# Boulderhead's Big Turbo Roadster (BBTR)



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*This is a build thread / work in progress*

*This thread took a different direction and I ended up going with a hybrid setup instead of a BT*

Table of Contents

Cluster Teardown
Waste gate spring mod
ECU, Cluster, and RFID (key) swap
Short shifter install
Billet injector cups install
Front mount intercooler
Catch Can install
ECS Ultimate dogbone mount
Install Rear springs shocks and lateral links
Removing front suspension
Manual boost controller install (n75 delete)
MTX-L Wideband O2 and Gauge Install
Haldex Service
Waterfest 2013 Drag Times
Powerflex Strut Bushings & Adjustable sway links
034 Motorsports big port manifold install
Mishimoto Radiator Upgrade
TyrolSport brake stiffners
Baseline Dyno run on APR tune
GTS Hybrid turbo swap
Wideband conversion
42 DD turbo back install / Defcons / front & rear sway bar upgrade
Hi All, I came into ownership of an 01 TT225 Roadster black on black with 92K mi. 

The top end had been rebuilt around 72K as the previous owner broke the timing belt. Water pump and normal goodies were replaced as well. A new ragtop was installed a year go as the OEM back window fell out.

The 2 hour ride home after buying the car was a bast! The following morning I was off to have the APR stage 1 software tune. I also did new plugs and Forge DV to replace OEM. That day I took a 150 mile road trip and threw my first of several P1128 codes. Over the next week (every 100 miles or so I would get a CEL)... Which made sense.. More boost is going to push the already weakened vac system beyond the limits 

I have since ordered silicon to replace all stock vacuum lines and will smoke check when everything is back together. Also have an in-vent boost gauge on the way to keep an eye on what is going on under the hood easier.

The car had the broken glove box (which was easily fixed for free with a screw I had laying around)... and the pixelated LCD syndrome. I have removed and disassembled the cluster to replace all guage motors and the LCD panel with brand new components I sourced on the web. I should have that back together by the end of the week and will post the results when done.

Updates so far include:
Stage 1 APR
Forge DV
42 DD intake

While this info above doesn't pertain to the long term goals I have for this car.. It helps set the stage for where it started The car is really fun to drive and gets great MPG on highway.. But sometimes "fun" just isn't enough 

Over the next year or two the plan is to upgrade the cooling system, suspension, brakes, fuel delivery, differential controller, built motor, big head, big intake manifold, exhaust and then turbo... Pretty much in that order. 

The details will get filled in along the way and documented for all to see, but my goal is to top 400 WHP and still maintain an OEM look.

I appreciate all visitors and advivce any experienced vets have for someone on my journey. Stay tuned and thanks for dropping by.
-Tony


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## panakamana (Feb 13, 2011)

Got same car, same year, same color combo... but mine is big turbo already...

I wish you luck on this journey you will suffer sometimes but in the end it will be worth it.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Some quick photos*

Cluster teardown:














































LCD Panel:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Thanks mate*



panakamana said:


> Got same car, same year, same color combo... but mine is big turbo already...
> 
> I wish you luck on this journey you will suffer sometimes but in the end it will be worth it.


Thanks bro.. I am looking forward to it. 

I enjoy spending time working on cars as I don't do it for a living so a bit of frustration down the road is just part of the experience. With so many folks willing to share what they have done now a days, it makes life much easier


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## jbrehm (May 16, 2006)

Despite your very misleading and disappointing thread title, I welcome you to the 'Tex. 

Care to share the details on the cluster parts/rebuilding? I'm fairly certain that 100% of TTs will eventually have partial to full cluster failure.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Thread title / cluster*

Hey bro.. Sorry for the disappointment.. Any idea how to edit the title so I can say "work in progress"  we all gotta start somewhere right??

In regards to the cluster pulling it out is quite easy. I have purchased new motors for speedo, fuel, eng temp, engine speed. 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Audi-TT-Ins...Parts_Accessories&hash=item2a1d7cf14a&vxp=mtr

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Audi-TT-Ins...Parts_Accessories&hash=item27c901c424&vxp=mtr

I also ordered the replacement LCD panel which is pixelated on most vehicles.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/LCD-Display...Parts_Accessories&hash=item58946b1171&vxp=mtr


I will take a soldering iron and heat up the old connection to remove th bad LCD and clean everything up. Then it's some flux and a quick zap of the solder gun and the new LCD is in. Plug the new guage motors back in place to cluster subframe, add the face and needles, and close the outer shell back up 

Will take plenty of pics and post any issues I run into.


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## jbrehm (May 16, 2006)

Click on the _Edit_ button in the top right of your first post, then _Go advanced_.

I didn't think it would be as simple as searching eBay; I figured you actually had to search electronic suppliers for a suitable replacement. Good to hear it's easy to fix - I'm sure plenty of us will be buying those


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Motors shipped*

It let me edit the title of the first post but not the actual thread itself... Oh well.

I wasnt expecting it to be that easy either. Just got an email the motors have shipped! LCD panel should be in this week too, would be nice to have it back together this weekend. Supposed to be in the 70s which is a bit rare this time of year in the northeast eace:


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## Doooglasss (Aug 28, 2009)

A note on the cluster rebuild-- I actually tried to do this with unsuccessful results. I bought a new gas gauge motor, installed it and had the exact same issue I did before- it would inaccurately read when the tank was empty.

Apparently it's the firmware flash that goes bad on the circuits- not the motors. A lot of these rebuild companies just re-flash the software and everything works great.

For $160 I sent my cluster out to module master to have everything fixed except the LCD screen. If you can do the solder work on the LCD screen you might not want to advertise publicly on Vortex (only due to forum rules) but I bet a lot of people will get in touch with you for affordable screen repairs!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Cluster Feedback*

Hi Doug, thanks for the feedback and for stopping by. History will most likely repeat itself.. so I will start searching around the web in regards to the software flash to see how it's done  I am always up for a good challenge!

I'm certainly not trying to break any rules, and want to tread lightly.. so let me start by saying I am documenting this for the good of the community in hopes that others can benefit from my mistakes :banghead:

Soldering will be the easy part... not breaking those plastic connectors on the cluster subframe and gauge motors is a different story all together :screwy: Still waiting for shipping confirmation of the LCD panel.

Cheers
-Tony


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## Doooglasss (Aug 28, 2009)

Welcome by the way Tony :thumbup:

Yeah I broke the plastic subframe clips during my second attempt at repair and that's about when I gave up.

The software that re-builders use is- VagTacho. There are others I have written down somewhere too. I was talking with Gavin @ Module Masters and he was very helpful with my rebuild and re-program which became a drawn out process.

Your end goal sounds like my car now. Big turbo, big power, looks pretty much stock on the outside. My advice is do a lot of reading and don't cut corners, oh and a perfect tune makes a world of difference between blowing up a motor and having a reliable running car.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Feelin the vibes!*



DougLoBue said:


> My advice is do a lot of reading and don't cut corners, oh and a perfect tune makes a world of difference between blowing up a motor and having a reliable running car.


:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Thanks Doug, I plan to take my time and use the wisdom of others to avoid catastrophic failures. A lot of great information on these boards, and while my post count is low, I can promise you my "read" count is in the thousands!! 

This is a pleasure car, and not a DD, so the pressure isn't as great to move faster than I need to :beer: I don't know it all, I'm not a mechanic by trade, I owned a 2.8 A4 for about 4 years and did lots of work on that, but a complete rookie when it comes to the 1.8T setup. 

So far I like what I see in terms of the options for building a BT setup, and working on the car has been enjoyable.. Thanks for the support!


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## carsluTT (Dec 31, 2004)

nice work on the cluster, ill be doing the lcd in both my cars soon.


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## cgeromi (Apr 30, 2006)

Welcome Boulderhead to the wonderful world of German engineering ownership. Some times you'll want to cry and other times you will rejoice! :laugh:

Just remember, you gotta pay to play my friend.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Thanks / Quick Update*

Thanks Cgeromi & carsluTT for the positive vibes.

I just ordered my Ross-Tech cable last night and should have it by the end of the week, along with all the other components I need for the cluster rebuild. Im an Apple guy so last night I installed Win 7 along with Parallels and the VCDS software package.

Just for kicks, I bought an $15 OBD2-USB cable online to compare the usability / functionality between that and the official Ross-Tech cable.

Supposed to be a rainy and chilly weekend here in the northeast, which sounds like a perfect time for some indoor electrical work  Might be able to get my new crank breather hose installed as well if the rain lets up and FedEx makes it here on time... If all falls into place I might even get a chance to take her for a spin Sunday before the games start


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Cluster back together*

Hi guys.. need a bit of help understanding what I did here. I spent an hour this evening putting the cluster back together. I am hoping this is something folks have seen before.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcKtEo8INKk

Basically when I connect power to the cluster and I get everything to light up and then things start going crazy! It almost feels like a power issue (inconsistent, or shorting) 

When I first connect power to the cluster I see everything light up including the full LCD panel eace: but no data in the displays it seems as I have either toasted the circut board or some security stuff I am missing.

I can't crank the car over as I have some engine components removed.. Do I need to get a new cluster???

Thanks guys


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Circuit Board*

So I tore everything back down to the circuit board (getting pretty good at it.. didn't break anything). I never took an electronics course, but I think I see the problem (dealing with the solder job I did). Looks like two lines leading back into the LCD panel got crossed up.

The pic below shows a chip that gets really hot in a short period of time when I hook the power up to the cluster. Also the two capacitors above get very warm as well. Shouldn't it atleast show a diagnostic OK or something like that if the board is still in good shape and I give it power? Currently it just lights up and then looks like it starts tripping out...:screwy:










Time to get another cluster and try again?


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## FatAce (Jan 30, 2012)

seems like an immobilizer issue.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*??*



FatAce said:


> seems like an immobilizer issue.


Can you elaborate? What makes you think it is immobilizer rather than a crappy solder job on my part? I dont know much about immobilizer, so I just want to see what brought you to that conclusion..

I should have tested the cluster stripped down to see what the old LCD did when plugged in like that.

Live and Learn.. Happy Friday Everyone :beer::beer::beer::beer:


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## jbrehm (May 16, 2006)

SMT soldering is not easy. Desolder all the SM stuff, and try again. Hopefully the none of the ICs are fried.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Short Circut*



jbrehm said:


> SMT soldering is not easy. Desolder all the SM stuff, and try again. Hopefully the none of the ICs are fried.


No kidding.. prob not the best way to try and learn soldering in the first place.. but hey I never had a need to learn before.

So I took my lunch break ripping the brand new (very poorly made from ebay) LCD panel out which is now toast.. Kinda glad in a way because the face was all plexi that looked like someone took sandpaper to it to make it looks anituqed.... I looked around last night and found a much high quality display for around 100.. 

Still contemplating whether the circuit board can be salvaged or I need to start fresh with a new (used) board. This circuitry is so intricate it might take me a few boards until I get it right. 

On to the good news.. After I cleaned everything up on the board and plugged it back into the car.. the cluster isn't freaking out and no more heat from the capacitors and chip on the back eace: Sure the LCD panel won't have any power and some of the backlighting behind the Tacho are now caput, but it should function.

Keep you guys posted on what I plan to do.. might look into repairing this board first and see how much more damage I can do.

BTW.. got my Ross-Tech cable and successfully installed and ran VCDS on my Mac using Parallels and Win 7.. WooHoo!!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Boost Gauge in... Need Boost!!*

Ending the day on a positive note.. have a great weekend all.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Fuel Trim / O2 Adaptation issues = Limp Mode*

Hi All, just this Friday I got my updated silicon breather hoses (034 MS) to replace the stock ones that were needing replaced.

I cleaned the instrument cluster up enough to make it usable... All the important stuff works (tach, fuel, temp, and speed) and I will start searching for a used cluster to replace the one I botched. Once I find a replacement I can use the current one as a test unit.

I had to make a nice trip this weekend (around 300 miles) so I fueled up and hit the highway. 30-40 miles up the highway I went into limp mode and couldn't push past 5 lbs. Maybe 10 miles later the boost was back all on its own.. and I was peaking close to 19 and holding steady at 15. Another 15 miles and I was back into limp mode and it didn't come back.

I pulled off to grab a bite, hooked up diagnostics, reset the P1128 and ran a couple 2nd gear pulls up to redline. All runs were close together so I just pasted one.

The MAF has been cleaned with CRC.

/min-----------g/s-------------%----------∞BTDC


2120-----8.81-----------6.7---------30.8
2160-----8.89 ----------6.3---------30.8
2160-----8.72 ----------6.3---------30.8
2160-----8.72 ----------6.7---------30.8
2160-----8.72 ----------6.7---------31.5
2400-----40.28---------92.2--------30
2800-----63.47---------97.6--------24.8
3400-----118.69-------100---------23.3
4240-----139.14-------100---------16.5
5000-----166.17-------100---------18.8
5680-----177.56-------100---------15.8
6240-----180.28-------100---------15.8
6720-----174.56-------100---------8.3


I have APR Stage 1 so almost 270HP should flow close to 220 g/s... however I never saw anything past the 180 mark, which is exactly 80% of 225. This may be a very silly question.. but the MAF doesn't have a limit on it governed by ECU?? Does this seem like a failing MAF, or a tuning issue?

I should note that when I check the O2 Adaptation I show very low results for idle (no vacuum leaks), but part throttle is 24% when it puts me into limp mode. 

On the way home I paid even more attention.... I first throw a P1128 -35-10 showing multiplicative lean, but only intermittently. This is what explains the short term limp mode. So the ECU decides to give me a second chance I presume. When I start pushing it again, it senses the problem (lean mixture) and switches the code to P1128 -35- 00 which just says Lean Mixture and I am knocked back down to 5 lbs of boost.

Any thoughts or recommendations? Hope everyone had a nice weekend, and for my fellow brethren on the east coast.. I hope power and water are restored for all those who were without.

eace:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Replaced Fuel Filter.. still limpy*

Well I ran out to get a fuel filter since they are cheap and the car still had the original filter (now pushing 12 years old). 

Took a drive this evening to have the car smoked for Vac leaks the professional way and of course it pulled hard the entire ride down without any codes. Ran the smoke test and everything checks out.. which is good since it backs up the numbers.

Just when I was feeling confident the dreaded 5lbs. boost limit was back.... Arghh!! Plugged in and VCDS was showing lean mixture code (not intermittent). Five miles later I found full boost again and the code switched to intermittent.

The last thing on the list is a new MAF.. Any thoughts folks?:banghead::banghead:

Have a great Monday night!


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## [email protected] (May 14, 2009)

Boulderhead said:


> Ending the day on a positive note.. have a great weekend all.


Looks good :thumbup:



Boulderhead said:


> Well I ran out to get a fuel filter since they are cheap and the car still had the original filter (now pushing 12 years old).
> 
> Took a drive this evening to have the car smoked for Vac leaks the professional way and of course it pulled hard the entire ride down without any codes. Ran the smoke test and everything checks out.. which is good since it backs up the numbers.
> 
> ...


MAF is done. Get a new one in there and report back. Have you done your primary o2 sensor yet? Good thing to do as well with a IAT and MAP sensor on the 1.8T's.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Thanks Noah / Time for some sensors*

Hi Noah, thanks for dropping by, showing some love and offering some words of wisdom. A big :thumbup: to you sir

I have only cleaned the MAF to date.. 

Judging by everything else I have touched and maintenance records (only was in dealer maintenance for 3 years with low miles) not much has been replaced on this one.

Ive read quite a number of posts and some very knowledgeable folks seem to recommend buying MAF from the dealer to avoid DOA units. Should the same caution be exercised with the other sensors? Will be sure to let you know how I make out.

On a side note.. looks like I found a good working cluster to replace the frankenstein I created :vampire:


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## [email protected] (May 14, 2009)

Boulderhead said:


> Hi Noah, thanks for dropping by, showing some love and offering some words of wisdom. A big :thumbup: to you sir
> 
> I have only cleaned the MAF to date..
> 
> ...



Personally I prefer OEM sensors, rebuilt Bosch sensors are good too. Congrats on the other cluster find :thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Life after new MAF... is sweet *

Alright all... I got in touch with one of my favorite local parts suppliers World Impex down in Cockeysville MD (started doing business with them about 8 years ago when I bought my '96 2.8 A4). I drove down today to pick up the MAF (OEM Audi sensor, even though it has a Bosch housing). 

Anyway it does look a bit different from the core I left behind.. has more screens on the housing, who knows if the sensor is any different?? The part numbers were the same on the housing.

Ran a full scan before I took the old sensor out and cleared the MAF low signal code (due to being disconnected for the last 40 miles)... I shut the car off, walked inside with the intake and swapped the sensor while they rung me up. 

I should note that my 02 adaptation is still high during part throttle but has been falling since the new MAF was installed. I have about 30 miles on the new MAF and I must admit... I think I have been missing out since the APR upgrade I paid for a month ago... no fault of the shop. Flow is nice and even...

/min g/s
1400-------	2.81
2160-------5.44
2080-------	5.42
2200-------	39.89
2520-------	60.56
2920-------	96.81
3440-------	123.61
4000-------	146.72
4600-------	163.39
5000-------	177.08
5480-------	182.36
5840-------	182.72

Power is now smoooooooth and pressure at the intercooler will peak 2300 mbar and hold steady at 2150 during WOT. I no longer feel what I would call a "lag then surge" during hard acceleration. So far so good...

One question for the experts out there... if Part Throttle maintains a high adaptation rate should I look at replacing that sensor?

Thanks for everyone's input so far.. really a great community [email protected]!

Have a great night,
Tony


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## jbrehm (May 16, 2006)

Did you reset your fuel corrections when you cleared the MAF code? I always reset everything, do a TB alignment, and start fresh when I make changes to my car. Then drive it in a variety of conditions and check your fuel trims, and post what they are here.


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## [email protected] (May 14, 2009)

Tony, as stated above. Do a throttle adaption block 060 -> lower left corner press "switch to basic settings" allow to run for 1 min. Glad to see the maf sensor cleared up the surging and erratic flow readings.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Great day for cruising..*










For the adaptation process.. this is done with key on, engine off correct?

Hope everyone had a great weekend!


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## [email protected] (May 14, 2009)

Boulderhead said:


> For the adaptation process.. this is done with key on, engine off correct?
> 
> Hope everyone had a great weekend!


Correct :thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Some updates*

Hi guys, as recommended by Noah and Jeremy I cleared all codes, did the TB adaptation and made a run down to the office and back twice.. around 400 mi. Felt smooth and and I did both trips with the top down... who says you can't ride topless in sub 40 degrees?!? If the sun is out the top is down :laugh:

There are a few nice stretches on the highway where its clear to make sure all systems are in peak working order and I was topping out around 16-17 psi and holding around 14. Seemed OK, but felt like there was more there that I was missing out on. I could hear the damn WG was just bleeding off air. Seems to me that with the top down you can really hear whats going on under the hood unless your at highway speeds...

After reading a good bit on here I ran across a great thread started by a fellow named Max. Seems that the wastegate on our stock setups can greatly benefit from a couple hardware spring provide to keep up with software tune. The extra pressure blows the wastegate open and forces the turbo to work even harder to maintain requested boost when under hard acceleration.

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?5700226-Wastegate-Actuator-Spring-Mod

I have stage 1 APR 93 octane tune, and I believe the software knows what is a safe in terms of max boost... so what do I have to lose. I stopped by the local HD and picked up the kit ($7 and change)

I popped off the strut tower brace, removed the charge pipe and grabbed my springs and an orphaned washer sitting in my hardware drawer. I bent the one side of the spring that hooks over the vacuum line post. I then hooked one spring onto the post and then hooked the other one before pulling both back and slipping on the end of the adjustment arm (washer in between the springs and the nut on the arm.) Ran a can of seamfoam through the throttle body, waited 5 mins and then set out to see what two measly springs could really do 










Well let me tell you, they made a tremendous difference in my case. Power builds smoother, faster, and holds higher boost at WOT (20 psi). I have some pressure logs from before and after which are pretty interesting.... Have a look. I watched a couple spikes up to 22-23 psi.. I'm assuming this really isn't anything to be concerned about?

I have some readings that may help show the different the two springs made. 

Without Springs:





















With 2X 4.5 in Springs:










Shifting between 2nd and 3rd gear










Bottom line... slap two springs on your WG and be happy... thanks Max eace:


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Tony, 22-23 psi spikes are not high enough to be a concern in a 225 with a flash. Enjoy your great results! 

If you don't mind I'll copy and paste the relevant portion of your thread to the spring mod thread to share your logged results. :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Thanks again Max!*



Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Tony, 22-23 psi spikes are not high enough to be a concern in a 225 with a flash. Enjoy your great results!
> 
> If you don't mind I'll copy and paste the relevant portion of your thread to the spring mod thread to share your logged results. :beer:


Hi Max, thanks for dropping by, and I dont mind at all. In fact I am honored some of my information was good enough to make it in that thread :beer: Thanks for such a great simple mod & confirming those boost levels are safe... I'd hate to take the springs off!

Still trying to figure out the best way to post stats from VCDS since the tabs aren't preserved making the numbers a bit harder to read. 

Have a great weekend all, and make sure to put this mod on your list... you are really missing out if you don't.


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## jbrehm (May 16, 2006)

Glad to hear you got it running well! What are your fuel trims looking like?

The best way to post log data is in graph form. People are lazy - we want a nice, simple picture to tell us the story in a glance, rather than having to think about it. I'm sure in a few hundred years - about the time they remake Spiderman for the 700th time - all of the classic literature will be in pop-up book form :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Fuel Trims*

Hi Jeremy, the fuel trims are +3% (idle) and 14.3% (part throttle). 

I believe part throttle is still a bit high (don't we want to stay around 10% off 0??) Am I missing something about how the fuel trims are reset? No radio code in hand so I am a bit reluctant to just pull the battery connection for 15 minutes.

In the past anytime I threw a CEL for lean conditions and I cleared the codes and fuel trims reset themselves after the code was cleared. Basically I would read the code... check the fuel trims, and then wipe the codes while the engine was running. 

I have made sure to run the TB adaptation a number of times (key on, car off) and then wait a good minute... I notice that when the adaptation finishes (says OK and on step 8) it will hold at like 89.1 / 10.9 but after 30 seconds or so it drops to 84.8 / 15.2 at which point I click done and close the controller.

