Golf GTI DSG in Red!

[zed4]

Hi,

My girlfriend and I had a little spending splurge recently! We went out and bought a Renault Clio 172 Cup and a Golf GTI DSG on the same day. These will sit alongside the TVR Chimaera, which is reserved for sunny weekends!

So, first things first, the TVR Chimaera 400: http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/gassing/topic.asp?h=0...



The Clio 172 Cup (this is now my daily driver and will become a hill climb car too) http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/gassing/topic.asp?h=0...



And finally the Golf! This is now my girlfriend's daily driver. Plan to remap it (either Revo or Bluefin) and upgrade the stereo.

DSC_5952 by danyeates, on Flickr

DSC_5953 by danyeates, on Flickr

DSC_5955 by danyeates, on Flickr

DSC_5956 by danyeates, on Flickr

DSC_5957 by danyeates, on Flickr

DSC_5958 by danyeates, on Flickr

DSC_5961 by danyeates, on Flickr

We're both really enjoying the Golf, we like the DSG gearbox, nice not to have to change gear and cruise control is handy on the motorway! It's nice to have some modern features after driving the Clio and TVR!!

[zed4]

Thanks, yes it does look good in red.

I should say it's quite well spec'd too. Seems to have...

Highline computer
Steering wheel controls
DSG paddles
Cruise control
Power folding mirrors
Puddle lights
Heated seats
Auto lights and wipers
Parking sensors
18" wheels
CD changer and iPod adaptor (although that's not working!)

Edited by zed4 on Wednesday 4th June 08:41

[zed4]

ManOpener said:

I'd recommend speaking to Nikki over at R-Tech about remapping. It's a bit of a drive for you but he's widely regarded as the best in the business when it comes to the 2.0 TFSI engine.

They're not much further than MRC Tuning at Banbury and they're much cheaper.

Anyone know the difference between the stage 1 and stage 2 remap? It's good to know they use a rolling road before and after, I'm definitely interested.

[zed4]

pjfamilyguy1 said:

how is the red paint work holding up (fading), assuming its all original (which I hope it is, as I'm looking at 5 door version of a similar age.

Thanks

Paintwork is all original and in fantastic condition. I only found one scratch on the car and just a couple of marks around the boot loading area! Very impressed. The red is holding up very well, it's not fading at all, but I think it's been well looked after. No doubt I'll get Luke from LG Autoworx to detail it at some point.

[zed4]

si_xsi said:

Good choice with the Gti - almost identical to mine. BTW my ipod dock didn't work, but luckily fixed under warranty. If yours is the same as mine, i.e under the armrest, its a whole new unit i'm afraid.

Agree the standard stereo is utter ste. What do you have planned for it. A stage 1 remap with chip will see 240bhp.

Getting mine properly detailed next week

Does it have good history, how many owners and mileage?

enjoy

My iPod kit is an aftermarket one I think, as it was in the glovebox. It does work, but only seems to play a song for a few seconds before coming up with an error. Not sure what to do about the stereo yet, we just want better SQ and more volume. Might upgrade to a newer RCD510 and fit an amp and some better speakers. Or I might go for a Zenec, although we have no need for sat nav, we would like Bluetooth.

Stage one map is probably all we'll do to the engine. It's just had a new PCV and DV. I doubt we'll go exhaust and induction kit, at least not yet!

It's had three owners, full service history, mostly main dealer, cambelt done etc. It's had new brake pads but the discs are shot, which is annoying. Will have to change those myself. Mileage is about 70k IIRC.

[zed4]

rallycross said:

Get the DSG ecu reset so it can learn your style of driving, all the ones I've had have been hopeless ie in drive you will be in too high a gear all the time - eg 5 th gear in a 30 limit.

Yes, it does seem to sit in a very high gear all the time and it can labour a bit. When I drive it, I use it in manual. How do you reset the gearbox?

[zed4]

jimbop1 said:

Nice choice of cars! I have to agree.. A 3 door, red golf is the best choice.

