Hello.
My name is Abe Potter. I am a professional mechanic. I have worked on about every type of motor vehicle there is.
I have spent the majority of the past 24 years working for various Volkswagen dealerships all over the Western US.
I've been involved in sports car racing since 1996. -SCCA Solo as a builder and driver. SCCA Pro Racing as pit crew and crew chief with multiple teams.
My roots are in Salt Lake City and a tiny town called Pioche, NV, which is about 4 hours south of Wendover.
At the age of 41, in 2011, I finally had an opportunity to participate in Bonneville Speedweek; I was hired by the Skoda UK team in a effort that evolved from commercial stunt to go 200 MPH with a modified front-wheel-drive grocery-getter car, to a serious, -and ultimately successful- G/Production Supercharged record set at 227.080 MPH. The mechanical development of the G/PS 2011 Skoda Octavia took place over
WEEKS, not months or years.
I felt it could be better, so I convinced my brother
to finance a one-year car build to explore the potential of what a 2000 cc Volkswagen-based car could do at Bonneville. I chose a 1998-2001 Volkswagen Passat, as it has the finest aero prep in stock form, of virtually any car ever made (I am serious -do the research!)
As I type this, the car is in the barn behind our house in the south end of the Salt Lake valley. Most of the mechanical work and engineering is complete. The powerplant is waiting at a (local) business for final fabrication work, to be broken in and calibrated on their Superflow 902 engine dynamometer.
I expect to spend the next 29 days in a frantic thrash between my day job and however little sleep I can tolerate.
To say I am eager for Speedweek would be a gross understatement. Feel free to come say hi and check it out on the salt. I'll try to get some sleep before then...
Abe Potter
Constructor of the Integrated Engineering/Strong VW/Potter Bros Racing #2571 G/PS '00 VW Passat