In the summer of 2019, MSC Canada and its sister company MSC America decided they wanted to add a second demo vehicle to their fleet. Back in the summer of 2018, they assembled a team of master craftsmen in Arizona to build an Audi Q5 to highlight the BLAM speakers and Audiotec Fischer electronics the companies distribute. This new project is based on a 2019 VW Golf GTI and was designed and built at the Mobile Solutions of Canada offices by an all-Canadian dream team of amazing mobile electronics technicians.
Custom Amp Rack and Subwoofer Enclosure
The focal point of the installation was to be the cargo area of the GTI. The team started by building a fiberglass-bottom enclosure in the spare tire well for a single Brax ML10 10-inch subwoofer. Next, they set to work on a rack for a pair of Helix C Four four-channel amplifiers. While most shops in North America can fulfill the above requirements, the VW Golf GTI project is unique in how everything blends cosmetically into the vehicle. A pair of laser-cut panels adorn the trim panel around the subwoofer. The panels feature aluminum and black acrylic trim rings with pressed steel mesh grilles and red acrylic accent pieces that mimic the styling cues of the vehicle interior. The trim piece is finished in the same fabric that Volkswagen used on the A-pillars.
An eight-channel Helix DSP.3 processor is mounted under the left access panel, and a hard drive full of music is under the right. Currently, the hard drive is connected to the factory source unit, but it will soon be connected to the DSP.3 using an interface called the Audiostage, once it’s released to the public. A NAV-TV interface feeds a digital signal from the factory source unit to the DSP.
The team cut an accent piece out of acrylic and etched the Audiotec Fischer logo into it. An electro-luminescent panel behind the logo provides even illumination. Custom-fit panels blend the amp rack and subwoofer enclosure into the edges of the trunk for a tidy look. Finally, concealed accent lighting matches the red lighting inside the Helix amp.
VW Golf Front Stage Speakers
The next step was to install a three-way set of Brax Graphic-Series speakers in the front of the car. The team created new grilles for the door panels to conceal a pair of GL6 6.5-inch woofers using the same aluminum, acrylic and pressed mesh design as was used in the cargo area. They replicated the grilles on the back doors to maintain the upgraded interior theme, even though the rear speakers are not being used. Silent Coat and Cascade Audio sound deadening were added to the doors to reduce noise transfer into the vehicle.
The GL3 3-inch midrange and GL1 1-inch tweeter drivers are installed in fiberglass enclosures that are molded into the small triangular window openings above the dash. The dash was removed and the glass windows pulled so that they could be tinted black. Once back in place, the fiberglass enclosures were constructed for the midrange and tweeters, then bolted in place before the dash was put back into the vehicle. A set of aluminum, acrylic and pressed mesh grilles conceals the high-frequency drivers and maintains the factory-installed appearance.
Stinger Radar Detector and Laser Defense System
This VW Golf GTI is protected against police radar and laser with a Stinger detector and defense system. Two sets of the Stinger fiber laser sensors and transmitters are mounted on acrylic panels located just under the front grille. The Stinger patch array radar antenna is mounted behind the lower grille to pick up X, K and Ka-band radar gun signals.
Inside the vehicle, the team created a frosted acrylic trim piece for the Stinger Strip interface. The acrylic piece was molded into the overhead switch panel and the Strip is installed in the center. The Strip has LED backlighting that makes the acrylic ring glow brightly to alert the driver of police radar and laser speed measurement signals.
Mobile Solutions of Canada Dream Team
The team brought together to complete this project includes Derek Brown and Dooyee Jay from Mobile Solutions of Calgary, Zach Brown from Audio Warehouse in Saskatoon, Pat Lee and Tyler Neault from Certified Autosound and Security in Chilliwack and Maple Ridge, and Adam Yamamoto from Kaotic Kustoms in Langley. The team completed the door and trunk work in less than four days while the Mobile Solutions staff spent about a week on the A-pillar speaker pods, including the dash removal and reinstallation. The car was unveiled at the KnowledgeFest event in Dallas in August 2019 and will be on tour across North America to retail events and training seminars. If you have a chance to check out MSC’s VW Golf GTI, be sure to jump at the opportunity.
