ps2cho's 2016 Allroad thread

[whats77inaname]

Another tip: keep the reservoir cap closed and press down on the brake pedal and keep it pressed by wedging a stick between the seat and the pedal.
Then disconnect the line to the caliper.
You won't lose a drop of fluid.
Connect the line to the new caliper.
Repeat for all calipers.
Release brake.
Bleed.

Pro. Tip.

[ps2cho]

Another tip: keep the reservoir cap closed and press down on the brake pedal and keep it pressed by wedging a stick between the seat and the pedal.
Then disconnect the line to the caliper.
You won't lose a drop of fluid.
Connect the line to the new caliper.
Repeat for all calipers.
Release brake.
Bleed.

I read in the factory manual it mentions NOT to touch the brake pedal after disengaging the EPB...maybe its fine and its just a precautionary mention. I didn't lose much fluid, maybe 1 ounce. Not a big deal. I will pressure bleed one done with fresh fluid.

[eljay]

I read in the factory manual it mentions NOT to touch the brake pedal after disengaging the EPB...maybe its fine and its just a precautionary mention. I didn't lose much fluid, maybe 1 ounce. Not a big deal. I will pressure bleed one done with fresh fluid.

Ah OK.
I didn't consider EPB.
I just know that pressing the brake pedal closes the master cylinder and fluid flow stops.

[ps2cho]

Finished up late last night on the other side, only took me 1hr, super fast after having all the tools ready and set.
Got the brakes bled right now, and drives great. When its not 115F outside...aka later tonight I'm going to give it a good drive since it hasn't been driven much in the past couple months. Will take some photo's once the Z-coat has worn off on the cylinders, I don't think I've taken any photos with the new Rotor wheels, and now the rear S4 brakes.

-----

Side stuff....
As part of the Audicare oil change, they told me "Guided Fault Finding" said my battery was BAD and needed to be replaced to the tune of $435!!! Yikes!!! I told the guy, look its sat in the garage for 6-weeks before driving it to you, started fine. I think its good...
But to be SURE - I got myself a fancy chinesium tester. I also have let the battery get 100% full with the Noco Genius 2 on AGM mode.

I can't tell what the CCA's are, but is it 420 CCA?







I mean I think the battery looks fine to me...My theory is that my dash cam has drained it down to 12v since I have a 6hr cutoff after the cars off, and the battery management system probably flagged it as a battery issue...

---

So I guess what's next...Probably nothing to be honest until February 2021 as that is when my CPO warranty expires, then I will be exploring FMIC and Stage 2 tune as I now have the braking to support the additional power. Might get the front differential fluid done as that's still on the list - did the rear 6 months ago.

[Allthea]

Last time I went to the dealer for an Audi care visit they tried to get me to replace my battery as well. I have an air ride system hooked up in the car so maybe that's tripping their tool. In any case, I didn't have them replace it and it's been fine

[ps2cho]

Last time I went to the dealer for an Audi care visit they tried to get me to replace my battery as well. I have an air ride system hooked up in the car so maybe that's tripping their tool. In any case, I didn't have them replace it and it's been fine

4 years from an AGM would definitely be on the low side based on my experience with them. I average 6-8 years.

[ps2cho]

Took me long enough...but some final photo's of the new wheels and front & rear brakes altogether!

Tires need to be upsized for the allroad, but this will do for now!







---

Next up on the list is a full paint correction and ceramic coating.
I just got my order for the Rupes LHR75E 3" polisher in this week to companion my Porter Cable 7424xp...this should allow me to fully polish all the smaller paint areas effectively. As my paint is already pretty decent, I'll only be doing a 1-step polish with Sonnax Perfect Finish and a Rupes Yellow foam pad.

Wash, Metal decontamination, Wash, Claybar, Sonnax Perfect Finish polish, IPA wipedown, then Ceramic coat using Avalon King Armor Shield IX! Stay tuned.

