The QuickJack does what it says it does, and it lifted my SQ5 in fine fashion.  I was very pleased that the even weight distribution of the QuickJack meant there were no divots or impressions in my RaceDeck Free Flow floor.  Here's some shots, but you'll have to excuse the current state of the SQ5, it has been a busy and messy week.  We actually had some snow on Thursday.  

My new QuickJack portable lift system arrived this week.  After hauling in home from the shipyard in my SQ5, it has been sitting in the middle of the garage.  I was under the weather today, and spent all day in bed.  I finally got up some energy so I decided to head out to the garage to assemble and test this puppy out.  The detailed instructions made assembly a fairly painless process and it seems to be working well.  I quickly ran out of gas, so I haven't had the opportunity to lift my vehicle with it.  Once I feel a little better, I plan to put the SQ5 on it and see what happens.  I'm hoping to find some time over the weekend to spruce up my rusty brake rotor hats, so stay tuned.  I'm quite curious to see how things go with the RaceDeck floor.  I think it should be fine, but I will keep you posted.  

The main reason I went with the QuickJack lift was the portability factor.  I will probably use it a dozen times per year, so I didn't want something that was going to permanently occupy valuable real estate in my double garage when not in use.  Its low profile design enabled me to slide each section away so it won't get in the way of the other happenings in the garage.  

The other reason I chose this over a scissor or two-post life is that it is tailored more towards my needs.  I plan on using it primarily for wheel swaps and detailing, so I don't need my car way up in the air.  At max height, it should provide me with a foot of body lift which will make a world of difference when polishing the lower portion of my SQ5 and detailing my wheels and wheel wells.  I think it was the perfect solution for my needs.  

​Click here to learn more about the BL-5000SLX.  

The order has gone in.  Soon, I will be using one of these little beauties for various garage-related activities.  Be sure to drop by in a few weeks when it is ready to show off.  I can't wait.  

Are they called hubs?  Well, whatever they are called they are looking shabby.  I picked up a can of high heat spray paint and I'm going to tackle them.  Stay tuned for the result.  I doubt a coat of spray paint will be a permanent fix, but I'll just keep reapplying it.  If that doesn't work, I'll look for a more elaborate fix.  This should do for now.  

Spring has sprung, so it was time to take off the winter wheels and install my shoulder season setup.  Here's some photos of the event.  I am still putting the finishing touches on the winters before I sock them away.  If you haven't had the chance to see what is involved with detailing my winter wheels prior to storage, you can see the process here.  I have to go now.  I have a lot of rocks to pick out of the treads.

Been down with the flu for the past week, but found the energy today to perform the swap from my Fall/Spring setup to the Blizzaks!  No snow here , yet.  When it does come, I will be ready.  The Blizzak LM-60's are, by far, the best winter tires I have ever owned, and I've owned a few.  The entire swap took about an hour.  

They are on.  They are clean.  They look wicked.  

With the arrival of my Spring/Fall wheel setup, it was time to prepare my stock 21" wheels for storage for the coming winter.  I love these wheels, but I don't know what do with regard to wrapping them with rubber.  The Pirellis are already looking spent, and I don't want to shell out 2 large for another set.  I am hoping someone out there releases a 255/40R21 performance all-season at some point.  

The job was a long one.  I picked up some tar on the highway a few weeks ago, so it took me about an hour per wheel to rid each one of that nasty stuff.  I washed the wheels, decontaminated the with Iron-X, polished with Menzerna's FG400, and sealed with GTechniq's C5 Wheel Armour coating.  I bagged them with Audi tire totes, now I just need someone to help me hoist them into position on the wall rack.  

I picked up my "shoulder season" setup from the dealer today.  I installed them later in the day, and I really like the new look.  I took it for a quick boot, and the Parada by Yokohama is a very well balanced tire.  There is a distinct difference between these and the aging 21" Pirelli P-Zero's I took off.  I was sure to use some anti-seize grease on the spacers to prevent any corrosion issues that could make them impossible to remove.  All in all, I am very pleased with this set up and the stance is quite right.  I'll be taking some better pics in the coming days, but until then, these will have to do:

My Yokohama Parada's arrived on Tuesday.  I loaded up the SQ5 with the wheels and tires and took them to my local Audi dealer for mounting.  I should get them tomorrow.  Looking forward to installing them.  

The wheels I ordered through RPI Equipped in BC arrived.  They are in pristine condition.  In fact, they sent one brand new rim because the original was scratched.  I don't often feel like I got a steal of a deal, but this time I did.  I gave them a thorough clean and just finished sealing them with GTechniq C5 Wheel Armour.  I should be receiving the Yokohama rubber on Wednesday, so I'm hoping to have them all mounted up on Thursday or Friday of next week.  They are going to look very nice on the SQ5.  The 12mm and 15mm H&R spacers and new lugs arrived.  They should give the wheels a proper stance.  Can't wait to get them on.  

I pulled the trigger on a set Fall/Spring wheel setup.  I picked up a used 20x9" set of Hartmann HTT-256-MA:M wheels from RPI Equipped in BC.  The offset is +40 which is a little tucked compared to the OEM 21's the SQ5 came with, so I have opted to install H&R wheel spacers.  Twelve mm in the front, and 15 mm in the rear.  The spokes are finished in a matte anthracite and the edges are machine polished.  I have always been a fan of these wheels, but I have yet to see this particular wheel installed on an Estoril SQ5.  Here's an example of the 5-spoke rotor wheels on a black SQ5.   I'm hoping they look as good on mine.  

