Jumping on the bandwagon: OEM+ 2013 Monsoon Gray Allroad Build Thread

**Zach L** · 09-08-2017 12:45 PM

What an amazing build! Quality and attention to detail

**choppstixxx** · 09-08-2017 12:54 PM

Love all the tasteful Euro mods man and love the Chestnut interior (I have the same color). Def. gonna try to source those leather arm rests, how much did you pay for yours?

**chip_** · 09-08-2017 02:06 PM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

Special thanks to V70R and dropshadow for sharing this. ECS had the OEM S4/S-line spoiler for under $50 (https://www.ecstuning.com/b-audi-zub...8k9071640a9ax/). The Allroad needed some sort of spoiler at the top of the hatch, but the RS4 didn’t do it for me (too aggressive for the lines of the Allroad). For the price, I didn’t think this could end badly and placed the order.

The S-line spoiler is essentially the same shape as the top of the hatch but extends roughly an inch further out the back. It’s very subtle, but perfect for me. A local higher-end body shop charged me $200 to paint it and I installed it myself with double sided tape and adhesion promoter from Amazon.

3M Tape - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
3M Adhesion Promoter - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Just went to check pricing on this and it went back up/backordered.....

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 09-09-2017 12:52 AM

Originally Posted by Zach L

What an amazing build! Quality and attention to detail

Thanks! It's all the small details that make the car unique to me.

Originally Posted by choppstixxx

Love all the tasteful Euro mods man and love the Chestnut interior (I have the same color). Def. gonna try to source those leather arm rests, how much did you pay for yours?

All of my previous cars have had black interiors. I wasn't sure how I felt about the Chestnut at first, but it's really grown on me. In 2013-14 the only way to get the black headliner was with the Chestnut. I figured if I really didn't like it the seats were much easier to replace than the headliner and all of the trim pieces.

EDIT: missed this part. I think I paid $450 from avantagg for the armrests. Axis might be another possibility or you can try your luck on eBay.de. BKS Tuning sells them for $1250 or something stupid new.

Originally Posted by chip_

Just went to check pricing on this and it went back up/backordered.....

Bummer! It is really subtle. Unless you're parked next to another Allroad or someone points it out, I doubt anyone would ever notice.

I put together a modification list for my Jetta earlier this year printed on foam core board and figured I should do the same for the Allroad before its first show. The one I did for the Jetta was a last minute idea and really rushed. I spent a bit more time on this one and am really happy with the way it turned out!

**chip_** · 09-09-2017 07:46 AM

Wow I like it.

**makisupa** · 09-09-2017 10:42 AM

This is awesome, this redefines the OEM+ game!

**alhutch** · 09-12-2017 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

Thanks!

My tedious search for larger winter wheels finally paid off. I located a set of 20"x8.5" peelers from an A6. The offset is a bit higher than the Q5 peelers (ET45 vs. 33). I'd need spacers either way and the only other difference is a little less concavity which I'm fine with for winter wheels. The wheels were brand new, OEM, and only $1400 shipped. No center caps, but the caps from the RS5 wheels will transfer over.

At first glance I assumed these were reps due to the price and generic pictures (http://www.ebay.com/itm/4x-New-OEM-E...p=mtr#shpCntId). The seller's other items appeared to be OEM. Searching his username led me to his account on TDI Club and his website. He's well established and has of good feedback through the forum. I talked to him this morning to confirm they were OEM and placed the order through him directly. Based on the variety of items I have a hunch he frequents the VW/Audi parts outlet site, adds a markup, and resells them.

I'll test to see if they clear RS5 brakes with/without spacers, but now will more likely go with the 380mm kit from JHM. Hate to say it, but I'm almost excited for winter now...

I know Aaron (owner of Cascade German) from TDI Club and locally here in Portland. His stuff is generally sourced directly from Germany. He is always getting interesting / weird lots of stuff that he digs up.

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 09-12-2017 10:12 PM

Originally Posted by alhutch

I know Aaron (owner of Cascade German) from TDI Club and locally here in Portland. His stuff is generally sourced directly from Germany. He is always getting interesting / weird lots of stuff that he digs up.

