RTDI Part 2

3L3M3NT

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Jun 16, 2008
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Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Nothing to crazy to post up, but I figure I might as add some more pictures to this thread. :D

Relocation of the battery is complete with the wires ran to the back of the car.


And last, but not least the rear bumper is back on the car and to fit the swan neck a little bit of trimming had to be done. :(


The goal now is to have the car finished for an August 27th track day at Road America. :cool:
 

3L3M3NT

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Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Well good news bad news situation. I might as well start with the bad news...As I had been posting my car has been at Trudell Performance in Green Bay, WI and earlier this week I made to decision to move my car to VL Performance in Appleton. I had finally had enough of the guys at Trudell not getting enough done with the car to make my August 27th track day.

The shop manager at Trudell kept on making promises that certain things would get done and then he told me that he got offered the opportunity to own a different shop in 1.5-2 years, so he left Trudell only giving them 4 days notice. He told me that he would be moving my car to the new shop that started at and he would finish it there. That was in the middle of July, so when I went down there at the end of July for a doctor's appointment and stopped by his new shop. When I got out of my van, I started looking for my car, only to find out it hadn't been moved :mad: so I went back to Trudell's' to see what, if any progress had been made. The only real progress that had been made is they re-installed the bumper cover after they installed the hitch. :eek: If that's the only thing they could get done in 2 weeks, I knew I needed to rescue my car and take it elsewhere.

With my dad's help he was able to pick it up from Trudell with all the parts and interior loaded in the car he headed to Appleton to drop the car at VL Performance. Right away he meet the shop manager there who helped bring everything in and inventory what was there. Since I couldn't make it down there, the shop manager gave me a call to discuss what needed to be done still and I also told him about all the stuff Trudell had done, so they could double check their work. Overall just from our phone conversation I got a much better feeling about moving my car to VL Performance, so a big thank you to Kevinski4 for recommending them as a shop. :D

The tubular control arms I ordered from Euro Epic Tuning showed up and they look amazing. I'm probably going to hold off on installing them till this winter, since I don't wanna play with my current settings at the end of the season.

Here's how they look in black powdercoat.


 

3L3M3NT

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Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
I'll start off by saying the guys at VL Performance (VLP) have been phenomenal to work with so far and gone beyond my expectations. After realizing the poor quality of welds used on the roll cage and mounting plates, they completely removed the cage and mounting plates. VLP sent me pictures with how $#!tty of a job Trudell did when prepping the sheet metal in the car for the plates to be welded to them. Apparently rather than use a wire wheel or something of that nature, Trudell used a grinder to prep the metal, causing the sheet metal to be so thin in spots you could see the light from a flashlight pass through.

Like so








So the guys at VLP went and made custom mounting points for the cage to attach to.








As you can see there's a huge difference the quality of work.
Which makes me very happy that I changed shops and I'm still kicking myself for not moving the car to VLP way back in the middle May when Trudell missed my track day deadline. Lesson learned and now I know where I'll be going in the future for any custom work.

Especially, since here are the "high quality" welds that Trudell layed down.


 
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Location
Greer, SC USA
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01 GOLF GLS TDI
Sucks the one shop gave you the run around and the funny business... but glad you got it in good hands and back moving in the right direction!!! Just remember, can’t rush a good thing [emoji57] how much more stuff you got before you’re back on the track?


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3L3M3NT

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Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Sucks the one shop gave you the run around and the funny business... but glad you got it in good hands and back moving in the right direction!!! Just remember, can’t rush a good thing [emoji57] how much more stuff you got before you’re back on the track?

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Yeah, I'm trying to be patient, but I was really hoping the car would have been done back in the start of May. :mad: Especially since I dropped the car off at the end of December 2017!

The car needs to have the cage completely re-done, the trans had to be pulled due to the reverse gear issue, and then the sound deadening and interior car go back in.


Well with the RTDI out of commission right now, I decided we might as well take my decently modified Jetta to the track instead. So we hooked onto the trailer I had Blizzard make for me so I could take tools, tires, jack, spare parts, and most importantly my wheelchair to different events in the area.

