thezoneR32's Gti Project

[thezoneR32]

Yes that’s right you read correctly. I bought a MKV Gti – to play around with. Funny how things happen. Up until a few days ago I’d never even driven one. Then along came this black 5 door manual with leather, which I was offered to buy at what can only be described as an obscenely low price. I hopped in, went for a spin and well, really liked it! Not saying I don’t like my R32 it’s just a completely different drive is all.

Car has full service history, recently re-cond air by VW all belts n thins have been done. So anyway I feel some modding is in order. Don’t want to go overboard.

Here she is all washed and completely stock.








First Mod - Custom 3" TBE exhaust hand fabricated by Mark @ Exhaust Technology in Kings Park SA. Mark is known for creating some of the finest exhausts in the country. I also found out he does all of KPM's work who are right next door! Ha!









Driving out of the shop I could feel how easily it wanted to spool up, better throttle repsonse more sense of urgency but still very smooth in power delivery and the sound is brilliant! Deep and aggressive but not at all drony.

2nd Mod - Custom Code Stage 2 ECU Tune - Gavin was down in Adelaide for the Tour and organised everything. Read the ecu, sent it to the UK, got the file back and loaded it. At first it seemed to pull better but not as much power as I had hoped for. So Gavin ran some diagnostics and sent them back to the CCode in the UK and we left it over night for a reply.

First thing this morning Gavin got emailed a diagnosis on the logged data, the boost was way down and Ccode in the UK said the data pointed to a faulty diverter valve so we took it out and sure enough it was an older diaghpram type and was stuffed!





3rd Mod - OEM Piston Diverter Valve

Luckily Solitaire VW had the new type "D" one with the piston style and although it cost me $180 I got it fitted straight away.



I left the car park and holy ****! The difference was night and day, this thing is seriously mental now. Even with brand new Pirellis it struggles to keep traction in 2nd and 3rd gears! Wicked! Will have to re assess when I get my 18x8.5's, KW coilovers and H&R swaybars on.

Thanks to Gav for a sensational custom tune, these guys really know what they're doing, far exceeded my expectations for power and torque! Just need to get it to ground! Gavin is a top bloke and will bend over backwards to get things right.

Really enjoying the simplicity of a manual especially one so well looked after. The gti is light and nicely balanced, it's a nice change from the slightly more sterile and heavy DSG R32!

I have a list of other planned mods but can I ask for some help here as I’m a GTI newb!

• HPA KW SHS coilovers (waiting to go on)
• H&R sways (ordered will go on same time as )
• Dieselgeek shortshifter (looks like I missed a group buy from a couple of months ago)
• Tinted tails (cos I like ‘em )
• GTC (Genntech) GT-CX 18 x 8.5 in hyper silver (will need to roll the front guards and do fender screw mod)
• Forge Twintake
• Bi-xennons
• HPFP
• LED interior, driving and license lights (hyper white from tuner domes)
• Stubby antennae
• Dark window tint
• S caps (from parts4euro)
• Remove space saver spare, tool kit and jack
• Brake upgrade - will start with better pads and decide from there, brakes are not as assuring as the Adam's rotors on my R32.

Other mods I’m not sure are essential – can anyone please advise?

• Heat shield (BSH from dubaddiction)
• Catch can (BSH from dubaddiction)
• Anti-lift kit?
• Any other bushings or links?



Cheers

[NabzGTI]

Finally came over to the dark side eh? nice ride.. just like mine!

Here's a list of mods you might want to consider as well:
- Stage 2+ software (for when you get the HPFP)
- Bigger Intercooler (im not going to give specific brands otherwise we'd start a war)
- BSH PCV fix (this is important for modded cars)
- Boost gauge
- Brakes (DBA4000 Slotted rotors with Hawk HPS pads. If you're making your car faster, you'd want to brake better as well)
- Engine mount insert (makes gear changes a little more crisp, and reduced axle tramp.
- Forge wastegate actuator (helps you hold more boost for longer)
- Good quality sticky tyres
- New OEM Revsion Camshaft (depending on what year your car is, you'd want to make sure you have the 'hardened' revision camshaft if your car is modded. In earlier models, the camshafts were softer and prone to more wear. If you damage your camshaft, you could be up for a lot of money to fix the other damage it causes)

Other than that, I can only think of aesthetic modifications if you want to go down that path.