Yeah, he had a lot of cool stuff. From the phone call I had with him I had absolutely no concerns with the transaction. Great guy! The wheels will be here Thursday, then my local tire shop advised me to wait another month or so before I ordered snow tires.

This past weekend I drove up to Minneapolis for Eurowerks. I hadn't been up there for a few years due to work/other obligations, but it was a great time. I spent too much time catching up with people I hadn't seen in a while. This is the only picture I took:

**dropshadow** · 09-13-2017 08:44 AM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

This past weekend I drove up to Minneapolis for Eurowerks. I hadn't been up there for a few years due to work/other obligations, but it was a great time. I spent too much time catching up with people I hadn't seen in a while. This is the only picture I took:

Dude! Had I known you'd be in town, I would have assembled the MN allroad crew.

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 09-13-2017 10:45 AM

Originally Posted by dropshadow

Dude! Had I know you'd be in town, I would have assembled the MN allroad crew.

Bummer! I spent most of the weekend with a friend in Rochester and was only in town for the actual show. Perhaps next year!

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 09-21-2017 11:38 AM

They're here! I was a little frustrated that these were brand new wheels and all of them had marks around the edges where the cardboard split from poor packaging. Except for one where the paint chipped and peeled over onto the face all of the marks will be hidden by the tires. Cascade German quickly shipped out a replacement for the worst one (packed much better!) and sent me a prepaid label to ship the damaged wheel back. Unfortunate situation, but they handled it very well.

After a little more digging, it seems the A6 was never offered with 20" peelers in the US. This specific fitment (20"x8.5" ET45) was a Euro only wheel.

**Allthea** · 09-21-2017 11:51 AM

nicely done. subscribed.

**jmat** · 09-27-2017 09:07 PM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

I didn’t take many pictures of this and I should have, but I finished the auto hold parking brake switch. This is the guide that I followed: http://www.audienthusiasts.com/Project_HillHold.html

As mentioned earlier when I did the suspension wiring I ran two wires up to the ABS control module along the factory harness. To gain better access to the connector I partially removed the coolant reservoir and tilted it out of the way. Even though the line towards the front of the reservoir is at the top, some coolant still spilled out with the hose upright (and poured down onto everything below before I noticed).

Connector opened up and wires inserted:

After everything was connected I wrapped the harness with new OEM engine harness tape:

On the inside of the car I removed quite a bit to run the wires to the switch as closely to the OEM harness as possible. After years of doing this I finally came up with this method for organizing screws. It sure beats throwing them all in a cup holder or magnetic tray and trying to remember where they go later!

Switch installed:

Despite verifying my Allroad had the 1AT PR code before starting I ran into issues when I went to do the coding. VCDS states not for PR code B34 (Legal Requirements - US) or B35 (Legal Requirements - Canada). I couldn’t find anything that explains these PR codes any further. Despite this, the system works. When I come to a stop with the system enabled the brakes hold the car in place without my foot on them and a green icon pops up on the cluster. What I can’t figure out is I have no way of knowing if the system is enabled or not until I come to a stop . I think it defaults to off and the button must be pressed each time you get I the car, but traditionally there’s a yellow light on the switch to show the system is enabed. My Touareg did this and the manual for the A4 shows it should as well. Maybe there is a difference with the ABS control module in the Allroad? Perhaps I have a bad switch? It was purchased new and stated to be OEM. Maybe I’ll try another at some point.

Thanks for this thread! I installed the remote hatch close and the hill hold assist on my 2013 allroad. Did you ever get the light on your button to work? I just installed this today and it works just like yours except the light on the button doesn't work. Maybe it's something specific to allroads... like you, I used a brand new OEM switch.

Jason

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 09-27-2017 10:07 PM

Originally Posted by jmat

Thanks for this thread! I installed the remote hatch close and the hill hold assist on my 2013 allroad. Did you ever get the light on your button to work? I just installed this today and it works just like yours except the light on the button doesn't work. Maybe it's something specific to allroads... like you, I used a brand new OEM switch.

