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More Clowning Around: R32

Jeff Spicoli

Female Organ Player
Location
Illwaukee
Car(s)
MKV .:R32
those billet pieces are dope as fuck
 

SuperSkyline89

Das Schiesse
Location
Earth
Car(s)
2008 CW GTI
Ya, gotta pay to play. I don't a set of tires lasting me a full season the way I use them. I have mine sitting in the basement right now.

I don't want the expense of a second set of wheels for a few years but it'll need to happen eventually. It's convenient to show up, drive, and leave on the same set but as I get more experience I want more grip and eventually you're at the point that it's just a waste to street drive them. I've been thinking of making a small trailer to pull with my car for tires and tools because I just don't have the room for a tow rig and full size trailer.
 

clownish

just clowning around
Location
OH.
Car(s)
VWs
Ya, gotta pay to play. I don't a set of tires lasting me a full season the way I use them. I have mine sitting in the basement right now.

I don't want the expense of a second set of wheels for a few years but it'll need to happen eventually. It's convenient to show up, drive, and leave on the same set but as I get more experience I want more grip and eventually you're at the point that it's just a waste to street drive them. I've been thinking of making a small trailer to pull with my car for tires and tools because I just don't have the room for a tow rig and full size trailer.

I would love a tow rig but it would be a financial mistake to invest in more vehicles. I think at a certain point we just suck it up and decide to use the "good" tires on the street or spend an hour or two every week swapping wheels and tires in and out. I have a few sets of tire bags also so it makes it a bit cleaner to keep them in the car, along with a Harbor Freight lowpro jack and toolbag. Wish I could get a SnapOn torque wrench but I just have cheaper Craftsman, etc. tools.
 

clownish

just clowning around
Location
OH.
Car(s)
VWs
It's a sickness. I stopped into the shop to fix my wiring harness and left buying a Euro shelf to replace the vent up above the radio. Oops.


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Valandil

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
South Africa
Slapped these into the seat lever inserts. Billet shipped from the UK off eBay for $20.

Also test fit a RCD-510 to replace my RMT300. Not sure if I'm going to do it. Looking at cheaper Android head units also. Not trying to spend more than a few hundred. If I was looking at spending 1k or so I'd definitely be getting a RNS-510 but I'd rather spend on a Haldex unit and cheap out on the head unit [emoji12]

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Not sure if its too late to pitch in but if you want OEM and don't want to spend too much consider the Delphi units on eBay; OEM, no SAT (if thats ok with you), no radio info displayed but supports everything from aux (with cable), to usb (with cable), to bluetooth (with module) and SD card.

They go for about 100-150 these days; even with the reverse camera plug.

Have one myself works like a charm - do miss the radio station info but there's a trade off somewhere but at least its OEM.
 

xSabretoothx

Fast w/ training wheels
Location
Raleigh, NC
Car(s)
2008 GTI
It's a sickness. I stopped into the shop to fix my wiring harness and left buying a Euro shelf to replace the vent up above the radio. Oops.


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One of the best mods ever, right there!
 

clownish

just clowning around
Location
OH.
Car(s)
VWs
One of the best mods ever, right there!

Stops the rattle of the vent cover since that thing has been taken out so many times half the clips were broken.:happyanim:

The only thing that I find slightly irritating is the lack of a light sensor on the Euro bin tray, which the original vent tray has. The auto lights for the car don't work anymore. They'll turn on and off with the car, but will no longer turn on when the light conditions change since the sensor has been removed.

I am considering retrofitting the sensor into the new tray, but plastic welding always looks sloppy and I don't particularly want to mess with a $60 plastic trim piece I just bought... But the idea is appealing.

Not sure if its too late to pitch in but if you want OEM and don't want to spend too much consider the Delphi units on eBay; OEM, no SAT (if thats ok with you), no radio info displayed but supports everything from aux (with cable), to usb (with cable), to bluetooth (with module) and SD card.

They go for about 100-150 these days; even with the reverse camera plug.

Have one myself works like a charm - do miss the radio station info but there's a trade off somewhere but at least its OEM.

The RCD-510 I'm experimenting with is made by Delphi. I noticed that when I was sending pictures of the serial # to the PO so that he could contact his dealer and get the radio code.

Currently, I have FM/AM working with the dual hookup for SiriusXM not working. I think it needs coding or a check on the wiring harness. SD card works great - except now I need to update all my music from the 90s :p.

Aux port in the center column now works, but I've noticed that when my phone is hooked into the aux and a charging cable it kills the proper audio output - probably due to frequencies.

Once we wire in the Bluetooth module I'm getting from the donor car, we'll see how that works. If Bluetooth works, then I'll never use aux. As long as things charge then we are good. I wish I could just plug in USB but I didn't see any inputs for that - I will have to go back and double check.

