PVW this month / VRT Madness

[mic_VR 3]

VRT's all over the place......it will be like the states in a few years time with threads like "another vrt build" :lol:

Still fairly rare in this country I think.

 

I like the look of those two, but I bet they handle like f*ck all on earth...

 

I'll have to make mine different somehow, mine will definitely handle but I'm thinking some form of suitable whippy aerial, a bright pink roll cage and actually raise the ride height...... that should put me the step ahead! :lol:

 

Actually bought a copy of PVW yesterday, I'm not 100% on either of them tbh...... air ride is for homo's and scene queens so what's the funking point having a 500bhp road scraper that will be out handled by my mums Toyota Yaris?

 

Just my opinion obviously, and I like a lot of what they've done but ultimately a corrado is a sports coupe and needs to be driven as such.

[Phil K 0]

Well I like the look of both of them although the brown looks best IMO...

 

Interesting points about air ride though! Is it bad for handling? Surely it can't compromise the driving experience that much? And, to all the people who say it's cr4p - have you driven a car on air bags or is your opinion based on fiction?

[mic_VR 3]

Must say the brown one was my fav as well, and both cars look awesome. I'm just not sure on the air ride. The Vento and Harlequin both look awesome as well. Good issue this month.

 

As for my air ride experience, I've got a mate who's got it in his B5 Passat and it is great to witness and the ride comfort is absolutely outstanding. But he's the first to admit the overall handling is somewhat compromised compared to the standard setup it had when he bought it. Granted, I've never been in it when he's been driving it in anger so I'm not sure just how it feels. Maybe I'll get he to take me out for a spin before writing it off completely.

 

Although the other side of me says, if it's better than a spring/shock setup then why don't and race cars run it? :?

[Jim 2]

To be honest when you're putting down 500BHP in a chassis designed for 200BHP, surely handling is going to be compromised anyway - so they're probably built more for straight line speed rather than track racing. 1/4 mile times (and the traffic light GP) are all that have ever mattered in America anyway! :)

[KipVR 1]

Call me old fashioned, but I like substance over style.

 

I think those two Corrado's look silly on stretched tyres, perhaps I'm just not fashionable enough :( .

 

I absolutely loved the Mk2 G60 on the front cover of last months PVW though, thought it was spot on in most respects.

[StormchargedVR6 0]

Call me picky, but any one looked at the pics of those corrados close up, the wing gap to the door on the blue one :shock:

and bumper gaps

The shine on the door of the brown one :?

[corozin 0]

Although the two cars get the headlines in PVW this month for me the interesting item was Elliot Roberts' editorial piece.

 

In it he bemoans the fact it's been 9 months since they featured a Corrado, and three years since James Renshaw's car was on the cover. He then then launches into one of his little uninformed missives along the lines that there are no decent Corrados out there, and most owners are boring and just fit wheels and that's not what they're after in PVW - cute eh?

 

So for the benefit of the PVW team, who I'm sure will be reading this at some point, I'd like to rebut Mr Robert's claims. There are quite a lot of really interesting and fabulously turned out Corrados, but PVW don't know where they are, and frankly can't be arsed to even look for them at shows. I've around the VW show scene for over ten years now and not once in that time have I ever met Elliott, or seen him looking around a Corrado display I've been on. It's a funny way for a journalist to cultivate thier involvement in "the scene" if you ask me.

 

I will admit to having become cynical over the years about PVW (was probably all those endless Westside & E38 Golfs) but at the same time there can be no doubt that the magazine has been gradually dumbed down. Presumably I'm not in PVW's target demographic as I have an education and enjoy reading some words as well as just looking at the pretty pictures. There is almost no technical content in any of the articles, and the show coverage frequently contains so many photos of lay-dees instead of VW's that I wonder if I'm reading a car mag at all. Perhaps I'm just getting the wrong idea about what a magazine should be about.