Jason

Nice, glad it helped someone! I never did get the light on the Hill Hold Assist button to work. I have a feeling it is something specific to the Allroad's ABS module which is likely the reason why we also can't fully disable ESP/traction control.

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 11-01-2017 01:33 AM

Winter is almost here... had snow tires installed on the new wheels. Nokian Hakkapelitta R2 tires in 255/35/20. They're the same as what I had last winter on the stock 18" wheels. A little floaty, but the best snow/ice performance out of any winter tire I have ever used (tried nearly all of them over the years). I am hoping the shorter sidewall reduces a little bit of the floaty feeling. I take a lot of backroads to/from work, come home late at night, and have a pretty steep driveway to boot. I still prefer the better snow/ice traction and a slight floaty feeling over a performance winter tire that's essentially a summer tire designed for cold temperatures and able to handle a little bit of snow.

To alleviate the minimal rubbing I currently have in the rear I ordered 20mm spacers from ECS so the wheels would sit 5mm further in than the RS5 wheels. After seeing the tires mounted, they seem quite a bit wider than the summer tires (same size, funny how that works). I have a feeling the plastic fenders may need a little trimming or the spacers may need to be swapped for 15mm. Only time will tell.

**dropshadow** · 11-01-2017 07:29 AM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

Winter is almost here... had snow tires installed on the new wheels. Nokian Hakkapelitta R2 tires in 255/35/20. They're the same as what I had last winter on the stock 18" wheels. A little floaty, but the best snow/ice performance out of any winter tire I have ever used (tried nearly all of them over the years). I am hoping the shorter sidewall reduces a little bit of the floaty feeling. I take a lot of backroads to/from work, come home late at night, and have a pretty steep driveway to boot. I still prefer the better snow/ice traction and a slight floaty feeling over a performance winter tire that's essentially a summer tire designed for cold temperatures and able to handle a little bit of snow.

To alleviate the minimal rubbing I currently have in the rear I ordered 20mm spacers from ECS so the wheels would sit 5mm further in than the RS5 wheels. After seeing the tires mounted, they seem quite a bit wider than the summer tires (same size, funny how that works). I have a feeling the plastic fenders may need a little trimming or the spacers may need to be swapped for 15mm. Only time will tell.

Nice. I've got 255/35/20 R2's on peelers as well.

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 11-21-2017 07:37 AM

Winter wheels are on with 20mm spacers. They look quite a bit better than I expected:

No spacers shown in the driver's side for comparison:

In an unexpected development, NGP has the APR K04 kit, intercooler, and downpipe available for $3,959 this week and my local dealer offered to match it ($1,000 off regular pricing). It felt wrong to say no...

I like the APR kit over the CTS or some of the others because the diverter valve doesn't need to be relocated (looks cleaner). Also if they're are any issues it's all APR hardware rather than their software with someone else's hardware. A small part of me thinks I should have started with just the Stage 1 tune to see if that would be "enough", but go big or go home, right?

**Allthea** · 11-21-2017 08:24 AM

peelers look great.

also, with regards to your power plant changes...

**chip_** · 11-21-2017 09:06 AM

go big or go home, right?

Now that's funny....Enjoy the tune once it's done.

Looks great on Peelers.

**skifreak85353** · 11-21-2017 09:35 AM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

Winter wheels are on with 20mm spacers. They look quite a bit better than I expected:

No spacers shown in the driver's side for comparison:

In an unexpected development, NGP has the APR K04 kit, intercooler, and downpipe available for $3,959 this week and my local dealer offered to match it ($1,000 off regular pricing). It felt wrong to say no...

I like the APR kit over the CTS or some of the others because the diverter valve doesn't need to be relocated (looks cleaner). Also if they're are any issues it's all APR hardware rather than their software with someone else's hardware. A small part of me thinks I should have started with just the Stage 1 tune to see if that would be "enough", but go big or go home, right?

