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15000
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12000
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10000
members - 10/03 |
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9,000
members - 07/03 |
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7,000
members - 01/03 |
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5,000
members - 06/02 |
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3,000
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B5
of the Month – March 2003
Joe
Castillo (BoeserBlick)
Queens, NY USA
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My B5 story
starts out like so many other ClubB5’ers in that I thought
my VW experience was to start with a Jetta. I was looking for a reliable daily-driver that delivered
enough style to be a good weekend cruiser.
But all thoughts of the Jetta were history the moment I
sat behind the wheel of the Passat gleaming on the showroom
floor. Before
long, I found myself signing papers to take delivery of a
brand new 2001 Satin Silver GLX.
It’s hard to believe it was 2 years ago when my friend PJ
(barrelman17) introduced me to ClubB5.
And shortly thereafter, I met Al (Ture7) and mod
madness ensued. Together
with a growing group of local Passat enthusiasts, we formed
Team EEP (EuroElite Performance) to share ideas, mods, and
friendship. With
the help of this great group, I have carefully planned and
executed several mods to my car that I have lovingly dubbed,
“Norah”.
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After seeing
so many beautiful B5’s on ClubB5, I was inspired to make Norah
unique. In most
cases, I followed one key parameter – each modification should
encompass both form and function.
After a few minor cosmetic mods, I added a chip, lowering
springs, and stiffer shocks.
But I soon craved the ultimate in suspension performance
and opted for coilovers and swaybars. I continued to enhance Norah’s performance by fabricating
my own open-air filter and hybrid exhaust.
While
I was pleased with the performance upgrades, something was still
missing. My car
still did not embody my personality.
Some B5’ers go for a sporty look, others for a more
refined look, and still others for a more subtle OEM appearance.
But I was in awe of the meaner, more aggressive look
achieved by our European B5 brethren and I wanted to bring the
boeser-dub look to New York City.
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The mod
mantra In Europe is definitely “less is more”.
The shaved look always made me drool so I decided on a
smooth look. I did
quite a bit of research and adopted styling cues from across the
pond. Enter the
deep-dish wheels, S4 bumper, and M3 vents – exit the carbon
fiber hood. It was
with this strong European influence that Norah started to come
into her own.
One
thing that I would like to stress is that Norah is no trailer
Queen. With over
45,000 miles on her, she is a daily driver that sees all 4
seasons. I believe
cars are meant to be driven, not babied.
And I don’t mod for anyone but myself nor do I mod to
win trophies. But
one thing is for sure, each time I get behind the wheel, I fall
in love with Norah all over again.
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Many people
ask me what’s next and I can honestly say that I don’t
exactly know. Some
future mods will likely include a big brake kit, mobiletronics,
and possibly new rollers. And
I do have a few more surprises in mind for later in the year.
And all of you will be the first to know!
I’d
like to send out a special shout out and a sincere thank you to
everyone that has supported the madness that comes with being a
B5 enthusiast. Extra
special thanks to Team EEP: JonBoy, Ture7, nycpassat, ajchenmph,
LetsAudi, meph, jwil, Fluid, RoxyB5, and Barrelman17.
More special thanks to all my peeps on the West Coast:
Zoom, Passatlover99, schmove, gufi21, WetWorks, ALL of the
ClubB5 staff, and everyone else who has shown love.
And finally, I’d like to give a massive thank you to
Tony and the gang over at Auto-Fix.
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I consider
myself blessed and honored to join the ranks of the ClubB5 of
the Month Alumni. One
love.
For more
information, please visit my profile on ClubB5:
http://clubb5.zeroforum.com/zerothread?id=17351
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