2013 Audi Allroad - Premium+
INTERIOR
- BFI Shift Knob
- ECS Tuning Boost Guage
- Full Dynamated Truck
- WeatherTech Floor Mats: Black, Front and Rear
- DIY Red Engine Start/Stop Button
EXTERIOR
- NGP Rear Bumper Cover
- Ebay Deal Front Splitter
- JDM Performance Bumper Quick Release
- Blacked-out OEM Grill
- Custom Slotted Fog Light Vents
- Rear Wiper Delete
- Whispbar Roof Rack
- Grocery Getter Cart Roof Basket
- Carbon Fiber Mirror Covers
- DIY Aluminum Front Canards
PERFORMANCE
- APR Stage 2 Tune
- R8 Coil Packs
- CTS Turbo Catch Can w/ Africa Plate
- ECS Tuning Carbon Fiber Intake
- ECS Tuning FMIC
- Full ECS Tuning Intercooler Piping
- Go Fast Bits DV+
- ECS Tuning Turbo Muffler Delete
- CTS Turbo Test Pipe
- CTS Turbo Downpipe
- ECS Tuning Dipstick
- DEI Gold Heat Shield Trans tunnel and Turbo Wall
- A5 Brake Carrier Upgrade w/ Vented and Slotted Rotors
- EBC Green Stuff Pads
- Stop Tech steel-braided brake lines
SUSPENSION & WHEELS
- Airlift 3P (Hidden in Spare Tire Well)
- Custom Hard-Line setup w/ LEDs
- Switchspeed 2.5 Gallon Spun Seamless Tank
- Dual VIAIR 444 Compressors
- Vossen 20x10.5 ET35
- Powerflex Black Series Control Arm Bushings
Let me take a long story and make it longer. But don't worry, photos (mostly with the potato phone) and goodies to come.
From 2011-2014 I lived in Belgium, where a French co-worker of mine purchased a brand new diesel Allroad. It was everything my Mk6 GTI (static and low AF, pretty much a horrid daily. But YO, BRO! I was cool and hip... right?) wasn't. The AR was refined AND it had all the space to carry goodies, lumber, and stuff. I figured I needed one in my life. As luck would have it, after returning to the states, I found a 2013 Premium+ for sale at a decent price, with 36k miles. Boom, I've got a wagon (who doesn't love wagons? If you're reading this, you probably love wagons too).
Here she is, fresh from the dealer and getting a wash. I've got my 8 year old who's "trying to help."
First thing I needed was to lower it from the original monster truck status. Yes, Yes, it's meant to be a monster truck, but that's not what I bought it for. I did the standard internet search and ordered a set of H&R lowering springs. At the same time, I found a set of Vossen Wheels on VWVortex (20x10.5 et35 / wrapped in 275 x 30 tires).
Here she is on the H&R Springs
Problem was, this still wasn't low enough. Even with the Vossen 20's the fender-to-wheel gap was still atrocious. But after rolling for 2 years in the static MK6 GTI, where every bump was a major obstacle to roll over sideways, I wasn't going down the static road again. This time I was going bagged....
I'm sure many of you have noticed, the OEM pads and some brake-dust creating monsters. Its like the dandruff of Audi. While I was hunting for a new brake pad, I found the A5 Upgrade kit from ECS. The kit came with the larger vented and slotted rotors, along with the larger pad carriers off the A5. I combined that with a set of EBC Green Stuff pads and went to town. Then I found out I needed a VAGCOM to release the rear brakes (STUPID A** BS). Trading beer for a VAGCOM use, I got that bit a a**-pain worked out.
Here's the trunk set-up. It's all hidden inside the spare tire well. The set-up needs to be cleaned up with a false-floor built to hide the subwoofer and the dynamat. That's the next project. And yes, I love the sticker bomb look, but it doesn't go well with the Audi, so I hid it.
Soon after I got her all put back together, a head-phone wearing teenager backed out of her parking spot and smashed the bumper...
Her insurance paid to have it fixed, which included a fixed bumper, new headlight, and a new fog light vent grill. But, the repair shop was garbage when it came to repairing the bumper and they tore the bumper where it affixes to the wheel arch, specifically the portion that is squeezed together to keep the fender flush (yes, I know, this is a crappy description). I complained about this and the only way to fix it is order a new bumper. Instead, I took the money for the bumper and bought other parts. This is also why I have the JDM Fresh Quick Bumper Releases (JDM Fresh because the local owner loves the AR and hooked me up with these if I rocked his sticker).
While the car was being fixed, I decided to cut out the fins of the fog light vent covers. I find it a much better look, especially with the upgraded FMIC. (I can give a DIY if you want to do this too)
Over the coming months came a host of other modifications.
Like this ECS Tuning Carbon Fiber intake (which I think looks and works awesome... better than the APR system I had on the MK6 at 1/2 the cost)
The wife purchased me a DSG Shift Knob from Black Forest Industries. I dig the look as the huge-a** OEM T-handle took up too much space.
Also added an ECS Boost Gauge because TURBO that's why! Adding this to the vent was a huge pain in the ass. What was supposed to be a short 1-2 hour project ended up taking a week with the car down in the garage. First, I'm pretty sure Audi Designers decided to make the vents out of the most parts they could possible make a mechanism. They are like hand-made Swiss watches. If you've ever had one "explode" (yes that's what they do under pressure), then you know what its like trying to find the tiny metal connectors in the floor board of a black interior. OR, BETTER YET, one of those little metal pieces slides down the vent pipe and your have to fish it out blind with a magnet on a stick. Second, DO NOT BREAK the plastic connectors on the OEM vacuum hose that crosses over the intake manifold. If you do, you can't buy a connector.... you'll have to spend $140 ish on a whole new vacuum hose assembly (and you local Audi dealer won't have this in stock, so you'll have so special order it.) YO! but it look real sweet bro (facepalm).
