Feature Car: Three Act Avant

To find the origins of three act storytelling, you must go back… way back… back before the car. You must go back to Aristotle, who theorized that stories are a chain of cause-and-effect actions, each action inspiring subsequent actions and eventually there is an end. Such is the case with the Avant you see here.

When a car enthusiast approaches purchasing a car, looking at it and seeing a vision for a project is common. But what happens when that vision evolves, and that owner has an otherworldly level of determination and the skill or resources to make it happen? Well… it might look something like John Ronan and this three-act Avant.

With the first act, you need an introduction. When the curtain raises, we see John and his wife mulling over the purchase of a 2013 A4 allroad. “I distinctly remember my wife telling me that I was to ‘take it slow’ with modding… maybe not the best of recommendations! 

“The very first mod I did to the car was an S line flat-bottom steering wheel. I did the typical 2.0 TFSI maintenance items right away and then got into the suspension and handling. I upgraded to the Canyon Run 15 front strut brace, Eurocode Alu Kreuz drivetrain brace, Hotchkiss front and rear sways, Moog end links, SPC adjustable control arms, Airlift Performance 3P with front and rear Airlift Performance bags and struts, all hidden nicely in the spare well of the trunk with a BecauseBags B8 mounting bracket and topping that off with an RTA Fabrication Ashtray controller mount. I also tackled the black headliner swap that was so highly sought-after. It was at this point that the real progression of the build began with a full CTS K04 upgrade. It was also the point where discussions of a swap began.

At first it was just that, all very common in the Avant enthusiast space at the time. Find an A4 allroad. Make it sporty. Off you go. Curtain closes.

When the curtain comes back up, it’s 2019 and John’s on the phone with Chris Avantaggio (Avantage, Q1_2019, pp. 44-46). The two are brainstorming swap ideas for their cars when it becomes apparent to John that they were both serious about their respective plans. “We basically pushed each other into positions of, well if we are doing this, we cannot do the same swap, and Chris was very adamant on the 3.0TFSI S4 swap. I was looking for a visceral experience and decided on the 4.2L CFSA V8 swap and my research indicated it would fit in the engine bay. We basically built our cars in unison together, pushing each other for perfection.”

Fast forward to the Long Roof Rally, an autumn New England tradition for Avant owners.

“It all started back at the Long Roof Rally before the split/divorce. I distinctly remember having a conversation with (Dan Gray, a Long Roof Rally founder) and specifically asking him if he missed his B7 RS 4 conversion (Winter 2018, pp. 30-33) he’d sold. He did. I also asked if he would do it again and he responded quickly with “Don’t do it..” and explained his position on the matter. I remember listening intently to his response.”

So, was Dan the antagonist of the second act? John continues, “At the end of the conversation I remember thinking all of his points were valid and he most certainly knows the pitfalls of a project of that scale. But the punk rock kid in me walked away from the conversation thinking “F*** you Dan, you’re not gonna be the only one who pulls this off……”So thank you Dan Gray for motivating me.”

Motivate it did. Before long, John now had an allroad that was effectively an RS4… at least as far as the drivetrain. The 4.2-liter high rev V8 was in, with fully functional Sport Differential from a 2014 RS 5 Cabriolet donor.

Beyond that, some aftermarket upgrades included a Red Mist Racing transmission cooler, 034 Street Line Density motor mounts, a custom 2.5″ true divorced (no X/H pipe), straight piped exhaust built by Alex Sweeney at Innovative Motorsports and Eventuri carbon intake. Inside, the car was fitted with a Matt Devo Apple CarPlay MMI w/8.8″ screen and 1080p backup camera upgrade, plus a Ziza Master LED Interior Lighting Kit.

Act Two over. Draw curtain. John’s got his RS-powered allroad and life is good, right? Well… maybe Dan Gray’s words still echoed in his head. Maybe the itch to build the RS 4 conversion wasn’t yet scratched. Ronan’s evolved his vision, now wanting to build a full B8 RS 4 conversion for the USA using a North American VIN car, new OEM panels if possible, and as OEM+ as possible.”

That would mean more than a motor swap… as if that motor swap was trivial. For Act Three, he’d be venturing down a dark hole of OEM parts and components. On the outside, he installed completely new OEM B8 RS4 body conversion: front fenders, rear doors, rear quarters, fuel door, fuel bezel trim, rockers, inner rocker skins and trunk spoiler. OEM fasteners and finish pieces like rock/chip guards were also used in order to keep the conversion as authentic as possible. He finished the car in paint-to-sample Carbon Steel Grey Metallic, a shade chosen with a purpose with a nod to his former GTIs. The body and paint were completed by Dave Paster and team at Straightline Autowerks in Mullica Hills, NJ.

The OEM RS 4 part fitment continued on the inside with a full black headliner, black optics trim, Matte Aluminum folding side mirrors with self-dimming aspherical euro glass, door pulls, flush roof rails, MMI control panel with aluminum buttons, Alcantara door cards, piano black dash surround, carbon fiber engine cover, carbon fiber interior beltline trim and left hand drive Recaro Wingback seats with custom painted seat backs sourced from an RS 5. 

He also added a European trunk organizer kit with rail system and C7 RS 7 6-piston calipers with 390 mm wave rotors at the front. This was accomplished with a VoshMods rear BBK kit on a C7 RS7 OEM 356mm wave rotor. The VoshMods kit consists of a Cayenne 4-piston Brembo caliper with a single piston Brembo EPB off of a Tesla, using a custom mounting bracket and wiring harness for no error codes. Carbotech Bobcat 1521 Brake Pads offered the finishing touch.

The car rolls on three-piece 20×10.5″ HRE Classic 300 (et25) with charcoal faces, 1.5″ polished lips and black barrels. These were custom built by HRE with the most concave face option available, while 3mm spacers all-round help them perfectly fill the wheel wells.

That’s the end. At least for now. We met up with John Ronan at Alpine Volks Fair (pp. 38-40) where the car was significantly damaged after going off road on the twisty tarmac of Northern Georgia. John is currently evaluating his next move. Whether the car gets resurrected or he’s on to whatever comes next, we wish him the best and can’t wait to see how it plays out in the sequel.