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Anyone have the APS 300bhp conversion?


lenny
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What's the difference as opposed to stock so far?

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Sorry do you mean in terms of what mods I have or the performance difference?

In terms of mods I have the following on my car:

- APS Stage II remap

- Milltek Catback Exhaust

- HPA Short Shifter

I've also had my rear valance colour coded smile.gif

The performance differences at the moment are quite noticeable. Firstly the throttle response is a lot sharper and the car wants to go all the time. Also, in gear it picks up better (improved torque) and at the higher end speeds it seems relentless.

Overall it feels more alive and responsive. With the addition of the cams, the characteristic of the engine should change quite a bit (well if the test drive of the APS demo car is anything to go by). The car will rev right through to 7200rpm and the responsiveness will be increased yet again. With these mods on the car, I should see around 290-300bhp when my engine has a few more miles on it 169144-ok.gif

I think also that I'll fit the ARB's as from speaking with Richard and the guys at APS, it is a very good mod to have!

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I'm defo interested in the sway bars...stock power seems adequate so figure the best first mods are a Haldex II HPP and some sways... but from reading your positive feedback regarding the engine mods my powerlust is starting to stir now!

How crucial do you think the remap was overall? I'm considering just going with the MIlltek and some kind of intake because I love my factory warranty but the idea of nearly 300hp with no forced induction sounds pretty tempting (and good value for money too I assume) laugh.gif

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a Haldex II HPP and some sways

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you can't go wrong with these - they both transform the car for £1k-ish + fitting.

VW would sell more of these cars if they had them as standard znaika.gif

the Milltek is all about how loud you want the car to be - and whether you think the engine would like to breathe easier smile.gif

3 really good mods that sort the car right out IMHO. oh, and the shortshift yelrotflmao.gif it just never stops smashfreakB.gif

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I'm still waiting for a un-biased opinion of this upgrade!!!

Even though I live in N.ireland I will make the journey to aps if the improvement is big enough!!!

Bear in mind this is a +£300 upgrade for the ferry!! plus unlike ChrisBuer IT HAS1!!! to work first time otherwise i'm screwed!

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[ QUOTE ]

I'm still waiting for a un-biased opinion of this upgrade!!!

Even though I live in N.ireland I will make the journey to aps if the improvement is big enough!!!

Bear in mind this is a +£300 upgrade for the ferry!! plus unlike ChrisBuer IT HAS1!!! to work first time otherwise i'm screwed!

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Ahh it'll be fine when you go for it Lenny, that's why I'm doing all I can to help APS get a template for the latest engine 169144-ok.gif

Obviously with the run up to Christmas I doubt much will happen in the next few weeks, but in the New Year I'll be back and having them installed!

My car at the moment feels very quick so when those cams go on it's going to be jump.gif all the way grin.gifECLIPSe.gif

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[ QUOTE ]

I'm still waiting for a un-biased opinion of this upgrade!!!

Even though I live in N.ireland I will make the journey to aps if the improvement is big enough!!!

Bear in mind this is a +£300 upgrade for the ferry!! plus unlike ChrisBuer IT HAS1!!! to work first time otherwise i'm screwed!

[/ QUOTE ]

Well I've been a passenger in the APS300, and my good friend (who owns a AMD stage 2 mk4) was driving it.

The engine sound is totally awesome, sounds much more highly strung than the mk4.

Power builds up gradually in a very linear form, much like the Mk4 lenny.

Where the mk4 feels like its running out of puff at 5500 rpm, the APS300 keeps on pulling without feeling strangled.

There is no substantial noticeable increase in power after 6000, it's just it keeps on pushing rather than feeling strained.

The sound APS's (custom prototype) exhaust makes from 6-7500rpm is out of this world.

It's very race car sounding - part M3, part R32, part honda vtec manic wail.

It's amazing, and very difficult to describe. It's the kind of sound that will make u thrash the car to 8000rpm each and everytime u drive it.

Without the cams, u won't ever be able to hear that noise, as it's only when u pass 6000rpm that the exhaust note hardens.

Power wise, the car does not feel (what I consider) quick enough. Yes it's quick, but it's not shXt quick.

