Innehållsförteckning för December 2020 från Fast Car

LOCKDOWN 2.0 This time last year I was enjoying the coldest beer in Las Vegas at Twin Peaks after an 11-hour flight from London. I was tired and a little smelly, but I was filled with optimism because the next morning I would be hitting SEMA. What a difference 12 months makes… SEMA 2020 was, of course, cancelled and in stark contrast to last November, we are now in lockdown two-point-zero. But I’m not going to let that get me down; I’m going to put my SEMA socks on, pour myself a cold beer and reminisce over Facebook memories of those great times of 2019. It only seems like yesterday that I was complaining of foot ache after walking around the greatest automotive show on Earth, which means I’ll be…

Name: James Dron Age: 32 Occupation: Senior Project Engineer Instagram: @_dronaldo_ First car: 2006 VW Golf 1.4 FSI Favourite car: That I’ve owned? Definitely this Supra! Dream car? Lamborghini Aventador Favourite modification on your car: Probably the HKS Kansai front splitter, as it’s very rare and I think it complements the lines of the car Track day or show-and-shine? I’ve actually never done a proper track day, just drag days. I need to get down to Knockhill and change that. Show-and-shine can be good too, though it is definitely hard to keep up with the ridiculous standard of some of the cars. Any future plans? The new A90 Supra has my attention, but I’ve not driven one yet to know how much I’d like it.…

It’s been a funny old year hasn’t it? And, judging by what Mr Boris announced recently, it’s about to get all the funnier… and not in an amusing way, either. But, the thing is, through all this grief and turmoil, we’ve actually witnessed some of the best product drops we’ve seen for decades in 2020. It certainly appears that, instead of sitting on their arses, pulling in the furlough cheques and spending it all on bog roll and bottled water, there’s quite a few companies out there that have been busy developing epic new kit and unveiling some seriously clever gear. In fact, this month we’ve mostly been busy arguing over our favourite product innovations that will make for that perfect Christmas present, and a few black eyes and missing…

It’s a slick look, but let’s not forget that there’s a beating heart within this show-winning finish – and, being a Golf R, that core of power just loves being tickled. “One of the elements of the car I’m most proud of is the engine work, getting it ready for mapping,” says Liam. “It’s really satisfying because the numbers depend on hardware, and I got decent figures.” The 2.0-litre FSI turbo motor is now running a Revo induction kit and turbo-back Milltek non-resonated exhaust system, along with a custom ‘Welly’ intercooler setup and a few other tweaks and tricks. Everything’s marshalled by an R-Tech Performance Stage 2+ map, throwing a fat 375bhp and 405lb.ft under Liam’s right foot. Game on.…

TINTS, FROM £50 Window tints have become such a popular mod over the past couple of decades that plenty of new cars now come with these as standard, albeit on the rear where, here in the UK at least, there are no rules as to how dark they can be. Of course, these are always marketed as UV protection for the kids and privacy glass and blah blah blah, but we all know that it’s about just one thing – tints always have, and always will look cool. Nowadays it’s not just windows that tend to get the film treatment, either. There are many road-legal options for headlights and rear clusters, and many even choose to have their numberplates tinted… which is about as legal as punching a traffic copper…

ENGINE: SR20DET straight-cam red-top (from 180SX), fully rebuilt (with Cosworth head gasket, ARP bolts, new piston rings, bearings, all gaskets etc), Kinugawa TD05 18G turbo, Nismo 555cc injectors, Z32 air flow meter, A’PEXi dual-funnel intake, GReddy front-mount intercooler, full Japspeed exhaust system (manifold, elbow, super-low twin downpipe, decat, twin 3-inch shotguns), A’PEXi Power FC standalone management, S15 Spec S 5-speed manual, ACT HD organic street clutch, ACT lightened flywheel, S15 Spec R helical rear differential POWER: 320-330bhp (est.) CHASSIS: 9.5x18-inch ET18 (front) and 10.5x18-inch ET15 (rear) 7Twenty Style 49 wheels in custom chrome powdercoat (or Style 57 in matte anodised bronze), 20mm front spacers, 215/35 Nankang NS2s (front) and 245/35 Uniroyal RainSport 3s (rear), Project Mu brake pads, Ksport Airtech shocks and bags, Air Lift V2 management, Viair 444cc compressor,…

What’s all this? Another bloody lockdown. Well, despite all that, I’ve been a very lucky boy this month. First, I’ve managed to sort my rubber for the Beetle, merely days before all nonessential items go off sale. Then again, what can be more essential then some new Toyo Proxes Sport rubber? They certainly are when it comes to my Turbo Bug, which has been sitting around looking sorry for itself on stock wheels for a good couple of weeks now. I’ve heard amazing things about these tyres and can’t wait to get them on, it’s no underestimation to say that Toyo UK have seriously saved my arse on this one. I’m also looking forward to seeing if my calculations are correct and a slightly thinner tyre will clear the arches…

