oh10a4's A4 - Project Throttle Response

[oh10a4]

Wanted to get together a "build" type thread on here for folks with a CVT as they seem to be very under represented. Thanks to the help of a few fellow members I've been able to turn my CVT A4 into exactly the car I've wanted, and expected from the start. Not all mods listed here are related to CVT, but the majority of what I've done has been related to improving my driving experience. Havent moved on to the visual stuff much.


Stock - Dont have the greatest pictures from when I picked her up, but this was the night I drove it home. It's hard to tell cause its really dark, but the car needed some TLC on the paint. You can tell it had been sitting outside, and we completed the deal at the dealership so late that there was no time for them to detail it.




First things first, a full detail with as much paint correction as I had the energy to complete.



Next, I wanted to start working on the responsiveness of the car in general, and try to squeeze a bit more hp/tq out of the engine. I accomplished this through a variety of ways and this is where the bulk of my mods have been so far..

• APR Stage 1 Tune - By and large the biggest improvement to overall power of the car. It helped somewhat throttle response, but definitely more of a power mod than anything else. Also increased the sound of the turbo spooling, turbo working, and DV.
• R8 Coil Pack Upgrade - A noticeable increase in general engine smoothness, cold starts, and revving.
  
  
  
• aFe ProDry S Air Filter - No Pics for this one. Very straight forward swap with a noticeable increase in response and a minor bump in power. Obviously just 'butt dyno' type yields. Also, increase the sound of the turbo spooling.
• AudiUP Turbo Inlet Pipe - Throttle response definitely got a boost from this. However minor, it definitely felt like a change. I felt it paired great with upgraded air filter, in essence working like a standard intake upgrade (high flow pipe and high flow filter). Minor increase to turbo spooling sound.
  
  
• Steering Wheel upgrade to Paddle Shifters - I completed this swap over the weekend, and just from the drive home after getting them turned on I dont know how I lived without them! Paddle shifters were a HUGE help maintaining throttle response throughout the entire driving experience. From a stop, being able to use the CVT's "8 speed gear ratios" it eliminates the lag time cause by the CVT calculating the best possible ratio. Very very happy with this upgrade. I searched eBay, US and German for a few weeks never seeing a good enough deal to pull the trigger on. Wound up finding a brand new 4-spoke multifunction steering wheel with DSG, never mounted, for $300. I was almost positive it was too good to be true, or atleast that it wouldnt be compatible. Well, after recieving it sat. morning, it was installed by sat. afternoon! Old wheel came on easy enough, and airbag fit perfectly into the new the wheel, which bolted right back up to the car. The final step was getting it turned on via VCDS/VAGCOM, which I found someone local to let me use thier cable. Turning them on was literally the click of a button. Honestly, I never expected to upgrade to paddle shifters for less than $400, but it all worked out and I couldnt be happier with them. Sorry for the night pictures on the steering wheel, didnt get a chance to get them turned on until the evening, but they are functional!
  
  
• VAGCOM 'Dynamic Mode' - Wow - what a nice little bump to throttle response with this change. Having a non-mmi car doesnt give me the option to move it out of the "automatic stock" ADS profile, as the car isnt equipped with ADS changing functionality. Changing this to Dynamic put a smile on a face as soon as i test drove it. The pedal feels more like "S" mode, but without the long RPM hanging. Very happy with this change
• VAGCOM 'Dynamic Steering' - Again, huge improvement to responsiveness of the steering. The wheel is much firmer now, you feel glued to the road. Its a very nice change. Before the steering was a bit floaty for my taste, and this gave it a much sturdier feeling. That combined with the servotronic made turns and maneuvering much easier. (this may not be for everyone as it does make the steering much stiffer)
• VAGCOM 'Needle Sweep' - Another change I made with the VAGCOM was the Needle Test Sweep when you turn on the car. Neat little feature that has the needles go from 0-max on RPM and speedometer when you first turn in on.

Lastly, I want to start moving on to some visual things now. So far i've only added a trunk lip spoiler, but I am considering a few different options for the front lip.

• Trunk Lip Spoiler - Very easy install, came out as expected. Subtle, but I like it. And for $40 from eBay cant go wrong!
  
  

*UPDATES*

• EC High Flow Intercooler Pipe - Straightforward install, didnt run into any issues along the way. I didnt notice a major improvement, but i did feel like boost was available a little earlier in the RPM band. I monitor boost via the Torque app and it definitely comes on quick and strong. Noticeable change in engine tone, has a bit of a deeper growl to it now. Very very happy with this mod. (install pics posted later in thread)
  

What's next? Now that the HFIP is installed, I am in the process of researching/saving for my next mods. Now that I have the throttle response I am looking for, my next mods I am going to tackle traction and handling. I would like to upgrade to wider tires (245-255), the Alu Kreuz (if I can find a good deal on it) and definitely some lowering springs - most likely H&R OEs. Another project I am looking into is a transcooler, specifically Mishimotos. If anyone has any experience with transcoolers I'm all ears! Beyond that, I have a few visual upgrades in mind. Definitely a front lip of some kind, some wheel spacers and some interior goodies I've been eyeing. In addition, I am looking into wiring up my old amp/subs from my previous car. Most likely going to tap into rear speakers and run the amp from the trunk.

Constructive feedback is always welcome! Thanks for taking the time to check it out.