 

Now I'm sure that the PVW "crew" would point to thier circulation figures to prove me wrong and maybe they have a point about that. But it's disingenuous of Elliott Roberts to write 'troll' editorials slagging off UK Corrados (perhaps in an attempt to unearth a few cars from pissed off owners) when he clearly hasn't got a clue because he can't be bothered to walk any further than the Westside stand at a show and do basic research.

 

And am I slightly annoyed with this forum? Well perhaps, How come I'm the first person to comment on the editorial in the magazine? How come this thread got to the third page before anyone seemed to notice this? Or were you all too busy looking at the pretty pictures to notice? Do any of the rest of you even care what this guy is writing about you?

 

[/rantover]

[Walesy 0]

To be fair, I think most people on here gave up buying it years ago so no-one will have seen it :lol:

 

Its a terrible mag, and is indicative of how the VW Scene has changed for the worse over the last few years. Last time I bought it I was literally blown away at just how bad it was, it was embarrassing to read.

[corozin 0]

Call me picky, but any one looked at the pics of those corrados close up, the wing gap to the door on the blue one :shock:

and bumper gaps

The shine on the door of the brown one :?

 

Er yes. The photo of the brown one on P71is appalling. The bad lighting exposes some... well let's say the paint finish is done a great disservice by that photo. They didn't even bother to clean it up in photoshop (and don't tell me that PVW don't photoshop pictures...)

[Kevin Bacon 5]

There is almost no technical content in any of the articles

 

And what little technical content there is, is usually wrong anyway!

 

Do any of the rest of you even care what this guy is writing about you?

 

Absolutely not :D Elliot who?

[corozin 0]

There is almost no technical content in any of the articles

And what little technical content there is, is usually wrong anyway!

 

Do any of the rest of you even care what this guy is writing about you?

Absolutely not :D Elliot who?

 

At risk of putting the forum on red alert I agree with your comments completely. I shouldn't fall victim for PVW's troll-editorials, and as you say it's not like anyone reads PVW anyway is it? I've calmed down a bit now, haha.

[Jay2 0]

Don't even bother flicking through the pages in PVW in WHSmith! Too much 'scene', too much from 'america', the list goes on............

 

Surely just from flicking through this site and the CCGB webpages its possible to find some great Corrados. :wave:

 

But Golf+ seems to be shifting with its new owners as well, Steve Cresswell's column has disapeared from the latest edition and they are sponsoring some chavvy 'Performance & Modified Show' :cuckoo:

[ziderapple 0]

I used to have a subscription for Golf+ for years but gave up on it shorty after it got a new editor (Fabien Cotez... IIRC) the magazine seemed to go downhill after that. I've not looked through one for about a year now but even then when I decided to stop giving them my money it was still a far superior publication compared to PVW, the last one I bought seemingly had pages and pages dedicated to a POS rat mk3 Polo with seemly no redeming features and lots of American cars that are not to my taste.

 

Might just be me though, I seem to get bored of magazines quickly and conversly I hate it when they change a format I like. About a year ago I would have about three different car mags delivered a month, now I have none and dont really miss them..

 

I would buy a decent V.A.G based magazine though, provided it had lots of how to guides / technical columns.

[Jay2 0]

Thought it was just me! :lol:

 

But yep, why can't any of the VAG mags just nick all the best ideas from the other mags?

 

Technical sections, help and advice, comparing and rating products, in depth articles on the vehicles, etc.

 

Oh bugger, I've just described Classic Car Monthly. :(

[yeti 0]

read pvw! :lol: :cuckoo: such a load of horsepoop,

 

i bought one a few months ago months ago and it was full of a yank mk5 club called 'we fcuk shit up' who all modified their cars in the same way by lowering them on 17's... this was given pages and pages of space along with almost everyother crap vw available in america at that point. Dont get me wrong, america has some truly stunning dubs i'm sure - i have seen pic sof a few and just like this country there will be the the truely special and individual cars never making it to uk mags.

 

But i finished reading that mag in about 15mins and seem to remember paying about a fiver for it, what a rip off i thought and as said above by someone else i havent even bothered flicking through it in whsmiths anymore if i am ever there!

