GOLFMK8
GOLFMK7
GOLFMK6
GOLFMKV

Snailmeat in sunny Singapore

Morphine

Ready to race!
Location
Lower Slobbovia
The pipes and intake will add a lot of noises that were not there before.

I have the same stuff on my car, and although I run the stock DV...it sounds like I am running a BOV. I mean it is loud.

The power loss is a bit disconcerting and wierd, I would suspect a boost leak.
 
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snailmeat

Ready to race!
Location
Jakku
While biding my time in dealing with the power loss issues, I'm keeping busy with a few little mods. This latest one is still a work-in-progress, but I'm excited about it and had to share.

So here is my integrated gate remote mod, inspired by a thread I saw on the Australian forums.

Also, many thanks to sabo, who was super helpful via PM. He has created a very comprehensive guide which was my main visual reference throughout the install. Electrical work was done by a much smarter friend, while I dealt with the trim removal.

The main idea is to swap in the gear lever surround switch from another market which has an additional button, and then to wire up that button to my gantry remote.

First, a random pic of how the cup holder cover looks when rolled up. I just thought it was cool.



The centre console out with the original and the replacement switches at the side. I'm using the top TPMS setting switch, so the signal wires were tapped to this switch.



Here you'll see the entire centre console area. The circuit board with the yellow wires is the guts of the gantry remote.



The remote usually runs off a tiny battery. But to keep things maintenance free, power was tapped from the centre pin of the 12v socket.



The remote takes 12v, but a buck converter was used anyway, in order to give a constant 12v.



And this is how everything looks with all the trim back in place. Nice and OEM.



I mentioned at the start that this is a work-in-progress. And that's because after everything was fitted back, the new switch failed to open the gantry. It isn't a wiring issue, because during testing, the LED on the remote module would light up when the new button was pressed.

So my best guess is that it is a signal issue. Perhaps the signal from the remote is weaker since it's hidden under all the trim. This is also a used remote that I picked up on the local Craigslist equivalent, and I stupidly forgot to test it while sitting in the car. Next step is to remove the trim again and test the switch with the remote module outside, and if that doesn't work still I'll swap in my newer remote module.

Still, good fun, and I'm pretty sure I can get it to work soon.
 

yuzhi26

New member
Location
singapore
Nice mod!!!

While biding my time in dealing with the power loss issues, I'm keeping busy with a few little mods. This latest one is still a work-in-progress, but I'm excited about it and had to share.

So here is my integrated gate remote mod, inspired by a thread I saw on the Australian forums.

Also, many thanks to sabo, who was super helpful via PM. He has created a very comprehensive guide which was my main visual reference throughout the install. Electrical work was done by a much smarter friend, while I dealt with the trim removal.

The main idea is to swap in the gear lever surround switch from another market which has an additional button, and then to wire up that button to my gantry remote.

First, a random pic of how the cup holder cover looks when rolled up. I just thought it was cool.



The centre console out with the original and the replacement switches at the side. I'm using the top TPMS setting switch, so the signal wires were tapped to this switch.



Here you'll see the entire centre console area. The circuit board with the yellow wires is the guts of the gantry remote.



The remote usually runs off a tiny battery. But to keep things maintenance free, power was tapped from the centre pin of the 12v socket.



The remote takes 12v, but a buck converter was used anyway, in order to give a constant 12v.



And this is how everything looks with all the trim back in place. Nice and OEM.



I mentioned at the start that this is a work-in-progress. And that's because after everything was fitted back, the new switch failed to open the gantry. It isn't a wiring issue, because during testing, the LED on the remote module would light up when the new button was pressed.

So my best guess is that it is a signal issue. Perhaps the signal from the remote is weaker since it's hidden under all the trim. This is also a used remote that I picked up on the local Craigslist equivalent, and I stupidly forgot to test it while sitting in the car. Next step is to remove the trim again and test the switch with the remote module outside, and if that doesn't work still I'll swap in my newer remote module.

Still, good fun, and I'm pretty sure I can get it to work soon.
 

snailmeat

Ready to race!
Location
Jakku
Oh wow it's been almost 6 months since my last update. Focus has been elsewhere, and I haven't even driving much over the last few months. A few things to share now though.

