Taylor477 Skoda Fabia vRS mk1

[Taylor477]

Really nice looking car.

I nearly had a black magic if the garage hadn't messed around and i'd hope it would have looked something like this.

Thank you mate

Modifications have been going slow as indecisive with future plans for my car as well as unexpected costs. The next move on the cards will be Coilovers..

[Taylor477]

Update -

It has been a fair few months since my last post and I have been fairly busy but not as busy as I would prefer.. but here is an update of all my work recently and I hope you enjoy it

Firstly - H&R Rear Anti Roll Bar

After a few gruelling hours of swearing I was able to fit my H&R Rear Anti Roll Bar.. this was fairly difficult as the bar itself was about an inch too long compared to the space of the rear axle, this meant prying the bar into place. This has caused quite a flex on the bar as you would expect but this has meant extra anti roll bar power

This RARB totally transformed the handling performance of the; what is very top heavy and twitchy grounded Fabia. Steering in and holding is by far the most dominant of its effect as this is what it is made for.. and is by far one of the most transforming modifications this car can get! A Must have! Although I would be tempted to try out a JabbaSport bar as this one doesn't require any prying into position.

JKM Dyno Day

I had a great day down at JKM and had a go on the dyno so see what my standard car would produce. My engine code is the BLT so these engines have been known to naturally produce more power than the pre-55 ASZ code.

So.. long story short and my result was 150.8bhp & 258lb/ft..

A great result if you ask me!

Second - Piper Exhausts Stainless De-Cat Downpipe

The time had come that I needed a remap, yet my funds had been somewhat limited so I opted for just the de-cat downpipe and there is no better exhaust for the fabia that Piper in my opinion. The reason for just the de-cat as that as for air flow and performance, it is more beneficial for the airflow to be larger first, then become restricted, than the other way. Therefore haveing a 2.5" de-cat downpipe was the best option to prepare my car for a remap. The other alternative would to get a Mufflerectomy but I don't fancy this idea as I am not a fan of the Pigeon Noise.

Unfortunately the above photograph is the only photo I managed to take as I just didn't think about taking others of the pipe itself. But yes, anyway.. As soon as the pipe had been fitted, I started up the car and could hear a lot more of the turbo through the exhaust and there was a slight 'raspeeeeeeeness' to it which I like. So, I got on the road and straight away as I hit 2250-2500rpm there is a slight rumbling noise coming from where the pipe sits.. and then when I put the pedal to the floor.. I love it. I noticed it all the way home constantly changing between 2nd and 3rd at any opportunity.

Now, my only regret it not buying the whole system in one go.. but, that is on future plans, although I'm going to have a custom made back box, as the standard Piper one isn't quite loud enough, yet the straight-through is far too drrrroooooooonnnnnnneeeeeeeeeyyyyyyyyyy at motorway speeds, for which I travel a lot.

Third - CN Tuning Remap

It was an absolutely beautiful morning in April and I set off from Winchester to Reading to meet Clive @ CN Tuning and have a remap done. I must say that Clive is an awesome guy and I will not be taking my car anywhere else since meeting him.

So.. chatting which clive for a while whilst the remap was being done and planning future work, we then took my baby out for a spin to seal the deal!

My first impressions, I wasn't massively blown away initially but the performance was definitely transformed after I gave it a while and adjusted my driving style.

On my way home I played with some of the country roads whilst presenting a massive grin on my face as my tyres were squealing during the rumble of my de-cat exhaust and the RARB holding me on the road, I was massively satisfied with the performance increase and even just the drivability of the car, there was so much more power which was storming through the rev range.

Soon after, I reached the motorway and decided to put the MPG increase claim to the test.. so I found the largest lorry possible, reset my trip computer and played which the cruise control for 25 miles...

... my results were amazing..

Yes.. you read that correctly.. it states "103mpg".

I kid you not.. This was doing 52mph which my cruise control on and off about 2 metres behind a lorry for roughly 25miles until I hit winchester, and then it dropped back down to 92mpg.. which if you ask me is still impressive just to even see that figure as an average!

Now, I do accept that this MPG figure may not be the actual precise mechanical MPG of the car if you want to be pedantic.. and I do accept that the style of driving isn't really realistic for daily driving and that anyone would struggle to get this figure driving normally.. However, I have seen an increase of about 10% extra mpg, As I would normally see 70mpg on my run to work, and now I see roughly 77-80mpg which I am very happy with

Next up.. paintwork care..

Now, my I have always done my absolute best to look after my cars paintwork.. so I decided to understand on the cars seasonal coat.

Products I used -

Autoglym Car Shampoo

Meguairs Clay Bar Kit with Quik Detailer

Autoglym Super Resin Polish

Autoglym Ultra Deep Shine

Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection

& an array of special polishing/drying cloths and sheepkin/micro fibre mits

I won't bore you with the details on how I applied and implemented the use of each product.. but I will say my car has a few paintwork issues thanks to the previous owner..

