What did you do to your B6 today?

[Danisson]

... well, maybe the 4th one :)

A little evening project after a veeery looong day: always a treat ! Internals and cases from a B7, with new ring and knob. (Ignore the AUTO, it's basically the classic 3 position with front & rear fogs... it's just because the perfect looks compared to the old scuffed up junk ;) Now I'd see for the first time how the interior lights would be all the same (auto) brightness !

[willemml]

Well I didn't actually do anything to the car other than drive it today, but my ER Comp FMIC arrived!

It seems UPS tried their best to damage it in shipping, looked like the box had been left out in the rain and then crushed... But it didn't matter because ER did an good job of packing everything very securely. Here is a photo after unwrapping the inches of bubble wrap. Installing this weekend hopefully.

[willemml]

FMIC is installed! I was a little surprised at how much bumper trimming was required, and also trimmed off some stuff that shouldn't have come off (middle section of the lower most plastic can actually stay on, even though it doesn't look like it can when you are initially holding it up to mark things out...) the tubing fit is also very tight, so there isn't much wiggle room as to how you arrange stuff (I was going to do an AC delete (it doesn't work, the parts get in the way, and fixing it in the parking lot doesn't sound fun) but it turns out that without the thickness of the AC the intercooler piping cannot line up.

Once everything is installed nicely (which was super easy other than the bumper trimming)... Wow this thing is awesome, IATs were going down as I was accelerating rather than up!

Oh and after having some fun I washed the car, and washed the skid plate before I put it back on.

[ye1low]

I had to trim most of the lower inner section of my bumper and my passenger side fog light pocket to get my bumper to sit flush. I run the ER comp polished FMIC with their crash bar on an OEM bumper. I also had to totally replumb my diverter valve because I removed the helmholtz chamber and ran most of it with -AN hoses.

[willemml]

My bumper still isn't perfectly flush, it's only slightly less flush than before I installed the FMIC, but it's noticeable. I will fix it another day, but it started raining/snowing. I had to cut off a large amount of the OEM rebar, I didn't get the full kit. I also removed the Helmholtz chamber, but did not have to replumb the diverter valve, the diverter valve was just close enough to the ER connection that it worked fine. The only thing I've done trimming on so far other than the bottom is the drivers side fog light area, but I have aftermarket fog lights so it didn't
change anything. Unfortunately I bent my license plate while doing this, need to figure out how to flatten it or get a new one

[Danisson]

Gave her a full detail both the interior and the exterior and some glass sealant ( as many out here suggested ;)... all the good Meguiar's stuff. (USA Made, as I've said there's NO "Romanian Way" of doin' it)
Yet still, badges off ?

[willemml]

Gave her a full detail both the interior and the exterior and some glass sealant ( as many out here suggested ;)... all the good Meguiar's stuff. (USA Made, as I've said there's NO "Romanian Way" of doin' it)

Did you happen to clean the engine? If so what products did you use?

I forgot to add this to my previous post but here's a picture of the old intercooler... And yes, it's held together by tie wire, JBWeld SteelStik, and silicone. It's exploded at least twice so far...

[Danisson]

Did you happen to clean the engine? If so what products did you use?

I do clean it very often in fact :) I actually didn't yesterday but there are some pics of it a few pages back. I mainly use brake cleaner for the heavy stuff such as oil and normal wet wipes for the hoses. The secret is a good silicone spray for dressing up the plastics. (something that isn't very greasy and just a dust MAGNET) I particularly use the "Soudal" brand since it's very affordable. I use different sizes of paint brushes as well to remove the stubborn dust from tight places like headlight covers or that intake duct boot.

[Danisson]

Today I've replaced my fuel pump (since it had it's "moaning days" quite often lately), removed and cleaned the Mass Airflow Sensor with that 'fancy' Pro-Tec German stuff spray ;) and also replaced it's crispy wiring harness with a brand new Hert+Buss one with OEM connector. (tried the self-soldering heat-shrink tubing and man o man are they the best invention ever... so perfect and easy; just need a powerful windproof lighter to properly melt). And let's not forget the amount of wet wipes, towels, alcohol and silicone spray to clean everything up :)

Outta curiosity I've used a white disposable plate to see what comes out of that MAF. Yikes !

[willemml]

Awesome, I'll get some brake cleaner, brushes, and the silicone sealant and give the cleaning a shot this weekend, might also try cleaning my MAF after seeing what came out of yours. Maybe I will try to do some interior detailing, while the interior is clean, it's very worn... the only thing I don't like about the car. I need new seats and steering wheel, as well as some trim bits.

