turbojzrr
Go Kart Champion
- Location
- San Francisco Bay Area
- Car(s)
- '19 Golf R
nice job on PB!
7
Will_s Night Blue GTI daily turned track build
- Thread starter Will_
- Start date
Will_
Autocross Champion
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI S DSG
Well, not GTI related exactly, but rented this sweet little Golf Polo while in Switzerland last week. Fun little car and got great gas mileage. Very numb to drive, and quite slow, but I imagine the GTI version is good fun. I accidentally rolled it into a cement pillar while trying to pull into a tight spot. Missed reverse and was still in neutral. Did apparently $1500 Swiss francs worth of damage (doubt that), but I paid for full coverage so no harm to me. Still the most damage I've ever done to a car though (aside from bad mod choices lol).
Also purchased BFI Stage 1 mount kit. Hitting 50k very shortly and going to be installing the mounts and downpipe while doing service, should be a nice refresh to the car.
Next track day for sure is Nov 27th/28th at Laguna Seca. Would like to do one in Mid-October as well but the group I normally run with isn't hosting anything so will have to find something else. I'm taking the BRZ to autocross next week though, which should be good fun. Will be the first time for that car.
Also purchased BFI Stage 1 mount kit. Hitting 50k very shortly and going to be installing the mounts and downpipe while doing service, should be a nice refresh to the car.
Next track day for sure is Nov 27th/28th at Laguna Seca. Would like to do one in Mid-October as well but the group I normally run with isn't hosting anything so will have to find something else. I'm taking the BRZ to autocross next week though, which should be good fun. Will be the first time for that car.
Last edited:
jimlloyd40
Autocross Champion
- Location
- Phoenix
- Car(s)
- 2018 SE DSG
Great pictures.
Will_
Autocross Champion
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI S DSG
50k miles tonight. After installing the downpipe and BFI stage 1 mounts, car feels a lot peppier again. Much racier than before. Need to slightly adjust the rear diffuser as it’s rubbing on the exhaust but otherwise car seems to be in great shape. A very happy 4 years of ownership so far.
Will_
Autocross Champion
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI S DSG
Great track day at Sonoma yesterday. Ran a big new PR of 1:55.276 and several other laps in the 1:55s. It was nice and cold out so no issues with oil/coolant temps. The only issue I had was overheating the DS2500 pads coming into the final hairpin at the end of a session and after my second fastest lap of the day. After a cool down lap of the pits the rotors were still at 520F, so they are probably hitting 600-700 on track. Once I burn through these pads I’ll probably try out upgraded rotors and Ferodo DS3.12 race pads.
2nd best lap, 1:55.420
Fastest lap, 1:55.276. Unfortunately didn’t have my GoPro ready.
2nd best lap, 1:55.420
Fastest lap, 1:55.276. Unfortunately didn’t have my GoPro ready.
Will_
Autocross Champion
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI S DSG
I have not yet but have heard good things about them.
Will_
Autocross Champion
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI S DSG
Well, couldn't quite beat my PR at Laguna Seca yesterday, but still had a fun day nonetheless. I had multiple good laps between 1:46.3 and 1:46.5, all with a passenger, but on the two laps that could've been 1:45s I ran into traffic. Unfortunately, when I eventually got out of traffic, the oil temps were too high and I had to back off. I wasn't expecting to run into much overheating issues today as the forecasted temps were in the 60s, but it was sunny all day and even in the first session at 9am it already felt hot out. Car was hitting 260 oil temp after 3-4 laps. I need to do a full overhaul of the cooling system this winter.
Some photos and video of two good laps:
Some photos and video of two good laps:
ckuhns
Autocross Champion
- Location
- Scotts Valley, CA
- Car(s)
- 2019 Golf Sportwagen
What do you think you’ll end up doing for the whole cooling system? I’m not confident I won’t have issues next weekend with the wagon..
Will_
Autocross Champion
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI S DSG
Well, my current plan is to ditch the ECS front mount intercooler and install the Mishimoto OEM location piece. I also need to reinstall the OEM cooling ducts I removed for the FMIC. I will see how that functions with the new EQT tune. If oil cooling is still an issue, I will add a Racingline oil cooler. If coolant becomes an issue, I will add a Setrab auxiliary radiator in the OEM Golf R location. If none of that works, I’m giving up.
Will_
Autocross Champion
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI S DSG
Over the weekend I removed the JB4, installed RS7 plugs and flashed EQT stage 2. All went fairly smoothly. Only driven about 10 miles with EQT tune and did a few 70% pulls in 3rd. Definitely pulls harder, slight hesitation around 4500 rpm but may have been TC kicking in. Will let the ECU “learn” for a bit then reassess. Big question is how it will perform on track.
Old plugs look fine after 6k miles, a bit rich. Tiny bit oil in cyl 1 but nothing crazy. Speaking of oil, picked up a BFI catch can as I am anticipating potential PCV issues with the highest boost. BL plate has worked great for me so far and this will keep it in place, so seemed like a good option instead of replacing entire assembly.
Might be getting a great deal on an ST60 kit this week, keeping my fingers crossed deal goes through and everything is in good order. Listed JB4 and if I end up with ST60 kit will sell Macan brakes next. Also have new rear rotors and EBC yellow pads to
Laguna pics from last track day.
Old plugs look fine after 6k miles, a bit rich. Tiny bit oil in cyl 1 but nothing crazy. Speaking of oil, picked up a BFI catch can as I am anticipating potential PCV issues with the highest boost. BL plate has worked great for me so far and this will keep it in place, so seemed like a good option instead of replacing entire assembly.
