Renowned as the 'Crème de la Crème' of the VAG show season, Overstone Park played host to the eleventh Edition38 weekend, attracting the best show cars in Europe. Attendance was high, and the level of car quality was even higher! Coming to a show like this really makes you re-evaluate your own car, and often leaves you returning home with a mental to-do list that will see most of next years wages allocated for.
This year was my fourth show (oh how time flies!) and as usual, we set off in a 20+ strong convoy early on Friday morning. Of course, this didn't go without its mishaps. A burst radiator on Adam Wyatt's Supercharged VR6 was promptly attended to with chewing gum, exhaust putty and a trusty bottle of Radweld! Surprisingly this quick fix lasted the 200 miles each way and all was going well until just a few miles from the showground, the wheel on Matt Wright's B3 Passat decided to fall out with the rest of the car and make a break for freedom. Fortunately it stayed in the arch and he was able to drag it into a layby conveniently placed a few hundred yards further on.
Saturday morning and day one of the show and shine commenced. Fortunately the sun was shining from time to time and although a bit windy, it was dry all weekend so I don't think anyone could complain! The cars came rolling in and the chilled beats from the DJ on stage filled the air, producing a really relaxed vibe throughout the show ground. A perfect atmosphere for catching up with old friendly faces or meeting new ones.
With cars from every marque filling the show field, there was something for everyone to drool over. From pristine vintage standard examples to modern day modified show stoppers, every car had the attention to detail that really defines the VAG community.
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| Mk2 Polo Saloon |
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Jack Smith's US Spec Mk1 Golf
One thing that I noticed was just how popular air suspension setups had become. It seemed to me that there were more cars with air than cars on coilovers, with static setups being outnumbered by at least 2 to 1. But this is hardly surprising as more and more companies are popping up or expanding into offering and installing air setups, not to mention the practicality and now the affordability of kits. As time goes on and air setups start to fill the second hand market like they're starting to now, I can see the ratio of air setups to coilover setups becoming even greater.
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| Patina'd Karmann Ghia low on a static suspension setup. |
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Muhammed Hamidi's GLI Bora on 18" Carline's showing why air suspension is so popular.
The increasing popularity of air setups meant that more and more thought was going into making an air install stand out from the crowd as a show piece. Hard lines coupled with slick clean installs were often seen on the more modern cars, where as the older metal were often opting for a more period looking install. I particularly liked the install in this old Audi 80 pictured below.
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An interesting air install in this old Audi 80.
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| A slightly more discreet install, with a coverable window for protection during daily use. |
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As well as the well balanced mix of old and new, Edition38 also promises a mix of cars that are built for both aesthetic purposes and those that are performance orientated. Many 'supercar killers' graced the show ground over the weekend, offering a chance to get close and personal with the engine bays and chat to their owners.
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SWB Audi Quattro
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| R32 Engined Vento on ITB's |
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Possibly the stand out car of the show for me was the R32 engined Mk1 Golf pictured below. It caught my eye before I saw underneath the bonnet and I love the colour combined with the splits. But it wasn't until I saw it drive off that I realised the true monster that lied within. It was very bizarre at first, I kept looking around for a Mk4 before it dawned on me that the noise was in fact coming from this little Mk1. I just had to keep on coming back to it. The R32 engine looked suprisingly at home in the Mk1's smooth and clean bay, and was colour co-ordinated with the rest of the car. 100% my car of the show.
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One of the great things about the show is the stage, which lets you take a break from walking around looking at cars in order to listen to some interviews with the cars and their owners to find out a bit more about them. You get to hear some pretty crazy stories, often about the amount of work that gets done at the last minute on the run up to the show. It also gives you some insight into just how much work goes on behind the scenes, and the dedication it takes to produce a show winning car.
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| Mark Rodway's 1.8T Mk4 Golf on 19" Tiguan Wheels. Truly OEM+ |
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Lhasa Green Mk1 Jetta on ATS Classics. A timeless wheel for the Mk1s.
Sunday proved to be even busier than Saturday as usual, most likely due to the cheaper one day entry price and spirits stayed on a high throughout the day where the main show and shine took place. Unfortunately this meant it was much harder to try and get any decent pictures.
The judges worked hard throughout the day judging the classes they were most knowledgeable on, to help ensure a fair and worthy winner was chosen in each marque.
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As well as the main show and shine field, there are clubstands for the local clubs whose cars are often used as their daily but still loved and cherished and modified to their taste. I always enjoy looking around the clubstands and the camp site to look at the cars built on a smaller budget and that are used everyday, as these are often the ones I most enjoy looking at and talking to the owners about. These cars, for me, have more character and that's what I love most about the VW community.
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This Mk2 Jetta on BBS splits was simple but very effective.
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Adam Wyatt's Supercharged VR6 Mk3
At the end of the day on Sunday, everyone gathers around the stage to watch the winning cars be announced and receive their trophies. Living 200 miles away meant that I've yet to actually see this take place, as I have opted to miss the leaving traffic for the last four years but maybe next year I'll stick around and watch.
My Bora sat in the show field soaking up the sun.
A brilliant weekend, at a brilliant show with brilliant people and brilliant cars. Did I mention it was brilliant? Will I be back again for a 5th year running. No doubt!
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