GolfGTIforum.co.uk
Model specific boards => Golf mk1 => Topic started by: Phil303 on 27 July 2004, 20:38
-
Hi all,
Just found this group and judging by the posts so far it looks as if I've come to the right place....
I've had my beloved '89 Clipper for 8 years now - got it when I was 21 (no GTI back then - insurance companies laughed in my face). I love this car to bits but 225,000+ miles later and I'm afraid time and toil are starting to show. MOT's are costing around ?200+ a shot, mainly due to things just wearing out. brake pipes, shocks, reconditioning the gear box, gasket seals, engine mounts etc. Now the horn keeps blowing the fuse and the garage is at a loss why. Despite the best efforts of a great mechanic even he said I can expect 2 years max and then maybe it's time to get another car. I've got to stress that it runs perfectly and looks great, it's just age is kicking in.
The big question is: Would you spend money on a new car (first choice is a mint MK2 GTI or a Corrado) or would you spend the same amount and more getting a 15y/o cabrio looking + running better than ever? I can't bring myself to sell the thing and I would imagine that if I did end up with another motor then the thing would end up stored away. Any suggestions? Thanks guys - Phil
-
For me a owner of a 21 year old Golf cab - restoring the car will win always hands down for me. Spend the time and effort and of course your money on the cab.
Remember you can always put the hood down in summer you can't in a Mk2 or Corrado and if you are going to do the car up, your have the car just how you want it with all the latest mods out you can turn the cab into something special, just have a look at AdamB's cab in the gallery and a few other owners of cabs on this site, they look the business... :)
-
spend the money on the cab 8)
-
Phil
Firstly - Hi and welcome to the site. We have a growing collection of Mk1 Cabs residing here now, so there really is a fantastic pool of information at your fingertips. Hopefully you'll stick around.
Personally, having owned, driven, rode, or flown in most things, I can honestly say nothing puts a smile on my face like my cab. So the thought of getting rid of it would never cross my mind.
Things can only keep going wrong upto a point. Then, everything that is on its last legs would have been replaced.
Admittedly, I have spent as much on the cabs cosmetics and repairs, as I did buying her to begin with. But, we all need a hobby!
As for the Horn, It sounds like you have a short in the +ve feed from the horn button, to the horn itself. In which case, I would be tempted just to put a new wire from the back of the horn push, to the terminal on the horn.
Hope you get things sorted
Ads
-
well phil
mines 15 year old, ive spent ?800 servicing and replacing parts sweet as a nut, bought it for ?2500 the previous owner was warned to get rid and hence i got all the problems.
Honestly depends whether you have the time or the money to work on it. doing the repairs yourself is far the most rewarding
Bodywork is the killer of cabs i am affraid and if the structure is failing then it is time to get rid, anything else is repairable or can be sourced from scrap yards. you can buy replacement engines for peanuts, its all a question of how daring are you with the DIY.
your car will need parts replacing as it is over 15 years old, once repaired or replaced with uprated parts you will get another 15. thats what comes with owner an old car. you dont always buy to make money on these cars.
if your gearbox is crunching from 1st to 2nd thats a common fault that you can live with for time being.
do you have photos of your car?
you could end up spending more than the car is worth but say you bought the car for ?2000 today and you spent that on it ?4000 what could you buy with ?4000 modern today that has the same pedigree?
your mileage is rather high so the engine could do with reconditioning, taking that into account could be the reason your told to get rid.
-
Thanks for the feedback, and so quick!
You've all said what I feel like doing, ie, spending cash on something I love and is a known quantity, although many (th girlfriend, relatives and a cynical brother) would see it as chucking good money after bad.
Bodywork is mostly okay apart from the odd stone chip and odd spot of surface rust. Engine is fine - I've spent money already on all the important bits like the seals and gearbox, and it runs absolutely fine, although the auto-choke gave up at 175,000 and the gearbox was reconditioned at 215,00 but even so I was expecting things like that. Interior is good too, no rips or stains on the seats although the roof is starting slightly to crack but again, it is 15 years old. Before the end of the year this will be replaced.
In an ideal world I would like to drop a beefier engine in and sort out the electrics and add some understated BBS alloys but ultimately make it look as stock as possible but with a bit more poke under the bonnet. Bit of a sleeper! Where do I start?
How do I add a picture? I've got one sat on my Mac but I don't know where to upload it to?
Thanks for your words of encouragement!! I haven't got a bottomless pit of money to chuck at it but i can get most things done given time and some determined saving.
And thanks for the positive wire/horn info but that's been tried! Apparently there is a black wire coming out of the horn relay which has melted through and we can't figure out where it is supposed to lead to without tackling the wiring loom... gulp!