[WngoA4]

I have a CVT with stage 2. Eurcode pulley and intercooler pipes will help with the response as we

[Okan509]

my favorite cheap to my a4 was the EC inter cooler pipe. Would look into that

[oh10a4]

I have a CVT with stage 2. Eurcode pulley and intercooler pipes will help with the response as we

Good to know! I was thinking about jumping on the group buy for one.. might have to really look into that now.

my favorite cheap to my a4 was the EC inter cooler pipe. Would look into that

It's literally "out for delivery" as we speak :) Did you do the install yourself? If so - how was it?

[Liquid Smoke]

question about the VAGCOM dynamic mode and steering mod, does that work on any A4? mine is a 2.0T Quattro, i can just enable that and get better response/steering without any of the extra packages? i think i remember trying that once and was told i'd need ADS or something like that.

[oh10a4]

question about the VAGCOM dynamic mode and steering mod, does that work on any A4? mine is a 2.0T Quattro, i can just enable that and get better response/steering without any of the extra packages? i think i remember trying that once and was told i'd need ADS or something like that.

It should work on any A4. I enabled it on mine with NO MMI NO NAV NO ADS and it turned on. You will get an error for "no charisma switch" in the vagcom readout, because... well there's no ADS(charisma) switch, but it doesn't affect anything, and doesnt show an engine light or anything like that. You wont benefit from the Dynamic suspension change unless you have the upgraded suspension - I do not have this so there was no change to that. Just the steering and pedal response.

[FourRingThing]

You want to get this http://www.ecodetuning.com/shop/cart..._detail&p=2055 as well to go with the intercooler pipe. Then finish it off with a Test Pipe or high flow cat and you will be turbo lag free.

[oh10a4]

You want to get this http://www.ecodetuning.com/shop/cart..._detail&p=2055 as well to go with the intercooler pipe. Then finish it off with a Test Pipe or high flow cat and you will be turbo lag free.

I've read mixed reviews on the the whole pipe kit. Some said it helped, others said it did nothing. I've been debating on the HFC, but if i got the HFC i'd have to get the Stage 2 APR tune (obviously!) and im not sure how much i want to push the power with the CVT. Great suggestions though as they are already on my mind. I suppose if i got the pipe kit, i could do the piping, along with the EC IC pipe together.

[Liquid Smoke]

It should work on any A4. I enabled it on mine with NO MMI NO NAV NO ADS and it turned on. You will get an error for "no charisma switch" in the vagcom readout, because... well there's no ADS(charisma) switch, but it doesn't affect anything, and doesnt show an engine light or anything like that. You wont benefit from the Dynamic suspension change unless you have the upgraded suspension - I do not have this so there was no change to that. Just the steering and pedal response.

ah ok, i think the guy i asked thought i meant the dynamic suspension part and said i didnt have it, but im definitely gonna check out the steering and response then, surprised theres not much about that on the vagcom mods, at least not in threads ive seen.

[Okan509]

Good to know! I was thinking about jumping on the group buy for one.. might have to really look into that now.



It's literally "out for delivery" as we speak :) Did you do the install yourself? If so - how was it?

yeah, it was a little bit of a bitch to reach the stock bolt by the air box on the stock one, but it wasn't too bad

[oh10a4]

ah ok, i think the guy i asked thought i meant the dynamic suspension part and said i didnt have it, but im definitely gonna check out the steering and response then, surprised theres not much about that on the vagcom mods, at least not in threads ive seen.

Props to NPuter for this thread... this is the one I used to enable the ADS features I was talking about..
http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...-VAG-COM-codes

yeah, it was a little bit of a bitch to reach the stock bolt by the air box on the stock one, but it wasn't too bad

I had read somewhere that the airbox isnt affixed to the pipe itself and that you can loosen it somehow and turn it to get to that last bolt thats supposed to be a pain? I poked around in the engine yesterday seeing how things were, i'd like to attempt this install over the weekend.

[junchen]

Camping here. I have a cvt too, and have done some similar mods in my bid to improve my throttle response. Shall have to look into the turbo inlet pipe. Would be putting up my build thread here shortly once I get the time to consolidate my pictures.

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[oh10a4]

Installed the EC HFIP over the weekend. Havent had time to give a proper update on the build thread.

The install went pretty easy. Thanks to the writeup on the AZ, it went very smooth. A huge tip for anyone attempting this.. THE SOUND BOX IS REMOVABLE FROM THE PIPE. The soundbox is NOT affixed to the pipe, its held on by a rubber nipple that you can very easily twist or remove. This makes getting to the 3rd bolt securing the pipe cake. Also, make sure you are keeping track of what you are removing shielding wise, i ended up with an extra screw and clip for the wheel well and splash guard liners. Didnt affect anything, but worth mentioning.

As for the actual install, you take off the wheel, unplug the sensor from the stock pipe, loosen the clamps on each end of the stock pipe, then unbolt the 3 securing bolts from the pipe and it drops out. Installing the HFIP is even easier as you have a ton more room to work with without the sound box. Something else worth mentioning was that when you d/c the lower end of the stock pipe, there may be a little oil in there. I read on other install guides that folks had quite a lot, but i only had a few drops come out. Either way - you dont want to be under the pipe when you are disconnecting it. I'm going to include some random pics of the install below.

Wheel off (I didnt have a jack stand available, so I figured having an extra jack would give me some piece of mine, even though I was never actually under the car for this.



Stock pipe out! (and upside down)




New pipe installed (sorry for crappy pic, i can try to get a better one installed if anyone is interested)