[eljay]

I've been on a hunt for that exact same piece of bumper in Mythos Black, but it's slim pickings out there for used Allroad front end parts that are not smashed.

So, I'll be watching this with interest!
I've never painted anything with proper equipment. I only have that Harbor Freight HVLP paint kit thingy. I'm not sure that woukd do a good job. I guess I meed to try it out at some point! :)

Good luck!

[eljay]

Thanks for the link!
That looks impressive. However, I think that is like giving an F1 driver a Toyota Yaris and he would still beat every Porsche at a track. :)
I wish I had some space and time to practice. I only have a basic compressor that's not suitable for paint etc.

I know old guy sprays his B6 bumper like twice a year (ok, maybe not that much!) and gets amazing results with a fairly basic kit.

Can't wait to see how yours turns out!

[eljay]

Which part are you waiting on? I ask because the upper covers bolt to the bottom piece and the grille. There is no other mount there on the bumper itself.

[ps2cho]

Which part are you waiting on? I ask because the upper covers bolt to the bottom piece and the grille. There is no other mount there on the bumper itself.

The bracket under the yellow boxes in the first picture. You can see they glued that piece to hold it all together as its all broken:

[eljay]

Ah got it! I missed the first picture.
That piece is actually not meant to hold those two pieces together as you've found out. Rather it secures the bumper to the fender if I recall that correctly.

[saxxman]

ps2cho,

I just traded my 04 B6 Avant with 275,000 miles in for a 2013 version of your car. I found your thread and it makes me excited about what could be...

Thanks for sharing!

[Allroad23]

Good buy...I have had mine for about 3.5 weeks...Added wheels, painted the stock grill, added Bass on top of the stock Bang & Olufsen system.....my next addition will be a software tune from either APR or IE, still undecided.

[ps2cho]

Latest update-

Ended up redoing my clear lens swap on the headlights. I found a thread about 6-mo ago that mentioned some of the lens' did not have the notch and in those instances, you were supposed to punch in the factory notch so it fit flush. I tried to get it flush before, but it clearly wasn't right.
Heres the improved cutoff with the notch punched in and 2x washers to push out the projector from the bowl: MUCH better!!





Time to do the driver side now and then level the lights again!

Its clear this makes a drastic difference!

[HOJeepster]

Latest update-

Ended up redoing my clear lens swap on the headlights. I found a thread about 6-mo ago that mentioned some of the lens' did not have the notch and in those instances, you were supposed to punch in the factory notch so it fit flush. I tried to get it flush before, but it clearly wasn't right.
Heres the improved cutoff with the notch punched in and 2x washers to push out the projector from the bowl: MUCH better!!





Time to do the driver side now and then level the lights again!

Its clear this makes a drastic difference!

Thanks for posting this. I just installed the clear lense and mine ended up looking like your driver side. Looks like I'll need to deconstruct the headlights again and add washers.

[ps2cho]

Thanks for posting this. I just installed the clear lense and mine ended up looking like your driver side. Looks like I'll need to deconstruct the headlights again and add washers.

Yep between double checking the lens is 100% flat and knocking in the notch if necessary, and the washers, you should fix the issue.

Just got my drivers light baked (big box in the yard, punch a hole through for heat gun)...beats upsetting the wife using the house oven! Will have it reassembled by the end of the day then I'll get it reinstall and see how I can level it off and take some more photos.

[ps2cho]

Here is the final photo the improved beam pattern.



I tried to level the headlights but I feel like the (previously discussed) issues with the poor bumper repair by prior owner has the headlights not sitting right. Hopes are once I finalize all the parts to replace the passenger side of the bumper it will fit better and the headlights will level properly.

[ps2cho]

Update on the bumper repair -

I've sprayed out my test card, 3 coats base and 1 coat clear and its close enough that I dont think I will blend into the fender as the body-colored bumper cover sits horizontal and light never hits the same as the hood/fender etc. At this point I just need to wait until the rains gone and the garage is up to 75F and <50% humidity, then I can pressure wash the floor, create an area using painters sheet and get the cover painted for real!



