NEUSPEED

The German mentality of driving is polar opposite to what most Americans are used to. This point was even more pronounced in the 1970s and early 1980s when speed limits on many German roads were nonexistent. As it was legal to drive like a bat out of hell, most people took full advantage of the situation. Seeing drivers were pushing cars to their limits, German vehicle manufacturers began building cars that could withstand the rigors of extended high speeds and quick corners. One such manufacturer that answered the public’s cry for high-performance street rockets was Volkswagen. Soon enough, the first generation Scirocco and Rabbit were born, and not long after, tuners began squeezing more and more performance from the tiny eight-valve engines.

Convinced German engineering was superior to that of Japanese, Bill Neumann, who up until the early ’80s had been making his living tuning Detroit muscle, made a voyage to Germany that would change his life. With the fuel crisis in full swing, Bill Neumann was looking for a platform that could withstand engine and chassis tuning while maintaining fuel efficiency, and with the introduction of VW’s water-cooled powerplants, Neumann had found his engine: VW’s water-cooled 1.8L eight-valve. With little hesitation, Bill boarded a plane in 1980 and headed to Germany to see what he could find.

Bill Neumann was not, however, a novice when it came to automotive tuning. For years, Bill and his two sons, Aaron and Gary, had been tuning American V-8s in a small shop in Burbank, California. With their performance company, Automotive Performance Systems, the Neumanns had been successfully building, rebuilding, boring, polishing, and blueprinting engines with parts carried in their performance catalogue. The Neumann shop was so well-known that people would come from as far as San Francisco and Las Vegas just to have the Neumanns tune their cars. But, with the fuel crisis looming, the Neumanns could see the future of the automotive world was not in front engine, rear-drive, big displacement gas-guzzlers.

While in Germany, Bill Neumann met up with a man called Oettinger, whom he had heard of years before. Oettinger, whose name is still a respected commodity within the VW tuning industry, had designed a 16-valve head for the eight-valve VW engines, enabling the under-powered engine to produce higher levels of fuel-efficient power. Bill Neumann shipped an Oettinger 16-valve head back to his shop in California, and upon return purchased a 1.8L 1981 Rabbit to attach the head to. Before exchanging the Oettinger head for the OE head, the Neumanns decided to rework the engine using similar techniques from their muscle car days.

After boring and stroking the engine from 1715cc to 1972cc and adding various other Oettinger parts such as Mahle 10.2:1 forged pistons, wrist pins, rings, and tuned intake and exhaust manifolds, the engine and its parts were balanced, blueprinted, polished, shot-peened and reassembled. After all the work, the stout little 2.0L was putting out 175 hp and nearly 137 lb-ft.

Performance numbers for the Rabbit were equally impressive, racing to 60 in 7.3 seconds and finishing the quarter-mile in 15.73 seconds at over 87 mph. Motor Trend and Road and Track magazines tested the car in 1982, and both were massively impressed. Motor Trend quickly dubbed the car the Thunder Bunny, while Road and Track noted that up until then, only the Ferrari 512 Boxer, Lamborghini Countach, and the Renault R5 Turbo had posted better numbers.

Part of the Thunder Bunny’s success was the fact that the Neumanns used companies like MOMO, BBS, Bilstein, Kamei, and VDO when building the car—quality companies that are still thriving today. Along with the creation of the Thunder Bunny came the creation of Neuspeed, a company comprised of Bill, Aaron, and Gary Neumann, which carried tuning parts specifically for VWs. Although the cost of parts alone ran nearly $3,000 higher than the price of the vehicle itself, the success of the Rabbit launched the Neumanns, and Neuspeed, deep into the world of Volkswagen tuning.

From there, the Neumanns created products for VWs branded with the Neuspeed name. Before long, Neuspeed became synonymous with VW tuning, and for good reason. No matter what was needed, from rear tie-bars to short shifters, intakes to exhausts, Neuspeed quickly became the one-stop shop for VW tuning. As emissions testing became more stringent, Neuspeed noticed a decline in the sales of performance products that didn’t meet the government’s strict requirements. As such, Neuspeed decided that the bulk of its products sold should be approved for use in all 50 states. As soon as emissions certifications came in, Neuspeed’s product sales picked back up.