Normally, I purchase my tires through Tirerack.com, but the strong US dollar is killing me.  All up, the same tires were $200  cheaper through 1010Tires.com.  I'm wrapping the Hartmann's with 255/45 Yokohama Parada Spec-X's high performance all-seasons.  I ordered the SQ5 without the tire pressure monitoring sensors, so I don't have to fork out a few hundred more for those useless gimmicks.  I'll be sure to share some photos once they are delivered and installed.  

Turns out the place I was looking at to purchase my Hartmann's has a used set of the wheels I want.  The offset isn't perfect, it's +40, so I am going to purchase some spacers to push the wheels out to provide the stance I want.  The wheels are off one of their promotion vehicles, a slammed A3.  Here's a pic of the actual wheels.  I'm told they are in 10/10 condition.  Should look pretty slick on the SQ5.  What do you think? 

As much as I love the Pirelli P-Zero summer performance tires my SQ5 came equipped with, I am extremely nervous about finding myself in a situation when the weather takes a sudden and dramatic turn and I'm relying on summer tires.  Last September, we were hit with a wicked snow storm and I had to perform a winter wheel swap at 5:00 in the morning.  Luckily, I did.  Our route to work was littered with cars in the ditch, all of them performance vehicles, undoubtedly equipped with summer tires.  So, here we are a year later, and I am nervous that the weather will take another quick and nasty turn.  I have contemplated installing my 255/45R20 winter setup, but there are some days in the Fall when temps can hit the mid-20's and driving winters in that heat will prematurely wear them out.  I considered swapping out the 255/40R21 summer Pirellis for an all-season, but no one makes one in that size.  NO ONE.  Only two tire manufactures make a 255/40R21 (Dunlop and Pirelli) but they are both summer tires.  The answer?  A Spring/Fall setup.  I am going ahead with the purchase of another Hartmann 20" wheel and I have chosen Yokohama Parada Spec-X's.  I had them on the Q7 and they were great.  I'm hoping to have the wheels and tires purchased this week and hopefully installed the week after.  The best deal I could find on the tires was through 1010tires.com and I will go through RPI Equipped in Richmond, BC for the wheels.  Feel free to click either of the images below to learn more about the wheels and/or tires.  Stay tuned.  

The SQ5 came equipped with an impressive set of front brake calipers.  They have been looking a little dull lately, so I popped the wheels off to give them some love.  Here's the video:  

I ordered my SQ5 with the optional 21" Audi-exclusive wheels which came wrapped with summer Pirelli P-Zero rubber.   This is great for 3-4 months of the year, but I needed to find a setup that would get me through the rest of the year.  My research pointed me towards Hartmann, a manufacturer of high-quality Audi replica wheels.  I had a set of Chinese-made 22" Porsche replica wheels on my Q7 and they were fine, but I always questioned their quality.  After talking to the guys at RPI Equipped in British Columbia, I made the decision to purchase 20" HRS6-204-GS wheels with the 25 offset.  With the OEM centre caps, they are identical to the OEM wheels they are based on, but costing about 1/4 of the price.  The "GS" denotes the gloss sliver finish.  I wrapped them with 255/45ZR20 LM-60 high performance winter Blizzaks and they have never disappointed.  I have had them on the vehicle for almost two complete winters and they have been awesome, plus they maintain the factory look, which I like.  

One question I get a lot is, "Can you lift a car using a floor jack atop the FreeFlow floor?".   The answer is yes, but you will damage it.  In this video, I demonstrate how the floor reacts to the force of a floor jack lifting my Audi SQ5.  I had a few extra tiles laying around, so I thought I would give anyone interested in installing a FreeFlow floor by RaceDeck a look at how it performs in this regard.  While the damage isn't terrible, you will see some significant divot marks and gouges caused by the casters sinking and cutting into the tiles.  I use a heavy duty rubber mat to protect the floor, which is an extra step, but keeps the floor free from damage.  

I take decent care of my car, but the unrelenting Canadian winter inevitably leaves my winter wheel setup in dire need of a restorative detail by the end of the season.  I recently swapped over to my 21" summer setup, so I took a day to detail the 20" winter setup prior to storing them for the summer.  I put this video together to demonstrate the process I follow to undo the damage caused by their exposure to the salt and debris of our winter roads.  

Wheels: 20" ET25 HRS6-204 in gloss silver by Hartmann (with modified lugs)
Tires: 255/45ZR20 LM-60 High Performance Blizzak by Bridgestone
OEM centre caps

It has taken a few years, but I have finally mastered the art of the winter wheel swap in my garage.  The RaceDeck Free Flow floor requires some protection from the floor jack, so I picked up a heavy duty rubber mat that provides the perfect amount of protection.  My brother-in-law swung by with his S4 and we swapped out his 19" summer performance setup with his 18" winter setup.  Here's some pics that demonstrate what a painless process wheel swaps are with a RaceDeck Free Flow floor: