My A2 "Top spec" project (AKA my Holy Grail)

Birchall said:
Just had a trial fit of the headlamps.

I took pictures but my camera was bust so I have to use the phone, so the quality is rubbish.

But hopefully you will get an impression.


View attachment 20335


Steve B
Click to expand...

An update!!!!


There is a problem with bi-Xenon projectors when fitted to an A2.

The problem is caused by the way that the Bi-Xenons "dip".

The unit takes a feed from the dipped beam circuit and the live feed from that operates the flap to cut off the correct part of the beam (there is only one bulb in the unit and the shutter switches the pattern from Dipped to Main)

BUT the A2 leaves the dipped beam ON when the main beam is switched on and so the shutter stays in the "dipped" position!!

Not an insurmountable problem but I don't want to add any complexity to my headlamps, extra wiring / relays so I will unfortunately have to use my Bi-Xenons and just XENON dipped only, which is a pity but there you go!!

Steve B
 
Hi,

I am still "playing" with trying to get a DRL set up that is individual but functional in appearance.

I found some LED strips that are so cheap that I was worried that they were dodgy!

They are on eBay at less than £3.50 and that is for 2 lengths 48 cm long.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/300608617713?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
They have several advantages.

They can be cut to size.
They are flexible
They are bright
They have a power feed at both ends so when you cut them in two, BOTH bits work.


I have been manhandling mine while experimenting, so as you can see I have lost a few LEDs, but if you are more careful, they are fine.

At £3.50 for effectively 4 strips (when cut) they are fine for experimenting.


It is always difficult to get a decent picture when they are on, but this one shows what I am trying at the moment (as I say, a few LEDs have broken while I was a bit rough with them. This one unit was done with one pack (£3.35!).

LEDs.JPG

I tried the "Tube light" LEDs, the ones that glow white when on and switch to orange when you switch on the indicators (and switch the white off while the indicators are on).
I have used the relays from these on the current LEDs and so when the indicators are on, the DRLs switch off automatically until the flashers are switched off.

So I am getting there but a bit more work to do.

I am waiting for two H7 resistors to arrive from China (also £3.50 for a pair, including postage from China (how do they do that!! It must cost £3.50 or so for the postage???)
I need these because the Bi-Xenons give a bulb out warning because they only use the H7 connector from one side, the other H7 plug is left disconnected.

I also have to swap the wiring about a bit to ensure that the Bi-Xenons stay in Dipped beam mode (because as mentioned above, the A2 leaves the dipped beam on when main beam is used).

So a bit more to do yet, but I won't give up until I have a set of headlamps that I am happy with!!

Steve B
 
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Certainly very unique Steve and I think the end result will be great. Are you going to use silvatec indicator bulbs on the finished article to get ridof the amber repeaters?
 
A2Steve said:
Certainly very unique Steve and I think the end result will be great. Are you going to use silvatec indicator bulbs on the finished article to get ridof the amber repeaters?
Click to expand...

I have LED indicator bulbs on the car and will be swapping these over to the modified headlamps when I fit them, they get rid of the amber appearance when off.

I had the silver bulbs in the indicators before the LEDs and I like them, it just makes a small difference but it personalises the car a little.

Steve B
 
Due to a few problems, such as a broken rear spring and worn bushes on the rear axle, it seems like the ideal time to finally do the rear disc conversion.

So I am collecting the parts ready, looks like it will be done just after ADI (I didn't want to risk missing ADI by starting the work just beforehand)

Located a FSI rear axle, complete but rusty, for £80
Getting it blasted and powder coated (£120)
Lots of other parts needed
Discs (grooved), shocks, springs, wheel bearings, flexi hoses, brake pipes, handbrake cables, callipers, pads and carriers etc. etc.
Also new disc back plates for the discs, new handbrake mechanism (the one you pull!!) to match the axle.

Not an ideal time for the cost of all this, but it would have been silly to do the broken spring and suspension bushes etc. then later, have to strip it all down again for the conversion.

I will also be fitting new tyres, the ones I have on have only covered less than 100 miles, but they have become very noisy and they were far from good quality. The company that sold me the wheels only charged me £35 a tyre !!! and that is for 215 35 18s. But I wasn't going to fit decent tyres until I was sure they wouldn't rub.
They only rubbed a little and most of that was due to the suspension bushes being perished and allowing sideways movement (just a tiny bit but enough to catch the wheel arch a little on cornering.

So a fair bit of expense, but this is the only area I haven't renewed on the whole car.

Steve B
 
It will be a well worth it conversion Steve, and will look the part on you're already lovely A2!
The icing on the white cake! So to speak!
Cheers Jeff
 
I,m sure you know Steve that a rear disc conversion will make a difference to the "feel" of the braking system in a positive way. It may be expensive but you will then have the assurance of having basically a brand new A2 - looking forward to the photo,s of the work too !.

Ta
Dave
:)
 
Special edition said:
I,m sure you know Steve that a rear disc conversion will make a difference to the "feel" of the braking system in a positive way. It may be expensive but you will then have the assurance of having basically a brand new A2 - looking forward to the photo,s of the work too !.

Ta
Dave
:)
Click to expand...
Hi Dave,

Yes, thanks for that, I am expecting a noticeable improvement, but that is not the only consideration.
With the wheels I have on the car the tiny drums can be seen (enough to show how tiny they are).
I am aiming for a nice looking car as well as one that performs like a new car and so I almost HAD to swap to discs for that reason alone.
I find the drum brakes adequate and probably would have left them alone were it not for the fact that they are now on show.

So as you say, the money will be worth it in a noticeable improvement in the brakes, and I get the added advantage of a better appearance as well (in my view).