Then in the late ’80s, VW sales began to decrease at the same rate VW’s new car sales declined. Realizing they needed to expand their product line to more than just VWs if they were to succeed during this time, the Neumanns began to create parts for Hondas. By 1995, Neuspeed’s Honda and Acura parts nearly sold as well as the VW parts. Seeing a marketing opportunity, Neuspeed funded a race team for the 1996 North American Touring Car Championship. The vehicle purchased was a ’95 Honda Accord raced in the series during the 1995 season. The Neumanns purchased the ’95 Honda Accord chassis, obtained an experienced team manager, T. C. Kline, and placed Randy Pobst behind the wheel. The first portion of the season yielded several podium finishes, but no victories. By mid-season, the car and team were dialed in and victories soon followed. Along with five First Place finishes, Pobst went on to win the Driver’s Championship, and Neuspeed and its bright yellow race car took home the Manufacturer’s Championship for Honda.

Despite all this, the Neumanns’ hearts were still in VWs. In mid-1999, VW introduced the Mk 4 chassis, and with it, more aggressively styled Golfs and Jettas. All of a sudden, VW sales began to grow exponentially. Not wanting to miss the opportunity, Neuspeed was quick to create new products for the Mk 4 chassis, as well as for the three engines that powered the vehicles.

Presently, Neuspeed is promoting its newest creation: the first CARB- approved supercharger for all eight-valve 2.0L Mk 3 and Mk 4 VWs. The supercharger showcases many of Neuspeed’s philosophies. The supercharger is a product of a year’s worth of design, testing, redesign, re-testing, and even more redesign. The finished product is almost a showpiece, as Neuspeed designed the supercharger to look like a factory piece, allowing the engine bay to remain in tact despite the 50-percent increase in power supplied by the fourth-generation Eaton supercharger. The supercharger is also CARB-approved, making the unit environmentally sound and allowing anyone to install the unit without the worry of passing the ever-increasing emissions standards. Neuspeed also kept to the concept it has always firmly believed in: A product must be easy to install. As the supercharger is a single-cast piece, the unit is nearly a simple drop in power boost, taking a mere two to three hours for installation.

In case you haven’t guessed, Neuspeed’s philosophy is simple: Make products that work, or don’t make them at all. Much like German cars that are designed to withstand the abuse of the Autobahn, Neuspeed’s products are designed with the idea that the owner of the vehicle wants to, and will, take the products to the extreme. As such, every Neuspeed product is tested until the Neumanns are sure it will withstand everything the driver can throw at it. Even today, the Neumanns are hands-on in the development of each Neuspeed product.

After twenty years of VW tuning, Bill, Aaron, and Gary Neumann are still heavily involved with Neuspeed. In fact, all three have offices at Neuspeed’s Camarillo, California, headquarters, and it’s not rare to find Aaron running a car on the dyno or test-fitting yet another new Neuspeed part while Bill lends a helping hand. Over the years though, each of the Neumann three have made distinct niches for themselves within the company. Bill Neumann oversees every aspect of Neuspeed, Neumann Distributing, and Automotive Performance Systems. Aaron Neumann gets his hands dirty on a daily basis fitting parts, trouble-shooting, or researching potential new products. Gary Neumann has found his calling in sales, helping get Neuspeed parts to as many VW enthusiasts as possible.

Although the three have brought the company to where it is today, they also know they must expand if they want to grow. Along with the expansion of the company came a move to Camarillo, stepping up from the smaller shops the family had known to an 18,000 square-foot building, which became the business’ warehouse, office, research and development facility, and showroom. In addition, the company, which originated with just Bill, Aaron, and Gary Neumann doing everything, now has 20 full-time employees, all of which have a love for the automotive aftermarket. Pulling up to the office and walking through the parking lot is almost like passing through a mini car show.

Along with growing physically in size, Neuspeed has grown technologically, too. As engines have progressed, Neuspeed has been forced to move along at breakneck speeds. What started off twenty years ago as hit- and-miss carburetor tuning has now turned into precise computer-aided design and state-of-the-art machining. Nothing is left to guesswork any more. Although many of Neuspeed’s parts are created with the aid of computers, the Neumanns know the importance of experience when it comes to product design and manufacturing—and experience is something the Neumanns have a lot of. Over the years, the combination of experience and CAD systems has yielded over 300 quality Neuspeed parts, each one boasting the Neuspeed logo and the craftsmanship and dependability that comes with that name.

So where do the Neumanns see Neuspeed and the aftermarket industry in five years’ time? As emission requirements become more stringent, cars are becoming more sophisticated and, as that happens, many tuners are going to be left by the way side because they will be unable to maintain emissions-friendly standards. Neuspeed has made it a priority to manufacture products that will meet or exceed emissions requirements, regardless of how much work is necessary during the research and development stages. If, for a product to get CARB approval, Neuspeed is forced to completely decipher a manufacturer’s engine coding, then the company is willing to spend the time and money because it knows that in the end, the consumer will appreciate the added value that comes with the Neuspeed name.