stu83

Hi AG, don't suppose you have any recordings of the noise? I've recently noticed a noise whilst turning which I swear wasn't there before ... Could be nothing / paranoia! Happens in both directions, but it's not at full lock. It's kind of a quiet rubbing / grinding sound.

I'd lower it first personally ... You might find the splitter's not feasible once you've lowered it. I used to have a MK1 Cupra R and the standard splitter on it scraped on EVERYTHING. Speed bumps, multi-storey car parks, kerbs, steep inclines / descents. At least this way you can judge it after being lowered, but if you do it the other way you're screwed!

Google maps is far superior to the inbuilt maps - especially since it includes up to date traffic information. I've got the Columbus nav but rarely use it - it's always Google maps for me. Waze will also be coming to Android Auto in the next 12 months which is even more intelligent traffic-wise. The only downside is that you have to control a lot of Google maps using voice commands.

I've got a 230 DSG remapped by Shark Performance. As standard it was putting out around 241bhp, now it's a healthy 288bhp and 467nm torque (graphs in my build thread). It's not as high as some modders claim to achieve, but driveability is excellent and I'm more than happy with the end result. As others have said it's difficult to put the power down in the wet, but that could also have something to do with the Pirellis on the front which are pretty atrocious in anything other than warm and dry conditions.

Yep, which is why I've have to go for a slightly wider tyre. Marmite wheels but I really like them. Running on a set of Eibach Pro kit springs which improves the handling, but never had an issue with the harshness of the ride. Then again previous cars have been a MK1 Cupra R and cup packed Clio 182.

I've got the DSG also and it feels like it changes the throttle map as well. "Sport" mode from the dash changes the steering, sound aktuator (mines turned off), LSD settings (mines a 230), adaptive cruise catch-up etc, but there's no difference in throttle response in sport or normal mode when the DSG is in 'D'. I've not noticed any difference either when going full manual in Sport or Normal mode. Mine stays constantly in sport mode and the DSG in 'D' (apart from the odd eco commute when traffic is rubbish). As someone has said previously in this thread, you just knock it down to switch between S and D. S seems noticeably faster, and somehow much better for overtaking than keeping it in D with your foot to the floor, or going manual. Very odd, could just be me!

Turned out it was 7. Add another 6 for the short strip of dual carriageway in Louth. A very "brisk" drive back with many many WOT moments, 120 miles and 34mpg. Can't complain at that. And no fake noise, just the sound of the 230 exhaust which I swear is getting more vocal now (13k miles).

I had mine disabled when I had the remap - much prefer the natural engine noise. It sounds much better than I expected. Been appreciating it whilst blasting through the Lincolnshire countryside. Off home today - I wonder how many dawdlers I'll need to overtake on the way?

Not that I've found ... they were fine on my Alfa, plus the Asym 2s were awesome on my old Stage 2 Mk1 Cupra R. Certain tyres suit certain cars due to the suspension setup etc, and these seem to be spot on for the MK3. Much better than the Pirellis they put on as standard - you just need to mention the word water and they'll lose grip!

Just go to 235/35 for the 19s like I have - £140 / corner for Goodyear Asym 3s. They offer great rim protection

Even with my remap I'm still getting mid - late 30s, I find it's all traffic (and right foot) dependant. I don't drive like a tool, but admittedly have days where I don't hang around and still struggle to get much below 30mpg on a decent (20+ mile) mixed trip. On motorway runs it easily goes into the 40s, but I find you have to stay below 75mph to get decent economy. Really depends how much of a rush you're in, but overall really happy with it and can adjust my driving style if I want to easily save fuel.

Yeah, I've not noticed much with the ride as they're on the rears and still have 225's on the front, but you can easily see the extra rim protection. It's a must for the Xtremes, especially at just an extra £5 per corner.

