034 Motorsport in Fremont

It’ll be able to eat any Ferrari or Lamborghini for breakfast, lunch and dinner,” said Javad Shadzi of 034 Motorsport in Fremont.

Shadzi wasn’t talking about a Bugatti Veyron, a Koenigsegg Agera, or a SSC Ultimate Aero. He was referring to the humble Volkswagen GTI. Well, not a stock GTI.

This particular “people’s wagon” is equipped with a 3.0 litre Audi power plant that sits where the back seat used to be. It also borrows the rear suspension from a Porsche 996 Turbo and has a 6-speed transmission. Yes, it also has a huge turbo, and the engine can produce more than 1,000hp.

This is what 034 Motorsport does. The art of making cars go really, really fast, requires quite a bit of engineering and imagination.

Shadzi showed me his shop and answered some questions about the world of ultra-performance cars. 034 Motorsport favors function over fashion. Its late-model Audi A4 outperforms expertly tuned BMW M3’s. It even outperforms a Mercedes C63 AMG. To put things in perspective, the Mercedes starts at around $70,000, while the used Audi can be had for about $7,000. Of course, if you want to play with the big boys, you’ll need to invest in a serious upgrade.

This side of 034 Motorsport has a very “underdog” vibe to it. It’s Che Guevara and the Scarlet Pimpernel at the same time. The people that engage in this type of tuning revel in the “sleeper” aspect of their trade. Their vehicles look like something that shuttles children to soccer games but can outrun, and outcorner, what are commonly known as “supercars.”

Shadzi has had some excellent results with his cars. Outrunning a modified BMW M3 with an Audi A4 that was bought used and abused is like the turtle beating the gazelle. Of course, this turtle would have a carbon fiber shell, modified control arms, and a turbo attached to its nostrils.

Shadzi’s 15,000-square-foot complex is equipped with CNC machines, welders, programmers and expert mechanics. A lot of the original equipment manufactured (OEM) components can’t handle the power the modified engines produce. That’s why companies like 034 Motorsport and Morgan Hill’s Dinan have in-house manufacturing facilities.

Still, part of the game is to maintain the look and comfort of the original design. “We want to build a car that’s more Daniel Craig than Hulk Hogan,” Shadzi says. On the streets, the cars maintain their elegance and functionality. Surprisingly, they’re also not as annoyingly loud as some would think. At this level of performance and refinement, the cars are powerful, elegant and unobtrusive—unless they are on a track. Then it might get loud.

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