Thought after nearly 10 months of ownership and lots of money spent, I'd finally stick my Fabia project on here. Switched to my VRS last May from a 1.8t Ibiza Cupra. I was just moving out and needed to save some pennies in running costs. Little did I know how mad I'd end up going with the car. 

 

How it looked 18 months ago (before my ownership obviously).

 

 

The car was then sprayed in custom (like Cadbury) purple, with a black roof and mirrors. After the widemouth bumper mod was also completed, I then took ownership in May/June last year. This is how it looked on the day I purchased.

 

 

Had a few niggles, one door that wouldn't open, a broken air vent, couple of missing panels, but overall, loved it from day 1. And I was already getting more mileage out of half a tank than I was getting to a full tank previously.

 

First two jobs I set about doing were the audio (headunit primarily) and repairing the NSR door. 

 

Although I damaged the internals of the handle mechanism (and still am yet to repair), the door now opens, and I was happy with that.

 

My Apple CarPlay Headunit:

 

 

Photo above shows the Green footwell lights (and gauge lights) I added to match the dashboard lights. Having since got a whole new interior, the lights will be going white all round soon.

 

Due to moving out in the same week as buying the VRS, I was fairly slow on the modifying front for the first 6 months, which was a shame as I left all the hard work for the winter months.

 

Due to already having FK coilovers fitted, I was keen to get new wheels (was after 16's from day 1) and then get the suspension lower. 

 

A couple of months later, I picked up my new wheels for a steal.

 

By no means in the best condition, but they I saw potential.

 

They are Keskin Tuning KT-1 16x7.5 and 16x9. When purchased, fitted with 165 45 up front and 195 45 on the rear. Went up to 195 40 up front for the winter, but shall be changing back soon. Bit of stretch, nothing dangerous, but I always knew the car would be slammed, so they needed to go under the arches.

 

As I said previously, up until October, other than wheels, I wound the coilovers down some more and removed the helpers and adjusters.

 

 

This is how it looked at the end of summer, with a good clean and as low as I could physically go on static suspension. I was happy with the progress, although I soon lost the badgeless grille. 

 

 

In October, I had booked a week away with mates for my birthday. So with three adults, a week's worth of kit, one solidly packed out Fabia, this was the state of affairs on the M25.

 

 

I lost a good 60% of my sidewall on that trip, and I actually considered raising the suspension back up until....

 

 

...browsing through eBay a few days later, this kit came up too cheap to pass up on. Less than a year old Airlift Slam Kit, tank, compressors and 4-way manual management. This was definitely the solution, and it was a painful two weeks waiting to pick the kit up and wait for fitting.

 

Last photo static:

 

 

As I said, two weeks later, the car was ready, and after a good clean and polish, this was the outcome.

 

 

The fitment wasn't perfect, was a bit of chassis/arch/wheel work needed over the next few months, but I was over the moon with it. Had always wanted air! Finally had practicality again

 

Nice simple boot install for the tank too.

 

 

Again, all Green LEDs will be going soon.

 

The winter was rough for my paintwork, mainly due to my laziness, so a visit to the paint shop and machine polish is definitely in order soon.

 

Mainly when static, but also when getting used to air levels, I also ruined an arch by driving too low, booked in for repair next month!

 

 

Wheels booked in for the first week of April too!

 

So, as I was almost happy with the outside of the car, well happy enough to let winter pass. I then set about planning the interior changes.

 

 

And when my mate rocked up in his new Clio RS with Recaro's as standard, I knew bucket seats were a must!

 

Browsing through Facebook one day, and the literal perfect set of seats came up for sale, I was sold the second I saw them. Have been in a few Fabia's, probably recognised by some on here, but they just go perfectly with the colour of the paint.

 

 

 

Cobra front bucket seats trimmed in purple leather with diamond stitching, and standard rear VRS seats trimmed to match. Also came with a trimmed parcel shelf, but I think I'm only going to run that for shows.

 

After a good clean up, the seats look the nuts. Really comfy too, just transformed the interior, leaving me very little I want to do to it!

 

 

6000k HIDs installed, in turn replacing all interior lights, sidelights and number plate lights to match.

 

 

Flush glass wiper delete kit, cheap, simple but really effective mod. @kill_all_wipers on Instagram

 

 

Probably my favourite front end shot to date. This shows my DIY top grille made using left over mesh from the widemouth mod, was chuffed with that too!

 

 

And then I decided to save myself some pennies and give the service a go myself. Super simple and really cheap, even using genuine parts from TPS.

 

 

As my driveshaft was taking a battering, and one side of the car sat lower than the other, a chassis notch was a must. Very glad I got it done!

 

So that pretty much brings me to the current day. If I had started the project thread when I first got the car, there would be a lot more detail, but I've done so much now, I lost track a bit!

 

How the car sits today:

 

 

 

 

However, my plan for this year is to work massively on the engine bay. Planning to hit the 250bhp mark in the next 12 months but also improve the looks of the engine massively, colour coded pipes, all the fancy bits etc. So I'll make sure to keep the thread up to date. I've usually got the car apart at the weekend!

 

Plans for the near future:

 

Wheels booked in for refurb in 2 weeks

Body repair to arches and front bumper

Change dashboard lights/footwells to white

Sideskirts (probably Polo GTI kit)

 

Happy to share info/advice on any mods I've completed!

 

Can also find me on Facebook and Instagram (@dandroscher)

Looks good mate, massive transformation. Follow you on instagram already. (@curtisms)

Does look nice.

I remember seeing another purple one a few years back, the owner sprayed it himself as he was a paint, not the same person are you. You'll love the power increase

Does look nice.

I remember seeing another purple one a few years back, the owner sprayed it himself as he was a paint, not the same person are you. You'll love the power increase

I know the one you mean. It was Bromting iirc but was a darker purple. Both still very nice

Looks good mate, massive transformation. Follow you on instagram already. (@curtisms)

 

Thanks mate, wasn't until looking back through photos for this post that I realised how much I'd done! Just read through your thread too, love that too! Getting some paint touched up and full 3 stage mop to bring the paint back to standard  

 

Does look nice.

I remember seeing another purple one a few years back, the owner sprayed it himself as he was a paint, not the same person are you. You'll love the power increase

 

 

I know the one you mean. It was Bromting iirc but was a darker purple. Both still very nice

 

Could potentially have been this one. Guy who sprayed it was the former owner, lives in my area, he sold it to someone in Wales, then I picked it up and brought it back home 6 months later haha! 

Cheers man, wish i could afford air but think it'll have to wait a few months[emoji102] just bought myself a DA polisher so gunna see what i can do.

Been following you on instagram for a fair while, glad to see you finally doing this thread!