I've been doing a lot of reading on this and other Forum's on performance upgrade options for my 2011 MK6 GTI with DSG. I just wanted to share my thoughts with everyone and gather some opinions pro's con's or otherwise on my thought about APR's upgrades.
Anyway Stage 1 is a fantastic option provides tons of power for $599 and seems to have no real down side. 254hp on 93 octane
Stage II is basically an ECU tune, Intake $269 (Carbino), Down Pipe $629.10 and install about $300 for both. So for about ~1300 you get 274hp, or about 20 hp more than Stage II. hmmm. That and most of the real-world comparisons show little->no difference in performance on the street between stage I and II. they're close enough that driving talent is the bigger factor in a race. Plus the intake and down pipe add some more noise to the car. So there isn't much upside it would seem to stage II
But, you can do a K04 on a stock car according to APR. You do not need a down pipe, intake, or intercooler upgrade to use this turbo. However, to get the maximum from it you should do the supporting mods. APR has a software tune for a K04 on a stock car... Anyway a K04 is $2400ish right now at APR, and my local shop will install it for $600. So for about ~$3000 you will get about 335hp/345lb-ft (based on AWE numbers on a stock car, APR will not disclose the performance of K04 on a stock car). Plus going this route you won't really increase the noise level of the car much.
So my thinking is going from Stage I->II you get 20 dyno HP, and not much difference on the street for $1300 or $65 per HP and added noise.
why not just skip all the stage II mods, and just bolt on a K04? You get ~81hp and your cost per HP is on $37, seems like a better way to go for more performance and bang for the buck. You can always do the intake and down-pipe later for more performance.
Anyone here just skipped all the stage II mods like I'm contemplating and just bolted on a K04? You guys happy with it? Any reliability problems with a K04 and stock hardware. Was there one mod that you did that made a huge difference with the K04, like an S3 intercooler, intake, down-pipe?
Just thinking it might be a better bang for the buck just to bolt on a K04, plus its a lot more stealthy to a dealer and may make it much easier to hide for warranty repairs? Anyone have thoughts?
Anyway Stage 1 is a fantastic option provides tons of power for $599 and seems to have no real down side. 254hp on 93 octane
Stage II is basically an ECU tune, Intake $269 (Carbino), Down Pipe $629.10 and install about $300 for both. So for about ~1300 you get 274hp, or about 20 hp more than Stage II. hmmm. That and most of the real-world comparisons show little->no difference in performance on the street between stage I and II. they're close enough that driving talent is the bigger factor in a race. Plus the intake and down pipe add some more noise to the car. So there isn't much upside it would seem to stage II
But, you can do a K04 on a stock car according to APR. You do not need a down pipe, intake, or intercooler upgrade to use this turbo. However, to get the maximum from it you should do the supporting mods. APR has a software tune for a K04 on a stock car... Anyway a K04 is $2400ish right now at APR, and my local shop will install it for $600. So for about ~$3000 you will get about 335hp/345lb-ft (based on AWE numbers on a stock car, APR will not disclose the performance of K04 on a stock car). Plus going this route you won't really increase the noise level of the car much.
So my thinking is going from Stage I->II you get 20 dyno HP, and not much difference on the street for $1300 or $65 per HP and added noise.
why not just skip all the stage II mods, and just bolt on a K04? You get ~81hp and your cost per HP is on $37, seems like a better way to go for more performance and bang for the buck. You can always do the intake and down-pipe later for more performance.
Anyone here just skipped all the stage II mods like I'm contemplating and just bolted on a K04? You guys happy with it? Any reliability problems with a K04 and stock hardware. Was there one mod that you did that made a huge difference with the K04, like an S3 intercooler, intake, down-pipe?
Just thinking it might be a better bang for the buck just to bolt on a K04, plus its a lot more stealthy to a dealer and may make it much easier to hide for warranty repairs? Anyone have thoughts?