I will make sure to open the graph in VCDS in addition to data logging..... I can even run a screenflow to capture the range of activity without taking eyes off the road... glancing at vent mounted boost gauge during hard acceleration is enough distraction.

Hope everyone had a great weekend... been a gorgeous November here in the northeast and still warm enough for us with the drop tops to cruise topless


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Elevated Part Throttle Fuel Trims*

Hi folks, had to take a ride this evening and brought laptop along. I am now 19.5% with the throttle plate closed cruising down the highway and it will drop to like 14.7-16 under acceleration.

So still running lean, even though it does feel good and there isn't any hesitation or misfire detected. Any words of wisdom, or additional values I should measure?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Diverter Valve Logic*

Hope everyone's Turkey Day was relaxing and travel was safe.

I spent the second half of the day reading up on diverter valves (diaphragm vs. piston) and preferred methods on which way to install both. The day after I bought my car I had the stock 710N replaced with a Forge 008 when the software tune was being done. I haven't really driven with the stock diaphragm DV for more than 150 miles on a bone stock setup.

The Forge DV comes with 3 springs all rated for a different rating "pressure rating". The Yellow spring has been in the car since installation. This is where I am hoping for some clarification from the vets in the crowd.

Green spring = 5 - 15 PSI
Yellow = 15 - 23 PSI
Blue = 23 - PSI

If my understanding is correct... 

Vacuum created by the throttle plate closing in addition to the left over boost pressure on the charge side of the turbo are responsible for opening the DV. The quicker we depressurize the less disruption to the turbo system resulting in a quicker spool response when ripping through gears.

If the throttle plate is open is the spring force the only thing holding the piston closed? Or does the vacuum line on the top of the DV (that helps open) apply force to keep the piston closed as well?

If the vacuum line does apply closing force to the DV piston under boost then it would seem to me a weaker spring (Green) would crack faster when the throttle plate closes abruptly and we need to dump excess pressure. With the blue spring in place this logic would require more vacuum force & excess pressure before to crack it open after you lay off the throttle.

Anyone with experience on this subject care to chime in and advise on what spring / spacers should be used and more importantly why? I'm not only interested in my application, and didn't find what I would consider a definitive answer on the subject in general.

I recently applied Max's wastegate spring mod so I have been peaking around 23 psi and holding 20psi at WOT.

Cheers,
Tony


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Audio Solution*

Looking at one of these to solve my audio needs... anyone have one installed? What do you think?

http://enfigcarstereo.com/DENSION_GBL3AU2.html

Long night doing server maintenance so I need to do some parts shopping to keep me awake!
eace:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Requested versus Intercooler (Forge 008)*

Did some logging today... not really planned, just had the urge.

Air Temp: 35 F
93 Oct APR w/ 42DD intake
Wastegate spring mod via Max!

My Forge DV was installed when the software tune was done. The Yellow spring was installed since day 1 and I did happen to dig up some threads in the 1.8T technical forums on this subject. Anyway.. here are some tests I ran. FYI, if you want to run tests like this and plan on hot swapping the springs do yourself a favor.. use gloves and go pick up a dozen 4mm .70 pitch ( 10 mm long I believe). Needless to say I dropped one and luckily had the stock DV with me in order to make it to the hardware store. If this was more complete with each spring and spacer combo I would have lost a lot more.. and frankly the ones I got from the hardware store are better than what comes with the unit


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Complete Immo Swap*

































































Only problem... car is slow again with stock ECU :thumbdown: Limited to 1 Bar


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*New ECU flashed*

Went down and had this new ECU flashed today so life is good again... now what to do with with my old Immo 3 system which has an APR flash on the ECU


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Winter mode..*

After stacking 4 cords of wood to get through the rest of the winter I pulled front bumper, headlights, and IC hoses and piping. Any suggestions on what to replace with since previous owner liked curbs a little too much?



















Got a number of things being ordered this week some maintenance, others a bit more fun.. It should start to get interesting again


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## deepblueT (Jan 26, 2008)

Boulderhead said:


> After stacking 4 cords of wood to get through the rest of the winter I pulled front bumper, headlights, and IC hoses and piping. Any suggestions on what to replace with since previous owner liked curbs a little too much?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


i have a factory bumper with Reiger lip laying around that i don't need. no cracks, would need prep and paint to match your color.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Interesting*



deepblueT said:


> i have a factory bumper with Reiger lip laying around that i don't need. no cracks, would need prep and paint to match your color.


I just checked and you only like about 60 miles from me. Wanna shoot me a PM with what you would like to for it? I would like to maintain OEM look... any pictures of bumper with the lip?


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## deepblueT (Jan 26, 2008)

PM sent with pic


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*H&R Coils*

Just got these bad boys delivered to the doorstep today. 










I think a set of Defcon 2's along with some MadMax adjustable rear links and H&R front and rear bars are next

Going to order OSIR clear corners and on the fence about the LED DRLs that I saw on Wak's website. Sure are pricy, but I love supporting small business ventures like that. Have a great weekend all :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Ordered a few things..*

Removed all the original IC hoses and SMICs in preparation for a Forge FMIC.



















Painted valve cover with high temp stove paint.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Some more goodies on the way.*


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## [email protected] (May 14, 2009)

Boulderhead said:


> Just got these bad boys delivered to the doorstep today.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



:thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Dogs..*

*Edit: Got it squared away
*
Hey Noah.. just shot you guys e-mail about an order I placed that may have been sabotaged by an errant dog paw


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*MadMax links in queue*

Adjustable links are in the works, and I am going to hold off on the sway bars until I get a chance to feel the difference with the coils / bushings / and links swapped out. Spring will be here before we know it


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Deliveries*

Always nice when the big brown truck stops at your driveway


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*New shift end links*

Well I didn't get very far tonight as I quickly realized I have the old style ball and cup shift end links which are not compatible with the short shift kit. Guess its off to troll the classifieds for a part out :beer: 

Oh well.. shift knob was easy enough.


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## PLAYED TT (Oct 17, 2010)

Just noticed youre in PA. Are you on my side or "the other side" :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*PA Brethren*

We aren't far from each other my friend.. I live in York county right where I83 crosses over the MD line. I was actually up your way last Thursday night / early friday morning driving a friend home. 

I guess there was some pretty wild trailer fire on RT 30 as they had the entire westbound side closed down and this was like 3:30 AM.


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## PLAYED TT (Oct 17, 2010)

Ok you're little over an hour south. The roads are way better down there :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

PLAYED TT said:


> Ok you're little over an hour south. The roads are way better down there :laugh:


Yeah, main roads would prob take you 222 South => 30 West => 83 South.. but you could do the scenic route and head down through Quarryville and amish land 

And trust me..we still have state roads down here that would chew your subframe up even more than it already is..:beer::beer: Cruising in northern MD is preferred as those roads are really nice and points dont transfer from MD to PA if you have a heavy foot :wave:


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## PLAYED TT (Oct 17, 2010)

That's true I'd probably have my license suspended in MD if I lived that close


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Can these be separated*

Spent some time searching the interweb last night without much luck. Does anyone know if these style shift ends can be serviced? Meaning can I get that ball out of the socket without messing things up too bad?









The forge kit includes this type of connector which makes me think its possible?


----------



## 20v master (May 7, 2009)

Yeah, it just pops out by prying. You'll want to upgrade to the post/clip style and get the approriate cable ends.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

20v master said:


> Yeah, it just pops out by prying. You'll want to upgrade to the post/clip style and get the approriate cable ends.


Thanks for confirming.. still waiting on my Bentley to hit my doorstep. I was going to try last night, but held off as I other parts on the way and was in no rush to break anything I didn't have a replacement for.

So far this is really all I coud find.. any other ideas where to source these other than a parts car?

http://www.034motorsport.com/chassi...-pair-density-line-mkiv-vw-speed-p-18370.html


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## 20v master (May 7, 2009)

Here :thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

20v master said:


> Here :thumbup:


Good ole E-bay I should have known better  Muchas gracias for the tip amigo!


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## 20v master (May 7, 2009)

:beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Thanks Max!*

Got a nice birthday present from our friend Max... Thanks mate! And yes these are the 225 version, Max painted them red for me to match the H&R coils :beer::beer: 










Also got the shift ends.. even they they are two different versions they will both work with the new forge hardware.


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Happy Birthday Tony! :thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Lazy Saturday...*

Thanks max! 

Today I Installed the forge short shifter and ran through the gears from inside the car to find out it wouldn't go into 5th. Selecting gears under the hood showed the new hardware needed some adjustments to allow clearance. 10 mins on the grinding wheel and I was in good shape, even though I had to take off a good deal of material for a "specialized" part.. Oh well  




























Removed secondary air tubing and N249 to make a bit more room under the bonnet and clean things up. Got new Forge hoses all around to replace OEM rubber which had a good life. I also have 42DD inline vacuum block so that will let me supply vacuum to all needed components in a cleaner more discrete fashion. 










Cheers all :beer::beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*TT for Super Bowl Tickets*

Have to admit.. the thought of selling the TT crossed my mind last night  with my Ravens winning AFC championship and heading to NOLA for the big show.. Anyone else in my predicament? 

What to do..


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*More stuff Delivered & Ordered*

Delivered: 


Defcons 

Billet strut covers 

Bentley manual 

coil pack harness 

haldex service kit 

Coolant overflow tank 

 

Ordered: 


ECS ultimate dogbone mount 

3-way coolant connector 

Phenolic Intake Manifold spacer 

SAI blockoff plate


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## Currancchs (Feb 24, 2011)

Car looks awesome! Don't mean to hijack this or anything, but curious as to how you're getting around the CEL for removal of the SAI system. I removed mine a while back and love not having the hoover vacuum sound on startup, but am starting to get concerned about pending inspection. I know APR will make it, for a fee ($150), so that the CEL doesn't come on due to this code, but not sure if the inspection station will pick it up during inspection anyways with a scan tool.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Resistance is the key*



Currancchs said:


> Car looks awesome! Don't mean to hijack this or anything, but curious as to how you're getting around the CEL for removal of the SAI system. I removed mine a while back and love not having the hoover vacuum sound on startup, but am starting to get concerned about pending inspection. I know APR will make it, for a fee ($150), so that the CEL doesn't come on due to this code, but not sure if the inspection station will pick it up during inspection anyways with a scan tool.


 Hey man, thanks for stopping by and glad you asked  

I have been doing some research and I have read some interesting threads with mixed approaches / results. Without getting too detailed, the ECU expects each component to report for role call when fire the car up. If you leave something unplugged the ECU will pick up on it and throw a code saying the component was absent, or didn't report an acceptable value. 

The amount of resistance the sensor is sending back to the ECU is what matters. For example the Fuel Sender in your gas tank reads a high resistance when the tank is near empty and a low resistance when the tank is full. We could trick the Computer/Cluster into reading a full or empty tank by simply changing the resistance. 

Using this concept we should be able to fool the computer into thinking SAI, N112, N249, are still present and doing their job. Lots of folks say a 10 Watt 330 Ohm resistor is all you need to keep the ECU happy, whereas others reported success without resistors in place. I did see another thread where folks are saying we need a 470 Ohm 10 watt resistor. 

I will defer to the real tuners on the forums who have far more experience than I do, and I hope if I have made a fool of myself someone will correct me  

As it stands I am up for inspection in September so I have a few months to play around. Hope that helps :beer:


----------



## Currancchs (Feb 24, 2011)

Thank you for the detailed and quick response! 

I was actually aware of the resistor trick, but luckily my car doesn't actually throw any codes related to the SAI being unplugged (I left the N112/N249 plugged in but disabled/capped for now). My main problem is the SAI incorrect flow detected code. This was present before removal, due to the rivets backing out on the SAI pump housing, which spurred me to go through with the delete in the first place, that and the racket that thing makes on startup! 

My understanding is that the ECU looks for the primary O2 reading rich on startup and the rear O2 going full lean, due to the raw air being pushed through the exhaust by the SAI. I can confirm that with a wideband installed ~ 1 foot before the cat and a leaky SAI that the mixture is still full lean right before the cat(s) with the SAI running on startup. With the SAI removed, the wideband reads fairly rich on startup (11-13:1), not sure how accurate the sensor is when cold though. Some people have proposed installing a diode(?) or some other device in-line with the rear O2 to simulate the effect the SAI has on startup by altering the voltage output, it seemed complicated, and it seemed more theoretical, I don't know of anyone that has successfully implemented this. APR/Eurodyne/Unitronics (I think Neuspeed also does this with their C2 software) will delete the resulting code, for a fee, not sure if it just turns the CEL off though or will actually set readiness to OK. When browsing other posts, people running the C2 software, at least, seem to see readiness set to pass. 

Something I was thinking about trying was to reset the codes with the car already warmed up, then drive it for a few hours, then get it inspected. This probably won't set readiness for the SAI, but it shouldn't set a CEL either. I think most states will pass you with only one readiness code not set, but no CEL. 

I'm sure there is a way around it, so hopefully somebody will clue us in!


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Incorrect Flow*

So it seems the pickle is how to keep the ECU happy from start-up so it doesn't want to fire up the pump and check the o2 for the lean condition. Some questions I couldn't answer were.. 

1. Does the pump always fire up when the car is started, regardless of how warm the car is? 
2. If yes, what does the ECU check for to determine run time of the pump? (I read it has to deal with engine temp and engine speed) 
3. If no, can we simulate the conditions under which the ECU doesn't want to turn on the pump at startup? 

Even with your pump disconnected the ECU still sends a message for it to run and since the o2 sensor isn't getting the fresh air it expects you result in incorrect flow. 

My guess is the big software companies try to satisfy the ECUs needs rather than just getting rid of the trouble code. Anyway.. some food for thought, and if anyone can validate or debunk any of these comments it would be much appreciated by myself and Im sure others. 

Happy Friday all :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Lazy Sunday*

Got a few hours in the garage today and pulled the intake manifold so I could install the intake spacer, billet injector cups, SAI block-off plate, and coolant adaptor. Took the opportunity to spray the manifold flat black while it was out of the car and install new coolant overflow tank. 

The cruddy stock plastic cups came out in one piece except for one that cracked when the wrench slipped. 
Before: 









After: 









Having the intake mani out really helped make the coolant adaptor job that much easier (would have been really tight with the manifold still in place). Hope everyone had a nice weekend.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Happy Super Bowl*

Off to NOLA in the AM with the wife... Needless to say, the TT project is going on hold for a while.

Happy Super Bowl Sunday all, and most importantly GO RAVENS :beer::beer::beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*FMIC*

Forge shipment finally came in from across the pond. Noticed the cooling fins don't run all the way from end to end on some of the rows. Im guessing this probably common and won't have a major impact on cooling abilities.










Has anyone else noticed this on Forge / other vendors cores?


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Super Bowl [email protected]!*

In other news, non TT related... we came, we saw, we conquered!!! :beer:


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## rickylm (Jan 26, 2013)

I'm liking the black, I bought some earlier to do the same to mine. :thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

rickylm said:


> I'm liking the black, I bought some earlier to do the same to mine. :thumbup:


Thanks mate.. My prep skills leave a lot to be desired, and my painting skills even more (don't have the patience), but it def looks better than the 12 years of road grime paint job most of us have


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## rickylm (Jan 26, 2013)

Boulderhead said:


> Thanks mate.. My prep skills leave a lot to be desired, and my painting skills even more (don't have the patience), but it def looks better than the 12 years of road grime paint job most of us have


haha you're not kiddin!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Front mount*

Got the front mount fitted.. 









Had to cut the end of the toe hook anchor to allow for clearance. I think I need to get a rubber cap so the IC hose doesn't rub against that raw edge.









Forge thickness compared to stock ICs









Crash bar refitted...









And before anyone else has to say it...I know i know... I shoulda got the Tyrol side mounts :beer::beer::beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Holy misfires batman!!!*

Need to do some business travel this week, so I took advantage of the nice day and finished putting everything back together. I had a broken 3-way coupler in the cooling system so I drained everything last month. Went out and got 4 gallons of distilled water so I could flush out the old coolant before adding any more G12. 

After everything was topped off and I checked over all my connections it was time to fire everything back up. I let the ignition sit in the on position for about 30 seconds to make sure fuel pump primed the lines again. 

Cranked the ignition and I was immediately met with a wildly fluctuating idle, boost gauge showing 0, and some awful sounding noises every 3-5 seconds which prompted me to shut everything down. I looked around the bay and didn't see anything out of place.. so fired it back up again to Idle surging between 1200 and 2500, squeak, crack, uurrrch every few seconds and boost gauge still dead... What could I have done?!?!

I let the car run and scooted around to the front of the car and just watched... on the next pop I found my culprit as I saw a nice fireball and flash of orange come from cylinder 4, and then other from 2. Plugged in VCDS and had misfires on all cylinders... Now I tightened the intake mani a couple times through when I first put it back on, but sure enough there was still more to go on almost every bolt.

Went around the mani 3 more times in criss cross fashion, threw the injectors back in and hit the ignition... Ahhh smooth idle is back, and no more fireballs 

Went for a spin to warm the car up good and check coolant level, but on my first straight away at WOT I only hit 11 lbs of boost and the car felt very muted. First stop sign and vacuum is looking great at 23 in.... Turned around and went right back home and popped off lower grills. 

Sure enough in my haste I forgot to tighten one hose clamp on the inlet side of the intercooler :screwy: I mean this clamp wasn't even figer tightened and had all but come off (the side of the bumper kept it from flying off.) Tightened it back up and checked all my other hoses for good measure, topped off the coolant and strapped back in.

Pull out of the driveway, foot to floorboard and off we go @ 21 PSI.. Its good to have everything back in proper order. 

Cheers to our friends up north who will be digging their TTs out of the driveway for the next week.. :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Suspension / Steering Refresh*

In another month or so, I plan on tackling the OEM suspension and steering along with new haldex oil as I'm not sure the last time it would have ever been serviced.

I have most everything I need except for a new creation from Max that is in the works and a standard cup/coil install kit.. Looks like the front arm bushings put up the biggest fight especially living in the northeast. I was thinking about lso grabbing a rear H&R sway bar and new motor / trans mount in the meantime.

Anything else that should be done while e erythronium is coming out that I am overlooking? Think it's possible to knock this out in a weekend?


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Nice day*

Engine bay looking a bit cleaner with N249 and SAI removed, and N249 is not resisted yet.. just flapping in the breeze.










Nothing like some topless cruising in Feb



















Looking at that license plate mount has me thinking there must be a clean way to remove that and get some more air flow on the FMIC. I popped out the insert while,the bumper was off. The crash bar covers up all the surface area behind the license plate mount, so before I do any bumper cutting the crash bar would either need to come out, or be replaced with a custom brace. 

For custom brace think of the ends on our rear lateral links with a rainbow shaped bar rather than straight to provide un obstructed flow to the core?? If the brace is that high, might not do much for any front end collision. 

I saw a pic of someone else's car where the plate mount was remove, and I believe the crash bar as well. Anyone gotten creative with this yet... Or just left well enough alone?


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Resistors*

Got some resistors for the weekend to see if I can satisfy the N249 delete and perhaps a few others.










Update: Just strapped the resistor in with some electrical tape for a test and sure enough CEL is gone and no code for open circuit on N249


----------



## 01ttgt28 (Jun 23, 2009)

Looking good :thumbup: opcorn:


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## 96AAAjetta (Jul 7, 2008)

Boulderhead said:


> Looking at that license plate mount has me thinking there must be a clean way to remove that and get some more air flow on the FMIC. I popped out the insert while,the bumper was off. The crash bar covers up all the surface area behind the license plate mount, so before I do any bumper cutting the crash bar would either need to come out, or be replaced with a custom brace.
> 
> For custom brace think of the ends on our rear lateral links with a rainbow shaped bar rather than straight to provide un obstructed flow to the core?? If the brace is that high, might not do much for any front end collision.
> 
> I saw a pic of someone else's car where the plate mount was remove, and I believe the crash bar as well. Anyone gotten creative with this yet... Or just left well enough alone?


Custom crash bar.... maybe, if it's well engineered. As for removing or cutting the crash bar, I think this one has been revisited at least a couple of times. The general opinion is to leave it well enough alone. A few of the more bold folks have removed or cut it for more air flow. The downside it that you lose a major structural component that connects the front frame rails (similar to the debate on the intercooler cross-tube thing), and if you get into an accident, stick a fork in your car, cause that sh!t is done. 

I'd say leave it as is, or start building a well though out AWIC, emphasis on the "well thought out" part.


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

01ttgt28 said:


> Looking good :thumbup: opcorn:


Thanks friend.. its coming along slowly but surely



96AAAjetta said:


> Custom crash bar.... maybe, if it's well engineered. As for removing or cutting the crash bar, I think this one has been revisited at least a couple of times. The general opinion is to leave it well enough alone. A few of the more bold folks have removed or cut it for more air flow. The downside it that you lose a major structural component that connects the front frame rails (similar to the debate on the intercooler cross-tube thing), and if you get into an accident, stick a fork in your car, cause that sh!t is done.
> 
> I'd say leave it as is, or start building a well though out AWIC, emphasis on the "well thought out" part.


Thanks for stopping by and bringing me back to earth. I pondered this over some more as well.. and I think a well engineered replacement for OEM from one of our fellow fabricators would be interesting but as you mentioned there are other ways to solve charge air cooling topic. I also prefer not to hack the bumper up in any fashion as well. AWIC is fascinating along with water injection.. but as you said this should be a well though out plan.

Unfortunately I don't have any logs to compare the SMICs... but I did a 12 min session a couple days ago in 40 F air temps. I was just running around some of the local roads and doing mostly single gear pulls. Here is a visualization of some data. I think the only thing I proved with this is that as the engine warms up.. so do the air temps  Maybe today I can warm it up properly and see how things go.

Engine Speed









IC Pressure









Engine Temp / IAT


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*42 DD Catch Can Install*

Got the catch can mounted in place of the SAI relay box.. Pretty straight forward job, although doing it outside in sub 30 degree weather with 30 MPH winds made it a bit tougher.. Definitely take out the top strut brace when doing this.