Might be getting a great deal on an ST60 kit this week, keeping my fingers crossed deal goes through and everything is in good order. Listed JB4 and if I end up with ST60 kit will sell Macan brakes next. Also have new rear rotors and EBC yellow pads to
Laguna pics from last track day.
dibs on macan setup less pads!
RochanaG
Ready to race!
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI 6MT
Do you think the rear diffuser made a difference on the track?
Will_
Autocross Champion
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI S DSG
Eh, hard to tell. Probably not, if so the difference is slight.
Will_
Autocross Champion
- Location
- SF Bay Area
- Car(s)
- 2017 GTI S DSG
Brake Upgrades
Well, they say for every dollar you spend on going faster you should spend two on stopping, so I spent the last few weeks upgrading the brakes to help with the additional 60hp I am getting from the EQT tune. I started by changing out the stock rear pads for some EBC yellows. I was hoping to change rotors at the same time, but the set screw was completely seized, and I only had hand tools. Thankfully the rotors are still at 9.7mm, so I am not worried. I find it incredible that after 52k miles and 15 track days the rear pads were only at the wear bars, shows how little they are used. I bought a $20 tool of amazon for retracting the piston and it worked great, the whole process was actually very easy. Excited to see the difference a stronger rear pad makes on track.
My Macan/DS2500 setup has been a consistent, great all around performer for the majority of my track career, however the last few track days I have been overwhelming the setup as I continue to get faster in the car. My last two tracks days I was getting noticeable pad fade after a few hard laps, so I was looking to upgrade to a more aggressive track pad and perhaps two piece rotors. As luck would have it, a local member was selling a Stoptech ST60 kit in good condition for less than half MSRP, so I had to jump on the opportunity. The ST60 kit has always been my dream setup, and with being able to sell the Macan's it wouldn't hurt the wallet too much. The kit came with a set Stoptech Sport and EBC Red pads, but neither are sufficient for the track, so I ordered some Pagid RSL-29s, which I plan to leave on full time. I also replaced the brake lines, as one had a tear in the plastic lining surrounding the line, as well as one dust seal that was torn. I used a trick little piston pulling tool I got off Amazon and it worked great. This was my first time doing any sort of rebuilding of a caliper so it was nice to learn and get more comfortable with each component.
I installed the ST60s this weekend thanks to the help of @turbojzrr and his sweet garage/quickjacks setup. The install went fairly smooth, however there is still a little work to be done to make it perfect. First, the clearance between the OEM heat shields and the new rotors is incredibly tight, and it is occasionally making contact with the rotor on the driver side, so tomorrow I will be trimming them heavily to ensure no further contact. I also want to rebleed the brakes as the pedal is a little softer than I think it should be. I will probably ask my local shop to handle the bleeding as I don't want to re-order fluid and I trust their work.
First track day of the year is Sat Jan 22nd at Laguna Seca. I am very excited to see how the new setup feels. I am also getting an alignment tomorrow, but I don't plan on changing my setup much aside from reducing rear toe to 0 (from 1/16 total). My new settings will be 2.5F, 2.0R, 7.5 caster, 0 front and 0 rear toe. Less rear toe should help a bit with wear and initial rotation. As I lack and LSD it is critical to get the car pointed straight as early as possible so I can put the power down.
Well, they say for every dollar you spend on going faster you should spend two on stopping, so I spent the last few weeks upgrading the brakes to help with the additional 60hp I am getting from the EQT tune. I started by changing out the stock rear pads for some EBC yellows. I was hoping to change rotors at the same time, but the set screw was completely seized, and I only had hand tools. Thankfully the rotors are still at 9.7mm, so I am not worried. I find it incredible that after 52k miles and 15 track days the rear pads were only at the wear bars, shows how little they are used. I bought a $20 tool of amazon for retracting the piston and it worked great, the whole process was actually very easy. Excited to see the difference a stronger rear pad makes on track.
My Macan/DS2500 setup has been a consistent, great all around performer for the majority of my track career, however the last few track days I have been overwhelming the setup as I continue to get faster in the car. My last two tracks days I was getting noticeable pad fade after a few hard laps, so I was looking to upgrade to a more aggressive track pad and perhaps two piece rotors. As luck would have it, a local member was selling a Stoptech ST60 kit in good condition for less than half MSRP, so I had to jump on the opportunity. The ST60 kit has always been my dream setup, and with being able to sell the Macan's it wouldn't hurt the wallet too much. The kit came with a set Stoptech Sport and EBC Red pads, but neither are sufficient for the track, so I ordered some Pagid RSL-29s, which I plan to leave on full time. I also replaced the brake lines, as one had a tear in the plastic lining surrounding the line, as well as one dust seal that was torn. I used a trick little piston pulling tool I got off Amazon and it worked great. This was my first time doing any sort of rebuilding of a caliper so it was nice to learn and get more comfortable with each component.
I installed the ST60s this weekend thanks to the help of @turbojzrr and his sweet garage/quickjacks setup. The install went fairly smooth, however there is still a little work to be done to make it perfect. First, the clearance between the OEM heat shields and the new rotors is incredibly tight, and it is occasionally making contact with the rotor on the driver side, so tomorrow I will be trimming them heavily to ensure no further contact. I also want to rebleed the brakes as the pedal is a little softer than I think it should be. I will probably ask my local shop to handle the bleeding as I don't want to re-order fluid and I trust their work.
First track day of the year is Sat Jan 22nd at Laguna Seca. I am very excited to see how the new setup feels. I am also getting an alignment tomorrow, but I don't plan on changing my setup much aside from reducing rear toe to 0 (from 1/16 total). My new settings will be 2.5F, 2.0R, 7.5 caster, 0 front and 0 rear toe. Less rear toe should help a bit with wear and initial rotation. As I lack and LSD it is critical to get the car pointed straight as early as possible so I can put the power down.