All in all, the radio is acceptable but not ideal. Still, for free, it's a pretty good deal and the touch screen makes working with the radio much better/easier than the RMT300, even though that radio had all the functionality you wanted except for steering wheel controls.
 

clownish

just clowning around
Location
OH.
Car(s)
VWs
Noticed that I had low tire pressure twice in four weeks. Lost almost 10 psi every two weeks. Thought at first temperature changes since its been going from 20-65.

Front left tire had a rim leak - also a small frame nail. Hanging out in the only place open on a Sunday morning- Firestone. Hopefully they balance this thing properly because my brake kit only has mm to spare.


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clownish

just clowning around
Location
OH.
Car(s)
VWs
Racking the miles up. Went to Pittsburgh twice, DC, Baltimore and Montreal twice since getting the car.




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clownish

just clowning around
Location
OH.
Car(s)
VWs
What is the "6" on the lower right of the MFD?


United Motorsport flash to the DSG added "what gear the car is in" when in D and S modes. When using stock software, the gear indicator only shows in manual mode. Helpful to help predict driving characteristics. Most canned DSG tunes will add that to the MFD.


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clownish

just clowning around
Location
OH.
Car(s)
VWs
#killallblankbuttons

I finished installing all the blank button replacements today. USB and mute button were merged into one harness with the radar detector hardwire harness.

The auxiliary wasn't working properly - most likely because of a loose connection somewhere. Being lazy I just ordered the aux relocate, which replaces the entire harness / problem points. It works great. The only thing that bothers me is the wires all over for the charging + aux.



The only thing remaining is Bluetooth module install, which will be complicated because we have to rip the harness out of the donor car. I could stop being cheap and build or buy one but this is free. After buying connectors it'll be easier to buy a new OEM one - and that's expensive. Then we need to merge all the wiring in. The diagrams look good since the r32 is relatively high line and the mk6 wiring harnesses are mostly exactly the same so it's just adding in the missing lines.

Finishing the blank button installs was actually the last thing I did. I also "installed" the $14 Euroswitch I got from Hong Kong. 5 seconds later and I can run parking/city lights now. Pictures of that seem unnecessary. If I was less lazy I could add a trigger wire to run fogs (rear) but that seems like a bit of a hassle. Maybe while the Bluetooth module is going in... We shall see.

Also got the used Valeo tail lights from a forum member. He tinted them dark cherry and also added the amber turn signals. Had to use all the connectors to get my ratchet in the inner tails to tighten. Looks good to me though - adds contrast to the red with some darker red. I think we will have to order some LED turn signals and reverse bulbs. We'll see about that as well. Pictures - all phone shots.












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Subie2013

Humble yourself
Location
SLC, Ut
R-S3's are only a 200 treadwear so they do wear quickly. Personally I wouldn't recommend them for a daily, they grip like crazy but they're loud, stiff, and very heat sensitive. They arent unbearable but unless you have grip issues or race frequently it's not worth it in my opinion. Michelin PSS are more liveable and have a higher wear rating, I got 20,000 km out of set that did four track days and 15-20 autocross events. I only have a couple thousand km on the R-S3's so far

You're gonna get the same amount out of your RS3's. There is no reason you shouldn't. I have about 12,000 miles on mine, and 14 autocross events and they probably have 40% of life on them. I also drive like an asshole and do plenty of canyon runs. I DD these tires as well. Not really that loud, and aren't nearly as rough riding as other 200 tread count tires. Mine are 255/35/18's. The Hancook V2's were much louder of a tire in my opinion.
 

clownish

just clowning around
Location
OH.
Car(s)
VWs
Winter tires finally mounted because the weatherman says it'll be 30 degrees or colder for a whole week. This unusually warm weather has meant that there has been no motivation to take off the summers.

Winter wheels all scuffed up - probably from being sloppy in storage. I also forgot to mark the corners when I took them off last year, but it was easy to tell which were the fronts and which the rears since they were on the GTI so wear was clear. And they're directional. So best guess wins. Rotated the rears to the front. And made sure the wheel weights cleared everything.

Tossed the wheels/tires on, loaded up the summer wheels and dropped them off at my storage site. Started home and noticed that my tire dash light was lit. Damnit. I haven't had TPMS sensors in my wheels for years and I totally forgot that the winter set doesn't have them in.

The lugs on this car are pretty worn already and the rears still have the locking lug. Which means the Mk6 lug caps I have for them don't fit. So I'll be swapping that out for two normal lugs. And typical - only have 1 of the 2 wheel lug caps I need. At least I found all 4 spare center caps.

Thought about tossing my 10mm spacers on the rear, but I've used all my extended bolts, so that's out for now, unless my shop has some laying around. Which is semi-likely.

To do: clean the wheels taken off, as they're absolutely filthy. Clean the wheels just put on, since they're scuffed as hell. Swap the locking lugs out for normal ones. Code VAGCOM to turn off the wheel sensor light - and check the air in the tires a few times to make sure they're still holding air properly. Should probably do an alignment as well since it's slightly out for months now but I'm lazy.
 
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