Relay box removed










Relays taped together and tucked into the waterfall










Catch can mounted to SAI relay box mount with quick drain tube running over top trans mount










Just barely clears strut bar










Relocated crankcase breather pressure regulator to the TIP










I used a short piece of 3/4" heater hose to connect the catch can and the 3/4" to 1/2" adapter and then ran the 1/2" ID hose down to the pressure regulator valve.










Everything connected with air filter back in place.


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Outdoor protection*

Don't have to travel this week and its supposed to be pretty nasty. Got the cover on right as the snow started to fall. The fit is really nice (Weathershield HP from Covercraft)


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*New dogbone*

Afternoon was actually pretty nice, so I pulled onto the ramps and popped in ECS ultimate dogbone in place of the OEM one.. Kinda tough to see on camera, but even using two hands I wasn't able to get any play out of the ECS one with poly bushes.






Also.. in the war of (vice grips vs. index finger) vice grip wins the day.. Fortunately my finger was pretty numb when it happened :beer:


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Some evening data*

Car was warmed up this time, and this was taken at the end of a 20 min logging session. Got off the highway, sat at the light for 2 mins and then got back on heading the other way. 

This 1st through 4th with all shifts near 6200 except first to second. The highest recorded IAT of the entire 20 mins is the last data point on the graph (80 F) which was +42 degrees above ambient air temp. The majority of the time I was between 64 - 72 F


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Catch Can complete*

Wrapped the toe hook in some silicon hose and zip tied in place to keep it from rubbing the IC hose.










Ended the day with a nice topless spin around the county :beer::beer:


----------



## mattpatt01 (Jun 24, 2012)

Nice nice and nice !


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

mattpatt01 said:


> Nice nice and nice !


Thanks for stopping by and the comments. It's a work in progress, and I'm having fun with it.

One thing to note from painting my valve cover, I had some oil leaking from the oil cap where the seal meets the valve cover face. Cleaned it up and should be good to go again. Only noticed when I took the cover off and found some on top of the VC.

The next major update will be suspension and steering related. I have most of what I need except a nice sunny weekend and some free time.


----------



## Dowski12 (Nov 2, 2011)

I was in the same boat as you in regards to the crash bar. The first place I had my car at, chopped that sucker off without hesitation and used the crash bar mounts to mount my FMIC. After some sound advice from afew fellas on the tex, I now have an AWIC and a fully fuctional crash bar :thumbup:


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Happy Friday*



Dowski12 said:


> I was in the same boat as you in regards to the crash bar. The first place I had my car at, chopped that sucker off without hesitation and used the crash bar mounts to mount my FMIC. After some sound advice from afew fellas on the tex, I now have an AWIC and a fully fuctional crash bar :thumbup:


Man, that sounds a bit extreme... and yeah the community here is great!! 

Any pics of the install FMIC install? I would actually would like to see how they were able to make the core fit if they were mounting to the same place the crash bar bolts to, (the bar sits right up against the bumper).

For the Forge unit I installed, everything mounts to the Rad support, and also ties into the stubby arm supports the crash bar mounts to. AWIC is a option I will leave on the table as the current setup should be sufficient until I start pushing some limits on the powertrain.


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Brain Surgery*

Friday night fun :beer:


----------



## [email protected] (May 14, 2009)

Boulderhead said:


> Got a few hours in the garage today and pulled the intake manifold so I could install the intake spacer, billet injector cups, SAI block-off plate, and coolant adaptor. Took the opportunity to spray the manifold flat black while it was out of the car and install new coolant overflow tank.
> 
> The cruddy stock plastic cups came out in one piece except for one that cracked when the wrench slipped.
> Before:
> ...


Looking good Tony!


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Fuel Trims...*

Thanks Noah, had my injectors out 4 or 5 times in the past couple weeks ensuring intake manifold bolts are snugged up. There is no residue or indication of any fuel leaks, thanks for a great product!

On another note, I am still chasing my original problem with Long Term fuel trims being lean, so much so that I hit soft limp yesterday going to pick up oil change kit. I initially thought replacing the MAF a while back solved my troubles, but alas it has not.

I reset long term fuel trims. Ran TB adaptation and went out for a quick spin, in less than 10 minutes of driving including a long hard 3rd gear pull getting on the highway I was already sitting at +12.5.

Re-reading what you recommended I do back in November I plan to pick up a few sensors..( I know I know, you told me so ) One thing that has me scratching my head a bit is in the Adv. measurements of VCDS it shows outside temp of 69C (156 F) and its just a bit below 40F today. Would that have any impact on the conditions Im seeing?

FYI
I meet boost request no problem, no spiking and taper off towards redline, 195g/s at 5500 RPM, pull 23" of vacuum at idle, no misfires detected, replaced fuel filter, still have N75 in the mix. Brand new forge IC hoses and TIP.


----------



## 01ttgt28 (Jun 23, 2009)

I'm not that great at trouble shooting here goes when u did your deletes did u resistor everything 
Correctly??Are u getting any open circuit like a not ready code??


----------



## [email protected] (May 14, 2009)

Boulderhead said:


> Thanks Noah, had my injectors out 4 or 5 times in the past couple weeks ensuring intake manifold bolts are snugged up. There is no residue or indication of any fuel leaks, thanks for a great product!
> 
> On another note, I am still chasing my original problem with Long Term fuel trims being lean, so much so that I hit soft limp yesterday going to pick up oil change kit. I initially thought replacing the MAF a while back solved my troubles, but alas it has not.
> 
> ...



What are you getting for codes? Long term fuel trim sounds like an EVAP leak/faulty pump. The outside temp sensor only gives feedback to the cluster. For the ecu, it checks it via the intake air temp sensor and via the MAF.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

01ttgt28 said:


> I'm not that great at trouble shooting here goes when u did your deletes did u resistor everything
> Correctly??Are u getting any open circuit like a not ready code??


I have N249 resisted and the ECU is quite happy as there is no code for that component. SAI throws a code for incorrect flow, but no CEL as I still have everything plugged in.. Just the hoses have been removed and block off plate on the head (hmmm maybe air is leaking in the block off plate?)


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

[email protected] said:


> What are you getting for codes? Long term fuel trim sounds like an EVAP leak/faulty pump. The outside temp sensor only gives feedback to the cluster. For the ecu, it checks it via the intake air temp sensor and via the MAF.


Thanks Noah.. When I checked that value again last night after the trip it matched coolant temp exactly, so I believe it must not be reading ambient air temp as cluster was showing proper temp ( just a confusing label)

I have not touched the EVAP system to date so it looks like I will be doing some homework today to learn how to test and properly diagnose problems with that system... Or should I just rip it our like a good number of folks have done? :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Starting fluid*

I had a feeling I was still not sealed 100% at the intake manifold since I added the spacer so I fired up the engine and started spraying around each runner independently. Sure enough each spray was followed up with a slight stutter... Looks like I found at least one place I'm getting unmetered air into the engine.

Rather than just torque them down even more I a going to remove the manifold and make sure everything is nice and clean before clamping everything back down. Will let everyone know how I make out


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> I had a feeling I was still not sealed 100% at the intake manifold since I added the spacer so I fired up the engine and started spraying around each runner independently. Sure enough each spray was followed up with a slight stutter... Looks like I found at least one place I'm getting unmetered air into the engine.
> 
> Rather than just torque them down even more I a going to remove the manifold and make sure everything is nice and clean before clamping everything back down. Will let everyone know how I make out


I've had the same idea. Thought about getting some carb choke cleaner or something and spraying various places to isolate where to look. It's got to be some type boost leak because all of my sensor readings look good. I'd had to start throwing parts at it if I don't have to but may be the last option (MAF, both 02S, etc).


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Pulled the IM, cleaned both gaskets, the spacer, the head, and the IM flange with starting fluid. Put it all back together and cranked it over... Nice!!! no back fire this time and spraying starting fluid at each runner yielded no change in idle  Might have to travel this week so I will be able to check fuel trims and see where I am after a couple hundred miles. 

On a side note, I have N80 plug resisted right now and left everything else hooked up as I didn't have any vacuum caps that would fit. Time to grab a beer and get warm :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

I am starting to think this car has learned what days I get paid :laugh::laugh: Was driving home from Hershey Thursday after watching first round of HS state wrestling tournament and the ABS light, CEL, and ESP light all came on. Pulled over and turned car off immediately and ran a scan... complaining about voltage. Drove the last mile home.. parked it.

Next day, nothing.. dash wouldn't even light up when doors were opened. Pulled the battery and it was showing 6V so I threw it on the charger overnight. Today I got up and dropped the battery back in after reading 12.6 V and car started right up. Still had battery light showing on the dash so I read the codes and still saying low voltage... Put the multimeter on the posts with car running and it was already down to 11.3V.

Ran up to Autozone to have them confirm the alternator was toast so I went home and pulled the original out, and swapped in a remanufactured unit. Now I am reading 13.8V with the car on.. time for a couple :beer::beer:

EDIT: Just an update here, I did not go with a Bosh unit for $400, but rather a reman unit with a lifetime warranty. If it fails, I can always get a new one free and the swap in and out.. really isn't that bad.


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## seth_3515 (Dec 26, 2008)

I had the same issue using a phenolic spacer.. seems they can be fussy if they want to.. Glad ou found the leak, have you checked around your injectors as well? When I put my SEM manifold it took me forever to figure out they were leaking and how they were leaking. Turns out they can be installed too far down into the cup and not seal 100% raised them up 1/8-1/4'' or so and took care of my leaks.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Yeah, Im glad to have found the leak as well and believe I know the problem I had the first time. It deals with the spacer having a bit of play on the mounting posts. When re-installing I made sure to push the spacer up towards the valve cover as gravity wanted to pull it down creating a bit of overlap on the openings in the head.

I checked around the injectors and sprayed all over the engine compartment after the re-install with no change in idle, so I would say the cups and injectors are well sealed. Thanks to the Verdict Motorsports team on that one  Good tip to check the injector cups especially if you have the OEM plastic ones still :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*early morning thoughts on fuel trims*

-I am still adding fuel over time
-Idle trim reads fine. 
-I see a nice uniform wave when graphing O2 voltage so I take that for the sensor being in good working order. 
-Occasionally I will hit a soft limp mode when Long term fuel exceeds +25%... Some "reasonable" driving can bring this back within acceptable levels to allow for full boost request.
-Injector Duty Cycle is 90% right around 5K RPMS after 10% fuel correction
- After long term reads 8-10%... I can watch live fuel trim in VCDS under hard acceleration and long term will drop as the 02 sensor should be indicating a rich condition in lower RPM range and the ECU is adjusting fuel. So 02 goes from reading rich.. to lean as I run out of injector up top.

I may not be right.. but from my perspective...this seems like insufficient fueling capabilities at the injector level and the stock 386 cc just can't keep up with the flash from the word Go.. Moderate fuel correction begins to stress the injectors right out of the gate, and a few WOT runs past 5K RPMs leaves the ECU asking for more fuel. Since the already taxed injectors are being told to stay open longer in that RPM range the correction the ECU keeps asking for more fuel.

Does that make sense, or am I clueless  ?


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## seth_3515 (Dec 26, 2008)

IDC shouldnt go over 80%. Id look into larger injectors if the funds are available.. You could run it for awhile since you have the knowledge and know to be easy on her in the upper end.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Last night I did some logging and ran a 4th gear WOT pull getting on the highway until the ECU killed fuel supply (was a little concerned as that was the first time running all the way to fuel cut). 

Interesting thing to note is that my 02-Regulation went to 0 and I can see 02-Reg switch to Off right as I peg the throttle in 4th. The entire run from 3K RPM up to 7100 there is no 02 feedback. Once I hit 6K RPM my IDC is 104% (no surprise as we know my ECU is adding enough fuel to reach the ceiling). 

On another log where I monitored 02 voltage compared to long term fuel trim I see that in the lower RPMs (2200 - 3000) the front 02 is reading quite lean... right around .2V, and then as soon as I hit 3K it starts reading rich (.7-.8V).. The ECU is not asking for any boost under 3K in this particular log.. and once command pressure begins to rise.. so does 02 reading. 

It reads rich (>.8v) all the way up to fuel cut 7100 RPM and during that time long term fuel trim begins to come back down to 18 from 21 to adjust for the short term rich condition.. I also note that the post cat sensor is reading just as rich and from the reading I have done this should be around .45V as the cat burns the excess fuel?? 

One last thing... I noticed a fair amount of oil residue on my suction pump under the intake manifold. When I last pulled the manifold I cleaned everything up really good with starting fluid, so I am sure that is not helping, but could it really be the root cause to my issues? 

Any thoughts or words of wisdom here would be greatly appreciated. Happy Friday all :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Measured resistance at each injector (.21) which all looks good. Measured resistance for IAT as well and that looks good. 

So unless there is a vacuum leak present under load that isn't there during idle... I am looking at the MAF not reading the proper volume of air causing the lean condition... which is odd since I replaced it only a couple thousand miles ago. Oh how I love debugging


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## 20v master (May 7, 2009)

You can't take literal values from block 031 pre cat o2 sensor as you are narrowband. Also, post cat o2 sensor doesn't read AFR, it reads temperature of the cat to deduce cat efficiency, and it has nothing to do with fueling. Do you have a wideband AFR meter onboard, and if so can you log that? If you think it's the MAF, unplug it and see what happens. The ECU doesn't solely rely on the MAF, so it won't run lean just because the MAF is going bad, that's what the o2 sensor is for, but it sounds like you're in open loop if there is no o2 feedback. What blocks are you using to base these conclusions off of?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

20v master said:


> You can't take literal values from block 031 pre cat o2 sensor as you are narrowband. Also, post cat o2 sensor doesn't read AFR, it reads temperature of the cat to deduce cat efficiency, and it has nothing to do with fueling. Do you have a wideband AFR meter onboard, and if so can you log that? If you think it's the MAF, unplug it and see what happens. The ECU doesn't solely rely on the MAF, so it won't run lean just because the MAF is going bad, that's what the o2 sensor is for, but it sounds like you're in open loop if there is no o2 feedback. What blocks are you using to base these conclusions off of?


 Hi Adam, thanks for dropping by and clarifying a few points. No wideband on hand, so I have been logging various blocks to try and rule things out (1,2,31,32,33,99,115). Per my understanding NB 02's monitor the amount of O2 in the atmosphere versus exhaust stream and are helpful in diagnosing a condition (lean or rich), but not reporting the true A/F ratio of the exhaust stream. 

Good to know the post cat O2 is does not adjust fueling, and makes sense that it wouldn't. 

After a bit more digging it looks like 02 regulation will switch off (open loop) under deceleration or WOT conditions... so the open loop time I reported earlier under the 4th gear pull should be expected. 

So you would you suggest I clear fuel trims and then run with MAF disconnected for some time and keep an eye on fuel trim? I would really hope it isn't the MAF as I just replaced that less than 4K miles ago.. but Im just trying to rule things out and stay on the hunt. Your advice is much appreciated. 

Is it logical that an exhaust leak at the manifold => turbo, or manifold => head might also be able to cause the pre-cat 02 to read lean?


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Tony, I agree with Adam, trying to diagnose fueling with a narrow band read out can be an astronomical task and drive most people to drink. I know because I've done it before when wideband controllers were too expensive for the average Joe. We'd read plugs, average a big sample of 02 voltages, and use LED light bars (those are as close to accuracy you'll get with NB) to give us clues to establish a baseline first, and then look for changes from there. Still with all that work, it was more art than science and we were doing things mostly by feel. My advice to you is to get a wideband controller, the advance in technology have made them cheap enough for everyone that plays with their car to have. This will take all the guesswork out of knowing what your fueling is doing. 

Like most VAG people, you're placing too much importance on the trims, they are indicators of what direction the ECU wants the mixture to go (and that's based on what data was written in the mapping). With all sorts of lambda request on tunes nowadays, don't put too much importance on the trims, just go by what AFR you're seeing and adjust your fueling overall to where you feel it needs to be. If you're having open loop lean issues (confirmed by a wideband reading), check your IDC, and add fueling overall until it's back to specs. There are several ways to add fueling, from increased pressure to fuel adaptation channels, and if your injectors are maxed out (I doubt they are at your tune level) then it's time to go bigger. :beer: 

BTW, if you want to play with narrow band still (a great way to pick up real skills in fuel tuning). I have an LED light bar I built and use in my Saturn race car that has been collecting dust since I haven't had the chance to play with that car in a few years. I can unplug it and ship it to you, so you can toy around until you get a real wideband controller. That thing will serve you better than sitting in a car that's going nowhere (all that is needed is to wire it into your primary O2 sensor and you're in business).


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

^^ Here is an article that gives details on LED light bars (AKA NB monitors) if you're interested in playing along: 

http://www.autospeed.com/A_110624/hDg34uLtp_1/cms/article.html


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Hi Max, thanks for taking the time to drop in and share some knowledge. I am going to check a few local junkyards this week to see if I can source what I need for the wideband conversion. Since I will need a new brain.. I am wondering if its time to explore some other software options after the conversion  

Thanks for the offer on the light bar and I would like to take you up on that :beer: In all honesty I'm up for a challenge / experience of trying to adjust with NB knowing that if/when I get too frustrated its time to switch to WB . Besides bumping into LTFT limits over time, everything else seems in order. Thanks for the link as well.. some helpful information in there and good to know what to search for so I can learn more. 

The thought of just adding some fuel across the board with Lemmi crossed my mind, I just haven't digested enough information to feel comfortable doing so. So much yet to learn and I am looking forward to it.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Data*

Took this last night after the car was warmed up and about 5 mins after 3rd gear pull to fuel cut. 

This is 4th gear 2900-7140 RPM


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Catch Can and DV rework*

Nothing fancy.. just reworked the plumping of the catch can hoses to feed into the bottom port and vent from the top. Moved the valve back to just off the valve cover port and connected heater tubing to that. Also took one of the elbows out of the DV relocation tubing.. so now it is just a straight shot until the 90 at the TIP 










Should hopefully get a chance to swap these H&R coils in soon, and need to get some new rear tires along with a few other bits. Happy hump day all.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Adding Fuel*

I know I will probably catch some flack for doing this without the right tools and data, but I did it anyway. Having too much fuel is safer than not having enough since my fuel trims are still indicating a long term lean condition (21%).. and intermittently putting me into limp mode. 

With Uni Settings and my VCDS cable and I was able to read and write from the ECU even while running windows as a virtual machine. 

I added 40 RPM to idle and 5.1% primary fuel enrichment I know that this number is just an average and I have no clue what AFR looks like at specific points under the power curve, and blindly adding fuel across the board is not a good long term solution.

Put 20 miles on the car just running around and long term fuel dropped from 21% to 15.4% :thumbup:

Pardon my ignorance, but do folks looking to add a wideband capabilities on a narrow band ECU simply add another 02 bung in the exhaust and buy one of these stand alone 02 sensor / gauge combos? Initially I thought swapping over to wide band (BEA) ECU and acquiring the proper wiring harness was the only option.

Calling for a storm to start tonight so no fun for a couple days.


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Tony, the wideband controllers are standalone and you just add another bung for the sensor (has to pre-cat). I've always used innovate products and had no real issues with them over the years (minus two XD-16 gauges that died on me on the TT). This will allow you to have real time wideband monitoring, full logging capability, as well as the ability to set up alarms for when preset lean and rich thresholds are exceeded.

As far as adding fuel across the board with the primary fuel enrichment, it works but over the entire fuel curve. Although you may think that you're fixing things overall, you could be adding way too much fuel under increasing loads at higher RPMs. The AFR profile in most remaps have a good percentage of load enrichments for safety. You can fix a lean onset and totally screw up the upper range by making it pig rich (enough to introduce rich-knock). Without knowing where the curve is at, you're shooting in the dark and could do as much bad as good. Below is a thread that discussed the excessive load enrichments that some of these have, and how adding fuel across the board isn't the proper solution by itself (need to trim the load enrichment to match the added fuel). 

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?5146589-E85-TT-dyno(aborted)


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Hi Max, thanks as always for the advice and taking the time to share that thread. I read a few others today, but didin't find that one.. :thumbup: I also spent some time looking at Innovate Motorsports this evening after my earlier post and looks like their LC-1 kit will support my immediate needs.

http://www.innovatemotorsports.com/products/kits.php

During the short road time today I was just watching block 32 and can see under increasing load my trim will drop significantly while on the throttle which I believe backs up your suspicions. I did think to pull some fuel from increasing load, however without the right tools / experience I want to proceed slowly. As you said.. the WB monitor is critical, otherwise it's a coin flip on whether I need the extra fuel in higher revs / load... likely not. 

Would you advise that I revert back to default, or perhaps drop a few points (+3%) until I have the proper tools? The main reason for adding fuel was to keep the ECU from hitting the adaptation limit and forcing intermittent limp.

EDIT: I should mention that while I didn't grab numbers of anything.. the "feel" was crisp and smooth with no hesitations or noticeable misfires even as I was climbing closer to 6K RPM


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Rear Suspension Day*

Beautiful day, couldn't pass up tearing into the suspension bits I had laying around since this past fall... Might be able to knock the front out before the rain moves in tomorrow. I should note that the old struts i pulled out did not even rebound when compressed by hand.

I needed to remove the subframe bolt on each side to remove the top lateral link.. Couldn't find any other way to get access and this bolt is easy to remove.


























Using old springs as an extra pair of hands.









I set MadMax links to same length as stock lateral links and dropped the car to the ground.. In need of some adjustment.









How easy it is to correct the problem above





About ready for some rear tires too.









Looking at the side profile I am in dire need to do the fronts now.. This pic isn't fair as I have the beer and 120 lbs of sand in the trunk.









And to finish the day off right :beer::beer::beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Front Coils*

Started on the front today with the driver side.. no pics, but here is how I went about it.

1. Pull onto ramps and jack up the driver side enough to lift off the ramp and remove tire.
2. Remove lower strut to knuckle pinch bolt and hit the strut body with PB blaster
3. Jack up LCA to level the sway bar link and unbolt the top link to strut connection, hit nut with hammer and push to the side.
4. Cracked both Outer and Inner top strut bolts using spark plug socket, 7mm hex and some good extensions, then air gun them both off. 
5. With the inner nut off the spring pressure is holding everything tight with to the fender, and I lowered the jack until the axle was resting on the sway bar (did not remove axle).
6. Push up on the bottom of the spring forcing it into the fender and rotate the spring to have the end or the spring clear the bottom seat and proceed to rotate the spring off the strut body.
7. Grab my crow foot and spray more PB blaster. Worked the opening from both sides and boom.. everything pops out.

