Laurent.d - Audi A3- Project

[laurent.d]

As my car has been partly modified in UK with UK parts I though it would be fair to write a review here.

It won't be as detailed as the one I have already done on French Forum, because it will be a pain to do.

It took me ages, offline to write it but, any way, here we go.


So, I bought my A3 2.0 TFSI S-Tronic S-Line brand new in May 2007, at first I wanted to keep it stock.


My car stock



But after only 4000km I found that the car was fantastic but too wise for me.

The suspensions were too soft while the car is pushing hard and the engine miss some agressivity.

So I decided to begin to modify it.

Bilstein B8 Eibach SportLine:

My choice was quiet easy, as I already had pretty good long term experience with another car fitted with Bilstein B8 and Eibach.

It lowered the car by 1,5cm over OEM S-Line chassis 2,5cm over Sport chassis and 4cm over Comfort chassis.


Review :

The ride is very taut and firm but still not too uncomfortable.
It can be some time to time a tiny bouncy but overall the ride is superb.
The car is much more stable at high speed.
Steering is sharper.
The car doesn’t move around anymore when driving hard.
But it does still under steer at the limit.


My car lowered

ABT Stage1:

At this time I didn’t know much about ECU remap, 2.0 TFSI and DSG reliability.
The Tuner I knew were, ABT, OETTINGER and MTM.
I chose ABT because they are known to work with VAG and being very conservative. So it was may be the most expensive but it seemed the safest for me.

Stage 1 : 240HP @ 6000 rpm et 330 Nm from 2000 to 4500 rpm

Here clamed ABT torque and power figures:

Review :

The car feels sportier
The engine is more responsive
It pulls much stronger all the way through the rev but remains as manageable as stock.
I had it for about 40 000km and had nothing to complain with it, except, that I wanted more power.


Performances:

I recorded some data with my smart phone + GPS.

0 to 100 km/h : 6.2 sec
400 m DA : 14.2 sec
80 to 120 km/h 5 gear : 6.6 sec
Top speed : 243 km/h.


Compare to other cars :

A3 2.0 TFSI stock (200 HP / 280 Nm)

0 to 100 km/h : 7.2 sec
400 m DA : 15.4 sec
80 to 120 km/h 5 Gear : 7.4 sec
Top speed : 231 km/h


Golf MKV GTI 2.0 TFSI ED 30 (230 HP / 300 Nm)

0 to 100 km/h : 6.7 sec
400 m DA : 15.1 sec
80 to 120 km/h 5 Gear : 7 sec
Top speed : 243 km/h


LEON MKII CUPRA (240 HP / 300 Nm)

0 to 100 km/h : 6.7 sec
400 m DA : 14.7 sec
80 to 120 km/h 5 Gear : 6.6 sec
Top speed : 242 km/h


To be continued...

 

[laurent.d]

...New chapter,

MOREGO Power Grip:

As I said before, the car handling is great, but it does still under steer at the limit and I was looking for a solution to solve it.

Then I found a Volkswagen Driver review about the ‘’Morego power grip’’ which sounded promising.
It’s pretty simple, they have lengthened OEM steel wishbone of about 10mm by cutting off the ends of the wishbones and welding extension piece on.
It doesn’t look high-tech, it’s pretty expensive, but what an improvement!!!!!!

I had them fitted when my car had 16500 km in May 2008.
It gave to the car -2,1° of front camber, the rear is 1, 5°.

Review:

During normal driving you don’t feel any difference, excepte may be the steering is more lively on bumpy road.
The car remains as stable as stock.
But driving hard at the limit it completely changed the car.
Traction is improved.
Front and gives a better feeling and give you confidence, it seems that it will never give up.
The harder you drive, the better it is.
The rear and lose grip first.

It’s the best mod ever with, what VWR did on my car, we will talk about it later.

The better the car become, the further I wanted to go.

To be continued...

 

[laurent.d]

...New chapter,

So soon after I decided to change the sway bars.

H&R Sway Bars:

OEM bars are 23mm front and 21mm rear

H&R provide two kits:
A small one 26mm front 22mm rear and a big one I chose 28mm front and 24mm rear.
We set it soft front and hard rear.

Review:

You lose again some comfort mostly on bumpy road
There is also a little bit more road noise in the cabin, but that’s not a big deal.
There is no body roll any more.
The car turns just flat.
The car is incredibly stable and sharp.
It’s incredibly fast around corner.
You can throw in a corner without unsettle it.
It’s not a road car anymore, it’s a track car.
Minus point, the car is not as fun as before, it is more neutral, even a tiny under steer biased in tight corner.
But it’s so great around the Ring.

