_doom's delayed build thread

**rusq5** · 04-25-2016 03:17 PM

After looking at the pile of stock parts in the garage, I figured I should make a build thread to document all the stuff I've done.

June 2015. Took delivery of my Midnight Blue/Black & Chestnut brown SQ5. B&O, black optics, 21s, and tech package.

First thing I did was get
cquartz finest
20% llumar ctx on all windows - rear windows are ~6%

I did nothing for around 6-7 months. Then I got busy:
034 Motorsport silicone intake
stock ported airbox mod
kw has
ecodes (thanks drumnjuny)
HRE P40SC 20x10 with Potenza S001 in 295/35

Not pictured:
034 xbrace
034 drivetrain inserts
034 front and rear adjustable endlinks
034 rear sway bar (thanks Laszlo)

set of silver mirror caps i might throw on

How she sits now

Up next is:
GIAC stage 2 (or maybe something 034???

)
AWE NR Touring
KW V2

**turrifik** · 04-25-2016 06:45 PM

295. Nice. More rear end photos please

**SQ57** · 04-25-2016 11:16 PM

Nice!
Cheers,
Bob

**drumnjuny** · 04-26-2016 05:15 AM

Love it! Glad you like the ecodes!

I'm on the fence about the sway bar and drivetrain brace. Did you think the brace or sway bar made any noticeable difference? Inserts, I definitely think I need lol. No more money this month haha

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**SQive** · 04-26-2016 09:20 AM

Originally Posted by _doom

034 rear sway bar (thanks Laszlo)

When did you get the 034 rear sway-bar? They haven't released them yet, have they?

**drumnjuny** · 04-26-2016 09:38 AM

Originally Posted by SQive

When did you get the 034 rear sway-bar? They haven't released them yet, have they?

not released. he is special. maybe lazlo will hook it up for ya haha

**SQive** · 04-26-2016 10:19 AM

I got an email from Lazlo a few weeks ago and he said they were next for production. . .said he would tell me as soon as they became available.

**jomama229** · 04-26-2016 11:06 AM

Originally Posted by SQive

I got an email from Lazlo a few weeks ago and he said they were next for production. . .said he would tell me as soon as they became available.

gotta move to the bay area! for the ridiculous amount we're subject to paying for housing, we get the benefit of being within driving distance to 034! =)

i actually haven't done anything to my car yet - waiting for 034 to crack the ecu for the Q5 before i make a decision on which way to go. i did swing by 034 one time to let lazlo pull codes from my ecu. i guess they'll work on it when they decide they want to work on it.

btw, sweet looking ride there _doom! i think i've seen your other pics on ncac's fb page. glad someone's got a Q5/SQ5 front and center at 034! =)

**rusq5** · 04-26-2016 11:51 AM

Originally Posted by drumnjuny

not released. he is special. maybe lazlo will hook it up for ya haha

My mom always said I was special... I think I have a non production/test production version going in. I was in there this morning and it was in the prototype pile. I let them have the car for the day to fiddle and test things out.

Originally Posted by jomama229

gotta move to the bay area! for the ridiculous amount we're subject to paying for housing, we get the benefit of being within driving distance to 034! =)

i actually haven't done anything to my car yet - waiting for 034 to crack the ecu for the Q5 before i make a decision on which way to go. i did swing by 034 one time to let lazlo pull codes from my ecu. i guess they'll work on it when they decide they want to work on it.

btw, sweet looking ride there _doom! i think i've seen your other pics on ncac's fb page. glad someone's got a Q5/SQ5 front and center at 034! =)

They're close to this. I think I'll be heading back in a couple months to get stage 2 done. Since I'm only 10 min away from their shop, I let them know I'd be happy to drop my car off for them to play with and test stuff on. I'm looking forward to the map switching/reflashing to stock at home with their tool. This would be huge! I really want to get some 100/105 octane and do some crazy 1/4 passes.

