[suhaas307]

UPDATE:

With the Eibachs swapped for the Cobras and the new cat-back exhaust installed, I was itching to take the car out on a longish drive out of the city. And what better drive to take than the one towards Hassan!

We had the choice of two destinations: either Sakleshpur or Chikkamagalur. Both destinations would require us to take the Bangalore - Hassan highway - my favourite highway in the southern half of the State. I'd chosen Chikkamagalur for a few reasons - 1) I was told that the recent rains have absolutely destroyed the roads just outside Sakleshpur town. In fact, I'd heard from a local that the roads inside Sakleshpur are also in tatters. 2) The last time we'd driven to Chikkamagalur, earlier this year, was when I'd just gotten the new Code6 map applied and the car was running on the freshly overhauled suspension and the stock ride height.

Having been to Coonoor in August and experiencing first-hand how the Eibachs coped with the 1000 km round trip, I was really keen to try out the Cobras.

So we packed our bags and headed towards Chikkamagalur at 6:15 am on Saturday the 23rd of November. Navigating the route to Nelamangala was a nightmare thanks to the pathetic state of the city's streets.

Once we crossed the Nelamangala expressway and took the left towards Hassan, I opened her up and got a taste of what was to come. But just when I was getting into the groove with the car and understanding the changes the new springs have brought, about 50 km into the drive we had to make a scheduled and mandatory breakfast stop at Sambrama Hotel. It was around 7:30 am when the car was parked up and idling before we walked into Sambrama.



If you are ever driving down to Hassan, or even in the mood for a short one hour drive for a nice Sunday breakfast, I would very strongly recommend you try this joint.



The thatte idlis, the vadas, the masala dosas and especially the peanut chutney, are to die for! This has to be easily the best south Indian fare I have had the pleasure of savoring, on any highway or even in the city, arguably. The idlis in particular are so good that I just couldn’t resist a second round!

I would very strongly suggest that the next time a Team BHP breakfast meet is organized, the team should consider this place. Absolutely top class!

After a relaxed 1 hour stop for breakfast, we were back on the road again..



..and we did not stop for the next 3 hours, except for a 5 minute smoke break somewhere in between. For about 2 hours I wrung the poor car’s neck and liberally used the paddles as well as the gearbox’s ‘S’ mode. Rarely did I find myself cruising in 7th as the car made light work of the beautiful 160 kilometer stretch of tarmac. The car was punchy as ever, dismissing errant drivers and cars without so much as a how-de-do.













Oh, I’d almost forgetten to mention.. I’d decided this time ‘round, to experiment with Proctane, and had emptied two bottles into a 15 litre top-up of Shell V-Power, knowing that I had already topped up the last tank of V-Power with one bottle. So essentially, I was running the car on a tank brimming with Shell V-Power and about two and a half bottles of Proctane. And I could really feel the difference! Below 100 and in 7th gear, the car just purred along effortlessly and felt butter smooth. Power delivery was punchy yet creamy in the mid-range and at the top. Lower down, the car would lurch forward and punch into the mid-range right to the top, with the ferocity of a de-catted 1.2 TSI.

At times, I did feel the need for more power, especially when a few BMWs and Mercs nonchalantly drove past me whilst I was doing 120 km/h! And now with the car’s upgraded chassis, brakes and tyres, I may have to give Binoy (Binz) a call sooner that I’d thought. Which brings me to the car’s ride and handling..



I have covered the car’s ride and dynamics inside city limits in earlier updates, but the litmus test would be a long drive out of the city. But let’s revisit it nonetheless.

So far, in city limits, the Cobras have been phenomenal. Let’s get one thing out of the way. The ride quality is not like what it was when the car was on OEM springs, although it is advertised as such. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The OEM springs made the car feel a touch over-sprung – not bouncy but just a bit too soft. The Sachs dampers corrected that with quicker rebound and firmer damping, but the car would still roll, pitch and dive a little under harder cornering and braking. Let’s face it, this ain’t no Bilstein B6. It’s closer to OEM than the B6, so you still have a little back-forth moment at crawl speeds, and the car doesn’t feel quite as compact as it would on the Bilstein B6 dampers.

