B8 DRL Upgrade

[JACKAL]

I recently located a local company called Evolution AutoWerks out of Watertown WI to tackle a DRL upgrade for me. These will be fully functional RGB-capable and have progressive turn signals as well as a bunch of Bluetooth show mode stuff that I don’t anticipate using but was necessary because I wanted to have the DRL function as a progressive turn signal.

They are almost done and I will post pics of the finished product but this is what we have so far (note the brightness of the DRL is much lower than I plan to run when I get them back):

[s3lman]

Looks great! I've never heard of them but they aren't too far from where I live in southeast WI. How was doing business with them so far? I've been trying to find a company near me willing to take apart my headlights to black out the chrome, remove the yellow ambers, and possibly give me RGB capabilities but I haven't had much luck. Not really wanting to ship my only set of headlights out of state so these guys might be my choice.

[Bay_audi510]

Wow, Just seeing the parts laid out makes me want to upgrade mine! The finished product is gonna look awesome!

[JACKAL]

Looks great! I've never heard of them but they aren't too far from where I live in southeast WI. How was doing business with them so far? I've been trying to find a company near me willing to take apart my headlights to black out the chrome, remove the yellow ambers, and possibly give me RGB capabilities but I haven't had much luck. Not really wanting to ship my only set of headlights out of state so these guys might be my choice.

Yeah, I'm sure these guys would be able to do that for you. They seem very capable and very attentive to the details. I communicate with Preston via Facebook Messenger but they do have a website and e-mail you can use as well:

http://www.evolutionautowerks.com/

Wow, Just seeing the parts laid out makes me want to upgrade mine! The finished product is gonna look awesome!

Thanks - I'm very excited to get the finished product and see how they look in the car. From all the pictures they've sent me along the way, it certainly looks like they do quality work.

[Jugghead51]

Very cool. Can’t wait to see outcome. I sent off a pair of ecodes to have inside color matched with my exterior (Daytona pearl grey). No light upgrades. Seeing this makes me regret not going further. They have had mine for a month already. Hope to see them in 2 weeks per last update. Pretty decent waiting list.

[Djcurb98]

I want to know where to find that DRL upgrade and just install it myself but I feel like it might be a 1 off set made to order


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[Dorny1]

damn I'd be down for this upgrade

[JACKAL]

I want to know where to find that DRL upgrade and just install it myself but I feel like it might be a 1 off set made to order


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Which upgrade is that you're referring to?

[JACKAL]

Getting closer!

[byront8]

Any info on pricing?

[JACKAL]

Any info on pricing?

I'm not sure if any pricing has changed, but when I ordered this, the going rate was $350 in labor (I initially was just going to have the white LEDs on the strip replaced with something of a little cooler color temperature) and $100 for parts for a total of $450.

In the case of making the DRL function as a turn signal as well, we needed to upgrade to RGB LEDs and add a Bluetooth controller, which added another $180 on top of the initial $450. Paint work was another $200, and in my case I had some additional cost incurred because my lights were previously blacked out with Plastidip and they needed to do some cleanup work.

[Envy187]

These looks quite nice, JACKAL! I'm optimistic they last as long as the OEM ones do.

Any intentions on getting Spyder tail lights or ones that match the non-bulb/pre-facelift look for the tail lights as well?

[JACKAL]

These looks quite nice, JACKAL! I'm optimistic they last as long as the OEM ones do.

Any intentions on getting Spyder tail lights or ones that match the non-bulb/pre-facelift look for the tail lights as well?

Thanks Envy! I hope so too.

I do actually have some different tail lights. I picked them up on eBay about a year ago and applied a light tint film:

[JACKAL]

Well I completed the install today and the lights looks great in my opinion. They really give the car a different appearance. There was a little wiring involved to power the Bluetooth controller and to tap into the stock turn signal wires and DRL wire in the headlight wiring harnesses but it was easy. The problem I’m having is that the brightness just isn’t as intense as it was when the installer sent me the image below:



Instead they look like this:







I’m working with the company who did the upgrade to troubleshoot but from what I’ve seen so far all my voltages are correct, grounds are good, and everything works properly (signals, changing colors, etc). They just aren’t as bright as what he achieved.

I have played around with brightness in the app and the above image is maxed out. As we keep trying to think of what could be, I wanted to see if anyone here had any ideas from the vehicle side. I don’t believe there is any setting on the car to change or tweak DRL brightness but I could be wrong. I know Carista can change the brightness when the headlights are on but I don’t know of anything else.

Any thoughts?

PS just for the fun of it (I wouldn’t and legally can’t drive this way but I was curious to play around) I tried a few other colors. The pics don’t do it justice but in person it looked pretty neat:




Another edit - a few pics of the car with everything off. I really like how the DRL lense stands out:

[Fresh.S4]

I'm gonna say Photoshop.
That photo they sent you looks like a solid white bar, but in all of yours you can clearly see each diode

[airjordan223]

You can adjust the DRL brightness in VCDS. It's very low from the factory. I increased mine to 35/100 so they dont get washed out with the headlights on.

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[Jugghead51]

They look great. Hope you find a solution to the brightness.


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[the general]

^^ what airjordan223 said. Definitely VCDS adjustable. Instructions are in the VCDS mod list thread.


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[JACKAL]

You can adjust the DRL brightness in VCDS. It's very low from the factory. I increased mine to 35/100 so they dont get washed out with the headlights on.

