Sprinks RS 2015 GTI

[sprinks]

Hey y'all.

Figured i'd start one of these just to keep track of little things on the car.

Backstory: I picked up this 2dr Reflex Silver GTI after dieselgate broke and VW hadn't quite figured out what the hell it wanted to do. I decided around then, if there was a way out of my diesel, i'd definitely consider it since i had moved into town and was putting on very little mileage for the diesel motor. This slightly derailed my plans to go OEM+ with that car and turn it into something of a GTD sedan that we never got. Anyways, long story short, traded in my great condition 2010 Jetta TDI with vw loyalty bonus etc for Reflex Silver for a 2dr 2015 GTI S in reflex silver with dsg. Couldn't be happier.

2015-10-18 23.24.16
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

No lighting package, no performance package. But damnit i got the plaid seats. But i didn't need those things. Lights can be upgraded, traction can be improved. All with time and money. I'm planning to keep the car for a while, so time is not the problem.

I really wanted the plaid seats, 2 doors was a nice amenity since it was my daily driver and it's only my partner and I currently. We discussed the inevitable "what about kiddos" debate and i volunteered i'd be the one with the bad back loading them in so i'm not worried. That's still a ways off though. I didn't really have a goal or plan for this car for a while. It has been "keep it clean, keep it stock". Within 2 weeks of purchase and just shy of 1K on the engine, i took it down to VIR for the holiday laps.

2015-11-06 12.24.28
by VA Sprinks

Everything i've done really is cosmetic. No real engine mods really, except for the eurocode turbo muffler delete. Eventually i'll look to a simple tune (jb1/4 or a stage 1) probably after the warranty period passes.

Some early work i've done on the car includes LED bulb swap for brakes and reverse lights,license plate, and trunk. Not satisfied with OEM status and not one to let a dummy bulb holder go to waste, i chopped out the old dummy bulb holder and wired in the rear fog per this DIY Rear Fog DIY.

2016-01-18 17.47.47
by VA Sprinks

I originally wanted brushed aluminum mirrors but failed at wrapping them and ended up delaminating some paint on one of them. Fortunately for me, i'm a coatings chemist by trade and as such have access to a paint booth. Went with diamond black pearl after seeing some others began the black mirror cap swap. Finished it with a nice coat of gloss, polish and now they look like nothing ever happened.

2016-06-11 20.25.19
by VA Sprinks

Mostly just keeping it clean for quite some time while i spent money on travel and other life stuff. Got a dog. Etc. Got to see the clubsport s up close and in person at Goodwood's Festival of Speed. So neat.

2016-06-24 08.47.06
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

2016-06-24 08.50.45
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

After seeing the clubsport and knowing my taste for modding from my previous car, i came to the conclusion that i want to build it out to the clubsport/40th edition that the US never got. I realize this will be a work in progress and certainly take some time and energy to make happen.

However, in addition to the plan of this car, needed a little additional lugging capacity for bikes and stuff. For functionality i added the OEM base bars paired with a Kuat Vagabond roof box/bike rack. It gets me and, my gear, and two bikes around with plenty of ease. I also have figured if i ever need to add more than two bikes on the roof there are clever ways to add more bikes there.

IMG_20161203_221942-01
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

Since i never bought the LP, i was pretty set to get a set of LP reps in as soon as possible. Black Friday sale rolled around and i picked up a set of the RFB LP reps with the sequential turn signals. They look really sharp on the car.

2016-12-25 18.18.45
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

I reached out to Klii MW for a clubsport stripe replica since I really wanted the sporty look but didn’t want to spring for the clubsport labeling. I also didn't want clubsport on the side of the car if it wasn't finished/up to spec. They were great to work with and got me a stripe in a short time after the holiday.

