"If I'm getting X I MIGHT ASWELL GET Y", the classic car guy dilemma 
. Very difficult to stop yourself before you end up trying to build an engine that could do 24H of Le Mans.
True... That's how I was with the old 1.4, spent well over 12k on it and ended up selling it (to my dad) for 6k, taking off almost all the mods and selling them... minus the engine tune-up. Even tho he isn't a speedster and his old car is a 1.4 golf 4, he does like the instant power the 240hp 1.4 can deliver... But still gets beaten by a GTI with a broken turbo
I do plan on restraining myself to just the generic K04 mods without getting into pistons and rods for the near future. Downpipe w/ sports cat, intake to make it sound cool, dv relocation kit, dv+ since I already have it and it makes a way better sound than the stock valves, r8 coils, ngk plugs, ECS complete boost pipe kit and lastly OEM S3 intercooler.
Yeah I agree, the basic minimum for K04 upgrade is a good middle ground. If I didn't have plans for buying additional cars I would be looking at that myself. You may not need a clutch right away, but keep money saved for when you need it will eventually.
I've settled with this car and dont plan on buying anything else for the next 5+ years. The 2.0 is great. Got the car for 4k total, 2.8k for the car, negotiated down from 3.650 cause the engine was running pretty bad (it was the brake booster line, it cracked), 600 for getting it home, around 500 for all the paperwork and getting it registered and lastly 100 to my buddy who spoke German and got me the deal. Spent around 4k repairing it which would have cost double if I went to other mechanics and bought parts through them.
Why all this for a GTI? Well because it's full option! It has almost everything you could put in it in 2006 and only 128k km (when I bought it anyway, made 10k since then). The clutch failed 100 meters after getting it off the trailer so I replaced the whole thing, including the DMF. I went with a Sachs X-tend performance clutch kit from the start, knowing that I'll need it in the future, so I'm all set for a while.
Also since you have high octane available in your country it would be worth considering 'switchable maps', where either OEM ECU or aftermarket ECU can be modified to support switching maps just using the in-cabin controls in the car. Not too sure how it works, but my tuner friend (who also does cheap maps like your friend) said for €500 euro he can do it, which for me just wasn't worth it. But you should do some research into it, having a 95 octane economy map and 100 octane 'fun' map would be great.
Map switching is definitely something I'll look into because I also use this car as my daily. I get 13-14 l/100km in the city which is not ideal so i've been looking into multiple maps for a while and might get an aftermarket unit for that specifically. I'll have it set up like those oldschool hueys with the flip open type switches by the shifter, where the ESP and wheel pressure button is.
Keep in mind if you legitimately getting an ED30 engine from the UK for 1k (you must have good friends or the engine isn't running), then you will have to pay import fees/customs duty into the EU. Which can also add weeks to the delivery. All can be avoided of course if you have a sketchy friend with a van who's bringing it to you, I wouldn't know anything about that ;)
He has his ways and I don't question them
We'll see what he brings home, take what I need and he'll sell off the rest.
No need to worry about rods if you're going for a basic K04 set up though, and it's not like you need more than 300hp on a FWD car anyway.
Yeah that's what I'm thinking. I'll deffo need an LSD cause even right now in it's current state, I'm slipping till the end of 2nd gear, and I've got Vredestein tires on.... winter ones anyway, I'm waiting on the rims to arrive for the summer ones.
...My 200 cel cat triggers the check engine light if not mapped out, not all cats are built equally. But it smells less than a decat and gives me peace of mind that I'm not a complete environmental terrorist . It's definitely a good investment if you ask me.
Yeah the smell is another factor why I want a sports cat and not a complete decat.
Here's the car itself. It's a 2006 Jetta with a 2.0 turbo. These pics were taken in December, the morning after I finished the Mk6 GTI front end conversion and mirror cover paintjob. I'll likely keep the car the same color, but paint the front, repair the rear bumper and cover the chrome window trims and door pillars with matte black wrap. It gives it a more sportier look. I want it to look clean from the exterior, go unnoticed cause the color is way too common. A sleeper build basically.
The front parts are all covered in paint primer as it matches with the car's color till it gets hotter outside to paint it and I've since then painted the grille trims glossy black. Looks cleaner and sportier imo.
Next to it is the 1.4 which was in the process of getting a turbo at the time.
