Meet Blizzard, A4 Avant S-Line, Stasis Challenge Spec, ongoing build thread

[David@EuroCode]

Thats crazy...glad your okay!!

[QUA77RO]

WTF

I think that's what The Count said. "One brake pad, Two brake pads, excellent, Three brake pads, fantastic, Four brake pa.... WTF?! Who stole ONE brake pad?"

crazy man , glad you are ok . see you Saturday

Thanks man. Yup Saturday nights gonna get hella crazy....don't say you weren't warned. See you bright and early

Thats crazy...glad your okay!!

Thanks man. Great talking with you tonight. Looking forwards to Saturday!

[QUA77RO]

I don't want anyone to get the impression that I didn't have a great time at Laguna Seca. Obviously I am aware of the risks at the track but I try my best to mitigate my risks by being as aggressively proactive about maintenance as possible.

Anyway, been having a hell of a time trying to edit the GoPro HD2 videos for some reason but I clipped a few laps with the camera mounted low on the passenger door. Trying to get one of the hood mounted vids...as the audio is a little better and the view from the hood is just plain fun...

Until I can get that sorted, here's this:



I don't think you can see it in HD when it's embedded.... if not, go watch on youtube in HD... Vid quality is better but GoPro audio is certifiably wonky.

[Wah]

Could have been a lot worse, glad you and your car came out without a scratch.
The stealership should def hear the wrath of your incident, some things are just unacceptable!

[$teady$upreme]

excellent threads, and very nice ride. Subscribed.

Always admire avants that attend lapping days~

[MilesM]

Corkscrew Line Approved

[catch]

great looking avant!!

thats crazy brake wear, im curious what Audi has to say about this

[PaperishPlastic]

Nice car, glad you are ok.
It's funny you called Julio Jose like 8 times haha.

[ultra]

Julio tricked him though

[aznpxdd]

Your front end looks awesome with the CF pieces complimenting each other. Ever thought about blacking out the chrome trims or gonna leave it that way?

[QUA77RO]

Could have been a lot worse, glad you and your car came out without a scratch.
The stealership should def hear the wrath of your incident, some things are just unacceptable!

Thanks Rest assured the dealership has been hearing from me quite a bit this week. I go in again tomorrow.

great looking avant!!

thats crazy brake wear, im curious what Audi has to say about this

Thanks!

And yes it is definitely indicative of a problem that should have been spotted the week before the failure since I took it in complaining of a vibration under braking when the brakes were warm. The service manager showed me the dealer copy of the repair order which shows notations of 7-8mm on all four front pads. My stance is that if I was feeling that vibration under braking and have had my wheel balance checked I could be relatively certain that there was some safety concern with the brake pads, rotors, or hydraulics.

The current argument put forth by the dealership is that it may be an issue related to the fact that my car has had OEM brake fluid followed by Motul 5.1 and more recently flushed with Motul 600 which "may" have caused some issue. I am more inclined to think that there is an issue with that Alcon caliper and it's hydraulic proportioning. We'll see what happens tomorrow.

[QUA77RO]

excellent threads, and very nice ride. Subscribed.

Always admire avants that attend lapping days~

Thanks! Stay tuned for more fun. (pun intended )

Corkscrew Line Approved

Thanks!

[QUA77RO]

Nice car, glad you are ok.
It's funny you called Julio Jose like 8 times haha.

Thanks.

Julio tricked him though

Yeah he did. I'm confused. so...Julio's real name is Jose? or is Jose, the Mexican? Because I thought Julio was the Mexican?

We are talking about the guy with brown skin, a fo'hawk, and amazing attention to detail, right?

Your front end looks awesome with the CF pieces complimenting each other. Ever thought about blacking out the chrome trims or gonna leave it that way?

Thanks. I do not plan to black out the trim. I like the satin stainless look. I have given some thought to doing something with the grill. I don't care for the bright chrome trim around the grill and wish it was satin to match the window and roof trim. Ultimately, I'd like the center of the grill to be satin honeycomb like the RS5 grill but I would want to do it the OEM route the way that Dasquade has or not at all. I drool every time I look at his conversion.

My focus will always be on performance and thus cosmetic mods while always an appealing aesthetic enhancer, will take a back seat to mods that offer improved looks and function. One thing that I am trying to avoid is the "Cali-style" white/black. That's why I went with gunmetal metallic wheels as opposed to black. I like the "Cali-style" look but I have done it on so many cars that for me it was time to do something different.

Right now, it's in "Targa" mode which is to say, not how I will be driving it around... I'll post photos next week. I've been keeping Blizzard under wraps since her most recent cosmetic change earlier this week... I can't even get to the store and back without every nut in a "fast" car trying to goad me into a race.

Did I mention the brakes?... photos next week.