Note:

My front sway bar is quiet big, so I set it up on soft because I thought that set on hard I would get more under steer.

Every thing was fine, excepte that during fast road driving or on track, I like to enter fast into the curve on the brakes.
And I found out that the front end could feel some time over loaded.

As the SuperPro Bushes I had fitted later improved the turn-in, I decided to try to set the front sway bar on hard as well.

I was surprised that, yet the turn in was a tiny less agressive, there was no increased under steer and that I could get into the curve a bit faster on the brakes without overloaded the front end.

So now during winter I set both sway bars on soft which suit better with my PSS10 set on soft and both set on hard for summer and track use.


To be continued...

 

[laurent.d]

New chapter...

I was happy with my Bilstein B8, but I wanted to go further and be able to adjust the suspension soft for daily use and hard for track use.
So I decided to purchase:

Bilstein B16 PSS10:

It was in November 2008 the car had about 23 500km

Review:

The good news is B16 are not only adjustable B8, they are more than that.
Springs seem harder but damping is more subtle and ride is suppler while still very taut and firm.
Small bumps are better absorbed.
The car is a tiny less under steer biased, more neutral, turn in is slightly better.
Set on 2 the car is a little more comfortable than B8. It is the setup I use daily.
5 is the hardest you can go on wet road, others setup are too hard. It has changed since VWR set up (now it's more like 3).
7 is the hardest you can go on dry road, others setup are too hard. It has changed since VWR set up (now it's more like 5).
Setup 8, 9 are for track use only.
1 &10 are pointless

So not a huge difference but adjustability, higher quality of damping, worth to go for B16.

Some pics stolen from another Thread: :ashamed:

To be continued...

 

[laurent.d]

New chapter...

No need to say that I became mod's addicted and that I want my car to be as sharpe as possible.
So I decided du change engine mounts.

VF Engineering Engine Mounts :

Parts :

Lower torque arm

Right side mount

Left side mount

Review:

At first, I was a bit disturbed by increased noise and vibrations and didn't know if I would keep them.
Even more because, stock my car was very quiet.

But after a few km they break in and I get used to them and then just enjoyed the best.
The car feels stiffer.
The steering is more responsive.
There is more feedback in the steering wheel, or rather a better feeling of the front axle.
The car feels sharper, more alive.
Braking and acceleration are also more direct.
The engine noise is sportier.

And now, I don't notice the increased noise anymore, even during very long trip (1100km one way) but now when I'm riding at 200km/h on the highway I don't get bored any more.
I have the feeling I'm driving a car at 200km/h, and not being sit in an armchair listening to a sweet music watching cars going backwards.
Only one drawback, they don’t seem to last long.
After may be 30 000 km the small bush from the torque arm is already destroyed so I put bake the OEM arm.
I have to check them, but if they don't last longer I will change them for VWR side Engine Mount.


To be continued...

 

[laurent.d]

New chapter...

Mods are nice but our cars are heavy so I decided to put it on a diet.
First I removed Spar wheel, jack, and tools that are about 16 kg.
Then I removed the back seats, about 27 kg.
Then I went for a light weight Battery. Braille Battery is 6.8 kg OEM is 17 kg Again 10kg lost.


That is 53kg lost.

Braille Battery:


The Braille battery

[/IMG]

The Braille battery in the engine bay

Braille battery compare to OEM one

Not much to say except it works like OEM but leaving your car 4 or 5 weeks without driving it and the battery can be flat and the same can happen if you keep (engine off) the radio on, inside light on, for hours.


To be continued...

 

[laurent.d]

New chapter...

I wanted my car to be lighter again and needed more room for bigger brakes, so I changed the wheels.

OZ Ultraleggera Wheels:

I chose them because I think they suit well the A3, they are lighter, about 3kg each, they give more clearance for big brakes. I took them in 8''x18’’ ET 45 to keep low weight, low inertia, and because 19’’ look too big for me and are pointless on track.

So 12 more kilos gained, that is 65kg.

Review:

Excepted driving up hills, I have not really felt the difference in dynamics due to the loss of 26kg (Spare tire + jack + battery), but here, I felt that the car was a bit more alert.
That is not night and day but you feel it.

Note:

Due to the front track widened by Morego wishbones and OZ 45 ET and 8'' width, my front wheels are 1/3 of mm outside off my fender.


