When we first looked at the spec sheet for Josh Boettcher's GTI 1.8T, we couldn't help but laugh. We saw bullet points with "OEM Gangsta Lean" and "MCC parking sticker". We also saw something which made us feel even more uneasy about approaching him - a photo of a bare-chested David Hasselhoff from his Baywatch days with the words, "The Man, The Myth, The Legend." Either this was some sort of inside joke, or Josh has a huge crush on The Hasselhoff.
Once we met Josh, he explained the reference. "It was kind of an online joke," Josh said. "People were saying how Germans love David Hasselhoff. One of the guys started calling my car `der Hasselwagen' and after that I ordered a HASLHOFF vanity plate and have been using the reference ever since."
With everything explained and our minds at ease, we discovered that Josh's enthusiasm for VW began when he bought a Mk4 Golf a couple years ago. "I thought it was cool," he admitted. "It was a 2.0 automatic with no power windows and cloth interior. I got online, read about the 1.8T and started saving for the Turbo."
Even before Josh acquired his GTI he had an idea of what to do. "I've done lots of Photoshops on stock 337s. I was Photoshopping the different things I wanted to do and my car today came out really close to my original designs," he said.
Josh started changing up his car slowly, but an unfortunate event accelerated his plans. "Some lady in a truck backed into my car and the dent in the door was pretty bad," Josh said. "I got a lot of money back, and as long as it was going to be at the shop I thought I might as well go through with everything. I was talking to Derek Scott at Exklusiv Motorsports in Phoenix and pretty much typed up a list of everything I wanted done."
The exterior received the complete OEM+ treatment. Utilizing the valances and side skirts from the 25th Anniversary Edition 337 GTI, these OEM parts were fitted to the car. To add his own flavor, he left the vertical slots on the front spoiler black, as well as the center section on the rear valance. Also in the rear, a shorter OE European bumper replaced the factory one - this allowed Josh to run a European license plate and we were surprised to discover he daily-drives with this plate!
Stubby mirrors and a Sharan antenna completed the OEM upgrades. Subtle changes were pursued with a Bonrath two-bar grille. The new grille left notches in the bumper and hood, so the holes were filled and smoothed. The front bumper rub strip was also shaved to eliminate the side bumper lenses. The rear hatch was cleaned up nicely by shaving the rear badge, handle and wiper.
To add contrast to the silver car, Josh changed out the factory lights for smoked Hella Colour Magic tail lamps, smoked E-code headlights and MHW side repeaters.
Performance-wise, Josh kept the car practical for daily use. He didn't have an enormous budget to splurge, so upgraded the motor just enough to please his need for speed. Revo software remapped the fuel and timing. It regulates a Bosch 4bar fuel pressure regulator which controls the flow.
Concealed behind the black grille in the center of the bumper is a Eurojet front-mount intercooler. It's hard to spot unless you raise the hood and see the polished piping that decorates the engine bay along with a polished engine cover, intake manifold and throttle body.
The factory airbox was swapped for an Autotech cold air intake with a K&N cone filter. The intake is constructed from a 3" polished aluminum tube to match the other components.
Josh's polishing fetish continued with a polished Forge Motorsport 007 diverter valve that was installed to increase throttle response and regulate boost pressure. Finally a GHL Motorsports 2.5" exhaust drives out the spent gases.
Josh wanted to be extremely low to the ground and luckily the Arizona roads are a taste of heaven compared to downtown Los Angeles or New York. So H&R coilovers were the best suspension for him, with stiffer damping and adequate height adjustability. He set the coils on the lowest setting at the front, and lowered the rear as much as he could before the tires began rubbing the fenders.