The left test card is the paint for the lower bumper cover/cladding. I realized afterwards that the clearcoat from the factory is actually matte (duh...) so I've ordered myself some 2K Matte clear (the above is just non-2K clear as I didnt want to waste the catalyzed clear on a test card)

Learned a lot over the past few months reading as much as I can on painting so I feel almost ready now to paint it on my new factory part:

[eljay]

Looking forward to this!!
Painting is a skill I need to start acquiring as I have several projects to do and push them off as funds don't permit to get a shop to do them.

What's your setup for paint?

[ps2cho]

Looking forward to this!!
Painting is a skill I need to start acquiring as I have several projects to do and push them off as funds don't permit to get a shop to do them.

What's your setup for paint?

My setup:


I have a 27gal 7cfm @ 40psi compressor...all my research says its JUST about OK for a small part/a single bumper but a whole car its nowhere near powerful enough. I ordered 1 pint of 0C base from automotivetouchup.com and have 2K clear and 2K matte (on the way).
I got a https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 3/8" air drier and regulator, then a PSI gauge at the spray gun (dewalt spray gun) so I can make sure at full open I have 25-28psi for the base.
I also got the standard and mini 3M PPS spray adapters and kits - this makes cleanup a BREEZE compared to the cups. Paint and throw the disposable cup into the trash. Less lacquer thinner needed to clean as well so maybe better for the environment who knows..

I could have a shop do it, but I want to see if I'm "able" to do it myself, and currently in COVID environment, trying not to go out.

----

As part of my other project...I just ordered myself a 3/8" Coxreels 100ft reel and a MTM Hydro 100ft hose for my pressure washing setup. I currently have Sun Joe SPX9004-PRO sitting in the garage I've been using, but only had a 25ft stiff as a rock hose and no reel. Once these come in, I'm mounting everything on a board then putting it onto the wall and into the studs with lag bolts. Then all I need is to (quick connects) the garden hose to the pressure washer and can pressure wash the car very fast. I'll take a pic once I get that up and running.

[ps2cho]

Well my garage wall-mounted pressure washing setup is complete now with the hosereel.







Think I did a half decent job. Its mounted to a 3/4" plywood with carriage bolts from the rear. Lagged into the wall studs at 6 locations. I think it feels pretty sturdy.

So in sum its the Sun Joe SPX9004-PRO, MTM Hydro jumper hose, MTM Hydro 100ft hose, Coxreels 112-3-100 hose reel, Stainless steel shelf. The gun I have is the MTM Hydro SGS28 with a Sun Joe wand on the end that works perfectly fine.

I have a remote power button to turn the PW on and off because it doesn't have an auto on/off. In the long run I'll upgrade to the Kranzle, but this works fine for now. I currently drag the garden hose and quick connect it into the PW, but its 25ft away, so I may in the near future put a coppper pipe over the top of the garage door to the other side, then its only a few feet from the water and easier to plug in/out.

[ps2cho]

Long delay on getting the bumper repaired - Here we go now the temperatures are finally 80F!
First up is the passenger side panel that is damaged (see posts a few pages back, internal tabs are all broken from prior accident (nothing on the carfax...so clean history for me luckily) and the body shop did F all job on it...so I am fixing it.

Parts List:
Protection #1: 3M Half Mask & 3M P100 cartridges and goggles (sunglasses not good enough, the overspray can get into bloodstream through your eyes)
Automotivetouchup.com - 1 can of Monsoon Grey Metallic spray can, Tack clothes, grey scuff pad. (I didnt end up using my paint gun because the rattle can was closer match than the 1pint I bought. The pint was a hint too green on that mixup)
Super Assilex flexible sanding pack: https://www.amazon.com/Eagle-U191-15...ustrial&sr=1-1
3M Scuff Stuff
SprayMax 2K Glamour clearcoat (1 can)

Prep
Before starting, I pressure washed the entire garage floor and scrubbed it with a broom with simple green. Tried to get as much dirt/dust from the garage out.
Then to be safe I covered my work area with fresh plastic covering.
Closed the garage door down 75% of the way and have two box fans pulling air out of the garage to outside. left the (inside) garage door open so there was a clear path for air to get out of the garage.






