New member with some questions

[stubobby]

Hi all - really a bit of a duplicate post to the new members part and as advised dropping it here

Thanks to Watts, Exonian & Adam T7 for the answers provided already and I welcome further discussion…

Car
2019 GTI performance (think it has to be at that age)
Purchased Jan 2023 - 17k miles (at 20k now)
Red
Manual


Looking to get it chipped - local dealer is Ecotune Glasgow if anyone has an opinion, I was just curious that the BHP gains are significant and wondered what impact it had on engine, gearbox, longevity etc etc - quite a lot of extra thermal stress into the engine, and what about the drivability….

Then as I live in Scotland - winter tyres are a must - I love them - had them on BMWs for year….

So option 1 - keep my Austin alloys and get 17” alloys with winters

Option 2 - upgrade to Brescia and put 18” winter tyres on the Austin

Any other chat / thoughts / upgrade ideas welcome

[rowlers]

From what I've read...
Remap, no impact on engine/drive train longevity, apart from clutch which is weak on manuals. So most tuners will recommend an uprated clutch for a stage one map. I currently have a tuning box (which makes a massive difference, despite what some will tell you, granted not as good as a remap!), turbo elbow, intake pipe, panel filter and Pikey R600, so you may wish go for those before the remap.

Wheel is purely personal preference. I like the Austins, so don't plan on changing. You could go for Uniroyal Rainsports to cover all bases?

[SRGTD]

@stubobby; If I was fitting a set of alloys specifically for winter use, I’d avoid anything that’s diamond cut. The clear lacquer finish on the diamond cut face isn’t particularly durable and is susceptible to white worm corrosion - especially if subjected regularly to moderate / harsh winter road conditions.

I would go with option 1 and ensure any alloys fitted for winter use were painted / powder coated, which is a much more durable finish for winter use.

[davo245]

Ran 18" diamond cut serrons for 6 winters nokian winter tyres never had an issue as long as you clean and protect them properly.
Ran the 19 brescia's pilot sport 4 s as summers.

[SRGTD]

Ran 18" diamond cut serrons for 6 winters nokian winter tyres never had an issue as long as you clean and protect them properly.
Ran the 19 brescia's pilot sport 4 s as summers.

Ran my mk6 with 18” diamond cut alloys through two winters from new; two of the alloys had succumbed to white worm at around 30 months old. Up to that point, the wheels were totally unmarked and as new, they were regularly cleaned (every 7-10 days) and protected (every 3 months). They’d had never had the tyres removed so tyre fitter damage wasn’t the cause of white worm. IMHO opinion, a diamond cut surface doesn’t provide a good key for the ‘protective’ clear coat to bond to, so durability of finish is compromised.

The two VW’s I’ve owned since both had diamond cut alloys. Within the first 2-3 months of ownership I swapped them on both cars for painted / powder coated alloys and keep them on all year round. The diamond cut alloys go back on the car when the time comes to sell it.

[joe6]

Been running diamond cut alloys on my mk6 for 13 years and apart from one curbed and refurbished not had a problem. Some very small chips dealt with quickly and not noticeable. Think it depends partly on the thickness of the laquer and regular checks and protection. I think I would go for winter wheels where there is a lot of snow etc in the winter though.

[sjw]

My Brescias are destroyed to the point of the black paint flaking off. Ridiculous. Haven't curbed them in years either.

[Rudedog]

Seems to be difficult to avoid them now, nearly all of the new cars in local supermarket have some level of diamond cut on them hardly any are totally painted, probably not worried if they are on a PCP.

[DSGboy]

Hi stubobby. I’ve got a set of hardly used Winter Wheels and Tyres ai could be persuaded to sell to a good home

[stubobby]

Awesome - can you PM me the details and what you want for them?