TearfulI just finished "Gone But Not Forgotten" in et 4/07, and I shed a tear for you. The thought of sitting behind the wheel of your Civic-spanking GLI has inspired many wet dreams. As for the iPod adapter kit you mentioned, a guy I know at work owns a Mk5 Jetta GLI. He showed me his new factory adapter kit. I'll assume he got it through Google, since I found a couple of different options there.
On a different note, my boss collects European Hot Wheels. Could you tell me where I could get him the Mk5 GTI featured in et 3/07? This would put me in good standing, since I foolishly broke a wheel lock on a customer's Passat. For future reference: Don't Get Wheel Locks For Stock Wheels. They are stupid and bad.Eric ShorEmail
We spoke to Extreme Dimensions, who built the Hot Wheels widebody. They told us Hot Wheels is hoping to have the scale models available as soon as possible, but couldn't give us a date.
You're IdiotsI liked your VR6 tuning article (et 4/07). It was informative and gave people plenty of sources and options. The writer explained very well how much it would cost to turbo or supercharge their VR6. He also talked accurately about the type of power that should be expected. However, I didn't think the article gave enough resources for readers on where to buy a turbo, since there are many companies to choose from. I've compiled a list of those who turbocharge the VR6 and also give good customer service, turnaround and reliability.
1) Bill Schimmel (aka Schimmel Performance) is known for its powerful turbos 2) HPA3) ATP
I'm happy you included Kinetic and C2 Motorsports, but I don't know who's used AMS for a long time. For the NA applications, you forgot a few important modifications.
1) Ported and polished head, big valve head, or both. This mod gives more power than most NA mods.2) Your cam list was short. You mentioned Schrick, Kent, DSR and Techtonics cams but forgot to add Atomic Motorsports, CAT, Autotech, Schimmel and Dougherty cams.Dougherty Racing cams are a great bang for your buck, plus they give buyers the option to design their own profiles. DRC cams are normally 260, 264, 268/264 and 268 (268s have .45mm lift, a little higher than Schrick 268s). Most of these cams are under $450; the DRCs normally go for around $295.3) You failed to include the Schrick VGi. It doesn't give great hp, but has a nice lump of torque in the mid-range.4) You also didn't talk about a piggy-back or stand-alone. They can be cost-prohibitive, but are still an option for someone who wants to go all-out.
I write this not as a know-it-all, but someone who can inform VR6 readers.Matthew MohriEmail
Opel DilemmaI love the magazine. Awesome articles, great photos and the Cast questions rule. Anyway, I was reading another Primedia magazine (Automobile) and discovered GM/Saturn is reaching across the pond to take designs from Opel. So does this mean Saturn will be getting pages in et if somebody ditches the Saturn badge for an Opel one on the grille?
I love Opels and as far as I know, they sell well in Europe. I've also seen them in DTM races, as well as in your awesome coverage of The Nrburgring 24 Hours in the 4/07 issue.Jerry OssevoortEmail
A very good question; GM plans to import the Astra, a highly regarded Euro hatchback. Made in Germany, the top model has an exciting 2.0 turbo engine. When we heard the news, we asked ourselves the same thing. We've already debated over the Ford Focus, but unlike the Astra, the US model isn't built in Europe. What do you think? Should we include the German-built Astra when it arrives? After all, how can we define a Euro when VW Jettas are made in Mexico, BMW Z4s are built in South Carolina and Saturn Astras are built in Germany? Share your thoughts.
Late Chop 1I wasn't a subscriber when you ran the first Photochop Challenge (et 12/06). Being more of a VW guy than BMW, I wanted to give it a shot anyway...Ian Scott ShackletonBranford, CT
Letter of the MonthStatisticianI've been reading et ever since subscribing in '04. But it seems not a month goes by without complaints about the content of the mag - too many VWs, too many BMWs, not enough... etc.
So after your comment about what readers actually drive, I conducted a little experiment.
Using 31 issues I have available (et 9/04-3/07), I added up all the Readers' Rides and features. I tried to be fair as to what I called a feature, such as articles that are three pages or more. I came up with a total of 183 features and 694 Rides.
After doing some simple division, I figured out the percentage each marque appears in et. The results surprised me. I honestly felt VWs were getting more space than they deserved, but I was wrong.
For the Rides that were published, 71% were VW, 12% BMW, 10% Audi, 2% Mercedes, 2% Mini, 1% Volvo and about 1% for the rest (Saab, Jag, Porsche, Alfa, etc).
However, your features appear to be much more fair, with 52% devoted to VW, which surprised me because it seems higher. BMW accounted for 23%, Audi is 17%, Mercedes 3%, Volvo 2%, Mini 1%, Porsche 1% and 1% for the remainder (Saab, Citron, Lambo, etc).
I decided to take this one step further and figure out the cover car percentages. Out of the 31 issues (taking into account some have two cars on the cover), VW accounted for 67%, BMW was 29%, Audi was 20% and Mercedes was 6% - this seemed very fair in my opinion.
Granted my numbers aren't perfect, but hopefully this will shut everybody up. The numbers show you're giving fair coverage to each marque considering your reader base.
Personally, I've only owned VWs, but I love to check out the BMWs and other cars for fresh ideas. After all, this is EUROtuner.