Panel comes like this (primed) and needs to be cleaned so there are no fingerprints on it, nothing!!


Prepped the panel with dawn soap wash, then 3M Scuff Stuff on a (wet) grey scuff pad. Finally some prep solvent from automotivetouchup.com. Ready to paint!!

First base coat down...but I forgot to tack cloth it...got some fibers from the microfiber towel after I wiped off the prep solvent - fixed it with assilex 600grit. this stuffs is legit. Resprayed prep solvent, tacked it and moved onto 2nd coat.





Did 4 coats of base at 6/8", then did a light final coat at 12-15" to level out the metallic flakes.
Overall, each coat at 80F took about 10mins to dry to touch - so 4 coats & one light coat tacking between each coat.

Final result:


Pretty happy with the result. I dont see any dirt nibs or anything. Ready for clear!!

NOTE ON CLEARCOAT: when dealing 2K clear its no joke...no, a cloth mask wont work - you'll get brain damage, dead serious. This stuff is some of the most toxic on known to man.



First coat of clear going on - I read and followed recommendation to make first coat lighter than the rest following.
Be aware the clearcoat goes on way thicker than the basecoat, I see about 20-25mins per (thick) coat to dry, so be patient and dont touch the panel - touch tapelines or backdrop to check if its dry.


Here is the result after 3 coats, I think it looks stunning!




The 2K states 24hrs to cure, so it may even look better tomorrow. But immediate results (dry to touch) I am very happy with!

I ordered the lower bumper cover, it may be another month before I get to spray that and then actually put everything on the car...slowly but surely!

Here's proof you can get professional quality at home with the right tools and prep!

[eljay]

Looks great!! Nice work for spraying out of a can!
I need to do mine as well. I have the passenger side cover, but still looking for driver's side.

[ps2cho]

Theres a little orange peel, but I'm researching the best options to wetsand that out and hit it tomorrow before the clear hardens fully over the next few days.

[eljay]

That doesn't look too bad and you did lay a few coats, so it should wet sand out, I think.

[ps2cho]

Some progress. In terms of the orange peel I think it matches factory paint now. I still see some fine scratches so I will probably give it another pass later today on my lunch.

Used the assilex 1200 to sand it down. As you can see below you want to take out most of the low spots until its smooth.



Stopped when it looked like this...I didnt want to go too far and have it different than the rest of the factory paint (i.e. too mirror like)



Then I wetsanded with 2000 grit on a normal block. Followed up with M105 on my Rupes 3" DA. (not shown) but last was polish with a Sonax PerfectFinish



You can see some fine scratches on the left edge, but overall the reflections look much better and less orange peel.

If you compare the same shot from the last post and look at the left side where the window blinds are, you can see its much clearer and the lines are not was wavy. I think I'm good where its at now so just need to do a better job of getting the sanding scratches out.

[eljay]

I think you need to add a few more scratches to it to match the other side's original condition or this will look too perfect! Haha

Great work. No wonder body work costs so much. It's a very time consuming process.

[ps2cho]

Amazon finally delivered my 2500 & 3000 grit wet/dry sandpaper last night.

Here's the final result. I think its flawless now. All set! Its quite amazing the difference when you compare up a few posts to the initial photo's I took right after the clearcoat had dried, basically "out of the booth" condition.



Was a great learning experience. The biggest takeaway was that I probably should have done 5 total coats of clear that way I always have extra layers to sand to get the finish I want. I did 3 layers, but they were quite thick (I believe) and I didnt sand much away I think, so there should be adequate left. Really need to get myself a paint depth gauge, that would help!

