GolfGTIforum.co.uk
Model specific boards => Golf mk2 => Golf mk2 gallery => Topic started by: jv on 18 August 2009, 15:51
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:)
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Welcome to my project thread.
The car:
1991 Golf GTi 8v
I bought it back in February 2009 to replace my Ford Fiesta Si 16v which was written off in December 2008. It had 134,000 on the clock, M.O.T till November 2009 and tax till June 2009. 11 previous owners but a wallet full of paperwork and a few stamps in the service book and also came with a box of spare parts, which has things light spare headlights in, interior trim pieces, 2 front CV joints which were brand new at £60 a piece and an inlet manifold. Not a bad little deal for £950 really.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0002.jpg)
It did however need some attention. The engine was noisy and smoked a little when warm, the front CV joints needed replacing and generally needed a good service. Also, the gearbox had a problem with going into 2nd and 5th gear sometimes. Here’s what the engine bay looked like when I got it home and into the garage.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0103-1.jpg)
First thing I had done was the water pump as the temperature was always really high and the guy that sold it said it needed doing. Lucky for me, there was one in the box of magic tricks so sent it to my usual mechanic’s workshop for some work.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0105.jpg)
Once that had been replaced the engine ran so much quieter and cooler, couldn’t believe the difference it made.
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My first bit of work to the car involved and oil change and to replace the induction kit with a standard air box and filter. I’m a fan of standard really so I searched high and low for an air box and cool feed, but it took me weeks to find it.
The induction kit off and the area sort of cleaned up.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0101.jpg)
The air feed on with the wires all neat and tidy.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0103.jpg)
And there’s how it should look. At this point I very happy again.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0108.jpg)
Also around this time I changed the oil and oil filter, as there was next to none in the engine. I was worried that the loud noise had been the big end grinding away, so I was anxious to get this job done.
The previous person to service this Golf was an idiot. They had screwed the filter on so tight and not oiled the O ring so when it came to removing it, I broke my chain tool and spent about 4 hours sweating, cursing and ripping my hands to shreds trying to get the damn filter off. I didn’t want to hack a screw driver through it in case I needed to leave it on. Lucky for me, my friend popped over in the evening with a proper filter removal tool and had it off in minutes. I checked the old for metal fragments and grit which is the sign of big end damage and lucky it was smooth. Again, I was very happy and tiered at this stage.
No photos of the oil change as we’ve all seen it so what’s the point!
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After the air box and oil change work, I left to begin basic training for the Royal Navy. After I’d moved to start my phase 2 training for my job, I came home and took the car back down to Plymouth from Essex, a total of 310 miles. Averaged out that just over 2/3 of a tank each way, which is higher MPG than some modern diesels! Anyway, one day I got really badly held up in traffic going back down to Plymouth and ended up sitting with the engine getting hot for over an hour. This had a bad effect on it and caused a new problem to arise.
When it’s been sitting in traffic for over 20 minutes, it’s causes something to become faulty and when you drive along between 1,900 and 2,500 RPM the engine will try to stall. This was annoying and happened every time I was stuck in traffic, which was weekly coming home and going back to Plymouth. In all faith and fairness though, she never let me down and made it every time.
I suspected, along with most people on here at first and various mechanical people, that there was a cooling problem. So I drained the system and flushed it with loads of water and also took special attention to the radiator.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0001.jpg)
At this time, I also found that the pipe connecting the water pump to the engine had a split in it which would explain why my water level would always drop every journey. Lucky for me, the box of magic tricks came into play and I had kept the original pipe from the old water pump. So killed 2 birds with one stone that day, or so I thought.
Went back to Plymouth, caught in traffic and it happened again. So now I was suspecting something with the electronics. Also, the mileage was now approaching 140,000 so time for a major service.
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Ok, so now you’re up to date with my car and it’s history with me so far. Now, I have been on leave for the last 2 weeks and have the rest of this week home. In my first week, I went mad and bought a load of new parts as I’ve had a list of things to do for ages. The list was:
- Head Gasket Set
- Valve Stem Oil Seals
- Front and Rear Engine Mount
- Oil Filter
- Fuel Filter
- New HT Leads
- New Spark Plugs
Along with the front CV joints, the plan was to get together with my friend who I met in basic training (who actually lives in the same home town as me and I knew his brother and a few of his mates) and get all these parts fitted into the car in the 3 weeks I was here.