STYLING: Carbon fibre roof, carbon kidney grilles, carbon splitter, carbon sideskirts, carbon diffuser, custom Liberty Walk ducktail spoiler – carbon-skinned top and colour-coded bottom, custom NEM V1 angel-eye headlights with painted inners, LCI taillights TUNING: S65B40 4.0-litre V8, Evolve Stage 2 map with overrun, Macht Schnell cold air intake, Macht Schnell intake scoops, Macht Schnell lightened underdrive pulleys, custom decat exhaust system with secondary resonators POWER: 450bhp (est.) CHASSIS: 19-inch WORK Equip 05 wheels – polished lips, gunmetal faces and correct WORK hardware, Air Lift Performance suspension with 3P management INTERIOR: Cobra Nogaro Clubsport seats, Alcantara-trimmed steering wheel, Alcantara-trimmed doorcard and steering wheel trims, Coolerworx shifter with WeAreLikewise Neil Diamond knob, M-stitched handbrake gaiter, PalmerSport half-cage, custom rear seat delete, custom 3P controller mount, custom floating boot build…

The old maxim that you should build your car for you rather than to please anyone else is as true today as it’s ever been. Sure, it’s nice to win trophies on the showground, to have people come up to you in petrol stations and say ‘Nice car, mate,’ and so on – but the only person you need to please is the one behind the wheel. Your car, your rules. So anyone who casts Tim Tremlett the stink-eye for shoving an air-ride system into his S15’s undercrackers can collectively wind it in: he’s done this for logical reasons. Besides, he’s definitely more of a driver than a show tart, as his motoring history demonstrates. Graduating from the default first-car Corsa (boot full of subs, we all did it) to…

Name: Tom Clarke Job Role: Marketer who oversees the UK marketing office, advert placement and key account marketing fulfilment So, by the time you read this, they’ll be less than two weeks of lockdown two-point-zero left, we’ll have five weekends until Christmas and the Volvo still won’t be finished. Basically, this build has snowballed out of control, and I’m not entirely sure how I ever thought it would be ready for the original June deadline. But then again, you can’t put a time frame on awesome and we’ve had to deal with the Covid situation, so it’ll be done when it’s done. And bit by bit we are edging closer to that day… The guys at Deutsch Tech have once again been working their magic, and the engine is now…

Last issue I introduced you to T5.1 and said I wanted to get it even lower. Which led to a few messages saying can it go much lower? Yes, it can, as I wasn’t talking about the coilovers, but air ride! If you read my recent ramblings, you’ll already know that my van came equipped with SoLow coilovers, probably the best coilovers you can get for a Transporter if you want to drive super-low on static suspension. I’ve driven around on these for a good few months now and I really rate them, but due to where I currently live they’re not that practical. Plus, my original plan was always to fit air ride and specifically Air Lift Performance. As you can see, I’ve not got round to fitting the…

BODY 1979 Clubman steel shell with tubular frame, full roll cage, and GRP/carbon fibre/steel wheelarch and bonnet extensions, 40-litre beer keg modified to serve as a fuel tank ENGINE 1796cc K-Series, MGZT bottom end, MGF 135 manifold, ported and polished head, retimed camshafts, Mercedes SLK supercharger, turbocharger, two intercoolers, fabricated exhaust system, silicone hoses. Front-mounted radiator with aluminium ducting, MGTF six-speed transmission Power: 300bhp (estimated) CHASSIS GAZ dampers, MGTF rear suspension, fabricated front suspension, AP Racing four-piston alloy calipers front and rear, MGF Trophy 7x16-inch alloys with 195/45x16 tyres INTERIOR Mamba driver’s seat, Q/R steering wheel, extended handbrake lever, alloy gear knob, fire extinguisher, single wiper, extra instrumentation, exposed wiring and binnacle, drilled alloy door furniture…

There’s been a lot of chatter about the new Mk8 Golf, most of it positive. Yes, some people have been critical about the overly techy interior (touchscreens are great, but perhaps the odd actual knob or button might be useful here and there), and others have been a bit suspicious of the car’s frowny face, but on the whole we can assume that a new Golf is a good thing. Of course it is – for decades, the default answer whenever anyone who doesn’t know a lot about cars asks ‘What car should I buy?’ has been ‘just get a Golf’. It does everything you want it to do, it does most of those things quite well, it’ll hold its value fairly steadily, it’ll be well put-together… and if you…

