# Rokusek Builds a VW W8 Passat



## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Ok so let’s start off with a little bit of a background on me and the car itself. 
*WAVES* Hi! I’m Paul aka PJ or Roku or Jones, I have had many names over the years and they all have stuck pending on the person... So... PJ works lol.

I used to own a 2007 Mazdaspeed 3, fully built and bolted minus BT, a few months ago it was totaled. Some lady was speeding and texting in a residential area and smashed my baby. 
Here she is in her Prime










I then picked up a 1995 Miata to get me around until I found what I was really looking for. 










Only until my brother (req) came across a W8 at H2OI this year. It was the only one there (that he knew of). He insisted we do more research and see what we could find. 
After a few months we found this beauty. A 2004 Passat, 6 Speed, 4 Motion, W8, with the BBS wheels, Indigo Blue with Beige interior. After seeing the pictures, I had to have it. 
From what we have discovered though Carfax, Passatworld, and references through VWOA. This W8 technically the car has two previous owners. The first was used as a "FLEET" vehicle then sold after 7k miles. From there the same person drove it from 7k till 104k when I got it. The car was first sold from VW in Chicago, then moved from there to Indiana, and then to NC and now to me. 
So she has 104k Miles on her. My brother and I drove from Virginia Beach, VA to Raleigh, NC to pick her up on Saturday and we brought the VCDS with us. Needless to say there were no active fault codes for the car. (I'll have to upload the save file later for reference) From what the dealer told us there are no open recalls and any and all recalls have already been performed on the Vehicle. 
The previous owner took extremely good care of this car as the interior is beyond immaculate. Perfect leather EVERYWHERE! Minus the door panel leather falling down (which is common from what I am told, so I am ok with it). The engine bay is in pristine condition as well. The paint is beautiful aside from a few small rock chips here and there. But it does have paint protectant film on the most forward part of the hood. 
So here she is, more pictures to come after a clay bar polish and wax. 























































And after the tint was done:



















Now to what you guys really care about lol… I know I know TL;DR lol so here you go. 
Goodies:
Arc Audio PS8 (with upgraded Op Amps)
SB Acoustics SB29
Fountek FR88EX
Exodus EX-Anarchy 
Phoenix Gold SD 500.4 front stage left
Phoenix Gold SD 500.4 front stage right
Arc Audio 8D2 x 4
Arc Audio XD 600.1 Sub Amp 
Shuriken 2nd Battery


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## slowride (Jan 26, 2009)

Nice ride. I hope the previous owner had to deal with the camshaft adjusters so it doesn't distract from your build. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

A W8 4Motion manual...I hate you. If it was a variant I'd come steal it.


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Lol you would have to watch the tail lights as I was driving it away. I've only seen one Variant version and the woman who owned it swore to take it to her grave. I'm still waiting for it.


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## JoeHemi57 (Mar 28, 2006)

quality_sound said:


> A W8 4Motion manual...I hate you. If it was a variant I'd come steal it.


yeah this has to be a rare car, with it being described as "fleet" I think it was probably ordered by somebody at VW corporate to be used as their company vehicle. I know a guy at Porsche that's an engineer and is able to order a new vehicle about twice a year.

How are you running 3 way per side off 4 channel amps? going to have a passive made for the mid/tweet? Its crazy how big those Anarchys are, I had 3 Arc 8's and a xdi600 also but never installed them unfortunately. Looking forward to seeing it all come together!


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

itsmyturn said:


> Nice ride. I hope the previous owner had to deal with the camshaft adjusters so it doesn't distract from your build.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Yessir! verified through VW.



quality_sound said:


> A W8 4Motion manual...I hate you. If it was a variant I'd come steal it.


Good Luck with that.



JoeHemi57 said:


> yeah this has to be a rare car, with it being described as "fleet" I think it was probably ordered by somebody at VW corporate to be used as their company vehicle. I know a guy at Porsche that's an engineer and is able to order a new vehicle about twice a year.
> 
> How are you running 3 way per side off 4 channel amps? going to have a passive made for the mid/tweet? Its crazy how big those Anarchys are, I had 3 Arc 8's and a xdi600 also but never installed them unfortunately. Looking forward to seeing it all come together!


As I have come to find out this car is actually 1 of 101 made in a 6 speed W8 4Motion for the year of 2004. If you want to get even more technical.. Its only 1 of 2 made in Indigo Blue with Beige Interior and the sport package with the BBS wheels. 

As for the 3 way per side off the 4 channel amps:

4 channels 75 watts per. Two amplifiers.

active processing via the arc audio PS8 for crossovers and what not.

LEFT
1 x 75 @ 4 ohm (channel 1) for the tweeter
1 x 75 @ 4 ohm (channel 2) for the midrange
1 x 125 @ 8 ohm (bridged on channel 3 and 4) for the midbass

RIGHT
1 x 75 @ 4 ohm (channel 1) for the tweeter
1 x 75 @ 4 ohm (channel 2) for the midrange
1 x 125 @ 8 ohm (bridged on channel 3 and 4) for the midbass


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

Coppertone said:


> Lol you would have to watch the tail lights as I was driving it away. I've only seen one Variant version and the woman who owned it swore to take it to her grave. I'm still waiting for it.


a local buddy of mine who was in the navy with me has an audi a4 avant variant. its awesome (yes i got to drive it at H2Oi too  )

fun times.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Just finished upgrading the Op Amps


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## quality_sound (Dec 25, 2005)

req said:


> a local buddy of mine who was in the navy with me has an audi a4 avant variant. its awesome (yes i got to drive it at H2Oi too  )
> 
> fun times.


