Built as a fitting tribute to his late father, Ray van de Berg’s brought together one of VW’s most potent powertrains with its very smallest of city cars to create this rather insane VW Lupo R.

Feature taken from Performance VW magazine. Words: Sam Preston. Photos: Ron V

How did you first get into the car scene? Our early tales of automotive obsession are all bound to vary wildly, but there’s something that will ring true about a large proportion of them – most will involve your equally-as-passionate old man somewhere down the line.

Whether your father took you to watch your very first BTCC race or even helped you buy your inaugural motor after you passed your test, it’s fair to say more than a few of us wouldn’t be where we are today without taking at least a small chip off the old block.

For Netherlands-based Ray here, though, this father–son connection was taken a step further altogether; the duo successfully creating and running the incredibly popular J&R Cardesign wheel shop that ran for over two decades before closing just a few years back.

With Ray’s dad sadly passing away back in 2017, he thought it was only right to mark the immensely strong bond the two were lucky enough to share – especially when it came to their love of VAG metal – by taking ownership of his father’s final car and immortalising it in the most memorable way physically possible. The result is this unassuming-looking VW Lupo GTI here that’s guaranteed to leave a lasting impression on you as you learn more about the frankly unbelievable secrets it now holds…

Ray is no stranger to a big modified project. In fact, he’s now the main man behind Stolen Concept – a tuning outfit that thrives on realising some of the craziest automotive ideas the country’s colourful scene can throw at it. He himself has owned his fair share of one-off builds in his time, too; ranging from a 16v KR-swapped Mk1 all the way through to a Polo G40 Genesis, all of which were more than worthy of magazine features of their own.

The story of this unlikely VW Lupo R, however, begins back in 2007, with Ray’s parents snapping up the relatively sporty micro-hatch to perform their day-to-day duties in – a task it carried out faultlessly for the following decade. “I used to drive Lupos back in the day, but every time I drove this go-kart-like GTI I was impressed with its sportiness and maturity from such a small package,” Ray reminisces.

Following the passing of his father, it was a no-brainer for Ray to take over the reins with the beloved Lupo rather than see it being sold on to someone else. “I decided I’d keep it as a lasting memory of that connection we shared,” he puts it.

The plan was never to merely maintain the car in its pristine original condition (which his father meticulously stuck to throughout his ownership) – Ray already had much bigger ideas formulating in his head by the time he picked the little GTI up. “I never had much luck with turbo conversions or built engines in the past, so knew if I wanted to add more to the car, it would have to come in a more OEM-style format,” he explains, with engine conversion plans soon littering his desk at work as this rather epic project began to take shape.

But what motor would best suit this tiny hatchback? Soon settling on a variant of the winning 2.0-litre TSI lump used in several sportier VAG-group cars over the years, it was then simply a case of choosing exactly which version to go for. “It was much easier to find a K03-spec GTI engine, but I knew that I’d always just end up regretting not going all-out if I did that,” Ray keeps us up-to-speed, eventually sourcing a beefier, K04-adorned unit from a SEAT Leon Cupra R to get the ball rolling with.

Both car and engine were then promptly taken over to Germany-based tuner, Car Creativ, for the custom conversion to be performed. Following a plain-sailing job by the company’s talented team of getting the substantial new unit sitting pretty in the bay, Ray soon got to work whipping up bespoke parts like a custom exhaust system and driveshafts to suit this rather unusual application once the VW Lupo R was back in his workshop.

Since the conversion, the BWJ-coded engine has gone on to produce just shy of 350bhp thanks to some more subtle breathing mods that’re all tied together with a custom remap. The six-speed manual ‘box that’s attached to it has also been adapted to help the Lupo become as driveable as possible, with a Quaife LSD and longer gears to match the car’s dinky rolling radius; all of which adds up to a machine that’s unsurprisingly all sorts of hilarious to pilot.

Talking of wheels, some matte black 17” Rota Recces now prop up each corner thanks to Ray’s five-stud hub conversion all-round. This also allows him to run the much beefier braking system from a Beetle RSI – a vital upgrade now the car has well over double the power it’s used to. The chassis is topped off with KW coilovers and some sumptuous Wiechers carbon fibre strut braces that give it the handling characteristics of something much larger and more grown-up as a result.

This grown-up approach continues as you enter the Lupo’s cabin, which has steered clear of the uncompromised, stripped-out vibe that could’ve been justified with the savage powertrain it now boasts. Instead taking another leaf out of his father’s tasteful and reserved book of car modifying, the interior is a beautiful blend of various components from other VWs in the range that work together to create an extremely tasteful and reserved package.

It all revolves around the plush leather and Alcantara reclining buckets taken from none other than a Mk6 Golf GTI Edition 35, which themselves are complemented with a modern Polo GTI steering wheel and Mk7 Golf GTI gear knob. Ray’s even incorporated the ambient lighting system from a range-topping Passat that forms the icing on the cake to what has become one of the classiest interiors for miles around. “It’s surprisingly comfortable now,” he gleams. “I wanted to strike the balance between performance and luxury – two things you wouldn’t expect from a VW Lupo.”

