Face lift conversion

[charlietdi95]

hi guys got a 2014 a3 sline and I’ve been offered a facelift front end and dynamic rear lights quite cheap, just wondering if anyone has converted there a3’s and weather it’s worth the hassle or not

 

[KenL]

I don't see the point. Why make your car something it's not?

 

[Carefree69]

Yup^^

 

[Vertigo1]

Define "front end" exactly. You know the bonnet's different?

 

[charlietdi95]

Bonnet
Bumper
Wings
Head lights
Arch liners

My main worry is are the head lights plug and play or do they need coding ?

 

[Schizophonic]

Bonnet
Bumper
Wings
Head lights
Arch liners

My main worry is are the head lights plug and play or do they need coding ?

FL Rear light conversions are getting more common
Check out the latest post by @Ash187 at Audi_retrofit


Front end is a lot more work involved like you mentioned above, but nothing is plug and play.

 

[BrummieLad]

Charlie,

I've done this conversion and the main differences are:

Front Headlights
Front Panel
Front Bumper & associated grills
Rear lights
Rear bumper & Diffuser
Front Washer Jets

The wings and bonnet are the same despite what you may read. They were different on the 8P as the the facelift had the indicators in the wings, hence there was alot more work involved. I was unsure about the lights myself, but thanks to knowledgeable members on here they would work as long as i went for the same type, so i took the plunge and swapped bi-xenons to bi-xenons and the lights worked as expected. If you are going from xenons to led, they will not be plyg and play. However the auto leveling feature doesn't work, which I will get sorted at some point. Regarding the rear lights, there is a write up on how to do this conversion, but have only managed to get the 2 outer lights working, and get my head round why the inner ones will not work.

 

[LaurenP]

Nothing wrong with plastic surgery. Look at fake whoredashian.

 

[Ormesome]

the only problem I see is that when it comes to the time to sell, most people will assume its had a crash and panels where changed when repairing it. Very nice 2014 on eBay in white thats had a full conversion. its probably simple job on the A3 as so little changed.

 

[KenL]

Charlie,

I've done this conversion and the main differences are:

Front Headlights
Front Panel
Front Bumper & associated grills
Rear lights
Rear bumper & Diffuser
Front Washer Jets

The wings and bonnet are the same despite what you may read. They were different on the 8P as the the facelift had the indicators in the wings, hence there was alot more work involved. I was unsure about the lights myself, but thanks to knowledgeable members on here they would work as long as i went for the same type, so i took the plunge and swapped bi-xenons to bi-xenons and the lights worked as expected. If you are going from xenons to led, they will not be plyg and play. However the auto leveling feature doesn't work, which I will get sorted at some point. Regarding the rear lights, there is a write up on how to do this conversion, but have only managed to get the 2 outer lights working, and get my head round why the inner ones will not work.

Auto-levelling doesn't work and you'll get that fixed at some point. Is that after you've blinded other road users? Sort it out now please!

 

[Toonsoldier91]

https://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/a3-8v-facelift-conversion-guide.373803/

 

[charlietdi95]

Charlie,

I've done this conversion and the main differences are:

Front Headlights
Front Panel
Front Bumper & associated grills
Rear lights
Rear bumper & Diffuser
Front Washer Jets

The wings and bonnet are the same despite what you may read. They were different on the 8P as the the facelift had the indicators in the wings, hence there was alot more work involved. I was unsure about the lights myself, but thanks to knowledgeable members on here they would work as long as i went for the same type, so i took the plunge and swapped bi-xenons to bi-xenons and the lights worked as expected. If you are going from xenons to led, they will not be plyg and play. However the auto leveling feature doesn't work, which I will get sorted at some point. Regarding the rear lights, there is a write up on how to do this conversion, but have only managed to get the 2 outer lights working, and get my head round why the inner ones will not work.

Turns out the headlights I have are led how much coding do they require ?

 

[BrummieLad]

Turns out the headlights I have are led how much coding do they require ?

That will need coding and wiring harness change and possibly the control swotch too.

 

[randy4]

Personally I’ve done this in the past with a few of my cars. It’s a nice project and challenge to update an older model yourself. However for the time, cost and the effect on the resale I would never do it again.

My car for example is a PFL on a 16 plate which I bought less than 2 weeks ago and the 66plate or 17 is a FL in most cases was less than 2k difference in price (yes most likely lower spec and not the best colour) which I was very tempted by from time to time. But the spec and colour of my PFL drew me to the purchase of a PFL over a FL. what I’m saying here is that the actually cost difference is not that great for you to upgrade unless you have the very early PFL like a 63 or something. So maybe consider selling up and buying the FL if you really want the new shape it will be the better decision in the long run if you can afford it but if you want the project and don’t mind the cost go for the conversion.

 

[Matt Titanium]

Personally I’ve done this in the past with a few of my cars. It’s a nice project and challenge to update an older model yourself. However for the time, cost and the effect on the resale I would never do it again.

My car for example is a PFL on a 16 plate which I bought less than 2 weeks ago and the 66plate or 17 is a FL in most cases was less than 2k difference in price (yes most likely lower spec and not the best colour) which I was very tempted by from time to time. But the spec and colour of my PFL drew me to the purchase of a PFL over a FL. what I’m saying here is that the actually cost difference is not that great for you to upgrade unless you have the very early PFL like a 63 or something. So maybe consider selling up and buying the FL if you really want the new shape it will be the better decision in the long run if you can afford it but if you want the project and don’t mind the cost go for the conversion.

Did it have a big effect on price and limit the number of people willing to buy them? Are independent/specialist dealers happy to retail them or do you have to go down the private sale route to get a decent price?