I had an A4 Avant after my Passat variant. On the whole I liked it better but hated the transmission. 

Sent from my Moto X using Tapatalk


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

you liked the avant or the passat better?

upgrading the op amps was super easy  we did some cool planning for the amp rack and took some measurements too. there is a lot of room where the subs are going to be installed, and its going to be a tight squeeze for the amp rack, but hopefully we will be able to get all three of them in a very cool configuration.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

req said:


> you liked the avant or the passat better?
> 
> upgrading the op amps was super easy  we did some cool planning for the amp rack and took some measurements too. there is a lot of room where the subs are going to be installed, and its going to be a tight squeeze for the amp rack, but hopefully we will be able to get all three of them in a very cool configuration.


 
SHHHH... Don't tell them to much... They must wait till we are done with specific parts to be completed before they can see pictures or get details.


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## JoeHemi57 (Mar 28, 2006)

Oh i see now, i was a little out of it and super late when i made that post.


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## LBaudio (Jan 9, 2009)

....req, post some spy pics......lol


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## hot9dog (Mar 23, 2013)

I had that exact same car a couple of years ago, mine was a stick also! God i miss that car!!!! That car is like a tank... great equipment choices also. This is a build that i will be watching. On a side note, have you ever heard a W8 with a built exhaust??? OH GOD!!!! Beautiful sounds!!!!! I miss my ride. You have a rare gem there. Cheers fellow VW freak!!


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

JoeHemi57 said:


> Oh i see now, i was a little out of it and super late when i made that post.


:thumbsup:



LBaudio said:


> ....req, post some spy pics......lol


You are putting his life in danger asking him that... L-O-L



hot9dog said:


> I had that exact same car a couple of years ago, mine was a stick also! God i miss that car!!!! That car is like a tank... great equipment choices also. This is a build that i will be watching. On a side note, have you ever heard a W8 with a built exhaust??? OH GOD!!!! Beautiful sounds!!!!! I miss my ride. You have a rare gem there. Cheers fellow VW freak!!


Yes I love this car myself, I have not heard an exhaust on a W8 other than online, not even the same. However that is something that will be getting done at some point in the near future.


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## tintbox (Oct 25, 2008)

I'm in for the ride!


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

tintbox said:


> I'm in for the ride!


I'll Take you for a ride!

So this weekend I have to take care of the registration and titling on the VW as well as get the Speed transfered to a salvage title. Sunday I'll be working on a motor. 

Monday we will most likely start interior tear down followed buy running all the wires and deadener. 

Next weekend I am hoping to have started work on the front stage and move forward. Our biggest goal is to take our time and comlete this in steps. Since I have the miata to daily we dont have to worry about putting the car back together till we are done with it. Or if I want to drive it 

Mike if you are free next weekend, you know you are more than welcome to come down and give a hand!


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## hot9dog (Mar 23, 2013)

Great warm cabin gain in a passat!!! I miss mine, this thread is making me all weepy and teary eyed. Cam seals and motor mounts are what you got to watch for in this car . Yours looks in great condition. Im crying at my desk at work right now. Lol


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## stylngle2003 (Nov 2, 2012)

Awesome car, maybe one day ill get to see it. I honestly didnt know you could get the w8 with the stick in the states, thought it was Canada/eu only. Good thing it runs the 01e trans like an S4!


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

hot9dog said:


> Great warm cabin gain in a passat!!! I miss mine, this thread is making me all weepy and teary eyed. Cam seals and motor mounts are what you got to watch for in this car . Yours looks in great condition. Im crying at my desk at work right now. Lol


This car is beautiful, there are so many things that Andy and I where cautious of when we went to look at it. I have verified with the dealer that all the recalls have been taken care of. So thats a plus. there are a few things wrong with it here and there, but nothing I cant fix. 

Its ok to cry, I honestly cried and was super depressed for a few weeks after the Speed got totalled. God I miss that car so much.. Ugg... 



stylngle2003 said:


> Awesome car, maybe one day ill get to see it. I honestly didnt know you could get the w8 with the stick in the states, thought it was Canada/eu only. Good thing it runs the 01e trans like an S4!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free


You are more than welcome to roll down when we work on it next weekend. Though she will be gutted out lol. 

I didnt know they existed until Req (Andy) told me about it after he discovered one at H20i this year. I did a lot of research on this car before the purchase and finding out how rare it was made me want it that much more. 

And yes it is a great thing it has a great trans in it!

It was a blast to drive in the snow in Syracuse this past weekend and its even more fun to drive on the highway!