Retaining a largely stock black GTI body aside from the aforementioned girthy rims, Ray certainly has something of a sleeper on his hands these days. “Unsurprisingly, it’s insanely fast, but does it all in a predictable and effortless manner,” he enthuses. “It’s caught more than a few people off-guard…”

Now proudly wearing its trick VW Lupo R engine cover atop of its potent TSI lump that looks like it was always designed for this car, it’s clear Ray has undoubtedly succeeded in developing the very ultimate incarnation of his father’s beloved run-around VW Lupo GTI.

Not content with merely dropping in a much more powerful engine, he instead used this as a starting block to carry out a raft of further work that would ensure he was left with not only a fast VW, but one that would make you feel special whenever you go anywhere near it…

Tech Spec: VW Lupo R

Engine:

2.0-litre TSI engine conversion (BWJ-code with K04 turbo from SEAT Leon Cupra R), Injen cold air intake, custom 70mm stainless steel turbo-back exhaust system, Forge Motorsport coolant hoses throughout, Forge Motorsport oil catch can, ECS Motorsport throttle pipe, custom ‘Lupo R’-adorned Audi TTS engine cover, Audi R8 coil pack and oil/coolant/power steering caps, 02Q six-speed manual gearbox (from Mk6 GTI) with custom longer gearing, Quaife limited-slip differential, uprated shifter bushings

Chassis:

8×17” Rota Recce alloy wheels in matte black, 195/45/17 Hankook Ventus S1 Evo tyres, full five-stud hub conversion, KW V1 coilovers with Silver Project adjustable top mounts, Powerflex bushes (all-round), H&R front sway bar, Whiteline rear sway bar, Wiechers Sport carbon fibre strut braces (front and rear), Beetle RSI brake conversion with 312mm (front) and 256mm (rear) discs, Audi RS3 brake ducting

Exterior:

Factory black GTI body, custom side skirt lips/spats, pop-out rear window conversion, Polo 6R stubby aerial

Interior:

Mk6 Golf GTI Edition 35 leather/Alcantara interior (with retro-fitted heater function), Polo 6C GTI steering wheel, Polo 9N GTI handbrake gaiter, Mk7 Golf GTI gear knob, Passat W8 ambient light conversion, 320km/h speedo, digital monitoring system for oil temperature/oil pressure/exhaust temperature

New cars can be tough to modify, but Razi has spent no time turning his FK8 into a street weapon with track personality. Check out his modified Honda Civic Type R FK8.

Feature taken from Banzai magazine. Photos: Callum Shaw

When the FK8 Type R was released you had the usual crowd posting GIFs of lawnmowers and the like in a bid to gather a few likes on social media. Those days of no torque are long gone thanks to the FK8s beating heart, the turbocharged 2.0-litre VTEC engine pushing out a healthy 295lb ft of torque. So what happens if you decide that isn’t enough?

Razi thought just that. Being an employee of Honda means that he’s spent a decent chunk of his time milling around with Type Rs but his passion for modifying meant the next logical step was to take a brand new base car and turn it into something that would hold it’s own against supercars on track as well as on a back road.

“I’ve always been into customisation and making things my own. Playing games like Need for Speed and Midnight Club really got me into modifying cars from a young age and of course The Fast and Furious has helped mould a new generation of modifiers. I started with a Civic Coupe EM1 then An EP3 CTR before making the silly mistake of buying an M135i – after that it was time to go back to my roots.” This is precisely why the FK8 was chosen, it was new, it had potential, no one was really doing it when this journey started in 2018 and it was familiar.

Risky business modifying a brand-new car though, at £30k+, it’s not a cheap car to start throwing away your warranty, which in turn means parts aren’t always the easiest to get hold of. However, it’s a Honda, if there’s a manufacturer that will always have aftermarket support, it’s Honda, but perhaps more surprising is where these parts come from. “Aftermarket support is huge with the FK8 and that’s because it’s the first CTR to be offered officially in the States. There are plenty of big brands doing extensive R&D both in the States and here; take Dream Automotive and Evasive Motorsports in the UK for example, they’re not just importing parts but also creating their own.”

What’s new then?

If anyone has heard a stock FK8 before you’ll understand when I say it’s the only underwhelming aspect of the car. “That exhaust was the first thing that needed to go. I had great performance but no noise.” With the bodykit as showy as it is, I know first-hand how embarrassing it is when someone asks to hear it… Razi opted for a system that eradicated the middle resonator pipe and added some meat to the show in the form of a HKS Legamax exhaust.