[Gunnarrrrr]

My bumper still isn't perfectly flush, it's only slightly less flush than before I installed the FMIC, but it's noticeable. I will fix it another day, but it started raining/snowing. I had to cut off a large amount of the OEM rebar, I didn't get the full kit. I also removed the Helmholtz chamber, but did not have to replumb the diverter valve, the diverter valve was just close enough to the ER connection that it worked fine. The only thing I've done trimming on so far other than the bottom is the drivers side fog light area, but I have aftermarket fog lights so it didn't
change anything. Unfortunately I bent my license plate while doing this, need to figure out how to flatten it or get a new one

don’t forget to remove the factory smic bracket or you’ll end up with a nice slit in your new piping, ask how i know


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[Danisson]

Awesome, I'll get some brake cleaner, brushes, and the silicone sealant and give the cleaning a shot this weekend, might also try cleaning my MAF after seeing what came out of yours. Maybe I will try to do some interior detailing, while the interior is clean, it's very worn... the only thing I don't like about the car. I need new seats and steering wheel, as well as some trim bits.

Good luck there ! As a short update it was really worth it cleaning the MAF, believe me... the throttle response is very sharp now (like when the A/C Compressor is on) and RPMs drop way faster after releasing it ! Feels like a (small) V8 tbh. Just use a solvent that was designed for the job. Heard that brake cleaner or alcohol / acetone would kill it. (honestly I think it's ok if you use contact cleaner... might work great as well)

[willemml]

don’t forget to remove the factory smic bracket or you’ll end up with a nice slit in your new piping, ask how i know


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Wow, good to know. Luckily I did remove mine, the headlight wouldn't go in otherwise. Did it grind a slot in the metal tube?

Good luck there ! As a short update it was really worth it cleaning the MAF, believe me... the throttle response is very sharp now (like when the A/C Compressor is on) and RPMs drop way faster after releasing it ! Feels like a (small) V8 tbh. Just use a solvent that was designed for the job. Heard that brake cleaner or alcohol / acetone would kill it. (honestly I think it's ok if you use contact cleaner... might work great as well)

That sounds awesome, the revs dropping faster would be really nice, I feel like its one of the biggest things holding back my 0-60 times...
I have some contact cleaner (which seems like its just aerosolized isopropanol), but I'd rather not risk it so I'll just buy the CRC MAF cleaner when I grab the brake cleaner. Do you use chlorinated brake cleaner?

I'm thinking of trying out some seat covers that are on sale at CanadianTire, no idea if they'll be any good fit wise, but worst case I return them.

[willemml]

Good luck there ! As a short update it was really worth it cleaning the MAF, believe me... the throttle response is very sharp now (like when the A/C Compressor is on) and RPMs drop way faster after releasing it ! Feels like a (small) V8 tbh. Just use a solvent that was designed for the job. Heard that brake cleaner or alcohol / acetone would kill it. (honestly I think it's ok if you use contact cleaner... might work great as well)

don’t forget to remove the factory smic bracket or you’ll end up with a nice slit in your new piping, ask how i know


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Gave her a full detail both the interior and the exterior and some glass sealant ( as many out here suggested ;)... all the good Meguiar's stuff. (USA Made, as I've said there's NO "Romanian Way" of doin' it)
Yet still, badges off ?

Mine has badges off (I assume PO did that). I like it both ways personally, cleaner without the badges, but the badges make the back seem shorter which I also like.

[willemml]

Installed a trailer hitch, went pretty smooth after I got out a jack to force it into position.

Also drove a bit, never seen the turbo glow red like that before.

[Gunnarrrrr]

Wow, good to know. Luckily I did remove mine, the headlight wouldn't go in otherwise. Did it grind a slot in the metal tube?

exactly. steel vs aluminum and of course the steel won.


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[Kevin C]

Passed Oregon DEQ with a tune. It seems like the checks on the ECU are limited. While I have SAI and a legit converter (B7), the checks for them are coded out so I can swap over to a high flow or eliminate the SAI if I want. My understanding was that in the past they had software that would reset the certain features and look for an automatic ready to check to see if the readiness flags were setup to be ready no matter what.

Fresh tags, good for the next two years.

[Danisson]

Made the (great) decision to go for a road trip all Easter holiday long. Managed to PlastiDip my S4 upper grille while on my way, as well as to find a (pretty rough) MFSW from a later model A3 8P S-line. (TTRS / S3) This idea came to my mind after seeing a post about a month ago while I was scrolling down some old pages of this thread one night.

Despite the amount of time spent restoring it from painting, cleaning and conditioning, the dual stage airbag was also a big challenge to wire up. All in all, definitely worth it ! I didn't bother about the controls right now because the whole process as it is was far away from cheap & easy so that be it... looks and feels amazing and no errors in the dash !

