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J

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Discussion Starter · #1 · (Edited)
Hi. I'm Brian. Welcome to my thread. I'm the original owner of this highly modified stock looking GLI. Some say that's the definition of OEM+. Call it what you want. It's mine and I love it (most of the time). Photobucket broke nearly all of the pictures and I refuse to update 1000+ links. Sorry. Skip to the end of the thread if you want as the newer stuff has pictures.

Car: 2005 GLI | PG | 6-speed | 78,000 miles

Engine:
GIAC X+ ECU flash
Shaved stock airbox with GHL extension tube
Samco turbo inlet pipe
Eurojet throttle body hose
Eurojet Race FMIC core with Street piping
APR R1 diverter valve
Gruvenparts power steering pulley
Fluidampr crank pulley
VF Engineering motor mounts
Color matched engine covers
MKVI Coilpack harness cover
JCaps power steering, coolant, washer fluid, oil and dipstick caps
OEM polished hood strut

Transmission:
Neuspeed 6 speed short shift
42 Draft Designs solid shifter bushings
Verdict Motorsports solid cable bracket bushings
USP Motorsports stainless clutch line

Exhaust:
APR 2.5" turboback with 4" Magnaflow tip
42 Draft Designs O2 sensor spacer

Brakes:
OEM R32 front brakes
Hawk HPS pads
Tyrolsport solid guide pin bushings
USP Motorsports stainless brake lines

Suspension:
KW Variant 3 coilovers
H2Sport sport spindles
H2Sport sway bar endlinks
IDF control arms
Tyrolsport solid subframe bushings
Tyrolsport solid steering rack bushing
Neuspeed 28mm rear sway bar
Neuspeed front upper strut bar
Neuspeed front lower tie bar
Yarrowtech rear stress bar
Masontech Great Plates

Wheels:
19x8" ET50 BBS CH's (5x112)
...H&R 20mm front / 25mm rear adapters
...OEM Audi gray lug bolt covers

Tires:
225/35/19 Vredestein Sessanta

Exterior:
OEM Bora .:R front and rear bumpers
OEM Cupra R lip
OEM 4-door .:R32 side skirts
OEM non-chrome door rubstrips
Custom Polo grill
Custom hybrid 04.5+/Euro trunk with Euro trunk handle
OEM stubby mirrors
...Chromed caps
...Skoda puddle lights
OEM Aero wiper arms and blades
OEM Sharan stubby antenna
35% Llumar window tint
Painted red rear tow hook

Lighting:
Custom retrofitted headlights
...OEM GLI headlights
...FX-R projectors
...E55-R shrouds
...Morimoto 5000K bulbs
...Matsush!ta gen 4 ballasts
...Dual clear turn signal lenses
......Top: amber LED turn signal
......Bottom: white LED city light
...Chrome headlight surround
...OEM lexan headlight covers
OEM Bora .:R fog lights
...PIAA Ion Yellow fog light bulbs
OEM Euro R/R/R/C tail lights
...Internal amber turn signal reflector removed
...OEM rear fog light
...White LED reverse bulbs
42 Draft Designs white license plate LEDs

Interior:
OEM R32 seats
...Custom leather with Audi RS style stutching
...JCaps knob covers and release handle
...rear center seat belt and headrest delete
...rear locking Jetta handles
...OEM fire extinguisher under passenger seat
Custom ultrasuede door card inserts with Audi RS style stitching
Custom ultrasuede headliner, pillars, and parcel shelf with Audi RS style stitching on sunroof cover
OEM MK7 non-multifunction steering wheel
OEM R32 pedals and dead pedal
OEM R32 e-brake boot
OEM R32 shift boot
OEM BMW E92 sport short shift knob
Custom brushed aluminum coin slot cover and seat belt slider plates
42 Draft Designs / VLEDs white interior LEDs
Shaved OEM sunglass holder
OEM FIS Euro R32 gauge cluster with Passat tach (no R32 logo)
OEM W8 console
OEM Subaru auto dimming rear view mirror with Homelink and red hidden compass display
OEM lighted Jetta vents
OEM Funk switch plate for ESP
OEM heated seats
OEM Climatronic swap
Second OBDII port mounted in radio cage in OEM Euro location
OEM climate controlled glove box
OEM Euro lower dash panel
OEM dual color footwell lights (white with dome lights, red with headlights)
Brushed aluminum speaker trim rings
LED trunk light strips
OEM Euro trunk liner modified to fit emergency release handle
OEM warning triangle
OEM polished trunk struts
OEM MKV grocery bag hook
OEM black "Mojo" carpeted floor mats (Shows)
OEM Monster mats (Daily)

Electronics:
DC Power 320 amp alternator
OEM Euro interior monitoring system
OEM Euro DWA alarm siren
OEM comfort blinker relay
ColorMFA cluster display module
Remote window control via VDS Pro
Auto up/down rear window controls
Kenwood DNX694S receiver
JL HD 900/5 amplifier
Polk Momo 6.5" front/rear speakers
JL Audio Stealthbox (10W3v3)
Sound deadening throughout