I did get a spring compresser from Advance.. but this one was made to go inside the spring and was useless for this operation. Also, just like the rear, the front struts don't rebound at all when compressed.

As I plan on doing the defcons, revised ball joints and tie rod ends,and adjustable sway links shortly so Im reusing the strut bushing and bearings for now. Will grab some photos tomorrow when I do the passenger side.


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## velocitychris (Jul 16, 2011)

Boulderhead said:


> I have since ordered silicon to replace all stock vacuum lines and will smoke check when everything is back together.


Hi Tony,

I've just spent the evening reading through your thread. I picked up an 01 225 Coupe a year ago and spent the summer getting the car into basic shape. But I live in a very winterized part of Canada and don't even have my own garage so my car has had no work since October. It is now getting close to being warm and I am getting the itch to get back to learning about this car. One of the little projects that I want to get done is replacing the hoses and lines. As I am someone who has never done this before (but eager to learn), I am wondering what you purchased and how much. Was it a selection of the Forge hoses? Different lengths of raw silicone lines (how much?)?

Thanks for all of the detail and questions and answers in your thread. It has gotten me hyped up for a spring of tinkering!


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## velocitychris (Jul 16, 2011)

Boulderhead said:


> Looking at one of these to solve my audio needs... anyone have one installed? What do you think?
> 
> http://enfigcarstereo.com/DENSION_GBL3AU2.html
> 
> ...


And another question about an older post - Did you end up picking this up? How do you like it?

Thanks
Chris


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

velocitychris said:


> Hi Tony,
> 
> I've just spent the evening reading through your thread. I picked up an 01 225 Coupe a year ago and spent the summer getting the car into basic shape. But I live in a very winterized part of Canada and don't even have my own garage so my car has had no work since October. It is now getting close to being warm and I am getting the itch to get back to learning about this car. One of the little projects that I want to get done is replacing the hoses and lines. As I am someone who has never done this before (but eager to learn), I am wondering what you purchased and how much. Was it a selection of the Forge hoses? Different lengths of raw silicone lines (how much?)?
> 
> Thanks for all of the detail and questions and answers in your thread. It has gotten me hyped up for a spring of tinkering!


Hi Chris, the post you quoted was for all the vacuum lines, and those came with the 42 DD vacuum kit I bought a while back. Used all the tubing but not the vacuum block yet  you don't need to go that route and I believe it's 3mm, 5mm, and perhaps one size larger tubing you can likely get at most auto stores or on the web. Get more than you need.. It's cheap and I ended up re routing things a few times as I kept tinkering.

http://www.42draftdesigns.com/categories/products/vacmanifolds.html

I did replace the PCV hoses with the 034 Motorsports solution.

http://www.034motorsport.com/engine...i-tt-225-amu-reinforced-silicone-p-23169.html

All the charge air hoses are Forge including the DV relocation kit. Hope that helps, and I bet your excited to get back under the hood!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

velocitychris said:


> And another question about an older post - Did you end up picking this up? How do you like it?
> 
> Thanks
> Chris


I actually did not pick this up yet, been trying to get suspension updated to where I want to be. Any extra cash has been heading that direction, and soon enough i will have like new steering and suspension. 

Maybe this summer when I will be driving more il go with the audio kit :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Dog fun*

Non car related... just stumbled across this gem yesterday.. I want to grab the original footage and do a super slow motion cut... some of the last frames before impact are priceless


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Fronts coils are done*

Got the front coils all wrapped up.. been meaning to do it all week but its been quite windy and work is busy. I had to redo the driver side as I forgot the upper spring perch the first time in.

I am going to order a strut bearing and bushing kit as mine are ready to be replaced, but I will wait until all the other suspension bits come in (adjustable sway bar links, roll correction kit).

Was able to get away with the same method I used on driver side. No spring compressor.. just a bit of rotation of the spring around the body. Here is the spring coming off after I loosened both outer and inner nuts on top of the strut. Sorry for the photo quality.


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Some good progress Tony! :beer::beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Lower*

First victim to the lower suspension was ABS and break pad wear sensor wires.










I put them back in the stock mounting locations, but in 5 miles ended up rubbing through all 4 wires. Stripped wires, shrink tubed each pair, and the rubber tape the bundle then top with electric tape. For all those doing coils soon make sure these wires are well out of the way after install.

Figment of the front coils.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Some good progress Tony! :beer::beer:


Thanks Max, been a fun journey so far and looking forward to more fun this summer! :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Mbc > n75*

Grabbed a used Forge Unos from a fellow TTer on here, and picked up some vacuum port caps yesterday. Capped off the 2 ports on the N75 and left the other end connected to the TIP.










Currently have the MBC snugged in between the TIP and catch can hoses until I figure out where I want it.










Started off with the minimum setting and was way off target.










At 20 clicks positive I am getting closer, but still not there yet..










After 28 clicks positive things are looking pretty good and the butt dyno approves of holding steady boost up to redline :beer:


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## velocitychris (Jul 16, 2011)

Boulderhead said:


> Hope that helps, and I bet your excited to get back under the hood!


That does help. Thanks! Was forced to wrench on my A4 this weekend despite it still being cold and snowing when it should be warm and growing grass. But the A4 lease is up and going back this week and had to pull the springs out of her. Oh well - good to be back under the car - and it helps that this is all being done to clear the way for an S4!

Cheers


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Max pressure exceeded*

After setting the MBC to achieve request pressure I kept hitting the max pressure ceiling and intermittently putting the car into soft limp mode... When this happens it felt like the throttle plate was being forced closed as I would start to build pressure and could hear the DV open and pressure would stall around 10 lbs. This was happening most often at lower RPMs when I would go from no throttle to WOT and the car felt like mush..

For the time being I dialed the MBC back to give me just over 15 psi (24 clicks +). This week I plan to order a loggable wideband O2 to keep track of AFR and a diode to clamp the MAP sensor at an acceptable level before I start upping the boost again.


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## warranty225cpe (Dec 3, 2008)

Boulderhead said:


> Grabbed a used Forge Unos from a fellow TTer on here, and picked up some vacuum port caps yesterday. Capped off the 2 ports on the N75 and left the other end connected to the TIP.
> 
> 
> 
> ...











Glad that worked out for you Tony. You should mount it where I had it mounted. I used the bolt for the strut brace (just above the brake fluid res). Its a perfect location. I didnt include the bracket because its pretty beat. It shouldnt be hard to fab something up though.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

warranty225cpe said:


> Glad that worked out for you Tony. You should mount it where I had it mounted. I used the bolt for the strut brace (just above the brake fluid res). Its a perfect location. I didnt include the bracket because its pretty beat. It shouldnt be hard to fab something up though.


Hi Eric, thanks for sharing that..and it does look like a nice discrete location rather than the current resting place. I took a look at the bracket that comes with the UNOS and as you said, putting something together shouldn't be too bad. Thanks again :beer:


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## Marek. (Nov 29, 2012)

Ever have a chance to compare the eBay cable and the rosstech cable?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marek. said:


> Ever have a chance to compare the eBay cable and the rosstech cable?


Hi Marek, thanks for brining this back up... I did spend some time with it right out of the gate, but quickly realized why I paid for the official Ross-Tech cable  At the end of the day the cable is a tool, and while you can hammer in a screw, its better to just pick up the screw driver next to the hammer and do it right.

I tried the e-bay cable with UniSettings, Lemmiwinks, VagTacho, and handful of other programs and had no love there either.. The Ross-Tech cable just works, even with UniSettings for some basic tweaks. With the right skills, time and patience a generic USB to ODB2 cable could likely work.

For full disclosure I run Windows 7 within a virtual machine on my Mac via Paralells.. so Im not sure if that contributed to the problems I faced (running virtual COM ports, assigning drivers and what not). 

Not the answer Im sure you were hoping for.. but thats my experience with it :beer:


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## Marek. (Nov 29, 2012)

Good enough for me :thumbup: .


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## rickylm (Jan 26, 2013)

Good stuff.:thumbup:


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## nilreb (Mar 17, 2012)

First victim to the lower suspension was ABS and break pad wear sensor wires.










this usually happens when you lower?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

nilreb said:


> First victim to the lower suspension was ABS and break pad wear sensor wires.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I'm not sure how common it is, but it happened on both sides for me when I put lines back in "stock" mouthing points. An extra few minutes to check clearance before dropping the car to the ground would have avoided this.

Fortunately the fix is pretty easy and cheap, but can be avoided with a good check all around for any clearance problems. Hopefully this saves a few others some trouble :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Wideband on the way*

Finally got time to read through some material on stand alone wideband O2 sensors. I decided to go with the following solution from Innovate Motorsport to get started. 

O2 sensor and in cabin display

Independent data logger

It seems that major manufactures are setup in a modular fashion so you can easily add to your setup if / when the time comes. One particular feature I liked with this controller is the ability to report the expected NB sensor back to the stock ECU. This should allow me to simply remove the NB sensor from the stock bung and tie the appropriate lead from the ECU into one of the pig tails on the controller. 

No need to modify the exhaust to support 2 upstream O2 sensors. Opted for 1 day shipping on the controller so it should be here tomorrow (data logger will come next week).


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## warranty225cpe (Dec 3, 2008)

Boulderhead said:


> I'm not sure how common it is, but it happened on both sides for me when I put lines back in "stock" mouthing points. An extra few minutes to check clearance before dropping the car to the ground would have avoided this.
> 
> Fortunately the fix is pretty easy and cheap, but can be avoided with a good check all around for any clearance problems. Hopefully this saves a few others some trouble :beer:


Your lucky it was just the wires. My did that, and it crimped one of my hard lines.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

warranty225cpe said:


> Your lucky it was just the wires. My did that, and it crimped one of my hard lines.


Yeah, sent all sorts of warnings off on the dash, but it was a cheap / quick fix. Crushed lines just would have just given me an excuse to go stainless a bit earlier than anticipated 

http://www.ecstuning.com/Audi-TT_MKI-Quattro-225HP/Braking/Lines/ES1310/

Hopefully you realized the issue before you hit the highway and needed some stopping power :beer:


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## warranty225cpe (Dec 3, 2008)

Boulderhead said:


> Yeah, sent all sorts of warnings off on the dash, but it was a cheap / quick fix. Crushed lines just would have just given me an excuse to go stainless a bit earlier than anticipated
> 
> http://www.ecstuning.com/Audi-TT_MKI-Quattro-225HP/Braking/Lines/ES1310/
> 
> Hopefully you realized the issue before you hit the highway and needed some stopping power :beer:


Yeah, I had to reflare my lines and it worked out.


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> Yeah, sent all sorts of warnings off on the dash, but it was a cheap / quick fix. Crushed lines just would have just given me an excuse to go stainless a bit earlier than anticipated
> 
> http://www.ecstuning.com/Audi-TT_MKI-Quattro-225HP/Braking/Lines/ES1310/
> 
> Hopefully you realized the issue before you hit the highway and needed some stopping power :beer:


I just put these lines on when I replaced the brakes a few months ago. Absolutely love them and somehow managed to get them On Sale and with Free Shipping.


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Innovate Motorsports Wideband 02*

A sneak peak of what is going in tomorrow.


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## warranty225cpe (Dec 3, 2008)

Boulderhead said:


> A sneak peak of what is going in tomorrow.


A little WB action, Nice!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*MTX-L Wideband Install*

Spent a couple hours this afternoon getting the WB sensor and gauge installed. Pics below for your viewing pleasure! 

Start by pulling out stock NB o2 sensor 

















Sensor line running between two grommets on passenger side firewall 

















Going through the other grommet to pass the cable into the cabin 









Tucked the controller and sensor connector in next to the coolant ball 









Need to remove lower trim (don't forget to disconnect ODB2 connection) 









Vent pulled from the dash and lower trim removed 









Trimmed the bottom side of the air vent to make room for wiring 









Gauge sticks out just right from inside the air vent assembly 









Vent assembly and gauge ready to go back in the car 









Gauge and vent back in the dash 









First time power-up with sensor disconnected (message is expected) 









Sensor connected and o2 sensor sitting in free air for calibration (reading max Lean) 









First startup after calibration (SAI pump running) 10 inch of vacuum 




 
Second start-up after calibration (SAI not running) 19 inch of vacuum 




 
Im not sure what the problem is.. but the gauge seems to only output data for a few minutes and then shows "888" across the board and the light is sitting on the full rich side... Turn the car off and let things sit for a few minutes and it will function for a bit and then show "888". I did go for a quick spin and I'm reading quite lean (17-18) even as boost ramps up. Time to get a shower and do a bit of digging...:beer::beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Quick Update*

It seems the issues identified yesterday may deal with the sensor getting too hot as I have wired / rewired / recalibrated.. and the issue persists. 

I did get the lead which simulates the NB o2 sensor wired up to the stock sensor and hung the sensor up out of the way. If you don't do this, you will get DTC for sensor heater circuit open. When everything is working (for the 5 minutes it does)... I can see 02 voltage fluctuating around .45V and it seems to keep the ECU happy. 


















I am going to call the folks at Innovate tomorrow to confirm my findings (the error I see isn't documented anywhere) and also place an order for an 02 spacer. The kit comes with a bung that is about the size of a spacer, so Im thinking that may resolve my troubles. 

Will report back once I find out more.


----------



## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*PL-1 Data logger*

Got my PL-1 data logger today, and also spoke with tech support over at Innovate. Seems the issue with my gauge reading "888" across the board deals with electrical interference at the sensor cable. To troubleshoot, I pulled the sensor cable from the engine bay and ran it through the window.. after 10 mins I was still getting good readings, so it seems that was the issue  

Now I just need to find a good place to re-route the cable and take new pics for my DIY 










Happy Monday:beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Got the PL-1 hooked up for a test run to get familiar with the software and see if I liked the mounting location. 










Still having issues with the MTX-L even after following recommendations from Innovate tech support. A bad side effect is that when the gauge freaks out the analog output which simulates the NB signal for ECU reads on the ultra lean side so the ECU starts adding fuel like crazy at idle and I can watch the mixture get increasingly rich on the WB (while it is alive). 

At this point I think I will just order an O2 spacer and see how that changes the behavior. Hope everyone had a nice weekend :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Quick update*

Just got back in the states after a quick vaca to Negril... Ya Mon!

Called innovate back and explained my persisting issue with the WB controller. Since I have isolated electrical interference, they are now suggesting I have the sensor too close to turbo and that the sensor is overheating. 

When I asked for recommended mounting distance they said "between 24-36 inches as indicated in support / install documentation". I can tell you I have read through the PDF at least a dozen times and the only mention of mounting distances are in the the troubleshooting notes for an error code 8 which indicates overheating. This is not the error code I am seeing (which my specific behavior is not even documented), so before I start cutting new holes in the exhaust I'm going to try a spacer and see if I can keep the stock location.

Correct me if im wring, but mounting behind the cat or even further downstream pretty much defeats the purpose of the wideband no?


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Hey! It's been a while. Just catching back up here: bypassing the N75 with a Manual Boost controller solved the boost issue? I'm wondering if that would also correct my situation.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

hunTTsvegas said:


> Hey! It's been a while. Just catching back up here: bypassing the N75 with a Manual Boost controller solved the boost issue? I'm wondering if that would also correct my situation.


It has been a while, and i have not been very active. Looks like you have been away for a bit too. 

Actually I removed the MBC and reconnected the N75 as I kept getting excessive pressure codes and ECU would not let me have any fun in lower gears... Felt like throttle plate was being closed and forced DV to open, so I would only hit like 8 psi until I got into 4th gear plus.

Folks say the APR tune is conservative with pressure limits, so until I gain a bit more knowledge and have proper tools and monitoring equipment... I'm fine with tapering boost which can meet full request pressure in all gears :thumbup:


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## 1fast2liter (Apr 4, 2005)

Boulderhead said:


> It has been a while, and i have not been very active. Looks like you have been away for a bit too.
> 
> Actually I removed the MBC and reconnected the N75 as I kept getting excessive pressure codes and ECU would not let me have any fun in lower gears... Felt like throttle plate was being closed and forced DV to open, so I would only hit like 8 psi until I got into 4th gear plus.
> 
> Folks say the APR tune is conservative with pressure limits, so until I gain a bit more knowledge and have proper tools and monitoring equipment... I'm fine with tapering boost which can meet full request pressure in all gears :thumbup:


did you do the emissions deletes? if not the ecu sees the rapid build in pressure excedceing stocl limits freaks out and causes the 249 to release vacum to the dv wich bleeds off boost. mine did it all the time with the apr tune. deleted the 249 and got full boost with none of the bleeding off. also did the spring mod from max and i noticed more power to....


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

1fast2liter said:


> did you do the emissions deletes? if not the ecu sees the rapid build in pressure excedceing stocl limits freaks out and causes the 249 to release vacum to the dv wich bleeds off boost. mine did it all the time with the apr tune. deleted the 249 and got full boost with none of the bleeding off. also did the spring mod from max and i noticed more power to....


Yep, N249 has been deleted for several months, along with N80 ( both properly resisted). I tried with waste gate springs on and off and with the MBC, and put the stiffest DV spring in that I have and still exceeded boost limits...

I didn't take any logs of throttle sensors while this was happening, but its easy to swap theMBc in for the N75, so maybe I will do that to see if my theory was correct. I do know once I out the N75 back in the mix everything was Irie :beer:


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> Just got back in the states after a quick vaca to Negril... Ya Mon!
> 
> Called innovate back and explained my persisting issue with the WB controller. Since I have isolated electrical interference, they are now suggesting I have the sensor too close to turbo and that the sensor is overheating.
> 
> ...


Tony, mounting the sensor post-cat wouldn't defeat the purpose of the wideband signal (still a wide band signal), but the accuracy of the signal would be a little bit off, or skewed as a result of passing through the cat converter. Since you're getting an error signal and Innovate is blaming sensor proximity to the turbo, I would temporarily mount the sensor at the OEM post-cat O2 location. This would rule out the sensor being too close to the turbo (which I doubt) as the root of your issue. 

I usually mount my wideband sensors at the secondary sensor location (or next to it if I have to keep the S2 signal), and never had that kind of problem. However, I also always have the cat deleted, so the signal calibration and accuracy is always perfect. Btw, the sensor doesn't have to be 24-36 away from the turbo (especially without a cat) to give solid consistent voltages. I compared the signal between a tailpipe sniffer (mounted about a foot from the atmosphere) with my LC-1 (mounted next to the post cat O2 bung), and they were virtually the same after a quick free-air calibration on both sensors. So, you're not limited to have the sensor that close the turbo. Like I said, try it a your OEM post-cat location to diagnose what's going on. 

PS: got your PM and I'm going the check my email spam box for your mails. Will send you a reply shortly! :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Tony, mounting the sensor post-cat wouldn't defeat the purpose of the wideband signal (still a wide band signal), but the accuracy of the signal would be a little bit off, or skewed as a result of passing through the cat converter. Since you're getting an error signal and Innovate is blaming sensor proximity to the turbo, I would temporarily mount the sensor at the OEM post-cat O2 location. This would rule out the sensor being too close to the turbo (which I doubt) as the root of your issue.
> 
> I usually mount my wideband sensors at the secondary sensor location (or next to it if I have to keep the S2 signal), and never had that kind of problem. However, I also always have the cat deleted, so the signal calibration and accuracy is always perfect. Btw, the sensor doesn't have to be 24-36 away from the turbo (especially without a cat) to give solid consistent voltages. I compared the signal between a tailpipe sniffer (mounted about a foot from the atmosphere) with my LC-1 (mounted next to the post cat O2 bung), and they were virtually the same after a quick free-air calibration on both sensors. So, you're not limited to have the sensor that close the turbo. Like I said, try it a your OEM post-cat location to diagnose what's going on.
> 
> PS: got your PM and I'm going the check my email spam box for your mails. Will send you a reply shortly! :beer:


Hey Max, thanks as always for the words of wisdom and I will give the post cat bung a try and see how things look that way...Sunday is supposed to be good weather down here. I remember Adam saying post cat 02 on our platform doesn't affect fuel trims so while I may pop a code for having the sensor exposed to atmosphere, it won't be telling the ECU to keep adding fuel.

Seeing the product has been around for some time.. I figured I wouldn't be the only one to report the 888 display.. But the debugging continues


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Adjustable sway bar links*

Thanks to Verdict Motorsports for these :thumbup: will update this post once installed


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Low Vacuum*

After some 4th gear runs today I stopped to grab a few things from the store. When I started car back up... I was only pulling 5 in of vacuum. Popped the hood after I got home to find that the hose leading to the boost guage from the T fitting had made long enough contact with a coolant clamp to melt itself shut. Trimmed the hose back a bit to make sure everything is nice and tight, and all is well again.










Checking efficiency of the FMIC in much warmer weather.









First Run.. I couldnt hold it all the way to fuel cut as I was running out of open highway in front of me.. but still a nice long run with good data. Max IAT=55C (131F)









Hopped off the next exit (2.5 miles after the first run and got back on heading the other way). This one I held on until fuel cut. Max IAT=59C (138F)









Enjoy :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Hi all, been a while since my last post... honestly haven't made any progress as I am still waiting for a few bits to complete the suspension / sterring overhaul. I am in desperate need of new rear tires, and just trying to hold off until I can update everything that will require an alignment.

To Do:
Purchase new strut Bushings (thinking powerflex at the moment)
Purchase new rear tires
Install strut bearings 
Install Defcons up front & new OEM bushing in rear
Install adjustable sway bar links (front and rear)
Install new ball joints and & tie rod ends
Drop the rear springs another 3/4" to flatten the car out
4-wheel alignment (still looking for the thread Max commented on with alignment specs for spirited street driving.. if anyone remembers the thread give a shout :beer

Anything I am missing besides new sway bar bushings?

I did get an oil change in yesterday and started putting my secondary air system back in. In the process I scared up a vacuum leak under the intake manifold (surprise, surprise). I am now pulling 24in of vacuum under decel rather than the 20-21 I have been seeing. Took a quick spin after, and I was quickly reminded that I live in farm country.. where rocks grow in the streets. Tried my best to take this on the trans side, but caught the end of the oil pan instead, and the subframe brace, and the dogbone pocket 


















Went back and scooped up the remains to keep the other ground pounders safe.