[Danisson]

Yesterday afternoon these arrived ! So I went straight to work starting with a good compounding and polishing. While taking apart the old ones I discovered two things:
1. I have the wiring needed for heated mirrors but NOT heated glass. (something happened here before, also judged by some broken tabs)
2. The alloy stands and adjustment hemisphere modules were in a pretty (expected) bad shape... lots of oxidation and dirt.

Therefore, a complete disassembly and deep cleanup was pretty necessary. (if you know you know) So that's what I did next... greased all the gears as well as the folding arm and covered the wires in new cloth tape... Fast forward some hours and Voila ! Brand new S4 mirror caps covering completely restored mirrors. (quite a big overkill on a silver car but hey... matches everything else so far :)

P.S: Aspherical glass already ordered (both left and right :)

[Ryes7]

Yesterday afternoon these arrived ! So I went straight to work starting with a good compounding and polishing. While taking apart the old ones I discovered two things:
1. I have the wiring needed for heated mirrors but NOT heated glass. (something happened here before, also judged by some broken tabs)
2. The alloy stands and adjustment hemisphere modules were in a pretty (expected) bad shape... lots of oxidation and dirt.

Therefore, a complete disassembly and deep cleanup was pretty necessary. (if you know you know) So that's what I did next... greased all the gears as well as the folding arm and covered the wires in new cloth tape... Fast forward some hours and Voila ! Brand new S4 mirror caps covering completely restored mirrors. (quite a big overkill on a silver car but hey... matches everything else so far :)

P.S: Aspherical glass already ordered (both left and right :)

The results speak for themselves. Nicely done

[LeoPatrick]

Well, it's not even 9 am in Seattle, and I've already managed to stick myself with a full-day project. I just tore out my smic and installed the CTS fmic. This thing was a pain in the ass, mainly my fault as I naively thought that I could complete this if I woke up at 6 am. Hoping to button everything back up and go for a quick drive once everything is situated.

[Danisson]

Finally replaced the door lock module on driver's door (the one that was drowning the battery via a faulty microswitch) with a brand new German quality part. The way that door works now is just unbelievable ! It's just closing with one finger... almost making me to replace 'em all; what a difference from the old and tired one that I had to fight each time in order to get in / out of the car :)

[Danisson]

My brand new aspherical mirrors arrived ! Gave 'em a fine coat of ceramic sealant and threw 'em right in. Now I finally have a fully working defrost system !
Also found a pair of OE adapters for the Passat "fan type" washer jets that I have on the car. (or... off the car since they kept on falling outta place :)

[Ryes7]

My brand new aspherical mirrors arrived ! Gave 'em a fine coat of ceramic sealant and threw 'em right in. Now I finally have a fully working defrost system !
Also found a pair of OE adapters for the Passat "fan type" washer jets that I have on the car. (or... off the car since they kept on falling outta place :)

This is a task you can really reflect back on

[ErvinB]

Forgot to post, but on the easter weekend I finally checked the Nordschleife off my bucket list. I'm sure that wasn't the only time i visited the ring. I loved the vibes.

[ErvinB]

Last weekend I did a compression check on my engine. It is burning excessive oil quantity. Around 1l / 1000kms. The biggest issue is the engine was completly rebuilt around 30.000 kms ago.
The compression checks out. Every cylinder has around 11 to 12 bars in them.

The spark plugs are a bit whitey in every cylinder. And I have one spark plug which looks really bad.


I'm not sure about the machine shop's work in the cylinder head. They allegedly changed the valve stem seals but I believe those are my issue since every cylinder has the same amount of compression. Maybe they changed but they are damaged somehow.
So next step is going to be replacing valve stem seals.

[deebands1]

Last week did the coolant flange now working on finding this leak


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[Danisson]

Lately the weather around here just wants too prove that autumn in May isn't just a (bad) fantasy... so while waiting for a movie to download I went down to my garage as I was hit by the (brilliant) idea of taking off the rubber hose between the turbo and hard pipe that runs under the bumper. (the 'main' one in which the DV sits, ya' know) That's because every once in a while there was oil forming a drip at the bottom of it. Good news... it's not cracked ! The clamp up the turbo outlet was loose and the hose itself was squeezed like crazy... so obviously, oil would seep through under high boost. (also it was tightened up with spring clamps which are NOT recommended for rubber/plastic nor dilation/contraction situations)

Gave the bastard a good in and out wash, new stainless steel clamps and cut a few mm's from the pinched side. What a relief !

