Off The Leash
The Beast With Four Wheels
The guys at EIP refer to it as "The Chameleon," for obvious reasons, but driving it is not like handling your pet lizard. It's a tad more visceral. You feel more like the rodeo rookie who drew the nastiest bull or the rocket scientist who can't predict the flight of a wayward missile. They might want to call it, "The Rabid Pit Bull on a Broken Leash."
The physics of weight transfer and tire traction will tell you that 450-plus bhp engine in a front-drive car is ludicrous, but then the owner of this car was more concerned with one thing: bragging rights.
Using many of the same components as the red Golf IV (pistons, rods, gasket, head studs, throttle body, intake and exhaust manifold and turbo), this Jetta III ups the ante with a more aggressively programmed TEC III and a higher-flowing competition fuel rail. And, it's a 2.1-liter instead of 2.0 liters. EIP claims 450 hp on pump gas, without nitrous, which is available at a press of a button.
Unlike the red Golf's engine, this one is more akin to an on-off switch. Boost builds slowly and late in the game. Shortly after 4000 rpm there's a distinct surge of torque that causes the rear end to squat, and then it's as though a bomb exploded under the hood. In an instant, the needle is hurtling toward redline, and the tires are scrambling for traction. A narrow powerband, to say the least.
Even with a Quaife differential, running hard through the first few gears requires deft control of the right foot. Just a tad too much will smoke the tires. Its most suitable environment is a deserted interstate late at night, where high-speed downforce and load will keep the car more firmly planted. Because of the turbo lag, most competitors would get the jump, but given enough room, it'll catch, pass and pull away from almost anything silly enough to challenge it.
Where the red Golf inspired confidence, this Jetta instills fear. It needs more brakes. The old-school Wilwoods just don't offer enough bite, and the tires need to be wider and stickier for both traction and stability. I'm sure the owner, having mastered its idiosyncrasies, can drive it much better than I could. Maybe he's a pit bull breeder.