[Highlander1010]

Time for a BBK?

[QUA77RO]

Time for a BBK?

Been there done that... Link was in original post.. HERE.

[cory_can]

Interesting that you mentioned your brake fluid....I had the same thing on my mind when I read your original thread a couple days ago, although I don't think that would cause such disproportionate pad wear/failure. Do you use Motul 600 on the street? If so, how often do you bleed your system? I understand Motul 600 is great fluid for track sessions but it doesn't last long and needs to be swapped out often.....not a great daily driver fluid.

With all your track time have you ever logged your auto transmission temps? Have you ever considered adding a transmission cooler?

[Bulldozer27]

Sorry for hijacking this thread, but I guess I need to post first before I can send you a PM. You mentioned in another thread that Blizzard has a Llumar clear bra. How has that held up in terms of durability and clarity (yellowing) over time? My new Ibis White is getting a clear bra on Thursday and my choices are Ventureshield Ultra and Llumar.

[QUA77RO]

It's funny you called Julio Jose like 8 times haha.

Julio tricked him though

OK OK... I talked to him. My bad. Got it fixed.

[QUA77RO]

Interesting that you mentioned your brake fluid....I had the same thing on my mind when I read your original thread a couple days ago, although I don't think that would cause such disproportionate pad wear/failure. Do you use Motul 600 on the street? If so, how often do you bleed your system? I understand Motul 600 is great fluid for track sessions but it doesn't last long and needs to be swapped out often.....not a great daily driver fluid.

With all your track time have you ever logged your auto transmission temps? Have you ever considered adding a transmission cooler?

Brakes fluid is typically flushed yearly on all my cars. The service manager did express some concern over the fact that I have already been through three different fluid flushes since the Alcons were installed approximately 5k miles ago and he felt that maybe there was residual from previous products (OEM, Motul 5.1, and Motul 600). The 600 has only been in for about 2 weeks. With Laguna Seca being a much harder track on brakes than Infineon, I had the 600 put in to avoid boiling the fluid.

Anyway, I'm still in the process of working with the dealership and Stasis to get the brakes thoroughly checked out. Since last Friday afternoon, the brakes have started to make a continuous squeal when driving regardless of whether you are using the brakes. I'm beginning to wonder if some of the pistons are getting hung up in their respective bores or not retracting fully for some reason. It's like there is a slight bit of brake drag.


I have not logged tranny temps. A transmission cooler is an excellent idea. I wonder if Audi has any OEM transmission cooler setup for HD vehicle use such as police and taxi vehicle use... It would certainly make install a snap. Although I have a feeling that the current transmission may only be with me until I'm out of warranty...

Sorry for hijacking this thread, but I guess I need to post first before I can send you a PM. You mentioned in another thread that Blizzard has a Llumar clear bra. How has that held up in terms of durability and clarity (yellowing) over time? My new Ibis White is getting a clear bra on Thursday and my choices are Ventureshield Ultra and Llumar.

PM sent

[QUA77RO]

BTW, remember what the original Alcon's looked like?





They are now Alcon "Gold" Mono6 calipers.



Apparently "Gold" Alcons are a sign that you actually use them versus having them for show. When they get serious heat in them the silver coating turns gold. I was getting high fives from other Alcon owners at Laguna Seca. According to them, I have now earned my Alcons. lol Amazing that not even Infineon was enough to get these Alcons hot.

At first I was not sure I like the gold...but it's been growing on me... I think they actually contrast nicely with the wheels

[Highlander1010]

Anyway, I'm still in the process of working with the dealership and Stasis to get the brakes thoroughly checked out. Since last Friday afternoon, the brakes have started to make a continuous squeal when driving regardless of whether you are using the brakes. I'm beginning to wonder if some of the pistons are getting hung up in their respective bores or not retracting fully for some reason. It's like there is a slight bit of brake drag.

Any chance you set the ebrake when they were still hot off the track and warped the rotors?

[Okan509]

That's really cool about the calipers - never knew that. I really like the contrast

[QUA77RO]

Any chance you set the ebrake when they were still hot off the track and warped the rotors?

I didn't have any issue with the rear brakes aside from the rotors turning blue due to the heat cycling. Since the Avant is Tiptronic, I just put it in park. I don't use the ebrake when I'm at the track. Whether I have a garage or just a paddock spot, they are level. It takes a pretty steep hill for my hill-hold or whatever they call it to engage automatically.

That's really cool about the calipers - never knew that. I really like the contrast

Yeah definitely pretty cool. The gold/gunmetal is growing on me daily and now we know how to spot track-rat Alcon owners... I am pretty surprised at how evenly they changed from silver to gold. I have seen red Brembo calipers turn splotchy red/brown from heat...not cool.