Thing is, I kind of delayed a little with and was toying with the idea of getting a 2006 Ford Fiesta Zetec S and putting the Golf into storage or even selling her. Plus I sort of got together with a girl who I’d liked for a while so that stole some time. Anyway, couldn’t get enough money for a new car and by the time I got round to hooking up with me friend to begin work, I’d already wasted the first 12 days of my time off.
So to start off the work I decided that I’d do the front CV joints first as even if I got nothing else done, these were done after putting the job off for nearly 6 months. Got almost to the point of separating the wishbone front the driveshaft and found we didn’t have the tool so ended up just taking the brakes apart on the passenger side, undoing a bolt then putting it back together. I did learn how to change the brake pads though so not totally wasted day!
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0005.jpg)
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Within the last week, the list of parts, which have been sitting in my office for the last week or so, grew to include:
- Gearbox Bushes
- Gearbox Mount
- Engine Flush
- Head Bolts
- Pipercross Air Filter (a present to myself)
Anyway, yesterday I’d found that the girl I liked had been taking me for a mug, so decided that to relax in the evening I’d get round to changing some parts on the Golf. I look the new spark plugs and HT leads to the garage and once again went into the box of magic trick and got my spare distributor cap out to replace on the Golf. Gave it a little clean up and checked it was alright. Also took the fuel filter out incase I got round to changing that.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0206.jpg)
First job, change the distributor cap for the newer one. I noted down where which lead from each cylinder went then took the old cap off. On checking the old one I saw that inside looked a little worn and the king lead connection on the cap looked a little corroded. Next stage, removed the old leads and plugs.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0209.jpg)
Again, previous person to service the car had done these up a bit too tight and I don’t know if they were changed 20,000 miles ago, but look at the old plugs compared to the new ones I put in.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0208.jpg)
Anyway, I had trouble with the new HT leads in 2 ways. First off, the king lead was about 2 inches too short so had to clean the old one of corrosion and re-fit that. Secondly, the leads wouldn’t fit onto the new plugs. I got annoyed and seeing as it was 10:30pm, decided to come in and watch Dave for a bit then went to bed.
This morning, went on here and was told the plugs have removable connection tips and the Gold leads needed them taken off. So out each plug came, removed the little bit of metal, re-oiled the threads and replaced them, then put the new leads in, perfect fit first time. Now I’m feeling happy with the car once again.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0211.jpg)
I’m hoping that I’ve fixed the engine problems I mentioned before. Tomorrow I’m over my friend’s house in Tiptree to get the CV joints, engine mounts, gearbox bushes and gearbox mount fitted. Could be a 2-3 days job this.
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This Wednesday, I got my car back up to my friend’s yard where we cracked on with changing the front CV joints. Only taken me about 6 months to get round to it, but nevermind.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0209-1.jpg)
This time we made sure we had the right tools, which made it a very quick job overall, apart from one of the nuts being an arse about going on due to hammering the end of the joint with a hammer.
New vs. Old
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0207.jpg)
The driveshaft and hub separated, with no CV joint on it (passenger side).
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0206-1.jpg)
What it looks like all re-assembled. So shiny…
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/DSCF0208-1.jpg)
Now it no longer knocks when turning but overall hasn’t really changed the feel of the car. Another part I added that day was my Pipercross air filter and cleaned the air box out a bit. I wasn’t expecting great things however I did notice it’s a lot smoother pulling away and the very lowest rev range had improved a bit. Over the rest of the rev range however, I think it revs slightly lower now, but not amazingly different.
The last little bit now, I bought myself some Fox Racing 15†alloy wheels from a forum member today for £160. 205/50/R15 Pirelli P6000 on all 4 wheels with some good tread and the alloys are very clean and a small amount of kerbing. Had to travel to Croydon to pick them up, took 3 hours each way but so worth it in my opinion.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/NewAlloys.jpg)
Now I’m going to see what they’re like to travel 400 miles on tomorrow, when I head back to Helston in Cornwall. Might not be updating on the car till November now, but when I do, it’ll be a good few posts. Top end engine re-build… Oh yes…
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Well, not much has happened to the Golf since the last update. The ignition problem I had before hasn’t been fully resolved; however this is due to be not replacing the rotor arm inside the distributor. But again, it’s only affected when the engine bay is left sitting in traffic and heating up for longer than 15 minutes. I came back the other night from Helston in 5 hours and 45 minutes, stopping for only 10 minutes at the services and there was not one problem with the engine, so it’s still a solid bit of kit, just a few minor things still wrong. It’s on my to-do list though.
The valve stem seals still need doing, but because that involves taking the head off which means skimming it and new gaskets, I’m leaving it till November when I have some time off. But I’m in a crisis with the whole car, as I’m trying to decide whether it’s worth me keeping it and carrying on the project.
