Stargazer's Garage

I'd always scoffed at 'no rinse' car soap, but a combination of positive reviews on detailing forums and tiredness of having to wash the R during odd hours at a local coin-operated car wash finally convinced me to at least test it out. Details below the fold. Anywhoo, I decided to try out Optimum No Rinse Wash, Optimum Poli-Seal, and Optimum Opti-Seal from Optimum Polymer Technologies . I purchased these from a Canadian distributor, www.eshine.ca .  >Optimum No Rinse Wash (ONR): I followed the recommended dilution, 1 oz. (approx. 29 mL) ONR in 2 gal. (approx. 7.6 L). The R was slightly to moderately dirty, probably more slightly than moderately. I washed one section at a time, from top to bottom, with a MF mitt until clean, then dried with a MF towel before moving to the next section. This worked quite well. I'm not sure how it would work on a really dirty car, but I'd be willing to give it a cautious try, after a quick rinse at the DIY. I didn...

Earlier this week I replaced the LED city/parking lights on the HIDs with new ones. Only the passenger's side had actually died, but I decided to replace both because the old LED on the driver's side was noticeably dimmer than the new ones. See below the fold for additional information. Prior to importing my R32 to Canada I had the city/parking lights wired to the ignition so that they would work like DRLs, a Canadian requirement. Why didn't my 2004 VW R32 have DRLs? Actually, the 2004 R32 did have DRLs stock... with the stock halogens. I'd originally disabled the DRLs in preparation for installing OEM HIDs (I'm still irritated that VW decided that only 2004 R32s sold in the United States would have halogens -- everywhere else in the world they were sold the R32 came with HIDs).  Anywhoo, I'd decided having the city lights work as DRLs was a much better choice than having the HIDs suffer at partial power while running in DRL mode (not good for HID life...

Hard to believe I've been driving my R32 for eight years, now.   It boggles my mind.  Has it been that long?   While the R32 may have picked up a few cosmetic flaws over the years, I think I've kept it in pretty good shape.  My biggest concern these days, from living in southern Ontario, is potential salt and/or rust damage the R32 might be accumulating hidden from view.  My R32 is mostly a weekender, these days, and during the winter I try to rinse off the salt regularly, but you never know. The VW fuel consumption estimate for the 2004 R32 is 19 mpg (city) and 26 mpg (highway), which in my experience has been reasonably accurate, with one caveat.  In 2011 (fuel economy data for previous years can be found here ) I had an average of 18-19 mpg with a mix of city and highway driving.  Pure city driving it can be as low as 13 mpg.  On a more positive note, with pure highway driving it's easy to average 26-27 mpg.  In celebration of eigh...

Last weekend I washed and waxed my R32 using Einszett Glanz Wax. It doesn't last as long as sealants, but I like the results and it's easy to apply. I've been using Einszett for several years, now. This was actually the 2nd wax of 2011. I'd polished (Einszett Metallic Polish) and waxed only a couple weeks earlier, but for various reasons (okay, only one) I'd felt like waxing sooner than originally planned. Click below for more pictures.

Back in the summer of 2009 I had some Venture Shield clear sticker installed on my R32. Admittedly, I don't drive the R32 as much as I used to, but I'm still happy with how it's held up. No yellowing or discolouration whatsoever (knock on wood). You can see in the picture that it's barely visible even a short distance away. The only nagging concern I have is that my installer was just as impressed as I was at exactly how well the Venture Shield had held up, giving me the impression that yellowing or discolouration will be inevitable some time down the road. Anywhoo, I've pretty much made all the modifications to my R32 I'd wanted. Though recently I wish I had a compass built into my rear view mirror. The dashboard compasses you can purchase from stores like Canadian Tire never seem to work right for me. I suspect it's not as straight forward as a simple swap of rear view mirrors, though.

Late last year I chanced upon a Volkswagen recall notice (ID #28F3), that was originally dated 29 October 2009, to "Inspect, and if necessary replace Ignition coils." What I found puzzling is that I only learned of this recall in December 2010 when I was testing out the recall notice look-up tool on VW of Canada's website. It would have been nice if my dealership had mentioned this when I took my R in for the moonroof service action (60A7/S9) back in May 2010, or a simple e-mail.  Oh well. Actually, on further thought, I have a vague memory of my mechanic back in the United States mentioning he had replaced the ignition coils, which would explain why VW didn't have a record of it.

