| | |  | | PRESS RELEASES | Volkswagen Golf4 / Polo 1,9 TDi
Tests independently conducted by Adrian Burford of Roadworks cc | | - Volksies with vooma - | If you’ve got a Volkswagen with the 1,9-litre turbodiesel, an SAC branch near you can make it an even more efficient operator, with performance and fuel consumption benefits. | | Tuning specialists Steves Auto Clinic are breathing new life into the Golf 4 TDi by offering an impressively refined conversion which gives it sparkling performance, and at the same time have developed a similar but even more powerful upgrade for the Polo 1,9 TDi. | | And while the cars are radically different - with the latter fast becoming the thinking man’s hot hatch and the former a tried and tested all-rounder - they both bear all the hallmarks of an SAC conversion. | |  | | | That means a holistic approach starting with extensive research and development, followed by independent local testing, ensuring long-term mechanical integrity and real world gains: plenty of modified cars make additional peak power, but this needs to be usable in terms of driveability and overall efficiency. | | Both are fitted with similar powerplants and while there are differences in the actual injection method and technology, SAC uses the same basic approach to unleashing more power and torque. | | The Polo’s more modern engine is also fitted to a number of other VW, Audi and more recently SEAT models, and owners of these vehicles would also benefit from similar upgrades. | Key features of an extensive underbonnet makeover include: | | | In the case of the Golf, power swells from 81 to 108 kW, an increase of 33 percent. The Polo, which starts off with 96 kW, lit up the dynamometer at SAC Engineering with a max of 125 kW and a torque increase of about 18 percent. These numbers place it firmly in the upper echelon of the hot hatch class. | |  | | Golf4 TDi gets a 33 percent power boost thanks to an SAC conversion | | |  | | Little black number . . . the three-door 1,9 TDi Polo becomes a genuine hot hatch with some TLC from SAC, and will accelerate to 100 km/h in little more than eight seconds! | | | | | | The proof of the (performance) pudding is in the eating as they say, and the end result is a car capable of sprinting to 100 km/h in just 8,2 seconds before reaching a top speed just shy of the 220 km/h mark. | | The Golf is slightly more sedate, standstill to 100 taking 9,1 seconds before topping out at 198 km/h. As can be seen from the flexibility numbers, both are extremely safe car in overtaking manoeuvres, and exceptional open road cruisers. | | The “Plug and Play” ECU upgrade is relatively simple, and uses a pre-set map developed for this package to optimise the fuel volume and timing perfectly across a broad engine speed/engine load matrix. | | | The cost of the complete conversion as tested is R17 995, and can be easily tailored to suit individual needs. The five elements of the conversion can be purchased separately, but obviously work out to be slightly more expensive than the package. | | But whatever way you slice and dice it, if you drive a Volksie with a 1,9 TDi powerplant, the only question you need to ask yourself, is which dealer in SAC’s nationwide network suits you best. | |  | | Before & After Tests
- Volkswagen Golf4 / Polo 1,9 TDi - | | All tests conducted using a Racelogic VBOX GPS-based data acquisition system | | | SAC
Polo TDi | Standard
Polo TDi | SAC
Golf4 TDi | Standard
Golf4 TDi | | ACCELERATION: | | | | | | | | | | 0 - 60 km/h: | 3.8 Secs | | 4.22 Secs | | 4.2 Secs | | 4.62 Secs | | | 0 - 80 km/h: | 5.97 Secs | | 6.56 Secs | | 6.5 Secs | | 7.41 Secs | | | 0 - 100 km/h: | 8.2 Secs | | 9.27 Secs | | 9.1 Secs | | 10.96 Secs | | | 0 - 120 km/h: | 11.6 Secs | | 13.4 Secs | | 12.9 Secs | | 16.32 Secs | | | 0 - 400 Metres | 16 Secs | | 16.85 Secs | | 16.6 Secs | | 17.98 Secs | | | TERMINAL SPEED: | 141 km/h | | 133.7 km/h | | 135.4 km/h | | 128.3 km/h | | | 0 - 1,000 metres: | 29.5 Secs | | 31.7 Secs | | 30.4 Secs | | 32.79 Secs | | | TERMINAL SPEED: | 175.7 km/h | | 166 km/h | | 170.2 km/h | | 156.3 km/h | | | VMAX: | 218 | | 206 | | 198 | | 191 | | | FLEXIBILITY: | | | | | | | | | | 60 - 100km/h (4th): | 5.5 Secs | | 6.5 Secs | | 6.6 Secs | | 8.84 Secs | | | 60 - 100km/h (5th): | 8.1 Secs | | 9.6 Secs | | 9.8 Secs | | 12.29 Secs | | | 60 - 120km/h (4th): | 5.9 Secs | | 6.9 Secs | | 6.9 Secs | | 10.18 Secs | | | 60 - 120km/h (5th): | 7.1 Secs | | 8.7 Secs | | 9 Secs | | 13.08 Secs | | | Test Conditions | | All Tests conducted at Gerotek Proving Ground at Reef altitude. Car magazine tests conducted at sea level. All Gerotek test results are an average of two runs in opposite directions. Fuel tank full, driver only. Test data compiled by Adrian Burford of Roadworks, using Racelogic Vbox Test Equipment. | | | | | Click Here to get an SAC consultant to advise you on your conversion! | | Performance / power conversions, modifications, engine upgrades available for Alfa, Audi, BMW, Chev, Chrysler, Colt, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Isuzu, Jeep, Kia, Mazda, Mercedes, Mini, Nissan, Opel, Toyota, VolksWagen and more... | | Click here for more about our conversions | | | |