Finally curbed one of my wheels. Happened on a rainy day with poor visibility, and that dreaded, sickening grinding sound is hopefully something I won't have to hear again. Got it fixed the very next day, it's not perfect if you scrutinize but it will hold up to casual glances. I'm just glad they are SSRs and not Volks, if not I would be a lot more bummed.



The battery also gave up the ghost finally, after around 2 years and 8 months of ownership. This happened after a particularly long stint of not driving (2 weeks), but most of the other guys here have had to change out their batteries at the 2 year mark anyways, so my battery has already lasted longer than the norm. Thankfully, our batteries are warrantied for 3 years, so it was a simple call to VW roadside assistance for an onsite replacement.


All the check lights are flashing due to the dead battery.

I picked up a used reverse camera. It didn't come with a wiring harness, so that was sourced from Carsystems in Poland. The €35 shipping for some wires was a little hard to stomach, but it reached me in 2 days which is pretty insane.


This is the part number.

Local guru (and forum member) cbx750p did the install. BTW, everyone should check out his extensive Mk7 build, he really takes it to the extreme:
http://jimmy-cbx.blogspot.sg/p/golf-7-everything-possible.html




Close up of the reverse camera unit.


Around an hour to remove the panels and run the wiring, and it works!


And finally I have a neat OEM solution. For some bizarre reason this camera comes standard on Golfs here, but not on the GTIs and Rs, so even though I don't need it, I've always felt that the car was a little incomplete.
 
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snailmeat

Ready to race!
Location
Jakku
This was removed:



And this was installed in its place:



The is20 had some slight shaft play, and the wastegate had rattle (after only 20,000 km, of which 10,000 km was on a stock car). Not sure if that was the cause of my earlier perception of power loss, but everything feels fine now with the new snail.

Map wise, I've switched from Unitronics to Stealth Tuned (from South Africa), and added a DSG tune as well. The car pulls harder, and you really feel it from 3k to redline. In terms of the low end, I don't find the car any laggier than before, which is a nice surprise.

Aside from that, DSG farts sound sharper now, and oil temps have gone down pretty drastically. On stock and Unitronic tunes, temps would range from 108 to 119 degrees Celsius depending on how hard I was driving, or how slow traffic was. So far, on the new Stealth map, however I hoon, I haven't hit more than 101 degrees Celsius, with temps normally hovering around 96-98 degrees Celsius.

Took the chance to install the ECS turbo blanket since everything was out. I bought this months ago, shoved it in a box at home, and actually forget I had it! If you've read up till this post, you'd know I pretty much debadge everything that I can. And ECS really went bananas with the size of their brand label, so it definitely had to go. I tried my best to cut as much as I could off the blanket, but I didn't want to risk cutting the seam open, so that's the best I could do. Finished it off with a lighter to burn any stray strands that remained.

 

HOT H2O

Drag Race Newbie
Location
Canada
Nice OEM+ going on here!

Did you ever say if you got that remote opener to work? Have you seen the new OEM frameless homelink mirrors available?!

Ps congrats on the new snail ����
 

snailmeat

Ready to race!
Location
Jakku
Nice OEM+ going on here!

Did you ever say if you got that remote opener to work? Have you seen the new OEM frameless homelink mirrors available?!

Ps congrats on the new snail ����
Thanks! Nope to be honest I have been procrastinating because removing the trim and unplugging everything is such a pain.

But your question gave me the motivation I needed so I went down after my dinner today to do some troubleshooting.

Removed the centre console and double checked all the switch gear. Connections are all fine and little led on the remote module lights up when the switch is pressed, so that's not the issue.

It's likely the module itself or maybe the buck convertor so next steps would be to swap in another remote and/or bypass the buck convertor...
 

snailmeat

Ready to race!
Location
Jakku


I bought my APR intake used, and the APR intake pipe new, and there has always been some colour mismatch, with the older piece having some yellowing in the clear coat. Decided that I have had enough of that, so the plan is to hydrodip the intake.

Back to the stock box for now (a bit of a tight fit due to the APR coolant hose and the CTS boost pipes), and the APR intake is with the hydrodippers so I'll update again here once that is done. I've picked a design that is going to be highly polarizing, and I'm sure some people will feel that I'm butchering the intake, but I've never been a fan of carbon fibre so I'm kind of happy to see that gone.

