jaygemson

It'll either be T25 or T30, like most other bolts on the car

I tried to highlight the bolt in step 2 of my original post, but to avoid any doubt it's the torx screws shown here that allow you to move the headlamp:

Thanks for the pin! Yes, heating the blade would probably help, not a bad idea. Not sure I follow this, sorry! Can you explain?

@hhcd80 from memory it wasn't too bad. The cutting zone is relatively thin plastic.

This looks like the same one I used… Blue Spot Soft Grip Precision Knife Set https://amzn.eu/d/8k7owoo The colour is different but it’s the same item I ordered from Amazon in 2018 so I reckon it’ll do the job.

Hey @dhali, you tracked me down! I remember speaking to you at the recycling centre, yeah - thanks for taking the time to say hi and ask about the car. Was nice to meet you 😃 They really are cracking cars, I'd challenge anyone to find a more complete all-rounder for the same money. If you have any other questions just drop me a message 👍

Thanks @Vasariah! Appreciate you taking the time to reply - so cool that people are still finding this thread despite the lack of updates to the car.

Thanks @Dooge! That's a lovely looking car you've got there - Race Blue was what I wanted when I first started looking. Glad to have inspired you with some of the jobs/upgrades I've ticked off over the years ☺️ Honestly, don't even think twice about the Eibachs, just do it. The spring rate is a better match to the dampers than the originals so the ride is actually improved, and of course the arch gap reduction is most welcome! I've done a whole bunch of VCDS coding on mine, yeah. Definitely worth doing!

Cheers @bullawayo - really appreciate the kind words! Just checked out your build thread - that's a cracking mk2 😍 Love the mods and the DIY approach. I can tell we're a very similar breed of petrolhead 😁 I may have mentioned this before but it was the lasting impression of driving my old man's mk2 VRS company car from about 10 years ago that led me to owning the mk3 - the mk2 is a fantastic bit of kit. No plans to sell mine at the moment, but in about a year it may become available as I should by then be in a position to move onto something more powerful and with AWD again. I'll give you a shout!

Couple of recent photos taken with the roofbox fitted, ready to swallow up all the gear we 'need' for our family trips

Absolutely!! Just back from a family trip to Norfolk which involved nearly 8 hours of motorway and fast A-road driving and the sound deadening was a god send, made the cabin so much more pleasant than it would've been otherwise. Totally justified the effort.

I ordered one of each using the links in my earlier post, enough for 36 sqft. Used pretty much all of it in the end.

Applied sound deadening to the rear seat deck, boot floor and rear wheel arches. A lot of work but thankfully the results were worth the effort! The Scorpion resonated system sounds great, but when I went to stage 2 and added the downpipe (with sports cat) I started experiencing some resonance and sound pressure from the exhaust in the cabin at motorway speeds, around 2,500rpm. This has now been drastically reduced, as has general road noise and vibration. The downside is that I’ve added around 10kg of weight to the car, but I can now enjoy the exhaust tone and intake noise again - at one point I was considering returning to the stock system Some measurements I took with the Decibel X app show how effective the sound proofing’s been even at idle: Before Cold start 70dB Cold idle 67dB Warm idle 60dB After Cold start 64dB Cold idle 60dB Warm idle 55dB I used a layer of Noico 80mil sound deadening mats: https://www.ebay.co.uk/.../Noico-80-mil-36.../402289973761 Followed by a layer of Noico 150mil sound proofing sheets: https://www.ebay.co.uk/.../Noico-RED-150-mil.../402677036211

Has anyone bought and tried this part yet? Looks like it would just sit in the expansion tank and float around without a harness/holder.

Still planning on recording the sound when I can. Hoping to capture sounds/footage from inside and outside the car, when it's clean, when I have time - so the stars need to align The lower mount's a tricky one. There's some vibration in the cabin when in D and not moving, and during low speed maneouvres, but otherwise it's fine. The vibration has eased off slightly since it was first installed too. It's annoying but liveable during normal everyday driving, but when you push on you have the reassurance that the engine movement is more controlled and wheel hop is a thing of the past. Next... ? Not sure! I doubt I'll take this car any further now as I'm really happy with how it looks and drives. I've considered an ARB upgrade but honestly I'm happy with the handling balance - it's neutral already, so a rear ARB upgrade alone might make it unstable. I could retrofit virtual cockpit and upgrade the sound system, but I don't drive it enough to really benefit from the cost of those so the plan is to save money for the next car purchase, which is likely to be a Superb Sportline 280. I can transfer a lot of the Octavia's mods onto it, gain a load of interior space and AWD in one go, plus it has the potential for a lot more power.

