Grey & black cupra mk3 sub8 2016

[AVCUPRA290]

Hello !

Decided to start this thread to share my experience through modifying my Leon cupra mk3 by my own since I bought it in November 2023. Here is My introduction

So I imported from Germany a Leon cupra mk3 DSG 290 sub 8 pack in pyrenean grey. It’s originally an orange energy pack but the previous owner blacked it out in a seat workshop :


After checking on some nice looking cupras on instagram (and also because I really like to) I decided to start the mods. Since the car is under seat warranty I only started with aesthetics mods.

1) Cupra monogram at the back
Bought OEM cupra letters in gloss black, easy mod even though I first struggled to find any guide on how to position it « OEM way ». I ended up position those letters using an ST measure guide so they were too high on the trunk for me and finally did it again with new letters :
1st try
2nd try

I used a cardboard hand made guide thanks to te correct measure guide I’ve finally found.

2) grey and black cupra flag on the front grill
I bought an OEM cupra R flag for the front grill.
Used an hairdryer to warm a bit the original flag and it was pretty easy to take it off. Then just put the other one in place (back with double sided tape)


3) wanted to add a sportier look to the car which is quite discrete from factory even with sub8 skirts. I bought rieger front lip and rear diffusor and a maxton spoiler.
No difficulty for the front lip few holes to drill (bottom of the front bumper) and screws to put on.
Same for the spoiler double sided tape can take some time to adjust on the car depending on how perfectionist you are to perfectly center it.

For the Rear diffusor : it was quite scary to take the original one off. Taking off the screws was really easy (3 or 5 screws I think) but then you have to pull on the diffusor and you get really scared to break some plastic clips. In the end just be careful with your paint. Do your best to look behind it and check the « real clips » to unclip before pulling (hard !) on the other ones, from a side to another, no need to rush the process.

Installing the new one was really easy after. Here you can see that these are not « real clips » but they are so squeezed in the bumper that you really have to pull hard.


4) decided to black out the Seat emblems. Contacted some wrappers who weren’t convinced the wrap will last well. Ended up buying full dip paint and tried it. 6 coats of paint and 3 coats of varnish and the results was …. Well not what I expected :



Finally found on Amazon some replacement S emblems. Just had to remove the chromed S parts which at first I didn’t know I could take off. I searched about it and found out you can easily do it :

Good to know : I broke one part in two and some clips snapped during the removal process.
I then used a needle to clean the broken clips from the hole to make sure the new parts will perfectly fit in.
Its direct plug and play replacement already gloss black with original clips at the back + double sided tape and they hold on very well.




5) added hood jacks. Really easy mod



6) read some stuff about rs3 air brake ducts
I used a really helpful guide on how to retrofit them on our cupra lower arms :
Cupra.net fitting guide
Adjustment guide

Since I have 370mm brembo brakes I didn’t had to trim the top edges of the ducts (they won’t rub against the disc even in full lock) but I did trim as mentioned in the second guide the fixation to allow better hold on the arm.
Except this little trimming work really easy to put on.



7) resonator delete
I bought a Vag sport resonator delete kit (send a picture of your resonator to make sure you get the right type) and installed it myself in a « self garage ». I don’t have any picture for this process but you have a YouTube video of this installation from vagsport on an Audi S3 so might help.
I had to cut the front exhaust collar since the screws were corroded and I did cut out a bit too much of my exhaust so ended up with small gaps between the vagsport pipe and the rest of the exhaust. (advice : do not use the shitty tool you can buy with the resonator, just take measurement and use grinding machine. Also it might be easier to take off the whole exhaust line which is not hard).
It costed me 5 different exhaust collars to finally find the right fitment to avoid any leaks noices and water condensation spilling from the collars. I bought an original VAG collar for the front and I add an additional plate (from another collar) in the double collar from vagsport at the back. I also did high temperature silicone joints on each collar sides. => no more whistling / blowing / loud noises in the canine or any spilling from the exhaust. Really happy to have finally solved this issue. And the new exhaust note is just what the car was missing. If you wonder : yes a little of droning around 130kmh if you push on the gas pedal around 50% but easy to avoid this situation and not really loud droning can easily live with it. The car is still discrete when you drive in town and the burbles comes in only in S gearbox mode.