Still need to try the Wideband 02 in the post cat location to see if it clears up the issues I was having... Hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Powerflex Strut Bushing / new bearings / VM front adjustable end links*


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Drag results*

First time ever on a track (car 903). First run on the left had an issue so we don't have anything past the 1/8th. Lots of room for improvement :laugh:

Max and I are the first three on K04's. The last slip is against an F23.


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## [email protected] (May 14, 2009)

:beer:


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## FatAce (Jan 30, 2012)

Awesome! Any idea on the supporting mods of the f23?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

FatAce said:


> Awesome! Any idea on the supporting mods of the f23?


As far as I know he had the following running 27 psi with a tune to support it. He ran mid to low 13s all day if memory serves correct.

-Full emission delete
-Sticky rubber up front (he's an auto-X competitor too)
-FMIC
-e85
- springs on waste gate 
-some extra weight dropped (no spare, small battery, etc)


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

FatAce said:


> Awesome! Any idea on the supporting mods of the f23?





Boulderhead said:


> As far as I know he had the following running 27 psi with a tune to support it. He ran mid to low 13s all day if memory serves correct.
> 
> -Full emission delete
> -Sticky rubber up front (he's an auto-X competitor too)
> ...


Tony, Jeff's car is on a GTT turbo. It's an hybrid equivalent from Gonzo Tuning. :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Tony, Jeff's car is on a GTT turbo. It's an hybrid equivalent from Gonzo Tuning. :beer:


Thanks much for the clarification Max.. and bummer to hear about the electrical issues on Sunday. I do have a spare ECU, cluster, and Keys if you think that would work with your setup to at least get you home. 

Let me know what you think, and I would be happy to ship it out. Speedo, fuel, temp, and tach work fine, but cluster display is toast from my failed attempt to repair it.


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## 18T_BT (Sep 15, 2005)

2.7X 60ft on AWD? Is this your first time at the strip? Even MPH seems a little low, but I am no expert just curious...


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

18T_BT said:


> 2.7X 60ft on AWD? Is this your first time at the strip? Even MPH seems a little low, but I am no expert just curious...


Very first time  My take-offs could use a lot work and I was not launching hard given that I rode out by myself and had 150 mi ride back to southern PA. I have a track a bit closer to me in Cecil County MD that I may refine my skills on.

I would really like to see what the white Golf R was putting down as he had launch control programmed in and was off the line instantly. Max ran against him after the qualifying runs, so perhaps he can share the results of his last drag run.


----------



## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> Very first time  My take-offs could use a lot work and I was not launching hard given that I rode out by myself and had 150 mi ride back to southern PA. I have a track a bit closer to me in Cecil County MD that I may refine my skills on.
> 
> I would really like to see what the white Golf R was putting down as he had launch control programmed in and was off the line instantly. Max ran against him after the qualifying runs, so perhaps he can share the results of his last drag run.


That new R was really setup for the strip, had plenty of practice that day before the competition, drag radials etc., and the driver is a not a noob to drag racing. Because of the massive heat wave, every turbocharged car was taking a huge hit in performance (for example, all his practice runs early in the morning were consistently in the mid 12's down the 1/4 mile, in the afternoon in the shoot out he was stuck doing 13's just like me and Jeff). When we went, his 60 FT was a 1.82, while mine was a 1.84 (very respectable for that day when even the big dogs were struggling).

In my case I never could recover from his slightly better reaction time and ability to flat shift (maybe turning the A/C off while running would have helped, but I wasn't going to compromise :laugh. Don't feel bad about your times Tony, just like me, this was is not your element and the car were not setup for it... but at least you came out and competed with what you got.:beer:

My knock out run with the R:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> That new R was really setup for the strip, had plenty of practice that day before the competition, drag radials etc., and the driver is a not a noob to drag racing. Because of the massive heat wave, every turbocharged car was taking a huge hit in performance (for example, all his practice runs early in the morning were consistently in the mid 12's down the 1/4 mile, in the afternoon in the shoot out he was stuck doing 13's just like me and Jeff). When we went, his 60 FT was a 1.82, while mine was a 1.84 (very respectable for that day when even the big dogs were struggling).
> 
> In my case I never could recover from his slightly better reaction time and ability to flat shift (maybe turning the A/C off while running would have helped, but I wasn't going to compromise :laugh. Don't feel bad about your times Tony, just like me, this was is not your element and the car were not setup for it... but at least you came out and competed with what you got.:beer:


Thanks for sharing that slip Max. Pretty sweet that you were enjoying ice cold AC and still giving him a run for the money! I am quite happy with the way my heavy ass performed that day with minor improvements on each run. I think it is safe to say that won't be the last time you see me and the TT on a track :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*LED interior swap*


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Hi guys, hope everyone's summer and early fall is going well. Haven't had much time to spend working on the car or checking up on folks here, but I have been putting miles on the TT like crazy!! Its just over 200 miles round trip from the house in PA to the home office in northern VA and major iOS releases always mean more frequent trips down here. 

I recently put the SAI system back together as I am about due for an inspection and I have all systems green and no CEL 

Also have my fuel trims in check (pesky vac leaks) and I am averaging around 400 mi / tank (up from 300-320) while pulling 25 in of vac under decel rather than the 19-20 I was seeing before. I am sure environmental variables come into play, but for anyone not seeing 20+ in of vac under decel, do yourself a solid and spend an afternoon checking all your connections, no matter how tight you think they are.

On another note after nearly a year with the TT and reading lots of threads.. I am feeling more inclined to stay small turbo and push those boundaries. There is still quite a bit I want to do before I shift my attention to powertrain so only time will tell where I end up :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Finally got an alignment after suspension work..


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Been having trouble hitting full boost and have had oil spray all over the underside of my intake manifold. Ordered a new suction jet pump and dropped that in this afternoon now hitting 21 PSI and car feels very crisp. What the bad pump looked like below.






Also ordered 034 motorsports big port intake manifold so I may get the car on a dyno with the stock mani before the swap, To test the difference.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Big port manifold*

Just got a shipping confirmation from 034 that the manifold I ordered was picked up by Fedex, and seems that NGP down in Aberdeen might be the closest AWD dyno. Is it sufficient to make a single run on each manifold, (stock, updated) or should I really shoot for 2 runs on each? Anything else worth measuring outside of HP and TQ, and MAF?

On second note NGP does not have an AWD dyno.. so the search continues.


----------



## [email protected] (Oct 12, 2011)

Boulderhead said:


> Just got a shipping confirmation from 034 that the manifold I ordered was picked up by Fedex, and seems that NGP down in Aberdeen might be the closest AWD dyno. Is it sufficient to make a single run on each manifold, (stock, updated) or should I really shoot for 2 runs on each? Anything else worth measuring outside of HP and TQ, and MAF?
> 
> On second note NGP does not have an AWD dyno.. so the search continues.


We could always just unplug the Haldex and run it in fwd. That's what we normally do on these cars.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

[email protected] said:


> We could always just unplug the Haldex and run it in fwd. That's what we normally do on these cars.


:thumbup: Good to know. I really liked doing business with your team and you guys are reasonably close. I am more interested in seeing the gains between the two manifolds than I am hitting a certain number. I will be sure to give you guys a call once I have everything in hand.


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## [email protected] (Oct 12, 2011)

Boulderhead said:


> :thumbup: Good to know. I really liked doing business with your team and you guys are reasonably close. I am more interested in seeing the gains between the two manifolds than I am hitting a certain number. I will be sure to give you guys a call once I have everything in hand.


Sounds good :thumbup:


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## 18T_BT (Sep 15, 2005)

I have a large port SEM intake manifold, we can do a test of all 3 intakes? Where is NGP located? I am in DMV.


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## warranty225cpe (Dec 3, 2008)

Nice Tony! Cant wait to see he results on the manifold testing. Where did you source your LEDs from?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

18T_BT said:


> I have a large port SEM intake manifold, we can do a test of all 3 intakes? Where is NGP located? I am in DMV.


NGP has two locations, one in Aberdeen MD, and another one in Lorton VA. From what I see online, only the Abderdeen location has a dyno, so that would be the place.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

warranty225cpe said:


> Nice Tony! Cant wait to see he results on the manifold testing. Where did you source your LEDs from?


Yeah, I am interested to see the results as well. I sourced the LEDs from these guys.

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...Ds-Error-Free-Lifetime-Warranty-Free-shipping


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Haldex Service*

Serviced the haldex unit today for the first time (perhaps ever) today. Didn't spill much even though I had to remove the new plug after I started tightening things up (check out crushed washer below), and replace with the original washer. To be clear I did set the torque wrench to 22 ft lbs as the Bentley defines... Seems that may not be correct, or my TQ wrench is FUBAR?

Everything needed


















Wrench seated (long extensions are a must)









Original filter vs new filter









Modified flexi-nozzle due to limited clearance (did this on ramps in the driveway and couldn't get the caulk gun vertical)









Crushed washer









New vs Old fluid









Went for a drive and everything feels fine, no fluid leaking by the drain plug, so should be good for another few years.


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## deAutoLED.com (Jun 1, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> Yeah, I am interested to see the results as well. I sourced the LEDs from these guys.
> 
> http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...Ds-Error-Free-Lifetime-Warranty-Free-shipping


Thanks for the order - there should be no issue with flickering or the LEDs not working. They have been tested to work in the TT.

Thank you:thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Early Christmas*


































Will add some more pics of install / post install later this week.


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## carsluTT (Dec 31, 2004)

nice work so far!. i have yet to get my 034 manifold installed, i am interested in how things go for you.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

carsluTT said:


> nice work so far!. i have yet to get my 034 manifold installed, i am interested in how things go for you.


Thanks for the kind words my friend. I spent a little time on it yesterday, to try a test fit, and while I am not sure how the passenger side setups will compare.. Looks like I will need a different solution than the OEM plastic section post IC which holds the pressure sensor. If I really wanted to I could flex the throttle body hose and make it fit.. but it significantly pinches the flow and will likely lead to early failure of the weakest link. Even disconnecting the plastic hard pipe from the mounting bracket..the elevation change between the hose coming off the IC to the throttle body hose is around 2-3 inches, and the hard pipe is too damn long.. so looks its time to get creative.

The 034 manifold adds an additional 3.6 lbs of weight for those concerned about their girlish figures :laugh:


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## PLAYED TT (Oct 17, 2010)

Can you find a silicone hose with slightly tighter radiuses? Post a pic of how much off it is:thumbup:


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## warranty225cpe (Dec 3, 2008)

Nice progress Tony. It might be time to ditch that plastic tube all together and try to make a 1 piece pipe going from IC to TB with a flange welded in for the MAP sensor. I still plan on doing the same. Just havent gotten around to it.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

PLAYED TT said:


> Can you find a silicone hose with slightly tighter radiuses? Post a pic of how much off it is:thumbup:


TB hose at natural resting height (for full disclosure I do have a transition space adding to the height difference) and location of hard pipe if it were bolted down.










I think James is onto something..


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## PLAYED TT (Oct 17, 2010)

Nice. See if you can make it work. Silicone hoses are always a cheap go to as long as the bends can line up close. Way less expensive then custom pipes etc


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## carsluTT (Dec 31, 2004)

i see you added a photo of the inside of one of the injector bungs. and it looks to have similar casing cavity as the manifold i am using. joy :sly:

i whipped this up to get rid of that pesky plastic pipe. with no battery to work around was easy to roll a bead and turn a stainless J-tube into a bit straighter shot from the front mount. i ended up using a draft 42 map bung in normal carbon steel as no one makes a stainless bung and i didn't want to spend time making a custom one.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

carsluTT said:


> i see you added a photo of the inside of one of the injector bungs. and it looks to have similar casing cavity as the manifold i am using. joy :sly:
> 
> i whipped this up to get rid of that pesky plastic pipe. with no battery to work around was easy to roll a bead and turn a stainless J-tube into a bit straighter shot from the front mount. i ended up using a draft 42 map bung in normal carbon steel as no one makes a stainless bung and i didn't want to spend time making a custom one.


Yeah.. i have no idea if the cavity in the injector bung will do any harm, but I figure if the O-ring can seal at the top.. life should be good. I brainstormed a bit this weekend and by modding the stock MAP pipe (cut off the mounting tabs), and adjusting my IC hoses, I think I can make it work without unneeded stress on the silicon. I built up the battery tray platform using some rubber bushings i found in the garage and some extended hardware.


























After these wonderful efforts I was trying to cut a notch in my generic battery to fit the tray properly and stuck the sawzall blade through the bottom...Acid everywhere :laugh:

Since poking a hole in the battery I am seriously considering a relocation to the trunk as it frees up a good bit of room under the hood and gives me a great excuse to fill the void with a water tank for a direct port injection setup  Will keep everyone posted on what the final outcome looks like


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

No battery relocation yet but the tray is lifted and battery is back in along with the manifold all buttoned up. I notched the casing of the replacement battery with a file this time to fit in the OEM tray. Forgot to tighten the hose clamp on the diverter valve, and the first straight away I hit, it popped right out and ran like poop for the next half a mile. Tighten it back up and everything is good to go.


























Intake hose resting close to naturally









Capped the port opening on the very end of the manifold. If you look just to the right of the big hose clamp at the top of the pic, I use a 90 degree PVC fitting and just make a short loop back to a port on the bottom of the manifold as it just fit better than trying to use the end port.

















Put the vacuum line for the FPR on top for now since the hose was short.









All done


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Well after 90 miles of highway, the manifold plug that I only finger tightened (bottom of the manifold) lost its grip and left me with another large vacuum leak. Fortunately I was able to duck off 495 safely and limp my way into a national park. Had the car flat bedded 10 miles up the road to home depot parking lot, where surgery commenced.










Got some extra tools and some more practice ripping the manifold off to show for it all :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Winter*

Not much to update recently.. and the car has been hiding in the garage the past few weeks except for a few snowboard day trips (surprisingly I can fit the board in the front seat). Lost power for just shy of 5 days, so its nice to be back in the 21st century catching up on everyone's progress.

I did get a nice simple upgrade courtesy of a fellow Vortexer who made me some solid delrin spacers for my battery tray rather than the soft rubber I initially used. Happy to say everything is as tight as OEM, no fitment issues, and I am comfortable hard cornering won't collapse these spacers.

Once things warm up a bit, I am going to make time to get on the dyno and compare the OEM vs the 034 manifold.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Been putting the miles on the last few weeks, and have been feeling some some drag in the rear brakes backing up. Pads were in OK shape, but decided to thrown some new ones on and check all slide pins were moving freely (2 weren't).


































Autocraft... need I say more?









Now that the worst of winter is out of the way I need to get a hold of NGP and find a day to jump on the dyno as Im curious about the measurable changes from stock to the 034 manifold


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Just in time for summer*

Upgraded radiator that I will hopefully get to this weekend before the warmer weather kicks into high gear. On a side note it may also be time for a new power steering line..


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## FatAce (Jan 30, 2012)

What radiator is that, Tony? I may be in the market for one shortly as well. Love your build. :beer:


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## Rford71 (Sep 1, 2011)

Tony, if that is a Mishimoto radiator make sure you keep track of your receipt, I've heard a lot of complaints about this radiator leaking in the last couple of years from friends of mine with R32's. And like anything else if you don't have the receipt they won't honor the warranty.


Rob


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Radiator Install*

Everything torn down and ready to slide the old radiator out from the bottom.









Comparing thickness between OEM and Mishimoto.. I put a tape on each one and OEM = 1in whereas Mishimoto = 1.5 in

















Some cooling fins were already fudged coming right out of the box









Mishimoto is in.. but it certainly took some massaging of the radiator frame and shroud... Even then the AC condenser is not mounted to the rad as in the OEM setup. Space is a bit too limited and the extra thickness and shape of the sides is not helping in the TT world.


















And just as Robert mentioned both the upper and lower hose are leaking... just feels like it doesn't make as good of a seal and there is a little bit of play even with the locking clip closed. Going to put some miles on close to home and see how big of a problem this really is.

Robert, did your friends have similar issues or were they getting leaks elsewhere on the core. Thanks for the heads up :beer::beer:


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## Rford71 (Sep 1, 2011)

Tony, they've had leak in all different areas but at the connection area I just read that people are adding a Exter O-ring and that is fixing the problem. My friend Vito just install his radiator this week and it is leaks at the connections and someone recommended adding extra O-ring.

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?t=5909725




Rob


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Rford71 said:


> Tony, they've had leak in all different areas but at the connection area I just read that people are adding a Exter O-ring and that is fixing the problem. My friend Vito just install his radiator this week and it is leaks at the connections and someone recommended adding extra O-ring.
> 
> http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?t=5909725
> 
> Rob


Thanks for the link Rob.. good to know and the thread is a helluva read :thumbup:

I brought it up to operating temp again a few times today while it was on stands and I was wrapping things up. I think the original o-rings are starting to lose their memory and expand a bit with the heat. Most of my drained coolant was junk so I am going to just run distilled with just the splash of good coolant I had left over for a while now that outside temps are warming up.

Put 80 miles on today and coolant levels didn't move, even though I can see evidence of a drip from the top hose. I also never broke 95C even after some pretty hard runs and then coming to a deliberate stop with my nose downwind...(outside temp was 85F today) Just last week I was sitting in a drive through and noted 106C coolant temp in 40F weather. As long as a second o-ring stops the leak all together I will be a happy camper.

Also took time to finally put tyrol sport brake stiffeners in (very solid upgrade)

OEM vs Tyrol Sport









OEM sleeves removed









Just a bit of grease to keep things moving freely









New sleeve with c-clip 









Dust boot on and ready to go!


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## Rford71 (Sep 1, 2011)

Glad everything is working out Tony. Let me know when you make your appointment at NGP to get on the Dyon, I like to come check it out.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Rford71 said:


> Glad everything is working out Tony. Let me know when you make your appointment at NGP to get on the Dyon, I like to come check it out.


Sounds good! I am thinking next weekend or maybe tomorrow .. need to give them a call early to see if its doable, will let you know once I firm up a time.

Put just over 200 miles on today and there is still evidence of a leak, but coolant level hasn't dropped a measurable amount from what I can tell. Going to grab some new / additional o-rings and hopefully that will seal the deal. The 95F summer days will tell the real story, but watching the built in readout for coolant temp, I am not seeing anything over 94C sitting still in a drive through, and even as low as 87C rolling down the highway.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Car is getting on the rollers on the 29th at 9AM down at NGP's Aberdeen location. Will shoot some vids for your viewing pleasure and post the results when done.

Have a great weekend all :beer::beer:


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## FatAce (Jan 30, 2012)

opcorn:


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## Rford71 (Sep 1, 2011)

Boulderhead said:


> Car is getting on the rollers on the 29th at 9AM down at NGP's Aberdeen location. Will shoot some vids for your viewing pleasure and post the results when done.
> 
> Have a great weekend all :beer::beer:


Cool I might try to make it up there to check it out:thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Sounds good Robert :thumbup: I took the time today to drain some coolant and see if I could get the hoses to seal better on this radiator. I ended up putting one extra ring in the bottom and the top couplers.. I believe the problem with these rads is that the male end on the radiator is just a bit shorter than the OEM one. Adding the extra o-ring takes out all play now and anyone considering this upgrade do yourself a favor and put it in the first time :laugh:

With retaining clip locked in place I don't get any movement inward or outward on the radiator hose. Put 60 miles on after the change and everything is bone dry under the hood, coolant levels didn't move.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Nothing to write home about... Will post the vids once I get home. Big thanks to NGP staff for being awesome as always!


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## FatAce (Jan 30, 2012)

Well done! I would have thought you were going to be right above the 200 WHP mark with a 225 and bolt-ons. Regardless get that video up!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Came home to no power.. so couldn't upload HD until WiFi was back on. A/F looked safe the whole way through the rev range, and I have a few maintenance items to work on that the techs pointed out. All in all a fun way to spend a morning :laugh:

Run 1 (187.9HP / 221.8TQ)





Run 2 (187HP / 227 TQ)





Run 3 (182.4HP / 230.1 TQ)


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## TheDeckMan (Sep 26, 2004)

#'s do seem low, what is the list of bolt ons?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

DeckManDubs said:


> #'s do seem low, what is the list of bolt ons?


Hey Noah.. Its setup with the following, w/ 100K on the engine & turbo. 

- 93 Oct APR flash
- Forge FMIC
- Mishimoto Rad
- 42 Intake
- 034 Bigport intake with transition spacer for small port head

Stock exhaust


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## Krissrock (Sep 10, 2005)

a lot of softwares will let your boost flop at the top...tha's why your tq is nice, but the HP is low. 

you may not see number that are representative of yours mods without some sort EBC or MBC and hooking up the DV directly to the manifold...


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Krissrock said:


> a lot of softwares will let your boost flop at the top...tha's why your tq is nice, but the HP is low.
> 
> you may not see number that are representative of yours mods without some sort EBC or MBC and hooking up the DV directly to the manifold...


Ran an MBC for a bit, and kept getting excessive pressure in lower gears so took it out and just but N75 back in. Most of what I have done so far is preparing for more air, and I would suspect my numbers would be similar with only a flash.


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## Krissrock (Sep 10, 2005)

definitely for smooth partial throttle, everyday driving, the N75 is best. 
i no longer use my EBC because of erratic over boosting on partial throttle. but your number seem a lil low for the mods you have. i think the tq is good, but you're definitely on the low side for HP IMO. Have you had dyno's before this? could that big IM just not be right set up for the turbo at your current form? 

guess it doesn't matter cause you putting the pieces together for the better end results.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Krissrock said:


> Have you had dyno's before this? could that big IM just not be right set up for the turbo at your current form? guess it doesn't matter cause you putting the pieces together for the better end results.


Never had it on a dyno before this past week.. If I could to it all over again I would of had them throw it on the day of my flash before I touched anything else. Then we would see how much if any the existing mods are helping. I was planning to swap manifolds that day and run the OEM one after the 034 but didn't have enough time.

Noah is still on a K04 I believe and has reported positive experience with the manifold... and to be quite honest the butt dyno tells me that it doesn't feel as restrictive up past 5000 RPMs and response is noticeably better all around. It would be interesting to see what a 3 in turbo back exhaust would add at this point.