 

i'd say let the owner have its rant as fingers crossed it'll bolster general opinion that corrados are a rare fine beastie and good modifed ones are like hens teeth, so when the inevitable happens and we each ahve to move on we might be able to retrieve more than the value of a set of new alloys from our lovingly cared for coupes!

[Jim 2]

Although the two cars get the headlines in PVW this month for me the interesting item was Elliot Roberts' editorial piece.

 

In it he bemoans the fact it's been 9 months since they featured a Corrado, and three years since James Renshaw's car was on the cover. He then then launches into one of his little uninformed missives along the lines that there are no decent Corrados out there, and most owners are boring and just fit wheels and that's not what they're after in PVW - cute eh?

 

Maybe because most Corrado owners like the Corrado for what it is. And they don't want to spend money turning it into something else? Sure a lot of people have spent money on bigger power, but very few spend money on external mods unless they're going the whole hog. For me, all the Corrado needs styling wise is a little tidying, some decent wheels and a drop. Then concentrate on the power / handling.

 

So for the benefit of the PVW team, who I'm sure will be reading this at some point, I'd like to rebut Mr Robert's claims. There are quite a lot of really interesting and fabulously turned out Corrados, but PVW don't know where they are, and frankly can't be arsed to even look for them at shows. I've around the VW show scene for over ten years now and not once in that time have I ever met Elliott, or seen him looking around a Corrado display I've been on. It's a funny way for a journalist to cultivate thier involvement in "the scene" if you ask me.

 

I've tried to contact PVW on at least two occasions (by email) to suggest some kind of Corrado feature with some of the great cars we've got on the site - I never got a reply. So I don't think they're serious, or interested.

 

And am I slightly annoyed with this forum? Well perhaps, How come I'm the first person to comment on the editorial in the magazine? How come this thread got to the third page before anyone seemed to notice this? Or were you all too busy looking at the pretty pictures to notice? Do any of the rest of you even care what this guy is writing about you?

 

Well - speaking personally I don't read PVW any more so wasn't even aware of the editorial. But to be honest I don't even care - neither, would I imagine, would most of the people on the forum. As you say, I think the blame lies more with PVW than it does with the forum. Folks here are doing interesting cars which appeal to them - if that isn't good enough for PVW then so be it. I don't see it changing any time soon.

[KipVR 1]

F

To be fair, I think most people on here gave up buying it years ago so no-one will have seen it

 

So true!! But I think that is because we've got older!!

 

Last months issue was the first I'd bought in maybe five years and that's only because I needed phone numbers for some go faster bits and I liked the Mk2 on the cover. However I don't think it's the magazine that has changed it's the scene in general, it's never been particularly technical or informative magazine and to be honest I don't think the writing matters to them much, it's the photos that sell it to the younger target audience. I can remember when I used to buy it how badly written it was, and the ladies have always been there too, remember Bini's yellow Mk2 with an ugly bird ruining the pics?

 

Some kid was taking the piss out of me (and his frustration about the forum) on ED38 for fixing my heater panel lights (becuse it always bugged me that they looked as if a bulb had gone), so I fixed it and had documented it as a thread on here. I just thought to myself that if I had been posting photos of a Corrado "pointlessly and time consumingly" dropped on air with 10" wide rims then he would have liked the thread :roll: going by his signature. But that is what the scene is all about by the looks of it.

 

I will be the first to admit that heater controls illumination isn't the most exiting thing to post about though, I don't take myself seriously so wasn't too bothered, but I did think "youth of today" :lol: and remembered how stupidly low I used to slam my Mk1 into the weeds when I was a teenager.....

[corozin 0]

 

>

Well - speaking personally I don't read PVW any more so wasn't even aware of the editorial. But to be honest I don't even care - neither, would I imagine, would most of the people on the forum. As you say, I think the blame lies more with PVW than it does with the forum. Folks here are doing interesting cars which appeal to them - if that isn't good enough for PVW then so be it. I don't see it changing any time soon.