8) new exhaust tips.
I really didn’t like the OEM tips so ended up buying some new ones :


only issue with our cars is that you have to cut off the old ones and weld the new. A welder did a really good job on mine for around 150€ (inox welding is a bit more expensive)

 

[AVCUPRA290]

Results of the new exhaust tips :

He did as I asked : not protrude from the diffuser.

9) R600 air box + pipe + turbo muffler + inlet
Really straight forward procedure nothing too complicated.
first take off the air box, then the pipe, then the rest.
To access more easily to the turbo inlet / outlet you can unscrew the screw holding the solid pipe to allow more movement to it.
To unscrew

Inlet and outlet

Original air box

New set up

note : I also added the racing line coolant hose to make it go under the air box instead of the original one going above which wasn’t looking very good.

10) resolving some really annoying noises (rattles) from the sunroof after cleaning the joint with a cloth.
Did some research and found out that the original supplier for the $$$$ sunroof maintenance grease form VAG is Krytox so I bought directly to them the krytox 105. Received it with some 205 krytox grease (the one mentioned in workshop manuals) and a brush to apply it. I believe that from factory joint are treated with the oil and not the grease which I think will last less. After discussing the differences on both products I received with the supplier he told me that I can use the oil for the joint and also add the grease on really high friction zone. So I used the oil and add grease on the frame joints. The oil is really easy to apply with a brush and the results is immediate. The grease is harder to make penetrate the joint and harder to apply in my opinion. I think you have enough for several apply but I will advice to not clean your sunroof joint if you’re not planning on re oiling it right after.



11) took off the soundaktor since I now have a nice real sound. I followed some videos on YouTube but really easy. Mine was located on the left side of the car (driver side for left driving cars), remove the joint (left arrow), remove the 2 screw-clips under the side foam (circle) and lift a bit the plastic grill it will be enough. You don’t need to unscrew on the other side I think. Unplug the soundaktor and you can also take it off (it’s clipped). Then wrap the connector and put everything back in place. You will get a error code at obd reading but minor one and no light on the dashboard.



12) I applied stickers on the taillights to turn red the white rear light and to underline in black the taillights. Was easy to apply. If I can give an advice : you don’t need to use hairdryer or soapy water, the stickers are already well shaped and do not stretch them to much or you will have some folds. And the more you reposition it the less it will last. Did it almost as soon as I got the car and it still haven’t moved.

13) I took of the cupra flag at the back which was the last chromed item last and the positioning on our cupra seems a bit odd to me. I used an hair dryer, dental floss and I then cleaned the adhesive left and used some car polish.

14) I didn’t like the plastic aspect of the rear bumper behind the plate. I asked first to some wrappers but they said the non regular aspect of it will make the wrap don’t adhere really well. So I ended up taking it off and bring it to a professional body shop repair / painter to have it paint gloss black. He had to apply some plastic coating before painting to obtain a smooth result. Allow me to warn you : taking this piece of will take you some time so be patient.

To take it off you first have to take off the bumper, you can follow the workshop manuals you will find on the forum :
Take off the screws under rear diffusor, in the wheels arch and then take of the rear lights to access the last screws and finally take off your bumper. Really easy no complication noted :

but… that was the easy part !
Now you have to take of the plastic plate you want to paint. This is really well clipped on the number with something like 20 different clips really hard to unclip even when pushing them from the back. I destroyed my fingers and it took me 4 times the time spent to take off the bumper.


When it’s painted and you put it back try to clip one clip from a side and then clip the opposite one on the other side to ensure you center the part on the bumper (the clip should help but juste make sure).

Really happy with the result for around 200€ :

 

[AVCUPRA290]

Mods coming :

- I will switch the black S emblems for cupra emblem ones in the same grey as the car body on gloss black plates. I’ve sent the front one for painting and will install it as soon as I get it back painted. I took one slightly bigger than the one we usually see on our cars but smaller than the formentor ones we can also find and without any black background :

at first I ordered the small one and the back one also on shapeways but I’ve changed my mine so I have some to sell if you are interested


For the back I’ve found someone on instagram that offers the whole handle plate (with support on the back to put back the mechanism and spring) so the fitment will be better and I will receive it painted already.

