9 am was just too early to arrive in the midlands, so whilst the others began gathering at Stealth Racing in Southam, I met Graham and Paul at McDonalds in Brentwood. A couple of muffins later we were on our way, and the motorway network was relatively free so the journey began at some pace. After navigating the London orbital we headed up the M40, where we played cat-and-mouse with an SLK300 and laughed at an over-ambitious Rover 220. We weren’t laughing so hard after we took junction 11, drove through the Oxfordshire countryside and ended up in Northamptonshire. We were truly lost and the incoherent speed-camera-wielding policeman we spoke to was as much use as the map we had, which didn’t even match the roads. The controversy over whose fault it was will rage on, and it’s not my place to comment here. Fortunately, Paul was a passenger in Graham’s car and was able to make up for getting us lost by reading the map, as we concentrated on avoiding potholes and 4x4s on single-track roads. His Colin McRae-style navigation soon paid off and we were at Stealth in time for midday.
As it turned out that was good timing because Mina’s supercharged, Schrick-equipped VR6 was being set up on the rollers. It sounded like an aeroplane and measured 317bhp, but that could probably have been calculated from the look on Jules’s face after he returned from his ride in what was, unsurprisingly, the most powerful car of the day.
Next up was a 24v Vento running throttle bodies, but problems on the day meant that it didn’t get the expected figures. No-one cared because the noise was fantastic. In fact, the cars all sounded great as the deep, full-throttle roar of the VR6 engines echoed around inside the walls of the workshop. That didn’t stop us exploring the car park, which was like a mini motorshow in itself. The vast majority of the cars were mk3s, but each had been personalised and it was interesting to compare the changes that had been made. Some were true sleepers whilst others were as much for show as for go – which says a lot when the ‘go’ comes courtesy of a VR6. Others had turned up – there was a converted mk2, a couple of Corrados and an R32, which couldn’t have gone on the rollers but certainly looked the part. It was cold, but the sun shone brightly for half an hour, providing the only warmth of the day.
We hurried back inside when we saw Justin’s Highline being backed into the workshop, ready to take its turn on the rollers. Our concerns about its ground clearance proved unfounded as the power built up to its peak and the car was allowed to slow down. Justin went over for the results and was happy with 194.8 bhp.
Most of the cars gave better results than expected - Vince attributed this to the cold air, which contributes to the car’s performance. It certainly wasn’t contributing to ours, so whilst Graham’s car was at the end of the queue, Paul and I jumped in mine and went off to Leamington in search of a take-away. Leamington appeared to be closed, but we found a KFC and returned to Stealth with a huge variety bucket in time for Graham’s run, which showed a healthy 196.9 bhp.
As the end of the day drew nearer it became clear that there would be time for some extra cars to have a go, so I joined the line-up. I was very apprehensive – sometimes you’d rather just not know that there’s a problem – but when my turn came I stood in awe, watching my wheels gleaming as they span and listening to the howl of the engine. I was ecstatic with the result – 196.7 bhp - right up there with the newer cars. My transmission losses seemed a bit high, but I couldn’t hide my elation at the result and handed my £20 over with a smile.
Jules wasn’t quite so lucky – Vince identified some problems with his set-up and he ‘only’ got 236 bhp from his ‘charged 2.9, but he did receive some advice on how to rectify it, so hopefully he’ll be back soon and quicker than ever. Not that any of that made a difference as we crawled along in traffic the whole way home.
Name Car Flywheel BHP Wheel BHP Torque LbFt Jules 1993 Mk3 2.9 Supercharged Golf VR6 236.3 184.7 214.7 Graham 1997 Mk 3 Golf VR6 Highline 196.9 157.2 183.5 Nick 1993 Mk3 Golf VR6 196.7 146.7 182.5 Justin 1997 Mk 3 Golf VR6 Highline 194.8 158.5 187.5
Words by Nick pictures by Justin, Nick, Simon and Jeremy R. Bromley