Almost feel like now I've opened up a can of worms and I will want to spray my E350's front bumper hood and fenders as they are coated in rock chips after 153k miles!

[19birel]

Great job on the paintwork, the result is very high quality! Any plans to clear bra the front to keep her looking fresh?

[ps2cho]

Great job on the paintwork, the result is very high quality! Any plans to clear bra the front to keep her looking fresh?

Not particularly. In Arizona heat, the clear bra's end up cracking and turning yellow, which looks worse than just doing touchups. Clear bra's have a number of downsides. Not to mention on removal/replacement, the risk of it pulling up paint. Not worth it.

[19birel]

Not particularly. In Arizona heat, the clear bra's end up cracking and turning yellow, which looks worse than just doing touchups. Clear bra's have a number of downsides. Not to mention on removal/replacement, the risk of it pulling up paint. Not worth it.

I know older clear bras have that issue, but they have improved immensely over the years. That said you're in a relatively extreme climate so perhaps they're not up to that level of abuse yet.

I'm getting the front of my car resprayed soon and I think I'm gonna do a clear bra, around here at least they seem to hold up very well

[ps2cho]

Next up was the tires. Looks a little less like rubber band tires now. Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+ 255/40/19. Only issue I ran into was Costco wouldn't install them on the car because the width exceeds +3% of OE size limit they allow for (was +3.8%). Was a real pain so had to bring the car home, dismount them, put factory wheels on the car, then bring them all (4) loose...they would accept them and mount & balance if it wasn't on the car...whatever LOL! Was still cheaper than any other Tire place at $1,007 OTD.

Installed now and I like!




On another note - I am currently in the stage of planning a youtube channel. I do enough stuff I feel like I should have some good content. Bought myself a GoPro Hero 9 to strap to my head while I work, and a Sony Alpha 7C camera to shoot 4K b-roll footage to make it look a little more professional.
I have my lower bumper cover sitting in California at my parents house (Audi San Diego had it $250 cheaper than here in AZ...) Going to be getting it and bring it back with me soon, then I will do my first major video showing the existing issues, bumper removal timelapse, prep work on the new bumper, shooting the paint & clear, reinstall timelapse, result on the car and then any orange peel polish removal. Excited to share this! I'll post it here when it starts so maybe you guys can be my first subscribers :)

[kevlarcupid]

Nice. Looking forward to watching your videos. Tires look good; just did mine as well.

[ScottNH]

I'll post it here when it starts so maybe you guys can be my first subscribers :)

Absolutely do this. I've followed your build thread closely from the beginning. You car is a twin of mine except for color. I look forward to your YouTube channel.

[19birel]

I'll definitely subscribe as well! Post a link here once you get going!

Feel free check out my channel as well, I do reviews and post some Audi B8.5 specific content too!
Click Here to See my Channel

[kevlarcupid]

@ps2cho You maintained the electronic parking brake with the S4 calipers? Any concerns or caveats? I hate the stock rears after going with Macan fronts. Not that I can feel it specifically, but like you said, it's not nearly as linear as I want.

[JLAllroad]

@ps2cho You maintained the electronic parking brake with the S4 calipers? Any concerns or caveats? I hate the stock rears after going with Macan fronts. Not that I can feel it specifically, but like you said, it's not nearly as linear as I want.

You keep the EPB, functions as stock. That said, I really didn’t notice a difference with the S4 rears. I ran the stockers with the Macans for 40k before switching them out, fronts really do all the heavy lifting.


Sent from my iPhone using Audizine

[kevlarcupid]

GTK. Maybe I wonder if I still have a bit of air in the line & I could get the results I'm after by bleeding and painting the calipers for aesthetics. Thanks for the heads up.

[JLAllroad]

GTK. Maybe I wonder if I still have a bit of air in the line & I could get the results I'm after by bleeding and painting the calipers for aesthetics. Thanks for the heads up.

Manual bleed, abs output test via VCDS, bleed again


Sent from my iPhone using Audizine