Having created such a strong black and white theme, all agreed there should be more carbon. We suggested OSIR's chin spoiler with central carbon diffuser, as well as their carbon grille surround and mirrors. The surround is affixed with automotive tape, while the mirrors were disassembled to fit the new housings. Each piece is manufactured to incredibly high standards and fit flawlessly.
The parts are from OSIR's US distributor, ZMax Autosports. They have both exterior and interior parts for the GTI, TT and Audi A3.
OSIR also has single- or double-sided carbon hoods, but we decided to involve DTM Autohaus; through its subsidiary, DTM Karbon, they produce a number of carbon parts including a GTI hood.The added advantage of using DTM was access to its professional paint and bodyshop. The OSIR chin spoiler needed painting, and we also opted to paint the sides of the hood to emphasize the characteristic GTI nose.
Fitting the hood was easy since the tuner uses the stock hardware, while the OSIR spoiler also used factory attachment points.
Under the hood, we added OSIR's carbon engine cover. It replaces the silver panel on the GTI's plastic engine cover and was installed by Eurocode. They needed to grind off the retaining clips on the stock part and heat the VW badge before it could be removed and glued to the OSIR cover. Four flexible metal tabs now hold the new cover in place.
Eurocode is an APR dealer and was able to contribute the APR/Carbonio carbon intake. It replaced the stock inlet snorkel with a bigger carbon unit. A performance filter was then placed inside the airbox.
We'd previously had the chance to see APR's individually numbered stainless-steel turbo-back exhaust, and had no doubt we'd fit one. Derek had also been impressed with APR so we stuck to what he knows.
The old exhaust simply unbolts from the turbo. Then the stock system is removed from its hangers and the APR unit goes in its place.
Derek opted for the "Stealth" exhaust - it has an additional silencer and is quieter than APR's Sport system. There was also a downpipe and cat but Eurocode recommend fitting a VF-Engineering pendulum mount with this turbo-back to reduce problems associated with engine movement.
Eurocode uploaded APR's software into the ECU; 91- and 93-octane programs can be selected via the cruise control stalk.
We previously fitted APR software and turbo-back exhaust to a Mk5 GTI on the East Coast (et 9/06). Running 93-octane it made 211hp and 258 lb/ft, which is close to the GIAC software and Techtonics exhaust on our '06 GLI, Project Dub.
The two cars also share braking equipment after we fitted the new "Brembo by APR" kit. These are basically the same 328mm slotted front rotors and four-piston calipers that are on our GLI (et 11/06), except Derek's kit has new APR hats and special pads.
The braking improvement is immediate. Often a set of big brakes can be overkill, but are a godsend on a hard-driven GTI/GLI. The pedal is more responsive, and the braking significantly more powerful. They certainly didn't fade under hard use in the canyons, and that was good enough for Derek.
"The GTI is a super base for tuning," Derek confirmed. "Aesthetic changes make it more aggressive and masculine. On the performance side, the suspension needs some help. It also needs more exhaust note, and added power pushes it to a whole new level.