- when my brakes are worn I will upgrade them :
Discs DBA t3 - 5000 series at the front 4000 at the back
Along with Ferodo pads DS2500 front and rear
Hel performance brake lines (note that for a sub8 cupra 2016 with manual handbrake as mine you won’t fine any kit for both front and rear. You have to take a front kit for cupra R 310 with brembo and a rear kit for cupra with manual hand brake)
RBF 600


I didn’t see any reviews on these discs but it seems to me they might be a good compromise between OEM and Girodisc or some other of the same type.
If you have any comments on the discs or ds2500 pads don’t hesitate !

- when I will have to get new tyres I was also think about buying new rims : TOMASON TN25 in mat graphite.
I am still hesitating on the color so I’m opened to any inputs whether black will look better or not :

 

[AVCUPRA290]

- Front badge Cupra painted & mounted with double tap (Shapeways badge big model) + front grills painted in gloss black + covering lower end of the bumper above the Rieger lip

no particular tips for the grills.. except it’s a pain to get them off, you have to take the bumper off and even with the bumper off it is hard to unclip them.

 

[AVCUPRA290]

Some maintenance :

I replaced the PCV system (06K103495BM) along with the aeration pipe (06K103213J) :


1st step is to take off the 2 right coils,
Then plug off the pipe connected to the inlet,
Then take off the evap hose (left of the PCV)
Unscrew

same steps in reverse for the replacement.

It can be a little hard to take off the aeration pipe, juste be gentle and patient you can pull it through without pulling hard, just turn it until you can free it.
It is easier to plug the new one (and the evap hose) after screwing back the new PCV to avoid any strength on it.

also you will need a new clamp.



Along with these I replaced the upper cam timing chain cover (06K 103 269 F) the oil cap (06K 103 485 A) and the 2 oring seals in the cam (WHT 007 212 B).
I followed the manual




I did not totally disconnect the wiring harness on the dipstick because it seems fragile and I didn’t bought any replacement clip.

The hardest bolt to get to is the dipstick one.

For the two bolts at the bottom you can use a flat wrench and with patience it can be done.

I did oiled the seals before assembling.

 

[tracktoy]

Mods coming :

I didn’t see any reviews on these discs but it seems to me they might be a good compromise between OEM and Girodisc or some other of the same type.
If you have any comments on the discs or ds2500 pads don’t hesitate !

Cant comment on the Disk's as I am using Revo/Alcon 380 x 32 mm disks but I have used the ds2500 pads and they are great for fast road car usage and very occasional track use however I do a lot of track days and found they did not last so switched to Mintex pads, unfortunately the pads I had have now been discontinued so I am going for Mintex FR4 Pads for track days and Revo Front Replacement Pads DS Performance – Mono 6 pads for daily driving.

What I will say is if you are planning on lots of track days have a look to see if there is a better compound out there to give you a bit more longevity for the pads.

 

[AVCUPRA290]

Cant comment on the Disk's as I am using Revo/Alcon 380 x 32 mm disks but I have used the ds2500 pads and they are great for fast road car usage and very occasional track use however I do a lot of track days and found they did not last so switched to Mintex pads, unfortunately the pads I had have now been discontinued so I am going for Mintex FR4 Pads for track days and Revo Front Replacement Pads DS Performance – Mono 6 pads for daily driving.

What I will say is if you are planning on lots of track days have a look to see if there is a better compound out there to give you a bit more longevity for the pads.

Hi, thanks for the feedback, I’m not planning to do track days.. maybe occasionally.
I thought DS2500 would be a great compromise between efficiency & practicability for everyday use. Do you know if on fast road use they do last ?

 

[tracktoy]

Hi, thanks for the feedback, I’m not planning to do track days.. maybe occasionally.
I thought DS2500 would be a great compromise between efficiency & practicability for everyday use. Do you know if on fast road use they do last ?

Yes for fast road use they are great pads, No Noise and very good breaking and I had no issues with having to replace them often.

One other thought for you if you are going to keep the car for a while I would invest in a decent scanning tool (VCDS/OBD11) or something like Carista as this will allow you to modify settings on the car and check on whats going on below the dashboard.

 

[AVCUPRA290]

Yes for fast road use they are great pads, No Noise and very good breaking and I had no issues with having to replace them often.

One other thought for you if you are going to keep the car for a while I would invest in a decent scanning tool (VCDS/OBD11) or something like Carista as this will allow you to modify settings on the car and check on whats going on below the dashboard.

Perfect, thanks !

Yes, I currently have a Carly but not a lot of options available (settings to modify)