Newbie saying hello

[ian.perry]

Hi all. I've been lurking around this forum for a while now, thought it was finally time to bite the bullet and introduce myself.

I'm a very satisfied '01 (6N) Polo owner from Canberra. I've had the car just over a year, since writing my previous one off in a not-so-fun accident. For a little car it's a lot of fun to drive, even though I have a stock auto. I love throwing it around corners and it seems to enjoy it too.

Anyway, I've been reading up on the things people have been doing to their cars here, and think it's about time to start having a play under the hood. I sincerely doubt it's ever going to get out on the track, I just want to have a bit of fun on the road. Driving down to Batemans Bay for example. I'm not really after speed (like I said, road driving), just a nice and responsive car (acceleration, braking, cornering).

First things first, I'm due for an oil change. The little 'dub has been good to me so I want to be good back to it. At this stage I'm looking at a fully synthetic oil, the Penrite Everyday 10W40. Anyone have any reccommendations for/against? Is it overkill or not up to scratch, or bang on?

The second problem I'm having with the car is the idle speed is intermittently way too low. Lately it's been hovering around 400rpm, so I need to give it a bit of throttle when I turn it on. It's also stalled on me when I'm at hard lock and low speed (eg parking). I've seen a few comments about the MAP sensor being dirty so I'll probably clean this tomorrow and let you all know how it goes. Anything else I should check for?

After that I need to get my brakes sorted. All four are stuffed so it's a good opportunity to do something here if I want to. I've seen at least one person has replaced the rear drums with discs of the MkIII Golf. Is this something worth doing? And how easy is it to find these brakes? Are the stock discs on the front good enough or should I look at changes here too?

Next stop will probably be the air intake. I see a lot of information and reccommendations about the Seat intake mod, but no mention as to which model Polos it works on. Is this a 9N thing, or a GTI thing, or will it work for me too? Any suggestions as to where I can source the parts required?

After that I'm probably looking at suspension and exhaust, but I haven't done much research in that department yet, and I've got plenty of other things to occupy myself with. I'm open to suggestions from people too as to anything else I might want to look at doing. I do want to leave the car looking fairly stock though, I get a kick out of leaving much meaner-looking cars behind when the traffic light turns green, and it just wouldn't be as much fun if the Polo looked modified.

I look forward to getting to know this community better. From what I've seen so far I should really enjoy it here. Oh and before I forget, if anyone can reccommend a good mechanic in Canberra I'd be really happy. I'm Lyons-based but don't mind going for a bit of a drive.

[Buller_Scott]

hey mate, welcome to the forums finally!

now, i will start off by saying that i am no way mechanically minded and i am amongst those with the LEAST mod and mechanical knowledge on here, so im sure others will chip in when it comes to maintenance/ fiddly bits/ tech issues.

but a few answers/ suggestions for your 6n (my favorite polo):

1. regarding oil- i believe there is no such thing as overkill. good oil, changed at regular intervals, is hugely hugely taken for granted in many peoples daily drivers-crappy oil changed at long intervals= greater engine wear and reduced life. in terms of what oil is best for your car- i'd suggest perhaps sitting on it for a wee bit until you find a good recommended repairer and workshop in canberra (see the 'recommended repairers and parts suppliers' forum)- the VW gurus there might suggest some oil you'd never thought of, but they swear by. i WAS using castrol slx long life in my diesel until i took it to Volkspower, and Dean there put Fuchs oil in- if its good enough for a VW/Audi mechanic to use in their personal cars/ race cars, its good enough for me.

2. regarding low idle- im guessing its an issue with the air/fuel ratio- so perhaps dirty injectors and/or MAF (mass air flow) sensor? i'd go to your recommended repairer and get a good bottle of fuel tank/ injector cleaner and dump that into the tank- if you've got a fair few km's under your belt without this being done, you might notice that this makes a significant difference. also, in terms of cleaning maf- depending on how many kms the car is, i'd be inclined to just get a new one as i think mafs arent too expensive anyway and it'd be one less thing to worry about.

