Intercooler Questions
Q: I am doing a 1.8T conversion in my Mk3 Jetta and I have a quick question. I saw a photo in the July issue in Tech Support, and the car in question had a 1.8T with a chargecooler. I was wondering if you could give me more information on what the owner was running? Also, could you tell me where to purchase a chargecooler for my 1.8T conversion - the motor is coming from a '01 Mk4 Jetta.
Joshua Daley
via e-mail
A: The air/liquid intercooler you mention was on a 1.8T we spotted at a dyno day in Arizona. Chargecoolers are claimed to resist heat soak more efficiently than regular air/air intercoolers. The car used a Spearco unit, but Spearco doesn't make a specific kit. Instead, the unit is sold as a universal chargecooler, and it's up to you to decide what the core dimensions should be. We suggest calling Turbonetics, which sells Spearco cores, and talking with one of the tech guys about what size you'll need. You can find Turbonetics on the web at www.turboneticsinc.com or give them a call at 805/581-0333.
Euro Plates
Q: How do I obtain a German/British license plate? I assume you know what they look like because they're featured on some of the cars in your magazine.
Ashley King
via e-mail
A: This is an easy one. Check out www.europlates.com. The web company can customize your license plate to read whatever you like. Since we helped you out, we expect to receive photos from you with the plate reading Jason Rules or eurotuner Rules - it's your decision, but we hope you'll use one of them!
Q: I have a Jetta that's very similar to your EuroTrash project and have recently converted the rear drums to discs. In your article, you mention disabling the self-adjust mechanism. I'm wondering how that affects the braking, and if it's a positive step, how do I do the same?
James Jones
via e-mail
A: We hate to break it to you, but that was a poor attempt at a joke by our technical editor, Jason. He was being sarcastic about the stock brakes. There is actually no way to disable it on newer cars. His joke actually dates back to early air-cooled VWs in which you would have to manually adjust the brake shoes after a few hundred miles - which is the reason nobody got it and why it wasn't funny at all.
Textured Trouble
Q: I'm currently looking to turn my '98 Jetta into a project car, but I'm not that interested in body kits. I am, however, very interested in Euro bumpers. I am having difficulty locating anything for the rear bumper and side skirts. Any info would help.
Jim Beam
via e-mail
A: The side skirts are easy; they're the factory GLX side skirts. No one that we know of is doing repros, so you have to go OEM, which might mean a dealership. There is a slight rub to the rear bumper. Rear Vento bumpers are getting harder and harder to find. This is all due to the fact that there were no Italian Ventos. This usually means getting a bumper from a company that will import one for you or has one in stock (which is a very rare occurrence). Either way, you usually end up paying pretty heavily for one. We recom-mend calling Tuning Zubehor at 800/ZUBEHOR or checking the company out on the Web at www.tuningzubehor.com.