This looks great. Gets me excited to put mine on. Are they S4 Peelers? I’m going with 25mm spacers up front and 30 out back.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 11-22-2017 07:59 AM

Originally Posted by skifreak85353

This looks great. Gets me excited to put mine on. Are they S4 Peelers? I’m going with 25mm spacers up front and 30 out back.

They are 20" Peelers from a European A6. I stumbled into them by accident while looking for Q5 Peelers. These are 20"x8.5" and ET45 instead of ET33 like the Q5. Killerboots had the Q5 peelers on his car last year for winter. You can tell his are a bit more concave due to the lower offset. For winter, less concavity didn't bother me. Some minor rubbing with the spacers, but nothing major.

Stopped by my local APR dealer to order/pay for the hardware last night. Labor/oil/coolant/etc. will be paid at the time of install in a few weeks. I told myself if I didn't do it now I never would. With my luck it will never go on sale again at this price or will be discontinued before I actually get serious about it again (still mad I missed the boat on their Stage 3+ kit for my Jetta).

**plim** · 01-09-2018 04:32 PM

Subscribed, love all your mods! Good info here, congrats on a beautiful car can't wait to see future posts!

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 01-12-2018 05:25 PM

Originally Posted by plim

Subscribed, love all your mods! Good info here, congrats on a beautiful car can't wait to see future posts!

Thanks!

Had the second part of the heater recall done a week or two ago. I can't remember it's been such a blur.

Dropped my car off today to have the APR K04, downpipe, and intercooler installed along with new plugs and R8 coilpacks. The shop is also installing the Eurocode chassis brace from the group buy since it will be on a lift already and there's no way I would have touched it before spring.

Tentatively picking the car up Sunday. The anxiety feels like a kid trying to sleep on Christmas Eve!

**G_Wagon** · 01-12-2018 06:56 PM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

Thanks!

Had the second part of the heater recall done a week or two ago. I can't remember it's been such a blur.

Dropped my car off today to have the APR K04, downpipe, and intercooler installed along with new plugs and R8 coilpacks. The shop is also installing the Eurocode chassis brace from the group buy since it will be on a lift already and there's no way I would have touched it before spring.

Tentatively picking the car up Sunday. The anxiety feels like a kid trying to sleep on Christmas Eve!

After reading your thread just now for the first time I am super surprised ur not doing the K04/DP/etc. yourself...
You managed to smoothly tackle a ton of mods that I have turned away bc of the difficulty...
Nice work!

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 01-13-2018 05:42 PM

Originally Posted by G_Wagon

After reading your thread just now for the first time I am super surprised ur not doing the K04/DP/etc. yourself...
You managed to smoothly tackle a ton of mods that I have turned away bc of the difficulty...
Nice work!

I did think about doing the install myself. I'll do electrical or interior stuff all day long, but anything that requires crawling under the car scares me a bit for two reasons. First, the car falling since I usually am alone and second, I don't trust myself with some of the more critical items (engine/brakes/suspension). It's my daily driver and if I screw something up I'm out my daily till it's fixed.

On the Jetta I did just about everything myself aside from the timing belt and exhaust. Currently in the process of sound deadening the interior and redoing the audio (on hold till spring/warmer weather). If I mess something up here or break a part and need to wait a week it doesn't matter since it's not driven every day.

So, between a lack of free time, trust in my abilities, and the need for a reliable daily, it didn't make sense to do the install myself. Intercooler would have been no problem. Turbo and downpipe would have been a bit more challenging for me.

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 01-15-2018 01:38 AM

All I can say is holy crap. We're in the process of getting 3-5" of snow, so I will reserve final judgement until the roads are dry. It's definitely a bit quicker. The powerband definitely shifted into the higher RPMs. I was worried the non-resonated downpipe would be too loud. It's perfect. I can't hear it at all under light driving. When I get on it I can certainly hear it, but it's not loud/overpowering/obnoxious in any way. It was a little too slippery to really push it. Can't wait for dry roads. :)

Courtesy of the shop I have a number of pictures, starting with my favorite then kind of the order of assembly.