I removed the IM and separated the two halves yesterday as I pinched the gasket when I put it together the first time resulting in the leak. Cut some new fuel lines and replaced the originals as they were starting to crack. Cleaned everything up real good with brake cleaner under the hood so should be able to spot any outstanding issues


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## TheDeckMan (Sep 26, 2004)

Boulderhead said:


> Hey Noah.. Its setup with the following, w/ 100K on the engine & turbo.
> 
> - 93 Oct APR flash
> - Forge FMIC
> ...


Interesting. Spiking 21 and tapering to 15/16? Running a K04-001 on a 180hp FWD golf puts down close to 260wtq and 220whp in my past experience. I wonder if your exhaust is really restricting things. Granted, it is always nice to dyno against a couple other cars to see where things are at. A K04-020 should be 230-250whp in fwd mode and close to the 270wtq with a good tune. The APR stuff is very mild in comparison to a Tapp file or a GIAC-X file. 




Boulderhead said:


> Never had it on a dyno before this past week.. If I could to it all over again I would of had them throw it on the day of my flash before I touched anything else. Then we would see how much if any the existing mods are helping. I was planning to swap manifolds that day and run the OEM one after the 034 but didn't have enough time.
> 
> Noah is still on a K04 I believe and has reported positive experience with the manifold... and to be quite honest the butt dyno tells me that it doesn't feel as restrictive up past 5000 RPMs and response is noticeably better all around. It would be interesting to see what a 3 in turbo back exhaust would add at this point.
> 
> I removed the IM and separated the two halves yesterday as I pinched the gasket when I put it together the first time resulting in the leak. Cut some new fuel lines and replaced the originals as they were starting to crack. Cleaned everything up real good with brake cleaner under the hood so should be able to spot any outstanding issues


I wonder if the APR tune is not as aggressive on the timing and boost onset/n75 control. The exhaust will certainly help a ton! Short of the exhaust and tune, your setup is very close to my car. Granted, some times some dyno's have their load settings set differently than others depending on what is was being used for. 


:thumbup::thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

DeckManDubs said:


> Interesting. Spiking 21 and tapering to 15/16? Running a K04-001 on a 180hp FWD golf puts down close to 260wtq and 220whp in my past experience. I wonder if your exhaust is really restricting things. Granted, it is always nice to dyno against a couple other cars to see where things are at. A K04-020 should be 230-250whp in fwd mode and close to the 270wtq with a good tune. The APR stuff is very mild in comparison to a Tapp file or a GIAC-X file.
> 
> I wonder if the APR tune is not as aggressive on the timing and boost onset/n75 control. The exhaust will certainly help a ton! Short of the exhaust and tune, your setup is very close to my car. Granted, some times some dyno's have their load settings set differently than others depending on what is was being used for.
> 
> ...


You are spot on with boost spike and where it holds in higher revs. From the chatter on the boards it does seem the APR flash isn't the most aggressive. Not sure how much it matters but I did travel close to 50 miles that morning and the car only sat for 30-45 mins before we ran it. It was pretty cool that day, but also raining so humidity was high (50F). Here is some data from last year on a 4th gear run which includes timing for comparison.

First Run.. I couldnt hold it all the way to fuel cut as I was running out of open highway in front of me.. but still a nice long run with good data. Max IAT=55C (131F)









Hopped off the next exit (2.5 miles after the first run and got back on heading the other way). This one I held on until fuel cut. Max IAT=59C (138F)









I never have problems meeting requested pressure, and fuel adaptation is acceptable, so logic would tell me that car is putting down everything its being asked to, just not to the full potential of the hardware


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## Krissrock (Sep 10, 2005)

with stock headers and IM, cat back, a lot of silicon tubing, fmic, Uni stage1, Neuspeed intake, Apexi EBC, in FWD, I put down 232 WHP and 264 LB/FT 
with addition of headers and a 3in downpipe, I put down 242/255 to the wheels. 

so I don't think you'll the gains that would put you in the right place with an exhaust. Have you checked your boost logs to make sure you're hitting what you're supposed to? I think the APR tunes are more mild than others..possibly only hitting 19 psi as opposed to 21-22 psi of theres...(but that would really only change your Tq more so than your HP)

people are always talkin about air velocity..it could just be that the manifold is made to flow a much higher volume of air to keep the velocity. so you'll be at a lost till u get the big turbo


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## Krissrock (Sep 10, 2005)

lookin at the graph, you can see the requested boost is tapered off... that's why I switched over to a EBC earlier..so I could program the boost to hold as long as it could physically. I think if you were to get to a stage 2 (with downpipe) the boost curve should be flat, giving you a better chance of more HP


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## TheDeckMan (Sep 26, 2004)

Boulderhead said:


> You are spot on with boost spike and where it holds in higher revs. From the chatter on the boards it does seem the APR flash isn't the most aggressive. Not sure how much it matters but I did travel close to 50 miles that morning and the car only sat for 30-45 mins before we ran it. It was pretty cool that day, but also raining so humidity was high (50F). Here is some data from last year on a 4th gear run which includes timing for comparison.
> 
> First Run.. I couldnt hold it all the way to fuel cut as I was running out of open highway in front of me.. but still a nice long run with good data. Max IAT=55C (131F)
> 
> ...



Tony, I would work on improving the exhaust flow as that will definitely choke up the amount the turbo can flow. 

Still pretty cold air temps for the dyno, when I did mine with Doug, it was an outside dyno in 85 deg heat. I am willing to bet it is the lack of aggressive timing and the restriction in the exhaust velocity leaves a good bit more on the table to gain. I almost have my car all back together, I need to get out and run some logs.





Krissrock said:


> with stock headers and IM, cat back, a lot of silicon tubing, fmic, Uni stage1, Neuspeed intake, Apexi EBC, in FWD, I put down 232 WHP and 264 LB/FT
> with addition of headers and a 3in downpipe, I put down 242/255 to the wheels.
> 
> so I don't think you'll the gains that would put you in the right place with an exhaust. Have you checked your boost logs to make sure you're hitting what you're supposed to? I think the APR tunes are more mild than others..possibly only hitting 19 psi as opposed to 21-22 psi of theres...(but that would really only change your Tq more so than your HP)
> ...


Kriss, your numbers seem pretty good in line with what should be put down. Uni's file is a pretty good middle ground file like the GIAC-X file. It was night and day difference going from GIAC-X to Tapp's personal TT file from his car. I have just made small tweaks here and there to keep improving on it. 

The manifold works great with a 3" down pipe and test pipe. However I had to increase my fuel in order to keep things running well. Running the stock injectors at 4 bar to hit the target a/f's. Pulling away from V8 M3's in the drag race down the front straight of Lime Rock takes lots of power to overcome the poor aero of the TT's front bumper design.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Thanks guys, great advice all around. Given that I enjoy every mile driving in the current state, its encouraging to see how much I stand to gain in the future. Could likely grab some more HP up high by throwing an MBC in for the runs.. but a full exhaust will be the next major item on the list


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

One of the items on my fix list from NGP was that the line going from the manifold to the FPR was sucked nearly shut. Today on my way back from a work trip I went to accelerate onto the highway and while boost gauge built quickly the car did not... total slug mode.

The spindly little hose finally did pinch shut and then blew apart at the connector. I have replaced with a reinforced rubber fuel line that should hopefully not meet the same fate. Kinda curious if it would make any difference on the rollers.. as it was certainly noticeable today :laugh:


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## Chunki84 (Dec 18, 2008)

Two dumb questions 

Is Innovate Motorsports Wideband 02 for wideband ecu?

And

I saw you use MBC w/o n75. I also saw many article that MBC w/o n75 is bad idea.
That's why I haven't installed MBC even I bought long time ago.
What do you think?
What is down side and up side you think?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Chunki84 said:


> Two dumb questions
> 
> Is Innovate Motorsports Wideband 02 for wideband ecu?
> 
> ...


The Innovate setup is an independent 02 sensor and can work on any vehicle type as the sensor is made to work with the included gauge. You can add a new bung to the exhaust and you won't have to alter any of the OEM config. In regards to the MBC... I only left it in for a short time as the experience wasn't worth the little benefit it added with my current setup.

What kept happening is that I would hit overboost limits of the software in lower gears putting the car into limp mode. It will be valuable for my future plans, but doesn't apply right now


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Haven't done much lately except stack on some miles running all over the state. Last week I got a open circuit code on the N249 which I have resisted. For the past 2 years I just had the resistor plugged into the stock connector with 2 zip ties and some rubber tape.

Seems the way I secured the sensor out of harms way caused one of the leads going into the connector to break. Since the break was so close to the connector I just snipped the connector off, stripped back some wire and soldered each lead to one end of the resistor. I then rubber taped one lead to the resistor, and then the second creating a layer of rubber between each soldered lead. Found a better hiding spot for the sensor and zipped it into place.

I also took the opportunity to clean the MAF and replace a plastic elbow in the evap system. A quick 4th gear run down the highway and everything looks to be in good shape.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Car has been running great and slowly saving up to tackle the exhaust which will be manifold back (JBS style to 42DD). When I get to swapping in the new turbo/engine everything will be v-band. Completely unrelated... I have been having a lot of fun with a GoPro this summer 

Things pick up around two and half minutes in


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Vacuum wasn't reading what it normally should and further inspection revealed this guy..









I blew the turbo to charge pipe elbow off after putting things back together (finger tightened hose clamps... you would think I learned better by now), and in doing so threw some codes. Needing to get inspected, I reset the codes and used this post from Audi World to set the readiness in my driveway.

http://www.audiworld.com/forums/s4-...etting-readiness-codes-using-vag-com-1477650/

Currently on the hunt for a donor motor for a tear down this winter


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

This was without me adding any extra after the auto shutoff. Anyone ever hit 17?? I thought even getting to 16.5 would never happen.


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## peter139 (May 4, 2005)

almost 65 liter ..

US gas prices are cheap in comparison where i live. I would pay $ 112,- for this tank off fuel


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Some updates...*

I blew a coil pack for the first time going highway speeds down I 95, which is no fun. Fortunately there was an Audi dealership about 10 miles away so I was able to swap it out there and was good as new. I ended up replacing all of them as they look original.

In other news, original plans for a big turbo build have taken a new direction in favor of a hybrid turbo. More details to come as parts come in, but orders have been placed for a new turbo, full exhaust, bigger injectors, and a software flash to match. I will be converting to a wide band o2 through use of a conversion harness.

Stay tuned


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

A quick update on where things stand... The turbo, software, injectors and ECU bits are in route. I will be dropping the car at the 42DD shop in a couple weeks to have all the exhaust work done. This isn't going to be your average down pipe, rather a variation with influence from one of our forum regulars.. so stay tuned 

Since I will have the turbo before the exhaust work is being done, ideally I would like to swap that before I drop the car off. Plans are to port the OEM manifold when swapping turbos. Only concern is whether having the OEM exhaust on with a more aggressive setup is a recipe for disaster. A few thoughts include

1. Only swap the turbo, leaving the milder APR ECU and stock injectors in place until after the exhaust is done
2. Swap everything, but cap max boost really low (12 psi) using an MBC
3. Just wait until I get the car back and do everything then

Would love some feedback from those who went this route previously.

*Side Note*: James, do you have the power to edit Thread Titles? If so, could you change this to "Boulderhead's Build Thread" Thanks!:beer:


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Can't wait to see the spin on that 'inspired' exhaust system :thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

This showed up the other day, and I just got confirmation from GTS that my order shipped. I think you will find the work from 42DD very familiar Max :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)




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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Welcome to the hybrid club, the fun is about to begin!!!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Welcome to the hybrid club, the fun is about to begin!!!


Thanks Max, pretty pumped. Any thoughts on whether to swap the turbo before I drop car off for exhaust, or should I just wait until I get it back from 42?


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Tony, I would do the turbo first and get that out of the way, then drop the car to 42 for the exhaust. Chances are you will hit a few bump on the road with the turbo swap, so it's better IMO to get started and sorted to minimize the overall time of the project. :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Excellent, thanks for the reassurance Max! surgery begins tonight as soon as I track down an E14 socket


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

What I retained from doing it twice (solo) is: during removal, leave as many oil and water lines as possible attached to the turbo and you'll worry about undoing them on the bench. When doing the reinstall, it's much easier to bolt the turbo with the lines attached to it than monkeying your way trying the get them fitted in tight spots without stripping any threads. At first start, make sure to prime the turbo real well by cranking the motor for a couple min without ignintion or fuel injection. Go get them knuckles busted! :laugh: :thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Max, you are a better man that me if you can get that turbo out with all the lines still attached :beer: Being my first time fooling around on the backside of the motor I removed just about everything from the bay except the engine, and was able to work through removing the turbo tonight. Almost got away clean... but one of the inserts in the turbo came out of the turbo housing so I am either going to drill it out the head or try to get a dremmel underneath and cut the stud. I tried putting a pair of vise grips on the insert but I think the two have fused together.

All in all.. I am pretty pleased with the progress tonight


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Good progress, better an insert than having to deal with broken manifold stud in the head. 

Sorry, I thought/assumed you knew. The easiest way is (after separating turbo and mani) is to remove the manifold out of the way. This gives you unlimited room to work on the turbo removal and reinstall as described (mostly from the top). Now with that stuck insert, you may end up having to remove the manifold out after all to get it out. If so, turbo first, then manifold -- you'll realize, when doing the reinstall, that lining-up and bolting the lines to the turbo is a lot harder than taking them out (mainly getting thread started clean). Regardless, it's out ... and only with a single casualty. :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Makes perfect sense, and I can see that being the key going back in. Outside of the washers and gaskets for oil and coolant lines, is there anything you would recommend not re-using?

Going to work on pulling the manifold now and start cleaning everything up. Going to replace valve cover gaskets and t-stat while everything is stripped down. Thanks as always for the support Max!

Edit: Also, what is the story on the studs on the exhaust side of the turbo.. any tips on extracting them (or should I source new)?


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

The exhaust stud/nuts should definitely be replaced with new hardware. It's good practice to soak them, but you're probably past this point. Hardware stores should have what you need. The OEM stuff loves to snap in removal, so good luck.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Fortunately for me the previous owner snapped T-belt so the head was replaced on this car and hardware has only been on for around 30K miles, but the manifold came out with no issues, just a little sneaky maneuvering around the DP.










Off to hardware store I go


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Your stock manifold looks to be in great shape, it's begging for some dremeling action. 

While it's out on the bench would be the perfect time to open up at least the collector area to improve flow and lower backpressure. It doesn't take much to improve the merge area, and any work there will pay big dividends in the top end.


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## FatAce (Jan 30, 2012)

In my experience with using a 225 mani and oem turbo to mani bolts, I'd recommend trying to source different bolts of greater durability. I used OEM on my f23 and they warped and separated. This led to one snapping off in the turbo itself. I remember James posting hardware that him and Doug use. Get in contact with those guys. As far as the lines on the turbo, Max is dead on. Leave as many lines on as possible as it is a bear to get some of the threads started. 

Progress is phenomenal. Let me know if you need a hand at all as I'm relatively close to you I believe. 

Good work, Tony. :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

FatAce said:


> In my experience with using a 225 mani and oem turbo to mani bolts, I'd recommend trying to source different bolts of greater durability. I used OEM on my f23 and they warped and separated. This led to one snapping off in the turbo itself. I remember James posting hardware that him and Doug use. Get in contact with those guys. As far as the lines on the turbo, Max is dead on. Leave as many lines on as possible as it is a bear to get some of the threads started.
> 
> Progress is phenomenal. Let me know if you need a hand at all as I'm relatively close to you I believe.
> 
> Good work, Tony. :beer:


Thanks!

Just got back from the hardware store, and the first I thing I noticed about the replacement turbo to manifold bolts I picked up, there is no way to tighten a bolt with a traditional head unless I take some material off the manifold itself. The only other option I can see without using OEM hardware is to get a bolt that I can tighten with a hex driver.

Called my local Audi dealership for replacement gaskets (manifold to head, turbo to manifold, turbo to down pipe and the oil return line gaskets). Inquired about the manifold to turbo bolts given my findings, but I will check with those guys before I move ahead. The tech and I were both blown away at what Audi wants to the the washer / spacer that goes with the turbo to manifold bolts ($35 a piece!!!) The darn bolts are only $15 a piece :laugh:

I am definitely connecting as many of the lines as I can on the new turbo before it goes back in now that the manifold is out of the way.. In hindsight, the way I removed the stock turbo is a bit more challenging. Thanks for the offer and I will certainly keep that in mind :beer: The only thing on the agenda until I get my new gaskets is to start working the manifold with some grinding stones and degrease engine as best I can.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Manifold going on a diet..


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> This showed up the other day, and I just got confirmation from GTS that my order shipped. I think you will find the work from 42DD very familiar Max :beer:


Tony,

Did you purchase that conversion harness from the Unitronic site or somewhere else? I just placed my order as well. I was considering building my own harness but I'm going to be working on the engine (rods, etc) and am not sure how much time I'll have to do the harness. Was considering purchasing the one from Unitronics.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

hunTTsvegas said:


> Tony,
> 
> Did you purchase that conversion harness from the Unitronic site or somewhere else? I just placed my order as well. I was considering building my own harness but I'm going to be working on the engine (rods, etc) and am not sure how much time I'll have to do the harness. Was considering purchasing the one from Unitronics.


Yes sir, posting the link below for anyone interested. My thoughts were along the same as yours (with all the other work that needed to be done, I opted for the plug and play solution). Let me know if you end up doing this yourself, and if you have any questions when you start your tear down. I am thinking about mounting the GoPro on my head for re-install :beer:

http://www.unitronic-chipped.com/store/wideband-ecu-conversion-kit.html


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> Yes sir, posting the link below for anyone interested. My thoughts were along the same as yours (with all the other work that needed to be done, I opted for the plug and play solution). Let me know if you end up doing this yourself, and if you have any questions when you start your tear down. I am thinking about mounting the GoPro on my head for re-install :beer:
> 
> http://www.unitronic-chipped.com/store/wideband-ecu-conversion-kit.html


Thanks for the confirmation. Mounting a go pro would be a great idea. I'm definitely ready to get home as there is a pile of parts waiting for me. It'll probably be slow as this is my first engine that I'll be tearing completely down but I don't want to miss anything and have to do it again. :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*The grinding continues*


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Home stretch*

I am just about done, need to order a few washers and bolts for the oil feed and return lines and do the wideband swap, but the turbo fits like a glove. Put a new thermostat and housing in along with new valve cover gasket

Lessons learned.

1. Nothing good happens after 3AM
2. A mirror can make all the difference
3. Get extra install hardware (washers and nuts ahead of time), you will lose some.
4. Install reminders
a) Turbo in first with lines torqued (do the top two water and oil in the car if DP is in, otherwise connect all lines on the bench). Let turbo sit as low as possible in the bay
b) Install manifold and tighten down all nuts (don't forget to cover all openings on the turbo prior in case you drop one)
c) Get turbo into mounting bracket and tighten down before connecting DP
d) Downpipe to turbo next and hand tighten nuts
e) Manifold to turbo bolts snugged


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Wideband conversion*

Swapped the ECU and got the wide band harness tied in. I am going to use the 02 sensor that came with my Innovate Motorsports stand alone kit. I also decided to replace the washers that the turbo to manifold bolts sit on with the recommended ones. The price is steep at $32/piece, but if they only get replaced once every 12 years its not so bad. Should be ready to crank over Friday at the latest


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

That's exciting! You've got me pumped to get home and tear into the pile of parts I have sitting there waiting. What did you end up going with for fueling? I'm looking at that Deatschworks High flow drop in that 034 has now as I'm sure my 13 year old TT fuel pump is probably a little weak. Look forward to seeing everything going Tony!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

hunTTsvegas said:


> That's exciting! You've got me pumped to get home and tear into the pile of parts I have sitting there waiting. What did you end up going with for fueling? I'm looking at that Deatschworks High flow drop in that 034 has now as I'm sure my 13 year old TT fuel pump is probably a little weak. Look forward to seeing everything going Tony!


It was certainly a good learning experience, and if you have everything ready and all your new assembly parts, this can be done in a weekend. As far as fueling goes, I am keeping the stock pump in place until logs and fuel trims suggest its not cutting it anymore. I don't plan on driving much before the exhaust is done so may be a while until I really see what I am working with.


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## [email protected] (Dec 14, 2013)

Looking good I know it's split down the middle hybrid/BT guys don't see eye to eye but I think a hybrid and some e85 makes a monster you can actually drive off the drag strip


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

[email protected] said:


> Looking good I know it's split down the middle hybrid/BT guys don't see eye to eye but I think a hybrid and some e85 makes a monster you can actually drive off the drag strip


Thanks Joe, I was originally planning to go BT (not very big, somewhere in the GTX 28 series). At the end of the day, the price point and level of difficulty / downtime is right where I want to be right now... and there isn't any reason I can't upgrade again if I get bored 

E85 is still pretty hard to come by in my area, which is OK as I would be needing some upgraded rods to go that direction. Good luck on your build, I will be following closely :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Final Pieces... I think?*

Should be the last bits I need, and yes I broke down and got the OEM turbo to manifold bolt washers. It stings now, but if they last 12 years I guess its OK :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> At first start, make sure to prime the turbo real well by cranking the motor for a couple min without ignintion or fuel injection. Go get them knuckles busted! :laugh: :thumbup:


Just about ready to crank this thing over.. To calrify priming the system, I just need to disconnect the coil pack connectors and fuel injector connectors, and crank the motor for 15-20 seconds, let it sit for 30 seconds and repeat the cycle 4 or 5 times?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Good & Bad*

Good news is that the car is running again. Bad news is I am leaking coolant from multiple connections on the turbo, so its coming back out.. Idle is smooth and pulling 21inch of vacuum. I think I finally fixed the connections on the mishimoto rad using a couple faucet o-rings.

First start after priming by disconnecting ECU, injectors and coil packs.


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Sorry to hear about the leaks Tony. Strange that the coolant lines are leaking with new gaskets. Maybe not enough torquing? Did you go to factory TQ specs? And I wouldn't go as far as removing the turbo to fix the coolant leaks, as it's most likely just need to go from factory TQ specs to German tightening specs (which is btw Good'N'Tight ).


