My 82' Mk1 Project

Hey guys….i'm new to owning a Mk1 and new to the forum. I guess it was fate that led me here.  

Anyways, unlike the UK, we don't have many Mk1s here.  Maybe there are a few cabs here and there but i have never seen a GTI about.

After waiting more than 15 years, i finally found one! Well , it found me more like. A friend of mine heard I was looking for a mk1 and he called me. I went over thinking I was going to see a mk2 but lo and behold, this fine example of a mk1 greeted me.



This baby doesn't look too bad after 26 years, 211k on the speedo and 3 owners.

The interior needs some attention though. What can u expect right? We're only a few degrees below the equator.





The Engine - Hasn't been started for over a year. Planning on doing a rebuild.



After making some failed attempts to get the engine started (me n a mate thought it was a wiring problem at the time) we had no choice but to call in some help.



Off to see the wiring guy.
Here, finding the right people for the job is extremely difficult. I'd do it myself but my knowledge in VW wiring is limited, if not non-existent. Thanks to some other local dub enthusiasts, and there aren't many, i was pointed in the right direction. They won't get this msg but thanks guys!

2 weeks went by, running back and forth to and from the wiring guys place and finally, we got the engine started.

Turns out the alternator was the problem. The original alternator was rated at 35A and wasn't providing enough power to the system. I couldn't have the lights and the aircon on at the same time. Ooookay.

Solution = grab an alternator from my mk2 project pile. 90A. Result.

Engine's running, but the idle is a bit off. I suspect it could be the fuel distributor needing a bit of a fiddle.

The worst thing about the car right now is the gear shifting. The bushing is all messed up and needs to be replaced. ASAP.
It's the whole "I don't know if I'm in 1st gear or reverse" and "Where the hell is the 5th gear???" feeling.

I'm feeling crazy vibration in the cabin. I have reason to believe this could be the engine mount and transmission mount needing replacing, can anyone help me confirm this please?

Driving the mk1 home that day was a dream come true for me. Being in it just feels right. I finally have my own mk1!!!! Woohoo!!!!!! Someone pinch me!

The project so far….

Went to see a Mechanic friend to ask him to have a look at the mk1. He's the only mech I trust with dubs in a population of 450k. It was always in my plan to rebuild the engine. I'd do it myself but I'm not as brave as most of you, but only because I lack the knowledge. When you don't know how, you ask. right?

He's agreed to help me rebuild it and I'm going to be there every step of the way to help and learn along the way.

It's going to cost about BND$1,200 which includes the rebuild, cleaning up the engine bay like relocation of battery and oil cooler, and wire tucking. that's about ?560 all in, i think.

This is only the labour tho. I'll be providing all of the replacement parts. Thank god for online purchasing. Getting stuff locally is near enough impossible and if u do find it, it costs an arm and a leg. Getting stuff online is cheaper, but then there's shipping to consider as well (sigh…gotta live with it). :cry:

Engine comes out tomorrow! Will definitely take pics during the stripdown.

If anyone has any pointers, comments or tips,  I'm all ears, or eyes, or whatever. :dontknow:  I'd greatly appreciate it.

Hey there,

Nice car! Looks like someone spent a fair bit on the paint job but forget the important stuff like water proofing?!! I'm sure you'll get it sorted soon enough. I don't have any advice for you sadly but to stick with it and ignore your bank balance, it's worth it!!

Thanks mate.

Yeah, they did spend some on the bodywork. The leaks were due to a crappy sunroof seal. Like i said earlier, finding parts for mk1 is impossible here.

Planning on going for a white paint job, maybe old english white, the almost creamish colour. I've been scanning through the paint code thread and still unsure what colour to go with….

Yesterday I brought the mk1 over to a friend's workshop with plans to take the engine out in mind.

He's agreed to help me get the engine out and rebuild it for me. The exterior may look pretty but engine-wise it was a bit of a mess. Upon closer inspection of the engine, we found a lot of "modifications" were made to certain areas that were not of german nature.

Here we are at Chai's humble little workshop…


Chai assessing the situation..


This is what we started with


That's me getting the Fuel Distributor out. Notice the roll of masking tape, yes, i'm trying to take a methodical approach.


Air cleaner & Fuel Distributor out. Still a mess.


When I bought the car the speedometer and mileage counter weren't moving, here's why….



This doesn't look too good. Should I consider replacing this?


Trying to be as methodical as possible…


Here's a "modification" the previous mechanic has made. No wonder the brakes don't bite….


Engine meets crane.


And there she is…in need of some attention.



Another "modification". This is probably due to accessibility of parts, or the lack of it.


Nice to see an engine-less bay that's not in the UK. I always see your clean bays and minimal engines and i just think "I wonder if we in asia could do that?". Much respect to the UK dub scene.