 

I have to say I agree and empathise with everything you said there Jim. It's reassuring to know that I'm not the only person who's received the warm shrug of indifference from them over the years. :roll:

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Some kid was taking the piss out of me (and his frustration about the forum) on ED38 for fixing my heater panel lights (becuse it always bugged me that they looked as if a bulb had gone), so I fixed it and had documented it as a thread on here.

 

That's because the skill and dexterity required in modifying the heater panel, is nothing compared to fitting big wheels onto a VW and pretending to be a gangsta?

[mic_VR 3]

That's because the skill and dexterity required in modifying the heater panel, is nothing compared to fitting big wheels onto a VW and pretending to be a gangsta?

 

I'm not sure that's fair Kev, sometimes it can take literally minutes to change a set of wheels. Plus there is all the time spent checking what everyone else has got so you can get the same ones, and then obviously you've got to get a wheel-whores sticker and place it at a jaunty angle on one of your wings.

 

Honestly, some people just don't know what it takes! :nono:

 

 

:wink:

 

 

 

Seriously though, there are some stunning cars out there and some do make it into the likes of PVW and Golf+ etc but mostly the good stuff is all drowned out by the rest of the chaff.

And I don't know who owned it before but that mk5 GTi that is now owned by one of the PVW staff members (the one who used to have that Black bora I think) which has the dark red wheels and a tartan front end actually made me laugh out loud. Check it our in 'Our Rides' section.

[corozin 0]

I know we've kind of agreed that the PVW editorial isn't of consequence now (yes - I've calmed down!) but it's kinda ironic that the last Corrado the PVW staff owned was driven around stock for a while and then extensively modified to incorporate... lowered suspension & Audi TT rims...

 

Makes you laugh really... well ok it makes me laugh and then only because I'm a little bored today. Oh the irony of it all...

 

I'll get my coat.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

I'm not sure that's fair Kev, sometimes it can take literally minutes to change a set of wheels. Plus there is all the time spent checking what everyone else has got so you can get the same ones, and then obviously you've got to get a wheel-whores sticker and place it at a jaunty angle on one of your wings.

 

Honestly, some people just don't know what it takes! :nono:

 

Yeah it's skillful stuff mate. I finally plucked up the courage to rub some shiney schitt into my tyre sidewalls the other day. I've been put off doing that for so long because I've heard you can really c0ck it up and permanently lose 7.8 scene points. Now it's done, wow. No R32 install comes close to that for skill and satisfaction.

 

SNIP - that mk5 GTi which has dark red wheels and a tartan front end.

 

Sweet mother of god, you're kidding? The quest for originality has warped some people's sense of taste it seems!

Still, tartan isn't a million miles away from the Burberry Chavs like wearing so much.

 

As someone mentioned before, PVW writes for it's target audience, which at the moment appears to be chavs and lovers of American "We F'ck Schitt up" Krewz and other such intelligently worded tuning shops.

[Neil VR6 0]

I find them little more than comics because there’s never anything about how the cars drive. The ‘editorial’ never tells you anything interesting that you couldn’t glean from the pictures. Great, a guy strapped a massive turbo to his Golf and fitted a roof rack but what about letting someone who actually knows how to drive to take it out and give it a thorough critique? 5th Gear took a TSR Mk 2 Golf round their test track and while back and it was really interesting to see how a properly modified 17 year old car could perform. I guess a lot of the cars in the magazine are completely impossible to drive properly as they’re all 3mm off the ground. I’ve found that most marque-specific mags are just Max Power without the variety.

[corozin 0]

Sweet mother of god, you're kidding? The quest for originality has warped some people's sense of taste it seems!

Still, tartan isn't a million miles away from the Burberry Chavs like wearing so much.

Not to mention that MkIV GTi which they so lovingly ruined by having the roof vinyled with a confederate flag. Funny how that bangin' trend never caught on amongst the lovers of euro-look styling :nuts: