16v still worth considering?

[Portent 0]

First off I'm new here so hello :wave:

 

A couple of weeks ago I drove past a Corrado on the M25. It wasn't in great condition but it made me remember how lovely these cars are and how much I wanted one when younger. I almost bought a green Storm when they were new. My local garage had a beautiful one advertised and I'd taken it for a test drive. Sadly my girlfriend (now wife) persuaded me to buy a golf instead :censored:

 

My circumstances are changed now and with a massive mortgage and two lovely kids I simply can't afford a new car of that value. But luckily I do have a mk4 Golf V6 4mo. It's a fantastic family car with full heated leather, etc, etc. But in comparison to the Corrado it just feels souless. So I'm thinking about a cheap fun weekend Corrado. Now, the issue I have is that funds are very limited. Leather is unlikely to be an option and while I'd love a G60 or possibly a VR6, realistically a decent condition model with one of those engines will be hard to find at a price I can afford.

 

So I'm considering a 16v. But in all honesty will I be disappointed with performance? I've previously had a mk2 16v Golf and thought it quick at the time. But now having had a series of VR6 and V6 Golfs will I find it a little sluggish?

 

Oh, and if anyone near Surrey fancies driving past and showing their car off to me the feel free to show it off :D

[Jim 2]

I'd say it really depends on what you want the Corrado for. The 16v certainly isn't a fast car compared to what is out there these days - it's toe curlingly annoying to know that a Clio can now be packing 200BHP for example.

 

I'd work it out like this. If you want a Corrado for purely for how it looks (and not how much power it packs) and you want a relatively low cost way of going about it, the 16v isn't a bad way to start. The 16v engine is pretty darn tough and fixing it does not require you to be bankrolled by the Sultan of Brunai.

 

If you really want some performance to back it up, realistically a VR6 is the only way to go. The G60 is also an option but you'll need to spend some money on tuning / modifications to extract a similar level of performance.

 

Me? I've owned my current 2.0 16v now for 3 years. I yearn to buy myself a VR6 and have done ever since I first got into Corrado's nearly 10 years ago. However the 16v is still a superb car that still puts a smile on my face every time I drive it - it doesn't have the engine note of the VR but it's certainly no gutless weed of an engine either.

 

In fact, just bigging the 16v up has inspired me to get mine out of the garage and go for a spin :)

[Portent 0]

Thanks for that. Well if I did get a 16v and my Golf ever got written off then at least I'd have a doner engine :D

 

Is the 16v very tunable? e.g. get a standard cheapish 16v and then when funds allow start modifying it?

[mort1414 0]

try this m8 http://wiki.the-corrado.net/16v_tuning_guide.html

mort

[The_Dude 0]

did this m25 rado have a really rusty drivers door? :D i've been up and down there in the last few weeks.

 

i think Jim has summed it up quite well. they're great fun in the twisties, its only on long stretches and motorways that you'll notice a lack of power in the higher gears.

 

where in surrey are you?

[Portent 0]

Thanks for the tuning guide, I will take a look.

 

Don't recall the car having a rusty door. It could have as it wasn't the greatest of conditions. But it was an 'interesting' colour... pink or very faded red!

 

I'm in Claygate, just off the A3 (KT10 postcode).

[aide 0]

hey welcome :wave:

 

jim has summed it up really well, only thing i can add is that i've had two 16v's and a vr, and am in similar position to you in that i'm looking a bit of weekend fun - i'm looking mainly at the 16v even though the power is way down on what i used to have, but that's not putting me off at all

 

you may be surprised at what's available, i've seen at least 2 1.8 16v in the last 3 months with the 2ltr conversions - think 150 to 160bhp.