OT: C & D and other magazines

[jason@scirocco.org (16V Jason)]

Guys,
	Below is from a friend of mine who knows about these things:  :)
Jason


Jason,

The cars tested in magazines come from independent companies, but the=20
manufacturers provide cars to those companies. They just have those=20
companies (most go through A&M) maintain the cars and handle the loans to=20
avoid the hassle, not to ensure that the cars are actually stock. That=20
said, I haven't heard of nonstandard cars in quite some time, although I am=
=20
also not sure anyone would ever know. I am sure the car companies, at the=20
very least, give the cars a thorough going-over before sending them into=20
the press fleet.

Mike

At 12:20 PM 2/1/2002 -0500, 16V Jason wrote:
 >At 04:38 PM 1/31/2002, UrGTI@aol.com wrote:
 >>I was looking though a buddies library of car mags and I think it was R&T
 >>where they are testing a 16v rocco and you can clearly spot the 50mm=
 intake
 >>in the pics of the engine bay. I cant remember it it had A/C  or not but=
 my
 >>memory  is leaning towards not.
 >
 >Oh yeah -- all of the magazines do.  Now, mind you, most of them used=20
stock VW photos -- but if you look closely at the R&T photo (which was not=
=20
a VW pic), that baby's a 50mm intake.
 >
 >Now, is it any wonder noone can duplicate 0-60mph runs in 8s flat (or=20
7.7s as per R&T) with a stock 1.8?!  If they put the 50mm intake on, it=20
wouldn't surprise me that they also did other internal engine mods -- for=20
all we know, it could be a 2.0 with a Euro cam and Euro FI.
 >
 >It's my understanding now that the car magazines get their test cars from=
=20
an independent company -- not the manufacturer directly.  (Ever notice how=
=20
all the magazines have the identical car in the same issue??)  So=20
thankfully, that problem has been solved...
 >
 >Jason
 >
 >
 >
 >
 >----------
 >1987 Scirocco 2.0 16v   [7.4s 0-60; was 8.7s with the 1.8]
 >1988 Mercedes 190E Sport 2.0  [9.5s 0-60, but it's Euro-spec so no=
 torque!]
 >1994 Golf III GL 2.0  [11.7s 0-60 -- WOOHOO!!!]
 >
 >http://www.scirocco16v.org
 >
 >
 >"In the olden days, a good flame war could go on for weeks or months,=20
with hot invective flying around like rhetorical shrapnel. It was high art,=
=20
high entertainment. Though tempers flared hot and professional bridges were=
=20
sometimes irreparably burned, ultimately it was a game =97 a participatory=
=20
sport in which the audience awarded points for felicitous disparagements,=20
particularly well-worded putdowns, inspired squelches."  -- Christopher=20
Locke, "The Cluetrain Manifesto".=20