After owning my S3 for nearly 2.5 I figured I'd share my experience with it. This is the first car that I have ever done any sort of modifications to so it's been an enjoyable learning curve
I'll start with brief description of my car history
1. Vauxhall Astra 1.6 sxi being my first ever car I confused confidence with driving ability and ended up writing this off with just 5000 miles on the clock
2. After writing the Astra off I used the insurance money to buy an Audi TT mk1 225 Quattro and to pay the astromonical insurance. I had this a couple of years and throughly enjoyed it until I sold it prior to moving to Australia
3. While in OZ I got my self a 2010 Ford falcon xr6 which was great until it rained or came to a corner
4. Upon returning to the UK I got myself a 57 plate S3 which again I thought was fantastic for the 6 days that I had it until the cam chain went and wiped out the engine. After a couple of months I managed to get my money back from the dealer.
5. After my previous experience I really enjoyed the S3 so I wasn't detered and knew that I wanted another one. Luckily I had a bit of windfall at work so decided that I would opt for a newer model with lower mileage and still under warranty. So I managed to pick up 2011 S3 black edition with just 13000 miles on the clock at the start of 2014 so it was still under warranty for 23k,this is still my current car
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I was thrilled with the car and the first thing that I did was to put a full set of Goodyear eagle f1 asymetric 2 on it, I'd never been in a car that had so much grip round the corners. After having the car 6 weeks I got a knock on my front door with 2 burly guys claiming that they where taking the car away as it had outstanding finance on it. My heart sank and I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I did a HPI check prior to purchase and it came back as having stock finance on it, I called the finance company to see what it was and was told it was normal for private garages to have stock finance to fund the cars on the forecourt and then its paid off once they sell the car and proof of this should be forwarded to me. I asked for the garage to email me this, which they did. I showed this to the bayliffs as well as my receipt for the vehicle as well as the V5. I called the garage and the number no longer existed and there website was gone. I contacted the finance company and they said the stock finance had not been paid off and the garage had closed and the owner could not be found, so they where collecting all the cars, as well as mine there was an M5, Nissan GTR, Range Rover sport. They also told me that the proof of the finance being paid off was fake. I reluctantly handed the keys over and saw my pride and joy being driven away. I was facing the very real prospect of being £23 k out of pocket. After seeking legal advice and £2k and 3 months later the car was returned me. I've never felt such relief. For anybody thinking this guy hasn't had much luck I'm glad to report it only gets better from here
Shortly after getting the car back I decided that I wanted a bit more from it (mainly due to this forum). So I bought myself a bluefin stage 1 map as I liked the idea of being able to remove it when taking it back to Audi as it was still under warranty and I wanted to keep the car with Full Audi service history. To me the difference was night and day and it put a massive grin on my face and said to myself that I would leave it like this, getting thrown back in my seat was a joy and the throttle response was immense.
After a month or so I felt like I wanted more but was wary of my clutch so I didn't want to go too far. I decided that I'd get a revo intake and pat
@LVS Racing sorted me one out at a great price as well as ttrs engine cover. At the same time I also ordered a GFB+ Dv. These mods where easy to fit. The noise from the CAI was amazing and again I noticed an increase in the power and torque I was very happy with the car and said to myself I would leave it like this. I've also recently stuck a gecko and s3 badge on the cover
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After about a year I felt my clutch slip a couple of times and decided that I would have to bite the bullet and do the clutch. As my warranty was now up I wasn't bothered about getting Oem installed. I regret that although there was a lot of info out there I didn't really take it in when choosing a flywheel and went for the Sachs performance single mass flywheel and clutch kit. It took a while to get used to and is a lot heavier than the OEM and I was concerned with the rattle at idle at first but this died down or I just got used to it but it doesn't bother me anymore. I also decided that I would get a milltek cat back Non resonated exhaust fitted at the same time as the clutch and flywheel. I was happy with the extra noise coming out of the back of the car. Here is where my lack of knowledge of tuning came in. As it was only £50 to update my bluefin to stage 2 I knew that the clutch would be fine and I already had the revo intake, here is the part I oversaw I confused the requirement for a sports cat with having a cat back exhaust. I uploaded the new map and could tell straight away that the car had more pull to it and was really pleased with it. For some reason I woke up one night and it hit me about the mistake I had made with the exhaust. Luckily the car had only done 100 miles on the set up. I removed the stage 2 map and put stage 1 back on. I was due back overseas with work for a couple of months so figured I'd deal with it when I get back
While away I decided that I would order a milltek downpipe, it then hit me that then all I'd need to go to stage 2+ would be a uprated hpfp so I went on the hunt for these items. Ricky
@Tsr-performance sorted me out for the 2 items and was really helpful. I was searching the forums about what map to go for and was leaning towards revo as I liked the idea of the spa. I then got in touch with
@Rick @ Unicorn Motor Dev, after great reviews on here and was able to do switchable maps, another plus is that I'm only 20 minutes away from him so I booked myself in for a stage 2 + map for when I got back home.