On the highway, I’d say the Super Touring struts do about 70% of the job the B6 struts would, without that extra hard edge at the top. It’s more rounded and smoother, with slightly softer rebound and damping.

The strange thing however, is how compatible these tall OEM dampers are with the Cobra springs. One would not be wrong to assume that a damper with a shorter piston would work better with these lowering springs. Something like the Bilstein B8 would be ideal, I feel. But the compatibility of the Sachs Super Touring dampers with the Cobra springs is experienced to be believed. They feel like a natural match, almost made for each other.

At speed, the car feels hunkered down. Around fast sweeping bends, body roll is well-checked – almost at par with the Eibach setup. But where it scores heavily over the Eibach setup is the way it rides over the rough stuff. It’s got the right amount of sportiness without feeling too firm or stiff when the surface gets rough or uneven, allowing you to continue hammering down the highway without slowing down for every rut or undulation. The softer rebound and damping of the Sachs dampers (compared to the Bilsteins) coupled with the softer spring rates and progressive characteristics of the Cobra springs (that are also a few mm taller than the Eibach pro Kit springs), makes this setup ideal for comfortable touring.

On smooth surfaces, there’s little that separates the Eibachs from the Cobras, but the moment you chance upon even the slightest hint of an undulation, a rough patch or even a patched up pot-hole or expansion joint (and the chances are extremely high in the real ‘Indian’ world, let’s face it), the Eibach makes its presence felt. And you can feel it in your spine, make no mistake. In fact, even when the road appears to be smooth, the Eibachs will let you know that it actually isn’t. The ride is choppy and unsettled, to say the least. I would never recommend the Eibach Pro-Kit unless it’s paired with the B8 struts. Even then, it’s much too firm unless you’re into that sort of thing. Maybe I’m getting old?

Let’s not for a moment think, however, that the Cobra springs make the car ride it’s on OE springs. It does not. The ride is not stiff, but definitely leaning towards the firmer side. You do feel the texture of the road through the seats and the steering. The car tends to tramline and vertical changes in the road surface are pronounced. But the crucial thing is the springs don’t cause the car to rebound violently like it would on Eibachs. It does not cause the car to crash into potholes or send any of its corners up, upon negotiating the rough patch. It lacks the hard edge of the Eibachs and that’s the critical difference between the Pro Kit and the Cobra springs. And all this while largely retaining the improved dynamics that lowering springs bring to the table, i.e. reduced body-roll while cornering and nose-dive under hard braking!

Getting back to the drive, 160 odd km of smooth highways were dismissed in just about 2 hours, before we had to take a sharp right turn off the highway and towards the non-existent Hassan bypass. When I say non-existent, I am not exaggerating. There really was no road for a good 3 km before we were connected to the outskirts of Hassan. The lowered car handled it surprisingly well, without bottoming out even once. Of course, I wasn’t navigating it like a WRC driver would, taking it gingerly across the 3 km stretch. At a few points in this 3 km stretch were some harrowing moments where the front end would go in quite a bit resulting in the rear of the car losing contact with the non-existent road. Yes, it was that bad! What felt like an hour of negotiating this off-road course, was actually just about 15 minutes, and we were back on tarmac and bullying our way through lazy highway traffic to Chikkamagalur.

The next one hour was spent driving through some of the best single-carriageways in the State, as we negotiated around 60-70 kilometers of beautiful flowing B-roads with cute little hamlets and gorgeous trees dotted alongside it.











