j0hn's Hybrid Mk2. MOAR BRAKE!

[j0hn]

Looks like this build has started to generate a bit of interest on the mk5 forum and on R Tech's Facebook page. I think the cost is the big draw as the turbo is currently available from Beach Buggy Turbos for £725 including an uprated actuator (so immediately good for at least 330bhp with suitable supporting mods) on an exchange basis. I believe they will be made available for around £1000 outright if you don't want to give your stock K03 to BBT in exchange.

 

Consider that I was getting quoted in the region of £1200-1400 fitted for a K04 conversion (the extra K04 ancilliaries and relocation stuff runs to about £200ish) then £700 odd plus the labour (I believe about 6 hours) isn't too shabby really considering the end result. Obviously you have to also factor in the cost of the map, but you would have to also do this with a K04 conversion.

[j0hn]

I think the NSF ABS speed sensor is  well and truly goosed. Just on the way back from tonight's gig, doing about 70 on the M69 and all of a sudden the indicated speed drops to 30mph! Fun (not).

 

Went back to normal within a few minutes and seems to be affected by the weather (i.e., when it's wet) so I'll have to get onto that ASAP. Of course when this fails it shuts off ABS and traction so lighting up the front wheel in 4th (yes 4th - that's what 500 Nm does when you plant it and it's a bit damp and not cold enough for your winters to put the power down properly) is ever so slightly hairy!!

[Jonny5ive]

Meh, leave it goosed "i was only doing 70 officer, the speedometer said so"

[j0hn]

Just spotted your sig Barrie

Speed sensor is still knackered, it comes and goes but I am using an iPhone app with a big speedo in the middle of it. Haven't found a garage who can do the job over the holidays.

 

Birthday presents from the brother:

 

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

 

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

 

Look so much fresher but also, because they work so well (as they're meant to) I haven't really noticed I've changed them. Rear was a doddle - shoved a trim tool in and removed the badge as the foam popped, left virtually no foam/glue residue either. Front needed a fair bit of Tardis to dissolve the last of the glue but it wasn't what you'd call a hard job and I only broke one clip on the grille

 

And in other news. I'd fancied one for a while and finally managed to lay my hands on the right one.

 

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

 

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

 

But wait - what's this....?

 

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

 

I actually managed to track down a DAB unit at a reasonable price as I wasn't prepared to compromise and would have forgone Nav to retain the DAB capability. I couldn't quite shake wanting Nav after I'd played with the idea of the RNS315 but again, wasn't prepared to compromise on not having Maxidot working properly. Then this came up and I had to have it. I don't usually listen to P Diddy, it's just what happened to be on Absolute Radio 90s when I took the photo! I think my aerial has gone south though (coincentally not long after I last washed the car) as my previously perfect reception has dropped off somewhat. The 12v isn't connected so I can't test whether or not the base has packed up, but I may just replace it with a Blaupunkt or VW Sharkfin - but that's just increasing the total spend all the time so I might put the original FM aerial back on and go for a windscreen mount as these seem to be working very well at present.

 

Lastly, a shot I found on flickr from the Charity RR day at R Tech in September (click for bigger). Bring back summer!!

 

R-Tech Charity Summer RR day 2013 by kezzad33, on Flickr

[pc15]

can you please tell me where can I buy online a trim like that? want to buy a columbus like that and have the same AC painel, so im going to need one. cheers

Edited 4 January, 2014 by pc15

[j0hn]

You'll get that panel in any dealer or branch of TPS, they're about £19 from memory. Or you can try skodaparts.com.

[j0hn]

I think my aerial is humped. Reception seemed to have improved slightly but it's not as good as it was, not as good as in the wife's car and I've got no FM reception either. I want a Blaupunkt Sharkfin but to get one with GPS is £200. I'm going to refit the original FM aerial and a windscreen mount for the DAB for the time being.

[j0hn]

General sort of update.

 

I'm going to try and get a couple of things done next week, notably to fit a new bonnet release catch in the driver's footwell (thirty seconds job, it's just the handle that needs doing) and also to try and work out why the MDI isn't working properly. Currently got a very tinny sound through what seems like one speaker so I've either trapped a wire or half unplugged something. Either way, the glovebox has to come out and while I am at it, I'll put a new vent in for the air con as I managed to break the clips on the current one.

 

I'm also hoping a replacement set of calipers are going to arrive in the next day or two (I can't help thinking they should be here by now) as the lacquer coat on mine has cracked and did so within weeks of being fitted. With a trackday booked for 1st April I might go for another set of uprated pads again - not EBC Yellows this time but I'm going to look for either a set of Carbotech or possibly something from Hawk to see what they're like. I'll then need to get a paint match so I can redo the rear calipers and paint the disc dust shields - what should I used for that, black Stonechip?

 

I think that's it for the time being, nothing eventful happening.

[j0hn]

Treated myself to a couple of shiny bits, two keyrings and some seat riser handle inserts.