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## hot9dog (Mar 23, 2013)

This car was a part of the north america line up, but the stick was not an option or a part of a dealer inventory. During this timeline VW of NA introduced variations of certain models as a part a sales test bed, to see what the north american customer was looking for. The W8 passat stick was one of those cars. What you see here is a rare gem. I had one, totaled it on the freeway going from pheonix back home to tucson at night. Hit a coyote doing over 90 mph with my son in the car. What a mess!!!! I think if i was in any other car, things would have been alot worse. The passat W8 is a TANK!


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

hot9dog said:


> This car was a part of the north america line up, but the stick was not an option or a part of a dealer inventory. During this timeline VW of NA introduced variations of certain models as a part a sales test bed, to see what the north american customer was looking for. The W8 passat stick was one of those cars. What you see here is a rare gem. I had one, totaled it on the freeway going from pheonix back home to tucson at night. Hit a coyote doing over 90 mph with my son in the car. What a mess!!!! I think if i was in any other car, things would have been alot worse. The passat W8 is a TANK!


Holy crap... Yea I didnt know that about the W8, nice to know for sure. 

That sucks you totalled it, glad you're still alive, however TANK is almost an understatement from what I have read. Everything is double reinforced compared to any other Passat. Hard to think let alone believe VW would do that.


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

maybe i can sneak in a shot or two ... we will see


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

req said:


> maybe i can sneak in a shot or two ... we will see


I'll be watching you closely.


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## Orion525iT (Mar 6, 2011)

Cool car, cant wait to see the build.

Does this car share components with anything else domestic? Same trans and housing as other models?


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## stylngle2003 (Nov 2, 2012)

the chassis and drivetrain is the same as a B5 audi a4/s4. I would imagine the structural reinforcements are on par with those of an S4/RS4.


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## Hanatsu (Nov 9, 2010)

Nice car indeed. Subbed


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Orion525iT said:


> Cool car, cant wait to see the build.
> 
> Does this car share components with anything else domestic? Same trans and housing as other models?


Yup --vvv



stylngle2003 said:


> the chassis and drivetrain is the same as a B5 audi a4/s4. I would imagine the structural reinforcements are on par with those of an S4/RS4.


You are correct good sir! I would love me an RS4!



Hanatsu said:


> Nice car indeed. Subbed


Thanks!


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## teldzc1 (Oct 9, 2009)

Might be just me but pics don't seem to be working. Great car!


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

teldzc1 said:


> Might be just me but pics don't seem to be working. Great car!


Thanks, I have trouble seeing the pictures on my work computer sometimes, but never at home.


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## turbo5upra (Oct 3, 2008)

Strapped in... Just how pj likes me.


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## shawnk (Jan 11, 2010)

Rokusek said:


> Just finished upgrading the Op Amps




Hmm.. I think we may have briefly met??:surprised:

Anyway, I'm sub'd in to see what's up with the Va. Beach boys

Also curious to see what you did for the op-amp ugrades as these pics aren't showing up.


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

So the OP amps are socketed? Nice design touch, I'm considering doing an upgrade on my BitOne and, as I understand it, you'd have to desolder everything. Bleh.

Very odd (in a good way) to see a V8/manual car in the US. Other than some sports cars, it's not a combo you see in the US much anymore. For a while, only zee germans were offering it.

Jay


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## danno (Jan 25, 2009)

Very cool....I need one


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

turbo5upra said:


> Strapped in... Just how pj likes me.






shawnk said:


> Hmm.. I think we may have briefly met??:surprised:
> 
> Anyway, I'm sub'd in to see what's up with the Va. Beach boys
> 
> Also curious to see what you did for the op-amp ugrades as these pics aren't showing up.


As you where walking out the door at Andy's to head out I got home, so yes very briefly lol.



JayinMI said:


> So the OP amps are socketed? Nice design touch, I'm considering doing an upgrade on my BitOne and, as I understand it, you'd have to desolder everything. Bleh.
> 
> Very odd (in a good way) to see a V8/manual car in the US. Other than some sports cars, it's not a combo you see in the US much anymore. For a while, only zee germans were offering it.
> 
> Jay


Yes it was an easy swap out. I purchased the Op amps from Syracuse Customs, Steve personally recommended these ones I have now. I did not really look at the specs on them to much. I'd have to pull the processor back apart to get some better pictures of them if you would like. I dont see us tackling this anytime soon. 

I am supprised at the attention this car gets from those who know what it is. Friday night a buddy of mine and I ran into a guy with an 09 ISF, he thought it was a regular Passat till he saw the badges and asked about them, I popped the hood and he was shocked to see the W8 stuffed in the engine bay. 



danno said:


> Very cool....I need one


Yes you do, good luck finding one if you do though lol. 


So a small update:

I was hoping to start the tear down this weekend but the weather didnt allow it, Andy and I found out on Friday that we will be leaving for FL for work till sunday night so next weekend is a bust too. With the Xmas and New years followed by me taking vacation at the end of January we might not start this untill mid February, unless we strip everything down before hand but I am unsure yet. 

There are a few other things I am looking at picking up here soon, so this might be good to hold off on the build. Gives me time to buy some more stuff before we dig into it. 

So stay tuned guys.