I was able to carry pretty decent speeds through these roads without flinching, as the car coped phenomenally with sudden changes in elevation and camber without upsetting its composure, and simultaneously darting in-to and out-of bends and corners, even though some of them seemed to get sharper mid-turn! I am still blown away by how well-mannered the car is over imperfect tarmac and just how sharp and quick it can feel around fast bends. The polished ride quality further improves with speed, and never at any point did we feel the need to step out of the car and stretch our legs or our backs. The Michelin Pilot Sport 4 STs do deserve quite a bit of the credit, no doubt. But the suspension feels tight and perfectly balanced for the sort of work I put it through.





On the B-road especially, I had no hesitation in hustling the car, making swift steering inputs or riding over culverts at considerable speed. The way the car flows down such a road is to be experienced, truly! The suspension feels like an expensive setup, a setup that offers a polished and creamy ride quality, whilst providing you with an engaging driving experience. It’s the ideal setup for an enthusiast’s daily drive. If I must swap the dampers again, I may just go for the same setup, or maybe give the Cobra EVO 1 Coilovers a try. I would have considered the Bilstein B8 struts, but at 60k odd, I don’t think it makes sense, and I’d rather get a proper coilover instead.

For anyone looking to lower their car but is tight on budget, the Cobra springs are the way to go! It’s firm, without feeling to stiff. It’s sporty, without feeling harsh. You are always aware of the road and how it’s surfaced. But it’s never intrusive and never feels tiresome.

Getting back to the drive – as we approached Chikkamagalur, the quality of the road began to deteriorate. Road works was in progress, and resurfacing work was in full swing about 10 km from our destination, but once we reached the entrance of the town, the roads had gotten considerably poor, with massive potholes all over the road. There was simply no escaping it and I had to slow down to a crawl to negotiate the ruts and craters. However, Chikkamagalur being the rich and “connected” town that it is, resurfacing seemed to be the PWD’s top priority and work was being undertaken at a rapid pace.

While driving through Chikkamagalur town, I was greeted by another white Polo GT whose driver tried hard to keep up with me until the town traffic allowed him to finally catch up. As he pulled up next to me, he flashed an enthusiastic thumbs up and coaxed me into prodding the throttle so he could listen to the exhaust note once again. This truly made my day!

This brings me to the catback exhaust installed at ProRace Customs. I was skeptical about it on long journeys, as it is a lot louder than what I’d expected it to be. But surprisingly, all you hear is a mild hum at 2000 RPM and it gets audible only post 3000 RPM. With music playing on the stereo, you can easily drown out the exhaust note or whatever little drone you may hear at 2-2.5k RPM. I had no problems with the exhaust at any point and it never wore me out either. In fact, the pops and bangs that it fires out upon gear changes at 4k RPM is truly addictive. As a result, I have noticed a significant reduction in fuel economy. I used to get 10-11 km comfortably in the city, and 13-14 on highways, Now, it’s 8 in the city and 11-12 on highway runs!

We eventually reached our destination at 11:20 and had to twiddle our thumbs for a good forty minutes before checking into our cottage. This gave me some time to clean the windscreen that looked like a bug’s graveyard at the end of the drive.

The next day, we left for Bangalore after a relaxed breakfast at the resort. It was around 12:30 pm when we started our journey to Bangalore. On our drive back at around the half way mark, we had stopped for about 15 minutes to stretch our legs. It was 4:25 pm when we were driving past Chinnaswamy Stadium approaching our flat.








Have to say, the Cobras have fixed the awkward rear-heavy stance of the car when they were on Eibachs. That's something I could have rectified by removing the front strut spacers, but I wouldn't want to risk it, for some of the roads in the city are simply atrocious.



Total distance covered: 501.3 km
Average Fuel Economy: 12.4
Range: 70 km.

Not too shabby, I’d say!

[Gosha]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Welcome to the forum! Glad you like my upgrades! There's more where that came from

Thank you Suhaas.

I've heard great things about Bilstein B6. I've driven a few GTs with them and I have to say, they do transform the car! How did you go about buying them?

Well I was originally saving up to get myself the KW Street Comfort coilovers, but I found a set of pre-owned b6 by chance in my native itself for a sweet price. Even though I did say pre-owned, it was never used, so essentially new. It is being installed now as I text.

