dirty - mk2 GTI track car project

[jv]

[dirty]

Hi guys and girls, ive decided to build myself a mk2 track day car

so far i have bought myself a 1.8 8v digifant, Ive got big plans for it but... going to do my best to keep budget down to a minimum.

Ive done a couple of bits so far and already im addicted, most work gets carried out in the evenings after work and weekends of course, dont worry the mrs gets a good 10% of the day and 5% of thats moaning about the poxy car

Im in london so Brands Hatch is going to be destination No.1

Ive been working with the VW group(mostly Seat) cars now for a good 5 years and now its time to turn my pain into pleasure...

As you can see from the pics below the car isnt completely standard, i purposely went looking for one which had been played with as it would mean i would be off to an early start and help with the budget...

Its a good solid shell and has a few modifications (not all to my taste) but is a good palet as they say...

So basic plans to begin with...

  Its got to handle well, its currently lowered 80mm(apparently) thats shocks and springs so ive got to involve a more rigid body by using strut braces a roll cage(as well as a super safety feature) and some poly bushes if not all.
  Its got to STOP!!! So it will need a brake upgrade as its currently got drilled and grooved standard sized discs on the front and rear, Uprate the master cylinder to a G60 22.2mm along with some fresh fluid hopefully being Dot 5.1+, Finally some braided hoses, replaced enough of them on ibiza's failing MOT's with big bulges
  Safety Features, probably the most important, i want 2 bucket seats due to the fact i want to share the track experiences with family and friends, Safety harnesses being 3 point possibly 4 point, the roll cage as previously mentioned and an extinguisher lingering in the car just incase!
  Speed and power...hmmm....or is this the most important? Im going to give the 1.8 8v a go and see how it fairs off, if im honest im not to impressed as yet but im used to driving my everyday car which is knocking on the doors of 280bhp and 300lbs of torque my pride and joy...Leon Cupra R. Ideally i will look to do an engine conversion of which im not sure as yet but time will tell and money also Ive read into modifying the 1.8 8v and have seen most people gaining 140bhp or there abouts on average, before i go whacking a bigger lump into it i guess its important to get used to the car and get some track days under my belt
  Finally the look...I dont like scrappy tatty looking cars however old and whatever there purpose so i want the car to look neat and tidy both inside and out. As the interior will be stripped out completely i would still like some finesse about wherever possible, i was looking at some stripped out cars currently on the forum and they look good so ill be using you guys for inspiration

I think thats about it for now, just to say in advance if you have any ideas or any input please contact me, id appreciate it and hopefully ill see some of you on the track before summers out

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A couple of pics as i bought the car...

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So as you can see it needs a little bit of work

Now i started doing this a couple of weeks ago so im going to backdate and show a couple of pics of how the car is looking now after a little personal modification



After i de-stickered the car and gave it a little clean up
     

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Now thats the car at current date, So my next job is to get rid of a damp smell from inside, ive got damp under the drivers side carpet and a little in the passengers side, The sunroof is sealed so i know its not that so i look to the doors and sshhhaaabbaaangg water coming in!
just a little pointer if you have a water leak grab your little brother or a mate who you dont mind getting wet and simply get them to pour water onto different areas of the car you think may be leaking, Give it a few minutes and youll hear a trickle coming in from different areas, use your hands to feel for drips from the areas you can hear the water coming in and then go from there. Its a little trick we picked up diagnosing Leon door leaks and sometimes even bulkheads

To rectify my leaking doors im going to make up some simple membranes for them, Obviously i can go out and buy some but wheres the fun in that, A bit of corking and some plastic sheeting will do the job fine and also keep costs down

Eventually i want to make up some aluminium door cards but im still trying to find some cheap enough  stuff, so if you know of anywhere or anything suitable, Let me know.

Making up the membranes are simple, the whole purpose is to stop water from the window channels and various other nooks and crannies from getting in to the car, Thing is the water gets in to the door but then drains out the bottom via drain holes, the membrane seperates the inside of the car and the door, so i went for cheap and effective and have made up a simple design using a plastic sheet which cost me nothing and a £2 roll of double sided tape(fairly adhesive stuff)...



so remove all the surrounding door clips and then check all the drain holes are clear of dirt and debris, use a hoover to clear any bits lying within the door, clean the surrounding frame to ensure the tape will stick to it and then tape it up, as in the pics below





Spread the bag tightly across the tape, i put some in the middle of the door also to prevent any possible rustling noises, Dont panic about anything you need to access, once your plastic is on and taped up securely then get a fresh stanley blade and cut around the edges and any holes you may need, refit your clips and door panel if necessary, and enjoy a nice dry interior damp and musk free

 

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Now the engine bay...



I know its a mess, so a little clean up job needs to be done, the rocker, rad fan cowling, wiring, mounting brackets for oil catch tank and air filter, you cant see in the pic but the front x member has been painted red, a completely different red to the car???

Enough said so out comes the hammerite and the sand paper...

The Rocker Cover, Removed Rubbed down and Cleaned



The Rocker Cover Painted

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And then the Rad Fan Cowling, same treatment again

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The induction kit was cleaned and the bracket tidied up and cut down and sprayed, Its not the most desired bracket but it fulfills its purpose, take a look...

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Ok and finally the front x member, same old treatment, while it was off i had a bit of room to tidy up the headlight looms and give the engine area a bit of a clean...





Ok this is the finished product so far... Im going to tidy up the bracket for the oil cooler and possibly reposition it to make it a little tidier...

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On to the oil catch tank, The car came with one so i thought id continue to use it, Problem is if you look at the previous pics, it was facing outwards and bending around? So i tidied up the brackets bent them and sprayed them black and cut the pipe down as i took the bend out of it, Again another simple yet tidy modification...