HoyaDub
Ready to race!
- Location
- Washington, DC
- Car(s)
- 2017 VW GTI Autobahn
Well it has been a while since I update this thread. Since last time I did my front and rear brake pads. The Endless pads up front are fantastic! Low dust, and they stop the car like a dream. I had bought what Nengun claimed were rear pads for my car, even called them to confirm, only to find out on install that they were definitely NOT rear brake pads for a MK7. If anyone knows what car they belong to, please let me know, those pads are a bit spendy to have go to waste if I can find someone to take them off my hands. As a result, I replaced the rears with Hawk HP Plus pads, and flushed the brakes so I could use Motul RBF600 fluid. Also threw on the AWE Touring exhaust, because why not?
The car as she sits right now:
Conveniently, immediately after the new brakes, and install of the exhaust, my wife and I were en route to Tapoco Lodge, in North Carolina for our friends wedding. Now for those not familiar with the area, this place sits literally at one end of Tail of the Dragon, 2 miles from the Killboy center and the Deals Gap motorcycle resort. I could not miss such a great opportunity to test everything I have done to the car thus far. Over the course of the weekend I drove the Dragon five times, Moonshiner 28 three times, the surrounding roads a couple times, and the Cherohala skyway once on the way out. I can certainly understand why people travel from all over the states to drive these roads. Now for pictures and short reviews of the newly installed goodies!
Filling up with gas at the start of our trip. She has a nice booty, so I figured I would take a pic.
Review (AWE Touring Exhaust): The AWE Touring exhaust is fantastic, by itself it is a bit too tame, a noticeable difference from stock on cold starts, but otherwise no louder under normal conditions. I think it will be even better once my downpipe finally arrives, giving the right balance between daily driveability and noise. Without an aftermarket downpipe there is no drone at all, regardless of speed, and is deeper than stock without being much louder. From what I have heard, the lack of drone is retained after downpipe. The newest update from BMP on the downpipe is that it should ship "soon". No pics of that install, decided even though it is a simple job, given the stupidly hot temperatures we have been having, the street being my only place to park the car, and my desire to get the full exhaust system out of my office floor, it was worthwhile to pay a shop to do it for me. Eventually I will record a sound clip.
On the way in I experienced my first run of tail of the dragon, but given the roads were wet and my wife was in the car we took it easy. I have to admit, prior to this trip I had heard a lot about people being careless on the road, and I was pretty sketched out by the wet roads and 11 miles of hairpin turns. After arriving at the lodge, I had to take a quick picture of the car. The lighting and the water from the drive on the way in made for a great picture.
For anyone who has never been to Tail of the Dragon, and who wants a nice escape from reality, I highly recommend the lodge. There is absolutely no cell phone reception there, so you can truly disconnect from the world, while being surrounded by some of the best driving roads on the East coast. The scenery is beautiful, and aside from driving, there is tons of hiking ranging from family friendly waterfall hikes, to multiple day long treks. There is great fishing nearby, and even whitewater rafting. My wife and I are already planning a fall trip (provided restrictions allow it) to explore the area some more, and see the leaf change.
The morning after arriving, I woke up to drive Moonshiner 28 and see the Fontana Dam. The dam itself is pretty impressive. Unfortunately the visitors center was closed due to Covid, and I was not able to explore it as much as I would have liked, but something about standing on a structure that is containing a wall of water several hundred feet high is awe inspiring. So much so I totally forgot to take pictures of the damn dam. Fortunately, I found a pretty great pull off for photo ops, so here's one of the car!
After getting back to the cabin and taking a nap, the soon to be groom and I rode to the Killboy center to get my souvenir pint glass, and free sticker. As we were leaving to head back to the lodge, which is a right turn, we decided the roads were dry so it was as good a time as any to see what the old GTI was made of. We turned left, romped the throttle and began my first run on the Dragon with dry roads. I have loved this car since the day I got it. I loved it in stock form, and I have loved every modification I have made to it prior to this trip. Nailing apexes on the Dragon exponentially increased that love. For what I describe as the perfect "jack of all trades" vehicle, the ultimate in practicality, this thing exceeded every expectation I had. It handles on rails and does not give up.
The car as she sits right now:
Conveniently, immediately after the new brakes, and install of the exhaust, my wife and I were en route to Tapoco Lodge, in North Carolina for our friends wedding. Now for those not familiar with the area, this place sits literally at one end of Tail of the Dragon, 2 miles from the Killboy center and the Deals Gap motorcycle resort. I could not miss such a great opportunity to test everything I have done to the car thus far. Over the course of the weekend I drove the Dragon five times, Moonshiner 28 three times, the surrounding roads a couple times, and the Cherohala skyway once on the way out. I can certainly understand why people travel from all over the states to drive these roads. Now for pictures and short reviews of the newly installed goodies!
Filling up with gas at the start of our trip. She has a nice booty, so I figured I would take a pic.
Review (AWE Touring Exhaust): The AWE Touring exhaust is fantastic, by itself it is a bit too tame, a noticeable difference from stock on cold starts, but otherwise no louder under normal conditions. I think it will be even better once my downpipe finally arrives, giving the right balance between daily driveability and noise. Without an aftermarket downpipe there is no drone at all, regardless of speed, and is deeper than stock without being much louder. From what I have heard, the lack of drone is retained after downpipe. The newest update from BMP on the downpipe is that it should ship "soon". No pics of that install, decided even though it is a simple job, given the stupidly hot temperatures we have been having, the street being my only place to park the car, and my desire to get the full exhaust system out of my office floor, it was worthwhile to pay a shop to do it for me. Eventually I will record a sound clip.
On the way in I experienced my first run of tail of the dragon, but given the roads were wet and my wife was in the car we took it easy. I have to admit, prior to this trip I had heard a lot about people being careless on the road, and I was pretty sketched out by the wet roads and 11 miles of hairpin turns. After arriving at the lodge, I had to take a quick picture of the car. The lighting and the water from the drive on the way in made for a great picture.
For anyone who has never been to Tail of the Dragon, and who wants a nice escape from reality, I highly recommend the lodge. There is absolutely no cell phone reception there, so you can truly disconnect from the world, while being surrounded by some of the best driving roads on the East coast. The scenery is beautiful, and aside from driving, there is tons of hiking ranging from family friendly waterfall hikes, to multiple day long treks. There is great fishing nearby, and even whitewater rafting. My wife and I are already planning a fall trip (provided restrictions allow it) to explore the area some more, and see the leaf change.
The morning after arriving, I woke up to drive Moonshiner 28 and see the Fontana Dam. The dam itself is pretty impressive. Unfortunately the visitors center was closed due to Covid, and I was not able to explore it as much as I would have liked, but something about standing on a structure that is containing a wall of water several hundred feet high is awe inspiring. So much so I totally forgot to take pictures of the damn dam. Fortunately, I found a pretty great pull off for photo ops, so here's one of the car!
After getting back to the cabin and taking a nap, the soon to be groom and I rode to the Killboy center to get my souvenir pint glass, and free sticker. As we were leaving to head back to the lodge, which is a right turn, we decided the roads were dry so it was as good a time as any to see what the old GTI was made of. We turned left, romped the throttle and began my first run on the Dragon with dry roads. I have loved this car since the day I got it. I loved it in stock form, and I have loved every modification I have made to it prior to this trip. Nailing apexes on the Dragon exponentially increased that love. For what I describe as the perfect "jack of all trades" vehicle, the ultimate in practicality, this thing exceeded every expectation I had. It handles on rails and does not give up.