Outdated pictures from 2011:












Crappy pictures from 2012:








2013 looked the same as 2012, but I was missing the front bumper. Here's 2014. It's not looking good:








Current stage:






​To Do List

Audio stuff:
Finish sound deadening trunk/floor/doors
Fabricate mounting bracket for new amp in CD changer slot (JL HD 900/5)
Make new speaker rings for the front door speakers and install new speakers in the rear doors
New speaker wire, wiring from head unit to amp
Modify blank dash button for subwoofer volume control knob
Build a new false floor over the JL Stealthbox and spare tire

Repairs:
Locate and fix water leak
Replace both rear door control modules
Replace front right door handle cable
Replace front right tweeter panel
Fix front bumper (the bottom sags in the center on the back side)

Misc.:
Install new rear view mirror (Subaru/Gentex semi-frameless autodimming with red hidden compass and Homelink)
Order new airbag for MK7 steering wheel
Install ambient LEDs in each door handle (OEM diffusers from I think an A8)
New LED strips in the trunk since I ripped out the old ones with the amp setup
Relocate the MKV grocery bag hood in the trunk as it was mounted on the board for the amps
Firmware update for ColorMFA
Order new pad for under the carpet
Install new carpet (have already)
Reinstall interior (have new center console and shifter surround)
Misc. wiring cleanup from previous projects

Considerations:
VX Tuning quad projector OEM HID style headlights
FK LED tail lights if I ever find a set (modified with Euro lenses)
Trim and install new painted engine covers
ECS fuel pressure gauge (undecided)
Passat mirror switch (undecided)
42DD Stealth catch can (undecided)

 Distant Future:
LSD and strengthened shift forks when clutch fails
GT28RS or GT2871R turbo kit when stock turbo fails
APR or SEM intake manifold

The Daily: 2013 Allroad (Build thread: Click Here)


 
J

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Discussion Starter · #3 · (Edited)
FV-QR

This was the original first post. Moved down here to make more room up there.

Previous thread: My Journey

What I remember doing between then and now:
-rolled the front fenders and was able to reduce the damage from the wheel falling off a couple of years ago
-traded the Aristos for TT wheels
-traded the TT wheels for a different set of Aristos to use for winter with Nokian tires
-new General Exclaim UHP tires for the RC's
-sold the Superleggeras in order to fix / rebuild my computer
-traded trunks with another PG Jetta to get rid of the spoiler
-traded my black Neuspeed front strut bar for a polished one
-sold the Neuspeed P-Flow (didn't like the noise)
-realigned the exhaust and welded on a larger tip to fill the opening in the GLI valence a little better
-water pump failed at 55kish miles
-replaced timing belt, water pump, etc.
-had a FluidDampr crank pulley and Gruvenparts alternator and power steering pulleys installed with the timing belt stuff
-replaced the alcantara covered door card inserts with OEM leather inserts
-installed and coded for an OEM DWA alarm siren (chirps instead of honks)
-bought a spare intake manifold to polish (haven't gotten very far)
-built a dash mounted mute button for my radar detector with color matched LEDs
-installed a limited run Unibrace designed for Jetta fitment
...and I think that brings us back up to speed. I'm sure I forgot some stuff, but that's most of it.

The last couple of weeks have been pretty productive. I took advantage of the VW Outlet / ECS blowout sales and bought an .:R pedal set and dead pedal, a Gorilla Gear trunk mat, and I finally bought a set of OEM Aero wipers (not on sale, but I've wanted them for years). I bought an OEM E92 sport shift knob and a shift lever on eBay to see how it attaches and modify my lever to make it work, and bought a set of Great Plates to push the rear wheels back and eliminate rubbing. I refinished and sold off a set of junk stubby mirrors I bought last year, then bought a new set from ECS to either paint or chrome. I found a rare set of new OEM lexan headlight covers in anticipation of a future project, then I made that future project start a little quicker than intended.

Mr. Appleton built a set of retrofitted headlights and didn't make a DIY, but posted pictures as he progressed. He put them up for sale shortly after finishing them. I was too far back in line and missed out on the sale. After a lot of reading on the HIDPlanet forums and some emails back and forth with [email protected], I decided it was something I could do myself.

I bought this stuff:
-new Hella / OEM GLI headlights from MJM
-junk set of OEM lights with clear turn signal lenses and chrome outer trim ring
-second set of clear turn signal lenses
-this stuff from TheRetrofitSource
......FX-R projectors
......E55-R shrouds
......Phillips 4300K bulbs
......Morimoto 5000K bulbs
......Matsush!ta gen 4 ballasts

This is a portion of what arrived last week:


This is what I've done:


Discuss.
 