Some pics (You would notie that I changed the camera )

I had some rubbing issue with the screw under the fender. So I just removed a little bit of plastic from the rear bumper around the rear screw.
At the front, I took screws with thiner head and removed the OEM fender plastic tab.

My wheel still rub into the fender during heavy compression some time to time like in the Karussel or Adenau at the Nürburgring.

To be continued...

 

[Ash B]

Good build thread! I do like the new alloys aswell, get some MY09 or MY11 rear lights.
Will be keeping an eye on this thread, keep up the good work

 

[laurent.d]

New chapter...


So, now, I have enough room behind the wheels. I can have some real brakes.

I hesitated between Brembo, AP Racing and Alcon, etc...

After extensive research on the net I learned that bigger the brakes are:

More there is stopping power.
Better they dissipate the heat


But also:

More they are heavy (moreover it is rotating and unsprung mass)
Plus they are slow to heat


I chose Brembo brakes because they are wellknown and common in France and available In silver grey.


Brembo Brakes:

There is different kit available.

1A4 6008A: A Caliper ; 4 pistons; 3.45 kg ; Rotor 1piece Drilled 330/28 ; 8.7 kg
1A5 6008A: A Caliper ; 4 pistons; 3.45 kg ; Rotor 1piece slotted 330/28 8.7 kg


1A1 6024A: A Caliper ; 4 pistons; 3.45 kg ; Rotor 2 pieces Drilled 328/28 ; 5.1 kg
1A2 6024A: A Caliper ; 4 pistons; 3.45 kg ; Rotor 2 pieces slotted 328/28 ; 5.1 kg


1H1 8004A: H Caliper ; 4 pistons; 4.35 kg ; Rotor 2 pieces Drilled 355/32 ; 6 kg
1H2 8004A: H Caliper ; 4 pistons; 4.35 kg ; Rotor 2 pieces slotted 355/32 ; 6 kg


I chose 1A1 6024A ones because it’s the lighter kit and I fought that bigger wouldn’t be better because of the inertia for road use. (My mistake)


Review:

So first, thanks to those light brake kit the car lost again 12kg, that is 77kg lost other stock.
On the road the brakes are fantastic.
Good pedal feeling.
Not over servoed.
Far much better braking power at high speed.

On track it’s the same but:

After 7500 km of road use and enjoyment, I went on the Nürburgring and rode 4 laps.
Everything was right and the brakes awesome even if I had some little brake vibration afterward.
Then my brakes had 10 000km and I discovered that my pads were almost wear out.
I thought I found out the explanation of vibrations.
I decided to buy new Brembo pads for my next Nürburgring trip.
So I break in my new pads drive 550km to the Ring and then laps after laps get more and more vibrations.
After 14 laps the pads are already gown!!!!
It’s Sunday, and fortunately Digi’tech at Nürburg is open and sells me and fits new Carbotech pads on my car.
The vibrations are a little bit less but still there.

Get back to France, I call my the workshop where I bought my brakes and Brembo French dealer and we find out that OE Brembo pads are not strong enough for my use.
The pads have over heated, left uneven dust on the rotor and then the rotor is uneven wear out that causes vibrations.
So I had to change the rotor, I took some slotted ones as drilled ones had already some cracks.
And I bought some Yellow PAGID RS29 pads.
To be sure, I also made some brake ducting to avoid overheating.

So now, everything is almost fine with my brakes except that I wasted some money and that I still get some little vibration at Adenau. So, I wonder if, as I go faster and faster around the Ring and I will may be need soon to fit semi slicks tyres, it was a good idea to take the medium brakes size and not the bigger one. I have to recognise that I under estimated the need of big brakes. And that for this time bigger should be better.
That is why I'm considering VWR brake kit which everybody seems to praise and that are not overpriced like Brembo or AP racing ones.


Some pics:

Before

After

To be continued...

 

[laurent.d]

New and last chapter before futur modifications.

Now may be the last modification I did but not least.

My car was fast but I wanted it to be even faster.
I wanted my car to be about 300/330 HP 380/410 Nm with a LSD to get more traction.
And I wanted to do everything at the same place.

ABT:

First I was considering an ABT stage II but it’s only 270HP and 350Nm and ABT Germany told me themselves it was too expensive for a little gain. And they don’t sell any LSD.