So, I begun by power spraying the car a couple of times round to make sure all loose dirt was off. Then I proceeded by washing the car twice; once which a hot bucket of water and once with cold water.

I then used the clay bar kit and went round the car thoroughly to ensure it was crystal clean of all micro-dirt and making sure the paintwork was is best prepared condition.

Then for polishing. I am aware that I have go a little over the top with this but it was worth-it to ensure the best protection possible. I went round the car twice with Autoglym Super Resin polish, then twice again with Autoglym Ultra Deep Shine. After I was happy with the polish I began to apply the Autoglym Extra Gloss protection. This product is interesting as I chose this as an alternative to a wax in the hope it will last longer in tough season weather. You apply the coat of protection and allow to dry for roughly an hour and then wipe away.

Here are a few photos of overall progress -

Unfortunately you will most probably notice the horrible paint peeling spots on the drivers side of the front bumper, this is what I mean by paint defects from the previous owner. I will be having a fair few parts resprayed when funds permit

you may also notice a scuff on the passenger side of the rear bumper.. this is after someone kindly scraped my car in a car park and left without any notice.. thanks scumbag

Those of you with a keen eye may spot the Maserati MC Stradale in the background.. unfortunately this is mine and my father is very protective over it

Now after roughly 6 hours of gruelling elbow grease work.. my result was perfect -

Well.. perfect in my eyes anyway

My baby does have a fair few paintwork problems but nothing a bit of respraying can't sort out but I'm happy with her as she is atm

The brakes - my fully refurbed 312mm brakes are awesome.. but they have been black for over a year whilst my rears are still green.. so I thought I should do something about it

I proceeded to spend days walking around Halfords unable to choose a colour.. I consulted SWMBO and she said red would look good so I went for it..

I was feeling rather lazy too so I decided not to remove the brakes themselves and just wrap them up with rags and lots of masking tape. I use a brake cleaner and hard wire brush and soft wire brush to remove all the dirt and brake dust. I purchased Hammerite Smooth Red paint and started..

Preparing for first coat

1st Coat

2nd Coat

3rd Coat

4th Coat

didn't take a photo for the 4th coat

5th Coat

Final look before wire pins are put back on..

I was happy with the finish, however the wire pins screwed up the paint a little as hammerite coats do take a fair while to harden without baking and I was doing it in cold weather so the paints dried but didn't quite harden.. oh well, my fault for being lazy!

Finished

Fronts

Rears

Next Stage - Coilover Suspension & full SuperPro polybushing

to be continued..

[DanHam]

Awesome update, looks like a lot f love and attention has gone into the car.

I made the same mistake with my calipers! The red paint didn't harden for over 5 days before I fitted them!

[Guest BigJase88]

You'll probably find they have changed the mpg readout values so it looks as if its doing awesome awesome mpg when in reality it really isnt, only way is to calculate

Fuelly is a good website to do this

[Taylor477]

Awesome update, looks like a lot f love and attention has gone into the car.

I made the same mistake with my calipers! The red paint didn't harden for over 5 days before I fitted them!

Thanks buddy I do what I can to keep her healthy! Paintwork needs to be sorted out soon which is her only downfall.

Yeah I think mine took roughly a week to properly harden.. it just meant putting the pins back in scuffed up some of the paint, but its not too bad and it definitely looks much better

You'll probably find they have changed the mpg readout values so it looks as if its doing awesome awesome mpg when in reality it really isnt, only way is to calculate

Fuelly is a good website to do this

Yeah you're absolutely correct, I knew I wasn't actually getting 103mpg but I think its just cool to see it on the screen On average out of a full tank I tend to see 60-65mpg

[petrol_head_vrs]

Hi.

I just got myself a fabia vre se last month.

I was looking at a new exhaust system. Including a decat.

It has been remapped prior to me purchasing it.

Can you give me any information where to buy from.

I get 74 mpg avg going to work at present. Be interested to see the difference after.

[Taylor477]

Hi.

I just got myself a fabia vre se last month.

I was looking at a new exhaust system. Including a decat.

It has been remapped prior to me purchasing it.

Can you give me any information where to buy from.

I get 74 mpg avg going to work at present. Be interested to see the difference after.

 

 

Hey buddy,

nice to have you join the fabia crew

 

Do you know who remapped it & power output?

 

I would definitely go for a Piper Exhausts system.. it sounds far better than milltek and gives a lovely deep growl  

 

motorsportworld normally do a great price online, but if you message piper exhausts on here they will give 10% discount I believe

[petrol_head_vrs]

I will dig the paper work out to see where it was done.

I will be taking it to John at Big Fish tuning for a check over and possibly remapped again.

I will look at them exhaust systems.

I thought miltec were good on skoda's.

[Taylor477]

Awesome, let me know! I don't know much about Big Fish tuning so can't comment on their work but should be fine

Yeah milltek are great on petrol cars, but after being in a fabia with a milltek, and then one with a piper.. I had to go with the piper! No competition!