About this same time I added a CTS Turbo Catch Can (great buy from the forum). Had one on the MK6 and does well keeping sludge from being recycled.
Working toward the Stage 2 tune, I purchased a Test Pipe and Downpipe from CTS Turbo. First off, the AR community here is correct the CTS DP DOES NOT FIT!! I repeat, IT DOES NOT FIT. It connects with the large collar (I'm sure there's a more official term for this) on the drive shaft. It is also too long. It's easy to cut down, so that's not a problem. CTS will deny that their DP won't fit. I went back and forth with them over email. But after having my car down in the garage and bumming rides for two weeks, I just beat a "recess" into the pipe and called it day. Utilizing a rubber mallet and a whole lot of pent up aggression can fix this problem. (I've misplaced the photos of this whole debacle, but if it's something you need, I'll crawl up under there and grab some photos).
I was surprised how rusted the OEM downpipe bolts were. All of them sheared off, forcing me to cut the OEM Downpipe apart to get it out of the car. Installing the test pipe was also a huge ass-pain. There's just no really good way to reach those bolts. I had to put together a conglomeration of extensions and elbows onto the ratchet and blindly hunt for those turbo bolts (There's awesome DIYs on the forum, they saved my butt). Plus, one of the bolts backed itself out and stripped. Uggghhh... when I replace the turbo, that stupid aluminum heat shield is getting the boot. I wrapped the Test pipe in Titanium wrapping.
Remember how I said one of the Turbo bolts backed out and stripped? Well I had to find a new one ASAP! Luckily (the best shop in the world, VAG-Haus, El Paso) had an old k03 they let me borrow some bolts from. While traveling with this old, broken and leaking turbo in my trunk, it slid around the back (yeah, I should have secured it better). Anyway, when I opened the hatch, the turbo jumped out and attacked me! While fending off the wild turbo, it decided to take a chunk out of my rear bumper and jack-up the paint. This is why I ordered a bumper cover from NGP. Seriously, if you haul stuff in your trunk, buy this thing for $100. It has been worth every penny. The fit and finish is outstanding.
More recently, I took apart the grill and painted it. The first time, I just plasti-dipped it on the car. This worked well, but didn't have the finish I wanted. The second time I took the grill out of the car and painted it.... Its been about 2 months and the El Paso sand has left it looking like crap. At this point, I'll probably just plasti-dip it again while its on the car.
You may be wondering where I got that epically sweet front splitter?! That's a $75 Ebay purchase. One of those JDM universal, make your civic look awesome splitters... except its the make your BMW look like an M version. To make it work, I just measured the length and depth of the front end, then hunted through the universal section of Ebay till I found something close. It took some minor cutting, but I got it all together. The splitter bars add some rigidity to the front, with the quattro sticker rounds out the look('Cause RACECAR!). (Yeah, I know, there's fancy Carbon Fiber ones, specifically made for the car. But, I'd rather spend $500-800 on other stuff). It works best as a Toddler seat. My 18-month old has decided that's his place to sit and watch me wrench.
Let's talk about those big-a** wheels. The 20x10.5 Vossens. Yes, they look great and they tuck very nicely when I'm aired out. It's even better when you're running 275/30's on there. Rubber-Band tires are awesome, unless it's your daily and every rock is jacking-up your wheels. No one likes curb-rashed wheels. When it came time to buy some new tires, I had the wheels stripped and powder-coated. I also moved up to a 275/35 tire, which has made a much smoother and less curb-damage prone ride. (If you've got Vossens and want to know how to remove the fake outer lip, shoot me a note. If you don't remove it, it will jack up your paint or powder coating). The new powder coat color is more of a gunmetal and matches the silver/grey of the AR well.
More recently, I ordered the Luft-Technik FMIC kit from ECS. I had been hunting a FMIC for a while, but also wanted the piping to go along with it. The combination is usually quite expensive and I had been saving my pennies to make it happen. Then ECS released this whole thing for a steal.
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ecs-part...02894ecs01kt1/
I was quite impressed with the finished product. Here's a quick note for AR owners who purchase this: The charge pipe that runs from the turbo to the FMIC (passenger side) comes into contact with a metal support brace for the front end. The pipe will fit just fine, but you'll end up with a rattle at certain RPMs. I ended up having the wife push the pipe away from the support while I adjusted and tightened the clamps. No more rattle. I also added some foam-backed tape to the upper side of the support to prevent any rubbing should it connect again.
Between the Turbo Muffler Delete, new charge pipes, and the CF intake. I get all the turbo PSSSSHHHHHH noise I need in my life.
Now we are to the present. I had a large roof-basket attached to my whispbars for the longest time (the one seen in the first photo). But I really didn't love how off-road big it looked. Plus, it seriously cut down on my mpg. I've always had a single Grocery Getter decal on the back glass, so it was time to finish off the look. It took me a couple of weeks, but eventually I found a grocery cart stranded out in the desert. I cut the cart in half and removed the middle portion, welding the top and bottom together. Then I painted it grey to match the AR cladding and wrapped the front bumpers and handle in gloss-black. To finish it off, I mounted it to the whispbars with some 4 inch stainless steel hose clamps.
I took the latest and greatest to Springfest 2017, where I won 3rd Place for Euros (fist pump). Yes, I added some paper grocery bags to the rack :)
Here we are... next step is either a K04 or possible CTS BOSS Turbo kit (if they ever actually release it). I also need to replace the upper control arms, as the bushings are worn. At some point, I'll bite the bullet and clean up the visuals for the air ride system for shows. Finally, I want to replace the OEM coolant overflow tank with something a little more visually pleasing.
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks