Brad's 2018 Golf R 6MT

[Brad.R]

Hey everybody, long time lurker here. Primarily active in various Facebook groups, but the forums are a great resource as well so I figured I'd make a build thread. I don't see a lot of modified 6MT Mk7.5s, so hopefully I can help anyone out with build questions.

Car was purchased new in November 2018. At the time of posting, it's April 2020 and the car has about 21,000 miles on it.

2018 - Lapiz Blue - 6MT - USDM Spec

ENGINE / DRIVETRAIN
Equilibrium Stage 2 Protune, via COBB Accessport - Launch Control, Flat-Foot Shifting Enabled
NGK Racing Heat Range 9 Spark Plugs
Integrated Engineering Gen 1 Carbon Fiber Intake + Intake Pipe
APR Turbo Inlet Pipe
Integrated Engineering Intercooler
Integrated Engineering Downpipe
APR Mk7.5 Catback Exhaust with Diamond Black Tips (Latest revision)

APR Pendulum Mount (2nd one, see previous mods)
034 Upper and Lower Dogbone Mount Inserts
Southbend Stage 3 Daily Clutch + SMF
Fluidampr Crank Pulley
ECS Bleeder Valve
ECS SS Clutch Line (Swirl valve NOT bypassed)
Dieselgeek Six Sigma Short Shifter
BFI Stage 1 Engine Mount
BFI Stage 1 Transmission Mount

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SUSPENSION / WHEELS
APR Rear Sway Bar
Moog Endlinks

Titan7 TS-5 18 x 8.5 +44 - Machine Black
Titan7 Tall Center Caps - Machine Black
MEVIUS Lug Bolts - Conical - 14 x 1.5
ECS Hub Rings 66.56mm to 57.1mm
Michelin Pilot Sport 4S - 255/35/R18

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EXTERIOR
XPEL PPF - Front Bumper, Hood, Mirror Caps, Partial Fender
IGL Ceramic Coating - Paint, Engine Bay, Wheels, Glass, Brake Calipers
Aerofabb V2 Street Splitter
Aerofabb Spoiler Extension
Badgeskins Mk7.5 Headlight Amber Delete

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INTERIOR
BFI Black Anodized Aluminum / Alcantara Shift Knob
BMS Clutch Stop
Uniden R3 Radar Detector - Hardwired
BlackVue DR590W Front + Rear Dashcam - Hardwired
DSG ECU Retainer (6MT cars come with a metal cage around the ECU)
Spare Tire Kit

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OBDeleven TWEAKS
Windows Up/Down with Keyfob
Dash Background
Reverse Passenger Mirror Dip
Soundaktor Disabled
Rough Road Optimization Off (2018+ do not have Starting Vibration)
Headlight Amber Side LEDs off
Taillight Red Side LEDs off
Linear Pedal Response

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UPCOMING MODS / CHANGES

Dieselgeek SuperPin - I currently have this waiting to be installed, but have not found the motivation to tear apart my console for it yet.


EQT Vortex XL with HPFP and LPFP or MPI - These will be the last mods, once all other supporting mods are in place. Unless COBB releases flex fuel support, I plan to run the turbo on pump gas for high 400s whp.

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PREVIOUS MODS
aFe High Flow Filter - Removed when I upgraded my intake. It worked fine, but I'm a slut for carbon fiber.
Stock Endlinks - Noisy after RSB install, also ugly plastic
APR Dogbone Insert - Got absolutely wrecked by hard shifts
APR Pendulum Mount - First one got bent from hard shifts. Replaced under warranty and added 034 inserts.

Without further ado...pictures! These are with all the modifications listed.

 

[PowerDemon]

Beautiful ride and nice build so far! Very tasteful. I LOVE the wheels!

 

[neogeo]

Titan 7s look sharp. FWIW, I’m running DBV2 and IE intercooler with no issues... call IE and get the data from them.

 

[Charlotte.:R]

Lapiz Blue always looks so good. Those 255s really look plump!

 

[Brad.R]

Yesterday I installed the BFI Stage 1 engine and transmission mounts. This was a somewhat tedious process, as it took me a couple hours to remove the 6MT ECU cage in order to grant access to the transmission mount. Instead of drilling out the rivets like several people have mentioned, I ended up using a dremel because I was nervous of damaging the ECU. The DSG ECU cage fits perfectly and looks right at home in my engine bay. I also had to remove my windshield washer fluid reservoir as it was attached to my engine mount. It pops out of place, but did dump its contents all over the garage floor. If I were to do the install again I'd put a bucket under it, but not a big deal.

Regarding the actual mounts, there are quite a few useful videos and threads out there that I followed, namely the Deutsche Auto Parts videos which omit the two issues above. All bolts were threaded in by hand as I adjusted the engine/trans height to keep things flush and lined up. I followed the BFI torque specs of 45ft/lbs for the engine side and 35 ft/lbs for the chassis side. I also had the car level on 4 jack stands so that the engine did not rock one way or the other when lifting/lowering.