-PJ


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

yep. weather is terrible with rain and cold right now... plus we need to excivate the garage before we do anymore work.

we may tackle building a baffle manifold for my <second pair of> flatlyne 18's for my attic... i got one of them 1000w dayton amps for it on cyber monday 



also, getting the title and registration taken care of before we did anything was kind of important. we have a miata for a backup car in case things get d̶i̶s̶m̶e̶m̶b̶e̶r̶e̶d... dissassembeled to the point of leaving it that way too. so thats a really convienent thing that i never had before. yay, we can take our time lol.

all in all, we have some real good plans - but until we take things apart, we can not be 100% that we are going to make them happen. we have been speaking of OEM integration and keeping it stock - but it all depends on how much we can squeeze.

its like that old saying;

"putting 10 p̶o̶u̶n̶d̶s gallons of **** into a 5 p̶o̶u̶n̶d̶s gallon container."


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

LOL! 

I think home theater woofers would be more fun right now since its cold and crappy outside.


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## turbo5upra (Oct 3, 2008)

Yes- use them instead of the fan to circulate air.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Very sweet car. I'm looking forward to seeing what you and Andy come up with. Are you designing this to compete in a certain class or to just go all out? I'll have to hook up with you guys sometime.

Sorry to hear about the 'speed 3. Yours looked exceptional. I have the 2013 in red that I'm working a build on now.


-Steve


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

turbo5upra said:


> Yes- use them instead of the fan to circulate air.


lolol I'm excited about it. 



captainobvious said:


> Very sweet car. I'm looking forward to seeing what you and Andy come up with. Are you designing this to compete in a certain class or to just go all out? I'll have to hook up with you guys sometime.
> 
> Sorry to hear about the 'speed 3. Yours looked exceptional. I have the 2013 in red that I'm working a build on now.
> 
> ...


All this equipment was originally intended to be in the speed just for my own enjoyment and shows if i felt the need to show it off. So now moving to the Dub, I want to keep it looking as stock as possible. There was never an intention to compete at all, however, the more Andy and I talk about it the more it is becoming a possibility. 

Having said that, we have to figure out what class exactly I would be able to compete in and stick to those guidelines. That way we know what we are limited to. But it's still in the thought process as we have not started anything yet. 

And thanks, the speed was an awesome project and it was a blast to drive! Its still hard sometimes to think that the car is gone. But the Dub is taking over all my funds now lol, there are lots to come from this project!

And YES you should try and get down here early next year on a weekend we are working on the car!

-PJ


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Well seeing as I am love with Vag vehicles lol, can I also get an invite to see this up close and personal ? I'll bring chips.......


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

Coppertone said:


> Well seeing as I am love with Vag vehicles lol, can I also get an invite to see this up close and personal ? I'll bring chips.......


lol. i like popcorn 



if you ever are in virginia beach, we will be around!


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## turbo5upra (Oct 3, 2008)

I vote event in va beach this spring... Gives me 2 reasons to stop down


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Coppertone said:


> Well seeing as I am love with Vag vehicles lol, can I also get an invite to see this up close and personal ? I'll bring chips.......


This ---VVV



req said:


> lol. i like popcorn
> 
> 
> 
> if you ever are in virginia beach, we will be around!





turbo5upra said:


> I vote event in va beach this spring... Gives me 2 reasons to stop down


YES!!! Lets do it!!!


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

music can be whatever you like it to be!

ok well i guess we have to schedule an event in virginia lol  ideas on dates?


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Unless this event is based around working on my car we should move this to a new thread. 

However... I am ok with being a little off topic as there isnt much going on right now lol. 

-PJ


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

did some cool critical listening with roku. (yes this is my house and that is him in the bean bag chair!)

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/2022280-post81.html


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## jeeptian (Feb 9, 2013)

nice w8 i like it


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

req said:


> did some cool critical listening with roku. (yes this is my house and that is him in the bean bag chair!)
> 
> http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/2022280-post81.html


Haha! It sounded great as long as the midbass was at my sides and not up front.

Twas a good learning experiance, Hopefully we will be starting the tear down soon... If it would just warm up a little bit. 

-PJ


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## chefhow (Apr 29, 2007)

Looking forward to seeing again and hearing it Paul


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## JoeHemi57 (Mar 28, 2006)

Thought you might be interested in this, don't see many of these it would be worth it to have the spare motor and parts.
Volkswagen Passat W8 Sedan 4 Door | eBay


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

if we had more room, heck, any room - that would be a maybe. but currently my 1 car garage is full of tools\stuff and we already have 4 cars at the house (my wifes golf, his w8, his miata, and my gti). 

no more room


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## JoeHemi57 (Mar 28, 2006)

req said:


> if we had more room, heck, any room - that would be a maybe. but currently my 1 car garage is full of tools\stuff and we already have 4 cars at the house (my wifes golf, his w8, his miata, and my gti).
> 
> no more room


I hear ya, i found a 1978 280z project car i want but don't have a place to put it. Also a 75 Celica that is in pieces but will be beautiful when finished and its $14k without an engine/trans.


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

^^^. Did you say $14,000 without engine and trans? What am I missing here lol..


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## JoeHemi57 (Mar 28, 2006)

Coppertone said:


> ^^^. Did you say $14,000 without engine and trans? What am I missing here lol..