He then coupled that with a hardlagged cattless downpipe by Dream Automotive, which incidentally happens to be his favourite mod. It’s added in that trademark overrun pop that’s become fabled with turbo cars throughout the world. Not only that, but the hardlagging has helped control temperatures on track: “The quality on this downpipe is the best I’ve seen and it’s reassuring to know the engine bay is staying cool and that the heat management used with this downpipe is used in the highest levels of motorsport such as BTCC. I’ve noticed a big drop in temps using this downpipe.” Word of advice, those not looking to use their cars on track might opt for the downpipe without heat proofing, for the simple reason the additional material comes at a price…

Now to get the power up. Once a freer flowing exhaust was fitted, the goal was to increase air flow. Mishimoto were early with their development of intakes which meant one was ready to go. Then add in a larger PRL intercooler coupled with piping and a Ktuner V1.2 module with custom mapping by TDI North and power was up to a healthy 420bhp and 416lb ft. This is no lawnmower now, internet…

Now the real testing started. The power upgrades were great, but the car was made for track, all of the modifications were pointing towards use on track, so it was no good just ramping the power up if it become unusable. After a few tests on separate track days, temperatures became the biggest source of concern. “I had to drive on track with heaters on full to dissipate heat as quickly as possible. The extra power was lifting oil temperatures outrageously.”

The solution? A separate HKS oil cooler, Mishimoto secondary race radiator and Koyorad primary radiator replacement. Now the full potential of the engine could be exploited without worrying about temperatures. A track day at Silverstone confirmed that fluids stayed cool throughout each session.

With the engine now satisfied, it was time to move on. Modern cars are coming with such huge brakes these days and Honda employed one of the best to sort the braking on its FK8, Brembo. In replace of the standard pads came in Ferodo DS1.11 pads to help battle against fade, while Dream braided brake lines and Motul RBF660 fluid took care of the rest. Interestingly, Razi opted to swap out the standard discs for DBA T3 discs, which are made in Australia and designed for the most extreme road and race applications. Heat shouldn’t be a problem here, then…

The chassis didn’t go unchanged, either. Thanks to the extra power, extra rubber was needed. Lighter Apex EC-7 18×9.5J ET43 wheels were bought all round (thanks to my suggestion!) and they were wrapped in Yokohama Advan A052 tyres for grip on track. Now the car was better able to put down the 416lb ft of torque once the tyres got up to heat. There’s no point in having 400+bhp if you can’t use it…

Still not satisfied with the corner speeds on track, Razi spoke with Dream Automotive who were running an FK8 in Time Attack and decided that by removing the camber pins they could run -2.2 degree camber at the front and -2.5 degrees at the rear to improve turn in as well as rear rotation on slower corners. This, coupled alongside Eibach lowering springs and new anti-roll bars front and rear helped to tighten up the chassis to eliminate roll all round.

Check out that splitter; that’s the BMSpec splitter that runs flat to the front wheels. At first it looked more aesthetic than functional but through the high-speed sections at Silverstone, Razi assures us that he feels more confident after having it fitted, suggesting it not only looks the business, but it helps out with the overall purpose of this car, on track.

Modified Honda Civic Type R FK8: What’s it like to drive?

I’ve known Razi for the best part of two years and have seen this car grow, so it would have been rude not to tell you, the reader, what all this means on the road. Compared to a stock FK8, everything feels like it’s been ramped up to 11. Driveability hasn’t been diminished, it can still be the regular road car you want it to be, retaining the adaptive suspension. What it’s done is woken the car up, it feels more frantic, like a big dog that has the personality of a small one and wants to bark at everything.

Throw it into a corner and the front end feels sharper, the rear slightly looser like it wants to rotate, but just enough to help you corner better. The power, though, it feels comfortably more than what the figures suggest. There is a downside, though, torque steer. The stock ECU simply can’t react quick enough with its inputs to the limited slip diff to direct the right amount of power to the front wheels. You do feel like you have to grip on tight, especially when overtaking. This is less of a problem on flat tracks, but on a back road with changing camber and elevation, you really have to work the wheel.

And that’s where my question about future mods leave us. “Over the winter, the Eibach Springs will be replaced with HKS Hypermax Coilovers. It will also be tuned using Syvecs ECU to take advantage of traction control and flat foot shifting.” I’m willing to bet this will transform the car to the next level, capable of embarrassing far more expensive cars on track. “After this, a roll cage and a Recaro Pole Position for safety on track. Eventually, a built motor when a good turbo and fuelling solution arrives.” So more power, then…

Tech Spec: Modified Honda Civic Type R FK8

Engine:

2.0-litre VTEC Turbo engine, HKS Legamax Exhaust, HKS Oil Cooler, HKS SQV4 BOV, HKS Intercooler Pipes, PRL Intercooler, PRL 3” Front Pipe, Dream Hardlagged Catless Downpipe, Mishimoto Intake, Mishimoto Secondary Race Rad, Koyorad Radiator, USR/PTP Turbo Blanket, 27WON Rear Motor Mount, KTuner V1.2 tuned by TDI North with 3 Power Levels via mode switch. 420bhp, 400bhp, 370bhp

Chassis:

Apex EC7 18×9.5J ET43, 265/35/18 Yokohama Advan A052, Eibach Springs/Camber Arms, Camber Pins Removed, Eibach 32mm Front ARB, Eibach 25mm Rear ARB, DBA T3 Discs, Ferodo DS1.11 Pads, Dream Braided Brake Lines, Motul RBF660 Fluid, Girodisc titanium brake pad shields

Interior:

Acuity shifter bearings, Dream gear knob, Tunerview Display

Exterior:

Mugen wind deflectors

With thanks to:

“Dream automotive and TDI North for the support”