Once equipped with the 288 mm brakes, I have never felt the need for further improvement in braking performance. It's absolutely fantastic at the moment. I suspect the EBC rotors are doing a splendid job. I can improve on it incrementally by swapping the stock pads for EBC Yellowstuff and I will do this once the pads require change.

Then I guess 288mm kit should do. I had a few hairy moments with the stock as well as the brembo drilled rotors and black pads.

Oh, and yes, the 310 mm brakes should fit with the 16" alloy wheels. The GTI that was sold in India was equipped with 16" wheels from the factory.

That information really helps because I remember you saying you had to alter the calliper to fit in your 16inch BBS wheels.

Any suggestion to which remap to go for Pete's or code6?

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by Gosha

Well I was originally saving up to get myself the KW Street Comfort coilovers, but I found a set of pre-owned b6 by chance in my native itself for a sweet price. Even though I did say pre-owned, it was never used, so essentially new. It is being installed now as I text.

Do document the install and share the deets.

Incidentally, I had met a friend who has a Polo GT TDI and he has installed KW Street Comfort coilovers on his car. If I'm being completely honest, I did not find it comfortable enough for daily driving. It was much too stiff for me, and my friend mentioned that even on the highway it's quite uncomfortable if the road is undulated. From the passenger seat, in the city, the ride for me was just too stiff.. and this was on its softest setting!!!

So I think you've taken the right call by procuring the B6 struts.

Then I guess 288mm kit should do. I had a few hairy moments with the stock as well as the brembo drilled rotors and black pads.

Yep!

That information really helps because I remember you saying you had to alter the calliper to fit in your 16inch BBS wheels.

The caliper did not require alteration, it's the S1 plaque (absent on the GTI caliper) affixed on the caliper face that had to be screwed off and trimmed a little so it does not foul with the wheel. No big deal, really!

Any suggestion to which remap to go for Pete's or code6?

You can't go wrong with either Pete's or Code6. All stage-1 maps are more or less the same. You could give Wolf-Moto a try, I've heard good things about them. Revo is world-renowned so you could consider them as well.

[Surprise]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

UPDATE:



Attachment 1887527
The Rotors and calipers in place.


Attachment 1887530
Azaan's genious mechanic got to work immediately by trimming the plaque so that the wheels accommodate the calipers without trouble.

Attachment 1887531
Installation complete!

Lovely thread!!! My POLO has reached almost 5 Yrs/1L kms. Yet to decide on retaining it or go for another VW. If I decide to retain it, next upgrade would be larger rotors for efficient brakes. EBC slotted (288) is what iam looking it. Hope the dealer also sells the calipers, else i have to hunt down for sourcing

[Luke]

I Plan to upgrade the brakes of my Vento TSI with EBC slotted (288) and the suspension with B6 and Tyres with MC5 205/55/R15. I live in Bangalore. Is there any place you recommend to get brakes upgrade done? Do I have to buy the parts online or will the garage have it already procured? Please suggest. B6 I plan to get it done at Pete's dealer at Yeshwantpur.

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by Luke

I Plan to upgrade the brakes of my Vento TSI with EBC slotted (288) and the suspension with B6 and Tyres with MC5 205/55/R15. I live in Bangalore. Is there any place you recommend to get brakes upgrade done? Do I have to buy the parts online or will the garage have it already procured? Please suggest. B6 I plan to get it done at Pete's dealer at Yeshwantpur.

The brake kit can be installed at pretty much any competent automobile workshop. A quick Google search will throw up options like Car Smiths and a few other places. You will have to buy the parts online and hand it over to the workshop, they will then install it for a fee (labour). If you are getting the B6 installed at Pete's, I recommend you get the brake kit also installed at the same time, to avoid additional labour charges.

__________________________________________________ ____

UPDATE:

It's the new year, and this year will bring lots of updates and upgrades for my little Polo. And I will be starting off with some ICE installations (finally!).