I was hoping somebody would ask, this thing is beautiful even incomplete.
Toyota Celica St Hardtop 2 Door | eBay

And the 280z, needs some work too they are projects for sure...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1978-Datsun...8NJmMYBMgI6H0M2O%2BWY%3D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc


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## chithead (Mar 19, 2008)

Those Celicas are awesome!!! Would love to find one of them to compliment my 79 Corolla. They just scream 1UZFE swap


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Ok I can see now why it's $14,000 you can tell there was a lot of love placed into its resurrection.


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## JoeHemi57 (Mar 28, 2006)

Sorry about threadjack, been wanting to show off that find even though i cant afford it.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

LOL! Glad Req is more active on here than me. 

I would love to find a wagon if anything.

-PJ


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

I suppose its time to share some things with you guys...

I'll just leave these right here...


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

Thats what I'm talking about!


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Andy can you post up the video and pics you took yesterday?


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Sweet! Custom Car PC's? Great idea.

I'll have to check out what they offer.


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## edouble101 (Dec 9, 2010)

Those e3 io are going to be popular around here. I'll get one when they are on sale.


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

ill try and post the video of the boot up tonight...


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Thank you sir.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Soo... It has been a hot minute since I have posted anything here. I got the PC back from Erin at the Spring meet this past weekend. Sadly he was never able to make time to do a review on it.

Hopefully if the weather plays nice, Req and I can get some work done on the car. Now that I have every piece of equipment for the install. 

Stay tuned. 

-PJ


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## Babs (Jul 6, 2007)

Sub'd!!


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

Since it looks like the work is ready to begin, I think I'll sub as well.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

So for an update that I failed to post... I found this bad beast (MK^ GLI Wheel w/Paddle shifters) that will be used to control my CarPC with the help of a JoyCon EXC. 




























Req and I spent the last 2hrs researching the CanBus system in the W8.










We need to do some more research on the MK6 wheel to ensure the JoyCon can read the signals from the Newer wheel. 


Also updated pictures of the car.


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## jpf150 (May 22, 2013)

Sub'd! Nice to meet both you and Andy at Jason's house. Maybe next time we will see both cars there.


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

THAT looks really sweet. Much better lowered with the wheels.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

jpf150 said:


> Sub'd! Nice to meet both you and Andy at Jason's house. Maybe next time we will see both cars there.


Nice to meet you too, I really hope the W8 will be at the fall meet as well.



JayinMI said:


> THAT looks really sweet. Much better lowered with the wheels.


Thanks, coils with 255/35/19x8.5+45 and straight pipe catbacks with straight through mufflers. I'll have to post a video, if I can find it lol. 

I am hoping to gut it this weekend and start running some wires. Possibly cut out the rear deck for the woofer baffle and maybe the amp rack. I am trying to keep everything as stock looking/hidden as possible.

-PJ


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## jpeezy (Feb 5, 2012)

car looks great, when i saw it with the wheels and lowered I immediately thought of the Arc audio passat,ARC Passat V1


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

We have a poster with the Arc Passat on it at work, and for some reason I thought it was an Altima.

Jay


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## ErinH (Feb 14, 2007)

sub'd.


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

lol erin. he got so excited he saw you replied too 

hopefully we will get digging into the car this weekend.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Updated pictures of the equipment while setting up the PC. 















































And todays Adventures:


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

4? Just F*ckin do it, dammit. (lol -- get the reference?)

4 8's? what kind? I'm liking where this is headed.

Jay


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

^^^^. Lol...


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## BigAl205 (May 20, 2009)

That shirt is too nice to be doing work in


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Niiiiiiiice

Looking forward to seeing how this one progresses. I need to learn how to weld.


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## bonesmcgraw (Jan 7, 2013)

Ok i'm definetly in for this one.

Are you running the 8's(?) IB in the rear deck or are you going to build a box? Sorry if I you mentioned it already.

-chris


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

JayinMI said:


> 4? Just F*ckin do it, dammit. (lol -- get the reference?)
> 
> 4 8's? what kind? I'm liking where this is headed.
> 
> Jay


Arc Audio 8D2's



BigAl205 said:


> That shirt is too nice to be doing work in


Had to be prepared before cutting into the W8... It hurt. 



captainobvious said:


> Niiiiiiiice
> 
> Looking forward to seeing how this one progresses. I need to learn how to weld.


Welding is some what easy.. Having a crappy harbor freight welder doesn't make it any easier either lol. The welds look terrible, but they will hold up to what I need them to do. 



bonesmcgraw said:


> Ok i'm definetly in for this one.
> 
> Are you running the 8's(?) IB in the rear deck or are you going to build a box? Sorry if I you mentioned it already.
> 
> -chris


Four 8's IB in the deck. No box. And no worries... I didn't mention it yet 

-PJ


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## Babs (Jul 6, 2007)

BigAl205 said:


> That shirt is too nice to be doing work in



Hanes no less!! Nice touch Al!


Sent from iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Babs (Jul 6, 2007)

And Dude!!! Just go all with this build! Progress big time!


