Here We Go Again- Building Another Audi

[19birel]

Little update for you guys! So I recently got what is probably the most utilitarian mod I could get, OEM Audi base bars. I have wanted a roof rack for ages as I missed being able to transport my bike (I refuse to risk beating up my interior by putting the bike inside) so I'm stoked. The Thule OutRide bike mount I used on my Volkswagen mounted right up. The design of the bars is actually pretty thin (especially compared to the OEM VW bars on my Golf) so wind noise isn't bad, I might not even buy a fairing as originally planned. I also love the look of them, I put the roof bars on my Golf a couple months after getting my license way back when, so having a set on my daily driver really makes the car feel like "mine". Just needs to stop raining so I can go biking haha.

Here's the only pick I have of the setup currently

Now remember that A7 bbk I snagged from the parts car we had laying around a while back before the car was even on the road? Well it's been sitting in my shed ever since, and I finally found the motivation to get it cleaned up, painted, and ready to go on the car.

Here are some before and afters of the cleaning process; a scotchbrite pad and some brake clean goes a long way




Then using POR15 Caliper paint, I brushed on the first coat of yellow...as you can see the coverage isn't great (typical of any yellow caliper paint)


Four coats later and we're looking good!


Painted the anti-rattle clips black and put some "S" logos on for that extra OEM+ touch

Next I just have to paint the rears to match and then they can go on! I really excited to install these I'm really happy with how they turned out and can't wait to have some real braking power at my disposal!

[rightfullrudder]

Nice job on the brakes -- and I might have to try the DIY CR-15 strut brace on the S5! Any particular type of metal you bought?

[hinrichs]

Cant beat and oem roof rack. Thule is good, but never mounts or looks as clean. Great job on the brakes too, they are looking good. Cant wait to see them installed.

[19birel]

Nice job on the brakes -- and I might have to try the DIY CR-15 strut brace on the S5! Any particular type of metal you bought?

Thanks! Just used some aluminum box bar from lowes,nothing special, was $12 Great mod, I definitely recommend it, especially being such a cheap and simple DIY

Cant beat and oem roof rack. Thule is good, but never mounts or looks as clean. Great job on the brakes too, they are looking good. Cant wait to see them installed.

Thanks! I can't wait to get them on, might do them this weekend if I can find the time! And yeah with the racks I wanted something that mounted up to the car perfectly so OEM was the only way to go. So far I'm super happy with them!

[Musovski]

Awesome job!

[19birel]

So the car is really starting to come together on the mod front, since my last update I've done a few things!

Updates include S4 Mirror Caps, A7 BBK finally installed (dual piston ATE front calipers w/356mm rotors), soundbox delete, and the 19x9" OEM D4 Audi A8 wheels wrapped in a fresh set of 255 section Dunlops. Here are some pics!

Offset is ET33 making for what I'd consider the perfect fitment for me


The hips don't lie[>_<]


And one more for good measure haha

I love the way it looks now, the car is really coming together closer and closer to my ideal image of it. As for the way it drives with the new mods the wider tyres and wider stance have made the car feel far more planted, the steering is heavier which is more to my liking. Ride quality has improved too. My old tyres were trashed which wouldn't have helped the previous setup but these wheels are on the heavy side so that would theoretically help soak up bumps. It doesn't feel like a Bentley or anything but I'm not cursing harshness over bumps like I was in a 19" wheel equipped A5 I was in recently.

The brake upgrade has made the biggest difference though, the stock brakes always felt insufficient to me but these A7 brakes have some serious bite, they have seriously exceeded my expectations. Currently I'm just running OEM pads and rotors.

Stay tuned much more still to come with this car!

[rightfullrudder]

Looks awesome man! When you get ready to get some new pads I highly recommend Akebono ceramics. Just replaced the OEM fronts on my S5 with Akebonos and there's zero brake dust plus they bite better and have a linear feel.

[19birel]

Looks awesome man! When you get ready to get some new pads I highly recommend Akebono ceramics. Just replaced the OEM fronts on my S5 with Akebonos and there's zero brake dust plus they bite better and have a linear feel.

Thanks man!

I actually had those pads on my old BMW and loved them. I'll definitely snag a set when the time comes, everything you said rang true when I installed them on the old car.

[Fruttolo]

In for pics of a pimp mtb strapped on that rack

[19birel]

In for pics of a pimp mtb strapped on that rack

I'll have to snap one with my road bike up there next time I ride haha

I'd love a MTB one day tho, maybe when I finish with university and have a little bit of time and money lol

[19birel]

So with the school semester officially underway my budget for car related fun stuff has diminished substantially. However I had some spare funds set aside to tackle a repair/mod that I've been wanting to do for a while.

My passenger side door speaker kept sounding distorted randomly, and it was driving me nuts. I always have music on in the car so it was hard to ignore. I decided to order a set of these Infinity by Harman Reference series coaxials, I got a deal on them and the specs were pretty solid!

*For clarification I just got coaxials because of the pricing being good, the extra tweeter on there won't actually be utilized due to the way Audi sets up the sound systems.


With trim removal tools, the door panel is pretty easy to remove, you have to be pretty forceful to release the fasteners once you remove all the screws but I didn't have trouble reinstalling anything which tells me they can take a bit of extra force.


Crappy stock B&O speaker with it's paper cone:P


The magnets are microscopic too!


Screwed up big time and kicked over my Stella[:p]


New speaker installed with adapter and the OEM foam between the adapter and the door


Wired up with some new connectors (brown is ground in case you're wondering) and some extra foam around the front of the speakers.

Including the adapters this was probably a $100 project all together, the bass & other lower frequencies sound much cleaner and even more powerful than before. Overall I'm quite pleased with the outcome.

Next up the docket is another oil change as it's been 5k since my last one, going with Liqui Moly Synthoil again, also due for another full interior detail. At some point soonish I'm gonna do a carbon clean.

Mod wise I'm saving up for the JB4 that's rumored to be released soon for our platform which I intend to use to run a meth setup to help reduce carbon buildup (and add some power too I suppose haha)

That's all for now!

[19birel]

Not too much has happened since the last update, but I got a new camera so I'll post some fresh pics

Side note: I've learned that with two passengers and a trunk full of backpacks and camera kit, this B has fender rub I'm running stock sport suspension so my best guess it just has to do with my tyres being a little chunky (the sidewall has rim protection and extends past the wheel lip)

[Fruttolo]

Needs 2" more in wheel width, 2" less in ride height and a set of good coilovers to solve that last problem you had LOL

[19birel]

Little update, did some maitenance- fresh oil and filters

Also became the first B8/8.5 A4 to run a JB4, this is still in beta so I'm stoked to be running the development car and help pioneer something for this platform.

Also made a clear fairing for the roof rack, should've done this ages ago as I can finally use my moonroof again and I'm not deafened by wind noise at highway speeds haha. Tossed in some LED fogs too but those aren't pictured.

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I have a bunch of plans for this year, but those are contingent on maintenance, and whether or not I decide to finally start working on my actual "project car" lol

[TheTynosaur]

I really like the OEM+ stuff you've been doing to the car; painting the headlight reflectors made a much bigger difference than I would have expected