The People’s Car at Raceism

Nobody would argue that Volkswagen makes some of the most popular car for the masses. Even better, this is an automaker that’s happy young people buy their cars and modify them.

When it comes to drawing inspiration for customization, on one side there are relentless hype machines like Instagram and Pinterest, and on the other, countless forum threads on how to modify a VW correctly. Regardless of the method, the result of all this is an untold amount of aftermarket support, making it easy for Volkswagen owners to go nuts with modifications.

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According to the organizers of Raceism, 1,000 cars were selected to be showcased at this year’s event, and I feel that at least a third of those were Volkswagens. If we’re talking VAG products overall, I’d up that to at least 50%.

By far the most popular Volkswagen at Raceism was – unsurprisingly – the Golf. While early generation cars are usually modified with partial restoration at a minimum, people are going crazy with the later model Golfs. Reasonably affordable to pick up now, fifth and sixth generation Golfs have modern body lines that make them ideal for modern methods of customization.

Of course, some of the other well-known Volkswagen models were present here, too. Passats, Jettas and Polos were all well represented at Raceism, so I’ve included as much VW variety as possible in this post.

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Personally, I’m more a fan of older cars – they’re easier to work on and I feel more of an emotional attachment to them. At this event, the older VWs felt more unique, owners having applied more custom know-how to them.

Beetles, Sciroccos and Corrados were in limited supply at Raceism, but every one of them brought something unique to the table.

There were a few newer projects that left me speechless, but the craziest was this VW Up!. With a full-grown VR6 engine pushing through the front suspension, it could only be more rebellious if the donor car was the electric e-Up!.

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At the end of the event, a few cars received strong recognition from the judges, including Vittorio Filippi’s amazing 1963 Beetle, and this old school Passat Variant dropped on large Mercedes-Benz rims.

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Once you find yourself ingrained in the VW world, it can be hard to escape. But with such a strong community built around the brand, that’s not really a bad thing.

Vladimir Ljadov
Instagram: wheelsbywovka
because@wheelsbywovka.com
www.wheelsbywovka.com

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1

It’s always the been bug and the bus for me.

Nothing else

2

G _ _ of SPEED if you are there, I want an MK-V ^___^

3

I am just reminiscing of the old VW door/key chime.

4

Awesome Coverage!

Love the yellow Corrado. I keep wanting to build a Corrado, but have to keep resisting.

5

Just go for it man! If you really feel like stancing it and you see how awesome other people’s builds are then go for it!

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