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

I saw the subs you were using on another site. lol

I used to have a Clarke welder (with gas), and it was good for a budget.
I don't need to weld much, so I've been thinking of picking up a HF welder for the rare times I need to. I DO already have a 4" grinder, lol

Jay


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

JayinMI said:


> I saw the subs you were using on another site. lol
> 
> I used to have a Clarke welder (with gas), and it was good for a budget.
> I don't need to weld much, so I've been thinking of picking up a HF welder for the rare times I need to. I DO already have a 4" grinder, lol
> ...


I wish we had a gas welder.. this HF one makes a huge mess.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Rokusek said:


> Welding is some what easy.. Having a crappy harbor freight welder doesn't make it any easier either lol. The welds look terrible, but they will hold up to what I need them to do.
> 
> 
> -PJ



Yeah, that's all I'm after Paul. I could always use a grinding wheel to clean the slop up, but I'm going to have to look into one when I outfit the man-shop at the new house.


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

I'm really interested in the newer Millers with Autoset. The one big problem I had when I had my last welder was getting the settings right. I saw the Miller Autoset deal and was immediately interested...I also found out that Lincoln appears to put a chart on the inside of the side panel. My Clarke didn't have that. But it did come with a cart and gas fitting hardware. Once I got it figured out it worked fine, but I feel like I wasted a lot of shielding gas.

Jay


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

I got some more goodies in. Hopefully this will be the last little bit of electronics I will need. I did not realize how big the volt meter was, so I will have to modify it to fit in the designated location along with the round toggle switch and the keyed power on/off switch.

Pyle Back up camera
18' Video cable
digital volt meter with auto brightness
Power on relay for the amplifiers to prevent popping noises at PC start up
16' aux cable to run from the PS8 to the PC
16' A to B USB cable for PC to PS8 control
Co-axial to standard AM/FM antenna adapter
OEM HU adapter harness
12 1/0 gauge ring terminals
ANL Fuse holder
On/Off power key switch for security purposes
standard round rocker switch for immediate kill power switch
and a must with any Parts-Express order Male and Female crimp connectors










-PJ


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## Mr Orange (Jan 11, 2015)

What a great build. How about a photo of that W8?


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Mr Orange said:


> What a great build. How about a photo of that W8?


Posted previously, but here is the link for you http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/2373769-post70.html


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Today's update, also forgot to add this from yesterday.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysJrKU4Lwn0&feature=youtu.be

Finished welding the frame in and got the baffle mounted. Also started on the second battery box. 

I never took pictures of the original trunk storage area for the TV tuner, Multi-Disc CD changer and Wifi box, so I pulled these from the forever so smart Google. 

This storage space is located on the driver side of the trunk. 





































After I touched it 



















Mostly finished Battery Box














































The baffle










-PJ


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## AccordUno (Aug 7, 2009)

thanks for the idea for the battery box. I was going to build all wood box and then use some L iron to help secure it in place... 

I have a 02 Wagon 1.8t, never knew onstar was offered on our cars..


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

AccordUno said:


> thanks for the idea for the battery box. I was going to build all wood box and then use some L iron to help secure it in place...
> 
> I have a 02 Wagon 1.8t, never knew onstar was offered on our cars..


No problem, I got a lot done this weekend, will post pictures later. 

If you think the battery box idea was cool, wait till you see where I put the fuse off the main battery


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Just a little update, its been a little crazy. Got a lot done last weekend and even finished cleaning up the battery box and got some more work done on the baffle. I should be able to post up some updated pictures tonight. 

-PJ


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## maggie-g (Aug 20, 2014)

Looking good so far!!! I may have missed it in the thread, but do you have a plan to vent the battery to the outside to prevent off gasses from entering the vehicle and poisoning you and the passengers?


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## BigAl205 (May 20, 2009)

It appears to be a closed-cell battery, thus the "non-spillable" sticker on top. Nice job, Paul!


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

maggie-g said:


> Looking good so far!!! I may have missed it in the thread, but do you have a plan to vent the battery to the outside to prevent off gasses from entering the vehicle and poisoning you and the passengers?


it is a sealed gel cell battery. it will not be an issue!

we finished up the battery box last night and its all carpeted and sweet looking.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

maggie-g said:


> Looking good so far!!! I may have missed it in the thread, but do you have a plan to vent the battery to the outside to prevent off gasses from entering the vehicle and poisoning you and the passengers?


As stated below, it is a closed cell battery also known as an Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM) So no lol. 



BigAl205 said:


> It appears to be a closed-cell battery, thus the "non-spillable" sticker on top. Nice job, Paul!





req said:


> it is a sealed gel cell battery. it will not be an issue!
> 
> we finished up the battery box last night and its all carpeted and sweet looking.


Yesss... battery box... speaking of... I has...


PICTARS!!!!!!!

Also excuse me for the lack of pictures here as I was working alone and it was HOT as hell outside.*

HDMI for second monitor for tuning with ease in the back seat, A to B usb cable for PS8 control, Optical for audio out from the PC, Aux cable), Remote, Back up light (for back up camera), and a set of RCA's for a back up input to PS8.










I cut 6 lines for the three way front stage and ran them, 2 from each front door and one from each rear door, I ended up added a 3rd line from each front door in case I decided to change the set up from a rear door mid bass to a front door mid bass setup.*










Gutting her out!









