Performance VW June/July 2020

Well, I’d say this is all a bit weird, sat at home in my pants producing the magazine in lockdown, but as I’ve actually been editing the magazine this way for the past three years now, not a lot that has changed (other than I don’t have to get dressed to do the school run). Okay, the fact most of my mates are sat at home getting paid to watch films all day, drink beer and generally have fun while I still slave away on the mag is a bit frustrating, but I guess it could be worse… a lot worse! Some times (and none so more than now) it does feels a bit weird doing a job that you also enjoy and is your hobby, especially when you consider the…

At some point, the question will inevitably be asked of any enthusiast, usually posed by an innocent bystander of the hobby. What’s your dream car? It’s not long after the punctuation’s been placed at the end of the asker’s inquiry that the respondent’s eyeballs start twitching. Suddenly, every decision they’ve ever made becomes suspect. Luckily for 29-year-old Clay McFarren, his answer was firmer than an unripe avocado: the Mk4 R32. For the fortunate folks, Volkswagen enthusiasm stems from childhood, either through familial or environmental osmosis. The Charles Town, West Virginia resident’s family had a 1979 Super Beetle back in the day when he was a teenager, helping to stoke the fire that would eventually turn into a five-alarm blaze. “The [Super Beetle had the] ’four on the floor, guess what gear’ that…

BC Racing recently dropped us an email to announce their Street and Circuit Coilover kit for the Mk5 platform. The BR series coilovers use a large 46mm diameter piston in a 53mm diameter damper body to maximise oil capacity. BC Racing only use a very high quality oil with their coilovers and the larger capacity of their units increase the volume of oil contained within them. This, in turn, reduces the peak temperature and so significantly improves damper performance. The dampers are also designed to help the car be set up for corner weight adjustment and feature ride height and damping adjustability, too. The icing on the cake, though, are those stunning pillowball camber adjustable top mounts which don’t just look the part, but allow you to dial in (or…

Leighton Vans is proud to unveil its all-new ‘LV-S Splitter’ – created especially for the recently-launched T6.1 VW Transporter models. Many thought the new vehicle’s front-end looks fell short of the rest of the design and could have benefitted from a little more aggression out of the box. Proudly designed and manufactured in the UK, the LV-S Splitter is the latest in a line of Leighton Vans’ products that stick to the company’s well-known mantra of being ‘created by van people, for van people’. Featuring angular skirts on each corner surrounding the fog lights, as well as a gloss black lip underneath to offer an even more sporting appearance, this stunning item successfully offers that vital premium vehicle feel to any T6.1 it’s applied to. As well as being available…

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (VWCV) recently unveiled the e-BULLI concept, an all-electric vehicle that produces zero emissions on the road. Equipped with the drive system components of the latest Volkswagen electric vehicles, the concept vehicle is based on a T1 Samba Bus produced in 1966 and comprehensively restored. VWCV partner eClassics is planning to offer T1 conversions in the style of the new e-BULLI to European customers. The Samba’s original 43hp four-cylinder boxer engine gave way to the e-BULLI - a silent Volkswagen electric motor delivering 82 horsepower. The comparison of the engines’ power output alone makes it very evident that the concept vehicle has completely new drive characteristics, as the electric motor is almost twice as powerful as the boxer. What’s more, with maximum torque of 156lb/ft, the new drive provides…

You may remember we test drove m52’s Stage 2+ Mk7.5 GTI last month. Well, we may have been blown away with what the package had to offer, but at the time of going to press the price hadn’t been released for the Stage 2+ kit. Centred around a Golf R turbo upgrade, the Stage 2+ kit also includes an mTune handset (with software installed) so you can switch through tune settings, a gauge display, adjustable shift-light, performance measurements, date logger, fault code reader, plus a zip-up case with mTune mount, relevant cables and the all important m52 badge. And the price… how does £2099 grab you? For more details about he kit and 12-month/12k-mile warranty, head over to www.mountune52.com PRICE: £2099.00 CONTACT: www.mountune52.com…