Hilfloskind
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jan 29, 2020
- Threads
- 20
- Messages
- 207
- Reaction score
- 115
- Location
- Murfreesboro TN
- First Name
- Brian
- Vehicle(s)
- 2018 Ford Ecoboost Convertible - Kona Blue
- Thread starter
- #1
Gonna start my journal with a story...
I bought a 2011 VW GTI when my father passed in 2010. The GTI was a dream car of mine, so it was a no brainer. In fact, it was from the first batch of 2011s to hit the dock from Germany. I bought it in cash from life insurance, did numerous upgrades including a CAI, full turbo back exhaust, stage 2 APR tune, upgraded racing clutch, and a 12" sub and amp... Basically I made this car perfect for me so I'd never get the "itch" to trade it in ever. I took that thing from 200hp/tq to 275hp/320tq. I could take down a stock Mustang or Camaro off the line no problem...lots of shocked faced in the rear view and next stop light, to say the least.
Last summer, the engine blew at 195k miles and I took out a loan to replace it to the tune of 6 grand. I wasn't letting my baby go that easily... sentimental value beyond words.
Fast forward to Jan 9th 2020 and this happens:
8 deer ran out in front of the lady in front of me, we were both 5 mins from home in a rural area outside Nashville. She was in a Ford Escape, we were going about 25 mph, and I just went right under her. Her muffler got a dent, I got a total loss.
I always knew when my baby finally died, I was getting a blue Mustang convertible and putting green racing stripes on it. Green is my favorite color, and that combo in particular is also my favorite.
I got to looking for my Mustang immediately. Within days I found a 2018 Mustang Ecoboost Convertible Manual Transmission (a must for me in ANY car I own) in Kona blue with 7600 miles on sale at CarMax in Norcross, GA for 25k! Single owner, he also had purchased it in cash like I did with my GTI (meant to be!!!). It came loaded to the gills with the 201a package: Shaker Pro system, leather heated/cooled seats and digital cluster; Pony Package with the accent stitching on the leather, different emblems and 19" wheels. I caught the listing the day it was posted and immediately contacted them to do pre-approval.
I ended up getting $7700 for the settlement, put 6 grand down, pocketed the rest for some immediate upgrades I had planned and drove down to Georgia with my wife to get my new beauty:
Since picking her up, I've done a few of my planned upgrades/mods with a handful more to be done both this and next year. I'll use this as my way to document the changes as I go.
First mod was a no brainer: my green racing stripes! I went with double wide stripes with matching pinstripes, along with matching side stripes. I got the vinyl from @BigWormGraphix and has the install done by Eclipse Tint in Mt Juliet, TN:
Video of the install and before/after walk-around:
As you can see in the photos/video, I also have a windscreen. I found it from the very forum: the Audi A4 windscreen (thanks to @Aggie96 for figuring this out). Definitely one of the best mods for a convertible, and the Audi version is amazingly well designed.
I then installed the Steeda clutch spring. Reading these forums in advance of the purchase, I read about the clutch pedal suckiness and Steeda's spring, so I was prepared to pull the trigger on that if needed. Within days, I determined it was a must. The factory clutch pedal feel is garbage. Coming from VW, which is known for an amazing MT experience, I was not going to accept a shitty experience with this Mustang. The spring made all the difference! Between the pedal feel and the sharp, short throw of the stick on this car, I actually have to say it beats the legendary VW manual!
Shortly after this, I removed the ANC device in the maplight dome as I was planning to do an exhaust upgrade and subwoofer swap. Even without doing these mods, I noticed an immediate improvement in the mediocre Shaker Pro SQ. Another must do mod!
After this, I bought an Infinity Reference 3022CFX 3.5 coax to replace the garbage center channel speaker from another forum user here @Rash . Definitely improved the SQ immensely, but didn't fix the rest of the systems deficiencies, so I'm in the middle of some additional speaker upgrades right now.