When the carpet came out we discovered it had nearly an inch and a half of matting and deadener underneath it, which explains why the car is already super quiet inside... No deadener will be added to the cabin.














































Found a sweet spot for the fuse and a not so easy, easy access point for the power wire to feed into the cabin from under the hood. I didn't get an end picture sadly, but I will have to get back in here to install the fuse, when that Happens I'll get a few more pictures. 
















































































Added a second 3/4” plywood sheet to the already existing baffle to help raise the woofers up a little more to keep from taking up too much room. 










And as crappy as the picture is lol, I got the battery box wrapped in black carpet and will be adding some features later.


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## Babs (Jul 6, 2007)

Rockin the Tesa tape!! Man you're good! Hope the foot's doing better. 


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Babs said:


> Rockin the Tesa tape!! Man you're good! Hope the foot's doing better.
> 
> 
> Sent from iPhone using Tapatalk


Naaa man, thats all OEM! And the foot is doing a lot better.


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## AccordUno (Aug 7, 2009)

So where did you mount the fuse? the ECU box, I did that in my A4, easiest way to get wire into the car..


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

AccordUno said:


> So where did you mount the fuse? the ECU box, I did that in my A4, easiest way to get wire into the car..


Correct. It was super easy and happy i didnt have to drill a hole.

-PJ


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## crackinhedz (May 5, 2013)

Did you get the CarPC installed yet? 

Had to send mine in for look 

For some odd reason would not boot into windows, had to go through BIOS and force boot...probably a bad RAM stick (hopefully). Would have opened myself for quick repair, but still under warranty...so...

Being holiday weekend they wont be able to work on it until tomorrow, then hopefully only a week more without music. :mean:


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## SWINE (Aug 29, 2008)

subscribed! Nice install!


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

crackinhedz said:


> Did you get the CarPC installed yet?
> 
> Had to send mine in for look
> 
> ...


Sadly no. Ive been out of town since the last bit of work i got done. Probly wont get anything else done till next week. 

I still have some more software to download and install. 

That sucks. Mine is out of warranty next month... sad to think that but meh. I can do my own repairs from here out without issues. 



SWINE said:


> subscribed! Nice install!


Thanks. Its coming along slowly. 

-PJ


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Sooo... traded a friend for some Enkie RPF1's with some NT05's 235/40/17x9 last weekend. 
Thoughts?

















-PJ


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## chefhow (Apr 29, 2007)

PURTY!!!


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

Take it for what it is... some random dude on the internet. 

I like the RFP01s ok, but they do poke a bit more than I personally prefer. I think silver would be a better color for your car as well. They do have a very "sporty" or "race car" feel to them, if that is the look you are going for. 

And since you seem to like Enkei, now you just need to find a friend willing to trade you for some Enkei RS05RRs in silver with Mid/Rear face. 

Or maybe a move back to BBS with the RX-R or Ci-R. :wideeyed:


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

They look fantastic. Great choice!


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## Pseudonym (Apr 17, 2006)

paint them white.


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

I had a minute, so I thought I would throw a quick "chop" together to show you what I meant with the BBS wheels.


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## 555nova (Apr 12, 2014)

The black enkei's look great. If I was spending someone else's money on your car I would have bronze CE28's.


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

555nova said:


> The black enkei's look great. If I was spending someone else's money on your car I would have bronze CE28's.


I like the look of bronze on blue as well, but I know some people think it mimics Subaru too much. The BBS RX-R is available in satin gold. And it is German.


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## crackinhedz (May 5, 2013)

Ive always felt the all black rims looks like a hub cap fell off.

But at the end of the day only one persons opinion matters.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Thanks for everyone's input. I always like knowing others thoughts. I personally loved the old wheels I had. I just prefer to not have all the same style wheels that most VW's have. Plus these came from a friend who's car is no more. I like them. Would I prefer something else... sure... but for now these will do.

As for an update... no updates. Been working to much and will be out of town for the next month come this Sunday. Hopefully I will get her finished up in July. 

-PJ


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

Well, that's disappointing. lol

BTW, I like the new wheels.

Jay


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## Mr Orange (Jan 11, 2015)

The new wheels are nice but in black they just get lost. I think a little color would help. I'm thinking an anthracite would look good without being too loud. You could plastidip them first just to see if you like it and if you do then go for something more lasting like powder coating.


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

One thing about black wheels is that they never photograph very well. The details always seem to get lost unless the lighting is just right, but in person they look much better and the details are much easier to see.

Jay


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

JayinMI said:


> Well, that's disappointing. lol
> 
> BTW, I like the new wheels.
> 
> Jay


Yea.. I wish it was done already... still a lot to do and not enough time to do it. 



Mr Orange said:


> The new wheels are nice but in black they just get lost. I think a little color would help. I'm thinking an anthracite would look good without being too loud. You could plastidip them first just to see if you like it and if you do then go for something more lasting like powder coating.


I don't mind colorful wheels at all. I personally like black wheels. I have used plastidip before and was not happy when it came time to peel it off... such a nightmare... DO NOT WANT lolol



JayinMI said:


> One thing about black wheels is that they never photograph very well. The details always seem to get lost unless the lighting is just right, but in person they look much better and the details are much easier to see.
> 
> Jay


Yes they do get lost if the pictures aren't taken just right but meh. I'll see if I can't get some better pictures taken before I leave for a month. 