ICE upgrades have never intrigued me. I've always believed that a good audio setup is only as good as the environment you're in. And frankly, rolling boxes of metal such as cars are not ideal if you are looking to achieve a flawless ICE upgrade that delivers the right sound.

In fact, since November 2019, my HU has been mostly switched off, other than during the few long drives out of the city, and this was mostly due to the catback exhaust I have always preferred a quiet drive without music as I'd much rather listen to the car do its thing.

However, things changed a little a few weeks ago when friendly Moderator Vid6639 dropped me a whatsapp message with a Team-BHP Classifieds link to a set of Focal speakers and tweeters. The bug in my head chewed away my brain little by little before I finally bit the bullet and contacted the seller.

As it turns out, the seller Dr. Praveen, who hails from Mettupalayam, is a medical practitioner who spends his free time tinkering with his Polo GT TSI. He hasn't touched the mechanicals of the car, but has updated the car with all the gizmos and gadgets available today! He had decided to get these speakers for his ICE upgrade but had changed his mind midway and decided to put these up for sale.

Praveen was nice enough to drop the price a little upon my request, and promptly parceled the speakers to my flat.

A few days later, the package was received and I couldn't wait to get it installed.









However, I couldn't for the life of me decide where I should position the tweeters. After much deliberation and experiencing various setups, I'd concluded that the factory OEM tweeter position was ideal. And thus, the hunt for the OEM A-Pillar tweeters began.

So what's the big deal about these A Pillar covers? Well, for one, the tweeters come installed inside the front pillars from factory in various markets. India, as usual is not one of those markets. Only the GTI got these tweeters recessed into the pillars. I am a sucker for the OEM look, so I had to consider these seriously.

With the Coronavirus outbreak in China, Aliexpress was out of the question. And some sellers in the UK had the parts but had priced them absurdly and refused to ship them to India, to add insult to injury. Just when I'd reconciled to the fact that I will need to drill the quarter panel on the door to install the tweeters, I was informed by a friend that BHPian Archit Kishore will be able to help source the pillar covers for me.

I dropped him a text immediately and he confirmed that he had the Chinese market pillars with tweeters in stock. And after some unforeseen delays, his contact in Delhi Mr. Animesh, who also happens to have a lot of other interesting upgrades and parts for VAG cars, sorted out the logistics and sent the package to my flat.



On Saturday, I received the parcel and headed straight to Azaan's workshop.



Work began almost immediately, with the door panel coming off and the stock speakers as well. A couple of rivets holding the stock speakers turned out to be quite stubborn but were eventually removed.



Out go the old speakers..




..and in go the new Focals!


...mandatory cuppa for ICE installations


The tweeters were wired to the HU, upon Azaan's recommendation. Dr. Praveen however insisted that the cleanest way to do it was to tap the tweeters from the front door's speakers. Either way, it's all good!


And then on to the passenger door.


The A Pillar's already came with tweeters fitted to them, but I've had them removed and replaced with the Focals..




Araldite was used to secure the tweeters in the provision behind the pillar cover.

And the finished product:





I must say, I'm mighty pleased with the outcome!

We went for a bit of a drive around the vicinity and also stopped by the side of the road to further tweak the sound using the settings in the HU.

The improvement in sound-quality is remarkable! The highs are now more pronounced and there is more punch in the bass too! Overall, I am extremely impressed!

That said, I could immediately tell the rear units are letting the setup down, and I will have to change the rear speakers at some point. Also, the stock RCD 320 is a major limiting factor, and I've been told that RCD 340 Plus/G will improve it considerably.

Obviously, I'm not going to stop this upgrade midway. As soon as I find a good deal on a RCD 340, I will get it right away and also upgrade the rear setup, not to mention the damping material in the doors to further improve the ICE experience.