[Gunnarrrrr]

picked up a b7 A4 2.0t exhaust for about $20 to do a little comparison. It’s now on my car, I need this thing quiet but since ditching the magnaflow 16601 for stock I just can’t bear to look at the hilariously small tips in the bigger cutouts of the S4 bumper.

Here’s the stock 1.8t:






and here’s the b7 2.0t:






as you can see, significantly bigger. sounds more or less the same as expected. direct bolt on, and up until the center resonator it’s 1:1 identical. only difference is the piping after the resonator and the tips are all a bit bigger. same mufflers as the b6.




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[Danisson]

Seems you're just like me with this...
In February I've replaced my rear mufflers with ones from a B7 and those "pea shooter" look-alike tips (as some folks said here on the forum) were the first things I got rid of.

[Danisson]

Started doing the coil packs wiring harness when I realized that I only bought 2 connectors instead of four. Also... new license plate lights holder (trunk release switch assembly)

[Danisson]

So...
Fast-forward a week later and some more work down the line... done with all three charge pipes and all the clamps, no issues so far ! Also changed the (second) braided nitrile fuel hose in the engine bay.
Next was the license plate light holder w. trunk release switch. Bought an aftermarket one of a very good quality actually, but... won't fit. Finally found myself (again) building a custom one from the two just as usual; but hey ! Success. (not to mention that I've dropped a nut and the screwdriver I was trying to get it out with inside the trunk lid and spent half a day getting 'em out)
While I was there I thought some pieces of 3mm sound deadening tar won't do any bad... so in it went.

Then, the other two coil pack connectors arrived and I started right away. Quite a clean job actually, despite the fact that I've wrapped it in tape and cut it off like a million times. (and forgot to disconnect the battery so my car didn't start afterwards) Luckily it was FUSE 27... phew ! After all this it was time for yet another re-wrap since the wire conduit from the S4 (along with other parts from Audi Tradition) finally arrived. To fit it I had to cut about 2.5" from it and trim down the mounting hooks. Also had to drill a hole through which I could pass the VC Ground. As a little treat for her and all this endurance... of course, "Red Tops".



















Next thing tomorrow: Road Trip !

[Mike Tries]

Looking good! I like the wire loom that keeps all of the ignition wires together. A little red on top of the valve cover goes a long way!

[Mike Tries]

Racing is a dirty sport. Brake dust, tire rubber schmoo, and debris thrown up from the track all get stuck all over the car in very short order. There is so much brake dust. But I knew that. That's why I ceramic coated the new wheels two weeks before I installed the tires on them. I used Adam's Graphene Ceramic. I bought the kit in 2023 when I bought my Model Y, and the coating is still holding up perfectly on that car. So, when it came time to wash the Audi this weekend, the wheels wiped clean without any special chemicals, scrubbing, or anything. I just used a microfiber towel and some soapy water.

OK, so, that was the wheels. How about the paint? That was harder. There was no wax or any sort of coating on the paint, and it lives outside under a cover, so sometimes, debris gets up under the cover and gets beaten into the paint making it harder to clean. Have you ever accidentally marked a tile floor with your shoe, where you get that streak of rubber? I had that all over one side of the car to contend with too! How it got there, I have no clue. Molten rubber being thrown at the car by a car next to me is my guess. I tried my "clay bar sponge", but that didn't touch the stuff. I had to get a real clay bar kit from the store, but that cut through it with ease! So, hey, now I've got this clay bar kit... let's do the whole car!

1.5 Mission Impossible movies later, I had the car completely clayed, and the paint was as perfect as it can be. So, hey, I've still got 3/4 of a bottle of ceramic... let's do the whole car!

Another 1.5 Mission Impossible movies later (I watched the first three in the garage over the weekend doing all of this), I had a ceramic coated Audi! She's got the garage for the next couple of days while the ceramic cures.

And hey, you know, the paint chips on the hood, and the black tar on the floors inside the cabin... I should do something about all of that. When I chipped up the tar stuff on the floor, it left all the debris behind (the stuff I couldn't get up) and it was black on the otherwise pristine silver, and it looked really bad. The hood, on the other hand, has tons of these chips in it, some of which are 5mm in diameter. What can I do about all of this? Spray paint is what I can do about it. I sprayed some metallic silver Krylon onto a chunk of scrap plastic I had so that it made a puddle, and I applied some of it with the tip of a zip tie to the chips. I dare say it worked pretty well! I did this, of course, after I ceramic coated the thing, so who knows if it'll stick. But if it comes off, I'll just try again. It was easy, and it looks way better than the chips did, so why not? Inside the cabin, I sprayed a "polished Aluminum" spray paint on top of the tar, and man did that work well! The tar almost seems like it was designed to be painted (hint, it was). Now the cabin is brighter, cleaner-looking, and looks a little more professional.









