Hello there Adam: My Car is 'running' in the Netherlands. I have done nearly all the mods you guy's over there name Stage II +III My car is engineered by J.D. in het Netherlands.
350 hp at this time and torque is nearly 450 Nm. It will be tuned even more this month. ( It will reach about 400 bhp with a planned turbo-mod )
I have WALK - stabi at the back - Bilstein BTK 12..... That wil not be enough to make the power come out at the right way. You cannot run the car with lots of power in corners and when steering firmly. You will loose control in corners, in gear 1-2-3 and very important, you will loose control with bad weather.
The best mod EVER is the Quaife diff. Make sure they mount the ARP bolts - special gearings. ( Peloquin is an option - I recommend Quaife )
It makes the car more safe. Far, far more control. And not only, when 'racing'.. But now, with snow and rain and very bad roads, the diff is really the best mod to thinks of.
If you are used to taking curves with some power, now you can hook those curves and pull your car with full control out of the corner. You have to learn to drive with the diff, but it makes it far more safe and more easy to handle. For me, really the best mod ever. When you go beyond 250 bhp, this diff is a must. If I had to to it all again. Start with the diff. Learn to drive with the diff. Then tune up your car. A cherrynut on the cake is really the wrong way to describe it. It is a absolute must. And it is not the cherrynut. It is the whole cake itself.
If you run that much power, and you are not missing the diff, then you are really not driving the car.
I have allready had the luck of driving a 400 bhp with a diff. Without a diff, you really can not use the power as it should be used. You will get wheelspin in gear 4 at a dry road. Try the diff. You'll understand what I mean ........ Power really needs control. But make sure the best bolts and mountingproducts are used. Quaiffe is lifetime warranty. You will not destroy it, if mounted correctly. Takes about 10 hours to be built in the gearbox ..........
As far as the intercooler goes. This will give you ZERO power. You just need it, if you are running the car to its limits and keep it up there for more than 30 minutes.
Save the money on the intercooler. Only if you hit circuits. I would go for better brakes. Grooved discs and 2500 DS blocks. Again - Power needs control.c.
The standard brakes on the
Cupra are not good enough when you are running 350 bhp plus. If you stay with the K04 TFSI Turbo, don't spent your money on the I.C. Or do you really push your car to the limits for one hour ?????? Just my opinion. Based on experience with all the mods.
A
Cupra with 250 bhp and diff will overtake a
Cupra with 350 bhp when coming out of a corner ... And in gear 1-2-3 it will overtake the 350 version also. That is really the benifit of a good LSD.