Stay tuned for further updates! * wink*

P.S. Big shout out to Vid6639 for sharing with me the link to the components, Praveen for guiding me through the process of installation, Archit and his friend Animesh for hooking me up with the A-Pillar covers and of course, Azaan for accommodating me on short notice and completing the job in 2 hours!

[suhaas307]

Update:

Now before I get to the latest updates, let me apprise all 5 of you of the developments over the last few weeks:

1. Intake Plumbing:

TheLizardKing and Viraat, resident DIYers and fellow Polo GT TSI owners from Mumbai, have been chatting with me over texts about a little interesting mod for our cars that we stumbled upon on the internet.

The Euro Spec channel/duct has become common place amongst the GT TSI owners, but we took it a step further with this, the 2012-13 Fabia vRS intake duct:


Part No. 6R0129618D


6R0129621B

I stumbled upon this on a French VW Polo Forum where a member had attempted to fit the larger Fabia vRS intake pipe that draws air from the front grille to the bottom of the airbox. The gentleman who got this done to his polo 1.2 TSI reported better bottom-end and sharper throttle response.


Picture from the French VW Forum illustrating the difference between the pipes


A quick look at the part number on various overseas parts websites revealed that it's a very reasonably priced part. Just around 2000 for the lot.

After an internal discussion amongst the three of us, we were keen to try it out. TheLizardKing was kind enough to make a group purchase out of it and the parts arrived in just a few weeks.





The pictures speak for themselves. The Fabia vRS is noticeably larger, and the duct/mouth of the pipe that is connected to the Euro Channel on our cars is also substantially wider. But the other end of the pipe that fits onto the airbox is the same size as that of the stock pipe.



The intake-pipe that sends the filtered air from the airbox to the turbo inlet had to be removed to make room for an easy install of this pipe.

The pipe fits at the airbox just about correctly, but the other end of the pipe that slips into the duct had to be riveted on, only to ensure that it is fastened well. Zip-ties would serve the purpose too.

The install was done on the same day the tweeters were also installed. It took no longer than 10 minutes to swap the pipe, but I held off reporting on this for a while as I wanted to understand if it made any difference to the performance.

Now, it's hard to say if there is any difference. I do feel a slight improvement in bottom end and the throttle has definitely gotten sharper! It could also very well be my mind playing games with me. But the biggest difference is in the sound. It's hard to tell sometimes, but when you listen closely, there's a bit of induction noise coming through.

Even if this mod hasn't resulted in any tangible gains, I am happy with it. it surely hasn't harmed the setup in any way. So I'm good with it.



2. Sun-film:

With Summer fast approaching, I felt the need to install an effective sun-film.

Frequent visits to Felicity Detailing Studio (Feynlabs) on Residency Road for the monthly wash has had me poking around for interesting things to do to my car, and their range of sun-film caught my eye.

The one I've opted for is UltraKool OPN-888.



It sort-of works like the famous CR-70 sun-film, in the sense that it's nearly transparent but effective in cutting down the heat. This sun-film cuts out most of the UV rays, infrared rejection by 78% and solar heat rejection by 65%.

It was also available at a more affordable price, and it was very strongly recommended by Samrat Kashim, the manager at Felicity, so I went ahead with the install.



The sun-film has been on my car for about two weeks now and I can definitely tell the difference, especially after the car has been parked out in the sun. The cabin is noticeably cooler even if the car has been parked out in the sun for a while. I would highly recommend this brand of sun-film as it does the job as advertised and does not get you into trouble with the fuzz.


3. Dome Light:

A popular little mod amongst the VW Polo community is the Jetta dome lights.

I've been hunting for one ever since I saw it on The LizardKing's DIY thread and I simply couldn't find one for the life of me. With the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic going around, getting anything from AliExpress was out of the question.

The chap who helped source the A-Pillar tweeter covers apparently had one dome light with him, but coordinating with him was proving to be a logistical nightmare.