After 6 hours of hard work, in 34degree weather, this is the end of day shot. It's quite tiring work isn't it, but it must be done!



Now that the engine is out and being rebuilt, my attention is turned towards working on the body. Chai's got a cousin who does bodywork and he's going to help me out with that.

More updates later on.

By the way, if there is anyone reading this, and you have any tips, please don't hesitate to reply.

 

Looks like you are doing a great job there :y:

Keep up the good work and keep us posted!!!!

Regards

Dibbler

First i thought you from malaysia, but after looking at the last pic in your first post i realise you are from brunei. Good luck with your project im sure you'll find lots of help on this wonderful forum.

I my self been lurching on this forum looking for some inspiration but still haven't got any mk1 yet but the summer gonna be here soon hope to get one for myself.

Anyway. Selamat mencuba. untuk makluman kamu di kuala lumpur juga ramai yg memiliki Mk1 mungkin kamu boleh mencari parts disana. tetapi di UK ini lebih mudah untuk mencari parts.

Dibbler - Thanks for the support. Will definitely try to update this thread regularly…

Tyko - Nice to know there are some enthusiasts in Malaysia. For inspiration i go to this forum and I read PVW and Golf+. My two favourite mags. Everytime I see a mk1 in there i think to myself "I have to have one…" and so the search began.

Thanks for the support.  

Great work

Are you going for a full resto? Please tell us folks in the UK bout the rust on your mk1.

For a car that age here its almost half needed new panel or weld

Yeah, i'm going for a full resto.

Surprisingly the exterior rust on my mk1 isn't that noticeable. Well, from what I can see at least. There's probably more rust on the inside because of the leaky sunroof. I HOPE no panel replacements will be necessary. In the event that we do need to, we have some options. We can either order the panel from UK, or get Chai's cousin to copy the original panel.

The original colour was black, then it was painted red, and then the blue you see in the pics. I hope those layers of paint have been protecting it all these years.

Planning on bringing the body back to bare metal to see how much work needs to be done. Only problem is, we don't have the same primers and anti-rust as they do in US or UK. The only way I can think of is to buy a tub of that zinc paint they use on ships here in Brunei. That's my mission right now. Gotta be as resourceful as possible.

When we do the stripdown, i'll definitely take photos to show you.

Great project and nice weather too! 8)

Some of that marine zinc probably would do the job very well! Why not try it on some old panel and see if it takes the body paint and laquer etc…

Looking forward to more updates…

... posted twice

Just a small update….well, more like a question.

The Mk1 has now been sent to the bodyshop and awaiting to be stripped.

Before we do that, i'm still wondering what colour I should go with.

My first choice would have to be Old English White, u know that creamish white colour. I'm still looking arnd for the paint code. I have this thing abt white cars. Good for our 30degree weather.

But then, I think Helios Blue would be a nice, unique colour to go with too. Aaaargh!

Hmm….decisions decisions. I think I might just go with white….

Hi there,

Looks like you have a bit of work to do.  But it will look great when your done.

I think paint it white it will make defo stand out and  make a statment!

Regards


B

you`ve definitely got your work cut out.
I have a helios blue and it does look nice when the sun is shining.

I will watch this with great interest

I've decided what colour i'm going with…

I'm going with Pastel White. According to my search, it's an old beetle and transporter colour. Code L90D.

One step closer…

Today I went over to the bodyshop and discussed with Thien (Chai's cousin) what the plan for the body was.

He said it would take about a month to complete with all the stripping and everything. So, I thought i'd strip her bare to prep her for her makeover.

by the way, i'm tired of referring to my car as "the mk1" so i'm currently thinking of a name for her. Any suggestions? I was thinking of something exotic like "Sheeva"? No?

Anyways…here's the day.

First things first, bumpers off!


Still lookin good…


Chrome bumpers are definitely on the shopping list.


Yes, she has a nice rear…


Seats out


Here's how it looks…


Everything was going well until we found this screw hiding under the driver sideview mirror…


The screwhead was gone so drilling was the only option.


Dashboard looks ok but…


Some plastic panels need to be replaced.


I think I need new vents. Both sides. E-bay? Or breakers?


I think this needs replacing right?


4 Hours later…this is the result.



All seatbelts, panels, trim, rubber, etc are now off so it should take less time to paint right?…  :dontknow:

Was just about to Leave but then I had this itching need to take the tail lights out so I did….



Over the next few days I'm going to look for the right colour paint, primer and anti-rust stuff. The choice we have here is quite limited but i hope i find something that at least, does it job of preventing rustworms.

Wish me luck!

Stay Tuned…

Yo Fique,
Subscribing to this thread from now on, looks like the project is already coming along well.  Lee used ato have a Mk1 GTI back in the day so may be able to help with bits and pieces.

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