Cheers @RustRazor22 and @Towelie, appreciate that Just went back and re-read my first post: With the brake upgrade that's everything done! So what next?!

I've also completed an OEM+ brake upgrade. This one's been a long time in the making! It all kicked off when I found a set of scruffy TTRS 4-piston Brembo calipers and 370mm discs in summer last year for a bargain price, but they were nasty! The calipers were sent away to be stripped and refurbished by Brake Caliper Refurbs (https://brakecaliperrefurbs.co.uk/) whilst I cleaned the rotors and polished the bells by hand. HEL supplied some braided lines specifically for the conversion. Before: After: On the rear are Golf mk5 R32 calipers+carriers with 310mm MTEC drilled discs to match the fronts. EBC RedStuff pads all round and ATE fluid. Due to a comprehensive lack of time (thanks in part to homeschooling and fatherhood in general) I enrolled the services of a good friend and Audi master tech who now has his own mobile workshop. So huge thanks goes out to Rob at RIO Autotech (https://rioautotech.co.uk/) who came out to me and went above and beyond to get the job done. Awesome work! Currently struggling under lockdown to get any miles on to bed it all in, but it looks the part and should provide a lot more stopping power and consistency when we're finally allowed out to play again!

Welcome! Cheers for the kind words Really sorry for not getting back to your comment before now, and sorry to everyone for the lack of updates recently. Lockdown's been a struggle but my love for the car remains and there have been some pretty serious upgrades over the last few months. So yes indeed, the downpipe has now been fitted! And better still the generic remap that I bought the car with has been replaced with Racingline's finest ECU and TCU software to match. Huge thanks to Adam and the guys at AWTuning (http://www.awtuning.co.uk/), I couldn’t have asked for better service from beginning to end, thoroughly recommended. They fitted the downpipe, checked and adjusted the rest of the Scorpion system, fitted a REVO lower engine mount bush to help control the engine movement and got the ECU and TCU mapped all within the space of half a day. Monster effort! Downpipe looks lush in the engine bay! And how is it? Excellent. Smooth as butter when trundling about and then just strong, linear power all the way to the redline. Previously it would hesitate occasionally under partial throttle, and the power felt like it tailed off towards the redline - not anymore! I opted for ‘pops and bangs’ to add a bit of drama and I was nervous as I didn’t want anything OTT, but I’m pleased to report that they’re very nicely judged. Only active when pushing on (and disabled in Eco mode) you provoke it on overrun when backing off the throttle at higher RPMs to give a cheeky but authentic sounding crackle/pop. Can’t help but grin every time!

Some pics of the car looking clean (for the briefest of moments!) over winter:

I've put a few miles on it now and my first impression remains the same - the turn-in, and in fact the steering in general, is more direct. Seems to have sharpened up the front-end nicely. Can't say that it's night and day different, but an improvement nonetheless. No compromises other than adding a bit of weight over the front axles.

Treated the wagon to some new tyres The Eagle F1 Asymmetrics that were originally on the R360 wheels when I bought them were almost 4 years old. I'd noticed the grip levels getting steadily worse, and the car was getting a bit noisier on rougher road surfaces too so I jumped on a cashback offer from Michelin - £100 off a full set of 19s. Michelin Pilot Sport 4S (235/35/R19) I can happily report that what everyone says about them is true - they're epic. Grip levels are just astounding, they're about 50% quieter and to top it all off the ride quality has improved thanks to Michelin introducing softer sidewalls. Well pleased!

Been a while since I got my hands dirty! Good to finally get these parts fitted... Superskoda bonnet strut lifters (from Superskoda) Strut brace (from Strut Brace UK) The wiper arms just would not come off their posts, so whilst I waited for a special puller to arrive I dosed the strut top bolts with WD40 and let them soak. Was concerned about the strut mount nuts spinning but mine came loose without any problems thankfully. Strut brace was a tight fit - had to persuade the firewall forward a few mm by hand, but otherwise it fitted like a glove. I’ll report back on handling improvements once I’ve taken it for a spin.

@wagonist I bought mine from a Skoda dealer (part number 5L0998295) but you could also try Mike at Coverdale Car Parts 👍

Just realised that I hadn't posted the photos after the obligatory lockdown detailing session! Enjoy 😎

Cheers @kentdale 👍 I'm super OCD about a straight steering wheel too. Took mine back to the local alignment shop to get it adjusted twice after having the Eibach springs fitted. Gotta be right though!