But that aside, the NOISE is more than enough to make up for the lack of ooomph.

Even my friend who drove it said it didnt feel quick enough as he'd hoped (he's not being bias, as he has a mk5 coming in Jan, so he is a prospective APS300 customer!)

I know if I did own a mk5, I wouldn't hesitate to get the 300 conversion done, if not for the power, but just for the manic sound above 6000rpm.

I could see myself loosing my license soon after though!

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A couple of points to add:

Firstly the Ed has said that my car and Richards car feel much quicker than their demo did when they had the same mods. I think this could be because the APS car is an ex demonstrator and maybe hasn't been run in as well. As a result, APS are very keen to see what my car will be like as Ed said that it is likely to be the quickest R32 they've tuned smile.gif

Secondly, the one thing I noticed when driving the APS300 car was that even though it didn't feel as if you were really going fast, a quick glance at the speedo told otherwise. It's a very deceptive car and hides it's speed well!

Totally agree with what you say about the engine note though mate, it's very much like having a Type R engine but in a big 3.2 litre V6....excellent!! grin.gif169144-ok.gif

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[ QUOTE ]

[ QUOTE ]

I'm still waiting for a un-biased opinion of this upgrade!!!

Even though I live in N.ireland I will make the journey to aps if the improvement is big enough!!!

Bear in mind this is a +£300 upgrade for the ferry!! plus unlike ChrisBuer IT HAS1!!! to work first time otherwise i'm screwed!

[/ QUOTE ]

Well I've been a passenger in the APS300, and my good friend (who owns a AMD stage 2 mk4) was driving it.

The engine sound is totally awesome, sounds much more highly strung than the mk4.

Power builds up gradually in a very linear form, much like the Mk4 lenny.

Where the mk4 feels like its running out of puff at 5500 rpm, the APS300 keeps on pulling without feeling strangled.

There is no substantial noticeable increase in power after 6000, it's just it keeps on pushing rather than feeling strained.

The sound APS's (custom prototype) exhaust makes from 6-7500rpm is out of this world.

It's very race car sounding - part M3, part R32, part honda vtec manic wail.

It's amazing, and very difficult to describe. It's the kind of sound that will make u thrash the car to 8000rpm each and everytime u drive it.

Without the cams, u won't ever be able to hear that noise, as it's only when u pass 6000rpm that the exhaust note hardens.

Power wise, the car does not feel (what I consider) quick enough. Yes it's quick, but it's not shXt quick.

But that aside, the NOISE is more than enough to make up for the lack of ooomph.

Even my friend who drove it said it didnt feel quick enough as he'd hoped (he's not being bias, as he has a mk5 coming in Jan, so he is a prospective APS300 customer!)

I know if I did own a mk5, I wouldn't hesitate to get the 300 conversion done, if not for the power, but just for the manic sound above 6000rpm.

I could see myself loosing my license soon after though!

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Great reply Gti_Fly...thankyou 169144-ok.gif

Talking to Ed on the phone he hinted that the conversion is £1.8k + the dreaded VAT fitted beerchug.gif Doesn't sound too bad really the_finger.gif

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[ QUOTE ]

A couple of points to add:

Firstly the Ed has said that my car and Richards car feel much quicker than their demo did when they had the same mods. I think this could be because the APS car is an ex demonstrator and maybe hasn't been run in as well. As a result, APS are very keen to see what my car will be like as Ed said that it is likely to be the quickest R32 they've tuned smile.gif

Secondly, the one thing I noticed when driving the APS300 car was that even though it didn't feel as if you were really going fast, a quick glance at the speedo told otherwise. It's a very deceptive car and hides it's speed well!

Totally agree with what you say about the engine note though mate, it's very much like having a Type R engine but in a big 3.2 litre V6....excellent!! grin.gif169144-ok.gif

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I understand the deception of speed by looking down at the speedo, but I've driven other cars with 300bhp (won't name names, or we'll start a whole other discussion!), but they are much much quicker.

the punch in the kidneys for one. But the main difference is the fact that you KNOW its quick, because you end up changing gears much much sooner (and no, not because it's shorter geared!). In the APS300 you rev the nuts off of it to 7500, change gear, and then you wait quite a while before changing up again. There is no manic rush thru the gears, there's time to think in between gear changes.