I also installed green pony projectors and green Ford oval overlays from @Zombie which added another amazing touch. I'll be posting pics of both shortly. Along with those, I installed blue map lights, warm vanity leds and led rear side markers from @Diode Dynamics, as well as a blue led accent light for the front USB port. I have a thing for stylistic continuity, so I have the digital cluster set to blue trim, green fill. I also have the accent lighting in blue. It all just fits so perfectly from an aesthetics perspective.
Based on some YouTube vids and a strong recommendation from user @JohnDoe here, I opted not to buy an axleback to upgrade my exhaust. Instead, I simply had the mufflers cut out and installed 9" resonated tips. The sound is absolutely perfect and only cost $185 between parts and labor. Worth every penny!!! I'll be doing some videos soon of startup and drive-by runs to let you all hear the sound.
Right now, as I mentioned before I am in the middle of focusing on upgrading the audio system. I do not plan to replace the amp, but will be mainly focused on speaker replacements.
Today I installed an RF Punch P3S2D-8 sub in the factory sub enclosure along with some polyfill. Down the road, I may also swap out the factory sub amp with a matching small profile amp in the factory location to step it up further, along with a 10" under-seat powered sub (I'm a bass head and having a vert, my 12" sub is just too big to use without losing half my trunk).
Additional audio work to be done next weekend:
Powerbass L2-6C'S 6.5 components and Infinity Reference 3032CFX 3.5s coaxials for the front doors, along with Kilmatt for sound damping. I'll be using FORScan to flatten the EQ, of course. I may also install Powerbass coaxials for the rears later depending on how everything sounds.
I'll be doing transmission fluid swap for BG2 when I do my first oil change in a couple of weeks. I don't know what oil is in it now, but I'm going with Penzoil Ultra Platinum 5w-20 full synthetic.
After this, I'm done until 2021. When my annual bonus comes next year, I'll be doing the following:
Upgraded intercooler and Blowfish Bracket. I am contemplating a FPP tune, but I'm a bit worried with all the talk of Ecoboom and this car honestly already has plenty of power. If I don't do the tune, I'll just drop in a high flow K&N filter and call it a day on power upgrades. After blowing my GTI engine, I am now more cautious about pushing my engine beyond stock to any major degree.
So that's it so far. More pics, vids and updates to come! Thanks so much to this forum community for being such a helpful and informed group! I've learned so much coming here. Definitely love it here, but my wallet hates it!
I bought a 2011 VW GTI when my father passed in 2010. The GTI was a dream car of mine, so it was a no brainer. In fact, it was from the first batch of 2011s to hit the dock from Germany. I bought it in cash from life insurance, did numerous upgrades including a CAI, full turbo back exhaust, stage 2 APR tune, upgraded racing clutch, and a 12" sub and amp... Basically I made this car perfect for me so I'd never get the "itch" to trade it in ever. I took that thing from 200hp/tq to 275hp/320tq. I could take down a stock Mustang or Camaro off the line no problem...lots of shocked faced in the rear view and next stop light, to say the least.
Last summer, the engine blew at 195k miles and I took out a loan to replace it to the tune of 6 grand. I wasn't letting my baby go that easily... sentimental value beyond words.
Fast forward to Jan 9th 2020 and this happens:
8 deer ran out in front of the lady in front of me, we were both 5 mins from home in a rural area outside Nashville. She was in a Ford Escape, we were going about 25 mph, and I just went right under her. Her muffler got a dent, I got a total loss.
I always knew when my baby finally died, I was getting a blue Mustang convertible and putting green racing stripes on it. Green is my favorite color, and that combo in particular is also my favorite.
I got to looking for my Mustang immediately. Within days I found a 2018 Mustang Ecoboost Convertible Manual Transmission (a must for me in ANY car I own) in Kona blue with 7600 miles on sale at CarMax in Norcross, GA for 25k! Single owner, he also had purchased it in cash like I did with my GTI (meant to be!!!). It came loaded to the gills with the 201a package: Shaker Pro system, leather heated/cooled seats and digital cluster; Pony Package with the accent stitching on the leather, different emblems and 19" wheels. I caught the listing the day it was posted and immediately contacted them to do pre-approval.
