What is it about these cars that makes them so powerful? How is it that a car with 170 bhp, and a little more torque can completely smoke cars like RSX-S, and more 200 hp cars? What is it about it's engineering? My brother has one, and hes gets over 100 mph in third!

i had a '96 Gti VR6 hatch.
and it was the best. it smoked just about anything i came up to. sounded like chewbaca! it was a beast. German engineering, weight, power.

its all about Power/weight ratio.
and they way the cylinders are set.
someone who knows alot about engines can explain it

100mph in 3rd - tall gears for cruising the Autobahn.

VR6 just refers to the narrow angle in the "v" of the cylinders - it's almost an inline 6 really. The 3.6 in the new Passat is a thoroughly modern engine, (same for the 3.2) but the ones in the older Jetta's and GTI, (2.7.....I think) were heavy (iron block) and had 2 valve heads - in other words - nothing that special.

Nothing that special? That cars stock performance is what we strive for in ricers. That car had A LOT of bite. It's not peppy like a Prelude Si, it's a machine.

What is it about these cars that makes them so powerful? How is it that a car with 170 bhp, and a little more torque can completely smoke cars like RSX-S, and more 200 hp cars? What is it about it's engineering? My brother has one, and hes gets over 100 mph in third!

Gearing and weight are the biggest influences in this. Thats why i'm able to (in the xb) beat some cars with twice as much whp. Its because they are heavy as crap and geared poorly.

A 1,500lbs car with 130whp could smoke a lot of cars. I mean ALOT. Especially with the right suspension and tire set up.

Cya

They arn't THAT fast..... not to sound like some sort of ricer spewing technological terms I have no idea about (VTEC!!!!), but the older 2.7 VR6's aren't that special. single overhead cam, 2 valve heads, iron block, it's nothing ground breaking. The main advantage is it can fit in to a small package. The new ones have all the features of a modern v6 - variable valve timing etc. and are very nice.

The Nissan VQ series are the best v6's on the market, though it may have finally been topped by the new Toyota 3.5 in the IS 350

I had a 00' VR6..I dont know about 100 in 3rd gear, but 3rd was its "power gear." I think it went 90 something in 3rd if Im not mistaken. Anyways, the car was pretty heavy (with its heated seats, and all the other gadgets), but it still had alot of pick-up. The VR6, just means that its an inline 6 cyl. just like "wibblybobbly" said. W/a chip, a lightened flywheel and some other stuff, the car did pretty good.

I actually just got rid of a 2001 Jetta VR6, 5spd.

First, I'll talk specifically about the engine. The motor is a 2.8L 6 cylinder, dubbed "Vee rhieninmotor", which i cannot spell and roughly translates as "inline Vee." The cylinders were arranged at the exact halfway point between an inline and Vee configuration... staggered. VW did this to pack a 6 cylinder into a 4-cylinder engine bay, gaining the smoothness of a V6 for the "older" crowd.

So what makes the combination so powerful? Well, if you're talking about the MK3 (pre 1999.5), it was the light weight. If you're talking about the 1999-2002.5, it was nothing. The motor was DOHC, but based on the camshafts... having intake and exhaust on the same stick... it was SOHC. A 174hp motor with zero variable valve timing, combined with a healthy 3170lb car WITHOUT the driver, and you got a car that was peppy, but certainly not fast.

Stock, the best I could muster was a 16.0 @ 91. Before you start bashing my driving skill (2.3 60'), I challenge you to launch a FWD v6 that makes nearly full torque at 3200 rpm. Wheel hop was NOT the word... it was like wheel jumprope.

After you got started, one thing in particular was on your side. Gearing. The jetta came with very tall gearing, making a 1-2 shift at 40, a 2-3 at 70, and a 3-4 at 94. Since you're only running mid 15's at absolute best (in the 12valve), that means you finish in 3rd gear. This is also good for gas mileage. But then, you have to deal with the long-throw and very heavy shifter. The clutch was quite heavy, which feels like a true german car, and it was a very stong clutch indeed. It never slipped, even after 87,000 miles of torture.. the previous owner wasn't nice to the car.

As far as handling is concerned... it's a heavy machine that likes to roll around. It truly seems like an H-stock car put in G-stock category just because of the engine. Take that as you will, but the weight balance was odd, and it was very soft.

For the 2002.5+ models, things started to change.

For one, a 24v with variable valve timing replaced the 12v. Power jumped to 200bhp, and the effect was dramatic. People were running 15.0 fairly easily with the new 6-speed, which is arguably worse for drag due to the extra shift into 4th by the end. The newer jetta was faster, but didn't handle any better.

Obviously, this doesn't cover the 24v, 3.2L R32. This is an entirely different beast.


In all, the car was a very comfortable, very smartly laid out car with a little kick. It definitley feels like it can pull on an RSX-S... but a quick run with one will show you that 12 valves just CANNOT flow enough air to keep up with that little rev-monster. The jetta was not designed to be a race car, but a driver's car. At that, it was pretty good!

^^That was said very well. I second that. :)

what senseturtle said....

Great cars for eating up miles on the highway though.