2016-12-28 12.58.10 - Copy
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

Not happy with the one-sidedness of the rear hatch lighting, I decided to splice in and run an additional lamp. Ordered a new trunk connector and repair wire from fixmyvw.com (great place! You can rent a vcds tool there). Since I had swapped the full housing with a deautokey housing early on, I still had my original housing that I then placed an LED bulb in and called it a day. I cut out a slot in the air vents that exist on the driver side plastic trim and placed the lamp in there. Fitment is a little tricky and so I placed a thin sheet of plastic to hold the lamp up without interfering with the clip on the trim. All in, this mod cost me less than 30 bucks and I really appreciate not blacking out the trunk with a single grocery bag. I wish I could have done the angle piece for better OEM status, but that angled bit is surprising hard to track even with a part number.

2017-01-12 19.11.55
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

Sprung for a steering wheel wrap from autointeriortechnic ala clubsport esque ultrasuede with the rally stripe. Also pictured are the klii plaid SW inserts. Not pictured: Klii plaid mirror wrap.

2017-01-18 13.12.06
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

I wrapped the stock wheel caps ala clubsport caps because i'm not about spending that much for silly caps.

2017-02-15 17.40.49
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

Current Mods and shit i've bought:
-Eurocode Turbo Muffler Delete
-Visor Sticker removal (message me if you're interested)
-Vinyl Hazard cover (vinyl by me)
-Deauto brakes
-Deauto reverse
-Deauto license plate
-Deauto Rear Fog
-Dual trunk LED (in addition to solo deauto trunk led)
-Various kliimotorworkes bits (clubsport stripe, steering wheel inserts, mirror wrap, plate covers)
-Autointeriortechnic ultrasuede clubsport steering wheel wrap
-vinyl wrapped clubsport caps (vinyl by me)
-OEM roof bars
-driver aspherical mirror
-oem backseat cover
-Euro headreads

Future plans:
Aesthetics:
-Alcantara shift boot
-Alcantara brake boot
-Roof Wrap
-4" tips, unsure if aftermarket exhaust or just tips
-folding mirrors

Performance
-uprated rear sway (OEM PP/dcc sway)
-JB4 box ('18)
-TTRS Brake vent mod ('17)
-PP Brake Kit (pads will likely come first) (late '17 or '18)
-Wavetrac ('18 maybe?)
-unibrace tunnel bracing or similar ('17 or 18)

 

[SmokeyGTI]

I like what you've done so far. I have pretty much the exact same car ('16 2 dr base reflex silver)

Definitely going to get some LED replica lights and I'm digging the clubsport stripe on the side.

Keep up the good work!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[sprinks]

Thanks for those kind words. Highly recommend the LP reps. So much light. Can't believe i had the halogens for so long tbh.
Anywho, More stuff!
Added an alcantara shift boot:
Alcantara shift boot install
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

Added mk6 interlago low profile headrests for the rear.
2017-03-22_01-21-58
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr
Excuse the crease, picture from when they were fresh out the box. It's gone now.

 

[CLOUT]

Looks good, like the alcantara wheel wrap shiftboot and clubsport esque on the lower door panels. How is the oem backseat cover? Thinking about getting one to protect the rear seats from my son's carseat.

 

[sprinks]

Looks good, like the alcantara wheel wrap shiftboot and clubsport esque on the lower door panels. How is the oem backseat cover? Thinking about getting one to protect the rear seats from my son's carseat.

Thanks! I dig the backseat cover. It's been a lifesaver with our 70 pound white american bulldog. No punctures through it from her nails, allows for all factory harness point use. Quite a clever design and i highly recommend it. I believe i got mine from shopdap.com as they had the best price on it at the time.

 

[eurospek]

Can you post pictures of the backside of steering wheel wrap? I'm wondering if it's different from the Xuji wrap that leaves excess behind that isn't tucked. Looks awesome and my next mod.

 

[sprinks]

Can you post pictures of the backside of steering wheel wrap? I'm wondering if it's different from the Xuji wrap that leaves excess behind that isn't tucked. Looks awesome and my next mod.

