My World, My Rules: Pursuit of Perfection: Roman G’s Evolving Mk5 Jetta (canibeat.com)

We all either know the type or maybe you ARE the type: the person who’s never satisfied. These tormented souls are usually characterized by ongoing projects that last half a decade, always changing things right after they just changed them, tearing down their car again once they get it running, or always discussing how unhappy they are with the car even though it may be on the cover of a current publication. Some consider it obsessive while others consider it a sickness. Searching for satisfaction and perfection is like a quest for the Holy Grail (and we all know how that ended from Indiana Jones) but no amount of sleepless nights in the garage or maxed out credit cards can deter them from their dream.

While Roman may not be one of the more extreme cases, when it came to his Jetta, he had a vision and he kept throwing more time, effort and money at his sedan until he was content with it for longer than a couple months.

The Jetta project, like so many others, was born out of frustration from a previous project. Roman had been working on building a Mk5 GTI but quickly got over the problems that were continuously presenting themselves and decided to move onto something a little more dependable. When he picked up the Jetta, he said the same intentions many of us have when we get a new car: “I’m going to keep it simple.” For a while, he stuck with his plan but quickly found the itch slowly eating away at him; that desire to be different.

There are so many trends, fads, and popular modifications in the scene these days that it is borderline impossible to set yourself apart. Some have succumbed to the majority while others use it as motivation to push the boundaries and blow people’s minds. Roman quickly found that his Jetta was getting lost among the multitude of clones in the Mk5/VW scene and wanted to stand out. Sure, he was on coils and already added some aesthetic goodies like a full lip kit, an exhaust and grill but he wanted something MORE.

Although his suspension changeover from coils to air may not seem surprising, it was a step in the right direction and just what he needed to pull off the unique set of shoes he was about to use to catapult him to where he wanted to be (or at least temporary satisfaction). He had already been through 3 sets of wheels in a year and had no problems pulling the trigger on his 4th and final set for the car: the classic BBS Motorsport E50s. They were a 15” to 17” conversion and he quickly found out that it wasn’t going to be an easy task to fit this classic, old wheel on his modern car. After a month of working with offsets and measurements, he had custom adapters and hardware made. The results of this pairing turned out to be a match made in heaven. Throw in a complete interior swap to tan leather and you have a complete package on your hands that screams subtle.

The moral of the story? Next time you see your friend pulling up on his 3rd set of wheels in a 6 month period or you get a call to come help yank a motor out to start shaving a bay, remember that these poor people have a sickness and are looking for a cure. Just beware… it’s contagious.