By Jehran Naidoo for Auto Rush
“There was a time where everyone was doing ABF conversions in their Golf. And the 16v ABF is king, I am a die hard fan. But lets be honest, nothing sounds as good as this R32.”
That’s Kevin Moonsamy’s response when asked why he opted for the R32 engine.
At a glance, the car looks pretty much the same as it does out of factory, except for the Audi Speedline wheels wrapped in 17 inch rubber.
But that “stock” look quickly dissipates once he hits the throttle.
‘The best’ made even better
Moonsamy, 38, of Hillary in Durban, initially wanted to build a naturally aspirated 16 valve Golf 1 but was advised against it by Trivolan Pather of Denzil’s Auto.
Not because the engine is not capable of delivering results, but because Kevin wanted a fun street car. If he stuck with the 16v, he would have had to turn it into a full drag car.
“I was building an aspirated 16v at the time and started buying parts and building them over the years. I bought the head, crank, rods and pistons as time went. But Trivolan told me that if I wanted to go 11 seconds, the car would need a very expensive gearbox. He then said I should build the R32 instead,” Kevin recalled.
Denzil’s Auto has been building the R32 Mk1 Golf for over a decade and perfected it, according to some. Besides Kevin, you would find numerous engines with the ‘Denzil’s Auto R32’ stamp on it during a drag event at Dezzi Raceway
Specific on the build
It’s a specific sound that’s achieved through their experience and exhaust set-up, which is mandrel bend.
On race days, Kevin runs the car on full meth and 1,000cc race injectors. It is tuned to around 320 nm torque and just under 300 horsepower. He entrusts Imran of Per4mance tuning to calibrate the firing 6.
“Let me tell you, 300 horsepower is more than enough for the streets,” he added.
Kevin still uses the car to work and on weekends. He was reluctant to alter any aesthetic elements that would force him to cut and weld parts of the car.
He also didn’t want an induction that would stick out of the front grille, and replace a headlamp.
‘Fussy’ is putting it lightly
He’s actually a bit of a fussy character, as he described, wanting perfection in every millimeter.
“A simple thing as adjusting my seat. If my seat is not right, I will miss a gear. That’s how fussy I am. When we set up the car, I told Trivolan that I need gears 1 through 4 to be easy. So even if I slip up on the 60ft, I can punch through all the gears and still get the time. That is what we did,” Kevin explained.
Kev’ ran a personal best time of 11.9 seconds with a 1.6 60 foot at Dezzi Raceway earlier this year. He’s been on cloud 9 ever since.
What’s even more special is the only modifications done is an induction and methanol. But it’s the simple things, when done right, which can work in your favour, the accountant said.
It’s the little things
“I am the type of person who likes things to work accordingly. It doesn’t matter how cheap or simple it is, if it’s working to its full potential then I am happy.. I will take the result. It does not need to be the fastest or the most expensive thing. But if everything works the way it should, then I am happy with the results,” Kevin said.
The suspension was also redone to avoid breakages down the line, given that the R32 power hits harder than a mother with a wooden spoon. A set of coil overs were fitted out front.
The interior was also given a magic touch, with the race seats getting a makeover with pin stripes and alcantara. Kevin also changed the Golf 1 steering wheel to a Golf 4 edition.
The dashboard remains the factory, as do the door pads and locking mechanism, which are in perfect working order might I add.
With the open road ahead, the Vdub lover hopes to travel many happy miles in his R32.
Auto Rush