I learned today that VW currently has a service action out (described to me alternatively as “S9” or “60A7”) for the inspection of the 2004 R32's moonroof drain. According to my invoice the dealership modified the moonroof drains; whether that entailed installation of new parts or modification of current parts I don’t know. As it was free, I suspect the latter. FYI, latest TSBs for the 2004 R32 from the NHTSA. Since my 50k miles scheduled maintenance was more than a year ago, I took my R in today expecting to have the “60k miles” service done, despite only having 54k miles on the odometer. To my surprise the dealership told me all I needed was a “55k miles” service which was simply an oil change. I was surprised because according to the information on VWoA there is no “55k miles” service for the 2004 R32 – it goes from 50k directly to 60k. Odd. Type rest of the post here.

I'd heard the description before, but the other day was the first time I'd heard in person my R described as "cute". I wasn't at all bothered or anything, merely taken back for half a second, thinking to myself, really? I just don't see it. But that doesn't matter, does it? Cuteness is in the eye of the beholder. I wonder if anyone's described a STI as cute....

One of the first things I changed on my R was the stock antenna -- it reminded me of those long metal wires sticking out the top of old trains and buses that connect to overhead electric cables. The problem with installing a different antenna, though, was that most that caught my eye ended up touching the rear spoiler when the hatch was open. For a little more than 5 years I made do with a S2000 antenna lookalike and an angle adapter . Still, in addition to being difficult to line up properly, with time the adapter became floppy and no longer performed the purpose for which it was intended -- preventing the antenna from touching the spoiler. See below the fold for more and pics. Back in the day I'd considered the VW Sharan antenna, but it was always out of stock at Hillside Imports. Why not order it from a dealership? First, the Sharan isn't sold in the U.S. or Canada. Second, I believe there's some sort of modification required with the threads to make the Sharan ant...

I decided it's much cheaper to install clear sticker on the R than having to have it repainted . I had some VentureShield clear sticker installed on the front of the R. It covers the front part of the hood, the HIDs, front bumper, and part of the front fenders. So far I'm pretty happy with it. As a bonus, the sticker makes washing off bugs pretty easy. I like how the HIDs look with sticker, removing the need for the Lexan covers ; I'm still not entirely comfortable with it, though. I just have some slight difficulty wrapping my mind around the notion that a piece of flexible plastic sticking directly to the HIDs is as or even more protective than solid plastic sitting in front, not against, the HIDs. Click below the fold for pictures. The arrows in this first pic indicate the edges of the clear sticker. The VentureShield is invisible a short distance away.

A short while back the cornucopia of rock chips on the R's front reached my personal I-will-pay-good-money threshold. Being new to the area, I went with a local dealership's recommendation for a good paint shop. My entire front bumper was like this: This OEM spotted bumper was painted and installed at Karen Radley VW ( under warranty , which was another issue) in Virginia. Actually, the dealership sent the bumper to a local shop to be painted. I still blame Karen Radley VW, though, for using a shop that produces such pitiable work. See below the fold for the "after" pic. I think everyone would agree it looks much better, now, after the paint job at Ontario Auto Collision CARSTAR:

I purchased some 5-spoke O.Z. Crono HT wheels for my summer tires a short while back. This weekend I finally installed them. Click below the fold for pictures. First, for easier comparison, this first picture is with the stock Aristos: Now, the last two pictures are with the O.Z. wheels: Me likey! I think the O.Z. wheels make the R look cleaner and a little more aggressive than the Aristos.

I've posted previously that I imported my 2004 VW Golf R32 to Canada from the U.S. when I relocated to the Land of Tim Hortons; here I want to provide some of the details on an initially daunting but ultimately straight-forward process. It goes without saying (though I'm still saying it) that I'm describing my own experience with importing my R32 -- and my memory is already hazy -- and anyone planning on importing a vehicle in to Canada from the U.S. is advised to visit the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), Registrar of Imported Vehicles (RIV) and the U.S. Border Protection Agency (BPA) websites for the latest information. Read more beneath the fold.... First things first: visit the RIV website for the link to the latest list of admissible vehicles, hosted by Transport Canada . The list will tell you what if any modifications to a stock vehicle are required for importation, and whether it can be imported at all. This list does get updated. For the first few yea...

