Table of contents for April 2023 in Performance VW

We’ve got a pretty packed issue for you this month, with Jake Nelson’s 330bhp homegrown Mk1 Berg Cup monster stealing cover. Alongside him, we have a couple of resto-modded classics in Martin Peace’s race-spec Mk3 Polo on carbs and Steve Holden’s stunning Euro-look Mk1 Derby. We’re just glad we don’t have to choose our favourite out of those two. If new-wave is your bag then Dave Raybould’s rocket-ship Mk6 GTI and Alan Murchison’s stunning T6.1 Transporter will get your juices flowing for sure. While we’re on the subject of new wave, we also commissioned regular contributor, Alex Grant, to write an article on the future of tuning, which looks at where the modified scene might be in the next few years and how it might cross-over into EV-powered builds. I’ve…

APR has just released its new intake system for the Mk8 Golf which can be run as an open (lid off) or closed (lid on) system. The air box features dual inlets, can achieve up to 114% more flow than a stock air box and includes its own turbo inlet adapter. These are available with an OEM-style cover if you want to retain a stock look, but full carbon fibre or forged carbon is also an option if you’re feeling fancy. For more details, head over to goals.com PRICE: From $299.00 CONTACT: www.goapr.com…

Its no secret the Brits often show support for an underdog which possibly explains why Huddersfield Town still has so many fans. Steve Holden is no exception, “I was reading a comment in the letters section of PVW where someone was talking unfavourably about VW Derbies,” he recalls, “I’d never heard of such a model prior to this, but after looking it up I decided right then and there that I needed one in my life!” Until that point, Steve’s taste in cars had varied, beginning with a Renault 19 1.4 fitted with a 16v bodykit before moving on to a string of Mk3 Golfs including a silver Gti, lowered on 15in Momo Racers with clear lights all round, Mk4 headlights and a Kamei grille – those were the days!…

After decades of steady evolution, there’s a revolution brewing within the automotive industry. Rapidly tightening regulations, focused on reducing the environmental impact of the way we travel, are fuelling investment in cleaner technologies for future vehicles and that change is the thin end of the wedge for enthusiasts. But there’s still plenty of scope for the modified scene to find its feet in that new world.…

The future might look unpredictable, but it’s a safe bet that electric vehicles are here to stay. In Europe, Volkswagen and Audi will both stop building combustion engine cars by 2033, while over half of new Skodas and all of SEAT sub-brand Cupra’s production will be electric by 2030. The Wolfsburg factory – home of the Golf for almost 50 years and the Beetle before it – is tooling up to start building the electric ID.3 within months. For all their eco credentials, electric cars have reset the expectations of performance and the driving experience is improving all the time. The Cupra Born hot hatch isn’t far off the pace of a Mk8 Golf GTI, the Audi RS e-tron GT puts down a mind-bending 646hp and Volkswagen’s ID.R racecar spent…

Volkswagen itself supplies components for the Beetle and Transporter (seen here) conversions, but hasn’t officially shown anything for water-cooled models as yet. Think about it this way; the APP 310 e-drive system (used by the ID.3, ID.4 and ID.5) produces 204hp and 310Nm and fits into a sports bag with the single-speed transmission attached, which means there’s no shortage of classic bodyshells it would fit into. It’s only a matter of time before someone tries it. Enthusiasts have been modifying cars for almost as long as they’ve been on the road and it’s hard to see that hobby dying out any time soon. Sustainability isn’t incompatible with our hobby. With an open mind, that almost-bewildering influx of new technology is as much an opportunity as it is a boundary. The…

Twenty-six-year-old Dorset-based Jake Nelson is a coded welder for Babcock International who support the British Army with vehicle repairs. Jake has worked there for 10 years including an apprenticeship in welding/fabrication. Looking at the standard of workmanship on this gorgeous Golf, it appears that our fighting forces are in safe hands. Jake’s head was turned by cars at an early age. Dad, Robert is a huge motorsport fan and as a young boy, Jake would join him in the garage and witness him working on an array of cars including an MG Midget and a Renault 5 GT Turbo. Jake’s uncle Nik is a self-confessed air-cooled nerd and also had a Mk2 Golf back in the day. Jake wasted no time in getting into a Volkswagen Group product. “My first…

You may remember we mentioned Tamiya had rereleased its Kamei Mk1 Golf in limited numbers, back in the PVW 2/23. Well, if you missed out on picking one of those up but you still fancy owning a VW Tamiya R/C car, then how does this Blitzer Beetle grab you? The 1/10 scale car comes in kit form and features, four-wheel double wishbone suspension, a rear-wheel drive, rear engine layout using the 540 type motor and spiked tyres for off road capabilities. At 394mm long and 182mm high, this is the perfect entry level R/C car for those entering the kit world. While they retail at £175, Modelsport is currently selling the basic kit for just £149. We were so convinced that we’ve actually picked one up ourselves and plan to…

There is a certain appeal to owning a new car. The starting from zero odometer reading. The peace of mind that comes with a factory warranty. And the comfort of knowing that no one has spoiled the new car smell and soiled the driver’s seat. Besides being coupled with a car payment for as long as your credit will allow, not to mention being crippled by depreciation as soon as it leaves the showroom, there really are no downsides to new car ownership. “When I moved to the States, I inherited my mother-in-law's Chevy Malibu before I purchased my Mk6 GTI brand new in 2012,” says British transplant Dave Raybould. For the 35-year-old professional ski instructor currently residing in Stowe, Vermont, the Shadow Blue Mk6 represented his first attempt at…

“We test every new product to make sure emissions are within the specs published by the manufacturer” Time is ticking for the combustion engine, at least as we know it. Hybrid will become the bare minimum for new cars and vans sold in the UK from 2030, and sales will be restricted to “zero tailpipe emission” vehicles five years later. That deadline matches the European Union, China, Canada and several of the United States, effectively banning the sale of fossil fuel engines in some of the world’s largest markets by 2035. Obviously, depending on where you live, this means there’s another 12 years of new petrol and diesel products to buy into. After all, nobody is suggesting that they’ll be banned from use any time soon. But the cogs of…

Despite all the new technology, the learning curve with electric cars is nowhere near as steep as people expect, nor as difficult as some click-seeking journalists make out. Yes, there are some issues to solve, but I’ve found that electric cars can turn out to be more convenient than their petrol or diesel equivalents. Think of it like a mobile phone. It takes seconds to plug in, fully charges while you sleep and (automatically, and with no exhaust emissions) it’ll warm and de-ice itself in the winter. Even with the stops on long journeys, I reckon I spend less time ‘refuelling’ electric cars than I do filling my wife’s car with petrol – let alone going out of my way to brim the G40 with super unleaded. We do have…

Let’s begin by skipping back a generation or so. Back in the early 90s, the boffins at VW were churning out some seriously cool, desirable machinery that often graced the front covers of many an automotive publication. At the time, there was the Corrado with a choice of a potent normally aspirated unit, supercharged G60 or if you were feeling flush, a rapid 190bhp 6 pot might have taken your fancy. Meanwhile the all new Mk3 Golf had shifted the goal posts with the option of a 2.8 VR6, previously unheard of as far as hot hatches were concerned. Unfortunately, this forward thinking movement hadn’t yet stretched to all models within VWs range. Let’s take the Polo, lumbering along with an antiquated chassis and drivetrain having been surpassed by its…

IN ASSOCIATION WITH As the latest Tom v Dale Meguiar’s build-off approaches the final stages, it’s clear Tom is potentially on to a winner. But, then, we would say that as Tom’s building a Rocket Bunny-kitted Mk2 running a built 16v on ITBs, whereas Dale, well, the less said about his Ford Ranger build the better. However, in order to win a race (or battle) first you have to finish it and that’s what’s got us a little bit worried. Now, Tom was always planning to debut the car in the metal at Ultimate Dubs 23, however, he was also hoping the project would be finished in enough time for us to shoot it for the cover of this very issue, which hits the news stands just before the show.…

On the days leading up to the Essen Motor Show 2022 you could almost feel the excitement. After a cancelation in 2020 and a scaled down version in 2021 (because of obvious reasons) it was time for the 2022 edition. So, after charging the batteries (on your camera or your car? - Ed) I picked up the camera and crossed the border to Essen which is an hour and a half drive from my home in the east of Holland. In this day and age it’s hard to keep a secret, so before the doors opened I already had a good idea of what cars would be present. While it’s sad to a degree you know what’s going to be there, it’s always nice to be greeted with cars you’ve…

Regulating combustion engines out of existence isn’t a silver bullet for cleaner transport. The usual lifespan for a new car is about 15 years and there’s no shortage of enthusiasts keeping them going for a lot longer than that. Synthetic fuels (or ‘e-fuels’ as they’re sometimes known) could help owners to carry on driving them while also reducing their environmental impact. This isn’t a new technology. It uses a chemical reaction to split carbon out of captured CO2 from the air, electrolysis to extract hydrogen from water, then combines those elements to make hydrocarbon fuels – like petrol or diesel. If that process is powered by renewable energy then the fuels can be almost carbon-neutral and avoid the biggest headaches with bioethanol. There’s no need for acres and acres of…

Whether it’s 16-valve swaps or the latest over-boosted TSIs, engine swaps are a tried and tested route to better performance, as they enable older cars to benefit from modern engineering. The influx of new technology we’re facing now just adds to that parts bin – in short, enthusiasts have never had more options at their fingertips. Toyota understands that potential. At the Tokyo Auto Salon, it unveiled two AE86 Corolla prototypes as a proof of concept for modernising older cars. The Trueno has a stock 4-AGE engine modified to run on hydrogen stored in tanks from the Mirai fuel cell car, while the Levin is electric, pairing the factory manual transmission with Tundra hybrid e-motor and mains-rechargeable battery from the latest Prius. Both have Bride seats with harnesses made from…

We’ve seen some interesting Transporter conversions over the years. We’ve seen T5s built around a pair of Lamborghini front seats, and another that took inspiration from UPS of all things! But, we’re taking you one stage further with this unique build. At its heart - a coffee machine! As you’d imagine, it’s no ordinary coffee machine and its owner is no ordinary barista. Former Michelin-starred Scottish chef and restaurateur, Alan Murchison has forged a new career path providing nutritional support and advice to athletes via his website performancechef.com. He doesn’t just hand out the advice, he lives it. As a keen cyclist and duathlete, Alan spends as much time out on the road as he does off it. In his eyes, no other vehicle than a VW Transporter was up…

MARCH 12th ULTIMATE DUBS Telford International Centre www.ultimate-dubs.co.uk 18-19th VOLKSWORLD SHOW Sandown Park, Surrey www.volksworldshows.com 26th THE FAST SHOW Santa Pod Raceway www.santapod.co.uk APRIL 1-2nd DUBSHED Eikon Centre, Lisburn, BT27 5RF www.dubshed.com 15-16th OFFSET SHOW Royal Cornwall Events Centre www.wgnuk.com 15-16th GR8 CAR SHOW Kortrijk Xpo, Belgium www.gr8mag.be 16th ELSECAR AT THE RACES Doncaster Racecourse www.elsecarattheraces.com 16th VAG METTING AZEVEN Fries Congres Centrum, Drahten, Holland www.vagmeeting-azeven.nl 23rd GTI SPRING FEST Santa Pod Raceway www.santapod.co.uk 30th THE DRIVERS COLLECTION Magna Science & Adventure Centre www.thedriverscollection.co.uk 30th STANFORD HALL Standford Hall, Leicestershire www.standfordhallvw.com 30th DUSTOFF Thompson Speedway, New England, USA FB: New England Dustoff MAY 1st BHP SHOW Kent Showground www.bhpshows.com 5-7th VANWEST Taunton Racecourse www.vanwest.co.uk 6th MK2 MAYDAY Lebanon, New Jersey, USA www.mk2mayday.com 7th EARLY EDITION Sywell Aerodrome www.edition38.com 7th EUROBUILT…