1991 Volkswagen Golf Mark II - Coupede Golf

As we roll down a heavily trafficked boulevard in Cam Waugh's VW Golf, people twist their faces in disbelief and incomprehension, like they just saw Giselle rip a fart. The face just doesn't match the windpipes. Cam's gorgeous four-door 1991 Mark II Golf, you see, belches combustion through 16 exhaust valves, in the order dictated by two exhaust cams. When another two cams say so, fresh air moves around 16 intake valves to start the power cycle over again. Give up? His engine isn't a twin spark, and it's got eight spark plugs, one for each cylinder. That's right, we're rolling in perhaps the world's only V8-powered, front-wheel-drive compact car.

From Cam's shop, CWS Tuning (www.cwstuning.com), in frigid and friendly Regina, Saskatchewan, have rolled such wonderful hybrids as a Honda ZC-powered Chevy Sprint, a turbo Supra (7M-GTE)-powered BMW 5-series, an old Mini on a Suzuki Sidekick chassis, and now the Coupe de Golf.

This example of Cadillac's all-aluminum, 4.6-liter Northstar V8 was donated by a front-wheel-drive 1994 Seville STS and fits well in the Golf's engine bay. At 1.5 inches shorter and just 60 pounds heavier than a VR6, the Northstar isn't such a far-fetched swap.

Without giving away any secrets, let's just say that mounting the engine involved one hockey puck and one session with a sledgehammer.

The only transmission available with the Northstar is a four-speed automatic, which Cam shifts with the stock Volkswagen shift apparatus modified to work with the four-speed.

The Northstar normally sits in the long nose of Cadillacs; therefore, in order to have proper axle alignment, Cam was forced to place the engine far forward in the Golf's engine compartment. Far forward means the entire engine sits fore of the axle centerline, which leaves a big old block of air space between the rear valve cover and firewall, perfect for say, a honkin' turbo. Local driveshaft specialist Pino built a set of axles using Northstar inners and the large GTI outers, which have so far held up to V8 twist.

Engine modifications are, for now, minimal. A 3-inch mandrel-bent aluminum intake feeds an otherwise stock intake tract, which uses a cone-type filter. Simplifying what could be a total disaster of electron guidance, Cam orchestrated the engine management per his usual strategy, letting the factory Northstar powertrain modules control engine and transmission function and the factory VW ECU do the rest. The results are perfect. Ever the junkyard guru, Cam uses a factory Bosch high-volume fuel pump from a 16V GTI, which moves plenty of juice to eight thirsty cylinders.

Dipping into the throttle pedal on this car is like pushing a button on a morphine drip. With most of the Northstar's torque available at 2000 rpm, this thing whips around town at idle. But the best part isn't just so much the forward thrust, but its hair-raising and resounding song that makes you miss your exit as you bathe in sonic coolness. You keep checking the rear-view mirror to assure yourself a Trans Am car isn't trying to make a pass.

Cam is responsible for the 3-inch mandrel-bent stainless steel exhaust, which routes spent petrol through a Flowmaster muffler and into the frozen Canadian day. An interesting by-product of putting a large displacement, modern engine in a light car is that the Golf gets 30-plus mpg.

One would think the Coupe de Golf would require serious engineering of the suspension setup to make it handle, but well-priced FK adjustable coil-overs do a surprisingly good job right out of the box.

The Golf is still light when equipped with the Northstar, but big binders were in order with all that speed on tap. When the car still had stock brakes, they'd glow bright red after a run around the block. RPI, VW performance specialists, assisted with its 11-inch rotors squeezed by four-piston billet-aluminum calipers.

In usual Cam style, rather than buying a set of trick wheels that fit, he pored over eBay for a set of mint 16-inch BBS three-piece wheels for a Porsche 911. Of course, the bolt pattern is not correct, so Cam had an expert machinist redrill the wheels. The rear wheels are 9-inches wide and wear 215/40-17 tires. The fronts measure 7-inches wide and wear 205/45-17s. From a dynamic standpoint, it would make more sense to put the wider tires up front, but damn if they don't look perfect hanging out back.

The comfortable, heated leather seats were sourced from an Acura RSX Type-S. Cam had the stock rear bench seat recovered in black leather to match the Acura seats, and the result is surprisingly upscale. A leather Corrado steering wheel is black to match, as is the shift knob. The Seville STS gauge cluster was grafted into the Golf dash for a factory appearance. As Cam and his wife Kendell commute in everything he builds, he installed an Alpine head-unit which powers Alpine three-way speakers and spits signal to an Earthquake amp feeding two 10-inch Kicker subs in a custom enclosure.

Exterior enhancements are numerous but subtle. Cam bolted on a factory 16V GTI body kit and used a Carbon Fiber FX hood, made in Vancouver. Other modifications consist of an FK grille, Kamei grille spoiler and FK Euro cross-hair headlights, which, Cam reports, throw significantly more light than factory units, and RPI M3-style taillights.

Sharp eyes will notice the Northstar badge mounted on the front grille and painted flat black. When preparing the car for paint, the side markers were shaved, as was the antenna, necessitating installation of a 16V roof antenna. The custom paint, mixed and sprayed by Auto Extreme in Regina, was born of chance, but the result is unique and eye grabbing. Pearl metallic was sprayed first, followed by a coat of bronze, reversing the standard order, and then clear-coated. The Golf changes color between silver, bronze and gold depending on light and angle.

We're not the only ones impressed. At the car's first showing, the Majestics Car Show, the Coupe de Golf took home Best Custom Sport Compact and Best Sport Compact Engine.

Another cold Canadian winter, another strange and wonderful car, another ride we wouldn't mind owning. Cam possesses a rare form of creativity that melds artistry, junkyard savvy and mechanical mastery that, we're sure, will birth something else unexpected to delight us again.