The stock Aristos on my R32 have been relegated to winter wheel status. In preparation for the other three seasons I purchased 18x8 O.Z. Crono HT wheels. I haven't installed them yet as it still hasn't been consistently warm (it snowed 6 days ago) in the Land of Tim Hortons. I went with 5-spoke wheels because no matter how much I like how they look the 15-spoke Aristos are a pain to clean. The Crono HTs are also lighter at 19.5lbs a piece, compared to the hefty Aristos' 28-29lbs. See below the fold for a picture. I'll post more pics once I get these wheels installed.

Well... it's been five years since I purchased the R. I have to say most of it has been fun. I also have to say, or admit, that in the past year and a bit, and after several large expenditures, I've wondered how much money I could have saved if I didn't care about my R so much. Oh, well. Happy 5th Birthday, R32! :o)

The R32 is great nevertheless there were some things that I found disappointing about the 2004 North American iteration sold in the United States. One of which is that for some inexplicable reason (probably $$$) prior to shipping R32s to the United States they stripped them of the HIDs European R32s possessed stock. I consider HIDs to be first a safety issue and second a performance issue. Having said that, the HIDs on European R32s were in short supply, and expensive, so I delayed a little in purchasing them. Anywhoo, I installed HIDs years ago. This post is to make the observation that HIDs emit less heat than conventional headlights. As a consequence on a snowy night somewhere in New York or Pennsylvannia I discovered that my Lexan covers had iced over the HIDs. It was pitch dark and snowing so I hadn't realized I wasn't getting optimum light output. See below the fold for a picture. Not sure what's up with my pictures on this blog, but if you click on it you ...

After 50,070 miles my R has officially become a Canadian citizen. It survived the roughly 1,200 miles, most of it driven in snowy darkness, it took to complete my relocation to the Land of Tim Hortons. The R hopped through the hoops set by the Registrar of Imported Vehicles, jumped the hurdles set by Ontario motor vehicles and as of the afternoon of 3 February 2009 my 2004 Volkswagen Golf R32 received its Ontario tags. Actually, I’m debating whether to even to put them on as I’ve ordered personalized ones. The R is white with salt and I’m seriously contemplating taking it to a “touchless” car wash, a concept previously verbotten in Maryland. See below the fold for the first pics my R in Canada.

A couple years ago my R's coolant warning light went off. I had it checked and the dealership couldn't find any leaks. Huh. I topped it off and everything was fine... until this weekend. Click below the fold for more. I'd just come back from an 830+ mile round-trip drive to Canada and back. After reaching home I popped the hood and to my shock the engine coolant level was 2 inches or so lower than normal, right at the "min level" mark. The engine was warm, too, which is when I always check the coolant. No one could check my R that day, so the coolant was topped up to 1-2 inches above the "max level" mark. The next morning, with the engine cold, the coolant level had dropped back to the "min level" mark, where it stayed until I took it to the dealer the following morning. The dealership put the coolant system under pressure (15 psi) for 40 minutes and couldn't find any leaks. Eh? What the heck? Anywhoo, the coolant has been toppe...

While I was having my city lights wired like DRLs I learned that one of my bumper side markers had partially melted. Eh... what!? These particular clear side markers were from 42 Draft Designs. Anywhoo, upon learning of this I immediately ordered new clear bumper side markers -- from a different company! -- as well as yellow LEDs to reduce heat output. Bumper side markers are easy to replace. Push in towards the front part of the side marker (there’s a spring behind it). Slide side marker slightly to the right and then remove by angling it out to the left. Bulb pulls straight out from bulb holder. For some reason pictures I upload are all over-sized, so here are the links: Melted side marker (jpg) from 42 Draft Designs. ECS Tuning Diamond Clear bumper side marker with yellow LED (jpg). Additional details . Type rest of the post here.

I previously posted that in the near future I'll be heading up to Canada for my next job. To meet Canadian safety requirements I need to have daytime running lights on my R. Stock, the 2004 R32 does have DRLs but stock the R doesn't have HIDs. I disabled my DRLs to prevent damage to my OEM HIDs caused by running them at partial power. I'm not getting rid of the HIDs, so I needed to look for a way to have DRLs at the same time. I considered a few options: Install fog lights and wire them up as DRLs. For a time this option was leading the group but cost and time eventually ruled it out. Some R owners have wired up string LEDs in their front vents, a much different looking and cheaper alternative to real fogs. When the LEDs are on they look pretty good, when off they look a little chintzy if you notice them. I didn't see a problem with wiring them up like DRLs. But... what if down the road I have to replace the LEDs? When I talk about wiring things to DRLs p...