As others have said, the metal cover/shield for the steering rack did not fit with the Alu Kreuz. This spring I will drill/tap holes in the brace to reinstall the shield. Swapping out the remaining hoses for silicone are on the to do list as well. The shop had a turbo inlet hose lying around and threw it in for me. I planned on at the very least upgrading the clamps between the turbo and throttle body. Might as well do the hoses too while it's apart.

A friend recently fit puddle lights to the bottom of the side mirrors on his Allroad. I did this mod with parts from a Skoda on my Jetta and hope to gather the parts and do this soon to the Allroad once I figure out what he did. Other than brakes and the incredibly unlikely chance that I'll import a set of Euro RS4 seats/door cards, I'm pretty much out of ideas. Perhaps sway bars? Spring spacers for the rear too once I confirm the Bilstein spring diameter matches H&R and KW.

More impressions on the K04 to come as the roads dry out. :)

**G_Wagon** · 01-15-2018 08:10 AM

Nice!

**alhutch** · 01-15-2018 11:39 AM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

All I can say is holy crap. We're in the process of getting 3-5" of snow, so I will reserve final judgement until the roads are dry. It's definitely a bit quicker. The powerband definitely shifted into the higher RPMs. I was worried the non-resonated downpipe would be too loud. It's perfect. I can't hear it at all under light driving. When I get on it I can certainly hear it, but it's not loud/overpowering/obnoxious in any way. It was a little too slippery to really push it. Can't wait for dry roads. :)

Courtesy of the shop I have a number of pictures, starting with my favorite then kind of the order of assembly.

As others have said, the metal cover/shield for the steering rack did not fit with the Alu Kreuz. This spring I will drill/tap holes in the brace to reinstall the shield. Swapping out the remaining hoses for silicone are on the to do list as well. The shop had a turbo inlet hose lying around and threw it in for me. I planned on at the very least upgrading the clamps between the turbo and throttle body. Might as well do the hoses too while it's apart.

A friend recently fit puddle lights to the bottom of the side mirrors on his Allroad. I did this mod with parts from a Skoda on my Jetta and hope to gather the parts and do this soon to the Allroad once I figure out what he did. Other than brakes and the incredibly unlikely chance that I'll import a set of Euro RS4 seats/door cards, I'm pretty much out of ideas. Perhaps sway bars? Spring spacers for the rear too once I confirm the Bilstein spring diameter matches H&R and KW.

More impressions on the K04 to come as the roads dry out. :)

Everything looks great! I have a weirdly specific question though. In the photo of what I believe is your motor pre-upgrade (above), is the turbo inlet hose shown your stock one? I have a 2013 as well and mine looks nothing like that. Were you able to reuse it with the K04?

**alhutch** · 01-15-2018 03:38 PM

Originally Posted by alhutch

Everything looks great! I have a weirdly specific question though. In the photo of what I believe is your motor pre-upgrade (above), is the turbo inlet hose shown your stock one? I have a 2013 as well and mine looks nothing like that. Were you able to reuse it with the K04?

Nevermind. A little research and it looks like part number 06H129629E on yours. I have 06H129629J on my car, so who knows why the difference.

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 01-15-2018 05:43 PM

I wonder why the variation in parts. It was definitely the original hose and I'm certain it would have worked with the K04. The shop happened to have the Spulen sitting on the shelf and he put it on because he could.

When I replace the intercooler piping I will likely replace the Spulen with whichever brand I pick for the intercooler hoses. Not sure what's out there besides ECS (not a huge fan of them), but the obsessive compulsiveness in me says they all have to match. Spulen doesn't seem to make the other hoses.

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 01-15-2018 06:00 PM

Day 2 impressions: Roads were very wet earlier and it's snowing again now. On a cold start the downpipe is clearly audible under light throttle, but it goes away within a few minutes once the car warms up (car was warm when I picked it up last night). While the car definitely feels quick and effortless, it doesn't feel fast (though I'm sure it is). Maybe it's the automatic transmission or the fact that the car feels rather numb in general. It almost leaves me wanting more. The next tank will will be E85. As far as additional power goes, this pretty much it. I don't want to mess with water/meth on a daily and I feel this is pretty much the upper limit on an otherwise stock engine.

