In 2 years/ 27k miles, I never had to add oil between oil changes. My MK7 was the same way.
Thanks for this great thread. I was about to pull the trigger on the EQT update for full torque on my Mk8R but I'm similarly skeptically about the possible long term consequences. Frankly speaking, it's darn quick already and I appreciate the overall flat torque curve. I feel it will be better for the track as well when I'm really revving it out..
The mk8 is certainly less subtle than the mk7, especially in Lapiz Blue. I've had my fair share of guys wanting to run. Elantra n, civic type r, a few Audi s's, WRX. On an empty highway I'll enjoy a few friendly 40-90 pulls in good fun.
APR Stage 1 tune, APR Intercooler, APR Intake.
Personally, I babied it up until 500 miles, light throttle and shifts below 4k always. Used manual a lot to alter the revs a bit. Slowly increased max shift RPM up until about 750 miles, then I started giving it some more aggressive 3/4 throttle pulls occasionally up to 5k or 5.5k. Launch control at 1000 my miles on the dot and drive it like I stole it since. She's at just under 5k miles and driving great!
Great guide! Thanks for the write-up. I don't necessarily hate View 9 but do get annoyed that it resets my default. Have disabled most and will stick with 8 for the most part.
An upgraded intercooler solves this for the most part.
I'm glad to hear more positive results with the APR IC! I'm going to experiment with how much my fueling setup likes ethanol, but I'll probably still get a simple wmi setup just to drop IATs. I went out and did a few pulls tonight and holy **** this car is pulling strong.
I have a Mishimoto race, and it's doing it's job really good.
Audi s3 / golf r intercooler is a significant upgrade over the stock mk6 set up.. it has more cooling fins , it's also deeper and wider holding roughly 30% more volume of air.. were our stock intercooler weighs around 7lb stock s3 weighs almost 20lb because has much more cooling fins and thicker fins for a better dissipation of heat.. It's perfect upgrade for stock or stage 1 ,2 but not worth while after stage 2 because to much heat.. Like any intercooler as with s3 it's doesn't add hp but keeps power constant, with oem after few spirited runs it tends to heat soak and pulling power back resulting in 10-20hp loss.. The 10-15 reviews I've read every single one said it's a great upgrade and very noticeable and kept power constant w/o heat soak on stage 1 and few even did it on stock cars saying helped , I attribute this to a 30% more volume of air it's holding vs the own intercooler.
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This part for Volkswagen Golf is made around the world. We have reviews for intercooler manufacturers from countries such as: USA, Germany .
In March 2026, the ranking of intercooler for Volkswagen Golf on PartReview included 4 manufacturers. It is based on 12 reviews and 36 votes.
Last month, PartReview users preferred APR. 75% of positive votes went to this manufacturer.
In second place: intercooler OEM Audi — 8%.
Third place: MISHIMOTO with 8% of the votes.
In the overall ranking of intercooler, which aggregates opinions of owners of different car makes and models, these brands hold the following positions:
After seeing which intercooler owners of Volkswagen Golf prefer, check other popular parts for this car. In March 2026, leaders on PartReview were:
You can also see what Volkswagen Golf owners chose among such parts as: Timing belt, Engine radiator, Water pump, Ignition coil, Glow plug, and others.
