VW Combi with WRX running gear..??

[Neeek]

Saw this last night in Brisbane coming back home from the shops - heading south on Lutwyche Road at Lutwyche. So we are overtaken by a nice-looking combi with some serious airbrushing work done on the back wearing the private QLD plates "VWRX". I thought nothing of it - nice combi, done up well, likes his combis and Scoobies... fair enough...

Until my wife said aloud "I wonder if it's a cross between a WRX and a combi?", obviously reading the plate. I rolled down the window as we sat behind it at the lights. They went green, and off it went... with that familiar flat-four warble... and then the "psht" of a blow-off valve..!

It was nuts. I've been trying to find any info on it, but have only found a VW Beetle that was fitting with WRX running-gear made in the NT (which looks about as nuts as the combi, but not nearly as cool)... but nothing about the combi.

Anyone know of this combi?

[LUXO_8]

dont know anything about the combi, but theres an SX20 camry (ie this model ) here in geelong with full WRX running gear in it, all wheel drive and all....
its dark blue and has been featured in a mag (hot 4's i think, might be something else)

serious amounts of work went into that sleeper.... sounded awesome though......

[DoreSlamR]

damn hippys are getting richer

[Raptor]

Substituting the old dak-dak flat four with one from a Subaru has been pretty common for years amongst the VW enthusiasts. The WRX donk just makes it even more fun.

http://www.customoffroad.com.au/tech...sp?articleid=8

http://www.customoffroad.com.au/vw/p...asp?partid=176

Plumbing in a radiator must be a pain though.

[brendan88]

I just sold my kombi. But WRX engines are quite common. I've seen them with EJ20tt, 13Bt, 253's and heaps of different engines. Awesome cars and just never die

[csv8]

In America they put Suby motors into Goldwings !!!!

[muppet]

I have been in a V8 kombi before and lets just say I was very keen to get out of it as soon as possible . Those things roll fairly easily and putting a motor with a lot of power in them is just asking for trouble . Was funny watching peoples reactions though , as you took off from the lights .

[private9]

My first 2 cars were Kombis, and this was something I always wanted to do. Would be awesome fun and you'd get heaps of laughs!

[coolkid]

on topgear it said jamie oliver owned one with some type of porshe motor in it :

[Yellow_Festiva]

There is a post on here somewhere that is a page with a story board of putting in a smashed Porsche's engine into a Konbi van.

They had to slice the van clean in half and widen it by 4 inches I think.

The site also has a few links to video where the van is thrashed around a track racing other real exotics and beating em.

[Rev28K]

The tricky bit seems to be getting a radiator fitted without buggering up the aesthetics of the car that it’s going in to. Subaru engines are water-cooled and those VW flat 4’s were air-cooled.

I’ve seen them in Porsche Speedster replica’s, Beetles and Manx Baja’s.

[Nashy86]

Originally Posted by Yellow_Festiva

There is a post on here somewhere that is a page with a story board of putting in a smashed Porsche's engine into a Konbi van.

They had to slice the van clean in half and widen it by 4 inches I think.

The site also has a few links to video where the van is thrashed around a track racing other real exotics and beating em.

I think I saw on Top Gear once that Jamie oliver's blue combi has a porsche motor, may have been wrong tho...

[fordOwner]

There is a new VW van in Perth thats owned by City Subaru it is their mobile sevice vehicle. It was painted blue, had hot rims on it and it has WRX badges on it, looked hot. dunno if it had the motor in tho.

[Doctor Sodways]

There is an orange split screen kombi, possibly a 21 window bus with a porsche turbo motor in it, they run the gumball reguarly, the biggest problem they have is cooling, each year they overheat somewhere i think. Thing moves too, reguarly runs with some of the supercars on the autobahns

[Zed7fiddy]

I have seen this up the Sunshine coast, and also saw the plates and wandered, then the thing took off and heard that Boxer Rumble that all Rex's are renound for, its a awesome machine! a lot of hard work!

I thought the Plates were VVRX though, could be wrong

[Airmon]

Yeah a few of my mates have Kombis and directed me to the Kombi Club, met a few of them at the drags and apparantly its pretty popular to be running suuby motors or charging them. A few of them run 15 or even 14second passes. Not bad for a bus.