-PJ


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Alright... It's been a really busy couple of months. But Req and I made a load of progress over yesterday and today. Still a lot more to do and hope I can have the system operational by the end of next week. So here's the good stuffs everyone always begs for. 

For starters, I got some more reasonable tires for the car. gave it a little more meaty look to go with the new wheels. 



















Yesterday we got the amp rack/deck/backboard made up and fit into place. We used some M8 Rivet nuts to mount the board to the car.










Then I wrapped it in some nice cheap Walmart automotive black carpet Mounted the amps and started to run the wires and get the layout set up. 
Excuse the crappy pics lol. And the Zap straps...










Here is as far as I got yesterday by the time it got late. 










The almost finished product... The middle amp is my Mid-bass amp and I couldn't figure out how to wire it due to the lack of a bridge switch and/or rca y adapter. So the speaker wires are just kinda tucked under for now. 

For anyone curious, as they sit left to right in order of RCA connection (tweeter, mid-range, mid-bass, woofers) and the line up on the PS8 is from top to bottom same as above (tweeter, mid-range, mid-bass, woofers). Speaker output follows the same set up at the amplifiers and at the distribution block. 










Keep you posted as more happens tomorrow!

-PJ


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## crackinhedz (May 5, 2013)

Lookin good! 

You have the CarPC installed yet?


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

crackinhedz said:


> Lookin good!
> 
> You have the CarPC installed yet?


Negative. Still working on a bezel for it as well as telling myself how much I refuse to not have music in the car. Hopefully it will be installed same day the speakers go in. But the PC is not crucial to having music with the custom setup as the PS8 can take input right from my phone if need be.

-PJ


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## crackinhedz (May 5, 2013)

Right on.

Yeah, no music is torture. Looking forward to your finish.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

crackinhedz said:


> Right on.
> 
> Yeah, no music is torture. Looking forward to your finish.


Agreed! Andrew has been riding around with a JBL bluetooth speaker... IDK how the hell he does it. 

As am I. My goal is to have it fully operational very soon! 

-PJ


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## req (Aug 4, 2007)

three of the hardest hurdles are done. wiring and amp rack. the subs are basically ready to go in. the amp rack is basically ready to go in. 

the speakers need to be installed and the carpc needs to be installed. its taking a long time, but its getting done right 



I have my system out because my car was rear-ended and I need to remove the interior one last time so I can install my air suspension components (air lines\tank and management system) the system goes back in.


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

req said:


> its taking a long time, but its getting done right


Doing it right the first time!

-PJ


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

Got a few more things done, I had to modify two RCA cables from 2 out 2 in, to 2 out 1 in to allow for proper bridging of the Midbass amp. I also got some of the wiring done for the back up camera and mounted up the Amp rack. 




























Perfect fit! 










Also had a friend come into town for my birthday... VeeDubs everywhere!










And as of now this project will be on hold again for the new week or so. Heading out on a ship on Monday with hopes to be back Wednesday or Thursday.

We have very little left to do in order to have the system up and running. Install PC, all speakers, battery box with battery finish the back up camera. After that everything just needs to be beautified. So close!

-PJ


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## AccordUno (Aug 7, 2009)

So I've been looking to see where you are going to mount you midbasses? I want to install mine in the kicks, but having a hard time deal with getting the right angles to clear the wire bundles. So I was thinking the doors, just have to find someone who has done it to pick their brains (I'm doing Beyma 8BR40/N for midbass..)


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## Babs (Jul 6, 2007)

Nice work on that wiring!!


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

AccordUno said:


> So I've been looking to see where you are going to mount you midbasses? I want to install mine in the kicks, but having a hard time deal with getting the right angles to clear the wire bundles. So I was thinking the doors, just have to find someone who has done it to pick their brains (I'm doing Beyma 8BR40/N for midbass..)


I am installing the midbass in the rear doors. Req showed me a thread by on "opsodis" Link and read into it. Req then installed his midbass in the rear and the results where astonishing. Sooo... definitely going that route. 

The big benefit for me is not making 3 sets of speakers fit up front. I want everything to be as close to hidden as possible. I don't want it to look like anything was ever done to the car at all. 

Also, I have made some more progress and will update later this evening after some more progress is made. 

-PJ


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## AccordUno (Aug 7, 2009)

Read thru all of it, even got a small headache from reading some of it.. I'm going with 8s for midbass so getting them into the rear door wood require a little work.. definitely doable, but not sure if the juice is worth the squeeze, I've given up on the competition scene, just want to just demonstrate the speakers I'm running and the ability to have a great sounding car at loud volumes..


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## Rokusek (Apr 25, 2013)

8's will fit in the rear doors for sure! The window isn't a problem either, the depth you would need is there for sure too. I feel you on having a great sounding car. I don't care about competition. 

On another note, everything has been absolutely crazy. Everything except for the PC is installed and operates. I haven't had the time to sit down and go through pictures as I just finished moving into a new place. I will try and get them uploaded today. 

-PJ


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