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Hi all
Just wanted in introduce myself.
Ive just ordered modules 1 & 2 for the 5exi. Hope to get the kit end of July / Mid august.
Using the 1.8t 20v engine from an audi A3, subject to getting the right donor.
I've never built a car before, so am looking forward to this ALOT.
For the record Im based in Basingstoke, Hampshhire.
So hello to all you fellow 5exi owners
Thanks for the welcomes guys,
I have been lurking on the forums in the background a while.
Not sure if I am the first factory endorsed audi builder or not.
I do know there is another kit being ordered at the same time as mine, also going for the audi option.
Terry was saying she should do a press release about it.
Sorry to take your crown away from you David, but as I dont have a kit yet, Im not building, so its still yours !! (For now anyway )
How long has it taken to build your kits so far? How long left to go?
Welcome along Steve, and good luck with the kit.
From memory I think from kit collection to SVA was about 14 months for me. Still not exactly finished yet though...
Ordered Kit Oct 07
Collected first stage Feb 08
Collected body panels in May 08 (still in my spare room though)
Currently I have a powered chassis, with the exeception of the pedal box.
Recon it will be 2 years + from start to IVA
I made my own wiring loom, a longer job than I expected and much altered from designs when I actually wired it in. However advantage is I know every wire in my loom and its tailored to my build which has a different dash and lights etc.
Do you know what chassis varient you are getting, you may find you have the same as me which varies in the rear end quite substantially from most others. When I get my build site back up and running (the ISP was hacked and lost the server :-( ) you will find plenty of photos that may help you.
Most important tip from me of the build is if your not sure about something, ask as it will save alot of pain later even if it delays you a day or too at the time.
I dont have the kit yet, if all goes to plan should be end of july begining of august. Marlin are sourcing the donor parts for me from an Audi A3, just to make sure I get everything I need and it all fits.
I cant answer questions about wiring looms etc, as I havn't seen what I am getting yet.
With regards to chassis, Im getting what is known as the 'Race Spec' chassis, its the only one they do now, since taking part in the GT championship. As for what the difference is I dont know, but i would guess it has additional bracing, for the bigger engines, and bracing elsewhere for less roll/twist when cornering at speed ??
Am I missing something with build times? The marlin website reckons 100hrs build time, for me as a newbie I'm going to double to 200hrs.
I have my own website, so I could start a build thread on here, but I will be adding everything, pics and maybe a blog onto my website.
Thanks very much for all the warm welcomes,
This will be my first port of call for help and advice
I would say the build time is around 1000 hours it depends very much on how much skill you have if your a newbie it takes longer to do things and get them right, you also work on it somedays and get no where other days you get tonnes done.
Cost dont even start me on.. mine has spiraled up due to the additional parts needed or parts that my donor a late 25 had changed over the original design. Mine is circa 18k-20k on the road by the looks of it.
Dont get me wrong though I dont regret building the car at all its a fun challange and can be the most satisfying thing when you get to some of the major milestones, wheels on, engine start etc.
Ah yes thats the same spec as my rear end, I was the prototype of the roadgoing race car chassis.
Will be very interested in how you get on as the 1.8 audi is one of the engines I am considering as an upgrade eventually. And that means there must be a set of factory mounts for my chassis created now :-)
Collected kit in March 06, started building properly in July 06 as until then I was living 80 miles away from where the kit was stored, SVA Jan 08. Mainly working at the weekend, though there were times I didn't work on it for weeks due to other activities. At a rough estimate, I'd say 750 hours.
First (and last - box has been ticked now!) kit for me.
What ECU do Marlin recommend for the 1.8t option? What A3 is the engine coming from? There are numerous 1.8t VAG engines (big port head, small port, vvt, 9:1, 9.5:1, k03, k03s, k04 turbo, etc), so if you don't already know your 1.8t engines, get to know the options so that you have the best option for your purpose (drivability... ultimate power...). For a road car, I'd go small port, 9.5:1, and K03s - reliable, quick spooling, 230bhp / 230lbft.
My build roughly the same time as Johns but was registered sept 08 due to cutting my dash up, oil cooler, remote oil filter, center console etc etc.
Cost wise, yeah double your budget mine is about 25-28k iiissshh I think but I did not watch the money too much! This includes 3 sets of brakes, 3 full sets of alloys and tyres plus a loft full of parts that I will never use haha.
I will post pics up soon of mine as it's looking slightly different now
Marlin are sourcing the donor parts for me from an Audi A3, just to make sure I get everything I need and it all fits.
............
The marlin website reckons 100hrs build time,
Good luck with the build. Exciting times of anticipation.
I believe mine is the only 5exi on the road in Wales. I am all alone and too far from everyone else.
I picked up my first 2 modules in December 2005 and it was completed and on the road in June 2008. In between, i moved house 60 miles away and had an illness which put me out of action for 3 months. All in all, it was not a bad kit to build. I have built a Robin Hood previously, which believe it or not, i enjoyed buiding more than this one. If i'm honest, the 5exi looks great but is nowhere near value for the money i have spent.