I'll get a photo of that later this evening. Everything is tucked away though, no excess material out.

 

[Mk7user]

I wrapped the stock wheel caps ala clubsport caps because i'm not about spending that much for silly caps.

2017-02-15 17.40.49
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

Sprinks nice steady progress on your car.
Question - can you tell me where you got the cap wrap?

 

[sprinks]

Hi there Mk7User. I did that myself actually with roll of vinyl. I would be happy to do others caps as well, for a small fee.

 

[sprinks]

Boring update: I've just been driving it around mostly. Tried to wrap the interior, i was thinking a black brushed metal trim would be nice, a little more upscale feeling. Got it all installed on everything but the doorcard trim, but bailed last minute. Here's the one photo of it while it was installed.
2017-09-16 11.13.08
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

Washed it a while ago. Finally got around to trying some wheel cleaner (meguiars mirror bright, pH neutral color changing stuff). Worked pretty well, definitely cleanest i've ever seen my wheels before. Also tried adam's tire shine stuff. Decent results, definitely made the austin's pop more than i've seen them pop in recent memory.
2017-09-22 12.25.54
by VA Sprinks, on Flickr

And finally, installed the uprated VW 21.7x3.6 sway bar. Not a massive difference in steering dynamics, but one i've definitely noticed throwing the car into some very familiar corners. Overall pleased. Probably nothing major for a little bit unless i find some crazy deals on parts that i'm looking for. No pics, because it just looks like a sway bar

 

[smgti15]

Nice Ride. I also have a reflex silver. So far I am going for a stock + look with it. Our cars are similar so far. So far I have tint all around, an APR intake (love it but too much money), vwr lowering springs (reasonable drop, doesn't change the ride too much or make it too stiff since I live in Boston and the roads are horrendous). I purchased black mirror caps (Chinese parts for 30$) and honestly they were a little pain one side to get on, but I like that it makes my car more unique. I like your club sport replica decal on the side skirt.

 

[sprinks]

Thanks smgti15! Sounds like we have taken a very similar path. I had a little better luck with my ebay caps from china (luck of the draw i guess). I previously had painted them DBP, but opted for standard black caps a few months back (to better match the CS stripe).

Looks like future work is light taillight and reflectors tint and maybe mirror tint. Still haven't tinted windows. Too used to the fishbowl look. Maybe it'll be something to consider come next year when it starts getting sunny again.

 

[sprinks]

Sourced a mibII brain and 6.5 display. Just gotta get the wiring bits for the modified usb port and i'll have a full MIB II swap ready to go.

 

[sprinks]

January update: have all my MIB2 parts sourced. Really just waiting on free time to install and then figuring out who to do the CP/activation for carplay.

In the meantime, i told myself i wouldn't buy more car parts for a while. I immediately broke that promise to myself when i found a golf r brake kit on sale. Whoops. I think these will be a longer term project that i'll install come spring-time. I'd like to clean, repaint, and maybe do GTI logo ala PP. Might also do Clubsport lettering. Also playing with idea of keeping caliper black and just redoing the covers for a 2-tone black and red. Plenty of time to think on it.

Now just need to source rotors. Obviously, could just do stock rotors and be happy. Could also source nice rotors (looking at you CS rotors). Haven't ruled out tarox or others either. Again, lots of time to think, and obviously my budget for projects right now is spent.

 

[sprinks]

Been quite some time since i've updated. Been quite happy with the mib2 swap. And that's without the Carplay activation (been slacking on that). Mostly because i'm planning to work on other projects and start others. Soon to be starting a podcast with some friends about car stuff. Trying to make more custom etched pint glass stuff. And been busy wrenching on everyone else's cars (cobblers children situation).

Totally forgot i also installed a JB1 not too long ago. Wakes the car up nicely.

Going to install the rs3 vents and PP/R brakes this week sometime. Here's the finished look following repaint by yours truly.

2018-06-12_11-01-10 by VA Sprinks, on Flickr