I recently purchased a Cobalt Blue 1.4 Petrol SE from a fellow club member and thought I would start a progress thread charting my ownership. The car has been nicknamed Bluey, due to it's Cobalt Blue paintwork. Whilst technically speaking it's the wife's car I have a lot of affection for it already, mostly due to the fact that it seems to have such character. I tend to go for eclectic cars and the little Audi is no different thankfully.
The car was honestly described in the advert as being saved from the scrap heap. Luckily for me a lot of remedial work had already been done by the previous owner and now it's down to me to get the car up to standard. I do all the mechanical work on my cars and adopt a preventative maintenance mindset, so a few things may crawl out of the woodwork once I start to dig a little deeper than a pre-sale tyre kicking.
A few observations so far:
- The 1.4 Petrol is a fantastically rorty little engine, if a little reluctant lower down the rev range. The car rides impeccably (as it should with brand new SE spec springs and dampers all round) and even the 17 inch wheels don't spoil the composure, though I suspect they weigh a tonne.
- The car handles really well. Okay, there is body roll and ultimately understeer but up until that point it just grips and goes with little fuss. It's really good fun on the B660...
- A tank of super costs £35 and lasts for an age. I'm not really into mpg but I can't say that its efficiency is a bad thing!
- The aftermarket radio (Chorus 1 was specced originally) gets patchy reception at best. It is LOUD though, I suspect the car has aftermarket speakers.
- The various cabin switch gear - whilst in full working order - is looking a little tired.
- The car wears its miles incredibly well. 120k+ and no rattles or squeaks. It's whisper quiet inside.
- The false boot floor is a brilliant idea. As is the rear seatbelt docking slots.
- It's fun watching cars behind morph into A2s as you drive along.
To-do:
Short term
- Investigate EML - Done
Replaced oil separator hose that had a sizeable hole due to incorrect rerouting of the hose at some point in the past.
- Investigate windscreen wiper not working - Done
Re-seated wiper on spline, correctly tightened nut and replaced blade with Bosch AR70N.
- Investigate vibration under moderate to heavy breaking - Done
Replaced front brake discs and pads both sides
- Investigate driver side mirror fault - Done
Replaced both side mirrors
- Deep clean - In progress
Interior is pretty grim. Seats out and full wet vac/steam clean of all the interior surfaces. Full exterior degrease and decontamination before DA polish, wax and sealant process. Engine bay and full underbody will also be done now Spring is here. Useful opportunity to assess the state of the bits you can't see.
- Audio - Done
Replaced aftermarket radio with Concert 1.
- New licence plates - Done
Replaced with new licence plates
- Purchase an OEM owner handbook - Done
E-bay comes up trumps again
- Replace wiper blade - Done
As above, replaced with Bosch AR70N
- New mats all round - In progress
Only really need the drivers mat but doubt a single mat will match. Looking for ones that come with the OEM leatherette border. Awesome GTi don't offer these annoyingly.
- Boot struts - Done
Replaced with Stabilus offerings as I wanted to retain the OEM damping at the top of the travel
Mid-term
- OEM 16" SE wheels
- Michelin PS3s
- Source and fit engine undertray (Done)
- Grease intermittently squealing starter motor
- Respray front end and general paint touch up, including a couple of small areas of aluminum corrosion
- Remove a couple of parking dings
- DVLA V888 process
- Build number (it's on an "X" plate, so I'm wondering how close to the beginning of production it was).
- Original spec sheet from Audi
- Recover steering wheel
- Recover/new gear knob
- Replacement drivers side air vent (Done)
- Replacement fuse cover
- Go through the whole cabin replacing or refreshing all the switchgear.
- Replacement handbrake button
- Resolve passenger headlight fogging
- Replace drivers speaker grille
Long term (maybe never)
- RNS-E
- Rear Parking sensors
- Alcantara and leather interior
- MFSW
The car was honestly described in the advert as being saved from the scrap heap. Luckily for me a lot of remedial work had already been done by the previous owner and now it's down to me to get the car up to standard. I do all the mechanical work on my cars and adopt a preventative maintenance mindset, so a few things may crawl out of the woodwork once I start to dig a little deeper than a pre-sale tyre kicking.
A few observations so far:
- The 1.4 Petrol is a fantastically rorty little engine, if a little reluctant lower down the rev range. The car rides impeccably (as it should with brand new SE spec springs and dampers all round) and even the 17 inch wheels don't spoil the composure, though I suspect they weigh a tonne.
- The car handles really well. Okay, there is body roll and ultimately understeer but up until that point it just grips and goes with little fuss. It's really good fun on the B660...
- A tank of super costs £35 and lasts for an age. I'm not really into mpg but I can't say that its efficiency is a bad thing!
- The aftermarket radio (Chorus 1 was specced originally) gets patchy reception at best. It is LOUD though, I suspect the car has aftermarket speakers.
- The various cabin switch gear - whilst in full working order - is looking a little tired.
- The car wears its miles incredibly well. 120k+ and no rattles or squeaks. It's whisper quiet inside.
- The false boot floor is a brilliant idea. As is the rear seatbelt docking slots.
- It's fun watching cars behind morph into A2s as you drive along.
To-do:
Short term
- Investigate EML - Done
Replaced oil separator hose that had a sizeable hole due to incorrect rerouting of the hose at some point in the past.
- Investigate windscreen wiper not working - Done
Re-seated wiper on spline, correctly tightened nut and replaced blade with Bosch AR70N.
- Investigate vibration under moderate to heavy breaking - Done
Replaced front brake discs and pads both sides
- Investigate driver side mirror fault - Done
Replaced both side mirrors
- Deep clean - In progress
Interior is pretty grim. Seats out and full wet vac/steam clean of all the interior surfaces. Full exterior degrease and decontamination before DA polish, wax and sealant process. Engine bay and full underbody will also be done now Spring is here. Useful opportunity to assess the state of the bits you can't see.
- Audio - Done
Replaced aftermarket radio with Concert 1.
- New licence plates - Done
Replaced with new licence plates
- Purchase an OEM owner handbook - Done
E-bay comes up trumps again
- Replace wiper blade - Done
As above, replaced with Bosch AR70N
- New mats all round - In progress
Only really need the drivers mat but doubt a single mat will match. Looking for ones that come with the OEM leatherette border. Awesome GTi don't offer these annoyingly.
- Boot struts - Done
Replaced with Stabilus offerings as I wanted to retain the OEM damping at the top of the travel
Mid-term
- OEM 16" SE wheels
- Michelin PS3s
- Source and fit engine undertray (Done)
- Grease intermittently squealing starter motor
- Respray front end and general paint touch up, including a couple of small areas of aluminum corrosion
- Remove a couple of parking dings
- DVLA V888 process
- Build number (it's on an "X" plate, so I'm wondering how close to the beginning of production it was).
- Original spec sheet from Audi
- Recover steering wheel
- Recover/new gear knob
- Replacement drivers side air vent (Done)
- Replacement fuse cover
- Go through the whole cabin replacing or refreshing all the switchgear.
- Replacement handbrake button
- Resolve passenger headlight fogging
- Replace drivers speaker grille
Long term (maybe never)
- RNS-E
- Rear Parking sensors
- Alcantara and leather interior
- MFSW
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