[Billy351]

Originally Posted by MADNC_8

dont know anything about the combi, but theres an SX20 camry (ie this model ) here in geelong with full WRX running gear in it, all wheel drive and all....
its dark blue and has been featured in a mag (hot 4's i think, might be something else)

serious amounts of work went into that sleeper.... sounded awesome though......

Curry in a hurry?

[Dean]

My younger brother has a Kombi fitted out with a Holden V6 in it, they basically changed the chassis rails and the engine fitted straight in. To look at it you would think it was from the factory but pull up next to it at the lights and he will give you a run for your money, it's pretty scary when it pulls the front wheel off the ground. One of his mates also has one with a Subaru engine as well, they look pretty strange with a radiator up the front. I'll get some pics and post em up.

Cheers

[Jesk]

There was a regular at a servo in stirling I used to work at with a Kombi ute with a straight 6 commo engine in it and it had a under body scoop on it to catch the air! it looked a little odd but it musta done the trick cos it was his daily driver and work ute

[Raptor]

If your going to bother with an engine conversion in a Kombi you may as well go all out



More here; http://www.hotrod.com/featuredvehicl.../photo_01.html

[Ringo]

I remember reading and article about the VW Beetle with a WRX motor in it a few year ago and basically it was labeled a death machine.

It weighed less than 1 tonne, had the 1960's agricultural torsion bar front suspension but had something like 5 times the power is was designed for....hmmm unsafe at any speed.

[brendan88]

CHECK OUT THIS KOMBI ....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_gJII5bTfE

How would ya be, driving along in your Porsche GT3, your 06 WRX STI, your Aston Martin or even Lotus and getting smoked by a 45 year old KOMBI VAN

THATS A REAL KOMBI

[outback_ute]

Putting the engine in the middle is cheating though! A real trick would be to get the WRX 4wd in as well as the engine - Porsche Carrera 4 gearbox anyone?

I've seen a Subaru Brumby ute around Melbourne with a nice paint job and WRX badge on the back, that would be a weapon but I'd want a bit more body stiffness I think.

[EdFairmontGhia]

That super combi is awesome, i wonder what it's power figures are??

[private9]

Originally Posted by brendan88

CHECK OUT THIS KOMBI ....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_gJII5bTfE

How would ya be, driving along in your Porsche GT3, your 06 WRX STI, your Aston Martin or even Lotus and getting smoked by a 45 year old KOMBI VAN

THATS A REAL KOMBI

AWESOME!!! Imagine it street registered, period 2 tone paint, porsche hub caps, whitewalls, some venetians - perfect sleeper material!

[jcxr]

I used to manage a VW wreckers in coburg and some of the conversions were eye openers, one was a 13b in an early beetle, mid mounted,ex circuit race car, now back in street trim. Awsome.

[ebxr8240]

We know Kiwi's are crassy.. This just proves it...
http://www.stiatv.co.nz/

[Yellow_Festiva]

Originally Posted by Yellow_Festiva

There is a post on here somewhere that is a page with a story board of putting in a smashed Porsche's engine into a Konbi van.

They had to slice the van clean in half and widen it by 4 inches I think.

The site also has a few links to video where the van is thrashed around a track racing other real exotics and beating em.

Found the site off the youtube link posted earlier.

http://www.race-taxi.ch/

Take a look at the work and the workmanship involved!

[irsa76]

Google "Vanagon-S". The guy has so far built about 6 Suby powered VW vans, last of the rear engine shape. His current one is a dual cab with a US spec STI 2.5 matched to a Porsche G50 5 speed. As for the Porsche powered conversions, the body can be left standard. Porsche itself has built a number of these vans over the years, sadly they apparently have destroyed every single one when they finished with it.

[xbgs351]

You guys are selling the VW motors far too short.

Video of Peter Gumley's Kombi VW powered car:
http://videos.streetfire.net/search/...8500c1af84.htm

Description of the motor and car:
http://autospeed.drive.com.au/cms/A_1299/article.html

More background such as:

"What are your track times compared to a modified street car?

Well, as I said, I hold the record at Huntley at 19.42 seconds - there's a Subaru WRX that has the chip, exhaust, Formula R tyres and all the gear and I think the best he's ever run is a low 25. Really, that's miles away. We've also run our Pantera up there on road tyres and run a 25.8 - but bear in mind it's got 600hp..."

http://autospeed.drive.com.au/cms/A_1308/article.html