-
Hi Phil303,
Welcome to the forum! ;D
I agree with the above-keep the cabrio! ;) 8)
http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?board=2;action=display;threadid=2049
^link to add pic! ;D
Diane x
-
hiya phil,
i dont think any of us get it easy when it comes to keeping our cabs in shape. theres always something that needs attention but thats what gives em character 8)
good luck getting it sorted, if its any consolation i had about 7 things to sort for mot and im down to my last 2. the horns one of them ;) all the best, i have faith in ur cab and many happy summers days together :D
-
Sweet, thanks for the pic link. I've created an album and uploaded the pic but god knows where it's disappeared to...
I've had some pukka cars in the past (Pug 205, '67 Cal look Beetle) but none of them put a grin on my face like to Golf and thats just looking at it. I had a Corsa (!) loan car from the garage today and I could have cried. If that's an example of how cars are today then i don't want to know! Someone put it in their reply, what else could you get for the money? Uhm...... I can't think. An Escort Ragtop?
I'm going to do it. The rebirth starts here.....
First things first - anyone got a spare rear window frame?!!!!
-
I agree with what that 8v geezer said, if the bodywork is sound, then its just a case of replacing consumable items.
-
horn wire burnt on mine due to some wannabe hero alarm install, i traced the wire back but it has long seen better days instead i wired it to a new relay and went to the battery bypassing the main wiring loom. there are several rubber plugs behind the dash that will lead to the engine bay. the horn is live on MK1 on later on a MK3 it works with ignition, if thats the case you need to tap off the ignition first. The correct is live for a cab. A relay will cost a fiver maximum, fuse a few pennies. you can take the wiring across underneath the scuttle panel at the top of the engine bay and get to the battery then.
The wiring loom on MK1's are not the best and there are alot of bugs but then again its an old car, the wiring loom is not as scary as it seems, ideally go straight to battery, so far the fuel pump relay has been rewired, the dash lighting, exterior lighting and the alarm system.
bodywork will have stone chips and the odd rust spot simple fixes look at other cars its aged i doubt any of them could match it for condition
i wouldnt bother about the engine just yet get it running pucka and looking stock then up the styling if required.
auto chokes are a right pain, some cab owners convert them back to a manual one.
Youll always sell a pucka golf youll have all on to push an escort
window frames are like hens teeth as they are usually sold with the whole car.
how bad is it?
get a photo all is not lost depends if the inner lip has gone and how much
let me know i am fixing a replacement 2nd hand one up at the moment.
-
if I was you i will get a cheap run about to start with and get the cab in a garage put a G60 lump in gear box and loom, it will cost about ?2500 in total will run like a new car and go like Sh*t of a Shovel .....
dont get rid of it......... upgrade it !!!
A felow cab owner !!
Grennie
-
Just a thought, instead of spending loads on doing up your cab why not just look around for another cab that's in good nick for the same money you would have spent anyway ??? There's quite a few good examples out there if you look, go for a Rivage or a Sportline ;D But whatever you decide to do, keep the cab or buy another just make sure you have one (a Golf not an escort !) ! :D
-
I did think about getting another newer Cabrio but being a bit of a nostaglia-monkey I just couldn't part with my current one. It's pretty much the only thing that has remained constant over the last 8 through changes of home, jobs, girlfriends etc etc.... I couldn't sell it. I would cry like a baby and I'm not ashamed to admit it.
I think I'm going to meet up with my regular mechanic (I am definitely not handy with a spanner) and sit down and talk through what needs to be done and in what order and then cost it all up.
The thought of a G60 engine sounds good...mmmmm, power.
Regarding the rear window frame it's pretty rusty along the bottom edge and it's started to bubble at the top. Is this common? I'll check out the horn issue this weekend - thanks for the heads up on that one. Thanks people!!
-
keep it! also you can normally find cheap cabs on ebay which are good to source parts from! and you can also sell iwhat you dont need!
-
yeh that back window frame causes lots of problems, it is a common fault. i think there quite expensive to replace but im sure they come up on e bay fairly reguarly.
i think danhock got one for his cab before selling it, might be an idea to give him a pm and ask where from ;)
-
if the inner lip aint gone on your frame you can repair it, finished repairing mine today uploaded the photos.
?60 for a second hand frame fair bit of surface rust
?18 for paints
?5 sandpaper
see if you can flip the rubber over and have a good look at the inner lip if you can, if its only surface rust think about patching it up
newer cabs dont always mean better there are some right sheds out there even the special editions. if your going for a newer one to upgrade to a gti fair enough but for another clipper not worth it.
-
It's a GTI or better next time, I wouldn't get another clipper; the only reason first time was the insurance. I was 21 when I bought it and the insurance on the Clipper was ?1200 - as for the GTI they either didn't want to know or were quoting telephone-number premiums.