Loving the the TVR and the colour combo. All three cars look so clean.

Thanks! The Golf is the tidiest, it's really mint. It was a good find. The TVR is pretty good, I'm slowly tidying it up, it's looking good now. The Clio is a bit rough round the edges, but it's not bad! It suits me as I leave it in a town centre car park all day at work and I don't mind if it gets scratched!

[zed4]

Thanks for the above info on R Tech too. I'll definitely look into them.

[zed4]

Magnetron said:

Stage 1 R-Tech re-mapped GTI owner here. Mine is also DSG and apart from the map is standard. The Result of Nicks electronic tampering 251bhp & 289lb/ft

They're good figures any difference in MPG?

[zed4]

A little update on the Golf.

I bought the VW RCD 510 DAB stereo for it which I’m in the process of fitting. It requires a few bits to get it working, new gateway, Fakra antenna splitter and a DAB antenna so I’m still waiting for these bits to arrive before I can fit it. I’ve also bought the Fiscon Bluetooth system which will take calls, text messages and stream music, whilst showing up on the stereo and the dashboard display.

I’ve also booked it in with R-Tech to have a stage 1 engine and DSG custom remap, so I’m really looking forward to that. I’m also going to remove the pre-cat before it goes up there to give it a little extra power, noise and MPG!

More updates once it’s all done!

[zed4]

I've been asked by someone for some advice and tips regarding upgrading the stereo in the Golf 5 to the later type, found in the Golf 6 etc. so I put this guide together for him. I thought it might help people on here too...


I decided to fit the RCD 510 DAB as I didn’t need the sat nav functionality of the RNS 510. The RCD 510 gives me a nice touch screen display, DAB radio, CD changer, SD card slot and the option of adding Bluetooth and iPod. I bought it off eBay for £200 including delivery, which seemed a good price for the DAB version. Most non DAB versions are around £200. Make sure you don’t buy a Chinese one, as they don’t get RDS and a few other things that the European ones do. Mine is a late unit, made by Bosch.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301337461002?_trksid=p20...

To get it to work you’ll need a few things.

1. New gateway. The Mk 5 cars have an old gateway which isn’t compatible with the later generation stereos. The stereo will work, but it will flatten the battery amongst other problems. The main issue is that the stereo won’t go into standby and flattens the battery. I bought mine from eBay for £45 including delivery. You’ll need a revision L or higher. So the part number (7N0 907 530) should be followed by an L or higher. I think they go to double letters for the most recent, AA, AC, AF and onwards, all of which are higher than L. I’ve bought an AF revision which will work. These will need to be recoded as they will have the code for the car they came out of. You’ll need to note down the code and options from your car, then remove the gateway, fit the new one and enter the coding onto the new one using VCDS.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251663103216?_trksid=p20...

2. Fakra antenna splitter. The later generation stereos use an all in one antenna connector, whereas the older stereos used two separate connectors. You’ll need to buy this:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/151417064193?_trksid=p20...

3. DAB antenna. I’ve not bought this yet as I’m undecided about what to do. You can replace the entire roof antenna with a DAB one, but as I understand it, it involves removing all of the headlining to run a new cable through. I might just go for a glass mounted one. I’m not sure yet.

Next was the Bluetooth. I decided to go for The Fiscon Basic Plus. This is the one which works with the RCD 510, the highline display my car has between the dials on the dash and the multi function steering wheel. It works just like OEM and integrates perfectly (apparently!) These are around £260-300, I paid £200 for mine second hand. The VW Bluetooth actually won’t display on the red highline display, as it was designed to work with the later stereos with the later white display. The Fiscon Bluetooth does work with the highline display. It also displays the phone book, text messages, and loads of engine data which is picks up through the gateway which is cool. This is all displayed on the red highline display. It can be controlled from the MFSW or the indicator stalk. You’ll need either the RCD 510 (or RNS) or the highline display to use it. It won’t work on the old stereo with no highline. It will also stream music from a phone over Bluetooth using A2PD.

