Volkswagen R32 Supercharger – How Much Power Can You Get?

Volkswagen cars have always been popular in America. These vehicles represent the European style of building technologies. They are practical, quite affordable, very beautiful, and also efficient. When we say that VW cars are efficient, we mean both eco-friendly and fuel-efficient. Yes, you all remember that diesel scandal with 2-liter TDI engines, but bad things happen, right?

Volkswagen R32 is a special trim or modification of the Volkswagen Golf car. This modification was presented in 2002 for the fourth generation of Golf and then it was prolonged to the fifth generation and was manufactured up until 2008. R32 is the top trim of the Golf with the best engine under the hood. This vehicle deserves our attention, and today we'll talk about how to make it even crazier.

Here's what we'll be talking about today:

1. Volkswagen R32 engine specs and some features you should know.
2. Can you supercharge your Volkswagen R32 engine?
3. Some good sides after installing a supercharger.
4. Will there be any drawbacks of supercharging the VW R32?
5. Your potential expenses for supercharging the sporty Volkswagen.

Let's get started!

Main features about the Volkswagen R32 you should know

So, the Germans always wanted to make something sporty and furious, but their philosophy didn't allow that. When they were finishing with the fourth generation of the Golf, they decided to risk and added one more trim called R32. For this trim, they took the engine from Volkswagen Phaeton, a very big business-class sedan. This was a 3.2-liter VR6 engine offering 241 horsepower.

In one year, they started making the fifth generation of Golf known as Volkswagen Rabbit in America. For this generation, they tuned the VR6 engine to show even more power - 250 horsepower. The engine was the real beast. 250 horsepower it's even too much for a car like this.

And here are some facts about VW R32 with a VR6 engine:

1. The transmission was not just automatic. It was a 6-speed automated manual transmission (so-called robot) which allowed for better torque transition and ensured better power on the wheels.
2. The all-wheel-drive system was very wise because a front-wheel-drive car with such power wouldn't be easy to steer and handle.
3. Combined mileage was thought to be around 20 mpg, but of course, the final gas mileage depended much on how hard you were pressing that acceleration pedal.
4. R18 standard wheels were equipped with low-profile tires in order to get better road handling and wonderful design.
5. The suspension was the four-wheel independent type with two stabilizer bars. This allowed for better handling and more comfortable driving.

We now see that these vehicles were brilliantly engineered. Their track capabilities were much better than those of Focus ST or some other cars of this class. And the engine with a huge displacement allowed for better driving.

What's more, this engine is very reliable. The VR6 engines show wonderful mileage, some of them will go to 300 000 miles with only slight repairs. The average longevity is thought to be anywhere between 200 000 and 230 000 miles. For a sports engine, it's a very good result. Of course, if you use your R32 on sports tracks all the time, the mileage will be way worse.

Can you supercharge your Volkswagen R32?

These days, you can supercharge everything that has an internal combustion engine. Sometimes it makes sense, but sometimes it doesn't. In the case of Volkswagen R32, it's pretty hard to say for sure if it makes sense or not. On the one hand, it's a big engine with wonderful displacement and you can get more out of it. But on the other hand, does this car need more than 250 horsepower?

We've found some supercharger kits that will be OK for your Volkswagen R32. Most of them were sold in the UK because these cars were mainly sold in Europe. But delivering from the UK is not a big problem.

Here is what you can get when supercharging your R32 engine:

• more power - specialists say that 500 horsepower is an approximate limit for this engine, but you will need to invest a lot to get so much;
• wonderful torque - you will get at least plus 10-15% of torque even with the smallest "bolt-on" turbochargers, some professional ones will deliver plus 30-40% of torque;
• acceleration will be something like a Lamborghini can show, because the light car with a huge 500-horsepower engine is a furious thing;
• your top speed will also be improved - you will not have enough scales in your standard speedometer to measure the top speed;
• the driving pleasure will improve dramatically - this car is ready for sports driving, so you will only need to change the engine settings to get more pleasure.

As you see, installing a turbocharger will lead to great results. Yes, Volkswagen only offers 250 horsepower from a 3.2-liter block which is not even 100 horsepower from 1 liter of displacement. We saw projects of R32 engines in Stage 3 tuning with custom changes that could gain 800 horsepower. In a standard block!

Of course, we don't recommend getting your power to 800 hp because it will lead to other problems and it will cost you like a new Volkswagen Golf GTI, but still, turbocharging your VW R32 seems like a good idea.

How much money will you spend?

So, the "bolt-on" turbochargers will cost you about $300 for a complete kit, but they will only offer a slight change in the power and torque of the engine. So we recommend proper turbo kits with all needed parts for installing a turbocharger on your engine.

The optimal turbo kit for the VW R32 with all the pipes, radiators, oil supply parts, etc. will cost you around $2500. Another $1000 you should prepare for labor. It's extremely important to complete all the work professionally, otherwise, your car will get damaged in just a couple of miles.

We would say, the budget for turbocharging the Volkswagen R32 should be somewhere near $4000. But the results will pay off for every cent you spend on this.

Any drawbacks of installing a turbo?

Every action has some good and bad sides. And now you know only the good side of installing a turbo kit on your R32 engine in a Volkswagen. Many reviews give only the good side, but we want you to see the whole case, so let's talk about possible problems.

First of all, we don't recommend turbocharging any engines that have already started failing or have gone over 150 000 miles. You will just kill them because these engines are now very likely to have extensive wear and many hidden problems. They will not withstand any overloading.

Here are some other things you should consider:

1. Turbocharging your VR6 VW engine will shorten its life. The mileage of the engine after installing a turbo kit will depend on the power and torque in the end.
2. The transmission, which is an automated manual gearbox in this car, will not survive for a long time. It's set to withstand certain torque and it will not be able to work properly for years after you supercharge the engine.
3. You will have to think about intake and exhaust manifolds. They will need some changes or even a replacement because they are engineered for 250 horsepower and a certain amount of air.
4. The oil should be changed to a thinner type because, otherwise, your turbocharger will constantly fail. Turbochargers work well with thin oil while the VR6 engine needs thicker oil which is a problem you will not solve.
5. Minor problems will regularly happen with your steering system, suspension, brakes, and also other parts of your vehicle because of too much power and torque.

As you see, problems can also be unpleasant after you install the turbocharger. Please bear in mind that even the best turbo kit with the most professional labor will not guarantee that you won't have any problems with your powerful tuned engine. The more horsepower and torque you have, the more problems can come with them.

But if you are ready to invest more in your car, if you want to make it a project car, you can try. The VR6 Volkswagen engine is not a bad base for making a powerful beast that can compete with real supercars.

Final words

As you see, Volkswagen R32 is not a bad option for those who want to make a project car. These vehicles look good, they are very reliable, they can surprise you with their power even with standard settings. But you can tune the engine and also install a turbocharger that will add up to plus 100% of the power. And this is amazing.

Of course, if you don't want to lose money and get problems, better avoid hard tuning of your VR6 engine. We tried to describe the main problems you can get. And sometimes these problems may be even more dramatic. So, it's all up to you to decide whether you are ready to risk or not.