and surprise surprise, the floor repair I did a few years ago did not hold up to well. This is mostly due to not painting it correctly. Turns out undercoating in a can from Lowes kinda sucks. 
Moving on I cut out it all out. 



















Luckily my friend had a b5 shell that was going off to the crusher soon so I was able to cut out the section of the floor I needed to make my repair. 










In process of welding it in. The sheet metal was super thin at this point so welding was eh.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

This leads me to my pinch weld repair. 
I don't have a lot of photos of this, but I drilled out the reinforcement plate for the actual pinch weld to uncover the rust hole beneath it. 
I debated for a while wether to cut out an even larger section and try and make a seamless repair or just cut out the rusty bit and weld in a plate. Ultimately I decided it just wasn't worth it and a little above my skill level. 

This brings me to the photo of that repair. Which honestly I'm not super happy with. But it is what it is. 










Moving on to some seam sealer. I used SEM black seam sealer. This stuff rocks. It's super nice. 



















The repair looks better with primer.



















Here's a flattering pic of it with seam sealer. Noice


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Next up, drive shaft. I replaced the center bearing with the 034 replacement and I regreased the cv's on both sides. 




























I don't have a lot of photos of this so just use your imagination.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I heat wrapped my brake lines and p-clipped them up under the false firewall. 



















Progress on my rain tray setup.











And finally I put the motor and trans into the car. Woohoo


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

This is a little bracket that I made for a MK4 coolant reservoir so it can sit in my rain tray. 
It got welded to the battery tray along with the abs module bracket. I'll post up some photos of it all completed soon. 










It's got some riv nuts because they're the bees knees.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Now we're getting to some recent stuff. 
I made custom 2.5" down pipes with v-bands. These were really fun to make and not super difficult. Honestly the worst part is rolling around on the ground trying to tac these things in place. If I had a lift it would have been 100x easier. 










This is my mid pipe section that I made. It goes from two 2.5" into a 3". Another v-band is going on that 3" piece and then I'll build the rest to the muffler. 
I got all the pipe from summit racing, including that Y piece. It's all aluminized steel piping.










Painted the downpipes with heat resistant por-15. We'll see how it holds up but they look nice so far!



















I heat wrapped them to protect my brake lines and power steering lines from melting.


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## xdewaynex (May 25, 2009)

Nice progress!


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

I finally got the car running and driving the other day. 
Took it up the block and back but it felt like quite the achievement. 

Something shakes very violently at 40mph. Thinking it may be the driveshaft is not balanced correctly or something is loose. 

Maybe I'll get this thing back on the road soon 😬


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## Jettaboy1884 (Jan 20, 2004)

Congrats, that's a big accomplishment!

Did you mark the orientation when you split your driveshaft to change the carrier bearing? The assembly (front and rear portions) are balanced as a whole.

Also, I'm sure you know this but it is possible to assemble the CV joints with the inner and outer races not clocked properly, which will basically cause it to bind almost immediately once off-center. I found that one of my driveshaft CV's was assembled wrong in the past, and once it would heat up it would bind and vibrate horribly.


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## Brennan610 (Nov 16, 2011)

Jettaboy1884 said:


> Congrats, that's a big accomplishment!
> 
> Did you mark the orientation when you split your driveshaft to change the carrier bearing? The assembly (front and rear portions) are balanced as a whole.
> 
> Also, I'm sure you know this but it is possible to assemble the CV joints with the inner and outer races not clocked properly, which will basically cause it to bind almost immediately once off-center. I found that one of my driveshaft CV's was assembled wrong in the past, and once it would heat up it would bind and vibrate horribly.


Thanks! 
I did mark the drive shaft when I did the center bearing but I have a feeling it's unbalanced or I just put it together wrong.

That's good to know about the cv joints. I remember when doing this I had a really tough time getting the cv back together after taking them apart to grease.

I'm going to take the driveshaft off and see what's going on there.


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## Jettaboy1884 (Jan 20, 2004)

There are several good videos, but I liked this one on how to assemble them properly:


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## Kim KurbRashian (Nov 25, 2013)

Nice ride! Was always partial to b5 s4's!


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## mikelstudy (2 mo ago)

Looking good





Speed Test​


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## WellChecked (25 d ago)

This photo honestly indicates how bad the rock chips are at the the front of my vehicle.


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## Darepoole (Sep 3, 2019)

WellChecked said:


> This photo honestly indicates how bad the rock chips are at the the front of my vehicle.


What?


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