The latest crazy plan for the Golf it to re-build the head of the engine but replace the bottom end with one from a 2.0 engine and put Piper camshaft and pulleys on, re-map the ECU and the usual suspension and brake upgrades. This is the cheapest and probably easiest way in which to get between 115bhp and 130bhp, depending on what magic I can work up.
For now though, it’s staying at home in Essex as the MOT is due on the 18th October and haven’t get the time right now to get it done. I said in the first post that it was till November but upon checking I realised that the date was October. So for now, the project is in shut-down until I decide what to do.
Any views, hints, how-to guides or advice would be appreciated right now.
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It’s November, so anyone who has read this thread all the way through will know that I’ve been planning a bit of engine work from the start. Thankfully, I have begun the arduous task of getting the cylinder head off. But first a quick brief on what happened since the last post.
I’ve done nothing. The car has been sat at home in Essex, with all the parts too. I came back home on leave on the 14th and since then have managed to buy a decent tool kit and researched the options for my car in a bit more detail.
So, the final plan is this. I’m going to re-build the cylinder head, replace all the belts, fit a gear linkage kit with the selector arms and everything, all engine mounts, new filters bar the air filter and then leave it again. I haven’t got insurance anymore as it expired and didn’t renew it.
So anyway, today I made a start on getting the engine apart. I started with cleaning, as you do, and took the battery and screen wash bottle out. I found that all underneath these was some sort of putty that was covered in dirt, grease and oil. It’s everywhere so gave up scrapping it off and will wait till the next holiday of mine to strip the engine bay back to bare and properly clean it all out.
Next, I moved onto the main job which was getting the cylinder head off. I won’t bore everyone with the details but long and short of it is that old cars put up a fight. Several bolts are rounding off nicely and I don’t have any power tools so I’m forced to stop again and wait till I can acquire some from my uncle. Hopefully, tomorrow will gift me with some more tools and then work will continue.
No pictures today as most of us can imagine what a mark 2 engine bay looks like with no battery, screen wash bottle, ait intake or dizzy cap and leads. There will be pictures and more write ups to follow over the next few days.
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Right, a few photos and a small update of the work carried out so far.
The engine bay after yesterday’s work.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0002-1.jpg)
Today, I managed to crack on and get down to the point of removing the cylinder head bolts. Work has now stopped again as I’m waiting for the tool to remove the exhaust clamps, hoping that it’ll turn up in the post tomorrow and work.
The engine bay now, although the cam belt is now away from the cylinder head pulley.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0001-1.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0004.jpg)
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Today, I finally had enough and decided to cut through the downpipe to get the cylinder head out the car. Seeing as the whole system will be thrown away in favour of a stainless steel manifold and cat-back system I wasn’t bothered about destroying things.
Anyway, I got the whole setup away from the car and now have the common problem of the exhaust manifold bolts rounding off being so old and rusted. Also, the hex key bolts that hold the inlet manifold on are also rounding out so there’s a total of 5 bolts I cannot get off the setup right now. I’m calling upon the power and knowledge of my uncle to help with this.
Here are some more pictures just for the hell of it.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0004-1.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0005-1.jpg)
Sadly, I have to re-think my project now as it looks very unlikely I will have this put back together by Sunday. The head was supposed to go away and be skimmed today or tomorrow but as you can see, it’s far from ready. Still a slim chance but in all honestly, looks like this could be delayed until February 2010.
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A small update and no pictures available I'm afraid. My uncle came over tonight and used his mass of experience and helped me get the last of the stubborn bolts out the manifolds. Now the cylinder head is stripped of everything except the internal parts of the cylinder head.
Tomorrow will involve getting it finished and boxed up ready for cleaning along with the rocker cover and inlet manifold. I won't be able to put this all back together until February unless I get some extra time off work.
Future work will also involve new engine mounts; gear linkage and a damn good clean up of the bay, maybe even some painting too but haven't decided yet.
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Today has been quite pleasant, everything went according to plan and smoothly which makes a bloody change. So here is the cylinder head, camshaft and injectors out the car and stripped apart.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0007.jpg)
Next job was to take the cylinder head apart and put all the parts into storage. Sorry about the really bad quality of the photo, my phone isn’t very good.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0008.jpg)
In the box in the background are the valves and springs; in the tin next to them are the collets and the tappets and camshaft bits are stored in a bath of clean oil in a cupboard out of harms way.
So now the final bit of work is to get the valve guides and valve stem oil seals out the head. This will be sorted over the next week hopefully, even though I won’t be here.
Below are some pictures for you to look at. These show the state of the rocker cover and inlet manifold. The cylinder head is also filthy and the bottom end is coated in rust. I think I’ll be stripping the bay more at some point and jet washing it clean.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0009.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0010.jpg)
A picture of what the throttle body looks like. This is pretty much the story for all the internal parts of my engine. Would be surprised, in this state, if my car was reaching 100 BHP!
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/Photo-0011.jpg)
Unfortunately, there will be no more update until February unless I can sneak back up to Essex to get working on the car.
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I have managed to get another week back home, and possibly a few days next week as well. The plan is to try and sort out some jobs while I’m back, although the initial plan of re-building the cylinder head has changed, which I will explain why.
So I had my uncle take my rocker cover, inlet manifold and cylinder head into his work to get shot blasted clean and they turned out really nice.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/12%20December%202009/head4.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/12%20December%202009/head2.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/12%20December%202009/Photo-0007.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/12%20December%202009/Photo-0008.jpg)
However, he phoned me while I was in Cornwall to inform me that the water ways weren’t good. In fact, there was a fair bit of corrosion which was heading towards the cylinder itself.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/12%20December%202009/head1.jpg)
The choice was simple enough. Buy a recon head or get someone to do some tig welding which should solve the problem. I was told, by my uncle, that him and five others stood around and discussed the matter. What a work force!
Spoke to my mechanic who said that there’s no need for a recon head as a proper job of tig welding will be more than enough. So I’m going off later today to get that done properly, by someone who I’ve never met.
Also, the valve guides have had it, which mean new guides, valves, springs and seats need to be bought and fitted. Along with these, the injection rail and injectors look like they need replacing too. I also need to get some new studs as a few of the rocker cover ones knackered out when I took them out. Also, replacing all the crap water hose clips with jubilee clips and hope to get some paint in the bay as well.
It’s not strictly to do with the project, but cleaned out my garage today as well. The amount of crap on the floor was unbelievable.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/12%20December%202009/Photo-0010.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/12%20December%202009/Photo-0006.jpg)
That pile was huge! It took 4 dust pan loads just to get the bulk of it in a bin bag. I must keep better standards of cleanliness in my garage.
So now the main aim of this week is to fix the cylinder head itself and also sort out my gear linkage now that the full kit and alignment tool are with me at home. This project is starting to get really huge now, far beyond anything I originally planned for.
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This is the final update for at least a month now. I’ve got the cylinder head welded up, did a good job for £25 so very happy with that. Also ordered all the new parts to build the head back up, they should be arriving at my mechanic’s today or next week. My uncle will take the cylinder head back into work, press out the old valve guides, press in the new ones and skim the head on the mill he has there. When I return in January I plan to re-build the head, clean up the engine bay a bit and get the car on the road again. No pictures, but a little heads up for anyone who follows this project.
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Well, I’m home again for 2 weeks, and this time I’m going to crack on with the Golf. Got home on Saturday but today was the first day that I did something with the project. All I’ve done today is spend about 2 hours cleaning a few parts down, but it’s a start none the less.
Cleaner throttle body;
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0017.jpg)
I will give that a proper clean up tomorrow afternoon or Wednesday morning. On cleaning the alternator I discovered this.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0016.jpg)
Had been covered up by some duct tape before, how the heck I missed this I have no idea. I will be getting it checked out by a local specialist hopefully who’ll also recon it for me at a low cost.
More to come daily, unless I get very drunk the night before. :laugh:
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I didn’t really do much today, just finished cleaning the throttle body and tidied up a bit. I’m going to tackle the task of cleaning the fuel injectors and the injection rail tomorrow, but work is slow due to the cold.
Just so there’s something to look at, here’s some pictures of the old valves which are now in the box of scrap.
Exhaust valves at the bottom. Look at the state of them from all the oil that was burnt in the cylinder.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0018.jpg)
This is the faces of all the valves.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0019.jpg)
I’m also aiming to have the cylinder head half done tomorrow evening, with all new valves and springs in place. I’ve also got to sort out the camshaft as I didn’t number the cam holders when I removed them.
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I know I said I would be posting daily, but I haven’t really been doing work daily due to the cold and also the fact that I can’t really do much more than clean parts up until I re-build the cylinder head.
I’ve put off doing the gear linkage and engine mounts as I’m hoping to do them with the help of my uncle or someone experienced. Also, I’m getting a Rally front end off a friend for £350 so will be taking a lot of the car apart to fit that, during that process I might as well remove the front bumper which is where the front engine mount is. Also want to inspect the radiator as if it’s looking a bit worn I’ll salvage a spare one to replace that too.