I know ed said their car is slightly down on power, but whatever the case of theirs, it still makes the most fantastic noise, and that alone makes the conversion worth while

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I also get the 'lack of speed' feeling as well - the car doesn't *feel* lightning quick but the numbers I've gotten on the track back up the performance of the .:R32 100%. My car is stock, best I've done is 14.1 in the quarter mile, just a tick behind a very well driven stock S2000 which got a 13.9.

I think the lack of a sense of speed has something to do (in part) with just how well the R32 is insulated from the road, combined with the tall stance compared to other sports cars and the fact that you can't see right down the nose of the car (OK I sit rather low in mine). Then again, whatever the excuses, we all know the R32 is no EVO and that the acceleration times quited by the VW for the .:R are based on the driver using launch control, which is not the way people drive in day to day situations. In reality, sorry to say but the R32 is probably much slower than the stats would indicate wink.gif

Then again, it's hellishly fast on the road, I've lost many a 'better' car in the twisties.

Would be very interested to see some acceleration numbers for the APS300, although I know you Europeans are more into 0-100 than anything else (I'm Canadian FWIW). Maybe you'll take your car up to Santa Pod when you're done eh, Chris? laugh.gif

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For what its worth, the deception of lack of speed gets us all, and yes the R is no Evo or scoobie, but launch control aside, I have a manual MkV with the Miltek cats, manifolds and cat back + remap and it is deceptively quick. Had the opportunity to take it around a track last month with my mate and his 296hp Nissan 350Z.

All I can say is that on the track, there was nothing in it, neither of us could pull away from each other on the straights. Around the twisties, id pull a car length or two from him in the dry. As for standing starts, have played around against his 350z on a straight stretch of the black stuff, and 0-100 there was absolutely nothing in it. Times for the nissan are 5.8 to 60 and sub 15 to 100 i believe, so IMHO the R is actually more than 'Deceptively' quick, and even without DSG launch control no slower than the quoted VW figures...

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However quick the Mk5 .:R is, it's certainly very deceptive. It's one of the reasons I decided not to trade my GTI in for a R32. You'd have to mod the .:R to get back the equivalent sense of 'fun' which the GTI has. Please understand that I'm not slagging the Mk5 .:R and neither am I saying that I think the GTI is better - I'm just stating my personal preference. I'd be very happy with a Mk5 .:R in red with Millteks etc or APS modded.

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Hi Ben! Welcome to Tyresmoke!

Latest news is that Schrik are arranging to build me a new set of cams that should be with us after Christmas.

I'm planning to go down to APS in January and have them fitted along with the new Superchips stage 3 remap and some HPA ARB's! grin.gif

As soon as I have anything further, I'll post but I doubt much will happen in the next couple of weeks now.

Cheers,

Chris 169144-ok.gif

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Thanks Chris!!!

I've read most of your and Richard's threads regarding the R300 conversion. I have to say I'm very interested in the outcome. I've been in touch with Ed Jackson (great guy btw) and he seems like a very competent fellow.

I'll keep peeking into the forum to see how things go...

Cheers,

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No worries mate!

Yeah Ed is fantastic along with the rest of the team at APS, they really know their stuff!! 169144-ok.gif

It's always worth having a go of their demo car as the cams + remap really do change the characteristics of the engine, much like a high reving, powerful torquey Type-R engine grin.gif

Once my cams are fitted I'll arrange with Ed to have the car taken to the Superchips Rolling Road for a dyno test as I'll be interested to see the readings. At the moment with the Stage 2 remap, short shifter and Milltek exhaust, she goes very well indeed, so god knows what she'll be like with those cams in!!

There was mention of a possible magazine shoot coming in the New Year where we'd have a big R32 meet and comparison test carried out at somewhere like Bruntingthorpe. Not sure if this is still going to happen, but fingers crossed it will as I'd like to see how the R300 compares to the standard R32 now smile.gif

Cheers! 169144-ok.gif

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