While still away at work I decided that if I'm going stage 2+ When I get home I should probably do something about the handling. After reading
@leshkin build thread and asking him a few questions which he was very happy to answer and I decided that I would order a Yellowspeed big brake kit. I also got in touch with
@S3Alex about how his previous rear set up. I opted to go for a set of Mtec grooved and dimpled disks with mintex pads. I then decided to order a set of front and rear H&R anti roll bars. Leshkin then sold having the WALK fitted was also a worthy upgrade to do so I ordered a set of them too. Suspension was then going to be the next thing to look for, I thought about coilovers but decided against them as I would probably end up messing the geometry up and have read that it can be a pain to get it right so I opted for ST Suspension sport suspension kit as I didn't really want the car lowering too much and there is nothing for me get wrong lol, I also ordered some rs3 top mounts and bearings from
@mjr901. I then figured I would also get the RS4 return valve just for piece of mind
So I arrived home and i was like a kid at xmas as I came home to all the below
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With time against me I had a week to get all the hardware on before going to rick. My first job was to fit the down pipe, so I could reinstall the blue fin stage 2 on, if only for a week. After finding a guide on this forum I decided to tackle it by myself on my drive on ramps and axle stands, the weather wasn't playing ball as you can see below
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It wasn't too much of a bad job to do but I will admit I was a bit apprehensive about disconnecting the prob shaft at the front and swinging it over to get the old downpipe out, it was a bit of a wrestle but managed to get it past. The only issue I came across was where the cat back had previously been clamped to the Oem down pipe it had reduced the diameter so it would just not slot in to place. After sticking a white wheel and die grinder on the drill I was able to clean/remove enough from the cat back side for it to just slot on. I also noticed the rubber hangers had started to deteriorate so I cut them off and popped in to the local Audi to get some new ones. Once it was all fitted. I then reload the stage 2 bluefin after I'd let the car run for an hour and retightened the clamps. The difference it made was unreal, it gave the car a lot more growl. When I first put my foot down it flew like it had never done before it was obvious the car could breath much better now as there wasn't as much restriction for the exhaust gas.
Next on the list was to fit the Loba hpfp. I found
@warren_S5 guide very helpful and informative. As the pump came with a new cam follower I changed that too as the car is now at 25k miles
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As I had the fuel pump pump off I figured it would be a good time to change the fuel return valve for the rs4 one. I used a guide that I previously shared on this forum. I will admit that this was a pain in the **** with me nearly throwing the towel in on several occasions, but I got there in the end. I also figured this would be a good time to perform a service so replaced the oil and oil filter. Once it won I took the car for another spin and could feel that the car was more progressive in delivering the fuel and would pull even better than before. As the car was now ready for me to visit rick this Tuesday I was happy and went out for what I felt to be a few well deserved pints on the Friday night. I called up awesome GTi and booked in for them to fit my suspension, whiteline anti lift kit and forward anti roll bar as I didn't really fancy dropping the subframe myself.
On the Saturday I fitted the rear anti roll bar which was a doddle to fit. I couldn't believe the difference this made to the handling characteristics like I said earlier this week s the 1st car I'd modded and couldn't believe that just changing a bar could make such a difference, I set the bar to firm and it felt like the car was on rails
So yesterday came around and off I went to awesome for the the requested work. I also asked them to fit the lower torque arm insert that came with my downpipe which I forgot to fit when I did the exhaust. When fitting this the threads on the Oem dogbone mount had become stripped so I had the two mounts replaced. It turns out getting them to fit the suspension was a good move too as one of the front drop link bolts sheared, I would have been in trouble if this had happened on my drive. I got the two front drop links replaced. The Whiteline anti lift kit was also installed. I also had a four wheel alignment carried out. I was happy with the subtle drop in ride height and know it will drop a little more once settled
Here's the geometry print out
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Before
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After suspension fitted
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I also picked up the Porsche oil and coolant caps as well as a black washer bottle cap while at awesome
After throwing it around a few round abouts last night I can say I'm delight with the way car handles it's been totally transformed from when it was stock and the walk kit really does seem to activate more grip and compliments everything very well
I decided to start writing his thread while I'm sat in
@Rick @ Unicorn Motor Dev. waiting room while he tunes the car to Stage 2 +, he just popped in to say that all is currently good with the car and it running strong on the blue fin stage 2 with 330bhp and 340 ft.lbs torque which we where both surprised from a generic off the shelf map. After rick had finished working his magic the result was a very pleasing 364bhp and 372 ft.lbs torque. He pulled off the boost a little as there was a misfire happening occasionally at the top end so I'll be changing the coil packs and spark plugs and will head back for a tweak. The switching method of the maps from stock to the stage 2 + is nicely integrated in to the cruise control stalk.
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After driving around this afternoon and evening I am totally taken aback by the difference and how the power is put down its fair to say I am totally happy with the car now. All the reviews about rick are true and he really is a genuinely nice guy and is very informative in what he is doing
My next next upgrade is to do the brakes which have taken up to 5 weeks already I've been applying the pressure to yellowspeed and have been informed I should receive them tomorrow, fingers crossed. I've also got a 42 draft designs stealth catch can to fit
As I am now totally happy with the car I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have helped me to get the car to this stage including
@leshkin @S3Alex @Rick @ Unicorn Motor Dev. @Tsr-performance @LVS Racing alex_wills,
@mjr901
Thank you for taking the time to read this and I hope it's useful to anybody who is looking for more information about what these cars are capable off, I'm willing to answer any questions, I'll keep this updated the more I get used to having the car this way.