First impressions are that vibration feels pretty much stock. Idling and even low RPM acceleration really does not feel that different. What is different is the noise level. My single mass flywheel is now VERY talkative, especially at idle. For some this would be a deal-breaker, but this not my first SMF car and it does not bother me much. Plus, mounts tend to break in over time and get less harsh, noisy.

The driving experience is absolute perfection. I'd go so far as to say this mod is a must-have mod for any stage 2 manual car. My OEM mounts were loose enough to move around by hand after 20k miles, and it was wreaking havoc on my poor pendulum. These mounts, combined with the APR pendulum and 034 upper and lower inserts, feel outstanding. I was finally able to thrash the car this morning and not worry about putting my poor drivetrain through a bunch of hard shifts because the mounts do such a good job of holding things together.

Very satisfied with my purchase and feel as though my car is better than it ever has been.

 

[Brad.R]

Not much to report lately, my engine and transmission mounts are broken in and working great. The car launches and flat-foot shifts much smoother now that it has what I would consider adequate support. I'm having an alignment done and some high-temperature brake fluid flushed today to prep for potentially attending some upcoming track days.

I am also in the process of troubleshooting some issues with CCF ROMs for Cobb. With this tuning architecture my recirc valve has been hanging open after I shift if FFS is enabled, regardless of if I'm using the feature. I may be making a trip to their HQ soon here in ATX to help them/EQT diagnose why this is happening and update the software accordingly. If I switch back to a non-CCF map the issue goes away, so it is not a hardware issue nor do I consider it to be a big deal.

 

[MonkeyMD]

Was thinking of of getting all the mounts, but mechanic advised to just get dogbone as that makes the most difference. Did you have just dogbone before and went full. If so, did you feel a significant difference?

Also, are the any track days here in Austin soon? Just figured everything still shut down

 

[Brad.R]

With a manual, you will destroy the dogbone if you have an IS38 with a tune. The dogbone makes the biggest difference for NVH, but if you plan on aggressively driving your factory mounts are going to wear out quickly. Like I mentioned, mine were basically toast at 20k miles.

Driveway Austin has practice and time trials this weekend. I've had some stuff come up that may prevent me from going, but at least my car is ready either way.

 

[9uns]

Question. Why did you need hub rings for your titan7? My TS-5's fit my GTI w/o hub rings. Did I miss something?

 

[Navi]

this is a pretty sweet setup. I would say leave the motor alone and run as is. If anything, do an e30 tune on the is38.

 

[Brad.R]

Question. Why did you need hub rings for your titan7? My TS-5's fit my GTI w/o hub rings. Did I miss something?

They are not hub-centric wheels, so you will need rings. I confirmed this with Titan7. If you don't have vibration at speed (80mph+), chances are you got lucky with mounting. I tried 3 different sets and ECS worked the best for me.

this is a pretty sweet setup. I would say leave the motor alone and run as is. If anything, do an e30 tune on the is38.

In Austin, there just aren't enough ethanol pumps to make me want to mess with ethanol or ethanol blends right now. I priced out a hybrid pump gas setup vs. a hybrid E85 setup and the cost was almost double to do it right, so that also reinforces my feelings on the matter.

An update on my car:

• Did a 25k oil change with Liquimoly
• Swapped in new NGK Racing HR9 plugs. This was more preventative maintenance as the plugs in the car only had 15k and looked fine when I pulled them out.
• I did the "big battery" mod and switched to an H6 AGM style battery as my OEM battery was already losing voltage and cranking slow after two years.
• I have an APR shift bracket coming in. I don't expect a big difference, but I need to adjust my DG short shifter so figured I'd throw that in while I'm there.
• I also ordered a Raceseng knob. My BFI alcantara knob is already worn out, and the metal on top is killer in the summer.

 

[Brad.R]

Been a while since I posted any sort of update, but I took the car to MSR Houston a couple weekends ago for my first track day in this car, just shy of two years into ownership.

Google Drive pics from the event

My main takeaways from the weekend are:

• DRIVER MOD MATTERS! I pushed my car harder than I ever thought capable and it had more to give. I was with a great instructor all weekend who really pushed both me and the car. The R is frankly a pretty amazing package between the stage 2 power/AWD/chassis.
• The OEM cooling and brakes are oustanding. I had Motul fluid swapped in but besides that have no upgrades to either system and the car performed perfectly. Oil never saw over 245, coolant never budged. Brakes didn't fade during any of my 20-25min sessions on track and I was standing on them a couple times per lap.
• Pilot Sport 4S in 255/35/18 provide heaps of predictable grip, but are no substitute for a proper race tire. They were pretty chewed up after two days and I'll be surprised if I get more than one more track weekend out of them.
• I'm currently on a stage 2 93 tune, and honestly, I don't know that the car needs more power. Never once on track did I feel like more power would be a significant improvement as I suspect it would require significant investment in more supporting mods, like brakes, cooling, etc. The money spent on upgrading fueling and a turbo may be better spent on consumables and more track days

I'm very, very happy with how the car performed and will most likely be making an effort to take the car to more events. Car is sitting just shy of 27k miles right now.