I casually mentioned this to my friend Dr. Praveen, the same gentleman who sold me the Focal components, and he said that he has a dome light lying around that he had picked up from AliExpress. Only trouble is one of the red spot lights have stopped working. But Dr. Praveen likes to fiddle with wires, and said that he could try his hand at fixing the light. A week later, he dropped me a message saying that he had managed to fix it and it was a mere 10 minute job!

I confirmed that I'd like to take it off his hands and he obliged by packing it up in a box and parceling it to my flat.

Dr. Praveen was also kind enough to prepare a harness for the dome light, as it would require one for the red spot lights to work.

A few days later, the dome light arrived along with the harness, and I took it to Azaan's the first opportunity I got.



It took Azaan literally 15 minutes to remove the stock dome light, fit the harness to it, run the yellow wire above the headliner and through the driver's side A-Pillar cover and into the fuse-box where he used the 17th pin wire in the headlight switch connector to splice it and insulate it with the yellow wire form the dome light.







We put the key in and voila! It worked!



But when we tried to fasten the dome back into the headliner by screwing it back into the plate, it didn't work, because the screws in the new Dome were not in line with the threads on the plate inside the headliner.

Clearly, this wasn't going to be plug and play, but Praveen came to the rescue by saying that we could mark the area on the metal plate in line with the new screws and drill fresh screws into the plate.



This had to be done because the new dome would just not be secure with the headliner without the new screws. Another 15 minutes later, and the job was done!


Driver's reading light


Passenger's reading light


All lights switched on


The faint red glow that bathes the gear lever..

..it was definitely worth it!

Now, to find myself some nice warm white LED lights to compliment the new dome.

Oh, and I almost forgot. Dr. Praveen was kind enough to drop a pair of canbus error-free LED licence plate lights into the dome-light parcel:





Installing this was a 2 minute job and the results are more than satisfactory:



Big shout out to Ganesh a.k.a. LizardKing for organizing the logistics for the intake pipe, and to Dr. Praveen who helped by providing me with the dome light, for preparing the harness for it and for fixing the red spot light as well, not to mention the surprise LED licence plate lights!

Stay tuned for more updates. There's a big one coming shortly.

[AbelAFC]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Update:

2. Sun-film:

Attachment 1978856

You need to get the advocates' sticker that can be applied from the inside of your windscreen. Would look a lot nicer than the current one!

Jokes apart, your car just looks amazing man. Kudos, you have great taste.

[abhinav.s]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Update:

2. Sun-film:

With Summer fast approaching, I felt the need to install an effective sun-film.
.
.
.
Stay tuned for more updates. There's a big one coming shortly.

Super cool updates!! I am constantly visiting your thread looking for the things that you have to update about and get disappointed if there is no update here Did you get the Sun film installed only on the windows or the front windshield also? Any fogging issues if installed on the windshield?

Waiting eagerly for the big update now... Hope it is on its way sooner rather than later!

[AtheK]

Nice one Suhaas, you continue to chip on and keep making small tasteful mods. The car keeps looking better and better.

I also have the Jetta Dome light, but the plug and play one, and without the red lights. I am also planning to upgrade the lights to white LED, along with footwell lights. Do let me know when you end up sourcing them.

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by AbelAFC

You need to get the advocates' sticker that can be applied from the inside of your windscreen. Would look a lot nicer than the current one!

Jokes apart, your car just looks amazing man. Kudos, you have great taste.

Thanks Abel!

For the sticker, I may consider other (more discreet) options. *wink wink*

Originally Posted by abhinav.s

Super cool updates!! I am constantly visiting your thread looking for the things that you have to update about and get disappointed if there is no update here Did you get the Sun film installed only on the windows or the front windshield also? Any fogging issues if installed on the windshield?

Yes, it's been a while since my last update! I haven't had the opportunity to carry out some of the updates I'd planned, for various reasons.