 

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

 

Got a bit of maintenance to do over the next few days/weeks. The ABS sensor will be sorted, new pads (hopefully tidy the calipers up), new DAB aerial along with another couple of boring bits of plastic and work out what's going on with my MDI. Still need to tidy up the rear brakes and hopefully it'll be sorted for show season - not that it's good enough to be a proper show car, but it'll be on a couple of stands this year hopefully so I can't turn up with it in a state!

[Guest]

Great Build thread!! Must be so much fun to drive that! Where did you get the VRS key ring from? I really like that. 

[j0hn]

Cheers, yeah it's a lot of fun but you can't really exploit the power on the road without being really naughty so I tend not to. On the way home tonight, I was joining the A46 and started to accelerate from low revs on 4th when both front wheels spun at about 70mph. That took me by surprise.

I've been driving to Nottingham a bit more than I would like really (normally go on the coach as it's SO much cheaper), but I'm heading for 33mpg this week - that's a figure that would have most of the TSI Octavia 3 crowd crying into their neoprene interiors, but I'm pretty chuffed with that!

Keyrings are a tenner off eBay, just search VRS keyring.

[SNH]

I like this.

Keep up the good work.

[Zuhayb]

Any suggestions on hyrbid turbo? My turbo is pretty much on it's last stage, with the whining noise it's pretty loud. Been told it will last a few months, if I drive normally.

[SNH]

Good to meet you today dude, car is as good in the flesh as it is in the pics

Zeb, not sure with yours being a diesel. May have to do some research

[j0hn]

Good too meet you too Si, it'll be clean next time.

I've measured the badge I have in the house, definitely looks to be for the front - PM your address and I'll put it in the post.

 

Any suggestions on hyrbid turbo? My turbo is pretty much on it's last stage, with the whining noise it's pretty loud. Been told it will last a few months, if I drive normally.

 

My hybrid is from Beach Buggy Turbos - I believe they only really concentrate on petrol turbo, but might be worth getting in touch. Alternatively, if you want a hybrid, talk to Darkside Developements as they get involved in that sort of thing. CR Turbos also put together hybrids for the diesel engines, but I have no idea what the quality is like. If you fit a hybrid, you're almost certainly going to have to have another map to suit.

[j0hn]

A few bits of maintenance.

My ABS/Traction/TPMS lights had been on for a while, causing the speedo to intermittently read around 30-40mph below actual. Was a priority thing to sort out but had to sit on the AKS wait list for a few weeks. Alex had told me, when fitting my H&Rs, that the wiring on ABS sensor had been bodged back together by somebody.

It appears that the idiot at C.G. Cars in Leicester had not disconnected the plug when he fitted the Bilstein coilovers - when I went to collect the car that day, he finished off the job and as he pulled out of the workshop, he rushed back in and started fiddling around. I was then told that the ABS lights were on but he'd 'sorted it out'. By sorting it out, he'd had to rebuild the wiring with bullet connectors and electrical tape and over time, the water and dirt had got to it and finally killed it and one of the pins in the sensor itself. I knew it needed doing but was told to leave it until it gave up completely. Alex rebuilt it properly with repair wires and a clever looking solder joint that I've never seen before. It *may* only be a temporary fix, in which case it'll need a new loom to the ABS unit, but for now it'll do. It looks like it has never been repaired, it's that good, so it should be OK.

While I was there, this went in (excuse the dirt):

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

I'm not trying to prepare for the Apocolypse, but every year RAF Marham run at least two trackdays - one is a circuit that they mark out on the runways and the other is a 30-130 day. Part of the stipulation for the trackdays is the car MUST have a fire extinguisher fitted and, as the 30-130 day is probably the only opportunity to see if the car will do 170 (I think it will), then I needed to have an extinguisher fitted. It replaces the blanking panel on the driver's seat and is held in by the bracket.

From the same bloke that supplied the keyrings, I got some of the seat handle inserts:

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

I do quite like these, the moulding on the lever defnitely looked like it was planned to have a badge fitted, just looks like it should now.

And finally for now, this happened this morning:

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

Then this (that's a terrible picture):

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

And all back together:

Untitled by jonnyguitar, on Flickr

I had a combined DAB/FM aerial on my car, made by Calearo and bought from dabonwheels.co.uk. It had been on there for a couple of years, since I put the RCD510DAB and seemed to suffer the same fate as most of the rear mounted roof aerials on the O2. As seems to kill most of them, I guess the internals got wet, probably from the last time I washed the car, and the radio reception went drastically downhill. The biggest issue with the Calearo DAB antenna was that, whilst it was powered like the standard aerial, it was supplied by phantom power - it needed a separate 12v feed that I never bothered connecting. Despite this, DAB reception was nigh on perfect everywhere but the FM could get a bit patchy. I don't really listen to FM but it's useful to have for RDS traffic and TMC reports on the Columbus.