OETTINGER:
Second I fought about OETTINGER. I asked OETTINGER dealer in France to price it.
They told me I’ll have S3 Injector, Full OETTINGER Exhaust, Engine Remap and an OETTINGER LSD and that my car will produce 300HP and 380Nm.
And the entire job will be done in OETTINGER Germany.
The price was quiet expensive about 12500€ but it seems to be a good quality parts.
As it was a lot of money and some work, I decided to visit OETTINGER in Germany to see by myself their workshop and if I could get it Cheaper.
The surprise was that the price was the same but OETTINGER Germany told me that my car will be 280/290HP and 370/380Nm and that they don’t provide, any LSD!!!!

I was disappointed and felt abused by Oettiner in France.


So I was considering going to MFT in BERLIN who sell APR product.

\...

 

[laurent.d]

/...

Volkswagen Racing/Racing Line:

But then thanks to ‘’Jonnyc’’ and his ED30 build tread, I heard about Volkswagen Racing in Milton Keynes.
I made some research about them on several VW Forum and always read good review about them.
I read a review of their demo car in VolkswagenDriverMag.
I also liked the fact that they make race car, so I thought they know not only to show big number but make my car fast around a track.
So I Emailed Matt WALKER, explained him my project and then took an appointment to see where and to whom I’m going to leave my car and test drive the demo car.
I was very impressed by the technical knowledge (My first job is Engine designer) and their kindness and the time they spent with me.


So, I was convinced it was the company to go with.

The plans of the modification were.


• ECU Remap REVO Stage 3 (We first considered SuperChips as VWR is SC Dealer but then went to REVO to match the DSG Remap)?
• K04 Turbo kit, including S3 injectors, S3 cams, pipework
• MILLTEK 2.0 TFSI Front Exhaust System with high flow Catalyst
• MILLTEK 2.0 TFSI Rear Exhaust System
• VWR Full PTFE Suspension Bush Kit
• Quaife Limited Slip Gear Differential DSG gearbox
• Alignment and corner weighting + full fast road setup
• VWR Lower mount
• REVO DSG Stage 2 Software


The price was muuuch lower than OETTINGER and moreover £/€ rate was interesting.

So I gave them my car in March 2010.

At first, they should keep it two weeks, but then they had some delay with some parts and had to rush to prepare à race so I told them to keep the car two more weeks and to take the time to make the job properly.

.../

 

[laurent.d]

/...

Here are the pictures of what they have done.

Let's begin with a Corner Weighting

Exhaust pipe removal

/...

 

[laurent.d]

/...

Let’s go for engine removal

/...

 

[laurent.d]

/...

Exhaust side view

Intake side view

K04 left vs K03

Camshaft removal

Water pump change

/...

 

[laurent.d]

/...

Step by step rebuild

Fuel HPFP Upgrade

Replace engine in engine bay

VWR Foam panel filter

A brand new MILLTEK full exhaust

/...

 

[laurent.d]

/...

Let’s go to the châssis work

Rear axle with SuperPro bushes

Rear bushes of the front arms are moved about 5mm downward and outward.
This act like WALK anti-lift anti- dive kit.

/...

 

[laurent.d]

/...

So 4 weeks later I’m back in Milton Keynes a Saturday to pick up my car.

At first I really want mention the quality of the job they and their kindness.
They took time with me this Saturday while their workshop is normally closed and that they had to go on a race.
They picked me up at the hotel, offered me some coffee, I spoke with Matt and the mechanics about what they have down to my car, about the VW cars, I test drove my car and so on…
More than only tuned my car, it have been cleaned inside and outside, as I would do for myself, they even changed a light bulb which had blown on my way to MK.

You will never find this level of service in France.

But how the car is like?

Well, I have to say it’s amazingly fast!!!

I expected a well tuned car, I ended with a race car or at least a track car.

First thanks to Superpro bushes, Handling so much sharper, turn in is better, steering more accurate. The car and all what I already modify has been sublimate by the new chassis set up. At my first track day at the Ring I was impressed how fast I could go around corner, and the fastest you go the better the car handle.

This short, but there is no world to explain that it is amazingly faster.


And what about the engine!!!


First some numbers:

My set up is B:6 T:3 F:7

Blue = Revo
Red = ABT

To be honest at first I found it almost scaring. I'm almost sure my car is faster than the demo car which is fast but didn’t really impressed. It took me may be 1000km and some laps around the ring to be able to manage properly the throttle. To tell you how fast is it, I was myself very surprised that some fast cars like M3 CSL, 996 GT3, RS4, etc couldn’t go away from me in strait line…!!!

Needless to say that on the road it’s just insane.