So if you're in the market for a quality aluminum trailer and you live in the eastern part of the US or Canada look no further than http://www.blizzardmfg.com/









And of course my dog thought he should be the center of attention. ;)
 
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Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Location
Greer, SC USA
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01 GOLF GLS TDI
Yeah patience is definitely a virtue [emoji12] hopefully it won’t be too much backtracking before you get it back together [emoji85] that’s a wicked looking Jetta you got there as well... Trailer looks really nice [emoji1303] lol Skittles photobombing at the end [emoji41]


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3L3M3NT

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Joined
Jun 16, 2008
Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
TDI
04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Yeah patience is definitely a virtue [emoji12] hopefully it won’t be too much backtracking before you get it back together [emoji85] that’s a wicked looking Jetta you got there as well... Trailer looks really nice [emoji1303] lol Skittles photobombing at the end [emoji41]


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Yeah, patience is a virtue, but when you drop your car off at a shop in the middle of December and give them a deadline of the end of April which would give them 2 extra weeks to shake the car down before my May 12th track day. I figured close to 5 months would be plenty of time to complete the car, but they weren't even close. They missed that deadline and I had to finally take the car somewhere else at the end of July because hardly anything got done in 2 months.

Thanks for the complement on the Jetta. :D My original plan was to use my Jetta as my track car until I purchased the RTDI and with all the upgrades done to the RTDI it only made sense to take that to the track to have fun in. ;)

I've been super happy purchasing that trailer to get my chair, spare wheels, tools, jack, cooler, and everything else that we need at the track.

Yep, it seems like Skittles is always making his way into my photos. :)

I finally have another update on the car. The cage is in its final stages with the harness bar is welded in and getting painted.
After the paint dries, then the interior can go back in and look like a completed car again, but with a half cage installed for safety.





Then to make sure the car doesn't burn down in an electrical fire they're going to clean up this mess of wires.


With any luck, I'll have my car back on Friday.:D
 

3L3M3NT

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Jun 16, 2008
Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Things are in the final stages with my car. The cage is completed and the interior of the car is going in. Just the seats need to get installed and I had to ship them the accordion hose that goes between the airbox and turbo inlet pipe.









Here's the last piece of the puzzle to get the engine fired up. :D
 
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Location
Greer, SC USA
TDI
01 GOLF GLS TDI
Roll cage looks nice! [emoji1303] like the color too [emoji41] glad it’s looking like a car again hehe sucks about the just needed the intake hose... you got my kinda luck [emoji13]


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3L3M3NT

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Joined
Jun 16, 2008
Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
TDI
04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Roll cage looks nice! [emoji1303] like the color too [emoji41] glad it’s looking like a car again hehe sucks about the just needed the intake hose... you got my kinda luck [emoji13]


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Thanks! Yeah, the roll cage looks phenomenal and I'm really glad I went with the Cardinal Blue color for the cage versus the black that I had in mind at the beginning of this build.

I hope that the interior doesn't have to come out of the car for a really long time. :D

It's pretty frustrating that an 8" section of intake tubing is what's preventing the car from being driven around. Whiskey81Tango, you and I must be a lot a like, since without bad luck, we'd have no luck at all. haha

I'll post up when the car is running and everything is back in the car. ;)
 

3L3M3NT

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Jun 16, 2008
Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
TDI
04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
S.O.S. Calling all cars! I'm planning on picking up my car tomorrow, but the shop has a Code P0226 that appeared when they started the car and they couldn't clear it.
Here's what they emailed me:
"I chatted with our techs about the issues with your throttle. We have a code P0226 for a Throttle Pedal Position Implausible Signal. As of right now we can press the pedal down with no results. We took the pedal assembly apart to clean the contacts re-installed and we are still having the same issues. When we first got your car Casey mentioned that the carpet was completely wet. We've had your car inside at our shop the entire time. It is possible that there is some issue that moisture got in somewhere where it shouldn't have."

I'm planning on bringing my other ECU and VCDS cord with tomorrow to see if replacing the ECU does it or trying to clear the code a few times would do the trick.

The weird part is my dad was able to start it and drive it onto the trailer 2 months ago when it was moved from the old shop to the new one.

If you have any suggestions please feel free to post them, as I'd really like to get my car home tomorrow if at all possible. TIA.
 

3L3M3NT

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Jun 16, 2008
Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
TDI
04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
I'm in a bit of a predicament, when I looked up the replacement accelerator pedal, I found out that there are two different part numbers as far as replacements. A 6Q1 721 503 M which is for the R32 and then there's a 6Q1 721 503 L which is for all MKIV TDIs.

My question is which one should I order?
 
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Location
Greer, SC USA
TDI
01 GOLF GLS TDI
It was working prior wasn’t it? This is the one from YouTube ? Best I can tell the “accelerator position sender” (102) is ran solo... just goes from and to the ECU. As far as which one idk [emoji52] I personally would order the TDI one due to the ECU would match it.
although it’s the same number of wires it’s totally different internally on the gas motors (35)
still solo with ECU


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3L3M3NT

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Jun 16, 2008
Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
TDI
04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
It was working prior wasn’t it? This is the one from YouTube ? Best I can tell the “accelerator position sender” (102) is ran solo... just goes from and to the ECU. As far as which one idk [emoji52] I personally would order the TDI one due to the ECU would match it. although it’s the same number of wires it’s totally different internally on the gas motors (35) still solo with ECU

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Yeah, it was working 2 months ago when it was dropped off. Granted the carpet was pretty damp in the driver's footwell when I got the car, but I figured it would dry out over time since the car would be sitting inside at all times.
So maybe that has something to do with it...

