[VelovetAndy]

And the finished product . Recarros sold on Facebook in about 24 hours so they have gone to a new home in a T5 ,

what I do not know is how comfortable the Imolas are after a couple of hours of driving .I will find out no doubt. Initial impressions are that they are really snug and comfortable and with the harness belts on , feel really secure . Fitting the sliders was a real pain but worth it for the convenience of the adjustability .And although it’s a bit of a bit of a faff, adjusting the seat height is also possible, and the relative tilt, so all in all, very pleased. And the Imolas were brand new but out of date , so cost £500 for the pair . Side mounts, runners and eyebolts cost another £160 and the belts £50 ( Facebook for the latter ) £1100 for the Recarros ( which was still a good deal for the T5 owner ) and I am half way to a track day rear half cage 😀😀

 

[filbro]

very tidy install - you must be well chuffed with that

 

[VelovetAndy]

In a word, yes. Thanks. Used the car yesterday. With the harness seat belts in use too, it feels much more secure and connected . Think it will be fine for a longer journey too. Surprisingly comfy 😀

 

[Rumma32]

Bit of a pause as the bike racing season is in full swing so busy riding and racing my cycle. Anyway, Verkline subframe back from the powder coaters, along with a pair of Passat front hubs. I know, why more hubs? Alloy is the answer so a couple of kg on unsprung weight saved . View attachment 269436

Hi Andy, I love this build and wanted to ask a question about your Passat front and rear alloy hub upgrade.
Are they a straight bolt on weight saving and are they from a 2008 Passat?
Is there anything else I should be careful of when making the change?
I wanted to replace/refresh my wheel bearings and thought this might be another great upgrade to make at he same time.

 

[VelovetAndy]

Morning. The Passat hubs are ‘ the same’ in the sense that everything bolts back where it should do. Ditto mk2 Audi TT hubs. But, there are some geometry changes. The Passat steering arms are slightly longer and at a slightly different angle to preserve the Ackerman angle on the longer Passat. Effect: you will need to wind out your track rod ends . Check that you still have enough thread on the ends when you do that. I did on my Gen 2 ( ie standard MK5 golfR32) rack . If you use Audi TT ones, less of an issue with arms but I think they do change ( for the better) the position of the lower ball joint pick up . At the rear, they will increase the rear track by about 15mm per side, so watch arch clearance . I plan to swap my rear alloy Passat for Audi TT ones in the near future but I am planning arch mods too. Weight saving is significant: several kg per hub. And yes, 2008 Passat

 

[Rumma32]

Evening over here in Melbourne Andy!
Thanks for you reply and guidance. I think I will go the Audi TT option rather than the Passat for ease of fitment and may be less rear arch issues??
What gen/model TT hubs should I look for?

 

[VelovetAndy]

Funnily enough, I have been having a think about changing my Passat hubs to TT hubs . Gives an extra 9mm per side on track and as I am very seriously considering going to some motorsport front wings, front bumper and rear arch extensions, the TT hubs are the ones. At the front, you want the mk2 Audi TT ones . Roughly 07 to 14 here . They still use the 4 bolt pattern for the bearing so are really plug and play with the caveat of the steering arms. If you want to, you can fit the alloy lower arms from the same car, but then there are other complications like drive shaft lengths ( simple spacer will fix it )
on eBay here , these hubs are going for around £50 per side. Not sure what the availability is in your part of the world . Factor in some new bearings and a few new bolts and the whole swap my not be more than £250 and the weight saving is significant . Get some nice light 6 pot callipers ( not Brembo 18Z as they weigh slightly more than the moon ) and the front spend is transformed. However, just the hub upgrade is worth it in my view .

 

[VelovetAndy]

As per the above post; seriously looking at the ABS Motorsport wings, front bumper and rear arches that they did for the mk5 Golf BTTC a few years ago. The front is easy as everything bolts on , but the rear involves the rear arches having a chat with a cutting disc and a welding torch , so not exactly reversible . But I have wheel arch to tyre rubbing . I cannot increase the offset beyond the 43mm I have because the inside of the tyres then hit the coilovers( front and rear ) so a way out is to sell my 19x8.5 ChRs (😂😂😂😂😂) and go to 18x8 or keep the 19” and widen the arches as per above.
Track days really do find the odd weakness and problem . On the road, arch clearance is never a problem but on thetrack……….

 

[VelovetAndy]

Oh. Next drama. Went to fit my Audi TT steering arms to my mk6 golf rack. Hit a snag. Each end of the rack has a recess of about 6-7mm before the inside threads begin. On the TT arms, the threaded end of the arm is not long enough. So, applied a radical solution which may just turn round and defacate on my lunch: stripped the rack completely , machined down each end of the rack to remove the recess and rebuilt it. Two potential problems: the first is that I have narrowed the rack by 12mm , that may bite me and the second is removing and replacing the angle sensor clock spring in the steering shaft housing was not exactly a gentle stroll in the park, so that too may be a problem. Seriously considering getting a back up from a mk2 Audi TT as I am planning to pull,the front of the car apart next week to do radiator, hoses, engine mounts, manifold swap. Lucifer manifold , Verkline subframe and anything else that crops up ( and the ABS motorsport wings??????) I will try to remember to take a few photographs and post on here , so you can have a laugh .