D’Amore Engineering 2019 VW Golf GTI Demo Vehicle

Tony D’Amore contacted the team here at Handcrafted Auto Marine and Offroad in Chandler to inquire about having us build another demo vehicle for his company. A few years ago, we built a GMC Yukon to serve as a demo vehicle for the D’Amore Engineering A-Series amplifiers. This time around, the company took possession of this Cornflower Blue GTI in June and, shortly after, sent it to us to design and install a premium sound system to display their new T-Series amplifiers.

D’Amore Engineering Amplifier Display

The plan for the car was to highlight six of the new T300.2 Class-AB two-channel amps that the company would be launching at the 2019 Knowledgefest event in Dallas. We repurposed the rear parcel shelf area with a piece of ½-inch clear acrylic plastic that would show off the six amplifiers. All the wiring for the amps wraps underneath the panel to keep things clean and tidy. A vinyl-wrapped trim ring makes the amp rack blend with the vehicle.

VW GTI Speaker System and Custom Door Panels

A pair of Peerless woofers per door ensure plenty of midbass output.

Our technicians did a great job blending the new speakers into the doors.

The cargo area is home to a trio of Peerless 12-inch subwoofers mounted in a sealed enclosure. The rear face of the enclosure is angled to give the system an integrated look. We mounted three XS Power batteries and two Audison power and ground distribution blocks at the rear of the cargo area. The fuse holders are accessible by removing a panel behind the subwoofer enclosure.

The front stage of the Golf comprises two pairs of Peerless 6.5-inch woofers and a Brax Matrix dome midrange and tweeter in a custom pod at the top of each door. We created a mounting panel for the woofers that extends into the storage pocket. A pressed mesh grille follows the upper edge of that pocket for a factory-installed look.

Digital Media Receiver

A Sony RSX-GS9 digital media receiver was mounted in the dash to control the sound system. We created a single-DIN-sized mounting panel underneath the radio and molded in a D’Amore Engineering DRC for the system’s digital signal processor. We reworked the trim around the factory radio so that the dash blends smoothly into the new components.

We finished the project in time to ship the car back to California so that Tony and his business partner Juan could install the six T300.2 amplifiers and finish tuning the system. The car was one of the highlights of the Knowledgefest show and it was an honor for us to build it for Tony. If you are interested in something similar for your car, drop by the store, give us a call or send our team an e-mail.