Finally, the iPod connector. I was undecided about buying one as the Bluetooth system allows music streaming. But my girlfriend wanted to be able to plug her phone in and charge whilst playing music without a separate phone charger! So we went for the glovebox MDI kit. You can opt for the armrest MDI kit if you have the slot available for it. Underneath the centre arm rest you may have a spare slot, the size of a car stereo, or it might just be a big storage space. If there’s a slot, you can use the arm rest MDI kit, otherwise go for the glovebox. It’s basically an interface box with a USB socket. It allows you to plug in iPhones (older 30 pin and new lightning) and Android phones to play music from.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VW-SEAT-SKODA-MDI-MEDIA-...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VW-Seat-Skoda-MDI-Media-...

This should be all you need.

Fitting is pretty easy. I’ve already pulled the old stereo out once before to remove a defunct iPod kit that was in there. It’s very simple to do, just follow the basic instructions online

http://www.golfmkv.com/forums/showthread.php?t=693

I hope that covers everything. I’m still learning myself! The guys on Mk5golfgti.co.uk are pretty good. There is a guy on there (think his name is Eddie_NL) who will sell you a gateway precoded to your car for £75 which is pretty good if you have no access to VCDS.

[zed4]

Bart 124 said:

Keeping an eye on this matey!

We just picked up a 1.4 GT TSI for Sandra's daily driver and i'm interested in sending it away for a little tweek too. Just fitted a GTI grill and vent kit as it goes

Good stuff. I'm getting the modifying bug with this car! I have to remember I rarely get to drive it and it's my girlfriend's money!!!

[zed4]

PaulG40 said:

Very interested in this thread as I'm going to looking for a DSG Mk5 or MK6 GTI next year as a new job will mean no need for a diesel. I'd be interested in hearing yours and other people's experiences and any problems with the DSG. I've heard the mechatronic unit (ecu) is a major issue??

I think the mechatronic system fails when the car is still fairly new and with low mileage. I think if they make it to over five years or so and a good few miles, chances are they'll be ok.

[zed4]

Right, a fair bit to update you with!

Firstly, the stereo is all in and working. Total kit list is as follows:

RCD 510 DAB
Glovebox MDI kit with iPhone cable
Fiscon Basic Plus Bluetooth kit
Fakra antenna splitter
Glass mounted DAB antenna
DAB antenna SNB to Fakra adapter
New gateway plus VCDS coding

It’s a good system, sounds great, integrates with the red display on the dash and the steering wheel buttons, so I’m pleased with it. It was expensive in total, but I wanted VW kit so it integrated properly.

Only a rubbish night time phone pic so far:

|http://thumbsnap.com/fvALDMRj[/url]

Secondly, I took a trip up to R-Tech for a custom remap! They’re great guys up there, I really enjoyed the couple of hours I spent there. The car was healthchecked and dyno’d and was found to be running 198hp (can’t remember the torque off hand, think it was 200 ft lb, so pretty healthy for a standard car.



It’s been remapped to be quite progressive with a lot of torque lower down in the rev range. After mapping it made 248hp and 300 ft lb torque, which I was very happy with. The guys there said there’s probably another 10hp there by removing the precat and adding a panel filter, so that’s next on the list. The precat sits in the turbo downpipe, directly after the turbo, so I can see how it could make the exhaust very restrictive.

I had a great drive back. It’s a completely different car, it pulls very well now, without having to downchange, the engine works so much better with the DSG now, I’m very happy with it. I even managed to achieve another 2 mpg on the drive home! [url]

[zed4]

PaulG40 said:

Brilliant to know about the DSG issues (or lack of now) so thanks for answering that.

Sounds like a really good car you've got there. Can't wait to get one now as my 'family' car.

Btw, is the pre cat needed for MOT or is it just the main Cat?

