Rossab's build thread
 

So...

I've got a lot of parts at my place and some more that I'm waiting for. I'm going to be doing all of the work myself and I thought I'd put together a thread to document the stuff I was doing.

The very first thing I did to the car was the nav/vid bypass. Not so much because I want to watch movies on my nav screen but more because I plan on adding a data capture module and will use the screen to monitor data.

I made an order from Andy at HPAuto for the first set of products in my build. The first thing I installed was the HKS high performance exhaust. Here's a pic comparing it to the stocker.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...2/P1010009.jpg

Installation was pretty straightforward. You take off these 10 bolts:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...P1010005-1.jpg

After the bolts are off I removed the front section of the stock exhaust first. The mid section you just need to take hangers off of the two grommets on each side of the pipes.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...2/P1010008.jpg

The stock muffler will be hanging from 3 more grommets. If you pull it straight backwards it'll come right off.

When I installed the HKS, the first thing I did was put the midsection in. It'll hang from the grommets and rest on the cross brace, so it stays in place fairly well. I put the front section in next and hand tightened all of the bolts. After which I hung the two mufflers from the grommets and hand tightened the bolts. After everything was up I started from the front and torque'd all the bolts down.

As expected, the HKS fit like a glove. This is the first exhaust I put on that didn't have any fitment issues of any kind. All that was left was to put on the tips. Here were the options:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...2/P1010013.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...2/P1010015.jpg

I went with the shorter of the two, and then went out for a test drive.

My first impression based on sound only (I haven't reset the ECU yet):

The tone is perfect. It's actually a bit quieter than I expected. With the windows up you know it's there but it definately isn't loud enough to impede a conversation. I'll post some vids of sound after I break it in a bit.

I'm hoping the berks will be here soon. My sixth sense is telling me they may have been shipped! I have a UR pulley in the garage but want to get the berks and JWT intakes installed before I put it on. Hopefully I'll get some more parts soon.

Berk HFC's
 

place holder for berk install

UR Pulley
 

Placeholder for UR pulley install

JWT Intakes
 

Placeholder for JWT Intake info

I noticed the samething about my hks, perfect fit, nice sound, not loud at all but noticeable when you want it to be and excellent quality even the flanges are baller. Congrats!



Btw, did yours come with two sets of tips?

no... I wish it did... since they are adjustable I just took pics with them set all the way out and all the way in... I think there is about an inch of adjustment.

the one thing I'm not all smiles about is the tips. The blue just isn't really fitting with what I had in mind for the car. I think I'm going to cut all the blue off the tips and see how they look. If that doesn't work I'm just going to buy/have some new ones made. Or just never wash them once they get dirty.

i thought this was about a tt :(. haha.

cant wait for more reviews of other mods you have coming in.

You make it look so damn easy! Almost too easy... :icon08:

Great thread! :biggthumpup:

OEM HFC will be pain to take it off...
how are you planning to install pulley?

One day it probably will be... once some more options for TT hit the market.

It really is easy. If you've never done any of your own work on your car, this is a great place to start. The only tools I used were 14mm socket, 3/8 driver, a small flathead screw driver, and an allen wrench for the tips. The car was raised using a small floor jack, 2 jack stands, and a set of ramps.

Total installation time was 2 hrs, which was for me doing this by myself with no rush. Now that I've gone it and if I could find an assistant, it's probably a 20 minute job once the car is raised.


I was looking at the HFC's while I had the exhaust off and things looked pretty tight. Nothing crazy though compared to the full tranny swap I did on a mustang cobra in my garage.

For the pulley I will most likely enlist some help from a friend who has an equipped garage with a lift. I've done a few pulleys in my garage for some 4 bangers, but for this one I feel a little more comfortable doing it on a lift. I'll tackle it when I get there, as I'm not really in a rush to get it on.