There was a bit of a gulf between Metallica albums in the early 1990s. The eponymous record which everyone colloquially refers to as ‘The Black Album’ changed the metal game in ’91, but it would be a full five years until they followed it up with the controversial Load. Helping to fill the void came Pantera’s Far Beyond Driven in early ’94; arguably more groove metal than thrash metal, it ticked the hardcore boxes for the faithful, and tied into the prevailing social trends of the time. See, the automotive sphere was pretty metal then too – the Japanese invasion of big-power GTs designed for the US market created a clutch of cars designed specifically for blasting down the Pacific Coast Highway with the throttle pinned, metal blaring on the…

STYLING: Full respray in Aston Martin AST5052D Storm Black (black with red flake), HKS Kansai carbon fibre front splitter, Ridox carbon sideskirts, UK-spec rear bumper TUNING: 2JZ-GTE VVTi, GReddy T88-34D 22cm2 turbo, GReddy stainless 45mm exhaust manifold, GReddy Type R wastegate, GReddy AirInx 2 intake, 4-inch DJ Autos downpipe and mid-pipe, Sard 850cc injectors, HKS F-Con V Pro ECU, GReddy PRofec B Spec-II boost controller, Sard fuel pressure regulator, Whifbitz 4-inch titanium exhaust system, Trust 4-inch front-mount intercooler, GReddy oil cooler kit, screamer pipe, OEM Getrag V161 6-speed gearbox, RPS Carbon triple-plate clutch, RPS lightened flywheel, OEM A02B Torsen LSD (3.769:1 ratio), SRD heavy-duty propshaft CHASSIS: Custom 9.5x18-inch +24 (front) and 11.5x18-inch +37 (rear) CCW LM5T 3-piece wheels – fully polished, 245/40 (f) and 295/30 (r) Toyo R888 tyres, BC…

STYLING: Smoothed bonnet, bootlid, front and rear bumpers and towing eye, badgeless grille, rolled and flattened arches, carbon rear lip spoiler, custom carbon B-pillars, carbon wing mirrors TUNING: 2.0-litre FSI turbo, R-Tech Performance tuned - Stage 2+, turbo-back Milltek non-resonated exhaust system, custom ‘Welly’ intercooler setup with alloy pipework, Revo induction kit, VIS high-pressure fuel pump, RS4 return valve, AKS runner flap delete, Forge pipework, TT RS engine cover, DSG transmission Power: 375bhp, 405lb.ft CHASSIS: 10x19-inch WCI MT10 wheels with 3-inch lips, Air Lift Performance suspension with 3P management, 3.5° square camber, chassis notch INTERIOR: Recaro CS seats trimmed with suede centres and leather bolsters, Custom Carbon trims, centre console, door and dash trim, Alcantara and carbon steering wheel, Alcantara 3P controller mount, rollcage, custom boot build…

Name: Dale Masterman Job Role: Full-time Swirl Slayer & Events Coordinating Marketing Executive, Meguiar’s UK The Jaguar is now just weeks away from being complete and with Tom’s Volvo still way off, does that make me the winner of this year’s build off by default? Well, I’m not interested in that type of hollow victory and the Jag is now looking so good it’ll win on merit anyway. But, before I get too carried away, there’s still plenty to do… The Jaguar is now back with the Swallows Racing crew for the final rebuild. With the black exterior trims going back on, the car is really starting to come together, and the colour looks incredible; I’m literally counting down the days until I can get it back to Meguiar’s UK…

It’s been all fun and games with the Audi this month. If you missed last month’s update, this is it in a nutshell: I bought a TT 225 which was lovely to look at, but a bit less lovely mechanically. Immediately after buying it, it needed new coils, plugs and injectors, plus it had a catastrophic fuel leak which involved dropping the tank out, and the exhaust and suspension were knackered, so I replaced them with a Scorpion system and Koni coilovers. Job done then? Oh no, not by a long shot. This month, job one was to sort the brakes. The discs were severely lipped and a little bit warped, and the pads were on their last legs, so I did what I always do when I need brakes:…

INITIAL G First FC: Er, can’t remember, 2007-ish? FAVE FC FEATURE CAR? Too many to chose from, but Kohei Miyata’s FC RX-7 is simply perfect in my eyes. Find it in issue 404, feb 2019 and check it out for yourself. FAVE FC BUILD? We need to go waaaay back to April 1994, and FC’s own ‘Project Stealth’ a blacked out 205 GTI, running the then newly released TSW Stealth wheels. I had a 205 GTI and this build is what got me into modifying in the first place, who knew 26-years later I’d be on the team! FAVOURITE SHOW? Initial D (obviously), yes, yes it’s animé/manga, and the animation may be a ‘tad’ dated now but the story is ace and it really knows its stuff regarding cars, car…