Tasteful Trunk
Before Gomez finished with the interior, he started working on the trunk, building a lit box for the subs and amplifiers. Wong specifically requested that the flashy fiberglass look come nowhere near the Audi. "I did not want the 'spaceship' effect of curvy fiberglass pieces that I see in a number of show cars." However, after the completion of the interior, Wong felt the original enclosure and amprack were too plain and boxy. Gomez convinced him that he could tastefully put fiberglass to good use, so he gave them the go-ahead.
The results are two fiberglass and MDF pods for the 10" subs, two MDF ampracks in the back and a monitor stand for a 10-inch monitor in the front. No glossy paint flashes down here, since Gomez had everything wrapped in Novasuede with double-stitched blue thread. On the trunk lid, the theme continues with a Novasuede-wrapped panel that holds more carbon-fiber speakers. And, Wong boasts, "Instead of installing monitors like every other car, we built a Plexiglas display with interchangeable covers that light up for the shows."
TV Friendly
Although Wong didn't want a monitor in the trunk lid, he isn't against a screen or two. Looking up to the rebuilt dash, that's more than evident. In place of the center air vents, Gomez molded in two 5.5-inch monitors that bring video in easy sight of driver and passengers. To accomplish this, Gomez pulled out the dash and built out a new enclosure in place of the vents. While they were at it, they also threw in a trio of gauges on top of the passenger side. A wrap of black Novasuede finishes it off.
Back To The Source
Bolstering the video offerings, a Pioneer receiver with 7-inch touchscreen monitor sits in the center stack. This provides the video source as well as audio, but isn't the only source unit in the car. Behind the emergency brake in the center console, Wong had a custom-built iPod holder for a 30GB video iPod. "I wanted people sitting in the rear seats to be able to actively enjoy the car," Wong explains. Wrapped in Alante leather, Wong notes that "this holder does not stand out as an eyesore, but rather, flows with the rest of the interior setup."
After a yearlong process that began with body and performance modifications at DTM Autohaus and ended with the A/V install detailed here, Wong drove home the Audi he had dreamed of. Although he started the build by focusing on the exterior, Wong understands the importance of car audio in a show vehicle. "[In] the interior," he explains, "the audio breathes life into the car."