Took a closer look at my air filter (since I had to take everything apart), spotted a staple. Hmm...



Also, pardon the out of focus image, but does anyone know where I can get these replacement silicon washer gaskets? These are used on the hex bolts for the APR intake, but they are all torn and I might as well replace them since the intake is out.

 

snailmeat

Ready to race!
Location
Jakku


Managed to find replacement silicone washers to replace the torn ones. If any one local is wondering, I got them from a shop called Garlin, which sells O rings and gaskets mainly. The washers were stamped out to spec while I waited. They are slightly thicker than the originals, which may not be a bad thing too.



Hydro-dipping of the intake is done too. I was very interested in the process because it's my first time trying this, and the chaps who worked on it were kind enough to share pics, so here are some.

Decided to go for something loud and obnoxious to contrast with my rather stock looking exterior. Here is my inspiration...Steel Panther...



Originally thought I would go with camo, digital camo, or snake skin, but eventually I settled for a marble effect which seemed to flow better with the lines of the intake.

First the pieces were cleaned, sanded and then primed.



At this point we spotted cracks in the main piece which weren't that visible before priming, so some delays here while it was fixed. I guess if you have an intake that bolts on directly to front section of the car (as opposed to mating to the stock horizontal piece which has some flex), it might be a good idea to check now and then for stress fractures.



Next was a base coat of white.



And then a coat of pink.



The parts were then dipped and then left to dry.



Finally, a couple of layers of gloss coat to seal everything in.





Picked up the parts, all ready for the install.



And here it is back in the car. Picture was taken in my dark basement parking lot, so the pink doesn't look as loud as it is in real life.



You'll notice my engine cover is off. That's because I'm gonna work on the engine cover next. It's already a work in progress, so stay tuned... :)

 
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snailmeat

Ready to race!
Location
Jakku


Revisited the gantry remote mod. Third time removing the centre console trim, getting easier with each time, didn't even have to reference sabo's guide this time round. Had already determined earlier that it wasn't a connection issue (see post #142) so I bought a new gantry remote to swap in.



Just in case, we used a radio scanner (more info here: http://www.rtl-sdr.com/about-rtl-sdr/) to pick the best remote out of the 3 I had on hand, to make sure we got the strongest signal output.



Guts of new remote in top half of pic, guts of old remote in bottom half. You can see that even though they are both 330mhz remotes, the old one shows its age in the bulkier components it carries on its board. On the new remote, there aren't even physical button switches, everything looks surface mounted.

Long story short, everything works perfectly now, and I am more than stoked. The feeling of pressing a button that looks and feels OEM, and seeing the gantry respond is amazing :):):).
 

snailmeat

Ready to race!
Location
Jakku
Ordered some badgeskins. They were kind enough to supply spares for the outer rings of the emblem, but part of me was going oh crap does that mean that's going to tear or screw up easily.... The pink stuff is for my engine cover.



Thankfully, the badgeskins were easier to apply on than the instructions made them out to be. You just have to make sure to get the edges of the V and the W aligned properly. The rings were easy too, just start from the inside, get the whole ring aligned then work your way out. Total time spent for the front and back was around 30min.





I have always been a bit hesitant about black badges because I don't like that black nose/butthole effect, but I find the badgeskins are a nice balance. I would say they look better in real life than in the photos. The chrome facets on the emblem help to separate the background from the VW logo and give it more depth than a normal black emblem could.

 

snailmeat

Ready to race!
Location
Jakku
Fuse box and engine cover are finally complete. Here are some process shots. In the right most photo, fuse box cover has been dipped, but not clear coated.



Clear coat on, it's a lot shinier now.



Engine cover was a little more complicated as far as the ideal color combination, so I got some help from a friend who whipped up a color study. Final choice I settled on was dipping on the smooth surfaces, dark grey on the dimples and black in the middle.



A fair bit of work with painting, masking, dipping, masking, more paint and so on. I'm sure I'm skipping some steps, but here's roughly how it progressed.



And finally, with the badgeskins on, and with everything back in the engine bay. My car is now powered by the decadent souls of 80s sex, drugs, and rock and roll.



 
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