**jomama229** · 04-26-2016 01:15 PM

Originally Posted by _doom

They're close to this. I think I'll be heading back in a couple months to get stage 2 done. Since I'm only 10 min away from their shop, I let them know I'd be happy to drop my car off for them to play with and test stuff on. I'm looking forward to the map switching/reflashing to stock at home with their tool. This would be huge! I really want to get some 100/105 octane and do some crazy 1/4 passes.

good to know! i asked lazlo about tuning for e85, but his answer at the time was no. i hope he'll reconsider since i have a station with e85 not too far from me. i guess, at the very least, i can do a few gallons of e85 per tank for the poor man's octane boost. i'm excited to see what kind of times the 034 tuned Q5s will put down...their s4 test cars seem to be doing pretty good work out there! and map switching...boom!!!

**rusq5** · 04-26-2016 01:43 PM

Originally Posted by drumnjuny

not released. he is special. maybe lazlo will hook it up for ya haha

Originally Posted by jomama229

good to know! i asked lazlo about tuning for e85, but his answer at the time was no. i hope he'll reconsider since i have a station with e85 not too far from me. i guess, at the very least, i can do a few gallons of e85 per tank for the poor man's octane boost. i'm excited to see what kind of times the 034 tuned Q5s will put down...their s4 test cars seem to be doing pretty good work out there! and map switching...boom!!!

I haven't heard anyone doing E85 with the 3.0T. I'm not sure if the motor can run E85 without big issues. I think I'll be able to get a baseline WHP and gains when I do the tune. Time to guinea pig the SQ!

**rusq5** · 04-26-2016 01:44 PM

Originally Posted by turrifik

295. Nice. More rear end photos please

I still need to do a proper shoot. Maybe this weekend I'll make some time.

**jomama229** · 04-26-2016 02:01 PM

Originally Posted by _doom

I haven't heard anyone doing E85 with the 3.0T. I'm not sure if the motor can run E85 without big issues. I think I'll be able to get a baseline WHP and gains when I do the tune. Time to guinea pig the SQ!

EPL in CT and Solo Motorsports in GA have both dabbled with E85, though there hasn't been much chatter about solo's tunes recently. the two main issues that needs to be dealt with when running pure E85 is to make sure your fuel lines/pumps are designed to resist the corrosive properties of ethanol, and that you get enough fueling so as to not run lean. since most pump gas includes some amount of ethanol, most new cars have fuel systems that aren't prone to corrosion. as for the latter issue - it's likely that you need to install a high pressure fuel pump to handle the additional fueling required by E85. there are a handful of S4 folks that pump a few gallons of E85 into their tank per fill-up to get up to around and E30 mix (without having tuned for E85). i'm not sure what the resulting effective octane is, but i do know it gives the 91 we get here in CA a much needed bump.

**Chibi** · 04-26-2016 07:53 PM

Lookin good!

**Mops@Nemesis** · 04-26-2016 08:41 PM

Love Moonlight, and the wheels work so well. Lets see some chestnut pics.

That FD

**turrifik** · 04-26-2016 08:49 PM

Originally Posted by _doom

I still need to do a proper shoot. Maybe this weekend I'll make some time.

Looks great. What wheel offset is that?

Are your tires close to rubbing on the inboard sides or could you have gone 305?

Also curious why you didn't go 295 40 20. Would be a bit closer to stock diameter vs 35 series. But maybe tire costs are much different.

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**rusq5** · 04-27-2016 09:41 AM

Thanks everyone. I'm loving this thing. Just got back from 034 yesterday. Drivetrain inserts make the car feel so much sportier and aggressive. It is nice to feel connected to the car more. The sway and x-brace really help the car keep the front connected. I haven't had enough time to push the front, but the 295s, springs, and 034 parts really keep the front in line. On ramps where the front would start to wash out stock at 45 I can take at 65 now. I haven't been able to get the front to push/understeer like before, I'm too scared to go that fast. Mission accomplished. Haha.

Originally Posted by turrifik

Looks great. What wheel offset is that?

Are your tires close to rubbing on the inboard sides or could you have gone 305?

Also curious why you didn't go 295 40 20. Would be a bit closer to stock diameter vs 35 series. But maybe tire costs are much different.

Wheels are ET30. I might put a 3mm spacer on the back, the front sits out a bit more.