Yeah, they did mention that one of the front bushes are worn causing excessive front tyre wear, so I’ll get that sorted soon. Otherwise, it’s great! It’s comically easy to drive fast. It’s not like the TVR or the Caterham which is completely involving and consuming when driving fast. The Golf you just put your foot to the floor grip the wheel and flick the paddles. It’s effortlessly fast and handles really well too.

The precat is just a gauze fitted in the downpipe right after the turbo. I tried to remove it before the remap, but I couldn’t remove one of the clamps on the end of the downpipe as it had rusted up. I stupidly tried that clamp last after removing all of the bolts at the turbo end!! It got a bit late in the evening, so I just ended up putting it all back together again!! Doh! I’ve now got a new clamp, so I’ll try to remove it once more at a later date.

It’s sole purpose is to reduce emissions on cold start ups, to pass the regulations when the car is new. The MOT only checks the main cat and the car has to be up to normal running temperature. Removing the precat will have no effect on emissions once the engine is warm, so it will still pass the MOT.

However, by removing it you release the exhaust gasses from the turbo vicinity, meaning less heat build up around the turbo itself and less restriction within the pipe itself, so it frees up a lot of horsepower and supposedly MPG! It’s amazing how hot the precat area stays and for how long after you switch the engine off. When I tried to remove it last time, it was still too hot to touch nearly an hour after switching the engine off!

More info and pics here: http://www.mk5golfgti.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=...

[zed4]

Magnetron said:

Zed4 - good work on the remap. Nick is the man and certainly knows his stuff.

Very similar numbers to mine so a good comparison.

Enjoy.

Thanks, yes very similar. I'm happy with how it drives. I tried launch control last night, which was fun. Made my girlfriend laugh, but she said she doubts she would ever use it! Ha!

I’ll try to remember to post a graph up when I’m next at work by the scanner.

[zed4]

Took advantage of the cashback deal from Michelin and bought 4x new Michelin Pilot Sport 3 tyres for it. After cashback they were £390 for all 4, including fitting. Seems a very good deal for decent 18” tyres.

[zed4]

si_xsi said:

zed4 said:

Took advantage of the cashback deal from Michelin and bought 4x new Michelin Pilot Sport 3 tyres for it. After cashback they were £390 for all 4, including fitting. Seems a very good deal for decent 18” tyres.

Yes perfect timing - getting all 4 of mine replaced this weekend with the same. Is the offer available at any fitter, or did you have to go someonwhere specific?

thanks

Simon

Well any partcipating dealer. You can see your local participating dealers here: http://www.michelin.co.uk/tyres/special-offers/fue...

I phoned around and got prices from £130 to £115 per tyre fitted from various places. £115 per tyre was the best price I could find, less £70 cash back.

[zed4]

JonnyxM said:

Nice!

Mods look great and some great figures too.

Where was the canbus module on your car? Reason I ask is that I have an 06 plate too and would like to upgrade the HU.

I have a VAGCom so just need to module, but i've heard they can be in tricky places?

Thanks! It's probably all a bit wasted on my girlfriend who usually just cruises round at the speed limit, but when she wants to press on, it really goes! She likes the turbo pull it gives!

Lots of people said that the gateway was a real pain to get to and that you could either try to get it through the driver's footwell or you can dissemble the scuttle panel in the engine bay and get it from there (after taking the wiper arms off!!)

I found it easily in the driver's footwell. It was a little fiddly to get out, but I managed it within a couple of minutes. It helps to unplug it first and then remove it from its holder. Easy enough.

[zed4]

Jimmy No Hands said:

Just got an MK5 manual and really like it. Had to cancel a trip to R - Tech as I was having some intermittent throttle problems, but touch wood they've been sorted now. Will have to rebook in time. Was hoping to do the pre cat and filter first before I re-book to make it more worth while. Need to muster up some courage to get DAB in it as well too soon.

I must admit, I still haven't fitted the DAB antenna. I must get round to doing it.

A trip up to R-Tech is well worth it, just make sure you have good tyres as you'll be wheel spinning all the way home! It's not got the rwd traction of the TVR!