Of course, if you squeeze the gaz paddle in 1st and second gear it just spinning like hell.
But, after getting use to the huge amount of torque and power the throttle remain very manageable, even more than the ABT remap.
The engine push very strongly but smoothly from low rev all trough the rev range until 6500tr/mn then keep going until 7400tr/min where the new revving limiter cut off.

The engine is briefing so much air than you can hear the air flow through the exhaust pipe under the car. By the way the Milltek exhaust is much sportier with more grunt with a deeper sound yet civilized.

Thanks to the QUAIFE LSD, traction is much better while cornering (excepted when you squeeze the gaz paddle in 1st and 2nd gear, doesn’t make any miracle).
The car get into the curve on part throttle, and pull you out of the curve with much less traction issue than when it was only 230Hp & 330 Nm despite the 300Hp & 400Nm to deal with.

The DSG gear box feels significantly faster and smoother than stock. It’s not night and day, but you feel the improvement. Moreover, no kick down any more in manual mode and a 1000tr/mn larger rev band.

To be continued...

 

[laurent.d]

Two videos of my A3 in action at the Nürburgring filmed from a Lotus Exige 192Ch

I'm waiting for the Lotus...at the beginning.


My fird fastest lap 8'40''9 (fastest lap ever 8'32''2)
The Lotus left before me, I caught him, then I pass him at 5'43''


Filmed from a BMW 328i E36. second fastest is 8'39''5
I pass him at 5'58''.

 

[N8]

WOW!

 

[Bugsy_27]

This has got to be the best build thread I've ever read, regarding power! Love the videos too mate, Keep us updated and keep up the good work :icon_thumright:

 

[laurent.d]

Thanks Guys!

 

[Sandra]

That was totally awesome thread. Very well put together. I cant wait for more updates.

 

[Dane]

What an awesome way to spend half an hour, good work dude!

 

[laurent.d]

Thanks for your comments. I'm very pleased you like it.

I have got the next modification in some boxes in my garage.

I'm waiting for some information from VWR.

And then I will have some new review for you.

And also may be some more.

 

[Dani_B19]

This is one of the best readers build threads i read to date, very well put together and thought.

Cant wait to read more....

 

[laurent.d]

Coming soon...

/...

 

[laurent.d]

A few weeks ago I wanted to play around with the Select Plus to see if I could get better power output. And moreover, I have the feeling that some time to time in 3rd gear at full throttle there is a little hesitation at about 5000rpm.

Any way, I just get a Ross tech cable so I went for some logs.

And then I found out that Actual Rail pressure was quiet low compare to requested one. :scared:

I Emailed Revo And Carl comfirmed me that it should come from a failing fuel pressure relief valve.
So I decided to fit a rs4 fuel pressure regulator valve.

It's a pain to remove and a nightmare to fit.

I have to run more test but the fuel pressure looks much better and the car seems to be a little bit more responsive and to pull more smoothly and strongly.

Four logs with Difference between request and Actual Rail Pressure.

Positive number means Actual is below requested.




Here requested vs OEM VS RS4

 

[laurent.d]

Coming soon...

 

[Bugsy_27]

very nice mate!

 

[laurent.d]

Some pics of the brakes ducting I did to avoid over heating.

Not really easy because ther is not much place behind the foglight grill.
On the right, there is horn, windscreen wipers water tank and intercooler plastic support.
On the left, there is more room, the horn is out of the way but, the DSG gear box don't allow you do get out too far in the wheel arch.

And of course I had to make both side identical to provide the same amount of air to right and left brakes.

 

[CHRIS555]

Excellent thread and excellent car - well done mate!

 

[laurent.d]

My VWR brakes are in production, still two weeks to wait. opcornsoda:

And this have just been ordered.

 

[laurent.d]

I fitted the THS Intercooler today!!
What hard work!!!!
It took me 6 hours to fit it. I have to precise that I was alone and that fitting instructions delivered are for Golf and there is many difference to remove the bumper, the lights, sockets,...
Any way it's not complicated, it's pretty straight forward but it's a long work, there is so many things to remove and think about.

I will go for a test tomorow.

Only minus point, The THS Intercooler is much more heavy than OEM one.

THS is 11kg.
I will weigh the OEM one tomorow but I think it's about 4/5kg.

