MotorWeek | Retro Review : '92 Volkswagen Corrado

your host from motorWeek mighty to John Davis well hello and welcome again to motor week 92 we're glad to have you with us let us consider the Volkswagen Corrado there is one machine that best illustrates the problems that its manufacturer has had in the US market it is this car when this sleek little German cruise missile was introduced in 1990 it threatened to run its American and Japanese competitors into the weeds unfortunately for Volkswagen that never happened but to the blame can be placed on drive trains that didn't match up with the car's excellent chassis so Corrado's languished on dealers Lots but that may soon change because Volkswagen has just introduced and improved Corrado by all appearances this is the same Corrado sport coupe that Volkswagen has been trying to sell to American drivers for the last two years granted there have been the usual new model year styling tweaks these include a slightly recontoured hood simpler grille and deeper chin spoiler and the standard 15-inch BBS alloy wheels have been subtly restyled otherwise it's the same unique very European look as before right down to the unusual automatic spoiler that rises at speeds above 45 miles per hour but the big improvement to the Corrado is indicated by a grille mounted badge that simply reads vr6 that's the designation that Volkswagen has assigned to the Corrado's new standard engine it's an all-new narrow-angle v6 that the Corrado shares with its sedan cousin the Passat and it is narrow only 15 degrees separate the two cylinder banks allowing the use of a single cylinder head for both sides vr6 makes 178 horsepower 20 more than its supercharged four-cylinder predecessor and with 177 pound-feet of torque the Corrado SLC was over a full second faster 260 at six point four seconds a quarter mile took 15 seconds at 96 miles per hour very nice and it's performance had our test drivers raving about everything from power delivery to the clutch vr6 engine has a remarkably wide flat power band and it exhibited a strong bottom end punch that we're not used to feeling in this car the 5-speed manual shifter and clutch are also smoother this year with better feel a four-speed automatic is optional unfortunately more cylinders means more fuel use barratto's epa fuel estimates have dropped about 10 percent 18 city 25 highway we got 22 miles per gallon the front wheel drive Corrado has always had a fine chassis new powertrain allowed us to make maximum use of its superior handling mild front plow changes to a smooth controllable oversteer we're especially impressed with the excellent steering field there was the typical volkswagen body roll in hard corners but it has no meaningful effect on handling the overall effect is excellent directional balance and solidity last year's optional anti-lock brakes are now standard they stopped our Corrado SLC in an average distance of 108 feet from 60 the ABS system now includes differential locking traction control which contributes to the car's excellent stability in both braking and acceleration abs and traction control are just the latest in the long list of standard features that includes everything from air conditioning to central locking so the Corrado isn't just fun to drive the comfortable efficient cockpit also makes it a very nice place to spend long periods of time height adjustable bucket seats have plenty of support and easy to use manual controls they combine with a standard tilt wheel to make finding a comfortable driving position easy motorized belts provide passive restraint you sit facing a large clear but somewhat incomplete set of analog gauges well there is a trip computer high-performance cars should give the driver complete information all of the time on a more positive note Volkswagen actually puts the well-laid-out controls for the optional CD player up high in the dash where they're easiest to use and for the first time in a VW that we can recall the ignition also shuts off the stereo heat in ventilation controls our classic VW and also easy to reach and use but the power window controls are set low and flat on the doors where you can easily hit them with your knee while driving interior storage space includes a large glove box along with the usual nooks and pockets but rear passenger space in this 2+2 is tight the split folding rear seat is best used for child sized riders but it does increase the already adequately sized trunk which is easy to load thanks to a low lift over the vr6 Corrado x' price now starts at twenty-one thousand eight hundred forty dollars with only one option our test car cost ninety dollars while we think that's a fair price it's still more than you'll pay for a comparably equipped Honda Prelude si the prelude only packs four cylinders under its hood and is slower to sixty than the more powerful BW the grotto also has better handling than a prelude without 4-wheel steering and slightly stouter ABS brakes a Mazda mx-5 e6 engine it's a smaller less powerful one than the VW s so the Mazda is not as quick but offers braking and handling equal to the Corrado's in our safety check the Volkswagen Corrado SLC passes with standard ABS and rear shoulder belts but no airbags are available hit start with the kraaho superb new engine and excellent handling we also like the smooth gearbox strong brakes efficient interior and long list of standard features for its price missus include the gauges which are large but incomplete for a high performance car then there is the reduced fuel economy and the poorly located power window controls that's not much to complain about and that's because the Volkswagen Corrado SLC is a truly superb automobile that's mostly thanks to the vr6 engine which finally gives it the power and overall balance it needs and makes it one of the most impressive sport coupes that we've driven in years you

Channel: MotorWeek

Views: 158,902

Rating: 4.9623475 out of 5

Keywords: Work), VR6, Fuel Economy, Road Test, Engine, Configuration), Pickups, Pickup Trucks, Electric Vehicle, Automotive, CUV, Company), Corrado, (Automobile, Audi, (Piston, TBT, Trucks, EV, Hybrid, Fuel, Utilities, MotorWeek, SUV, Diesel, Speed, Track, PBS, Drift, Tuning, MPG, Consumer, Clean, Car, Passenger, PHEV, Exotic, (Award-Winning, Volkswagen, Review, SUVs, 90's, Cars, Fast, Golf, Gasoline, CUVs

Id: dCc6Z0RnoGg

Length: 6min 48sec (408 seconds)

Published: Thu Sep 18 2014

Reddit Comments

[u/Mk2Guru]

I have had 4 corrados, 2 vr6 1 g60 and one 2.0 16v. From what I have found the late model SLC like mine which was a 94 was perfect. With bigger cams I was getting 31 mpg and 0-60 in 5.8 seconds with few other modifications. The versions with coil packs were awesome. I was not a huge fan of the distributed VR6. The interior was worse and very poor placement of the window switches. The late model ones fixed that problem.

Would I buy one again... ...Yes I would get a late model SLC Corrado if I found one in good shape body wise. Not really worried about the engine since I would just rebuild it anyways. The SLC I made perfect with 220hp for a DD.

[u/CrunchyBones]

0 - 60 MPH in 6.4 seconds with a 5 speed, not bad for 1992 imo.

[u/JesseRAWR]

I have a G60 corrado, with little modifications its takes 0-60mph in a 6 seconds :> but the fucking thing eats all my money, since im a student and hardly make money..

[u/reformed]

I have a '92 SLC. It was fantastic stock (even with 20 years under its belt), and even better with a 1.8T up front in place of the factory VR6.