25/02/2025
A Skoda Fabia... VRS?
This Skoda Fabia VRS arrived to us in "almost" stock form, with the only upgrades being braided front lines and a 312mm front brake conversion!
2007 Skoda Fabia VRS PD130 BLT
- Stock PD130 BLT Engine
- JW Automotive GTB2260VK Turbocharger*
- Standard BLT Injectors
- Welded Injector Rockers*
- PD150 Headbolts*
- Piper 272 Camshaft Kit*
- Contitech Timing Belt Kit*
- febi 80c Thermostat*
- Sachs SRE Clutch Cover*
- Uprgaded Organic Clutch Disc*
- Billet Input Shaft Insert*
- 4H-Tech Short Shifter*
- Audi S1 Subframe + Control Arms*
- Audi S1 Tie Rods + Ends*
- Rear Anti Roll Bar*
- Upgraded In-Tank Fuel Pump in 1.4 MPI Housing*
- 1.4 TDI Fuel Filter (No Thermostatic Tee!)*
- EGR Delete*
- ASBO Performance 3" 304 Stainless Downpipe*
- 2.5" Piper Stainless Cat-Back Exhaust System*
- 304 Stainless Exhaust Downturn*
- Custom 304 Stainless 80mm Intake Pipe*
- Pipercross Panel Filter*
- Modified / Custom Hard Pipe Kit*
- Ibiza Cupra PD160 Intake Pipe*
- Twin Pass FMIC Setup*
- Fabia 1.9 PD100 Non-VRS Bumpers*
(Items marked with * were undertaken in-house!)
Estimated Power/Torque Figures: 268hp / 397ftlb (Map 3)
This Skoda Fabia arrived to us with in almost stock form! With the owner bringing it to us with a slew of parts, and letting us supply many of the others!
We set to work stripping it down, and removing the engine, subframe and exhaust for all the upgrades!
First to be fitted was the Audi S1 subframe + arm setup, a proven handling upgrade for the 6Y/6L/9N series of chassis, which drastically improve stability in bends, and feedback for the driver! Of course not forgetting the rear anti roll bar which was fitted as well!
Next up was the engine; a BLT engine by itself (like most of the PD130) is an impressive work of over-engineering, capable of taking plenty of additional power over stock. We stripped it down to begin the hard task of getting everything fitted!
First up was PD150 headbolts and Piper 272 camshaft kit; a normally simple job, however upon inspection of the rockers we found the gallery plugs had fallen out! A common issue which usually leads to poor oil pressure in the top end and premature wear of lifters/camshaft. Thankfully this is an easy fix, and we keep welded injector rockers on the shelf (offered on an exhange + labour basis), which ensure this issue will never come up again on this vehicle!
Next was timing, we fitted a Contitech belt + water pump kit, along with a fresh febi 80c Thermostat to help maintain safe temperatures even under high load (though the addition of an upgraded radiator later down the line would certainly be beneficial!).
The Automotive GTB2260VK Hi-Flow turbocharger and ASBO 3" downpipe are a perfect match! These turbos are sturdy units, and perform brilliantly. They are our personal reccomendation for a fast-road/daily vehicle that should have a fair bit of poke!
The customer also supplied a custom 70mm intake pipe to suit the turbocharger, but unfortunately the fitment was poor; so we reached out to our friends Performance for some custom fabrication! After a few choice cuts from our side and some extra pipe, (along with their wonderful welding work), we got it sitting just right and able to match up to the OEM airbox and accordion pipe!
The Sachs SRE clutch cover was then bolted up with one of the upgraded organic discs we use, our perfect combination for a setup that will hold power whilst maintaining nice driving behaviour!
Unfortunately we did find an issue with the gearbox before re-fitting, a sneaky previous owner of this vehicle had patched a crack in the casing with some RTV sealant, which had mostly peeled off! Being near one of the drain plugs this was less than ideal, so we set to work sourcing a replacement casing to swap the internals into; whilst at the same time fitting and tack welding a billet input shaft insert in place to improve long-term reliability!
The drivetrain was then loaded back into the vehicle with all the nice upgrades and was then finished off with a customer supplier 2.5" Piper cat-back exhaust system! The customer did however opt for a stealthy "down-turn" exhaust tip to suit the general theme of the build. 😉
The crash bar and slam panel were then modified to suit the supplied twin pass FMIC setup, along with modification to the upper and lower boost pipes (once again welded by ASBO performance) to allow them to sit snugly behind the front bumper. If you've ever fitted the generic FMIC kits on offer for the Skoda Fabia, you'll know that the pipework doesn't always sit properly, and is often placed at weird angles leaving them liable to pop off under boost!
Wiring work was also undertaken, "what for?" you may ask. Well, we've wired in a "power k**b" as we like to call it. It ties in directly to the ECU and allows dyanmic control over fuelling and other parameters by the driver on the fly! This was then coupled with our custom tuning and multi map solution for a very interesting setup!
With 3 maps to choose from, and with the "power k**b" theres a near-infinite amount of configurations this car can be driven in! Anywhere all the way from 130hp (Stock) to the max figures of 268hp! All switchable / selectable on the fly at the flick of a switch!
And finally, this was all finished off with a pair of non-VRS PD100 bumpers, painted to match the vehicle! Pretty much finishing off this stealthy build.
And... you thought we were done? THe customer had a last minute addition which they had delivered to us. a 4H Short shifter! These shifters are fantastic and offer a solid short feel between all gears!
P.S. If you're reading this and you're undertray has some screws damaged / missing (due to ripped plastic), remove it now before it removes itself at speed!
Hopefully we will see this car back in the future for some more upgrades, notably Firad injectors and a ported cylinder head to really make the setup sing!
Get in touch for any vehicle repairs, upgrades or tuning requirements!
