Any info on CTS Turbo?

**mvnsory** · 07-29-2021 04:01 PM

Hey y'all, after a year of owning my baby, I finally decided to take the car in and got APR stg 1. COULD NOT BE HAPPIER- its just what the Q5 needed!

That being said, I know the next two things I'd like to do are an open-air intake and a hx. I've been looking at intakes for a while now, and when I looked at a few hx's, I realized that CTS turbo's prices are considerably lower than all the other major brands.

Are there any reliability/quality issues with CTS Turbo? I haven't heard anything negative about them, so I hope it's not the case. However, for example, I read on this forum that you will get an overall better product when you go with the APR open air intake, which is MUCH more expensive. Is the hx the same way?

Any help is greatly appreciated!

**djn876** · 07-29-2021 07:28 PM

Originally Posted by mvnsory

Hey y'all, after a year of owning my baby, I finally decided to take the car in and got APR stg 1. COULD NOT BE HAPPIER- its just what the Q5 needed!

That being said, I know the next two things I'd like to do are an open-air intake and a hx. I've been looking at intakes for a while now, and when I looked at a few hx's, I realized that CTS turbo's prices are considerably lower than all the other major brands.

Are there any reliability/quality issues with CTS Turbo? I haven't heard anything negative about them, so I hope it's not the case. However, for example, I read on this forum that you will get an overall better product when you go with the APR open air intake, which is MUCH more expensive. Is the hx the same way?

Any help is greatly appreciated!

APRs intake fits great, looks great, and has one of the largest filter surface areas possible, it's a really nice product overall. I also like that the heat shield is CF, which will do a much better job of actually blocking heat than the steel ones. Can't speak to the CTS one, but I have their downpipes and they are holding up well overall, just not quite the same fit and finish of APR.

HXs pretty much all perform similarly, so I'd say find a decent deal on one and go from there from a reasonably reputable brand. Some seem to have a nicer install kit and other features than others, but I don't think you will see much heat removal difference between brands.

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**Midshift** · 07-30-2021 08:23 AM

Previously had CTS intake on my dual pulley S5, as well as their exhaust. Intake was definitely one of the loudest on the market, which I found to be fun. Exhaust was well put together and sounded great. Can't speak for their HX as I haven't had it installed, but like DJN said, differences between most brands are marginal for everyday use.

**hananmori12** · 07-31-2021 10:49 AM

I was in the same dilemma, Merc don’t have stock now, and PLM with installation kit and shipping almost 500$, JHM looks good because the easy installation kit they have, I ordered the CTS few days ago and waiting for it,
Looks like good quality and price, 559$

**dubgli** · 08-01-2021 10:00 AM

Originally Posted by hananmori12

I was in the same dilemma, Merc don’t have stock now, and PLM with installation kit and shipping almost 500$, JHM looks good because the easy installation kit they have, I ordered the CTS few days ago and waiting for it,
Looks like good quality and price, 559$

Does Merc, PLM, JHM sell hx/intercoolers for the 2.0T?

I assume if OP is asking about a turbo for the Q5, it's the 2.0T.

I've ran the CTS K04 kit on a few of my VW 2.0T without issue. Not sure what intercooler is available for the Q5 but the APR units are solid. I picked one up 2nd hand so it was not as expensive.

- dubgli