"I think the 2.0T and DSG are a great combination, and since we'd already done our first SEMA before I bought the GTI, I wanted to take part in the same process with my own vehicle," Derek explained.
"I wanted to tune it but little was available at the time," he continued. "The first thing was wheels. I'd done black wheels on my last four cars and we'd experimented with red stripes on tires with the Ragster and RGT concepts, so black wheels and red graphics was a natural progression. In fact, I tried it on my own car before we designed the similar RGTI wheels."
What's more interesting is the RGTI wore wide 265/30-19 tires all round to enhance grip, thinking that again stemmed from Derek's GTI. "My buddy and co-worker, Bob Wake, suggested we modify some Porsche wheels for my car. I always liked the wheels on the 997 S, so we decided to modify them to fit the GTI," he explained.In the process, Derek discovered he could fit 265s under the stock rear fenders. He then extrapolated this idea for the RGTI, fitting the same front width under custom carbon fenders.
For his own GTI, the problem was making the tires fit the wheels. He couldn't use the Porsche's rear wheels, so he took stock 19x8" Porsche front wheels to a specialist who cut the rim and welded a new hoop on the back to add an extra inch. "I don't recommend you try this specialized task yourself," he suggested.
Using 15mm H&R adapters to mate the Porsche and VW bolt patterns, the 19x9s with 265/30 tires haven't had rubbing issues.
Up front, the 19x8s were fitted with the same H&R adapters and 235/35 tires. Unfortunately, these did rub, so he now runs a narrower 225/35.
H&R Street coilovers create the stance and great handling. They dropped the GTI 2" and are "a good compromise of height, performance and comfort," Derek opined.
Next he added VW's Votex body kit. Comprising front spoiler, skirts and rear valance, "it makes the car look lower and chunkier," Derek said. It also covers the black sections on the GTI's bumpers and skirts that "make a high car look higher," Derek added.
While looking for carbon fiber parts for his car, Derek found Hong Kong-based OSIR Design. He liked the parts so much he purchased a carbon wing for his own car and fitted many parts to the RGTI.
Before becoming embroiled in SEMA '07 preparations, he tinted the windows and brought home R32 tail lights from a visit to VW Germany.
At this point, et got involved to help finish the project. In order to do this, we stuck to suppliers Derek knew and called on our friends at Eurocode and DTM Autohaus.