(Disregard the dislodged bumper there--I have it pulled off so that I can get the core support off and install the big turbo.)

[Danisson]

Hi folks !
Had just returned from the road trip I was talking about... basically I revisited the places I used to live until last year. (and even retook the exact same avatar picture from my account; same spot, same location, even the same Sony Cyber-shot from 2009 ) I have tones of great pictures (and a very dirty car by now) but I already feel like I'm too much. Still, I really have to take care of her ASAP.


Filling Up


Resting


"Silver Cheetah"


Avatar (Take 2)


Again and Again


"Country Roads"


Back Home

[J-jizzle]

Its been a long time since I have visited this sight or posted anything. My 2002 1.8t saw a 2 year and then a 3 year period of no driving. Just recently replaced the entire cooling system including the fans and fan controller, stripped and powder coated the OE sport wheels along with some other odds and ends. Has some hiccups still but hope a TB adaptation/alignment with a new crank sensor will fix the final issues.

[Mike Tries]

Heck yeah, man! Get that thing running again! We're still here. Post pictures. :)

[SoundEfx]

I'm stuck trying to find why it wouldn't start. I changed the crank sensor and the ecu has power because I can scan it for codes, yet it WILL not start. Will crank until the battery dies though.
Future plans:
Take the injectors off and see if they are spraying while cranking and work my way back if they are not.
Determine if I'm getting spark and if not, burn the car down.....

I HATE ELECTRICAL ISSUES !!!!!!

[kwilson]

I'm stuck trying to find why it wouldn't start. I changed the crank sensor and the ecu has power because I can scan it for codes, yet it WILL not start. Will crank until the battery dies though.
Future plans:
Take the injectors off and see if they are spraying while cranking and work my way back if they are not.
Determine if I'm getting spark and if not, burn the car down.....

I HATE ELECTRICAL ISSUES !!!!!!

Was it starting before you replaced the crank sensor? What codes are you seeing?

[SoundEfx]

Was it starting before you replaced the crank sensor? What codes are you seeing?

It worked great before then all of a sudden, one day, it shut off while driving. I clutched in, restarted it and it started right up. Then months later, it misfired like crazy, barely drove then cut off for good. It never started ever since.

Just by asking, you might have saved this car from total destruction. Unfortunately, this car was a Frankenstein project, 3.0 car and modules, with 1.8T engine and ecu with a very old harness, so that has to be taken into account when doing a full VCDS scan. But the ecu codes is as follows:
Initial codes:
11 Faults Found:

18058 - Powertrain Data Bus
P1650 - 004 - Missing Message from Instrument Cluster
18043 - Powertrain Data Bus
P1635 - 008 - Missing Message from A/C Controller
18107 - Powertrain Data Bus
P1699 - 008 - Missing Message from Steering Wheel Electronics
17526 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor Heating; B1 S2
P1118 - 004 - Open Circuit - Intermittent
18057 - Powertrain Data Bus
P1649 - 008 - Missing Message from ABS Controller
17522 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor; B1 S2
P1114 - 004 - Internal Resistance too High - Intermittent
17519 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor Regulation: Bank 1
P1111 - 002 - System too Lean - Intermittent
17987 - Throttle Actuator (J338)
P1579 - 001 - Adaptation Not Started - Intermittent
16684 - Random/Multiple Cylinder Misfire Detected
P0300 - 001 - - Intermittent
16688 - Cylinder 4
P0304 - 001 - Misfire Detected - Intermittent
18010 - Power Supply Terminal 30
P1602 - 002 - Voltage too Low

Readiness: 0010 1101

After codes are cleared:
7 Faults Found:

18043 - Powertrain Data Bus
P1635 - 008 - Missing Message from A/C Controller
18107 - Powertrain Data Bus
P1699 - 008 - Missing Message from Steering Wheel Electronics
18058 - Powertrain Data Bus
P1650 - 004 - Missing Message from Instrument Cluster
18057 - Powertrain Data Bus
P1649 - 008 - Missing Message from ABS Controller
18010 - Power Supply Terminal 30
P1602 - 002 - Voltage too Low
17526 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor Heating; B1 S2
P1118 - 004 - Open Circuit - Intermittent
17522 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor; B1 S2
P1114 - 004 - Internal Resistance too High - Intermittent

Readiness: 0110 1101

So I think that most of those codes can be related to the 'Frankenstein' build where nothing matches, but I don't see anything alarming that would prevent it from starting. I don't know if the ecu or one wire some where is broken which wouldn't cause a code but is throwing everything off.

ANY advice will be appreciated.