Kevin Bacon

Yep! The G60 and VR6 got bigger Master cylinder (22? and 23.something mm respectively) and caliper pistons than the MK2 Golf 8 & 16Vs, which gives a slightly softer pedal. The Corrado brakes are a lot more effective though, even if they don't feel it on initial bite! The light is there as a warning and shouldn't affect them workings of the ABS mechanics. Just stomp on the pedal on a wet road and you'll soon see if the ABS works or not! Kev

On vw vid's website, an Audi RS4 annihilates a Ferrari 360 but then 400+ hp and 4WD would :lol: High revving Ferraris like the 360 break quite easily when thrased off the line (the clutch is usually the first item to bite the bullet) and the paddle shift is not the best in terms of smoothness and usability in urban areas. He was probably trying to spare himself an embarrasing break down! Kev

Yeah the H&R's lowering is just about right imo. My car now has approx 1" clearance between the arch and tyre as opposed to about 2-3" as standard. H&R also match the springs so that the overall ride height is the same, i.e. no saggy arse syndrome. If you partner the H&Rs with Koni TAs (set to 1.5 turns front, 3/4 turns rear) the ride quality is very firm but not crashy. Just about right imo. But as ever, road surface quality is the main factor of a decent ride. Even the standard setup is not that great over rutted and pot holed roads. The H&Rs are no worse than standard in that respect but because of the Konis, body control is therefore much better and the car won't wobble about so much. Kev

Some drilled or grooved discs cause a droning noise themselves. My old Zimmerman drilled discs and Mintex M1144 pads used to drone. Worn wheel bearings normally drone during cornering and you'd get a delayed reaction on the steering, plus a very vague feeling in the steering when driving in a staight line. Just another possibility. Kev

AmD or Stealth Racing (http://www.stealthracing.co.uk) are good contacts as they both sell and fit Shrick VGI manifolds, which means they could have a few 2.9 manifolds kicking about. Or why not ship me over a Shrick VGI from the states and I'll swap it for my 2.9 manifold :lol: Kev

I looked at this today funnily enough and noticed the thick radiator fan wires lead to this relay block, so Roddy is correct. Kev

Some more Corrado vids at http://www.vwvids.co.uk under the 'misc' section. Kev

THe Corrado is the only VW that is utterly gorgeous out of the box. MK1 and MK2 Golfs benefited immensely from smoked lights, clipper or post 90 facelifts etc etc but imo, there really is nothing you can do to the Corrado to improve it's looks. Everything is in proportion, looks good from all angles (especially the side and front views) and it still looks classy and modern 14 years on. So why oh why stick MK4 lights on it and some frankenstein bumper creation to the front end? If he'd used the black MK4 lights, as per Dahlback racing's monster MK4 it would look better, but still not right. Kev

Yeah Quantum silver always gets my vote but who actually makes it though? I've heard either Shell or Mobil produce it, can't remember which. I've noticed three things with Q silver over the years:- 1. Quieter tappets. 2. It stays sryup coloured longer. 3. Reduced oil consumption. If you want a really good oil, try Mobil 1 15/50W motorsport. I used to use it on my 16V Turbo. Oil consumption was good and it didn't leak. Can't afford to use it on the VR6 though as it needs 6 litres of the stuff! Kev

They need to be pressed in. Careful you don't damage the stainless sleeves or the subframe bolts won't align. Kev

To be honest I prefer G60s without an induction kit so that you can hear that lovely bassy drone from the charger, utterly demonic :lol: True, but I just don't like the look of the empty space! The biggest gain I've seen from any induction kit is 7hp from a BMC carbon can on a Golf VR6. But it's no 57i, it's a proper enclosed case (like the stock airbox) with a cold air feed from the bumper area. With that in mind, you should liberate up to 5hp from a stock box with a cold air feed and K&N panel filter. At the end of the day, unless you drive at 10/10ths all the while on a race track, you won't 'feel' that extra 7hp anyway. If you do, then you'll get used to it in a matter of hours. I'd suggest that if you have a heavily modded engine (cams, flowed head etc) then the limiting factors would then be the breathing and exhaust, in which case you'd probably need an induction kit of some sort, but on a standard engine, gains will be minimal. The only reason I use panel filters is because they can be cleaned and reused. I'm not overly concerned about the power gains, if any. Kev

It looks ridiculous. Kev

Thanks for sharing your views with us Mr Knight! To be fair, a 306 Rallye could leave an Aston Martin V8 Vantage round the twisties but I know what I'd rather pull up to trendy wine bar in 8) I do like Rallyes though. No nonsense motoring. Thing is though, to the unitiated it just looks like any old 306. Could be a diesel or 1.6 with go faster stripes whereas the Corrado is unique. Kev

The 16V is a good all rounder. Bomb proof engine and all the fun and handling qualities of it's more powerful brothers. I've had numerous 16Vs over the years and they're not cheap or easy to get lots of power out of, so opted for the VR as it's the only VW engine I've not had experience of until now and has a reasonable output as standard. I too have had other cars that cost more to run and maintain than a Corrado. Try running a 10+ year old E30 BMW 325i on a budget and they drink loads more petrol than the VR6 does :? Kev

