Vorsprung Durch Snotmobile!

[me™]

Well, I got the front left suspension arm done myself, and I've thrown the car and the box of parts at the garage for the rest.

 

My bank account is puckered in preparation, but it'll still be cheaper than a replacement car!

[me™]

It's back on the road now, with a fresh MOT, a year's tax, and a year's insurance.

 

I'm glad it's almost pay day!

 

This weekend I'll do an oil change and swap it to the summer wheels again (the 17" 10-spokes in gunmetal grey).

[me™]

So the car is finally all sorted (it got its MOT about a month ago but there were some other small things).

 

I paid the garage bill yesterday and picked it up with 2 new track rod ends and an alignment, then had to drive up to Inverness so my sister could pick up a new car (a 2013 Fiat Panda 1.2, booooring).

 

OMG I love my car again. The steering feels sublime!

 

 

I also added a couple of vinyls about a fortnight ago.

 

 

 

[me™]

Today, I ended up drag-racing Calster's Lexbus.

 

I also won every single time.* :D

 

 

 

 

 

*because it was wet and he was struggling to get the power down.

 

Hell, I just noticed I got slower as the track dried up!

[calster17]

Getting wheel spin at the halfway mark is always fun at my end though, specially with a dodgy suspension arm. ;)

 

Once I got the power down i was catching no problems, and passing the V-Box around 10mph faster as well. But all in all a good match, but the AWD is what saved you. :cheeky:

[me™]

Yeah, but I can go round corners without impersonating a boat. Following you back was hilarious!

 

Also, rolling shot just because!

 

 

paint.net just happened.

 

[me™]

Small update, but what should be a big improvement to the car.

 

It's currently getting a 'remap' that's turning more into a chip instead. I dropped it off on Wednesday and instead of just doing it in a day, the garage have had to send the ECU off to the mapping company to get a chip soldered in. It's turning out to be an awkward car to get mapped, as I've taken it somewhere else before, who spent half an hour trying then gave up. At least these guys are giving it a good shot for a reasonable price, and I've got a Mini One as a courtesy car until I get the Audi back! It should be ready on Monday or Tuesday.

 

The Mini is actually quite fun...

 

Oh yeah, the map is expected to take it up from the standard 180bhp to 211bhp.

[me™]

I never posted a post-map update. Whoops.

 

I picked it up last Wednesday.

 

Yeah... it's a bit quicker. It's actually got some mid-range grunt now. On Sunday I was overtaking a caravan going uphill in 4th gear with about 2/3rds throttle and ended up going *ahem* a little bit over the speed limit before noticing. :D

[TIMELESS]

What's the final output, did you get 211bhp? Sounds like fun :nods:

[me™]

Yep, got 211bhp and 300Nm of torque. It is indeed quite fun.

[me™]

Yesterday I replaced the snub mount and bled the brakes with some new brake fluid.

 

For those of you unfamiliar with Audi A4s, the engine sits longways and is pushed quite far forwards due to the gearbox being a transaxle arrangement between the front wheels, with a propshaft coming out of the back of the gearbox, to the rear differential. There's no separate transfer case involved in this AWD system.

 

The snub mount is an engine mount on the front of the sump, which sits against the front crossmember, and when it wears out you get a shunt through the drivetrain on gearchanges and when lifting off the throttle suddenly.

 

To get the snub mount, I had to the put the car into 'service position' as you can see below:

 

 

The whole slam panel, complete with the radiator still attached, can slide forward a couple of inches if you put threaded bar into the ends of the chassis legs to support it. That's what I did and it gave me enough wiggle room to swap out the snub mount. It drives a hell of a lot better now with a new one! Even the gear stick feels tighter and more accurate.

 

I also took a photo of it looking mean...

 

The reason I had it back down on its wheels with no front bumper was because I figured it would be easier to re-adjust the headlights without the bumper in the way, as I had much better access to the headlight mounts.

 

I started just after 9am yesterday and had actually finished by lunch time! :D

 

Well, the snub mount anyway. I bled the brakes in the afternoon.

[Camel]

Ooooh that looks fun.

 

Have you had the pleasure of changing the cambelt on it yet? iirc it's a 6 to 8 hour job. :eek:

[me™]

Ooooh that looks fun.

 

Have you had the pleasure of changing the cambelt on it yet? iirc it's a 6 to 8 hour job. :eek:

 

I got a garage to do it last year, along with the clutch and the dual-mass flywheel (which I got converted to a solid flywheel).

[me™]

Aha, I can upload files here.

 

I accidentally a BWARP PIPE.

 

It's a standard mid-section from an S4 adapted to fit a 1.8T quattro by cutting it off at the Y-pipe and welding a straight single pipe on, and a 3" stainless steel back box. I had to use a couple of reducers / adapters (and an unholy amount of gun gum) to fit it all together, but it works now. It's a rather 'interesting' arrangement, as the downpipe is just over 2" diameter, the mid-section is 2.5" diameter, then the back box is 3" diameter! :lol:

 

Works well though, and looks nice, as you can see in the photos. The exhaust I took off was really on its last legs, I can understand why it got advisories in its last MOT for corrosion on the mid and back sections! I gave this 'new' (2nd hand) mid-section a going over with an angle grinder / wire brush and high-temperature paint on the worst bits before fitting it. Got the whole lot for £100 off a guy on some Audi forums, and picked it up from Glenrothes on the way down to an airshow in East Fortune a couple of weeks back. Yes, the little tailpipes coming out of the backbox are unequal length, they match the curve of the rear bumper! :D

[calster17]

Un-equal tailpipes are cool! Also must count for something with the 'scene' lot. ;)

 

Can't wait to hear it this weekend by the way!

[me™]

Went out for a drive with some friends on Sunday...

 

Calster didn't make it because he was hungover and recovering from about 2 days straight without any sleep. :lol:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes, those MX-5s and the Elise made my car feel very big and very wobbly, and it's a relative ballet dancer compared to Calster's Lexus!

[killalldude]

You almost had every color of the rainbow. Nice pics!

[me™]

Yeah, we were lamenting the fact we didn't have a purple car with us! :D

[calster17]

 

The Snotmobile's younger brother, S3 Saloon in Java green. :cheeky:

 

Know Me has seen this one going about Aberdeen as well. Really is the current day B5 A4 in term's of size!

[me™]

Winter mode: engaged!

 

 

 

The EBC Brakes sticker is genuine. It's now running greenstuff (how appropriate!) pads all round. They definitely make a difference to the way the brakes bite!

 

 

Have a bonus long-exposure shot of the city lights of Aberdeen reflecting off the leading edge of the bonnet:

 

[TIMELESS]

Your winter wheels suit it :duck: Very, sleeperish, minus the green paint :p

[me™]

Of course the wheels suit it. They're from a lower-spec B5 A4! :P

[calster17]

So i guess that Me™ wont mind me taking over this thread...my dad is now the owner of the 'Snotmobile'.

 

How? Nothing to do with me actually, I only found out while massively hungover and 5 mins away from Me's house. :lol:

My dad wanted me to come along to look at a car as although he knows his stuff, his hearing is't what it used to be. When I asked what car it is, he handed me the print out and I could't help but laugh as of course it turned out to be 'The Green Machine'.

 

My dad is loving the car, and that's always a good sign. She is a worthy replacement for his old 406 Coupe!

 

Now this of course means that Me has another car. I'll leave that to him to tell. ;)