I am no where close to rubbing. I don't think I could have gone 305 on a 10"? I couldn't find PSS or S001 in a 40 series and I wanted to run a good sticky DD. I'm not sure about cost, I wasn't really concerned when I was getting them. Haha

**VroomVroom** · 04-27-2016 06:02 PM

Gorgeous! Such a great color combo, topped with those sweet wheels. Awesome to hear the 'go' trumping the 'show', but man....the show sure is pretty. Kudos.

**turrifik** · 04-27-2016 06:12 PM

Originally Posted by _doom

Wheels are ET30. I might put a 3mm spacer on the back, the front sits out a bit more.

I am no where close to rubbing. I don't think I could have gone 305 on a 10"? I couldn't find PSS or S001 in a 40 series and I wanted to run a good sticky DD. I'm not sure about cost, I wasn't really concerned when I was getting them. Haha

That's good to know. Has anyone gone as wide as 305?

Would probably be fine on 10.5. 10" rim would be the lower limit for 305 35r20 PS2 according to tirerack.

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**rusq5** · 04-27-2016 07:06 PM

Originally Posted by turrifik

That's good to know. Has anyone gone as wide as 305?

Would probably be fine on 10.5. 10" rim would be the lower limit for 305 35r20 PS2 according to tirerack.

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i don't think i'd recommend it. now that i've done the sway/other upgrades i'm finding the sidewall is the weak point in my set up. i think (think?) i'm getting some sidewall flex when i really push the car. this is only when i'm taking a corner way way faster than i should be haha

**SQive** · 04-27-2016 07:36 PM

Originally Posted by _doom

i don't think i'd recommend it. now that i've done the sway/other upgrades i'm finding the sidewall is the weak point in my set up. i think (think?) i'm getting some sidewall flex when i really push the car. this is only when i'm taking a corner way way faster than i should be haha

What is the load rating of your tires? Mine are 107Y and I think they could deflect a bullet. In fact, I blame them for my rough riding stock suspension, but they do rock at the track!

**rusq5** · 04-27-2016 07:43 PM

105Y. I'm honestly not sure, its just been the past couple days i've noticed anything. the outside tire has so much more load on it than with the stock sways. i've also been pushing them a lot harder than i ever have now that i've got more confidence in the front staying where i want it.

**turrifik** · 04-27-2016 08:33 PM

Originally Posted by _doom

i don't think i'd recommend it. now that i've done the sway/other upgrades i'm finding the sidewall is the weak point in my set up. i think (think?) i'm getting some sidewall flex when i really push the car. this is only when i'm taking a corner way way faster than i should be haha

I've noticed the sidewall flex you're mentioning on past set ups where I chose a particularly wide tire. Not sure what load rating I had though.

305 might even start to look a bit 'ballooned' on a 10" rim. How do your sidewall profiles look at 295 - Is the tire much wider than the rim?

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**rusq5** · 04-27-2016 09:15 PM

Originally Posted by turrifik

I've noticed the sidewall flex you're mentioning on past set ups where I chose a particularly wide tire. Not sure what load rating I had though.

305 might even start to look a bit 'ballooned' on a 10" rim. How do your sidewall profiles look at 295 - Is the tire wider than the rim?

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Yeah quite a big bigger. I'm at 11.3 width on the tire and 10 for the rim. Quite a bit bigger tire. I don't think it looks too ballooned, but my next set of wheels will probably 21x10.5 with a 295. I'm thinking a set of 21" HRE 300M would look nice - also in satin bronze. I'll wait until i burn through these tires first. tune/intercooler/carbon airbox from 034 is hopefully next.

**turrifik** · 04-28-2016 06:28 AM

That looks great. Any idea how much those HRE's weigh with or w/o tires?

I'm also thinking of going with wide sticky tires and going light on the wheels to compensate for the extra meat.

**SQive** · 04-28-2016 09:22 AM

Originally Posted by _doom

Yeah quite a big bigger. I'm at 11.3 width on the tire and 10 for the rim. Quite a bit bigger tire. I don't think it looks too ballooned, but my next set of wheels will probably 21x10.5 with a 295. I'm thinking a set of 21" HRE 300M would look nice - also in satin bronze. I'll wait until i burn through these tires first. tune/intercooler/carbon airbox from 034 is hopefully next.