Sorry, just cheesed off at the moment with my driveshaft / engine stabiliser proble.
To finish on a positive. GREAT FUN TO DRIVE AND IT GOES LIKE STINK
MUCH MORE THAN THE N.S.L.
Welcome to the world of 5EXI, hope all goes well with your experience, just a word of caution, if you are looking at the price to much you will not want to begin, 15K is do able, but you will need to use as much as you can from the donor car. In the matter of 200 hours, I would be very supprised if you get that, try and allow yourself 4 times that and some, not trying to be depressive, just realistic, and enjoy the build by taking your time.
As you have already gathered people on this forum are very supportive and helpful, so you should be fine during the build.
Also if you plan on going more than 200-230 BHP, you will need a bigger turbo than a K03S. Start planning now if so as you will need a different exhaust.
If it's the standard K03, it will run out of puff at about 200.
Here is some detail from Integrated Engineering in the states on what to do to the audi lump to make it purr like a pussycat with Bronchitis!
My lump is the 180bhp from the Seat Leon Cupra.
Stage “1” – basics for reliability and make 400bhp
-Use any late 1.8t block w/ big port head
-82mm 8.5:1 cr JE piston / IE rod combo $824.99 -- OR – 82mm 9:1 CR Wiseco piston / IE rod - $784.99 (both in stock)
-Use stock main bolts
-Stock head bolts @ $34.99
-Stock main bearings @ $54.99
-ACL Race rod bearings / calico coated @74.99
-Stock head gasket set $139.99 (includes every seal in top end)
-Supertech Inconel exhaust valves- $259.99
I would recommend a T3 flange, .63 a/r GT3071R with that combination and expect 350-360 at the wheels on pump fuel. I would turn the engine to 7500 not much higher for good reliability.
Stage “2”
-Replace stock main bolts with ARP’s @104.99
-Replace stock head bolts with arp studs @ 194.99
-Same piston / Rod combo options
-Add a supertech spring and retainer set @ $449.99
-Add Cat Cams 1013653 grind camshafts @ 629.99
-Use an SEM or ross machine racing intake manifold – between $700-850 depending what you choose
With this I would use a T3 flange, .63a/r gt3071r… I would expect 400-410 at the wheels on pump and turn the engine 8000. Usable powerband is actually slightly longer, turbo takes about 200rpm longer to spool and you can rev it 500 higher so….
Stage “3”
-Replace piston and rod combo with 2L stroker kit @ $1699.99
-Replace oem main bearings with acl race calico coated @ $149.99
-Use a full supertech +1mm over valve set with single groove keepers $469.99
-Consider cat cams 1013658 but toss up there with the smaller 1013653’s- same price
-Have the head ported
I would proooobably stick with the gt3076r for this just because I don’t think you really need over 500whp in that car anyways… I’d expect close to 450whp on this setup on pump fuel, with more powerband yet again and much more torque out of boost as well. This is essentially the setup we use when looking for over 700whp, although we do some additional reinforcing like billet main caps etc which are not necessary for your power goals. The 3658 grind cams will take more off the bottom end and stick it up on top and of course bolster the peak numbers, but that camshaft does have a bit of a lopey idle and it does start to get quite soft on the bottom end.
I don’t know what you are doing for engine management but on the first setup I would use a 630cc injector file on stock ecu, second two I would go with a 870 or 1000cc injector file depending on who you are using for chip tuning. I recommend unitronics or eurodyne, but definitely do not recommend revo. If you are going to use a standalone ecu like pectel or similar then it is not an issue, although the injector sizes I suggested will work well regardless.
What you do for a flywheel depends totally on what transmission you use. My suggestion is of course to ditch the dual mass one as they are difficult to resurface properly and tend to break- I recommend a 12-17lb steel unit. I do not recommend the lighter aluminum ones (then that) as they cause a lot of gear chatter and in high rpm / high power I have seen them burst! Scary stuff… Shrapnel everywhere. Also beware of cheap “billet” steel flywheels which are actually cast iron cores not from true billet steel. Many of my friends have ripped the centers out of these with high power so I suggest them only for cheap oem rebuild type duty… K03’s, all that sort of stuff are fine with them. A good billet steel flywheel typically runs $3-400 depending on the transmission, with a ring gear.
We are still a bit back and forth on the clutches but have had good success with the south bend stuff. Given this car’s duty I would suggest a fairly aggressive clutch with a “6 puck” disk- this will make it shift a little quicker as it has a lot less inertia. An unsprung center is tougher, but will chatter pretty good when you let out the clutch in 1st gear / get rolling. We are just getting done putting an unsprung 6 puck in our mk4 and my mk2 has always run with unsprung centers. That’s just a question of reliability versus what you can live with…
And check out the total price !
Bit much for me to go all the way with that (at least for now)
I am also now looking for a seat leon as donor,
Audi A3s for donors are really hard to find.
)