Ideally I'd like the Blaupunkt Shark Line DAB/FM/GPS/Tel antenna but these are approaching £200 and I have different priorities for that sort of cash at the moment, so for now I bought one of Autoleads DAB Film antennae from Halfords. I think they're really good VFM at £20. I've had a couple of film antennae in the past that I've fitted to a couple of cars, but I came across this on a Mk5 Golf belonging to a guy on the mk5golfgti forum. I put one in Jules's car and fitted it horizontally instead of vertically and without attaching the grounding strip, and it still worked. I then put one in Jonny5ive's vRoomster, the right way round this time, and I believe he gets pretty good reception on his trips between Hinckley and Kent, so I thought I might as well put one in my car for the time being and fit the original AM/FM aerial back onto the car.

One of the reasons I took the glovebox and headunit out was to try and work out what's going on with the MDI. I currently only have one channel working properly and get perfectly good sound out of the left channel, but the right channel is either silent, or virtually silent but with added distortion. I need to work out what's gone wrong with it and hope it's not £100 of MDI box.

I've got a list of things I want to do, but invariably the list gets longer and I keep spending more money.

The CVR 105s have found a good new home and will be coming to an O3 vRS near you soon (I'm not giving the spec away, but I think it's going to look great) and I have picked up a set of Zeniths to use as winters. The TD PR1.2s will also be going to replaced with...well, watch this space!

I need to tidy up all off the brakes - the backplates all need paint, the disc centres on the rear need a coat of hammerite and I may as well do the fronts while I'm at it. It will need new pads front and rear soon and will get a set of Mintex M1155 on the front but probably leave the rears standard unless there is a big advantage to upgraded rear pads. The calipers also need a tidy up and I have to decide whether I want to spend £££ on a set of S3 rears, buy a new set of OE rear calipers (about £300) or just tart them up with some Brembo Signal Red to match the fronts.

The clutch has started slipping between 3000 and 3500 rpm, not surprising really for an 82k clutch with 370 lb ft going through it, so that will be on the list come April.

The short to medium term fix list is:

Fix the MDI kit

Clutch

Brakes

Deep clean the interior

Service due in 2k miles

Clean engine bay

Find a good PDR man to knock out the self inflicted ding on the rear arch. I was loading the car up for a gig.

I want:

A Polar FIS+ unit

Black Magic mirror caps

Some silver/black OE wheel centres

Some new trim clips for the front grille

A multi function steering wheel (probably Golf 5 or 6 with the flat bottom)

If I'm going to do that, I might as well get an OEM bluetooth unit that will stream music properly (and not at the same crap quality as the Fiscon kit does)

Rear OPS retrofit, not so bothered about the front.

I'm going to say, that's probably it for now. I like some of Ed's retrofits that I could apply to this car. High beam assist would be one, along with auto dim door mirrors (mine are blue tinted but don't seem to change when the light hits the sensor). I'd also like to try and fit folding door mirrors with puddle lights, but I don't know how easy that would be. Oh well!

[Guest]

I have been looking at those seat badges for while now. They do certainly look like it was meant to be there, How did you get the centre vents out btw? Is it just a case of prying it off? 

 

Car is looking good thou. Some of the updates you have planned sound good. I would love a golf mk5/6 Multifunction steering wheel. Look forward to even more updates. 

 

Keep up the good work. 

[j0hn]

Stick a trim tool under the centre vents and lever it down to push the vent unit clips out. Just pops out then, dead easy.

Managed to get the MDI working properly again, split the looms apart and then started from scratch and, second time tested and lucky, it all seems to be functioning again. Possibly down to a glitch with the Fiscon box. Also for the first time since fitting the DAB, I won't get any open circuits on the antennae, as they are now all powered and the circuits are closed, so that's a couple of things I can cross off the list.

I bought a set of M1155 front pads this morning only to immediately receive an email from Camskill to say they would not be in stock for another 6-8 weeks.

Must also order some new style wheel centres this week too.

[mdmay]

I've got these pads on my octavis vrs tsi k04 and they are the dogs

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[j0hn]

Which ones? M1155s?

I wanted to get them in the Boxster fitment, Camskill were £25 cheaper than everybody else, but out of stock and apparently so are Mintex.

Missed something off my to-do list and that's an OPS retrofit.

[mdmay]

Yeah I loved them. I have just put some textar pads in and they are just as good minus the dust.

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[j0hn]

Really? Which Textar pads and do you mean they produce less dust? What are they like with hard track use?

[mdmay]

Because I was a bellend I went for style over substance and have the tts discs 340 and tts calipers so not the same set up as you. I will have to check out what pads they are. Alex at AKS also said that they give a nice bite. I have not taken it to the track just yet other than Shakespeare raceway

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[mdmay]

Sorry yes the textar seem to produce less dust

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[j0hn]

I'll have a think.

When I saw Alex previously, he said he'd tried a set of the Textar pads and seemed quite good. I know he gives his car grief, but I don't know if they would be suited to track use and there's part of me that would rather go for a proven track pad if that makes sense?