Don't let 'em bullshit ya'. That is a perfect fitment of wheels, offsets, and tires.
If sidewall flex is your issue, the fix is to go to a plus size, like 21" or 22".

**rusq5** · 04-28-2016 11:04 AM

Originally Posted by turrifik

That looks great. Any idea how much those HRE's weigh with or w/o tires?

I'm also thinking of going with wide sticky tires and going light on the wheels to compensate for the extra meat.

22lbs. Tires are 31lbs. I think I'm down around 11-12lbs from the stock 21s.

**turrifik** · 04-28-2016 11:10 AM

Originally Posted by SQive

Don't let 'em bullshit ya'. That is a perfect fitment of wheels, offsets, and tires.
If sidewall flex is your issue, the fix is to go to a plus size, like 21" or 22".

Yup. Looks great to me. Making me want to go with a wider set-up. You're tires are almost 2 inches wider than oem.

Originally Posted by _doom

22lbs. Tires are 31lbs. I think I'm down around 11-12lbs from the stock 21s.

Beautiful. Best of both worlds.

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**rusq5** · 05-13-2016 12:23 PM

I was featured on 034's site! They got some great photos of her. Full write up and all the photos are here.

**drumnjuny** · 05-13-2016 01:22 PM

looks unreal! well done!

**Adplaya** · 05-13-2016 02:16 PM

You got ecodes? Damn so lonely over here in orange reflector land

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**turrifik** · 05-13-2016 03:16 PM

Great view

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**andrios** · 05-14-2016 02:56 AM

Originally Posted by turrifik

Great view

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DAT ASS!

Sick ride dude.

**drumnjuny** · 05-14-2016 04:56 AM

Originally Posted by Adplaya

You got ecodes? Damn so lonely over here in orange reflector land

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Will only get lonelier and lonelier, haha!

**Critter1** · 05-14-2016 03:46 PM

I think my SQ5 will end up being yours younger twin! Love the wheels and stance. Where are you set at on the HAS springs?

**SQ57** · 05-18-2016 01:20 PM

Nice. Shoutout for the KW work?!

**rusq5** · 09-23-2016 10:41 AM

Originally Posted by BobSF

Nice. Shoutout for the KW work?!

Shout out to Infinite Auto Tech. I'll probably have them do the KW V2/V3 I'll be getting in the next year or so.

Also huge shout out to 034. I'm now running their stage 2 tune. I can't compare it to APR/GIAC/EPL/Others, but compared to stock its like night and day. The car pulls throughout the rev range hard and feels like it just wants to keep giving. I need to disable the auto upshifts, but I plan on getting some passes in this November at JHM's event.

I also put on AWE non-res touring.

Finally shout out to MOPS, I have an AMS cooler on the way that I'm stoked to get on as well.

The build continues.

**colby7** · 09-23-2016 11:43 AM

Good job Russ! I'm looking forward to kicking it at the JHM event.

**freesole** · 09-23-2016 03:20 PM

Gorgeous ride. The midnight blue is such a nice color, it's subtle but when it shows, the color is outstanding. Your color combo with the dusty gold wheels really makes your car a head turner. Any reason why you went with 034 over other tunes? Sounds like you are enjoying it. Are you on lease as well?

Also, did you find the 034 mounts to be worthwhile?

**rusq5** · 09-23-2016 04:43 PM

034 is literally 6 miles from my house. I can't even find a closer APR/GIAC dealer. I also like working directly with the company putting out the tune vs a dealer.

I'm not leasing.

I really like the mounts. Makes the car's shifts crisper and I can feel the rear end better through the car. It also got rid of some of the unattached feeling I had when the car was stock. It was too soft and supple, this stiffens things up and makes it more believable that its a "sport CUV"

- - - Updated - - -

Originally Posted by colby7

Good job Russ! I'm looking forward to kicking it at the JHM event.

Me too. Would be cool to have two stupid fast Moonlight Q5s.