Import Tuner April 2000

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ENGINE TESTED:
APPLICATIONS:
COMMON SWAPS:
REPLACEMENTS:
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: ROBERT CHOO
Volkswagen AEG
1999 Golf GTI IV, GL, GLS
1999 Jetta IV, GL, GLS
1998 Beetle GL, GLS
})) In the early 1990s Volkswagen was in dire straights in the U.S. market. Sales were floundering and there was talk of pulling out of
America all together. About this time, VW went back to its GTI roots and infused power and a high degree of Euro styling into its products.
The Golf was revitalized, the Jetta found a niche in the highly competitive sedan market and VW was on the rood to recovery. The addition of a turbo 1.8-liter engine and the coming of the New Bee~e helped move VW back to the head of the class.
(fH ENGINE
The backbone of Volkswagen's lineup is the 2 .0 -liter AEG engine. This four-cylinder engine is a single-overhead cam proposition with two valves per cylinder and hydraulic lifters. The engine is factory rated at 115 horsepower and 122 lbs-ft of torque.
As a mainstay of watercooled VW performance, the AEG rates an eight on a scale from one to 10 when it comes to aftermarket
parts availability.
On Neuspeed's Clayton Chassis dynamometer, the Jetta put 103 hp to the rollers in stock trim with fresh wire and Beru plugs.
70 I IMPORT TUNER APRil2000
107 HP
TEST 2 >NEUSPEED P-CHIP
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TEST 2 >NEUSPEED EXHAUST
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116 HP
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TEST 3 >NEUSPEED AIR FILTER
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Adding a high-flow Neuspeed air filter jumped output to 122 horsepower.
TEST 4 >NEUSPEED BUMPSTICK
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122 HP
124 HP
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The muscle-building program was concluded with a cam swap. The
Neuspeed bumpstick advanced power production to 124 horsepower
with notable gains from 4000 rpm on up.
APRIL2000 IMPORT TUNER
71
WIP~ORMANCE COMPONENTS
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IVEUII:JI'A
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Because of the popularity of the 2.0 -liter AEG engine, there are limitless possibilities when it comes to tuners and product manufacturers. For this battery of mods, we 1----__:::..c;:;..;.:..:;.:;;.::::..::::_ _ _ _---t
contacted VW tuner GreedSpeed and manufacturer Neuspeed to pump up the volume
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of a ' 99 Jetta . The performance ledger called for the addition of a computer ch ip, intake l------~
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system, exhaust, a cam and wires and plugs . This extensive schedule calls for basic boltons and one more involved upgrade (cam) and showcases the power potentia l of the
2.0-liter engine.
IVEUS,~£U.'ED
The Neuspeed P-Chip is designed to provide more aggressive fuel and ignition tim ing tables and extract more power out of the engine . The ECU upgrade also helps with
EXR,. rST
future mods . The Neuspeed P-Fio is the company's air filter system . The system f e a t u r e s l - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1
a low-restriction filter element and a stylish pipe to add both form and function under
the hood . Like all aftermarket exhaust systems, the Neuspeed system's mission is to 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - t
increase flow by using larger diameter pipe, smoother mandrel bends and a high-flow
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muffler. The Neuspeed Sport Cam , like most import cams, is set up to deliver the goods
on the high end .
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IVEUSPEED
P-CHIP
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'ESTING
Product evaluation was conducted at Neuspeed in Camarillo, California on the company's Clayton Chassis dynamometer. Our
test subject was a 1999 Jetta with 2300 miles on the clock. The VW sported a five-speed manual gearbox and OBD-11 engine control. Prior to running baseline numbers the car was given a tune up with new spark plugs from Beru and Neuspeed wires. With the
Jetta secured to the rollers, we sampled for baseline numbers, coming up with 103 ponies at the wheels. The P-Chip added power
throughout the curve with notable additional thrust from 4000 to 6000 rpm . The exhaust freed up nine peak horsepower and gobs
of power from 4500 rpm on up-with no sacrifice on the low end . The intake system continued the trend, making gains over the full
powerband with an increase of 6 hp at peak. The cam had no impact on the low end-it neither gained nor lost power. At peak
only 2 additional hp were realized but inspecting the graph shows the cam expanded the breathing capacity of the motor. On the
high end where the stock-cammed engine would drastically fall off after peaking, the Neuspeed bumpstick increased output by about
7 ponies.
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IVCLUSION
The bolt-on performance parts netted the expected gains. The performance chart displays how each mod performed in relation
to the others. The Test 2 run with the addition of the Neuspeed exhaust system showed the most impressive gain, making usable
power from 4500 to 6000 rpm . This represents the sweet spot of the 2.0-liter AEG engine and as a result can really be felt in the
seat of the pants during test runs between wrenching sessions. Another interesting piece of data can be gleaned from the cam test.
Where peak power is measured there was only a 2-hp jump in output. Cams change the breathing ability and the power curve of
an engine. In this case we can see the power curve falls off a great deal less after peak power is realized . @
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HP Level HP lnaease TQ Level TQ lnaease
Basehne (New plugs and wires) 103.0
> Test 1 Neuspeed P-chip
107.0
>Test 2 Neuspeed Exhaust
> Test 3 Neuspeed Air FHter
> Test 4 Neuspeecl Bumpstick
Final Power
721 1MPORT TUNER APRil2000
116.0
122.0
124.0
124.0
4.0
9.0
6.0
2.0
21.0
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AUTOMOTlVf PERFORMANCE SYSTEMS, INC.
3300 Corte Molposo • COr'nc:do. CA 93012
805.388.71 71 tel • 805.388.0030 101: • [email protected]
'M'tW.NEUSPEEO.COM