For a boost gauge, does anyone make something that is integrated into the cluster display? I used both FIS Control and now ColorMFA on my Jetta. The P3 gauge isn't an option (APR mobile already using the OBD2 port) and any traditional gauge in a vent pod won't match the gray faces/white needles on the cluster.

**G_Wagon** · 01-15-2018 06:46 PM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

For a boost gauge, does anyone make something that is integrated into the cluster display? I used both FIS Control and now ColorMFA on my Jetta. The P3 gauge isn't an option (APR mobile already using the OBD2 port) and any traditional gauge in a vent pod won't match the gray faces/white needles on the cluster.

Regarding the p3 gauge...I have the apr dongle also and it doesn't have to be plugged in all the time...I just keep it in my glove box and plug it in when I need to switch programs, which is very rarely.

**G_Wagon** · 01-30-2018 06:32 PM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

Day 2 impressions: Roads were very wet earlier and it's snowing again now. On a cold start the downpipe is clearly audible under light throttle, but it goes away within a few minutes once the car warms up (car was warm when I picked it up last night). While the car definitely feels quick and effortless, it doesn't feel fast (though I'm sure it is). Maybe it's the automatic transmission or the fact that the car feels rather numb in general. It almost leaves me wanting more. The next tank will will be E85. As far as additional power goes, this pretty much it. I don't want to mess with water/meth on a daily and I feel this is pretty much the upper limit on an otherwise stock engine.

For a boost gauge, does anyone make something that is integrated into the cluster display? I used both FIS Control and now ColorMFA on my Jetta. The P3 gauge isn't an option (APR mobile already using the OBD2 port) and any traditional gauge in a vent pod won't match the gray faces/white needles on the cluster.

Look what I found for a p3 gauge solution...very interesting, anyone used this? Know how it works?
https://www.ecodetuning.com/p3cars-l...tter-flat.html

I also have the apr dongle and a p3 gauge so I am very interested...

**AutoTalent** · 01-31-2018 06:07 PM

Loving the progress, keep it up!

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 02-01-2018 08:59 AM

Originally Posted by AutoTalent

Loving the progress, keep it up!

Thanks!

Originally Posted by G_Wagon

Look what I found for a p3 gauge solution...very interesting, anyone used this? Know how it works?
https://www.ecodetuning.com/p3cars-l...tter-flat.html

I also have the apr dongle and a p3 gauge so I am very interested...

It literally just splits the OBD2 port to allow a second input. Very simple. Didn't realize something this slim existed. On my Jetta I spliced in and wired a second OBD2 port under the radio cage (Euro location) to make logging with VCDS easier. No cord running over my legs as I'm trying to drive.

It looks like FIS Control is making a version for the MMI!!! Coming soon. :D

**avantagg** · 02-01-2018 10:19 AM

That looks awesome!

**hyperunion** · 02-02-2018 10:25 AM

Originally Posted by JettaGetUpandGo

Thanks!

It literally just splits the OBD2 port to allow a second input. Very simple. Didn't realize something this slim existed. On my Jetta I spliced in and wired a second OBD2 port under the radio cage (Euro location) to make logging with VCDS easier. No cord running over my legs as I'm trying to drive.

It looks like FIS Control is making a version for the MMI!!! Coming soon. :D

About time!!

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

**JettaGetUpandGo** · 02-02-2018 11:57 AM

Originally Posted by hyperunion

About time!!

I know, right? With how long the B8 has been out I'm shocked this is the first for this platform (that I'm aware of). Tentatively available in April.

Ordered a set of Phillips LED fog light bulbs today (https://www.amazon.com/Philips-12834...illips+h11+led). They dropped from $130 to $92 and I had plenty of rewards points available from the K04 purchase. I have always used yellow fogs in my cars because it is impossible to match the xenon headlights (or LED DRL on Audis) with tinted halogen bulbs. At least with the yellow there is intentional contrast. This is the first LED set I've seen from a reputable brand and the reviews seem good. I'm more concerned about the color match than the light output. We'll see how this goes!