I ended up getting $7700 for the settlement, put 6 grand down, pocketed the rest for some immediate upgrades I had planned and drove down to Georgia with my wife to get my new beauty:
Since picking her up, I've done a few of my planned upgrades/mods with a handful more to be done both this and next year. I'll use this as my way to document the changes as I go.
First mod was a no brainer: my green racing stripes! I went with double wide stripes with matching pinstripes, along with matching side stripes. I got the vinyl from @BigWormGraphix and has the install done by Eclipse Tint in Mt Juliet, TN:
Video of the install and before/after walk-around:
As you can see in the photos/video, I also have a windscreen. I found it from the very forum: the Audi A4 windscreen (thanks to @Aggie96 for figuring this out). Definitely one of the best mods for a convertible, and the Audi version is amazingly well designed.
I then installed the Steeda clutch spring. Reading these forums in advance of the purchase, I read about the clutch pedal suckiness and Steeda's spring, so I was prepared to pull the trigger on that if needed. Within days, I determined it was a must. The factory clutch pedal feel is garbage. Coming from VW, which is known for an amazing MT experience, I was not going to accept a shitty experience with this Mustang. The spring made all the difference! Between the pedal feel and the sharp, short throw of the stick on this car, I actually have to say it beats the legendary VW manual!
Shortly after this, I removed the ANC device in the maplight dome as I was planning to do an exhaust upgrade and subwoofer swap. Even without doing these mods, I noticed an immediate improvement in the mediocre Shaker Pro SQ. Another must do mod!
After this, I bought an Infinity Reference 3022CFX 3.5 coax to replace the garbage center channel speaker from another forum user here @Rash . Definitely improved the SQ immensely, but didn't fix the rest of the systems deficiencies, so I'm in the middle of some additional speaker upgrades right now.
I also installed green pony projectors and green Ford oval overlays from @Zombie which added another amazing touch. I'll be posting pics of both shortly. Along with those, I installed blue map lights, warm vanity leds and led rear side markers from @Diode Dynamics, as well as a blue led accent light for the front USB port. I have a thing for stylistic continuity, so I have the digital cluster set to blue trim, green fill. I also have the accent lighting in blue. It all just fits so perfectly from an aesthetics perspective.
Based on some YouTube vids and a strong recommendation from user @JohnDoe here, I opted not to buy an axleback to upgrade my exhaust. Instead, I simply had the mufflers cut out and installed 9" resonated tips. The sound is absolutely perfect and only cost $185 between parts and labor. Worth every penny!!! I'll be doing some videos soon of startup and drive-by runs to let you all hear the sound.
Right now, as I mentioned before I am in the middle of focusing on upgrading the audio system. I do not plan to replace the amp, but will be mainly focused on speaker replacements.
Today I installed an RF Punch P3S2D-8 sub in the factory sub enclosure along with some polyfill. Down the road, I may also swap out the factory sub amp with a matching small profile amp in the factory location to step it up further, along with a 10" under-seat powered sub (I'm a bass head and having a vert, my 12" sub is just too big to use without losing half my trunk).
Additional audio work to be done next weekend:
Powerbass L2-6C'S 6.5 components and Infinity Reference 3032CFX 3.5s coaxials for the front doors, along with Kilmatt for sound damping. I'll be using FORScan to flatten the EQ, of course. I may also install Powerbass coaxials for the rears later depending on how everything sounds.
I'll be doing transmission fluid swap for BG2 when I do my first oil change in a couple of weeks. I don't know what oil is in it now, but I'm going with Penzoil Ultra Platinum 5w-20 full synthetic.
After this, I'm done until 2021. When my annual bonus comes next year, I'll be doing the following:
Upgraded intercooler and Blowfish Bracket. I am contemplating a FPP tune, but I'm a bit worried with all the talk of Ecoboom and this car honestly already has plenty of power. If I don't do the tune, I'll just drop in a high flow K&N filter and call it a day on power upgrades. After blowing my GTI engine, I am now more cautious about pushing my engine beyond stock to any major degree.
So that's it so far. More pics, vids and updates to come! Thanks so much to this forum community for being such a helpful and informed group! I've learned so much coming here. Definitely love it here, but my wallet hates it!
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