Http://web.archive.org/web/20021203213216/www.portlandcompany.com/z24/
This was in the late 90's and there was no such thing as portable mp3 players. In fact, the Roxio Rio with 32megs of capacity came out just as I was finishing the build.
Issues to consider:
This project was one of my major geek credentials, but you can see from the site that I quickly realized that I was being left in the dust when it came to my webdeveloping skills. I could talk for hours about how much fun this project was for a highschooler.
I'm trying to find 0-60 references online but finding NOTHING. Even VW.com has a "TBA" on their website. In my opinion, they are hiding this fact.
Gas 0-60: 8.4 seconds. This is normal for sedans. Corolla: 9 seconds.
Diesel 0-60: TBA. My estimate is above 11 seconds. Those 3-5 seconds can be an eternity as you watch a semi grill rapidly approaching your rear-view mirror.
Trying to get on many US highways with that kind of acceleration is borderline suicidal. Especially in a miniwagon. we're not talking about some bus or 18-wheeler where people will get out of your (slow-to-get-up-to-speed) way.
In the end I had to move up to the Passat wagon (~7 seconds to 60) and give up having a manual transmission. I'd rather be driving a car without a soul (automatic) than a deathdrap.
You know what the number one cause of fires was during those times? Fire departments.
[Citation needed]
Memory fault - where am I?