In the past decade or so, coupe-cabriolets have taken off in a big way, and for good reason: Such cars offer all the advantages of open- and fixed-roof motoring with almost none of the disadvantages. At the touch of a button, such cars go from a roofless boulevard cruiser to a more “serious” hard-top coupe.
And it is probably for this reason that the owner of this VW Eos, Mr J, chose it to be his third car when he was in the market for a fun-to-drive, reasonably powerful convertible back in January 2013. J also owns a Suzuki Swift Sport and a Subaru WRX STI, so it should be quite clear that he’s accustomed to a certain level of performance from his cars.
With that in mind, most of the mods on his Eos are aimed at improving its performance. In factory spec, the Eos develops 200bhp and 280Nm, thanks to its 2-litre turbocharged engine (the same as the one fitted to the Mk 5 Golf GTI), but with an ECU remap from Quantum Tuning, this Eos now packs 262bhp and 360Nm.
This means J’s car is now even punchier than before, though he hasn’t stopped there. J has also made sure the engine now “breathes” better through a K&N drop-in air filter. The turbocharged 4-pot also gets a shortened turbo-discharge pipe that helps improve responsiveness and eliminate lag.
With all those engine mods, it goes without saying that J has gone for an aftermarket exhaust system. After all, with a souped-up engine, it would be unseemly to have it not sound the part. To that end, this Eos has a Jetex quad-tailpipe exhaust system that endows the coupe-cabriolet with throatier “vocals”.
Given that added oomph, J has opted to upgrade his car’s stopping power with a pair of 6-pot Brembo brake callipers for the front axle, and it is these uprated brakes that J says is his favourite mod. While the rear axle doesn’t receive the Brembo treatment, J has dropped in a set of uprated brake pads for added bite.
On the “footwork” front, J has opted for a set of V3 coilovers from aftermarket suspension specialist, KW. The coilovers allow for a dizzying range of adjustment (ride height, compression and rebound), which allows J to tailor the handling characteristics of his Eos to his exacting specifications.
Given all those performance enhancements, you might be surprised to learn that J has opted to leave the bodystyling for his Eos almost completely alone. Save for a set of 19-inch deep-dish alloys from HRE, there are very few clues as to how much work has gone on underneath the bonnet of this Eos.
But look a little closer at those wheels and it becomes clear J has an eye for detail. In addition to their aggressive offset, those wheels are shod with mixed-width Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 tyres – specifically 235-section in front and 265-section at the rear.
It might seem there’s still plenty of room for this Eos to be modded further, but J is content, primarily because its 10-year COE expires next year. Instead of shedding too many tears, J is already thinking of his next car, which could take the form of an E92-generation BMW M3 Convertible, or if COE prices move favourably (that is, downwards), the new M4 Convertible.
THE LIST
+ Engine
K&N drop-in air filter
Quantum Tuning ECU tuning
Custom shortened turbo-discharge pipe
Jetex quad-tailpipe exhaust system
Ipower voltage stabiliser
+ Suspension/ Handling
KW V3 coilover kit
Brembo 6-pot brake callipers (front)
+Wheels/Tyres
HRE 19-inch wheels
Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 235/35 R19 (front) & 265/30 R19 (rear) tyres
