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15000
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B5
of the Month – November 2004
Paul Vina (quality_sound)
Beale AFB, CA
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My obsession with quirky German
cars began with a 1985 Merkur XR4Ti.
It had all kinds of model specific issues, much like the
Passat, but its driving dynamics captured me and turned me on to
the wonders of German engineering.
My first VW was my trusty 1995 Jetta. I had lusted after
the B5 since I first saw one in 1998 but it was out of my price
range. Yes, my Jetta was a 2.0, but it was sporty, reliable and
it’s the car that made me a VW fanatic.
When it came time to buy a larger car I had actually
forgotten about the Passat until my brother had told me what
they were going for used. I did a bit of research and decided I
wanted a V6 with a manual transmission.
I was unable to find a V6 manual so I settled on a very
nice 1999 Black Magic V6 GLS with leather and Tip with
intentions for some basic mods…..then I found Club B5 and all
reason went out the window!
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The turning point came after a
really crappy 10-day trip to
Chicago
to visit family. I returned to find my wife’s grandmother had
“washed” my just polished baby with a wet rag, no soap and
left to bake without drying in the
California
August heat. I was unhappy to say the least.
I decided this was a perfect opportunity to take my baby
to the next level. Enter Amber Fire Metallic Pearl from the 2002
PT Turbo palette. It immediately changed the car from a nice
family sedan to a German sport sedan.
Soon after a Kamei Sport Grill, tinted tails, P&P
rear sway bar, Eibach Pro-System Plus and 18”x7.5” Racing
Hart C5000s, Wings West 5” universal wing and 5% tint found
their way onto the car and I was just about happy, but I needed
to address the long suffering ICE issues. I had a grand scheme
planned out that never quite came to fruition and stalled after
the installation of the Alpine IVA-C801 and DVA-5200.
The last major mod was to get rid of the old lady wood
grain interior and add the stripped Net Optic interior in its
place. There have
been some smaller mods like the blue tinted Jetta mirrors, NB
sunglass holder, OE mud flaps, clear corners and side markers.
Last up was the painted engine covers.
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Seeing the reactions of the
attendees at the New Dimensions made it all worth while. I mod
for myself, but its very gratifying to know all of your work is
appreciated. I guess
at this point I’d have to say I’m hooked on CB5. I start my
day with a check of the boards as well as a lunch check and
ongoing monitoring of the site when I get home. It’s all been
worthwhile though. I’ve met a lot of very cool people I’d
have never met if not for the site. I’ve saved some money with
the various group buys and ongoing discounts, but poured it
right back into the car with some other mod I undoubtedly saw on
the Club B5. I’ve never had a car I’ve built chosen as a
recipient for any award before and to have it chosen by the
moderators here is an honor my meager grasp of the written work
can not begin to do justice. I’d like to thank Thanasi for
starting this great site, everyone here for all of their support
and help throughout my time here and the moderators for the
honor they’ve chosen me for. The next round is on me.
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