AutoCult VW Corrado Cabriolet Prototype (1993) (Germany)

About the Original:

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The under the name “Corrado” known – internally at Volkswagen referred to as Type 53i – passenger car was produced from autumn 1988 until mid of 1995. The idea was to position the sports coupé in the higher priced segment of the market, but this was not really successful. Also various other considerations, like the replacement of the Scirocco II, could not be realized. It seemed that there was no clear integration into the Volkswagen car range.

If this is also the reason why four companies almost concurrently undertook the project to convert the coupé into a convertible is just speculation. But the idea of developing a Corrado convertible that was ready to go into series production seemed to be quite tempting. Biggest problem during the conversion was to keep the torsional stiffness of the chassis without the excised roof part. How the companies individually solved this problem remained their secret. The finished convertible could only convince visually with opened soft top, with a closed soft top the Corrado missed a certain flair compared to the distinctive, sportive and masculine appearance of the coupé. This shortcoming and the sales price, which the responsible persons considered as not profitable enough, led to the cessation of the project.

In 1993 the only prototype of the Corrado convertible, which was built under the direction of Volkswagen, was set on its wheels by Karmann. This prototype is still existing today. Also the other companies could not find a access to the market with their convertible versions. The known coupé version of the Corrado was produced until June 16, 1995 and a total of 97,521 copies rolled off the line.