Do you really think they dont make a difference?- have you ever had one? - i have- The throtle response is 10 times better and the car wants to pull much more at higher revs + ive never seen an orange one before! There usually either blue, green or red + do they not look better that a big Shoe box size lump of black plastic ? And if you put a car on the rollers before and after you will defianately see an improvement. 8) Yes I used to have one on my old MK2 digifant 8V. Had it on for a month, after which time it was black with oil residue and alternator brush dust. Got fed up with the noise aswell and reverted back to the stock airbox. Orange, green, pink, makes no difference, the point I was trying to make is imo they are much uglier than a nice, neat factory air box. Do you think the exposed inner wing covered in wax and leaves and sh#t is neater than an airbox then? On a dyno I'd be surprised if you see more than a few hp with a 57i. You might get a couple more with a 'proper' induction kit such as turn2's or BMC's. You're also shortening the inlet tract when fitting a 57i which reduces torque. Like I say, VW didn't design the airbox and inlet tracts the length they did for the fun of it. This is, as ever, just my opinion. If you like induction kits, fair enough, that's your choice. Kev

That's exactly what I did. No increase in noise levels and I know the engine is only sucking in cold air because I completely sealed the lower half of the box, bar a small water drainage hole. Cheaper than an induction kit and just as effective, if not more so. Kev

If you just want to run the car and enjoy it, you need to differentiate from the critical 'must dos' and the 'nice to haves'. Until you get to the know the car like the back of your hand, every single noise will have £££ signs flashing in your mind. I've ploughed literally £1000s into my VR6 over 7 months. Most of it was not needed but purely to satisfy my own appetite for perfection. In all honesty, the car would still be running fine now in the same condition I bought it. The Corrado seems to be the VW fans' Nemesis. A lot of people seem to be afraid of it's potential running costs. But look at the basics. It's a MK2 Golf with a few fancy bits. Every single problem I've had has been cureable and many have been done by myself, which is a great learning curve. My advice is to take the plunge, don't think about the future 'what ifs' and just enjoy it. My friend bought a WRX subaru impreza and he had more problems with that than I'm every likely to encounter on my VR6. But he still loved it. Sure the Corrado is a tempetuous little madam at times, but aren't all the best relationships stormy (pun intented!) ?? Kev

That's all very true. Suspension tuning is a fine art! Go too mad with anti-roll bars and plastic bushings and you'll reduce tyre sidewall flex and therefore cornering grip in the wet :? The back end can just step out without warning, rather like the Peugoet 205 GTi! High performance VWs have always been praised for their neutral handling and predictable behaviour on the limit, so I would avoid plastic bushes. Kev

Call me a fuddy-duddy but VW put the air filter in a plastic housing for a reason. I just can't see the appeal of an unsightly orange cone under the bonnet that sucks alternator dust, hot air and oil residue off the engine. If K&N 57is et al made such a big difference to the performance, they'd be £700, not £70. All they are marketing is a noise. A noise which they know fools the mind into thinking you're getting more power. Personally I prefer more bite and less bark. Kev

If it's a squeak and not a screech, might be your belt tensioner pulley or water pump. Try spraying some silicon (not WD40) maintanence spray on the belt before trying the below. Looking at the airbox side of the engine, there is a large alloy lump at the top of the engine. In this lump is a screw hole (adjacent to injector no 1). Get a long 8mm bolt (13mm head) from B&Q and wind it into the hole. This releases the belt tension. Keep winding it in until the belt is slack and then lift the belt off the plastic pulley at the top. Now spin the pulley by hand and check for stiffness and coarseness or any strange noises. Do the same on the water pump pulley. The plastic pulley should spin freely and silently. The water pump pulley should have a small amount of resistance but not be coarse or squeaky. My water pump was squeaky last week and sure enough, there was a puddle of water on the floor in the morning. If the tensioner pulley is shot - £100+VAT from VW but you can try repacking the bearing with high temp grease. If the water pump is noisy - £25 from G&SF. Both are DIY jobs but the water pump is a lot more involved, requiring jacking up of the engine. Anyway, hopefully they are the worst case scenarios but I would urge you to lift the bonnet next time it does it and try and isolate which end of the engine the noise is coming from before fearing the worst. Kev

Getting the car on the ramps should be OK but it might be worth ringing Vince to check what the clearance is when the rollers drop down. There'll be enough of us to sit on the boot opening anyway! Kev

Software is free, cable costs £139. Kev

Yeah it was cold, hence the coolant temp graph gradually climbing and a constant O2 value! Kev

Is that Oak Green? Looks nice. Kev

Not at all mate. I'm not trying to be pessimistic, just realistic. To be fair, I reckon a lot of the knackered engines I've seen have been thrased from day one and were probably neglected to a degree. The engine is strong bar the known weak points, which no amount of servicing and care can avoid. I wouldn't worry about it. Just address issues as and when they arise, use good oils, install an oil cooler, ensure the coolant system is healthy and keep off the rev limiter! It should last for ages then :lol: As Dr mat says, a lot of people don't notice when something is up and just keep driving it, which can cause damage for the next owner to fix. For example the previous owner of mine didn't know the cam position sensor was dead! Kev