Just to play it safe, I'll probably have them remove the accelerator pedal and have them let me know what part number is on the one they remove and just re-order that one. If I had to guess which one was in the car, I'd guess the 6Q1 721 503 M from the R32.
I guess I'll find out on Monday and I can let you guys know which one it was.:)
 

3L3M3NT

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Jun 16, 2008
Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
TDI
04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
I seem to have the worst luck with the car this year. :( They figured out what was causing the pedal to not respond and it wasn't either the pedal assembly or the ECU. Low and behold, when the guys at Trudell ran the power wire to relocate the battery to the back of the car, they must have worn a hole in the main harness where it goes through the firewall. Once they saw that there were bare wires exposed on the harness, they soldered them back together and the pedal worked like it was supposed to.

They took the car on a test drive to make sure it would be good to go on the dyno for a few pulls to see what kind of numbers it's making. Only to notice that there was a coolant leak going on. I'm not sure which shop thought it was okay to use RTV/JB Weld to try and seal up a crack in the coolant flange, but that was their fix for the crack and then they used zip ties to hold it in place. :mad:

So instead of picking up my car today, they're waiting on a new coolant flange to come in at the dealers and to my surprise the coolant flange was actually off of an ALH engine. I guess I forget that over in Europe they're a year or two ahead of us on the engine or chassis we have in the states. So if anyone else is running a PD150(ARL) from Europe, just remember that no all of the parts will match up with the PD engines we have here.
https://www.ecstuning.com/b-genuine-volkswagen-audi-parts/coolant-flange/038121132c/

This is a picture of the part that's causing the delay.






The plan now is to pick up the car on Wednesday and start prepping for our trip to Road Atlanta at the end of the month to finally put some laps on it. So if you live near Atlanta and wanna make the trip to Road Atlanta on December 1st or 2nd to see the car in person and what it can do in track, send me a pm, so I can give you my cell phone number.

Here's some more info about the event.
http://nasa-se.com/2018/08/12/santas-toy-run-road-atlanta/?fbclid=IwAR3z_EdIInbCSBhki502IhgOvpwm7IuWDEReChOvlBVgpsINRiXKIyxxqsY
 

3L3M3NT

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Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Well I have some awesome news...I finally have my car back after what seemed like forever between the time it spent at both shops.

VL Performance was great to work with on completing the car and I just wish I had taken the car there right from the get go, but there was no way of knowing that things would go so wrong at Trudell Performance when I dropped the car off there 11 months ago. At least now I know where to go in the future for any projects with either this car or my Jetta.

I don't have any decent pictures of the completed interior yet, since we were running a little behind schedule for getting back to town, so my dad could make his dinner reservations with my mom and some of their friends.

Here's what I have at the moment and I should be able to get some pictures tomorrow. Otherwise I know the guys at VL Performance took some decent ones and they're going to email me those. Plus I'm planning on getting plenty of video and pictures from the track day at Road Atlanta.








Here are the initial dyno numbers. They said the final numbers are higher if anyone wants to take a stab at it. ;)
 
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Location
Greer, SC USA
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01 GOLF GLS TDI
Looks amazing!!! [emoji1786] glad you’re finally reunited [emoji847] marked it on the calendar bout Road Atlanta, I’m not too far away... but no promises [emoji12]


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3L3M3NT

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Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Looks amazing!!! [emoji1786] glad you’re finally reunited [emoji847] marked it on the calendar bout Road Atlanta, I’m not too far away... but no promises [emoji12]


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Thanks! The car turned out amazing if I don't say so myself. :D

Feel free to send me a pm if you're going to make the trip. I can give you my cell phone number.
 

ssaric1.9TDI

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Feb 29, 2016
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Atlanta
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2013 VW Passat TDI, 2003 VW Jetta Wagon TDI
Road of Atlanta is just up from my house. Would like to come out and see this beast.
 

3L3M3NT

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Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Love how this is turning out...been following since the start...beautifully done!!!
Thanks for following along with my saga of the ups and downs of my build. It's definitely been frustrating at times when things either took longer than I thought it should or a shop doing shoddy work and causing more problems than they fixed.
Keep on following along, since I've a few more things planned for my car. Granted some of these upgrades might be in a year or two, since I depleted my savings finishing the car.

