Thought I'd add my 2c as I've had an SB stage 3 daily + APR stage 2 (IC, DP, full intake, etc.) for about 5K miles now. Noise, yes. Annoying - could be, depends on individual tolerance, I suppose. The sound reminds me of other tuned cars I've driven that had more power than sense, so I like it. AC on at idle w/clutch out is probably gonna trigger a lot of folks who prefer quieter. Hold - 5k and no signs of any slippage whatsoever, and I regularly (like daily) hit 30+ indicated (P3) psi boost. I like to enjoy the power of the sleeper. Pedal force - yup, it's a STIFF aftermarket clutch. It got better after about 600-700 miles break-in, but it is a firm clutch. The one dude I've let drive it (who daily drives a Hellcat auto and has some vintage manual cars) just about sh$t himself when he first felt it, then eventually agreed it's damn firm but appropriate / proper for a tuned car to feel like that. Cost - yep, it's not cheap. I had USP in South FL install it along with the IC and other stage 2 related goodies, so the bill was up there. Fluidampr as well, which I think is a must with this setup, can't imagine how it'd sound without it. Probably like a friend's well-tweaked '01 M3 (E46) n/a with ~410 HP. That thing clattered with the clutch in at idle but what a beast. Overall, it's a compromise for those who want to tune and obtain more power from the platform. I was at stage 1 low torque on the OEM clutch and knew within 500 miles that wasn't gonna last, so I planned and budgeted for the clutch + stage 2 and will be quite happy for a while with this setup. One other item of note - APR stage 2 v 2.6 is a quite a bit LESS aggressive with throttle tip-in / response, so much so that I was contemplating quite seriously going back to 2.5, but after driving and living with it for a few weeks I'll take the better MPG (by close to 1.5-2) and smoother up top response that the 2.6 tune has returned. This is at the penalty of super-fast pedal response - but I've re-trained my right foot and all is well. I'd be interested to hear what others have felt about APR stage 2 v 2.6 on a manual. Not a lot of threads on here that I could find, though one was pretty critical.
Reviews of APR parts For Business
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Def a must for the tsi engine.. what I found to make huge diff is spark plugs and fuel filter.. They say 40k for spark plugs. I do mine every 20k and APR even says if ur tuned do it every 12-15k. I found it to be overkill.. Every 20k for 50 bucks it's perfect to keep ur car running at top peak all the time
You mentioned heat soak is an issue where you live so there's your answer! IC was already my vote before I even read that part of your post.
The automatic is doing fine. People have been tuned stage 1/2 since the MK7's release a couple years ago.
I'm currently running the DWS06 tires on my APR Stage 2 Mk7. I've put several thousand miles on them already and so far I like them. Definitely better than the terrible stock Pirellis that came with the car. In dry conditions, they grip quite well (obviously not as well as summer tires) for all seasons.
I don't understand how the upgraded intercooler is making the car actually faster? I understand keeping temps more stable or even cooler with more boost helping to preventing heat soak, Resulting in more consistent power but how is the motor actually making more power in already cool (ideal) conditions?
I don't have the valve lift K04 but my APR K04 works great. Power and reliablility. I have it on my base 2010 TT Quattro and it is so much more fun now.
Ended up being the fuel pump. Just got a new APR unit in and it runs like a_________!
As stated APR coils are know to not be as good as OE/OEM. I have seen a lot of people with APR coils chasing misfires and the replace with OEM and it’s fixed. Even with new APR this has happened.
Options like APR's and RS3 coils offer very little if at all over factory other than looking pretty.
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