skotcoop
Ready to race!
This is a review of my recent major upgrades done to Harvey Dent(my GTI..Can I trust it?).
After having my APR stage 1 tune and Carbonio CAI for several months my clutch began to slip. And after doing lots of research on clutches, I realized that there were other significant and vastly superior improvement upgrades that could be installed while doing a clutch replacement. Shortly thereafter, I found myself accumulating parts on the living room floor.
It started with the Black Forest Industries stage 3 clutch kit made by competition clutch. Then came Tyrolsport front and rear deadset kits along with the shift bracket bushings. Followed by 034 Motorsports engine and subframe mounts. Next was Dieselgeeks sigma 6. After that came the Fluidampr crank pulley(can be installed anytime. Not just during clutch.) And the final part I bought online was the weighted shift knob from Raceseng which I installed the same day it showed up in my mailbox. While this accumulation was happening I was in constant contact with Kelly from Achtuning in Redmond, WA about the costs of labor because I knew I couldn't do this at home. I'm very limited on space and would much rather leave this type of work to the experts.In addition to all those parts already mentioned I was convinced that now was the best time for a limited slip differential and a front sway bar. Achtuning carries Wavetracs in stock so that’s what I went with. Kelly has had experience with all 3 of the major brands and he recommends Wavetrac. I alsowent with a 26mm H&R sway bar up front to be thrown on as well. But wait, there’s 1 more thing. I made the last minute decision to go with Meyle LCA rear bushings to firm things up a little more. They are rubber so they don’t require any maintenance as with polyurethane bushing.
At this point you may be thinking, “Why all those traction/handling mods for just stage 1?” I thought the same thing. And for me the question that I always kept coming back to was “Do I want more power now? Or more traction?” And my answer was, what good is extra power if it’s not getting to the ground? So Dec 30th I pulled the trigger. And I waited. And after a long 2 day wait I had Harvey back. And wow! For a car that looks and sounds virtually stock it certainly does not drive like one. And I like that. And now the stage is set for more power down the road.
The good:
Shifting- short, crisp, smooth. Get the sigma 6 and a heavy knob. Trust me.
Clutch Pedal- Nearly stock feel, slightly stiffer. Ebay clutch stop made it perfect. Clutch grabs very well. Good quality.
Handling- Night and day difference, more confidence to take turns faster, hardly any body roll. No more creaky body noises on uneven ground. Subframe locks(tyrolsport) are a must. I cannot wait to upgrade the suspension.
Traction- Gobs more even in rain. It feels like I’m cheating now. This is a costly upgrade but it’s worth it to me. More so because up here in Washington the roads are wet 9 months out of the year so it became more of a safety thing. At least that’s what I told myself. And I have driven it on snow a bit at low speeds with no issues. I can’t wait for summer and summer tires. The car feels faster too.
The bad:
Clutch chatter: still quite noisy even with the upgraded crank pulley. However it is quieter than when it was installed.
Engine noise: The car sounds like a lawn mower or like it had an engine swap with a TDI. It isn’t much louder but you definitely hear more of the engine. Especially with the quiet stock exhaust. It could be due to the 034 lower puck? I might experiment with different ones. I’m only using the 1 lower puck because I heard running both was just too much on the NVH side. These also didn’t fit very well. The guy doing the work had to shave a good amount down. I’m pretty picky and I hate any noise that I can’t identify but it is livable. It just takes some getting used to because it doesn’t feel normal. However, it has gotten better with a thousand miles of break in.
Verdict:
Do it. I don’t regret any of it. Harvey Dent is much more fun to drive now and that’s exactly what I wanted. It feels much more connected to the road and far more nimble. As for what’s next, stage 2 and intercooler, coilovers, bigger brakes, wheels/tires, K04???? But stay tuned! We shall see. Several pictures can be found on my build thread but more will come. If you have any questions or need links to the products I used feel free to ask. Thanks for reading and happy modding. :thumbup:
After having my APR stage 1 tune and Carbonio CAI for several months my clutch began to slip. And after doing lots of research on clutches, I realized that there were other significant and vastly superior improvement upgrades that could be installed while doing a clutch replacement. Shortly thereafter, I found myself accumulating parts on the living room floor.
It started with the Black Forest Industries stage 3 clutch kit made by competition clutch. Then came Tyrolsport front and rear deadset kits along with the shift bracket bushings. Followed by 034 Motorsports engine and subframe mounts. Next was Dieselgeeks sigma 6. After that came the Fluidampr crank pulley(can be installed anytime. Not just during clutch.) And the final part I bought online was the weighted shift knob from Raceseng which I installed the same day it showed up in my mailbox. While this accumulation was happening I was in constant contact with Kelly from Achtuning in Redmond, WA about the costs of labor because I knew I couldn't do this at home. I'm very limited on space and would much rather leave this type of work to the experts.In addition to all those parts already mentioned I was convinced that now was the best time for a limited slip differential and a front sway bar. Achtuning carries Wavetracs in stock so that’s what I went with. Kelly has had experience with all 3 of the major brands and he recommends Wavetrac. I alsowent with a 26mm H&R sway bar up front to be thrown on as well. But wait, there’s 1 more thing. I made the last minute decision to go with Meyle LCA rear bushings to firm things up a little more. They are rubber so they don’t require any maintenance as with polyurethane bushing.
At this point you may be thinking, “Why all those traction/handling mods for just stage 1?” I thought the same thing. And for me the question that I always kept coming back to was “Do I want more power now? Or more traction?” And my answer was, what good is extra power if it’s not getting to the ground? So Dec 30th I pulled the trigger. And I waited. And after a long 2 day wait I had Harvey back. And wow! For a car that looks and sounds virtually stock it certainly does not drive like one. And I like that. And now the stage is set for more power down the road.
The good:
Shifting- short, crisp, smooth. Get the sigma 6 and a heavy knob. Trust me.
Clutch Pedal- Nearly stock feel, slightly stiffer. Ebay clutch stop made it perfect. Clutch grabs very well. Good quality.
Handling- Night and day difference, more confidence to take turns faster, hardly any body roll. No more creaky body noises on uneven ground. Subframe locks(tyrolsport) are a must. I cannot wait to upgrade the suspension.
Traction- Gobs more even in rain. It feels like I’m cheating now. This is a costly upgrade but it’s worth it to me. More so because up here in Washington the roads are wet 9 months out of the year so it became more of a safety thing. At least that’s what I told myself. And I have driven it on snow a bit at low speeds with no issues. I can’t wait for summer and summer tires. The car feels faster too.
The bad:
Clutch chatter: still quite noisy even with the upgraded crank pulley. However it is quieter than when it was installed.
Engine noise: The car sounds like a lawn mower or like it had an engine swap with a TDI. It isn’t much louder but you definitely hear more of the engine. Especially with the quiet stock exhaust. It could be due to the 034 lower puck? I might experiment with different ones. I’m only using the 1 lower puck because I heard running both was just too much on the NVH side. These also didn’t fit very well. The guy doing the work had to shave a good amount down. I’m pretty picky and I hate any noise that I can’t identify but it is livable. It just takes some getting used to because it doesn’t feel normal. However, it has gotten better with a thousand miles of break in.
Verdict:
Do it. I don’t regret any of it. Harvey Dent is much more fun to drive now and that’s exactly what I wanted. It feels much more connected to the road and far more nimble. As for what’s next, stage 2 and intercooler, coilovers, bigger brakes, wheels/tires, K04???? But stay tuned! We shall see. Several pictures can be found on my build thread but more will come. If you have any questions or need links to the products I used feel free to ask. Thanks for reading and happy modding. :thumbup:
