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Ripley, My Rad Wagon (1.8t SE)

C

cool_username

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Charlotte, NC
Hi All,
Figured it was finally time to put together my car journal/build thread. My name is William (or Will if we're on that level), and this is Ripley. Here's some background:
I'm a working photographer and moved to the south in October. Two weeks after I moved, someone smashed into my beloved 08 Impreza Hatchback, totaling it. I was in a rental for a while (which didn't really fit all my photo equipment), so I knew I wanted another hatch. After some research and figuring out what I wanted in a car, I decided on a Golf. I needed peppiness, a good stereo, heated seats, and a moonroof (well, I didn't need it, but...). Long story short, I went VW! I got a pretty good deal on this SE. I kind of wish I had a GTI, but I've really been loving my 1.8 so far. My goal is to have a blast with this for now, save some money, and maybe buy a GTI or R in 4 or 5 years. In the meantime, let's have some fun!
Here are some photos I've taken:




What's been done so far:
  • Yellow Fogs
  • Black Badges and debadged hatch
  • Clark Plaid Mirror Overlay/Steering Wheel Badge Inlay
  • License Plate LEDS (DeAutokey is bomb.com)
  • My RADWAG0N Vanity Plate, just because
  • Most of the typical coding tweaks (windows down, mirror dip, Kencha Tails, etc)
  • Snow catch taken out of air box
  • DeAuto Tail/Reverse LEDs
  • DeAuto Interior LEDs
  • Afe filter
I'll try to keep updating this first post with the most recent pictures of my car along with an updated list of mods and stuff. I'm a climber and a photographer, and neither thing is cheap so this is going to take a while. But coming soon, we'll have:
  • Springs (I'm thinking VWR)
  • Turbo Muffler Delete
  • Jb1
  • CTS Turbo inlet pipe
  • CTS Downpipe (catted)
  • Catback (probably AWE track)
  • Headlights (Ed's Reps probably)
Let's see what I've got money for :D
Thanks for stopping by. If you're in NC, let's shoot some photos and grab a beer.
 
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cbaumy34

cbaumy34

Go Kart Champion
Location
Lindenhurst, IL
Well hello William! Nice car!!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk
 
I

Iceracerx

New member
Location
Tampa, FL
Looks nice, but isnt that a Golf, not a Sportwagen...? Your plate is in the wrong spot... good luck with your build!!

Sent from my LGMS323 using Tapatalk
 
C

cool_username

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Charlotte, NC
Iceracerx said:
Looks nice, but isnt that a Golf, not a Sportwagen...? Your plate is in the wrong spot... good luck with your build!!
Click to expand...

Haha, I suppose you're right. Here's the backstory: It's sort of a combo of things. I hear hatch backs referred to as wagons a lot, Wag0n for Volkswagen (radwagen sounds weird), but to be completely honest my friends and I used to call my old Subie hatch the "adventure wagon," so I wanted to carry that over :cool::)
 
C

cool_username

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Charlotte, NC
DeAutokey Tails vs Stock bulbs

https://youtu.be/y3ETuSyacXs
Hi All, I filmed this little video to show the difference between the stock bulbs and the deautokey bulbs. DeAuto bulbs are on the driver side, stock are on the passenger. I don't plan on buying the Euro tails, so this is the perfect mod for me. One of them has just stopped working; I emailed support and they're going to send me a new one once I send this one back.
 
C

cool_username

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Charlotte, NC
Sandman GTI said:
Welcome Will.
Always good to see pics from someone using a good camera.
The 1.8t is a very nice car.
I was surprised we were to get it. I thought the Golf would be NA.
Like the LED lights. They do look good.
Keep sharing and name the car what you want.
You paid for it.:D
Click to expand...

Haha thank you! I'm very happy that it wasn't NA. If it were I likely would have gone with the most base GTI. Hopefully I'll be shooting more photos this weekend.
Cheers :)
 
C

cool_username

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Charlotte, NC

Did a full interior DeAutokey LED swap. Pretty happy with it, though I feel like the lights are a tad more green than they should be. That might just be the OCD color photograph retoucher in me though. They sort of seem more white in the trunk and in the glove box. Still though, I'm happy with them.
Also, AFE Oiled filter went in over the weekend. That, combined with the removed snow baffle, seems to have made the car smoother. I feel like the combination of the two has increased intake and turbo sounds, and she pulls a little better.
 
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C

cool_username

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Charlotte, NC

Brought my car in for a leak from the moonroof not one, but three times now. Once on the passenger side, twice on the drivers. Passenger side was apparently an easy fix. After a few weeks, a leak on the drivers side appeared. Brought it in, but they had a harder time figuring out why it was leaking. Next day, I Found this lovely stain had reappeared. Cars currently in the shop - we'll see what happens. I'm less than thrilled.


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