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Mike's 2018 Autobahn

AudiSport4000

5cyl turbo
Location
Fort Wayne, IN
Long time German car owner checking in with a new acquisition. I've been around German cars since 1999, when I got my first car which was gifted from my aunt. This was a 1985 Audi 4000S in Zermatt Silver, which was purchased new by my aunt at Reitzl Audi/Porsche. Since then I've owned roughly 12 Audi's and 2 VW's. I got off the beaten path a year ago and got a Honda CRV. With an Audi in the stable I still found myself bored with a ho hum daily driver, so after thinking about it I opted to look into the Mk7.5 GTI.



Lots of reviews and a test drive later my dealer found the car I wanted; Great Falls Green Autobahn 6spd manual. My previous GTI was a Mk6 in United Gray over interlagos, and that was a fun car.



Picked the car up tonight, and oh man, this thing is so much fun. I'm generally a pretty tame driver, but this thing makes me wanna speed around town. Knowing how dealerships are and doing my own detailing, I figured I'd need to go over the car even though it has just 200 miles on it. Hopefully I can get to that this weekend.


Look for some pictures soon. Looking forward to being part of the VW crew again, doing some searching on the forum, and sharing my passion for German cars!


Thanks guys
 

Clem604

Autocross Champion
Location
Vancouver BC, Canada
Car(s)
2018 VW GTI
Congrats on the purchase! You'll love what the MK7.5 GTI has to offer. When and if you decide to modify the car, you'll love it even more [emoji6]
 

AudiSport4000

5cyl turbo
Location
Fort Wayne, IN
Congrats on the purchase! You'll love what the MK7.5 GTI has to offer. When and if you decide to modify the car, you'll love it even more [emoji6]


First mod will probably be springs. I've done some research on this forum only. Previously I've always used H&R's for my Audi's and it looks like a good way to go for the GTI. I'll want to keep the stock shocks. Maybe add some spacers to push the wheels out ever so slightly.


One thing I did notice is that the instrument cluster lights for the gauges dont come on unless the headlights are on. I was hoping they would illuminate if the parking light setting was selected :(


I'll have a friend stop by with his vag com so we can do some coding, so that will be fun. I'll get some pics when I get it all detailed up.
 

Jumpy

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Austin, TX, USA
Car(s)
'18 GTI Autobahn
Nice! Love my 7.5 Autobahn. Welcome to the club.
 

AudiSport4000

5cyl turbo
Location
Fort Wayne, IN
Gave this thing a proper detail today. Keeping cars clean and tidy is a hobby of mine, but I wouldnt want to do it full time. I spent around 6-7 hours mainly due to two different dealerships washing the car. Hood had some scratches and marring, which I got most of it out. B pillar trim was compounded and polished. Entire car was gone over with polish at the minimum and sealant. I wont bore you with additional details, but it came out REALLY nice. I'm a huge fan of this color and am impressed with how different it looks it light/dark settings.


If anyone would like specifics I'll gladly share. Here are some photos of todays work.


B pillar reflections :)











 

AudiSport4000

5cyl turbo
Location
Fort Wayne, IN
I've only had windows tinted on 2 of the 15 cars I've owned, both of them being GTI's. Got 15% done on all side and hatch window (including the 2 smaller triangle ones up front!). The compliments I get on this exterior color is astounding. I'm really glad I went with this rather than Silver White.


Question on wheels. I'll likely get a set of dedicated snow tires and toss them on the stock wheels. I'll be looking for a set of summer wheels, but am curious what kind of offset I'd be looking at. Previously I was going to add some wheel spacers, but if I can get away with some new wheels that are already pushed out a bit, that will work. Just looking for a clean and flush look. I'll likely add VWR springs, but thats all. Any assistance here would be nice. Tire Rack isnt too far from me, so I'd go there.



Really loving this car. Takes me back to when I got my Mk6 brand new, but this one is even better :)


Thanks guys!
 

RecycledDonuts

Ready to race!
Location
Alabama
Fellow GFG I see.
 

AudiSport4000

5cyl turbo
Location
Fort Wayne, IN
Small update. I've logged 2500 miles on this thing and love it. There have been a few things that I noticed the first 2-3 weeks of ownership that I finally opted to take in and get looked at.
1. Drivers front suspension rattle. I hear this at lower speeds over bumps. Almost sounds like a loose upper strut mount or control arm bushing. I did get that corner up in the air but couldnt feel or see anything odd. The tech who drove the car didnt hear/feel anything different either.

2. Passenger A pillar weather stripping. Part of it was folded into the A pillar itself. No biggie, but I wanted to make sure it wouldnt leak.

3. Passenger rear portion of the sunroof panel seal was crumpled a bit. Oddly enough I got a call about the car and they end up replacing the entire panel. I show the seal is a separate part (2016 model, so it may be different?). The part catalogue I have may not tell the whole story. So, new sunroof glass panel and seal are in my future.


I'll take the tech for a spin when I take the car back. Thankfully my dealership is ok. I have techs I know at the Audi dealer which I prefer but of course they do not do warranty work on VW's.


Just a small update. Loving the car! Turns a lot of heads and the color is so unique :)
 

AudiSport4000

5cyl turbo
Location
Fort Wayne, IN
Small update. Took car into the dealer for the few things mentioned above.


- Sunroof seal was replaced
- Passenger side A pillar trim replaced
- Suspension rattle I was hearing cannot be heard by technician who went on a ride with me. Could just be me? I'll roll with it for now and see how things go.


Need to sort out winter wheel options or if I even get dedicated snows for this thing. I have an older quattro to drive, so the GTI may sit when it gets nasty out :)
 

AudiSport4000

5cyl turbo
Location
Fort Wayne, IN
Just a small update. Got a nice oil change kit from FCP Euro a few months ago and tackled my first oil change today. Car has 7k miles on it. Ironically until the GTI the newest car I had changed oil in was my old 04 allroad. I'm used to older cars but thankfully VW made the GTI simple. Even though the car is new I have Blackstone Laboratories in town so I'll drop the oil off for an analysis and likely will do so for every oil change. Should be neat to see how the engine wears over its lifetime :)


No snow here yet and we have had some unseasonably warm weather so I did a quick interior detail. Should be good for another month or 2 :p
 
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