So it was a "must have" and it is probably the only remaining major mod that I will be doing.

Steve B
 
As you know I had the conversion done at A2cars and I really like the look and the feel of the new axle. The costs do mount up but in my opinion it's worth every penny just to loose the drums- they may well work fine but the discs are so much easier to service and maintain plus look more modern. Vonnie now has the conversion on her (factory) white A2. So we now have three A2's all with discs See you soon Mike
 
Thanks Mike

Yes, I am looking forward to feeling as if the car is more complete and as good as I can get it, so as you say, it is worth the expense.

I would have waited, but the current problems with the rear end (broken spring and bushes etc) has forced my hand.

I have opted to get everything done properly and so have bought things like new flexi braided brake hoses but in (non - factory) white to match the car!

I suppose that since our reg numbers are sequential we should have all of our A2s with the same set up at the rear at least.

Steve B
 
Birchall said:
The problem is caused by the way that the Bi-Xenons "dip".

The unit takes a feed from the dipped beam circuit and the live feed from that operates the flap to cut off the correct part of the beam (there is only one bulb in the unit and the shutter switches the pattern from Dipped to Main)
Click to expand...

Hi Steve,

Would you mind confirming how the Xenon bulb is wired please? Are you saying that the bulb is fed from the main beam and the shutter is fed from the dipped?

Regards,

Matt.
 
wilco184 said:
Hi Steve,

Would you mind confirming how the Xenon bulb is wired please? Are you saying that the bulb is fed from the main beam and the shutter is fed from the dipped?

Regards,

Matt.
Click to expand...
Hi Matt
I am not sure how it works but it does not expect the main and dip at the same time.

I am going to bench test it later this week to make sure of what is happening.
I may have swapped the feed from main and dip around by accident.

Steve B
 
I did the bench test on the Xenons and it all worked perfectly, I think it was a dodgy connection on the wire that controls the flap.

I have tidied up all of the wiring now that I have had a proper go at the DRLs. Did one headlamp and had planned to do the other today, but was roped I to doing some work on the communal garden here. I am also working in Holland at the end of the week, flying home late on Friday night and so bang goes my time to finish the headlamps and prepare the car in time.
But I will do what I can.

I did have time to play with the Heads Up display gadget though, but that was plug and play so didn't take much time. As I mentioned it is a bit ugly bit I do like what it does, some additional info that you can't get on the standard instruments (Such as Voltage etc.)

I have also been getting all of the parts together for the rear disc conversion.
The costs have exceeded the budget (as usual) but that is because I want to use new parts all round.
The axle is being stripped and then sent for shot blasting and powder coating.

It is booked in for the conversion on the 19th. I will get pictures of the build as it progresses.

Steve B
 
Birchall said:
I will also be fitting new tyres, the ones I have on have only covered less than 100 miles, but they have become very noisy and they were far from good quality. The company that sold me the wheels only charged me £35 a tyre !!! and that is for 215 35 18s. But I wasn't going to fit decent tyres until I was sure they wouldn't rub.
They only rubbed a little and most of that was due to the suspension bushes being perished and allowing sideways movement (just a tiny bit but enough to catch the wheel arch a little on cornering).

Steve B
Click to expand...

Had the new tyres fitted today, the old ones looked like new so it was a pity they had to be scrapped, but a £35 each they were not of great quality and very noisy.

Cheap tyres are often VERY noisy and can even cause vibrations through the steering wheel.

The noise is similar to a wheel bearing failing or worse still a gearbox/Diff that is worn.

I have had this on two sets of "cheap" tyres and the fist time I even had the gearbox reconditioned (3rd gear synchro was worn anyway) thinking that would cure the vibrations. In the end I swapped the wheels from one of our other A2s and that got rid of it instantly, confirming that it was the tyres..

So this time I opted for 215 35 18 84Y Vredestein ULS. My friendly tyre dealer got them for me for £400 the set, their noise rating was very low and grip high. No great on economy but the difference tends to be tiny.

The difference between these and the cheap tyres I had on is phenomenal, they are so quiet and the vibrations have gone!!!
Much smoother at speed too, no steering wheel vibrations at all (there was a very slight one with the other tyres).

Steve B
 
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The only time in >20 years motoring that I didn't bought top brand tyres, it was 6 years ago for my old A2 1.4
I was tempted by the price and thought that with such small power and torque, those "Federal" tyres would do the job... Mistake ! The grip was below average, especially on the wet. I changed them after a couple of thousand kilometers. An those were not even the worst "never heard of" brand, like Linglong, Rising Sun or whatever. Never again !
 
HI,

The rear axle (for the disc conversion) has been delivered, I sent it to be shot blasted and powder coated.

The company that did it suggested also Zinc coating it before it was Colour coated (black!) they only wanted an extra £25 and since it is the only big lump of steel on the car I thought it sensible.
It should help "the project" last for MANY years.

I have also ordered all of the parts to be bolted onto it, new, including new discs callipers, pads, cables, ABS sensors, brake pipes, flexi pipes and every nut and bolt and bracket.

They do say that you should not "Spoil the ship for a Ha'peth of tar!"

I will post pictures as it is all assembled and list whatever parts I had to buy just in case anyone else is doing this as thoroughly as possible.

Steve B

Axle.jpg
 
Steve, I've just seen this post and studied the picture of your new rear axle.
I am pretty certain that that axle is not from an Audi A2.
From what I can see, the threaded holes in the centre are not in evidence on an A2, also, the bracket for the hydraulic lines is on the right whereas the A2 has them on the left.
Your mechanic should be able to confirm this through a simple visual comparison.

I really hope I'm wrong given what you've spent but doubt it.

blue skies
tony
 
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