Shed-esque Golf2 Syncro

[sharpie]

you know i rate the toyos. very grippy once there's a bit heat in them, and won't kill you in the wet like yokos.

[Diamond Hell]

Big shakedown session yesterday - off to Castle Combe which turned out to be a 15minute cavalcade of idiots (IMO).  The drive back home was a much more effective test!

Pics here

[Diamond Hell]

Lots done, few photos taken.

Recently installed or sorted:

Timing set on the motor.  We've gone for 8 degrees BTDC, which should safely make the most of the chipped ECU.

Scirocco seats: I wasn't happy about the height of the Toledo seats, so they're out and a nice pair of 'rocco seats are now in their place - now that's low!    I'm much happier about these - now helmet-roof action hopefully

Toledo 15" 5 spoke alloys currently on  bearing Toyo T1-Rs  , which are being scrubbed in for next weekend's trip to Germany.

After a bit of mithering I think I've found a position where the gearshift cables don't foul the centre prop.

The heatshield over the front pipes was rattling slightly, so that's been jubilee-clipped down to shut it up.

160mph clocks fitted.  More for the 8k tacho and for the oil temperature display on the MFA.  Anyone got pin-outs for the MFA and know if it's possible to set up a flick switch so I can cycle to the oil temperature?

The throttle-stop had to be adjusted slightly as the cable had pulled out a couple of times - not good coming up a motorway slip-road.  I've also put a wider clip over the head of the end of the cable, to avoid any pulling out of it.

As I'm going to be doing at least an 8 hour round trip I've trimmed down the stereo wiring, so there's only front speaker wiring.  I'll reinstall the cute little JBEs in the dash and I have an old Sony MD head unit, which will slot in - should provide sufficient entertainment for the long motorway/autoroute/autobahn hours.

I'll get pics of the POS this weekend, hopefully.  Then it's off to Dover for a late night boat next Thursday night.  GET IN.

[sharpie]

seats from the red rocco next to you? what happened to that in the end?

bet you can't wait to go to the ring.. i think it goes without saying, have fun and tc  better be some nice photos and/or videos after.

[Diamond Hell]

seats from the red rocco next to you? what happened to that in the end?

Nah, these are from one at White House Robbers down at Brislington.

I sold that red one months ago.

[Diamond Hell]

Further 'snagging' last night.  Including reducing the height of the idle switch bracket, which was *ahem* touching the bonnet.

Gotta love those five spokers 



Gorgeous Scirocco seats (it's all in the subframe):



Yes and I suspect the back of your car would come up a bit if you took EVERYTHING out of it.  One for fans of lowering springs:



Before people start blithering on about how high it is, with so little weight in the back it only takes a slight change and it comes up a long way.  In this photo there's no spare wheel or jack and the fuel tank is almost empty, which is why it's riding so high.  On the road it's actually pretty taut and rides beautifully when pushing on.

And for anyone suggesting that stripped out cars are a nightmare to live with I have to dispute that.  It does not rattle, clatter and bang.  There is very little to rattle, or cause a commotion!  It was possible to hold a conversation at normal volume on the motorway last night in 'light and fast' traffic. One thing I've not stripped out is the headlining, as it dampens a lot of noise, weighs very little and running without one would cause condensation to drip off the roof.  It'll be staying as long as possible.

I've still got a few things to do before we're off, including replacing the petrol filter under the car and I'm waiting on some bits, too.

[dabill]

looking good, bet you cant wait for nurberg ring (or however you spell it!)

doe the 4wd make a massive difference to the handeling in this then? and what are the dis advantages and advantages? would you reccomend 4wd for the track etc?

[Diamond Hell]

Does the 4WD make a massive difference?  Well when I took Sharpie out for the first time I piled it into a roundabout he was used to taking in his stripped out GTI and he braced for impact as he thought I was going to go straight on.  I was happy we were well within limits and the car just pulled round as I knew it would.

At the soaking Performance Car Action day at Castle Combe a couple of weeks ago a Mondeo ST24 that I was catching up span off in front of me on Quarry.  I was nowhere near the end of my grip and was on the old Firestones.

You need to remember that the suspension on the back of the Syncro (and Rallye) is totally different to the 2WD car.  Whereas the 2WD has a beam at the back, the 4WD has fully independent suspension, so *should* work a lot better for you (I certainly think it does).

To anyone who's not been in a tweaked Syncro (they need it) or a Rallye and is curious about them I can only suggest you give it a whirl.  If you're passing Bristol I'm happy to take people out for a ride.

[Stu.750]

looks like a really good fun car

 well engineered too with a sensible budget at home

how hard are syncros to get hold of in the first place?

and as for stripped out cars beign hard to live with , i know what your saying its noncens they are greally good fun , and the extra rattles and clatters make every run an experiance

[Diamond Hell]

There were only 650 G2 Syncros sold in the UK, but they're not hard to get hold of - there's normally one or two on ebay at any given time and they don't go for much as they're not a GTI.  If you fancy one there's not a lot stopping you from trying one out.  The only thing worth noting is that the insurance can be a bit tasty, as they got saddled with a higher grouping than a GTI (go figure).