 

[laurent.d]

THS Intercooler:

I was a little bit concerned that my engine which is quite modified with a K04 turbo kit and a REVO Stage 3 Remap stick with an OEM intercooler.
Not only to get more power, thanks to the SPS, but also to make things more reliable as I found out that I already had some timing pull despite my conservative timing setup, I thought that an upgraded intercooler was necessary.
I was considering an OEM S3 IC or the THS IC as I wanted things look like stock.
I sent an Email to Carl from Revo and according to his advice, I chose to purchase a THS. THS is more voluminous and seems to flow better than an OEM one even than the S3 one.

To verify with facts that this intercooler improve things and avoid any placebo effect, I decided to record some data with my Ross Tech cable.

I recorded 3 runs the first day with my OEM intercooler, and 3 runs the second day with my THS intercooler newly fitted.
Every run took place in exactly the same way.
Revo SPS set up were B6T4F5.
Outside air temperature was 17°C first day and 16°C second day.
At first I drove the car for 50km to warm everything up, then go to a place where I record my first run, then drive 5km at 80km/h 6th gear to cool down, then going bake to the same place, I record the second run and so on for the third one.

To illustrate what I will explain I will show you data which are the average value of the three runs. This, to minimize errors.


My first impression with this new THS intercooler was…let say...confused.
The car felt indeed a little bit smoother, the engine noise a little bit deeper, but except that, there is not much difference with the OEM IC.
I couldn't believe that a big intercooler like that wouldn't change anything.
I had a look at the data and it seems at first disappointing as I had as much timing pull as before.
But still, when you look at the air temperature graph, you can see that with the THS IC the air is from 4°C and 7°C cooler than the OEM one.

Moreover air temperature is more stable run after run with the THS IC than the OEM one.




Looking at the graphs underneath, you will see that with the THS intercooler the boost pressure comes a little bit sooner and that boost required is a little bit lower.
This is may be thanks to the best flowing core and cooler so denser air.



The N75 is more open and sooner, that means that the turbo provide more easily the pressure.

So, there is indeed a difference, and the THS IC provide cooler air, so why there is no improvement?
Then I realized that may be I was thinking the wrong way. I was thinking that I was may be at a lower point. I mean the bigger intercooler can’t make the air cooler than outside temperature, so there is a ‘’bottom’’ point.
This low level despite 4°C or 7°C lower than OEM IC is good but not enough to reduce timing pull significantly (it’s admitted that 10°C equal 1° of Timing if my memory is good).
But surely, bigger intercooler can manage more stress, more boost. So instead of expecting to see timing pull being reduced I should try to push the boost harder and get back with leaner air/fuel ratio.

It’s what I did.

I get back to Fuelling 7 that makes the engine rev more aggressively less sluggish. I was surprised that timing pull was at least the same otherwise lower!!!???
I have to recognize I’m a little bit confuse because I usually think more fuel gives cooler combustion so less knocking and lower exhaust temperature. What I don’t know if it’s the same for indirect or direct injection engine. I thought it should be but… May be it’s because in direct injection engine the fuel is not premixed, then if you inject to much fuel it doesn’t vaporize properly and then reduce combustion efficiency.

If someone knows more about it, just feel free to share your knowledge.

Then I tried to set boost 7.
My surprise is that, at this level of boost about 10% higher, air temperature remains the same!!! That show the efficiency of the THS IC.
Timing pull is surprisingly lower!!!???
Boost pressure is smoother.
Ignition timing curve is also smoother through the rev band.
And the car pull like a drag car, it’s amazing!!!!!

As you can see, there is only one problem which comes surely from the too restrictive OEM intake despite the VWR panel filter. The turbo can’t reach the specified boost after 5200Rpm. Now I have to stick with the boost set up at 6 unti I upgrade my intake.
Those curves below are not 3 runs average it’s just one run the other run remains the same.

So upgrading the IC won’t, give you more power, reduce the timing pull (except if your ECU setup were too optimistic for your hardware setup).
But an upgraded IC will prevent to inlet too hot air during hot weather or during hard use so will make the engine run safer.
It will help you to set more aggressive setup like higher boost or more timing, or leaner air/fuel ratio.
Only one minus point full alloy THS intercooler weight about 11kg while plastic OEM one weight about 4 so it’s 7 kg added to my car.

 

[Farhan]

Very good build thread, just sat and read all of it. Interesting on the intercooler, I can see how it would sustain power over longer use but i can see the weight aspect being annoying for no gain.

I to have been in your position and wondered about how crucial weight is in terms of performance gain. Its better to opt without an upgrade in some cases. Either way on a turbo car i would stick with the THS solely for the added comfort of knowing everything will run well.

Keep it up :thumbsup:

 

[matic]

wow!!! such nice engine and performance adjustments!!!