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Sorry to hear about the leaks Tony. Strange that the coolant lines are leaking with new gaskets. Maybe not enough torquing? Did you go to factory TQ specs? And I wouldn't go as far as removing the turbo to fix the coolant leaks, as it's most likely just need to go from factory TQ specs to German tightening specs (which is btw Good'N'Tight ).


Well that one is on me... I re-used the coolant washers as they looked to be in great shape still :facepalm: 

I may have gotten away with it as I did a quick run down the road this morning and then back up on the ramps to idle for 25 mins and everything is bone dry. I do have some other problems though... results of a full scan, which i presume is related to the wideband swap. 

I followed the instructions for Unitronic harness and there is a resistor for cars like mine which are not VVT, which should be in the right spot, so not sure why the Camshaft Timing Adjustment shows open circuit. Any help or insight would be appreciated as I am currently stuck to 5 psi 


Address 01: Engine
2 Faults Found:
17939 - Camshaft Timing Adjustment 
P1531 - 35-00 - Open Circuit
17524 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor Heating; B1 S1 
P1116 - 35-00 - Open Circuit

Address 17: Instruments 
2 Faults Found:
01177 - Engine Control Unit 
64-10 - Not Currently Testable - Intermittent
01314 - Engine Control Module 
49-10 - No Communications - Intermittent

Address 35: Centr. Locks
1 Fault Found:
01616 - Signal Wire to Interior Monitor 
36-10 - Open Circuit - Intermittent


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Now I'm wondering if I should just try to find a wideband harness to swap in and resistor off the VVT specific line(s). Hope you get it sorted out soon!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

hunTTsvegas said:


> Now I'm wondering if I should just try to find a wideband harness to swap in and resistor off the VVT specific line(s). Hope you get it sorted out soon!


I wouldn't get discouraged by my results.. I am sure its my bad, and I am overlooking something. Getting a new harness seems like more work and more $$


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## TheDeckMan (Sep 26, 2004)

Nice porting Tony!


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## [email protected] Performance (Jul 20, 2011)

```
[COLOR=#000000]17524 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor Heating; B1 S1 [/COLOR]
[COLOR=#000000]P1116 - 35-00 - Open Circuit[/COLOR]
```
I would fix this first. I think this is the root of your issues.

I believe I answered your email, but forgive me if I didn't.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

[email protected] Performance said:


> ```
> [COLOR=#000000]17524 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor Heating; B1 S1 [/COLOR]
> [COLOR=#000000]P1116 - 35-00 - Open Circuit[/COLOR]
> ```
> ...


Gonzo, thanks very much for the reply. Of course... the obvious answer is usually the right one, and human error strikes yet again. 

I had reviewed all my new connections carefully, but what I failed to realized is that the wideband conversion harness was not properly plugged into the OEM connector. The little purple locking tab on the conversion harness need to be adjusted just slightly as it wasn't allowing the connectors to seat properly.

Down the road and back quickly and no longer seeing any errors :thumbup: Will try run a few log sessions tonight to make sure all other systems look good!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

ECU is asking for it, but something isn't right... exhaust leak?


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## [email protected] Performance (Jul 20, 2011)

Can you email me the logs?

gonzo @ gonzotuning.com

Thanks


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

[email protected] Performance said:


> Can you email me the logs?
> 
> gonzo @ gonzotuning.com
> 
> Thanks


On the way my friend. Thanks much for the continued support :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Haven't been home much the past 2 months and now that its Subaru weather I was thinking about finally getting my Defcons swapped in. For those that have done this themselves, can you get away without having a hydraulic press?

Happy Holidays to all :beer::beer::beer:


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

They're tough little bastards Tony. With a press they can be reluctant to come out and need to be chiseled out. Therefore, chiseling can be used as a substitute for pressing them out. You most likely will need a good air-powered chisel though, the bushing is encased in a metal sleeve that can become fused to the arm. Cut it in half and collapse the two halves to get it out. Good luck and let us know how it went. Happy Holidays!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> They're tough little bastards Tony. With a press they can be reluctant to come out and need to be chiseled out. Therefore, chiseling can be used as a substitute for pressing them out. You most likely will need a good air-powered chisel though, the bushing is encased in a metal sleeve that can become fused to the arm. Cut it in half and collapse the two halves to get it out. Good luck and let us know how it went. Happy Holidays!


Hey Max, Happy Holidays to you as well my friend, and thanks for guidance on the bushings (great excuse to add some more tools to the arsenal. Currently have my hands full with a co-workes B8 A4 that jumped time and needs to have the head removed and some new valves dropped in. Audi wanted 6K to put a new head on the car, and would only give me $3200 trade-in on a 2009 with 105K miles so I told him the TT needed a garage buddy for the winter :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Haven't touched the TT as free time has been spent tearing this 2.0T down. Carbon build up on the valves is amazing.


















I did happen to pick up some solid shifter end bushings and this pressure compensation valve which is meant to help the DV stay closed under high boost, while using a weaker spring so that when the throttle closes the valve can react faster as the spring pressure is not as great to overcome. The single port goes to the DV, while one port on the left side hooks into the same line that feeds the N75 valve, while the other connects directly to a manifold vacuum port.










Hope to have the exhaust sorted out in the next several weeks as spring is fast approaching and the Subaru gets more depressing as days drag on :laugh:


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## TheDeckMan (Sep 26, 2004)

Now that is some carbon build up


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## cgeromi (Apr 30, 2006)

It's time to sell that thing and get a Toyota . However I can't complain my GTI Vr6 just rolled to 218,000 miles with original motor and trans.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

cgeromi said:


> It's time to sell that thing and get a Toyota . However I can't complain my GTI Vr6 just rolled to 218,000 miles with original motor and trans.


CG, good to see you still lurking around my friend. First car was a corolla (87) and I sheared the center of the flywheel from the outer ring going up a hill.. what was a wild day


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

DeckManDubs said:


> Now that is some carbon build up


Nothing that E85 can't clean in a couple thousand miles!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Nothing that E85 can't clean in a couple thousand miles!


One day that will be more viable option in my neck of the woods or I will have to start taking chem lessons again ... would need to travel about 40 miles to find the closest station today


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Nothing that E85 can't clean in a couple thousand miles!


Hey Max, just for the sake of learning... would E85 even help those filthy valves on that setup as the injectors are dropping fuel directly into combustion chamber instead of spraying on the back of the valves like like our 1.8's


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> Hey Max, just for the sake of learning... would E85 even help those filthy valves on that setup as the injectors are dropping fuel directly into combustion chamber instead of spraying on the back of the valves like like our 1.8's


Tony, I can't speak from actual experience as I've never had nor ran a direct-port injected car on E85. 

With that said, logic would say that the carbon build up is a result of combustion (there needs to be some unburned fuel to deposit all that junk on the valves, and air intake charge can't do it alone). Therefore, if combustion waste from regular fuel can make its way there, so can the cleaning properties of ethanol. That's why I said it might take a couple thousand miles to clean, versus the couple hundred miles a conventional port-injected setup (like ours) need to shine this head up.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Tony, I can't speak from actual experience as I've never had nor ran a direct-port injected car on E85.
> 
> With that said, logic would say that the carbon build up is a result of combustion (there needs to be some unburned fuel to deposit all that junk on the valves, and air intake charge can't do it alone). Therefore, if combustion waste from regular fuel can make its way there, so can the cleaning properties of ethanol. That's why I said it might take a couple thousand miles to clean, versus the couple hundred miles a conventional port-injected setup (like ours) need to shine this head up.


Makes good sense, and thanks for giving the rest of us a leg up :beer: Hopefully we see some warmer days in the coming weeks and I can wrap this project up and get back to the TT. On a side topic, I am looking into a K16 upgrade to my wife's C30 once the extended warranty expires, only downside is that she will then own the fastest car in the fleet :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Plumbed the compensation valve today.. there was a perfect spot where the combi valve used to be. I put a T in the line going from the turbo outlet pipe to the N75 for the pressure source and everything else stayed pretty much the same. Swapped the lightest spring back in the DV (also replaced the piston and o-rings), and will see how things go.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Riddle me this... 

What would cause the N75 duty cycle to fall below 95-100% when the throttle is wide open and requested pressure is never met? I ran through the output tests and I can hear the valve open and close and when blowing through the bottom port air will switch outlets (during the test).

Taking N75 control of the WG out of the mix, and being very careful I can easily hit 20+ psi so I don't believe this is a boost leak. It very much feels like the car is running on waste gate pressure (which has been measured just shy of 15psi).

I haven't replaced the N75 valve yet, but I did measure the resistance across the two pins and everything seems acceptable from what I read. Any thoughts, or good spare valves laying around that someone could lend for testing.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Quick update on progress (lack thereof). My remanufactured alternator decided to eat the bearing a couple weeks ago and was making all sorts of smoke and noise. The thing was so hot, I had to let it cool overnight before I could pull it out. This time I took a picture of my receipt so when it happens again its not on my dime.

When pressure testing the intake I found a leak on the intake manifold in the injector bung. Worked with 034 to get a replacement (they are now using injector cups instead of just the cast injector bung)

Still waiting to get the exhaust sorted out, and might end up going with the standard 3" the whole way back from 42DD or see if a local hot rod shop would be willing to do something custom for the TT (just not sure what to expect $$ wise).

Also, just added this to the fleet ('06 LR3 with just under 75K on it). Got a few more kinks to work out.. but she is coming along nicely and will be ready for June vacation to the Carova 4X4 beach down in the outer banks.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

First victim after the winter rebuild... Im taking the fault on this one as I must have not aligned the hoses properly before bolting back to the head which placed extra stress on the seam and it just gave way. Hopefully local dealership keeps this in stock... or if anyone in the Herndon VA area has an old spare I am not too proud to beg especially since I am stuck 100 miles from home :laugh:


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## [email protected] Performance (Jul 20, 2011)

Boulderhead said:


> Riddle me this...
> 
> What would cause the N75 duty cycle to fall below 95-100% when the throttle is wide open and requested pressure is never met? I ran through the output tests and I can hear the valve open and close and when blowing through the bottom port air will switch outlets (during the test).
> 
> ...


Simply because your file isn't setup up for N75 with your setup  

Run a MBC


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

[email protected] Performance said:


> Simply because your file isn't setup up for N75 with your setup
> 
> Run a MBC


Gonzo, my man.. good to hear from you :beer: Would you suggest running the MBC stand alone or in parallel with N75? If you suggest MBC alone, do I need to keep the N75 plugged in and just cap ports? Any suggestions on what the MBC should be set for (if I remember correctly... ECU is asking for just under 24 lbs on this tune). 

Sorry for the plethora of questions.. and your help is always much appreciated.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Dropped MBC in and set to 20 psi... instantly get a code for MAF signal too high when I get on it. Pulled my air filter to clean that and the MAF to see if it makes any difference.


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> Dropped MBC in and set to 20 psi... instantly get a code for MAF signal too high when I get on it. Pulled my air filter to clean that and the MAF to see if it makes any difference.


Tony, you most likely have reached the MAF housing/sensor ceiling. In mine, I'm flatlining the TT sensor even with a much larger 3" ID S4 housing. I see it as a badge of honor, it's a good problem to have when a stock frame turbo outflows the stock Maf sensor .


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Tony, you most likely have reached the MAF housing/sensor ceiling. In mine, I'm flatlining the TT sensor even with a much larger 3" ID S4 housing. I see it as a badge of honor, it's a good problem to have when a stock frame turbo outflows the stock Maf sensor .


Max, thanks for dropping by :beer: Seeing as you have a bit more experience with this challenge, would you share some words of wisdom on what solutions I should consider, if any. The only repercussion I see at this moment is the ESP light comes on until the power is cycled off and then on. I never drove more than a day or two with an MBC regulating boost and I can see it takes some getting used to with partial load scenarios, but it sure is fun when you peg the throttle :laugh:

Anything else you might do to try and rule out other options.. or you pretty confident I just ran into my next choke point?


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

I'm pretty sure you're maxing the sensor at some point in the rev range and that's what you see being reported by the ECU (not knowing what to do when the voltage ceiling is shattered). That's not to say a bad MAF is not possible, but chances are high that it's just a maxed out sensor/housing combo for the airflow seen at onset now (since you introduced the MBC). 

A simple test (which also would be a solution to the problem) is to run a bigger housing. The larger cross section would scale the voltage reported by a percentage and allow you to stay within sensor range. It's not a perfect solution since other things are also moderately affected. The G/s reported will be scaled down, therefore you need to do some math in order to get the proper airflow values -- the fuel curve will also be relying on corrections to keep AFR 100% on target. 

PS: I have a housing that I can loan you so you could try the proposed test/solution. I only use MAF figures nowadays to calculate gains/losses in airflow from various mods since I'm on speed density fueling model with my standalone ECU. So, removing it for a while until you get things figured out is not an inconvenience to me. :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Hey Max, that makes good sense and would love to take you up on your offer (I will drop you a PM with my address). 

Just to make sure I am clear, the larger housing will trick the ECU into thinking that less air is flowing into the intake than actually is... effectively a vacuum leak. While this solves the MAF signal too high problem, I guess the question will be how much extra air is really flowing and whether that stays within acceptable fuel adaptation range.

If this pushes me outside of acceptable adaptation, I presume more fuel is needed to account for the unmeasured air to bring fuel trims back to earth?

So much to learn


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## [email protected] Performance (Jul 20, 2011)

You sure I didn't set you up with a MAFless file?

I can't remember deets because its been a while


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

[email protected] Performance said:


> You sure I didn't set you up with a MAFless file?
> 
> I can't remember deets because its been a while


Hey Gonzo, I am honestly not sure myself  Do you have any ideas on how to test it out? I do have VCDS and can setup a remote GoToMeeting session if you wanted to take a look together at any modules.


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## [email protected] Performance (Jul 20, 2011)

Unplug the MAF. Clear codes so fuel trims reset and go for a drive. Should be MAFless since that is basically 99% of the BT files I do. If no CEL, it's MAFless

If not just PM me and I'll look into it.


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## 20v master (May 7, 2009)

Boulderhead said:


> If this pushes me outside of acceptable adaptation, I presume more fuel is needed to account for the unmeasured air to bring fuel trims back to earth?
> 
> So much to learn


Correct. You increase the fuel rate the same percentage as the area cross section increase in the MAF housing. For example, I'm using the 225 MAF with 630cc injectors on my AMU, but with an AWP ECU that uses a 60mm MAF and 318cc injectors stock. I've increased the MAF housing to 70mm which is a 36% increase in area. The injectors are almost 200% bigger though, so in my primary fuel settings, I've subtracted 25%, the max amount of adjustment, which puts me at ~150% of original fuel flow (200% - 1/4 of that = 150%). My fuel trims settle out at -10%, which leaves me at ~135% of original fueling. 36% increase in MAF area vs 35% increase in fueling, pretty close. This is about the limit of injector size on the AWP ECU with this size MAF housing.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

[email protected] Performance said:


> Unplug the MAF. Clear codes so fuel trims reset and go for a drive. Should be MAFless since that is basically 99% of the BT files I do. If no CEL, it's MAFless
> 
> If not just PM me and I'll look into it.


Dropped you a note with the results


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

While I wait on a new aux fan, I started checking out the trunk for a suitable spot to move the battery. Right now Im thinking about a strap which attaches to these two bolts which held the old jack bracket in place wrap it around the front of the battery and also using expanding foam to fill in the spare tire well.


























I was thinking once the foam hardens I can cut out some sections to store a spare set of tools. Anyone have any experience working with products like that and can make a recommendation would be much appreciated.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Nothing exciting*

Been packing on the miles. Fixed a leaky washing fluid reservoir. The bottom motor which feeds the headlight washers broke away from the housing. Since I removed these things a couple years ago, the next best move is to take out the unused motor and plug the hole. I found that the nozzle for a tube of permatex fits great and solved the problem.


























Cut it close coming home last night.. Roadster tank is only 16.4 and this was not topped off after pump stopped


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Hey Tony, did you ever get to test the 3" MAF housing with TT sensor I sent you?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Hey Tony, did you ever get to test the 3" MAF housing with TT sensor I sent you?


Hey Max I did.. just haven't had time to sit down and figure out the best way to plumb it in since the TIP and the 42 intake are not sized for that monstrosity. How did you manage this (new TIP and air filter)?


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## tomde (May 12, 2010)

Battery location: I'm far from being able to post anything performance related, but isn't weight behind the rear axle not such a good thing?



Way out of my league,

Tom


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> Hey Max I did.. just haven't had time to sit down and figure out the best way to plumb it in since the TIP and the 42 intake are not sized for that monstrosity. How did you manage this (new TIP and air filter)?


Oh yeah, you need a real TIP to have an easy fit. The 80 mm badger5 Tip is what I recommend, it also allow you to free up a good chunk of HP from allowing the turbo to breath better. A must IMO for what you have going in your build. Just be aware that the fatty 80mm TIP is modeled for RHD cars and there is a bit of clearence issue with our LHD brake master cyl, a bit of trimming (2") on the turbo side and fitment is pretty good. 

On the 42 draft design intake, when I ran one, I used longer bolts to attach the MAF housing to the intake metal flange. IIRC I did turn the flange on the lathe as well to get 100% perfect fitment. A different filter makes it much easier though. I've been using the mushroom type filter with success (they flow better at the expense of shorter service/cleaning intervals, and are also much quieter which a big plus). :beer:


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

tomde said:


> Battery location: I'm far from being able to post anything performance related, but isn't weight behind the rear axle not such a good thing?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Correct, weight behind the axle is not as good as weight in front of the rear axle (closer to the center of gravity). However, it's much better than when it's being carried statically by the front tires. In order of importance: Weigh distribution - then polar moment of inertia.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> Oh yeah, you need a real TIP to have an easy fit. The 80 mm badger5 Tip is what I recommend, it also allow you to free up a good chunk of HP from allowing the turbo to breath better. A must IMO for what you have going in your build. Just be aware that the fatty 80mm TIP is modeled for RHD cars and there is a bit of clearence issue with our LHD brake master cyl, a bit of trimming (2") on the turbo side and fitment is pretty good.
> 
> On the 42 draft design intake, when I ran one, I used longer bolts to attach the MAF housing to the intake metal flange. IIRC I did turn the flange on the lathe as well to get 100% perfect fitment. A different filter makes it much easier though. I've been using the mushroom type filter with success (they flow better at the expense of shorter service/cleaning intervals, and are also much quieter which a big plus). :beer:


The man TIP is on the way across the pond thanks to Bill  So you are saying to just clamp the mushroom filter directly to the opposite end of the MAF housing?


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Yep, just clamp the filter on the other side of the Maf using a 4-5" silicone joiner of the appropriate ID. Good move on Bill's TIP! :thumbup::thumbup:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

First try at getting the trunk sorted out :laugh:










Monster TIP


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Got the TIP installed today (had to trim the part that attaches to the turbo back to where there was just enough meat for the hose clamp to bite onto).. certainly a tight fit and I am considering re-routing one of the lines to the ABS module. Seems like simply flipping the orientation will take the extra pressure off the side, but we will see.. Need to get air filter sorted out now and then we can see what happens


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## TheDeckMan (Sep 26, 2004)

Tony, that TIP must be a nice upgrade! How do you like it?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

DeckManDubs said:


> Tony, that TIP must be a nice upgrade! How do you like it?


Hey Noah, I just got a chance to try it out yesterday after a quick stop to find a filter for this bigger MAF. Hard to pinpoint if this is mostly due to the larger TIP volume.. but the DV seems to be quieter and more responsive (doesn't bounce like before when shifting at wide open throttle). It also feels like air is flowing better in higher revs and the intake seems quieter.. but this is just my perception (no data to back it up).

Max - I am still blowing past the limits of the MAF and not hitting request pressure... popped these 3 codes even with N75 in the mix and the extra springs removed from the waste gate. If I understood what you and Adam were saying is that the larger housing should help with this, but it seems I am still maxing out the sensor's readability. I can try to get a 4th gear run in this afternoon and do some logging. For now the mystery continues 

Engine Torque Monitor 2 (Limit Exceeded - Intermittent)
Post Cat 02 sensor resistance too high (Intermittent)
Mass Air Flow (Signal too high - intermittent)


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Long overdue.. but this was my Friday night fun. Only casualties were the bolts holding the joint that connects the cat section with everything behind the cat. 

Subframe was unbolted and left to hang. I followed Doug's comments on unbolting the ball joints, but this is really only needed if you are going to remove the subframe entirely (which I did not). The passenger side tie rod needs to get unhooked from the spindle so you can get enough clearance to come through the bottom. Takes a bit of patience and some curse words, but not a bad job... I did this on a set of ramps in the garage in about 3 hours, no hacking of OEM down pipe needed.

The new pipes save 18 lbs over the OEM ones.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Upon closer inspection the tie rods are in bad shape and drivers side axle needs a new inner boot. Since things will be apart a while longer I decided to pull subframe completely and do the defcon swap I haven't gotten to yet so the fun continues.










After an hour with the air hammer the old bushings are out.










Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

New tie rods and ball joints are installed, axles torn down and ready for reassembly this coming weekend. Rebuilding is actually not bad and much cheaper than replacements.










Replaced steering rack bushing as well.


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## KeegsTT (Aug 10, 2015)

*Awesome build*

Awesome work there bud, some very impressive stuff.


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Looking good man. 

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk


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## 20v master (May 7, 2009)

Do work!


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Thanks guys, will see how this weekend goes with getting the decons in without a press. I have the bushings in the freezer and planning on putting the control arms in the oven and slamming everything together with bench vise. Drained all the transmission fluid too and will replace with Redline RT-90. At this point I feel like I should just order T-belt kit and new rods and call it a day


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## [email protected] Performance (Jul 20, 2011)

What's the status on this buddy?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

[email protected] Performance said:


> What's the status on this buddy?


Hey Gonz.. good to hear from you. Status is that the previous owner put aftermarket axles in.. so after 2 weeks and 3 different orders (all with the wrong boots) I still am no closer to getting them back in. I tracked down a guy who is parting out a whole car 15 miles from me.. so going to try and get all 4 axles this weekend and get this thing back together.