[thezoneR32]

Finally came over to the dark side eh? nice ride.. just like mine!

Here's a list of mods you might want to consider as well:
- Stage 2+ software (for when you get the HPFP)
- Bigger Intercooler (im not going to give specific brands otherwise we'd start a war)
- BSH PCV fix (this is important for modded cars)
- Boost gauge
- Brakes (DBA4000 Slotted rotors with Hawk HPS pads. If you're making your car faster, you'd want to brake better as well)
- Engine mount insert (makes gear changes a little more crisp, and reduced axle tramp.
- Forge wastegate actuator (helps you hold more boost for longer)
- Good quality sticky tyres
- New OEM Revsion Camshaft (depending on what year your car is, you'd want to make sure you have the 'hardened' revision camshaft if your car is modded. In earlier models, the camshafts were softer and prone to more wear. If you damage your camshaft, you could be up for a lot of money to fix the other damage it causes)

Other than that, I can only think of aesthetic modifications if you want to go down that path.

Cheers thanks for that advice! Camshaft revision? Mine's a mid 2005 with the first engine AXX(with the forge pistons) so more than likely has older comshaft but how could I tell without pulling the engine apart And then if you had to change the camshaft wouldnt you just go for a bigger one?

What sort of weight are the DBA's compared to stock?

What about an LSD this would certainly help traction? Has anyone fitted one of these? If so Quaife or Peloquin?

[NabzGTI]

Cheers thanks for that advice! Camshaft revision? Mine's a mid 2005 with the first engine AXX(with the forge pistons) so more than likely has older comshaft but how could I tell without pulling the engine apart And then if you had to change the camshaft wouldnt you just go for a bigger one?

What sort of weight are the DBA's compared to stock?

What about an LSD this would certainly help traction? Has anyone fitted one of these? If so Quaife or Peloquin?

Bigger camshaft means extra dollars.. they weren't cheap when I was looking. The revision camshaft is sufficient to handle anything a k03 setup can throw at it. Plus I had no intention of making my car a 10-11second car, so it was pointless for me. As for checking your current one, I dont think you can without opening it. Unless you want to call VW and confirm which models come with the old camshaft (I would assume a 2005 model would come with the older 'softer' version).

According to a post in another forum, the DBA4000's are about 3.5kg lighter than the OEM rotors per corner. I never personally weighed my ones, but that makes a total of 14kg overall!
Installed rear slotted DBA 4000 rotors today - VW GTI Forum / VW Rabbit Forum / VW R32 Forum / VW Golf Forum - Golfmkv.com

In your first thread, you said you didnt want to go overboard with the mods which is why I didnt suggest an LSD. But if you're happy to spend the money, then yes it would be a good investment to help traction. Just be careful of your turning circle as it has caught some people out when doing u-turns. If you want to go that level, might as well get a turbo upgrade and meth injection while you're at it

[kryten2001]

You don't need a bigger camshaft, and I wouldn't worry about the old revision camshaft - just keep a good constant eye on your cam follower for wear and you should be right.

If you want proper power, you'll want a bigger turbo. You think a tuned K03 has power, try a GT2871R on for size!!

[thezoneR32]

Cheers guys initially I didnt want to go overboard but the power is infectious! Maybe I'm getting carried away. I like the instant torque of the k03, I drove a golf r and didnt like the turbo lag, I actually prefer the drive of the gti over the R but thats probably because I have an R32 which has no lag at all. Having said that I rekon my gti now has more torque than the demo R i drove!

Think I might just pull my head in and settle for a hpfp, intake and brakes (once my suspenion mods are in).

Thanks for the help guys!

[getjet]

Nice car

• Dieselgeek shortshifter (looks like I missed a group buy from a couple of months ago)

FYI: End result after installation on my MkV TDI.

[thezoneR32]

Nice car



FYI: End result after installation on my MkV TDI.

Nice! Gotta get me one of these!