J

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Discussion Starter · #5 ·
FV-QR

I didn't really follow any specific DIY. I just read everything I could find and learned as much as I could about it.
Even though there's not a lot of VW specific stuff there, the forums at http://hidplanet.com were great to learn a lot about the various retrofit components and reading / learning from other retrofit builds gave me the confidence that I could do mine.
This thread was my inspiration and probably wasn't intended to be a DIY, but kind of is: http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=4738520
Matt @ TheRetroFitSource (http://www.theretrofitsource.com) was very helpful in picking out components and guiding me through the order process.
I started with brand new GLI style Hella headlights from MJM (cheapest OEM / Hella lights I could find new) so the lenses were perfect, the chrome had less of a chance of peeling and everything was clean to work on. I also bought a set of beat up OEM lights in the classifieds forum cheap to use the clear turn signals and chrome trim ring to replace the black one on the GLI lights. The second set of clear turn signal lenses I also found in the classifieds.
This one helped me get the headlights open and apart: http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=4196278
I made a template to use as a guide for cutting (IM me for a full size .pdf file):

I taped off the chrome with blue painters tape (the tape for delicate surfaces and 60 day clean removal, not the regular blue tape with 14 day clean removal), dremeled a hole for the projector, drilled 11/64" holes to mount it with #8 nuts and bolts, and trimmed the shroud quite a bit to fit around it.
For the dual signal lenses the guide above was pretty good and I added to it a little bit at the end.
I still need to remove all of the sealant from the housings and lenses, cut up the other reflector, make new backs for the housings to fit the longer projector, test the aim of the projectors, and seal them up. It will probably be a couple of weeks still. I don't have a lot of time with school full time, a weekend job, and an internship during the week.


Modified by JettaGetUpandGo at 11:07 AM 3-19-2010
 
R

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#9 ·
Re: FV-QR (JettaGetUpandGo)

Quote, originally posted by JettaGetUpandGo »
I didn't really follow any specific DIY. I just read everything I could find and learned as much as I could about it.
Even though there's not a lot of VW specific stuff there, the forums at http://hidplanet.com were great to learn a lot about the various retrofit components and reading / learning from other retrofit builds gave me the confidence that I could do mine.
This thread was my inspiration and probably wasn't intended to be a DIY, but kind of is: http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=4738520
Thank you sir! How much do you think the whole transformation will cost me and how many hours do you think it'l take?
Matt @ TheRetroFitSource (http://www.theretrofitsource.com) was very helpful in picking out components and guiding me through the order process.
I started with brand new GLI style Hella headlights from MJM (cheapest OEM / Hella lights I could find new) so the lenses were perfect, the chrome had less of a chance of peeling and everything was clean to work on. I also bought a set of beat up OEM lights in the classifieds forum cheap to use the clear turn signals and chrome trim ring to replace the black one on the GLI lights. The second set of clear turn signal lenses I also found in the classifieds.
This one helped me get the headlights open and apart: http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=4196278
I made a template to use as a guide for cutting (IM me for a full size .pdf file):

I taped off the chrome with blue painters tape (the tape for delicate surfaces and 60 day clean removal, not the regular blue tape with 14 day clean removal), dremeled a hole for the projector, drilled 11/64" holes to mount it with #8 nuts and bolts, and trimmed the shroud quite a bit to fit around it.
For the dual signal lenses the guide above was pretty good and I added to it a little bit at the end.
I still need to remove all of the sealant from the housings and lenses, cut up the other reflector, make new backs for the housings to fit the longer projector, test the aim of the projectors, and seal them up. It will probably be a couple of weeks still. I don't have a lot of time with school full time, a weekend job, and an internship during the week.

Modified by JettaGetUpandGo at 11:07 AM 3-19-2010
 
J

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Discussion Starter · #15 ·
Re: FV-QR (RuB_MyZZteR)

Quote, originally posted by RuB_MyZZteR »
Oh I'm sorry about that I meant to reply to what you said...
I was trying to write thanx for the info and also how long do you think itl take to do the whole job?
My bad again

Haha, sorry, I didn't see your reply in the middle of all that.
445 Projectors, shrouds, bulbs, ballasts, harness. (could do for ~$100 less with different bulbs and ballasts)
225 New Hella GLI-style headlights from MJM
55 Junk OEM headlights with clear turn signals and a chrome outer ring
30 Second set of clear turn signals
$750 total
All of those prices were shipped. I should be able to get some money back selling the amber turn signal lenses, black GLI trim ring, second set of reflectors, and another $550ish for my current headlights.
I expect the total time to be 20-30 hours. I only get to work on them for an hour or so here and there. I want them to turn out good too, so I'm taking my time. Scraping the old sealant off is going to take forever.
 
R

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#16 ·
Re: FV-QR (JettaGetUpandGo)

Thanx again for the info.... but I really don't think I'll be able to pull that off though....I second that...I know I won't be able to pull that off...isn't their any projector headlights that you can buy off the shelf that are similar to the stock ones and would look like the ones that you're retrofitting? Wouldn't that save you a lot of time?
 
R

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#18 ·
Re: FV-QR (JettaGetUpandGo)

Quote, originally posted by JettaGetUpandGo »
If there were projector headlights that looked just like the ones I'm building with similar output, then I wouldn't be building them.

Haha alright...thats it...good luck with your work
 
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