Cole Trickle's CSG GTI

Hi all,

I've enjoyed everyone's build threads so I thought I would share my own experiences.

Before this car I drove a 2004 Nissan Sentra Spec-V which got me through my college years.



After 5 years I was ready to ditch the Spec-V and buy my first car. I settled on a GTI, shopped around for a couple weeks and pulled the trigger in August of 2013 at David Maus VW South in Orlando with a 2012 CSG 2dr 6MT base model with 11k miles.



As far as mods go, I want to keep it understated. The switch from the Spec-V made me appreciate how refined the GTI is and I don't want to sacrifice any of that.

So far:
Purchased (11k)
20% tint (11k)
APR Intake (11k) - Improved throttle response and makes my engine bay look cool
DG Springs (12k) - Perfect drop for a few hundred bucks. Purchased from Keffer VW
CTS Turbo TBE (17k) - Much improved exhaust note without drone or sounding ricey. The guys at CTS Turbo were very helpful.
"GTI" seat handle inserts (24k) - "Rupse 2PCS Seat Lift Wrench Insert …" on Amazon. These are a great mod for $10.
Michelin PSS (28k) - Huge improvement over stock Dunlops
VCDS (29k) - Gauge sweep, remote windows, XDS set to 1, disabled rear wiper in reverse, comfort turn signal set to 5, diagnosed CEL for intake manifold. Love this thing.
APR Intercooler (30k) - Got my hands dirty installing myself and learned a lot. Power delivery feels smoother and stronger north of 3k RPM.
GIAC stage 2 (31k) - My poor clutch never stood a chance.
RSR Clutch (31k) - Much better
Tyrolsport Caliper Kit (32k) - Should have come from the factory like this.
Tyrolsport subframe kit (34k)
Hotchkis Sway bars (34k)
Vibra-Technics Subframe Mount (34k)
Oil change & tire rotation @ 37k
Oil change @ 40k

Next steps:
Tyrolsport subframe collar kit
New pads
Sway bars
Stealthbox & sub



DG springs:


After springs:


CTS Turbo mid pipe/cat:


APR Intercooler I picked up from Luis (LG3MK6):


Intercooler install went pretty smoothly. I broke one bumper clip that was not load bearing but fixed it with JB weld anyway. Overall I'm happy with everything. Got a good deal, learned a lot during install and butt dyno shows noticeable gains above 3k RPM.

Great start and the Tails are a must replace.

Welcome fellow Orlando resident and CSG owner!

Purchased a VCDS cable from liquid kid and it arrived yesterday. Love being able to customize the little things and make my car my own.

Unfortunately I got an unexpected code for an intake manifold flap. I've been driving around with this issue since January with no idea. (I've had a CEL bc of my down pipe since 2/23/14 so never knew to have it checked out) I'm hoping no lasting damage has been done.

Fingers crossed this will be covered under warranty, however I'm beyond the 3 yr mark and have read that this is not considered a power train claim. Anyone have experience with this after 3 yr/30k?

On another note, I will be installing an O2 spacer asap to avoid these surprises going forward.

Cole Trickle said:

Purchased a VCDS cable from liquid kid and it arrived yesterday. Love being able to customize the little things and make my car my own.

Unfortunately I got an unexpected code for an intake manifold flap. I've been driving around with this issue since January with no idea. (I've had a CEL bc of my down pipe since 2/23/14 so never knew to have it checked out) I'm hoping no lasting damage has been done.

Fingers crossed this will be covered under warranty, however I'm beyond the 3 yr mark and have read that this is not considered a power train claim. Anyone have experience with this after 3 yr/30k?

On another note, I will be installing an O2 spacer asap to avoid these surprises going forward.

Click to expand...

Intake manifold is covered up to 120k miles. There was a tech bulletin on this. You will be good.

Bump for new intercooler and LED pics.

Stopped by Forge's shop in Orlando and got flashed to stage 2. :happyanim:

Unfortunately I noticed some clutch slippage in 4th gear on the drive home. Guess I need to start figuring that out.

Some pics of their shop below:

Got my RSR clutch kit installed today at Full Throttle in Orlando.

It's stiffer than I expected and so far I've stalled a few times because it wants to spring back into the engaged position so much more than the stock pressure plate. It takes some getting used to but I'm confident this will solve my slipping issues. Will post updates once I've broken it in and able to enjoy it properly.

Update: this thing rocks. Pedal softened right up. Holds like a champ. Now I'm looking at a subframe mount to cure my wheel hop blues.

I bit on the recent Tyrolsport Deadset group buy and took the opportunity to pick up their brake caliper stiffening kit as well. Today I installed the caliper kit.

First caliper took an hour. The second took maybe half as long. Brake pedal feel is noticeably improved. It is firmer and much more precise. The car should have come this way from the factory.

Tricked my mechanic friend into helping me install a Hotchkis FSB, Vibra-Technics subframe mount and TyrolSport collar kit last week.

Lots has been posted on all of these products so I won't get into a ton of detail, but I'm happy with the results. The Vibra-Technics mount is a subtle increase in NVH (my GF barely noticed it) and there's much less slack in the drive train.

Install was done on jack stands and it took FOREVER. Like 7 hours. Hardest part was getting the subframe back on. You will need a pry bar, an extra set of hands and a lot of luck to get the holes to line up. We eventually used the jack to force the bolt into alignment and it mercifully started threading in.

I was quoted $300 by a reputable local shop and if I had to do it again, I might just pay the pros to do it.