Pairing still-handsome styling with VW’s sweet VR6 engine, today’s Nice Price of No Dice Corrado looks quite the package. The downside is that it’s a British model and, hence, that package includes RHD. Let’s see if a decent price makes that annoyance potentially palatable.
Being funny-looking, obscure, and a scofflaw flouting federal regulations doesn’t get you many brownie points. That was certainly the case with the 2008 SsangYong Actyon we looked at yesterday. Weird, but not weirdly alluring, that South Korean import couldn’t muster much enthusiasm for its $16,500 asking price. Ultimately, you all put it out of its misery with a massive 94 percent No Dice loss.
Yesterday’s SsangYong may have been questionably priced and unquestionably fugly, but even though not designed for the American market, it was at least LHD. Today’s 1994 Volkswagen Corrado VR6 is a car model that was officially sold here. However, this one is an import from the UK and, hence, is a right-hander.
Aside from that factor making for challenges at the drive-thru window, there are a number of benefits to having a UK-spec Corrado over an American one. Primary among those is the engine. Volkswagen sold the VR6 here in the States in the Corrado and other models, but our edition received a 2.8-liter version tuned to make 178 horsepower. Europeans and Brits, on the other hand, got cars with a 2.9-liter, which is good for 187 ponies.
Another benefit is in the cabin where U.S. cars were fitted with annoying passive restraint mouse belts for the entirety of the Corrado’s short run, while those elsewhere had standard B-pillar-mounted belts. Other minor differences notable on this car over a U.S.-spec version include no side marker lights in the front bumper, slightly smaller bumpers front and rear, and license plate cutouts sized for the wider but shorter Euro plates. On a lesser note, the active aero rear wing also goes up and down at higher speeds than it does on U.S. models.
A couple of other things to note about the VR6 Corrado are that it’s a fairly comprehensive redesign of the original four-cylinder car, offering the suspension of the Mark III Golf accompanying the six-cylinder mill and a re-sculpted body to wrap around the wider track and taller engine that required.
VW didn’t do anything half-assed on these cars, which is why, when new, they were far more expensive than the Scirocco they were intended to replace and, hence, not a sales stunner. That attention to detail, however, is evident in this RHD model as VW went to the trouble of reversing the wiper sweep on them, accommodating where the driver sits.
According to the ad, this Corrado has a mere 75,230 miles on the clock and is in excellent condition overall. It received what the ad says was a “glass-out respray” in its factory Satin Silver metallic paint in 2019 and presently suffers no stone chips or other paint flaws. The bodywork beneath that is rust-free and carries all its original badging and factory alloys. The tires wrapping those wheels are claimed to be new.
The interior features cloth upholstery and leather wrapping on both the steering wheel and five-speed’s shift knob. The pictures show it to be in excellent condition and with an old-school aftermarket stereo but, unfortunately, no A/C.
Per the description, the car’s first owner kept it for 25 years, maintaining it meticulously until age (theirs, not the car’s) demanded its sale. Picked up by a dealer in the UK, it was mechanically gone over, with a number of consumables replaced and the paint brought back up to snuff.
It’s now been brought into the U.S.—to, of all places, California. There, despite meeting the age requirements to receive the Federal OK for entry, being newer than 1975, it still won’t meet the state’s stringent demands for emissions compliance. That being said, there are still plenty of places where this Corrado will be welcome. That, of course, requires that we are welcoming to its $27,000 asking price.
That gets you a clean-title car and a specially-fitted Corrado car cover, along with oodles of paperwork, original manuals, and maintenance records.
What do you think about this odd and yet oddly appealing Corrado and that $27,000 asking? Does that feel like a deal when considering the car’s kit and condition? Or is that too much of a premium for a car with the driver’s seat on the wrong side?
You decide!
Los Angeles, California, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to Bill Lyons for the hookup!
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