Somehow, This 565-HP R32-Powered Volkswagen Scirocco Is Legal For The U.S. And Could Be Yours

Photo: Cars & Bids

You’re not supposed to be able to own a third-generation Volkswagen Scirocco in the United States. Since it was introduced for 2008, it won’t be legal to import the Scirocco for another decade (until 2033). And yet, this 2008 Volkswagen Scirocco is here in the U.S. More specifically, it’s in San Francisco. And not only is it for sale on Cars & Bids, but you can also legally register it. Allegedly.

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As Doug Demuro explains in the video below, the owner bought the Scirocco new in Europe and had it stripped so he could import the body and interior as car parts, not as a car. He then sent it, as well as his 2008 Volkswagen R32, to HPA Motorsports in Canada where they put the Scirocco body on the R32. So you have an R32-powered Scirocco that’s technically legal to own and drive in the U.S.

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But HPA didn’t stop there. They also added a twin-turbo kit that boosts the power to 565 hp and 550 lb-ft of torque if you use race gas. It also got new wheels, brakes, suspension and a hydraulic nose-lift system. This wasn’t some random custom shop throwing random upgrades at a car to make it go faster, either. This was HPA, one of the top Volkswagen tuners in the world. It may have cost the owner more than $100,000, but the end result is a car you almost wouldn’t know has been modified if it hadn’t been lowered.

And while Doug’s video on the Franken-Scirocco touches on the car’s performance, The Smoking Tire also got the chance to drive it in the canyons to really see how it handles. As it turns out, it drives brilliantly. Almost like it was built by Volkswagen from the factory to go that fast. Except, you know, it wasn’t. Because it’s two cars from two different continents squished into one.

Could you buy a used Lamborghini for the kind of money this thing is probably going to sell for? Sure. But any rich person can buy a Lamborghini. Why would you not want to instead spend your money on what’s likely the only third-gen Volkswagen Scirocco in the U.S.? That’s actually something interesting and special.

The ONLY 565HP VW Scirocco in the U.S.? – The Smoking Tire