Anyway, here’s all the bits now cleaned up and ready for fitting back together. Still tempted to put some high temperature paint on the inlet manifold, throttle body, rocker cover and now the alternator, provided I can cover up the hole properly.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0001.jpg)
I think tomorrow is now the scheduled day for working on the cylinder head. But we shall see.
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Today I finally managed to get some serious work done. However, yesterday also bore results. I haven’t been working as much as I’d like to on my Golf as I’ve had other things going on at home which have stolen my time, and also it’s been bloody cold.
Anyway, yesterday I finally got round to putting the cylinder head back together. New valves are ground and in, with the new inner and outer springs and new valve stem oil seal, which were the cause of this whole engine re-build idea. I had a special tool made up which is a rounded socket piece that’s the perfect size to fit the valve stem seals. This is then welded onto an old screw driver. It worked a charm, using a hammer, gently pushed the stem seals on.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0002.jpg)
After that was done and checked, used the valve spring compressor to fit the new valves in and fit the collets. Wasn’t too hard, although definitely requires patience and surgical precision.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0003.jpg)
Also, last night I took delivery of my Rallye front slam panel, lights and grill. It cost me £350 but it is at show ground standard, bar a little bit of paint peeling around the bonnet lock.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0004.jpg)
So this morning made a start on fitting it as I’ve been keen to get this part since my friend said he had it for sale. It’s quite a straight forward job at first, removing the old grill and headlamps. Now I was told you have to remove the front bumper to do this job, but I found to get the old slam panel off, you don’t. There’s a 10mm bolt that holds it on at the centre of the bumper just in front of the radiator. I’m blessed with small hands so I could get in the gap in the bumper and undo it. Next came removing the radiator bolts, horn and then the bonnet release cable. I took the slam panel out, but it was a bit of a struggle to remove it without removing the front bumper.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0005.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0006.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0007.jpg)
Once all that was removed, I had a quick brush down of the area, then began fitting the Rallye slam panel. This is a lot harder to do that removing the old one, I really should have taken the bumper off. Had to bend the panel to get it in and it took some convincing, but I got it to fit well and bolted it in. First problem arose when doing the bolts that hold it to the wings. The passenger side bolts don’t secure down so it’s not really help in properly. Next problem was the air intake. It won’t fit into the Rallye slam panel and also with the new headlamps it would get no air. Going to have to customise a new air feed at some point. Last problem I had was with the grill. It doesn’t fit between the wings, it’s too wide. What’s really weird is that on the driver’s side, it lines up perfectly with the slam panel and all the way along it clips in, but at the passenger side it’s out by about 1-2cm. Third problem is that I have no bolts to secure the headlamps with, so will buy some when I get a few other bits.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0008.jpg)
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0009.jpg)
I will research this to find a solution. Overall I’m happy with the fact I have a Rallye front end on my Golf, makes it look a bit more unique. And square head lights on older, box cars look better in my opinion. I know that the round headlamps are iconic to the older VWs and BMWs but it’s not my favourite look.
(http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/vv235/mikemaher205/25%20January%202010%20-%207th%20February%202010/Photo-0011.jpg)
I very much doubt I’ll do any more work on the car now until I’m next back at home again in mid April. But at the rate things have gone this time round, I’ll either go mad for it when I’m back or hand it over to my mechanic to finish off for me. I still have the idea of going down the 2.0 litre bottom end swap, but I don’t know if I can spend that much money, because it’ll mean other modifications will have to be made which I cannot afford. On saying that, I have decided that I will try and get some G60 arches and new side skirts as mine needs replacing and some Lenso BSX or BBS RM splits. If I can get some leather or Recaro seats that will fit straight into my Golf then I’ll invest in those, although my interior is in very good condition as it is.
For now though, the project will go back on hold until April. Any further posts before then will be little updates if I get hold of parts.
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The project is gone. I have sold it today for £500 to someone who's going to finish it off and use her as a daily.
It's been fun while it lasted and I've learnt a lot about engines and VWs, mainly that it's a little beyond my abilities right now to tackle a full cylinder head overhaul without planning and preparing for it properly. This won't be the last project post from me however as right now my troublesome 16V is looking to be moved to my friend's yard for storage ready for some serious talking to...
Who knows what will happen in the near / far future. For now though, I bid you farewell and good day. Thanks mainly to all those who've followed this build, helped me out and not taken the piss along the way.
Now time to shed my tears... :cry: