RE: SOTW: VW Corrado VR6

[mmm-five]

JonRB said:

Definitely cheaper. You had so much done to that car. I could never work out how it only developed 230bhp though. You had the Big Valve Head that I don't. But then I have Vince's Super-Unleaded fuelling map which I don't think was available when you had your car. So I dunno.

The HP wasn't super-high, but AMD said that the original mods I'd chose (cams, VGI, throttle body, chip) would raise the HP higher up, but then I added the BVH and to get more torque.

Whilst I 'only' ended up with a healthy 50bhp increase (my standard power was 180bhp), there was a 30-50bhp increase from 3000rpm all the way to limiter and the peak torque moved down by about 1000pm so I ended up with 245lb/ft at 3600rpm (in increase of 74lb/ft) and 225lb/ft at 5000rpm (increase of about 45lb/ft).

[Jobbo]

JonRB said:

Almost. The German-spec Corrado raises at 80mph and the UK-spec at 56mph.

I always remembered the UK spoiler raising at 45mph; googling says that it did on earlier cars (think it did on my 1993 VR6) and 56mph on later cars.

75mph seems more logical than 80 for the Euro cars, since that's a nice round 120km/h. And is the same as the Boxster, Audi TT etc.

[PaulG40]

JonRB said:

Almost. The German-spec Corrado raises at 80mph and the UK-spec at 56mph.

Ah hem, you sure on that John?


Between 40 and 45mph.

[JonRB]

PaulG40 said:

Ah hem, you sure on that John?

Looks like we could both be right, based on what Jobbo says.

[JonRB]

mmm-five said:

JonRB said:

Definitely cheaper. You had so much done to that car. I could never work out how it only developed 230bhp though. You had the Big Valve Head that I don't. But then I have Vince's Super-Unleaded fuelling map which I don't think was available when you had your car. So I dunno.

The HP wasn't super-high, but AMD said that the original mods I'd chose (cams, VGI, throttle body, chip) would raise the HP higher up, but then I added the BVH and to get more torque.

Whilst I 'only' ended up with a healthy 50bhp increase (my standard power was 180bhp), there was a 30-50bhp increase from 3000rpm all the way to limiter and the peak torque moved down by about 1000pm so I ended up with 245lb/ft at 3600rpm (in increase of 74lb/ft) and 225lb/ft at 5000rpm (increase of about 45lb/ft).

Hmm. Looks like the only difference between your car and mine (engine-wise) is that I didn't have the BVH and you didn't have the Super-Unleaded remap with higher rev limit. Did you have the lightweight flywheel and high compression head gasket?

[PaulG40]

I believe it a simple replacement of a resistor to alter the speed of the spoiler operation to deploy at. So highly possible that later cars had higher deployment speeds. My G60 was a '92 K reg.

I think retraction stills happens at 15mph and below though as you don't touch that resistor.

[aka_kerrly]

JonRB said:

Almost. The German-spec Corrado raises at 80mph and the UK-spec at 56mph.

And my American model raises it's spoiler at 45mph due to even lower speed limits in the US.

I still think it is one of those features which so many people even non petrolheads find fascinating purely because so few cars have anything similar.

Oh an in terms of VR6 performance mine with:
- Grant motorsport P&P + flowed head
- Cat cams split duration 263/68 cams
- P&P throttle body
- 6 branch manifold
- full exhaust with Decat
- K&N filter with cold intake feed

Made 228hp, however since then it received a custom remap by D&G Auto whilst running Optimax for 97ron. This made a huge difference to the midrange power an torque was much improved. However on its latest rolling road run on Tesco momentum, the car was ste an made 197hp, having since ran the tank right down and refilled with Shell Optimax the car is ALIVE. Further investigation led to me finding out our two local tescos have both had problems with up to 20% water in the fuel so no doubt this had quite a dramatic effect on the performance.

Dave

Edited by aka_kerrly on Tuesday 8th February 13:01

[PaulG40]

I do admit to having done it stood in traffic a fair few times, purely to impress, lol.

[JonRB]

aka_kerrly said:

- P&P throttle body

Good move. The American-spec SLC had a tiny thottle body compared to the UK-spec car and is the first thing that needs sorted.

