When you want significantly more power, forced induction is the way to go. Whether it's a turbo or supercharger, both options are readily available for the VW R32. Although the car has respectable power in stock form, and was hailed as VW's most powerful sport compact, it never hurts to have a little more under the right foot.
The FT-360 is HPA Motorsports' answer to squeezing more juice from the R32. It's a single-turbo kit with a direct-to-manifold design, eliminating the need for an intercooler. The turbo is a ball-bearing Garrett R30, customized with HPA's own proprietary compressor and exhaust housings, an integrated recirculation valve and wastegate. It's mounted to a log-style cast iron exhaust manifold with provision for the oxygen sensors and is extended with a 70mm downpipe. The kit comes complete with a head gasket spacer that reduces the compression to 8.5:1. There's also a custom timing chain tensioner, oil feed and silicone return plumbing plus larger injectors. The stock air box is utilized in this application. The ECU is reflashed with a custom HPA program, allowing the turbo to run at 11.5psi, which produces 360hp with 317 lb/ft of torque to the crank, hence the name FT-360.
Since the kit doesn't use an intercooler, HPA doesn't recommend the kit for use in extreme heat and humidity. However, the company does offer an upgrade - the FT-400 - that includes a short runner intake manifold, side-mount intercooler and additional silicone plumbing. And because there's an intercooler, boost is raised to 13psi and so the output is 400hp and 380 lb/ft.
The installation of these kits is complex and probably not for the average enthusiast. In fact, HPA will only ship to a reputable, experienced shop for the installation, and will even interview them over the phone. The fitting process takes about ten hours if you know what you're doing and have the proper tools. Besides, do you really want to install an $8000 kit yourself? It's a 190-step process, for one thing. However, we were lucky enough to oversee the installation of an FT-360 at Advanced Motorsport Solutions in Carson, CA, where shop owner Marc Kalaydjian and HPA technician Darren Scharfenberg tackled the task.
One of the first steps is to place the car on a lift and remove the front bumper, grille, hood, fenders and headlights, but since we had Darren, the fenders and headlights were left in place. Next the battery, ECU, airbox and engine cover need to be removed and the oil and coolant drained. Once this is done the fun begins.