Once its back on the road, I need to check in with you to get the MAF out of the picture and finally put this baby back on the dyno :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

For the love of Audi, can someone tell me the part number on their OEM axles (must be an 01, AMU, 17inch wheels, before the VIN split in that year). I am on the ledge trying to find replacement boots for the EMPI axles I took out, or the correct OEM ones.

As it sits now I have 6 axles sitting on my bench and not a single one that is together and will fit in the spindle :banghead:


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## TheDeckMan (Sep 26, 2004)

Boulderhead said:


> For the love of Audi, can someone tell me the part number on their OEM axles (must be an 01, AMU, 17inch wheels, before the VIN split in that year). I am on the ledge trying to find replacement boots for the EMPI axles I took out, or the correct OEM ones.
> 
> As it sits now I have 6 axles sitting on my bench and not a single one that is together and will fit in the spindle :banghead:


Drivers nut style pre update is a 80-9055 from Empi. Not sure what the passenger one is. I'll see if I can dig some info up when I am over at the garage tonight.


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## All_Euro (Jul 20, 2008)

Boulderhead said:


> For the love of Audi, can someone tell me the part number on their OEM axles (must be an 01, AMU, 17inch wheels, before the VIN split in that year). I am on the ledge trying to find replacement boots for the EMPI axles I took out, or the correct OEM ones.
> 
> As it sits now I have 6 axles sitting on my bench and not a single one that is together and will fit in the spindle :banghead:



Here are the numbers on my front two 01' TT 225 axles...











There axles are the nut style, not the bolt... just for reference - VIN: TRUWT28N411027541


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Thanks for chiming in gents, hopefully I can get this sorted out this week and get back on the road.



TheDeckMan said:


> Drivers nut style pre update is a 80-9055 from Empi. Not sure what the passenger one is. I'll see if I can dig some info up when I am over at the garage tonight.


I looked through EMPI's catalog and couldn't track down that part number. From what I can find, this is what is suggested to fit (86-2375-D).



All_Euro said:


> Here are the numbers on my front two 01' TT 225 axles...
> 
> There axles are the nut style, not the bolt... just for reference - VIN: TRUWT28N411027541


The subtle differences between the last two alpha characters is where I got hung up on the used OEM ones I ordered, so the hunt continues. In the meantime (partly out of frustration) I put my rear bar and adjustable sway links in this weekend.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Thanks for the help All_Euro, I found two used axles that are en route... and hopefully this is the end of this saga :beer: Noah, I was looking and it seems the part number you gave me was for the entire shaft and not the boot. Do you by any chance know the boot part number as I would still like to rebuild the EMPI's to have as a spare set.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Changed rear diff fluid, got one of the axles delivered & confirmed it fits! Also got the defcons and new rear bush pressed with the help of a friend with all the right tools. Need one more axle and the the rest of the exhaust to get it back on the road which I hope happens this week as the subaru doesn't do much to put a smile on my face.

Really excited to see how the feel has changed with refreshed suspension in the front along with the stiffer rear bar.


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Where did you end up going for the correct axles? I entertained the idea of rebuilding mine but seeing the frustration you've had I'm considering just ordering through Raxles.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

hunTTsvegas said:


> Where did you end up going for the correct axles? I entertained the idea of rebuilding mine but seeing the frustration you've had I'm considering just ordering through Raxles.


Don't get discouraged by my bumpy ride... once I got the right part number I got 2 used OEM shipped to me for $150


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## ticketed2much (Feb 18, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> New tie rods and ball joints are installed, axles torn down and ready for reassembly this coming weekend. Rebuilding is actually not bad and much cheaper than replacements.


How do you usually get the outside joint off? Any special tool needed? I usually put the axle in a vice and smack the end joint with a hammer and punch. Seems this only works about half the time?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

ticketed2much said:


> How do you usually get the outside joint off? Any special tool needed? I usually put the axle in a vice and smack the end joint with a hammer and punch. Seems this only works about half the time?


I didn't use anything special (3lb sledge and bench vise). I just cut the boot off first so I can flex the joint enough to hit the part of the joint that slides over the splines. One of them was more stubborn than the other... but I just kept hammering :laugh:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Drivers side axle showed up today and the last half of my exhaust shows up tomorrow.. this should make for a productive weekend, just in time for the hurricane.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Good lessons learned with the axles..long story short I have two spare sets :laugh: 

Turbo back exhaust mounted and fits like a glove (the slotted flanges on the 42 pipes make all the difference). I did everything with the car on stands / ramps and used some cardboard boxes to hold the pipes up off the ground. Key is to bolt all the sections together but allow some wiggle room so you can get everything to sit on the hangers and then crank down all the bolts. 

Subframe is back in, I had a fun time getting the steering rack bolted down with the bigger 25 mm bar up front. I ended up having to sawzall the little nipple off the front drivers side mount that guides the steering rack into the subframe (just not enough clearance with the thicker bar). 

Need to throw the wheels on, torque down all the suspension bolts, 4 wheel alignment and should be ready to until the snow comes :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Finished up today, just need an alignment and inspection tomorrow. It is definitely a different car on many levels (handling and power). No video as I left the GoPro at work, but I snapped some audio recordings from a couple quick rips down the road.

**These was taken with the top down*


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Short video running around town trying to get readiness set so I can pass inspection. This is running soft on boost around 17psi, but still a ton of fun, and with the suspension changes the car feels like its on rails taking corners. Talked to NGP today and should be getting back on the dyno in two weeks to see just how much extra fun im having :beer:


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## FatAce (Jan 30, 2012)

Sounds great, Tony! Sounds like you're surging around 0:43. 

And yes I still lurk around on this forum from time to time. opcorn:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

FatAce said:


> Sounds great, Tony! Sounds like you're surging around 0:43.
> 
> And yes I still lurk around on this forum from time to time. opcorn:


Glad to see you are still out there :beer:, I was wondering if the sound was coming from this piece of my setup. The sound is pretty consistent and only seems to be present while boost is ramping up. Once Im on the positive side of 10 psi it seems go away.

http://www.forgemotorsport.com/Intake_Pressure_Compensation_Valve--product--1060.html

Are you pretty confident its compressor surge, and what steps might I be able to take to verify / reduce that?


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

FatAce said:


> Sounds great, Tony! Sounds like you're surging around 0:43.
> 
> And yes I still lurk around on this forum from time to time. opcorn:



Hey bud, always good to see the old members popping in. This forum could use some of the traffic that used to make it great. 

Great observation BTW, I kinda listened to the video but didn't go through the whole thing (probably would've still missed it on my phone). That's definitely surge, and I get some of it as well at onset once I started running the Badger5 TIP. Basically, the TIP is providing more air than the compressor can ingest at onset, forcing it to operate above the surge line. In my car it only started happening after the TIP upgrade, is treated by capping boost onset at 27 psi. :thumbup:





Boulderhead said:


> Glad to see you are still out there :beer:, I was wondering if the sound was coming from this piece of my setup. The sound is pretty consistent and only seems to be present while boost is ramping up. Once Im on the positive side of 10 psi it seems go away.
> 
> http://www.forgemotorsport.com/Intake_Pressure_Compensation_Valve--product--1060.html
> 
> Are you pretty confident its compressor surge, and what steps might I be able to take to verify / reduce that?


I'm sure that's a correct diagnosis, happen with Joe's car and mine as well. Tony, there are a few thing that will help cure it. Increasing the airfllow through the motor seem to move the PSI where the surge is happening higher. Say you were to add cams, or remove exhaust restrictions, or do some porting work on the head, the surge might start happening at 30+ psi during onset vs 26/27 psi. You could also (as mentioned earlier) limit boost during onset until the motor is soinning fast enough to move more air through. I know it is kind of a bandaid cure, but that's what happens when operating near the hardware threshold.

I want to see mass airflow data! Did you get around to finding a solution to plumb the MAF I sent you?


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Max, as always you are a wealth of information.. and I think I see what you mean now.. once the motor is up around 4K the noise from the video goes away. Going WOT under that engine speed yields the noise every time, while pegging it above the 4K mark does not. Guess I need to do some more homework and consider the suggestions you offered up.

In the meantime, here is highest MAF reading on 4th gear run up my favorite stretch of test highway :beer:

297.14 g/s


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

Ohhhh Yes! You are maxing out the sensor too buddy. Great info for me and others, I never had anything to benchmark against on the GTT-x. Your airflow curve is more gradual and peaks up top while mine flatlines from onset all the way to redline (likely the extra stuff I've done with mine). However, you're still getting to the limit of the sensor which is awesome for a stock frame turbo. 


Hybrid turbo MAF values (sensor is maxed out from onset to redline)


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> I'm sure that's a correct diagnosis, happen with Joe's car and mine as well. Tony, there are a few thing that will help cure it. Increasing the airfllow through the motor seem to move the PSI where the surge is happening higher. Say you were to add cams, or remove exhaust restrictions, or do some porting work on the head, the surge might start happening at 30+ psi during onset vs 26/27 psi. You could also (as mentioned earlier) limit boost during onset until the motor is soinning fast enough to move more air through. I know it is kind of a bandaid cure, but that's what happens when operating near the hardware threshold.


I read up a bit more on the subject of compressor surge and chased down a handful of different platforms complaints and resolutions on the subject. I did't really understand the main concept under WOT until late last night. I wonder if the surge happening below 4K is the primary reason for my gradual curve versus what your graphs shows?

Given the stock rods are still in the car, I am leaning towards capping boost @ lower engine speeds for the short term, and figure out what it takes to eat more air at lower speeds for the long term. Any additional insight you can offer would be greatly appreciated as always :beer:


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## [email protected] Performance (Jul 20, 2011)

You shouldn't be maxing out the MAF. 297.14 g/sec equals to 1069 kg/hr. Stock BEA MAF can read up to 1253 kg/hr. An AWP MAF in a TT225 or VR6 MAF housing will be able to read even more. Of course this is all theoretical

At that boost level you shouldn't be getting any surge, though. That is weird.


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

[email protected] Performance said:


> You shouldn't be maxing out the MAF. 297.14 g/sec equals to 1069 kg/hr. Stock BEA MAF can read up to 1253 kg/hr. An AWP MAF in a TT225 or VR6 MAF housing will be able to read even more. Of course this is all theoretical
> 
> At that boost level you shouldn't be getting any surge, though. That is weird.


That's the thing, both Tony and I tested with AMU sensors inside of 3" ID housing (both cars are originally AMU engines). I understand that the BEA sensors caps a bit higher, so maybe they could allow to see what kind of airflow we're really moving before the sensor is maxed out. However the tests are already done in a much larger housing, a standard BEA sensor/housing would get maxed out too because the values Tony and I are seeing are scaled down by double digit percentage due to the lager cross section of the S4 housing. 

At that boost level, there would not be any surge on a standard TIP, the large 80mm TIP changes the dynamics quite a bit in my experience. Had the same thing happen in my car as well, was fine with no onset surge, and as soon as I added the larger TIP, the behavior started. The way I see it, it's a dynamic system -- flow more air than what could be ingested, and you will operate above the surge line until the motor spins fast enough to swallow more air to move things under the compressor surge line. 

In my car, keeping it boost capped under 28 psi is enough to operate right under the surge line. Above it, it'll surge unless airflow restrictions are re-introduced to limit the amount of air ingested (something that I would never go for).


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## [email protected] Performance (Jul 20, 2011)

Marcus_Aurelius said:


> That's the thing, both Tony and I tested with AMU sensors inside of 3" ID housing (both cars are originally AMU engines). I understand that the BEA sensors caps a bit higher, so maybe they could allow to see what kind of airflow we're really moving before the sensor is maxed out. However the tests are already done in a much larger housing, a standard BEA sensor/housing would get maxed out too because the values Tony and I are seeing are scaled down by double digit percentage due to the lager cross section of the S4 housing.


I'm not sure I'm convinced. Then again, I've never tested the limits of the MAF. I would like to see voltage or do a high speed log as this could be some sort of diagnostic limit. I'm not sure what MAF is being used here.




Marcus_Aurelius said:


> At that boost level, there would not be any surge on a standard TIP, the large 80mm TIP changes the dynamics quite a bit in my experience. Had the same thing happen in my car as well, was fine with no onset surge, and as soon as I added the larger TIP, the behavior started. The way I see it, it's a dynamic system -- flow more air than what could be ingested, and you will operate above the surge line until the motor spins fast enough to swallow more air to move things under the compressor surge line.
> 
> In my car, keeping it boost capped under 28 psi is enough to operate right under the surge line. Above it, it'll surge unless airflow restrictions are re-introduced to limit the amount of air ingested (something that I would never go for).


I wouldn't doubt the surge if he was running over 23psi but he is seeing surge at around 19psi, though.

Either the TIP is a super mod that increases flow exponentially, or something else is going on.

Sorry if I sound super incredulous. You know I'm all for improvement. I just can't help it being slightly skeptical.


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

The MAF combo being used is a standard AMU sensor in a 3" ID audi S4 housing (both our cases since what Tony logged with is the same sensor/housing as I did). 

You're correct, it's around 19/20 psi where Tony is hitting the surge. But who's t say it that 19 or 20 psi is not enough to hit the compressor surge line. Pressure is a measure of restriction through the system, not necessarily a measure of air flowed. The proper way to look at it and analyze it is to say "X mass air flowed is enough or not enough to create surge". That airflow could be reached at X, Y, or Z pressure depending of the setup IMO, so let's look at logged mass air instead...

At 3,500 rpm Tony is flowing roughly 170 G/s. That 170 G/s is under-reported because the housing cross section is bigger with the 3" ID S4 Maf housing. Can't remember for sure how much percentage increase that was over the standard TT housing but it's in the triple digit (33.9% to be exact). At 33.9% larger, the 170 G/s reported is really around 227.6 G/s. So you're saying 227.6 G/s this early in the rev range can't possibly land someone above the compressor's surge line? I believe it can... thoughts?

*Edit*: Numbers fixed to reflect the proper Area increase in the larger 81mm S4 housing used on Tony's figures. Thanks Adam for smacking us over the head for calculating the percentage increase using the cross section length in mm instead of Area increase :facepalm:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

I can confirm it is the AMU sensor in the larger housing that Max sent to me. More than happy to run more tests and take measurements I just really don't have enough knowledge on this subject to add much to the conversation.

*Edit:*
Just measured the two housings, and the original housing for AMU MAF is 70mm, where the S4 housing from Max measures in at 81mm (14.5 % difference)


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

[email protected] Performance said:


> Sorry if I sound super incredulous. You know I'm all for improvement. I just can't help it being slightly skeptical.


I believe you can call it a super mod because for what it is, it sure gives a nice bump in airflow (more than going from a k03 to a k03-S to put it in perspective). You can see in the thread linked below how much it did on a car already-fitted with a performance TIP -- so over a factory one, it really does an incredible job at improving air flowed through the intake. 

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?7271105-Badger5-vs-Samco-TIP-Comparison


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## 20v master (May 7, 2009)

Boulderhead said:


> I can confirm it is the AMU sensor in the larger housing that Max sent to me. More than happy to run more tests and take measurements I just really don't have enough knowledge on this subject to add much to the conversation.
> 
> *Edit:*
> Just measured the two housings, and the original housing for AMU MAF is 70mm, where the S4 housing from Max measures in at 81mm (14.5 % difference)


Where are you guys getting these % differences?

AWP = 60mm ID = 2827.4 mm^2
AMU = 70mm ID = 3848.5 mm^2 (= 36% increase over AWP)
S4 = 81mm ID = 5153 mm^2 (= 34% increase over AMU)


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Not gonna lie, I plugged the 81mm and 70mm into the first online calc website I ran into. Since it was close enough to what Max remembered I ran with it. Seems that was just a bit off 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Marcus_Aurelius (Mar 1, 2012)

20v master said:


> Where are you guys getting these % differences?
> 
> AWP = 60mm ID = 2827.4 mm^2
> AMU = 70mm ID = 3848.5 mm^2 (= 36% increase over AWP)
> S4 = 81mm ID = 5153 mm^2 (= 34% increase over AMU)


You are correct! We just used the percentage increase in the cross section/dia of the housings (like the untrained mathematicians that we are :screwy. Glad that you're there to catch these things...





Boulderhead said:


> I can confirm it is the AMU sensor in the larger housing that Max sent to me. More than happy to run more tests and take measurements I just really don't have enough knowledge on this subject to add much to the conversation.
> 
> *Edit:*
> Just measured the two housings, and the original housing for AMU MAF is 70mm, where the S4 housing from Max measures in at 81mm (14.5 % difference)





Boulderhead said:


> Not gonna lie, I plugged the 81mm and 70mm into the first online calc website I ran into. Since it was close enough to what Max remembered I ran with it. Seems that was just a bit off
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Tony, what we did wrong (simple minds thinking alike) is not calculate the area of the two housing to find the proper percentage increase. Since we know the cross section/diameter, the Area formula is:	
A = (π/4) × D2

For the stock TT MAF housing 
A= 0.785 X 4,900
A = 3,846


For the larger S4 housing 
A= 0.785 X 6,561
A= 5,150

3,846 => 5,150 is a 33.9% increase as Adam pointed.

I edited my post to reflect the proper percentage increase, which proves my point even more (227 G/s early in the rev range is a plausible cause for hitting the surge line).


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Been stacking the miles on the last month and enjoying the unusually warm northeast weather. I am now setup with an AWP sensor in the AMU housing (what the tune calls for), and the Badger TIP. This has resolved the trouble I was having with maxing out the MAF and disabling ESP. 

Car runs amazing and is smooth under all throttle positions, thanks again to Gonzo for all the help!

After much more driving I really don't think the noise from the video is compressor surge as my boost gauge doesn't fluctuate and there is no noticeable loss in power (both things that happen when the compressor stalls). 

Took yesterday to raise the front coils an inch as the roads are junk around here and makes it a lot easier to get up on ramps when I need to do any work.

Going to send my cluster out to module masters next week to finally have my Frankenstein cluster repaired.

Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Had a long run with the top down last week and found that driver seat heating pad was producing some blazing hot spots even with setting only on 2. Spent yesterday afternoon pulling the drivers seat and removing the heating pad from the seat cushion.

Been trying to find a replacement heating pad without much luck, so might end up buying a used one with a beat up cover unless someone can point me in the direction of replacement heating pads.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Ended up scoring a used lower seat that looks clean and matches interior. Might play around on the weekends and see if I can't build my own replacement heating pad setup as the only thing I have found so far are generic kits.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Coolant flanges*

Not much new except no more plastic coolant flanges. Car is running great and seeing lots of miles these past couple months. Not much planned until winter, when it will be due for timing belt.. and creates a great opportunity to finally upgrade the rods and bump the airflow. Hope everyone is having a great summer


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## cgeromi (Apr 30, 2006)

Nice upgrade to the metal flange! I did a similar upgrade on my vr6. 

Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

*Temp loss of throttle*

Something really odd happened tonight when I was driving home. At least a dozen times over the first fifteen minutes of the drive I lost the throttle temporarily. It happened under light load in high gears (never lost it under hard acceleration). It never dropped out for more than a couple seconds and it seemed like taking my foot off the throttle and trying again brought it back to life.

I didn't get a chance to scan it yet, but curios if this has happened to anyone else before. No CEL, and the last 75 miles of the trip was trouble free


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

FatAce said:


> Sounds great, Tony! Sounds like you're surging around 0:43.
> 
> And yes I still lurk around on this forum from time to time. opcorn:


Been a while.. but after a year of driving the car I have determined that is the N75 pulsing the wastegate to keep boost in check and not compressor surge. I am hoping to find the time and cash to upgrade the rods this winter and up the boost even more next spring :beer:


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Noticed an oil leak last week coming from the oil return line. The threads stripped out of the lower bolt hole in the pan so I grabbed a used one off eBay.










As the pan was getting packed for shipment they noticed a crack. They called and asked if i wanted a pan without the oil pressure sensor hole cut out as they had one ready to go, which I accepted. In addition to cutting out that sensor hole I had to cut threads for the sensor bolts as they were just pilot holes on the pan I received.



















Would prefer to have all that done for me, but I got a nice deal and everything is nice and tight again.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> Something really odd happened tonight when I was driving home. At least a dozen times over the first fifteen minutes of the drive I lost the throttle temporarily. It happened under light load in high gears (never lost it under hard acceleration). It never dropped out for more than a couple seconds and it seemed like taking my foot off the throttle and trying again brought it back to life.
> 
> I didn't get a chance to scan it yet, but curios if this has happened to anyone else before. No CEL, and the last 75 miles of the trip was trouble free


This happened again today cruising around some back roads (interestingly enough in a "haunted" area on the MD / PA line).

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rehmeyer's_Hollow

Each time it happens I have to completely let off the throttle and then it comes back. If I keep my foot on it or even put it to the floor I get no feedback from the throttle. We stopped at Home Depot after the haunted cruise and the brake lights wouldn't go out after I shut the car off.

I suspect the throttle cut is associated to this and I will replacing the brake light switch to see if that clears things up. Anyone else have faulty brake light switch cause similar behavior?


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> This happened again today cruising around some back roads (interestingly enough in a "haunted" area on the MD / PA line).
> 
> https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rehmeyer's_Hollow
> 
> ...


I did before I ever tore the car down. Happened briefly when the switch completely crapped on me. Luckily one in stock at a local parts store kept me from experiencing anymore. 

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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

hunTTsvegas said:


> I did before I ever tore the car down. Happened briefly when the switch completely crapped on me. Luckily one in stock at a local parts store kept me from experiencing anymore.
> 
> Sent from my LG-H901 using Tapatalk


Good to know, il make a couple calls in the AM and see if I can get one to swap in.


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

So far so good after swapping the brake light switch. The problem wasn't consistent enough to know for sure if this solves it, but def feel better having a new switch in place for $11.


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Boulderhead said:


> So far so good after swapping the brake light switch. The problem wasn't consistent enough to know for sure if this solves it, but def feel better having a new switch in place for $11.


Awesome!

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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Hitting up a semi-local drag strip this AM. A co-worker of mine has a 2016 WRX that is ready for some fun.. so will see how things change from the last time I ran a few years ago


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## Boulderhead (Oct 21, 2012)

Gorgeous day to be outside.. this guy on the left was the fastest






My second run (the launch is terrible) :laugh:


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## hunTTsvegas (Aug 27, 2012)

Looks like a blast and a gorgeous day to be out!


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