[PaulG40]

Don't Grant's engines, well race engines, able to get 270odd bhp out of their VR6s?

[anything fast]

JonRB said:

The Elan M100 outperforms and outhandles the MX-5 in every respect and was in its day one of the fastest point-to-point cars around. In fact, rather embarrassingly, Performance Car found it quicker round a twisty track than an Esprit.

The only real criticism levelled against it was for being too good and able to carry silly speeds round corners without getting out of shape which many considered not "fun" enough. But I don't think anyone apart from narrow-minded blinkered twits thought it was anything other than brilliant.

Edited by JonRB on Monday 7th February 21:02

its a stupid car with comedy proportions, rubbish build quality and the fact it hangs on to a corner well (no doubt due to is short wheelbase and wide stance, which also made it look like there was about 3 feet missing from the middle) does not forgive all its massive failings..or make it a sports car! thats why Lotus have not made the another mistake of a FWD so-called sportscar.. if thats what you want a Fiat Barchetta is about 100,000 times better! The 130 bhp example is a little quicker than an MX5 but the MX5 is a much much better car.. period.. and if you do not agree with me maybe you are a 'narrow-minded blinkered twit'... or maybe we just have different opinions and can express them with resorting to child like insults

[zebedee]

aka_kerrly said:

...Tesco momentum... two local tescos have both had problems with up to 20% water in the fuel...

Edited by aka_kerrly on Tuesday 8th February 13:01

there is a lesson in there somewhere

[aka_kerrly]

JonRB said:

Good move. The American-spec SLC had a tiny thottle body compared to the UK-spec car and is the first thing that needs sorted.

My fault, I have two corrados, a G60 which is an American Import (one of 2 USA G60s in the UK and one of the earliest US models) and a late UK spec Corrado 2.9 VR6

[JonRB]

anything fast said:

its a stupid car with comedy proportions, rubbish build quality and the fact it hangs on to a corner well (no doubt due to is short wheelbase and wide stance, which also made it look like there was about 3 feet missing from the middle) does not forgive all its massive failings..or make it a sports car! thats why Lotus have not made the another mistake of a FWD so-called sportscar.. if thats what you want a Fiat Barchetta is about 100,000 times better! The 130 bhp example is a little quicker than an MX5 but the MX5 is a much much better car.. period

I don't know where you get your secondhand opinions from, but I've actually owned one so would beg to disagree with you.

For a start, I'm not even sure anyone bought the NA car. Every M100 I have ever seen has been the 167bhp SE Turbo, and a lot of those have had the wick turned up to nearer 180bhp and I know of several with over 200bhp.

On the subject of "rubbish build quality", it was engineered by GM for the US market so quality had to be a quantum leap on from any Lotus before it, and it was. It was streets ahead of my dad's Esprit S3 a decade or so earlier, and build quality was easily the equal of its contemporaries.

I'd be interested in knowing what it's "massive failings" were apart from it being FWD. Which is clearly enough for you.

Seriously, if the Elan was RWD there would be no doubt in anyone's mind it was a sportscar, but the same old prejudices against FWD keep coming out.

[Dracoro]

As I remember it went up at X mph, however it stayed up until it went below Y mph.

This will have caused confusion as some people think it went up at Y which isn't correct.

As to what X and Y are, I think the user manual in your country says which.

[kambites]

If I remember correctly:

X = ~40mph
Y = ~30mph

for mine, which was an early UK car.

[Dracoro]

I had a 95M VR6 and, as I remember, it went up around 55/60 mph and down at about 30ish as I remember.

I think originally they were designed to go up at 70mph but obviously this would indicate you were speeding

Many may have been modified as well.

[PaulG40]

kambites said:

If I remember correctly:

X = ~40mph
Y = ~30mph

for mine, which was an early UK car.

X = ~40mph
Y = ~15mph

For mine, 1992 k reg G60 pre face lift interior but with a post facelift exterior (4bar grille, the VR bonnet line and wings etc)

[PaulG40]

Down

Up here, lol.

[JonRB]

PaulG40 said:

X = ~40mph
Y = ~15mph

And X = 56mph for later VR6 examples.
I don't know when it changed but it's definitely 56mph for the later cars.