What have you done to your mk4 (golf/bora) today?

[Cookie28]

The thread is probably damaged due to the stresses as the bolt got further and further out.
Same thing happened to me a while ago, I had to get a helicoil inserted.

I see, thanks for that mate I'll pull the bolt out of the other side and if that comes back out I'll get a helicoil I guess

[kendog]

Also took off the doors to fit up my new speakers. To my surprise the door is nicely sealed and the speakers well seated. Nice one VAG.
Should I bother with making MDF door pods?

I used to work in car audio/alarms/electronics, and was a foreman of a few workshops (not a salesman), and I think that the stock speakers and mounts are pretty damn great for a stock factory system. I know I won't be changing mine unless there's a specific problem. That's the speakers though, the head unit I changed over the first day I got the car for a brand new one.

As far as the pods go, it all depends on wether or not you can mount the new speakers to the existing plastic pods solidly. If you can, just do that, you can always make pods later on if you really feel it needs them to be more securely/snugly mounted.

[Swainey32]

I see, thanks for that mate I'll pull the bolt out of the other side and if that comes back out I'll get a helicoil I guess

if you are going to change the speakers, make sure you maintain the "sealed enclosure" set up as VW has designed it as, or welcome rattles and awkward mid range.
follow something like this VWVortex.com - DIY: Installing speakers in a mk4 golf/jetta
The modelling clay is a good idea to make sure those mdf rings don't allow any air transfer between the door and door trim. or a more permanent solution, think about some decent silicon in a thick layer around the base of ring.

[kendog]

Yeah sorry, I was missing the word 'sealed', it should have read:

As far as the pods go, it all depends on wether or not you can mount the new speakers to the existing plastic pods solidly AND WELL SEALED. If you can, just do that, you can always make pods later on if you really feel it needs them to be more securely/snugly mounted OR BETTER SEALED.

[dubster99]

Trying to rub down these grab handles and that coating is such a pain! Hot water+scourer pad= failing! :/

[RubAVeeDubDub]

I used to work in car audio/alarms/electronics, and was a foreman of a few workshops (not a salesman), and I think that the stock speakers and mounts are pretty damn great for a stock factory system. I know I won't be changing mine unless there's a specific problem. That's the speakers though, the head unit I changed over the first day I got the car for a brand new one.

As far as the pods go, it all depends on wether or not you can mount the new speakers to the existing plastic pods solidly. If you can, just do that, you can always make pods later on if you really feel it needs them to be more securely/snugly mounted.

if you are going to change the speakers, make sure you maintain the "sealed enclosure" set up as VW has designed it as, or welcome rattles and awkward mid range.
follow something like this VWVortex.com - DIY: Installing speakers in a mk4 golf/jetta
The modelling clay is a good idea to make sure those mdf rings don't allow any air transfer between the door and door trim. or a more permanent solution, think about some decent silicon in a thick layer around the base of ring.

Cheers for the help guys!!

Looking at the door I could see that VW has well sealed it so I want to maintain or improve the sealing. The quality of the sound system is pretty good for a factory system, but I like my Morel Ovations and Polk 12" sub better

I swung past super**** auto and seen that they sell Aeropro 25mm thick carpeted mdf 6.5" speaker pods which is perfect. So I'm going to be connecting a pair together to make a 50mm thick mount. I was planning to use some silly-of-con between the pods and a rubber seal between the mount and the door, but I'll change that to moulding clay now. Interesting use of moulding clay!

Today I managed to get the wires through the engine bay and into the cabin. I ended up running the 4guage power cable alongside the engine bay wiring from the battery, under the windscreen sill panel, down the opening near the side indicator and in between the gap between the A pillar and the guard. I needed to file the guard a little bit to fit the thick 4ga cable but otherwise was a harmless install. Far better option to me than drilling through the firewall (yuck!).

Hopefully next weekend I can tackle fitting up the speakers and remounting the amps. The amps are currently mounted upside down on a board and after some advice, I'm going to be mounting them flat on a new board that will hang down with bolts from the board I've bolted under the parcel shelf.

[RolfGolf]

Trying to rub down these grab handles and that coating is such a pain! Hot water+scourer pad= failing! :/

Try adding some jiff or something like that - seems to cut through a bit easier when you're trying to remove it, but it's a lot of elbow work for sure. From memory, I used a scourer, jiff, my fingernails and warm water - took ages though.

[kendog]

after trying many lotions and potions, the best method seemed to be leaving the parts soaking in soapy water for at least an hour or more minimum, cold water seemed fine, but you could keep topping it up with hot if you wanted. I cleaned out a garbage bin to get as many parts in as I could.

There's parts on my thumbs & fingertips that are still tender and lacking fingerprints from doing this the other week. Painful, tedious stuff.

In other news.. ordered my 42DD full Turbo Back exhaust last night!! 3" Down Pipe to 2.5" Cat Back, can't wait to get that thing landed and installed!!

[dubster99]

cheers guys will try these out! bought some of that paint kendog and it works a treat! no more cream plastics! on another note ive hopefully got my hands on another r32 rear bar, cupra lip and have also looking into full millteck split system to suit 1.8t

[kendog]

Are you talking about that GTI wrecking on eBay?? I couldn't wait any longer for him to give up on the whole car and start selling the parts. He's missed out now, I've bought things like remote key fob and CCM from the UK, exhaust from 42dd, etc.

Are you buying the whole car? Or just the parts you want?

[dubster99]

yea i went on ebay and it apparently was wrecking it! was like ok so how much for exhaust and everything else if still available as i told him im keen a while back on parts and he said its sold for $600! apparently no one actually offered him any $$ for it. my response was you were determined to sell it whole so why offer if he wasnt going to part it out. piss weak excuse like he lost my number prick! yea i think ill be waiting a while just to get parts i think :/

[kendog]

Yeah, after he told me he didn't want to part it out yet, I left him my number and a message saying to let me know ASAP if you're parting it out and I'll take the exhaust, keys and CCM, and possibly rear bumper etc. ..

I figured he was going to **** me around, so bit the bullet and bought elsewhere.

[dubster99]

yea since 42dd couldnt do me a split system i just looked at millteck systems. he got a time frame before i give him the flick haha

[kendog]

I would have given him more than that for just the parts I wanted.. Oh well.

Anyway, my CCM with wiring looms, and remote key fobs turned up from UK this morning..

[dubster99]

nice work! yea $2000 system for $600!