GOLFMK8
GOLFMK7
GOLFMK6
GOLFMKV

Gimmicky waste of time/money/effort mods

Spade

Spade

Ready to race!
Location
NC, US
Car(s)
Golf Sportwagen
What are your top gimmicky mods?

1. CSF Radiator.
Whatever testing CSF and Speedhunters did was a sham. There's no independent testing of this radiator (or any aftermarket "upgrade").
Stock Radiator at Daytona Speedway on a 96F day - coolant started creeping up to 220F towards end of 20 min session. Oil was already at 283F
CSF Radiator at NCM Motorsports Park on 80F day - coolant crept to 220F mid 20 min session. Oil had just gotten to 275F.

2. CTS (or any non-OE) oil filter housing.
Supposedly the stock plastic housing "is prone to cracking". It's not. It's sustained many 283F oil temps.
The "upgrade" housing promises lower oil temps with no data to back it up. That's because it does nothing for oil temps.
Further, the lack of a filter cage makes it a mediocre product to begin with. Avoid.

3. Golf R OEM Intercooler on GTI / Sportwagen / Alltrack / Golf
Not faulting the item. But anyone who claims there's a noticeable difference needs to calibrate their butt dyno.
The minuscule 10% addition of volume does not make a difference on track. Timing gets pulled just the same.

4. Silicone Intake Pipe.
It's the turbo inlet that makes a difference. The stock intake pipe does not deform or have any bad traits as most false marketing claims.
It's the same diameter and actually larger in places where the noise cancellation corrugation is.

346832757_551801027109888_1289551716720797274_n.jpg
 
Spade

Spade

Ready to race!
Location
NC, US
Car(s)
Golf Sportwagen
the said:
Turbo muffler delete, any DV mod like GFB DV+ or spacer, turbo inlet elbow, ignition coils, all completely useless.
Click to expand...
I legit thought the inlet elbow did something. But it doesn't need to flow 2 megatons of air thru it as is done in Jeff's testing.
 
scrllock

scrllock

Autocross Champion
Location
MI
Spade said:
What are your top gimmicky mods?

1. CSF Radiator.
Whatever testing CSF and Speedhunters did was a sham. There's no independent testing of this radiator (or any aftermarket "upgrade").
Stock Radiator at Daytona Speedway on a 96F day - coolant started creeping up to 220F towards end of 20 min session. Oil was already at 283F
CSF Radiator at NCM Motorsports Park on 80F day - coolant crept to 220F mid 20 min session. Oil had just gotten to 275F.

2. CTS (or any non-OE) oil filter housing.
Supposedly the stock plastic housing "is prone to cracking". It's not. It's sustained many 283F oil temps.
The "upgrade" housing promises lower oil temps with no data to back it up. That's because it does nothing for oil temps.
Further, the lack of a filter cage makes it a mediocre product to begin with. Avoid.

3. Golf R OEM Intercooler on GTI / Sportwagen / Alltrack / Golf
Not faulting the item. But anyone who claims there's a noticeable difference needs to calibrate their butt dyno.
The minuscule 10% addition of volume does not make a difference on track. Timing gets pulled just the same.

4. Silicone Intake Pipe.
It's the turbo inlet that makes a difference. The stock intake pipe does not deform or have any bad traits as most false marketing claims.
It's the same diameter and actually larger in places where the noise cancellation corrugation is.
Click to expand...
The side rads help. The oil is cooled via coolant, after all. The CSF main rad would be somewhat better if CSF released their own intercooler, kinda perplexing why they didn't bother. There's another shop in the UK who promotes the main rad paired with the stock intercooler, which seems wrong. You get results with a nice intercooler even on the stock tune.

Metal oil filter housings seem like a gimmick until you crack a stock plastic housing and find out the VWR housing is cheaper than a new one at the dealer.

Spade said:
I legit thought the inlet elbow did something. But it doesn't need to flow 2 megatons of air thru it as is done in Jeff's testing.
Click to expand...
It's the biggest improvement you can make for air inlet depression. Downpipe and turbo inlet should have the biggest effect on reducing wastegate duty needed to hit a certain boost pressure.
 
Spade

Spade

Ready to race!
Location
NC, US
Car(s)
Golf Sportwagen
The bend in that APR intake makes me cringe. I can't see how it could gain any power over stock airbox.

Also, if not stated earlier, I run Time Trial in a low modability class. So fluid coolers (radiator, oil cooler) are allowed, but not aftermarket intercooler.
 
the

the

Autocross Champion
Location
Alabama
Car(s)
GTI
dtfd said:
Excuse me that 100% does as advertised. It's supposed to be a noise maker (and nothing more). It makes noise.
Click to expand...
Keep in mind, this thread is located in the "tracking and autocross" section, and titled "Gimmicky waste of time/money/effort mods", if you want more noise do a bigger turbo or an intake. A spacer is a waste of time and money because it slows your path to meaningful modification. But if all you want is a spacer, that's cool too, your opinion is perfectly valid.
 
DerHase

DerHase

Autocross Champion
Location
Hampton Roads, VA
Car(s)
2019 GTI Rabbit
Most cheap coilovers. Stiff != better grip. It just masks the fact you’re not a smooth driver.

I’d wager that Konis or Bilstein B6/8 with stock springs are better in many cases, especially on any tracks that “require” curb usage to have anything resembling a decent lap time.


Also strut tower braces. You’re not doing anything meaningful by keeping two fixed points from flexing 0.005in under load.
 
Spade

Spade

Ready to race!
Location
NC, US
Car(s)
Golf Sportwagen
DerHase said:
Most cheap coilovers. Stiff != better grip. It just masks the fact you’re not a smooth driver.

I’d wager that Konis or Bilstein B6/8 with stock springs are better in many cases, especially on any tracks that “require” curb usage to have anything resembling a decent lap time.


Also strut tower braces. You’re not doing anything meaningful by keeping two fixed points from flexing 0.005in under load.
Click to expand...
but my car is made of swiss cheese
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top