3. re brakes- if discs are still okay, i'd suggest getting new pads (e.g. ebc pads or qfm pads) and some good brake fluid for starters- i've noticed that quite a few boys on here with polo gti's upgrade front brake pads and fluid, and on track days they say that this combination holds up surprisingly well. i believe some on here have said upgraded front brakes (e.g. r32/ vr6 etc) feel good but are just overkill if you dont race your car on a track every weekend. i drive to buller 3 days a week in the season and the best compromise that i can think of doing will be to get ebc greenstuff pads and good fluid- that should suffice for me.

4. SEAT intake- that part is a VERY specific part and i doubt if the seat intake will actually fit onto your airbox- basically, for turbo polos, the seat intake is a straight swap out of the pipe that is screwed to the front grill near the VW badge, that slots into the side of the airbox. however, you ARE on the right path- for abit more power over stock airbox/dirty filter, i'd suggest something like this would be good bank-for-buck, especially when the induction noise will probably be sweeter as a result (and abit of diy with bunnings junk would produce a nice heat shield):

http://www.europerformance.co.uk/pages/products/category_results.mhtml?category=kninductionkits&car=vwpolo&manufacturer=kn&sub_category=1

5. SUSPENSION- now, given that your car will not be very powerful when compared with most, that is not so bad as your cars strong point will be its light weight- so take advantage of handling upgrades FOR SURE. i'd suggest that your money would be well spent on the following-

i) GOOD RUBBER- extra safety, plus, in a car as light as yours, you'd be able to chuck it into any corner and it'd feel like riding on rails. better tires are the single most significant handling mod you can make. i ride on BF goodrich g-force sport- they feel sticky to the touch, their wear is great, and on st. kilda rd in melbourne, i can be rolling at almost 60kmh and throw my car into a u turn, and it will stick.
ii) rear sway bar- reduce body roll, increase turn-in, whats not to like? i got mine the other day from Autobahn for only $200. win-win.
iii) google/ebay hottuning coilovers, or fk sport suspension kits- great bang for buck there, and might aswell replace it all if springs/shocks havent been replaced since the car left the showroom. looking at around $700-$1000 there.

6. exhaust- i'd get it checked on, make sure there are no holes/ rust etc, but i wouldnt upgrade it at all-on a normally aspirated car, to spend what- $1000? $1200? etc on a mod that will may look good from behind and thats it, is a waste of money. unless you're rich, im sure you'd find that you'll get to a point where you'll have to choose between the exhaust, and a new shock absorber and spring kit. you'll be seeing this emoticon :duh: alot on here if you choose exhaust instead of suspension.

there is much you can do to 'improve' your car, and it's going to be a fun journey for sure, but despite what i have typed and what others may suggest, its important to make sure your car is as fit as it can be, BEFORE you begin modding it. uprated suspension and the nice sound of a K&N pod filter might sound like good ideas, and might look good on paper to clueless p-plater marios who 'drag' in their 15 year old commodore executives, but they are a complete waste of money if you're still on the same oil as you were 20,000km's ago, and your steering wheel needs to be yanked hard left just to keep the car straight.

i reckon it'd be wise to get the following sorted:

1. get to a recommended mechanic, get it checked up on for injectors and maf, or whatever else is causing that low idle. also clue up on which fuel stations provide best fuel in your area- this makes a difference.

2. get oil replaced with good oil as recommended by either those in the know on this site, or by that mechanic- might cost a pretty penny (mine's $60 a refill, every 7500km) but after all, the oil is your car's blood.

3. has timing belt been done? what about water pump- how many km's on that? check it out.

4. for the short term, if discs are still okay, new pads and fluid. infact, get advice on all fluids and replace where necessary- power steering, transmission, coolant, etc etc.

5. short term- replace all filters- air, fuel, oil.

6. suspension- get shocks and springs examined to make sure they're still safe to drive on. then, get wheel alignment.

7. once that's done, take your car for a good wash and buff wax and detail inside to restore finish- thats agiven before marching down mod avenue.

hope this helps!

p.s. check out www.orange-tuning.com and www.europerformance.co.uk for abit of insight into whats possible- especially europerformance.