Current Issue Of Performance VW Magazine

So, here we are again, show season. It doesn’t feel like it’s been ten minutes since everybody closed up shop at the end of 2011 but already we’ve seen Ultimate Dubs, GTI Spring Festival and Early Edition come and go. And what are we all making of it so far then? Well, I don’t know about you, but personally I haven’t been this excited about show season kicking off in quite some time. And strangely, it’s a feeling that’s shared all around the PVW office too. Could it be that both myself and Elliott have managed to get ourselves new projects to play with? After all, there aren’t many things worse in this job than going to shows if you don’t have your own car to turn up to it in, no matter how much you try to convince yourself otherwise, you can’t help feeling like a little bit of a fraud going in a company car. Because as we all know, there’s nothing more exciting than taking those first few baby steps with a new project when you get hold of the keys.

And when both Elliott and myself are taking on projects that couldn’t be further removed from our previous exploits if they tried, it just makes the year ahead even more exciting.
Another reason the show season is so exciting this year is because despite all the doom and gloom that gets thrown around all the time, it really does seem that the scene as a whole really couldn’t be in better health at the moment. It’s almost as if Dub owners are sticking two fingers up at the global economy one show at a time. And while we might have predicted that there would be less big buck builds out there, what with nobody having any money these days and all, if you ask me, I haven’t seen the number of people throwing big investments into their cars dropping at all. But on the other side of the fence, the amount of top quality home-grown cars cooked up has increased hugely.

Walk around a showground a few years ago and it wouldn’t be too much of a struggle to pick out what was a pro job and what was bolted together in a lock-up. But these days? You better have a keen eye about you because the gap between the pros and those willing to get stuck in and give it a go themselves is getting smaller and smaller all the time, and can that be anything but a good thing?

So what’s in this issue then? Well, as usual, we’ve thrown together a mixed bag of stuff to keep you lot going for another month. You’ve probably already noticed the incredible Mk2 from Quebec’s Unix Performance taking top spot on the cover but we’ve also got one of Europe’s top Mk1 Sciroccos, Dutchbuild’s incredible four-wheel drive big power Mk2 engineering masterpiece, and a pretty special Nu Wave Audi wagon too.

We’ve also got a new feature making its debut this month, we’re calling it The Wild Card. Essentially, it’s a feature on something that’s not a VW… Now before you all go panicking and claiming we’ve lost our minds (more so than already? ~ Ed), let me explain. You don’t need to be a show regular to know that the VW scene is an eclectic place to be, so how better to showcase that than by showing some of the other German marques that a bunch of the scene’s regular faces have been dipping in to? First up, it’s life-long VW enthusiast Brian Henderson from Rotiform’s stunning Porsche 996 and we’ve also got plans for some BMWs and old-skool Porsche metal too in upcoming issues. Love the idea or hate it, we’d like to hear your thoughts…

David Kennedy, Deputy Editor

KARMANN PERFECTION
We may have overlooked Karmann’s ’70s-’80s water-cooled coupés over
the years, but we seem to be slowly redeeming ourselves…

REBEL REBELO
Last time we met Luis Rebelo he owned a stunning Mk1 Golf, the type of car you’d love to own and wouldn’t alter in any way. Was he happy with it? Clearly not…

A FINE PIERRE
Combine Pierre Alexandre Vallée’s vision with the know-how of Unix Performance and this dynamic duo may have just produced the perfect Mk2

FULLY BUILT
With the boys from Dutchbuild, anything is possible: 460bhp of 20v turbo power, six-speed ’box, 4WD running gear and a Polo dash was only the start of an 11-year development build

ROLLIN’ WITH THE LYNCH MOB
While the VW scene is classed by many as the most innovative of car cultures, the majority of people within it still stick to certain guidelines when styling their cars. Sean Lynch, however, isn’t like most other people!

FEELING A LITTLE HORSE
We all know about the VW Mk6 Golf GTI, but what about the smaller Polo GTI? We sent Dave out on a ride to see what the score was
 
CASH. MONEY. SWITCHES
They say money doesn’t buy happiness but we reckon they’re talking crap. Subhraj ‘Shiv’ Sidhu is the first to admit he isn’t short of a bob or two and he’s always smiling, especially when you get him on the subject of cars…

THE REAL OG
It’s one thing to own a car for 25 years but to love it just as much as the day you bought it? That’s another thing altogether. Jeremy Hillock knows a few things about keeping the love alive…

YOU CAN CALL ME DADDY
What do you do when you’ve owned virtually every VAG model under the sun and yet need a company demonstrator that’s going to turn heads without insulting your regular customer base? Come on, please try to keep up…

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