[MiracleWhips]

Like the calipers now!

[Okan509]

I didn't have any issue with the rear brakes aside from the rotors turning blue due to the heat cycling. Since the Avant is Tiptronic, I just put it in park. I don't use the ebrake when I'm at the track. Whether I have a garage or just a paddock spot, they are level. It takes a pretty steep hill for my hill-hold or whatever they call it to engage automatically.



Yeah definitely pretty cool. The gold/gunmetal is growing on me daily and now we know how to spot track-rat Alcon owners... I am pretty surprised at how evenly they changed from silver to gold. I have seen red Brembo calipers turn splotchy red/brown from heat...not cool.

it loooks incredibly even, I'm a huge fan - plus even if the color wasn't ideal the reason behind it alone would sell me lol

[Audacious]

it loooks incredibly even, I'm a huge fan - plus even if the color wasn't ideal the reason behind it alone would sell me lol

this. I've never heard of anything like that before, very, very cool.

[QUA77RO]

Like the calipers now!

it loooks incredibly even, I'm a huge fan - plus even if the color wasn't ideal the reason behind it alone would sell me lol

this. I've never heard of anything like that before, very, very cool.

I'm going to send a photo of the calipers to Stasis... see if I win a prize or something...



Here are a couple of shots from the Targa Trophy rally start point at HRE last Saturday.

[SoCalS4Avant]

Storm Trooper says, these are not the Audis you're looking for.

Bummed I missed out on TT, if for nothing else than enjoying the automotive eye candy.

[Okan509]

So I posted some of your brake issues/encounters in this thread - http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...-Install/page3

And apparently - those rotors will trun back to silver if you don't keep tracking them ahah

[QUA77RO]

So I posted some of your brake issues/encounters in this thread - http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...-Install/page3

And apparently - those rotors will trun back to silver if you don't keep tracking them ahah

Great review by the OP but unfortunately, that thread deteriorated into a drama fest. Anyway, I'm still waiting for my new Carbotech 1521's so I can swap out these XP20's. If the OP in that other thread thought that the XP10's are noisy and dusty.... well let's just say that the XP20's aren't happy below 275' F, and they are very vocal about it. They do a phenomenal job of scrubbing speed hot or cold

Oh yeah, about the calipers....guess that means I better keep tracking the Avant. I'd hate to find myself downgraded to silver after earning my "gold".

[QUA77RO]

Carbotech shipped my street pads today so hopefully I will have my brakes sorted by Stasis and the dealership in the next week or so. I'm curious to see if the XP20's that are in place now will show any unusual wear. During a recent event, I couldn't help but feel as if the brakes were dragging. My top speed was 135 mph and the car seemed to be surging in a novel way. I am usually able to pull quite strong to 145 at which point the Tiptronic will automatically shift to 6th gear and acceleration slows to a crawl. I had encountered a similar surge at Laguna Seca 3 weeks ago. It may be completely unrelated and just happened to occur right before the brake pad failure. I hate coincidences... if, that is the case.

Anyway, I had a little fun in the canyons and took some shots I thought I'd share. Enjoy!

[Okan509]

mmm I'd get behind that thing and treat it RIGHT! hahaha I love your car

[QUA77RO]

Thanks man. I try to keep it in line with a regular spanking. ...maybe moreso now that I know I need to maintain my "gold club" membership.

[QUA77RO]

A few more shots after having way too much fun drifting through the dirt. The dirt piles were arranged in two main piles that allowed me to slide around them in figure eights. I was going to head back out there and shoot some video but it has been torrential rain and occasional hail most of the day...







...blurred last shot but it was tough to slide the car around the mound to throw up a dust cloud and then jump out and run to take a pic before the cloud dissipates.

And seriously?... nobody saw the Fire/Rescue unit on my bumper in a previous shot?... Seriously?

[QUA77RO]

Storm Trooper says, these are not the Audis you're looking for.

Bummed I missed out on TT, if for nothing else than enjoying the automotive eye candy.

Serious eye candy. Good times and not many tickets. Definitely had way too much fun.

[QUA77RO]

I finally had some time to play with some of the hood mount video from Laguna Seca.



Audio catches more intake roar and the hiss of the diverter valve. Some fun laps with a passenger in the session before the brake pad failure.

[Jerritt]

One of the Best posts Ive seen to date. Even if I didnt read the intial post I can see its the best bc every single person on here has complimented you on it. Normally guys get torn down for some lame upgrade or downgrades they do for that matter. Got me pricing out intercoolers as we speak and it wasnt on my radar prior to this thread.

[phatAvant]

Looking good as always keep the pics coming please!

[FourRingThing]

wow, I am impressed way to run them boys down

[MiracleWhips]

Damn thst looks like fun!