But going forward, I think we could expect at least one update a month, if not more frequently, for the rest of this year *grins*

With respect to the sun film, I'd missed out that little detail.. yes the film is on the entire glass-house of the car. Film on the windshield is more effective than on the rest of the car only, it's that crucial! I've noticed a marked difference only because the windshield had gotten the treatment too!

No fogging issues, but a day or two after it was applied, I did notice a bubble in the windshield film, at the bottom corner on the passenger side. It went away after a few days, before I could take it back to Felicity for a look.

Originally Posted by AtheK

Nice one Suhaas, you continue to chip on and keep making small tasteful mods. The car keeps looking better and better.

I also have the Jetta Dome light, but the plug and play one, and without the red lights. I am also planning to upgrade the lights to white LED, along with footwell lights. Do let me know when you end up sourcing them.

Thank you!

Like I'd mentioned earlier, I haven't had the opportunity to update as frequently as I'd have liked. We could also expect some cosmetic and comfort orientated upgrades soon!

For the cabin lights, I would advise against cool white 6000k and get warm white 4300k for cabin lights. The cool whites don't give it that upmarket look/feel. But that may be my personal preference.

Originally Posted by Luke

I Plan to upgrade the brakes of my Vento TSI with EBC slotted (288) and the suspension with B6 and Tyres with MC5 205/55/R15. I live in Bangalore. Is there any place you recommend to get brakes upgrade done? Do I have to buy the parts online or will the garage have it already procured? Please suggest. B6 I plan to get it done at Pete's dealer at Yeshwantpur.

Sorry, I'd missed this earlier.

The brake upgrade can be done at any competent workshop. Carsmiths will undertake the job, but labour may not be cheap. This is of course, if you have bought the parts before hand and hand it over to them for the installation. Pete's would also help you with installing the BBK, on request.

You can also try requesting them to assist you in the purchasing process, but I'm not sure if they would oblige.

There are some tuning houses and workshops that have the BBK in stock, but be prepared to shell out 50-60k minimum for the kit. If you do it yourself, you could save up to 20k post installation.

[warrioraks]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Stay tuned for more updates. There's a big one coming shortly.

Suhaas, this is a great thread. I went through all the 10 pages over last two days and must say your car is certainly getting better with age, thanks to all the incremental classy updates.
Moreover, for someone like me who does not understand car mods, this has been a fantastic starting ground. The car is for everyone to see, but what goes behind the scenes, the sort of patience and passion that is required when dealing with so much ambiguity, the disappointments and the excitement, all made up for a great read.
Thanks for sharing and cheers to your hot hatch! I am hooked onto for updates

[sai_ace]

Thanks for the regular updates!

Could you please share the cost of the sun film?

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by warrioraks

Suhaas, this is a great thread. I went through all the 10 pages over last two days and must say your car is certainly getting better with age, thanks to all the incremental classy updates.
Moreover, for someone like me who does not understand car mods, this has been a fantastic starting ground. The car is for everyone to see, but what goes behind the scenes, the sort of patience and passion that is required when dealing with so much ambiguity, the disappointments and the excitement, all made up for a great read.
Thanks for sharing and cheers to your hot hatch! I am hooked onto for updates

Originally Posted by sai_ace

Thanks for the regular updates!

Thank you!

Unfortunately I have not been able to make any progress with my list of upgrades thanks to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic.

Rest assured, the updates will begin to roll in once this whole thing blows over.

Originally Posted by sai_ace

Could you please share the cost of the sun film?

Sure, it costs around 15k plus taxes, if I remember correctly. I'd say it's worth it, considering that it's half the price of CR-70 and almost just as effective.

[sai_ace]

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Thank you!

Unfortunately I have not been able to make any progress with my list of upgrades thanks to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic.

Rest assured, the updates will begin to roll in once this whole thing blows over.

We shall be waiting!

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Sure, it costs around 15k plus taxes, if I remember correctly. I'd say it's worth it, considering that it's half the price of CR-70 and almost just as effective.

I am assuming for the entire car? and which model of sun film was this - will check up on the data sheet from the site..