Yeah, I enjoyed the last thousand miles or so on the Pirellis in the dry. Had the Goodyears put on the rear so the fronts are shod with Pirellis still, and with the recent downpour they're absolute ****. Can't wait to wear them down and get something decent on the front! Let us know how it goes with the mods, will be interesting to see what power gains you get :-)

Super exciting ... Two new tyres fitted. Managed to get Goodyear Asym3s in 235/35/19 for £140 each fitted with a £40 love2shop voucher coming to me soon. Had to book online with Kwik fit of all places! The 235s fit perfectly and look to give better rim protection. Moved them to the rear so I can get rid of these horrible Pirellis. Probably won't be much more going on with it now bar some gratuitous cleaning pics over the summer - I've got a wedding to plan and pay for next year now, and I've modded the car about as much as I want to. Even happy with the standard 230 exhaust to be honest.

This stuff's really good for dark colours and hiding the scratches in the trim : http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/glazes/poorboys-black-hole/prod_494.html I plan to machine polish mine over the summer - some parts are really badly scratched thanks to the way it was cleaned before I bought it. Also have LOADS of annoying scratches on the gearstick surround ... black hole glaze tends to hide them pretty well too.

While I was at Shark the other week they looked into the settings for the diff on VCDS, but couldn't find anything which was obviously settings for the VAQ. There were some diff settings, though we guessed these could have been for the e-diff facility (fake diff) on the standard VRS / GTi, so left them well alone. I'd love to be able to crank it up slightly.

How many miles have you done? Mine improved significantly after roughly 10k miles ... Only on 12k at the mo so I guess it may improve further. Happy with it as it is though.

I'm considering this too - I think the cast metal one (034 Motorsport) seems to be the to go for according to the MK GTi guys. Something to do with less vibration and better longevity.

According to their Facebook page they're offering the discount until this Sunday ... as long as you book in for some time during June they'll honour the price. Mine's a Shark map and couldn't be happier!

Frequently getting 40+mpg from mine with a stage 1 map (only 288bhp) - I have seen as much as 45mpg on a 50 mile trip. Can't really argue with it to be honest - much better than I'd have got from a Megane 275 (the car I almost bought).

I've got a 230 and only ever hear the exhaust under hard acceleration. I've been considering changing it to a scorpion so it's a little more vocal, but I've been told by a few friends that it sounds nice from the outside. Never get any drone etc if that helps.

Recently replaced my Moon White spoiler with a Black Magic one, so putting this one up for sale. It's come off a VRS 230; I'm guessing they're all the same. No screws included. It has a few scrapes on from where the idiots who vinyl wrapped it must have got too close with their blade - I've tried to capture them all in the photos. Hopefully a touch up pen may sort them out. Due to the scrapes I'm after £60 for it collected from Tamworth - it's too big to send as I reckon the carriage cost will be quite high in relation to the item value. I've uploaded the photos into a photobucket album : http://s1316.photobucket.com/user/sfletcher83/library/Spoiler

Checked mine the other day and they were all 3.05 bar! Think I'll be dropping them to 2.7-2.8.

Finally got my proper black magic spoiler on! Turns out the absolute numbnuts who badly wrapped my white spoiler unbonded and removed the spoiler to wrap it, then didn't bother bonding it back on again. Kind of did me a favour to be honest as it meant it was dead easy for me to replace it! So much better! It was stupidly easy to do - as you lift up the boot you'll see two hex screws either side in the lip of the boot : As the clowns (sorry, that gives clowns a bad rep) hadn't bothered to do the job properly and rebond the spoiler, it literally just came right off. If yours is bonded I'll guess you'd need a heat gun / hair dryer to heat the sealant up. Once removed I cleaned down the surface thoroughly and tried the new one on for size to ensure all was good, then popped out and got some Tiger Seal : Used it plentifully as the spoiler doesn't make contact with the car in many places. Ensured I piped a generous splodge of it around and inside the screw holes to ensure water didn't get in, and filled in some of the gaps as well as I could, then screwed it back on and cleaned up any Tiger Seal from the spoiler and boot lid. All done, and only took about 10 mins. Oh, and if anyone wants my Moon White spoiler I'll be putting it up for sale soon once I've cleaned it down and taken some photos. It won't come with any screws etc.

This, amongst other reasons is why I usually use Android Auto on mine with Google Maps. Sad really when I've got the £1000+ Columbus option and my phone does it better.