Road of Atlanta is just up from my house. Would like to come out and see this beast.
Send me a PM and I'll give you my cell phone number, so you can give me a call to make it easier to track me down.
 

3L3M3NT

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Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Sorry for taking so long to post up about my trip to Road Atlanta.

Anyway we left Thursday afternoon around 2:30 CST and started on our journey to Road Atlanta. We made pretty good time until we hit traffic in Chicago, which delayed us by about 30 minutes or so, which isn't all that bad as anyone that lives near Chicago will attest to. We had to make a stop near Gary, Indiana to pick up someone that offered to drive my car at the track and help drive the van when my dad got tired.
Things were going pretty smooth with our trip until we hit traffic just as the sun was coming up and it was due to someone crashing through a guard rail and sliding down the hillside I can only assume.




With stops and traffic we made it to our hotel around 12 EST where the hostess was nice enough to let us in our a little bit early, so we could drop off our luggage that was stashed in my car, so we wouldn't be so crowded in the van. Just as we were about to leave for the track, the package of toys I ordered was at the front desk, since the gate fee was $20 or bring a toy with to the event being it was called Santa's Toy Run and all.

We were able to track down where the paddock was, so we could find a place to park the van, unload the car, and unhook the trailer to save our space. Then Walter the guy who invited me to event was able to track me down and had a very nice surprise for me. A friend of his gave me a ride in his Porsche GT3! Talk about an incredible experience, that just blew my mind at what the car was capable when it's let loose on a track. The car had the 3.8L flat 6 mated to a PDK transmission and I hate to say it, but after riding in that car with the lightning quick shifts, I can see why some people prefer the PDK over a 6 speed manual. Every time he shifted it pulled me back in the seat and I know I don't have the upper body strength I used to, but in this car I'm not sure it would matter. I can't even imagine what it would be like in a hypercar that's making 1,000+ hp and going for a ride in one of those. :eek:




Sadly it rained all day on Saturday and a little bit on Sunday morning, so we didn't get a lot of pictures on Saturday, but little did I know that the crew from AARodriguez Corp was at the track day as well and stood out in the rain and got some shots of my car on track on Saturday. So thank you Angelica and friends :D






I'm not sure if this shot is from Saturday afternoon when the rain let up for a little bit or on Sunday morning when the track was still wet...
 
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3L3M3NT

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Jun 16, 2008
Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
And here's what can happen if you push your car too much in the rain.




My car was quite dirty after running in the rain on Saturday.




Angelica was able to get some great photos on Sunday when things finally dried out in the afternoon.






Unfortunately we weren't able to get any GoPro footage like I hoped we would have, but we able to get some short clips of the car on the track.
https://youtu.be/l0UnyuyKFEE

https://youtu.be/7JFdFSWWDiQ

https://youtu.be/npNx99JG-mc
 

3L3M3NT

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Jun 16, 2008
Location
Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Overall it was a great experience and I'm hoping I can make it an annual event, since I meet some amazing people while we were there, the people next to us let us use their EZ Up tent while I was getting transferred in and out of the car on Saturday, otherwise I would have been soaked at the end of the day.


Here's my car after a fun filled weekend.


I'm hoping this winter I can have some fun with it out on the ice.
 

1854sailor

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Aug 10, 2004
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Westerly, RI
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2015 Golf SE SportWagen, 2015 Golf SE Hatch Back.
Fantastic to see it on the track, but it looks like your tune is overfueling a wee bit.
 

3L3M3NT

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Sturgeon Bay, WI
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04 Jetta GLS TDI, 04 RTDI
Fantastic to see it on the track, but it looks like your tune is overfueling a wee bit.
Yeah, I was thrilled that after everything that has gone into getting this car ready for the track, that I got to take it out on Road Atlanta before it sits for awhile waiting for there to be enough ice out on the bay to safely take the car out on it.

The tune is going to get tweaked either this winter while out on the ice or in the spring after all of the salt has been washed away, since like you mentioned it's a little bit on the smokey side and could be cleaned up a little bit. I think a lot of it has to do with gasket being installed correctly between the downpipe and turbine exit, where before it was blocking a third of the turbine exit impeding exhaust flow.
 
Joined
Apr 23, 2018
Location
Greer, SC USA
TDI
01 GOLF GLS TDI
Hate I wasn’t able to come, was awful weather in SC as well... glad it held up and made it back in one piece [emoji41] hehe “liked” the videos as always [emoji1303][emoji1303][emoji1303] hopefully next year I can make it if you’ll be there.


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