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Do you know if this is applicable for times when the headlights are NOT on? I was able to make that same adjustment as well with Carista but it only applied to brightness when the headlights were on.

[JACKAL]

I'm gonna say Photoshop.
That photo they sent you looks like a solid white bar, but in all of yours you can clearly see each diode

I know what you’re saying but I do think the shop was honest about it and the increased brightness helped to mask the individual LEDs. He said he will be reaching out to Ghozt lighting who makes the controller to see what they say.

Edit:
After further consideration, I'm at a loss for that specific image. I can't honestly see how the installer was able to achieve such uniform light output with no sign of the individual chips because as seen in any image I've posted, all the chips are clearly visible even in the darkest ambient conditions...

[airjordan223]

Do you know if this is applicable for times when the headlights are NOT on? I was able to make that same adjustment as well with Carista but it only applied to brightness when the headlights were on.

Yes it works for DRL only.
I think I had them at 50 and they were bright enough to be used as low beams in town.

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[JACKAL]

Yes it works for DRL only.
I think I had them at 50 and they were bright enough to be used as low beams in town.

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I hate to be one of those people, but do you happen to know where? I looked in the VCDS thread and I either missed it or or misread it.

[Fresh.S4]

I've got mine turned up to like 75/100
Def never ever run my headlights around town.

The vcds thread is stickied on the top of the page.

[JACKAL]

I've got mine turned up to like 75/100
Def never ever run my headlights around town.

The vcds thread is stickied on the top of the page.

Okay thanks. Do you know by chance if this is the correct one:

[Fresh.S4]

yup thats it.!

also more proof that the picture sent to you was photoshopped... how is he powering it outside the car? im guessing basic 12v clips, which means he couldnt of controlled the brightness through the mmi unit from the car.
and those look like bootleg china brand boxes in the back lol.

keep us up to date.

[JACKAL]

Okay thanks for the confirmation! I have a VCDS cable arriving Monday so I will be able to give this a shot. I’m really hoping an adjustment there will get the brightness up to snuff.

Stay tuned....

[Envy187]

Okay thanks for the confirmation! I have a VCDS cable arriving Monday so I will be able to give this a shot. I’m really hoping an adjustment there will get the brightness up to snuff.

Stay tuned....

Hey, JACKAL. Did you manage to remedy your brightness issue with the VCDS cable that arrived earlier this week? I'm optimistic that it really isn't a Photoshop'd photo from the installer after all... :-(

[Drunktank]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news here. Trying to adjust your brightness within the Audi settings won't help, as they're no longer being powered by that system. All it's being used for is an input signal to a new controller board. If they're RGB, sequential, and you have bluetooth settings, then they're most definitely addressable LED's which are not going to be as bright as your factory lights.

[JACKAL]

Well, I was not able to make any improvements to the brightness as others have alluded to. I did some more research and came up with my own solution using an LED strip that I installed myself and which was compatible with the Blue Ghozt controller that was previously controlling my ‘stock’ DRL. The brightness is vastly improved and the install was quite easy as I’ve had my lights apart multiple times. I will add more detail and pics tomorrow but this is what I ended up with:






I want to point out that the only illumination is coming from the horizontal strip on the bottom. I actually disconnected the wiring for the stock ‘curvy’ fixture so while it may appear that both are lit, only the bottom is.

I know it isn’t the most sexy profile and I really wish I could’ve had better results with the stock DRL but in the end I am happy with the appearance and the light output of these new strips.

The strips I purchased can be found here:
https://www.gtaretrofits.com/shop/le...hasing-strips/

The source above sells the Blue Ghozt controller that I already had and it seems they also have their own so if you were to make a purchase, you'd need one or the other to control the strips.

I ended up cutting off maybe 5" or 6" in order to fit in the lower portion of the headlight lens. The come with double-sided tape so the install is quite simple. Once I had made up my mind on where the strip would go and how to route the wire, I was able to complete the second headlight assembly in about 50 minutes (including removal, baking open, installation of the strip, re-sealing, and re-installing).

[JACKAL]

Here’s a pic of the fixture not illuminated:



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[sivletho]

Well, I was not able to make any improvements to the brightness as others have alluded to. I did some more research and came up with my own solution using an LED strip that I installed myself and which was compatible with the Blue Ghozt controller that was previously controlling my ‘stock’ DRL. The brightness is vastly improved and the install was quite easy as I’ve had my lights apart multiple times. I will add more detail and pics tomorrow but this is what I ended up with:





I want to point out that the only illumination is coming from the horizontal strip on the bottom. I actually disconnected the wiring for the stock ‘curvy’ fixture so while it may appear that both are lit, only the bottom is.

I know it isn’t the most sexy profile and I really wish I could’ve had better results with the stock DRL but in the end I am happy with the appearance and the light output of these new strips.

Where did you buy the illuminated Audi rings?
How do you like the quality?


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[JACKAL]

Where did you buy the illuminated Audi rings?
How do you like the quality?


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I found the rings from raymaxgear.com.

I just installed them today with the lights so I can’t give a good testament to the quality or longevity at this point.

[Fresh.S4]

ahh damn i got excited for a second!
i thought you had both strips going

[JACKAL]

ahh damn i got excited for a second!
i thought you had both strips going

Unfortunately no. It could be done but I would need a second controller to run the other set. I’ve already got quite a mess of wires going on here for the first controller, the Audi logo, and the water meth injection lol.