Forum Friday: Flieger's Golf R Build Has Come a Long Way

You don’t necessarily need to make a lot of changes to your favorite car to turn it into the perfect daily driver, but don’t tell that to forum user Flieger — he’s been working on his Golf R for five years, and it’s come a long way. Let’s take a closer look at this fantastic Golf build, see what he’s done to it so far and discuss what he’s planning to do in the future to this stunning project car.

The Car

The base for this mind-blowing build is a 2012 Golf R, which Flieger started working on in March 2013. The primary goal was to be able to build the car he wanted while saving as much money as possible on the build. Being a member of the VWVortex forum worked out well for him, though, because he was able to buy many of the parts he needed gently used from other forum members.

The Aesthetics

Both the interior and exterior of Flieger’s Golf have been reworked to create the perfect look. On the exterior, the headlights were swapped out with Euro Black models, and the taillights were swapped out with tinted options. He added a rearview camera, replaced the front bumper and switched out the OEM VW badges for piano black badges.

The interior got upgraded Euro Recaro seats, a new steering wheel, headlight switch, warning lights, and instrument cluster. He also added a first aid kit strap and a Climatronic panel with auto recirculation, which controls the climate within the car. This had to be soldered into the wiring for the recirculation sensor, and having the proper tools makes the job so much easier. Other aesthetic upgrades include an aluminum glove box handle, carbon fiber trim and a heavyweight shift knob.

Inside and out, this build looks amazing.

The Engine

The engine, transmission and exhaust system have all been upgraded, too. He replaced the intake, engine and transmission mount and subframe mount with options from RacingLine. The oil pan has also been replaced with a RacingLine MK6 catch tank and oil management kit. The shifter bushings, shifter cable, and bracket have all been upgraded, and the OEM shifter has been replaced with a short shifter.

Stepping outside the OEM equipment for a moment, he replaced the stock ignition coils with R8 Red Top coils from Audi, and the coolant and oil caps came from a Porsche 911.

We could write a book about all the work Flieger has done on the drive train of this car, so we’ll move on now to the suspension.

The Suspension

The first thing to be upgraded in this build was the suspension — everything from the sway bars and coil over suspension to the front and rear brakes were replaced with performance options from RacingLine. The tires and rims got swapped out for a set of Neuspeed RSe07 rims with Michelin Pilot Sport tires. The stock brake lines were replaced with Audi TTRS brake ducts and braided lines, and the lower control arms, ball joint and master bushing kit all came from SuperPro. Slap on a set of Akebono ceramic brake pads, and you’ve got a car ready to take on any highway or race track — and that’s exactly what Flieger is doing with it.

Swapping out the tires for some sticky race tires means this car is ready to take on any sport track in the area.

This build is, in a word, amazing. While Flieger said the car had reached the point that he was happy with in March 2015, we still can’t wait to see what he does next.

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