New boy

Hi all

I discovered and joined your site today.  I own a mk1 gti cabriolet sportline in nail polish red with no modifications.  I recently moved to London and after much soul searching have decided against selling it, even though it will only be driven occasionally from now on.  I have to admit I haven't given it as much care and attention as it deserves, but am looking to rectify that…I have recently started picking up small items from ebay, like petrol cap and handbrake cover…I would appreciate some expert advice on a few things though.  I think I should also point out my knowledge of cars in general is very limited (I am keen to learn) and hope I can be forgiven due to my impeccable taste!!  

I have a rust issue on the a pillar, probably around the size of two pence piece if not larger - Now i know I'm gonna have to pay for this, can anyone recommend anywhere near the London area to get this done / approximate costings.  I'll probably look to get the bumpers resprayed and some minor rust on the drivers door sorted too.

The only thing that I don't think I can replace that isn't original are the mats…what were the original mats like and is it possible to get hold of any?

Roof…leak on the drivers side, roof is fading and has some minor tears…would a new sort the leak?  Any recommendation for vinyl vs mohair?

I also have a noisy starter motor, MOT due next month, a rubbing noise that I have never had successfully identified (Maybe something to do with the cv joint??) and a tempermental electric windowI would also respect a general mechanical survey…any recommendations on somewhere to get all this looked at?

Finally, anothe couple of minor nauses…the glove box is broken, is a new dash really the only way to fix this and if so what would be a reasonable price to pay to replace and / or fit one of these? My hood also struggles to come all the way up unassisted, which has been suggested is the motor…is this going to be an expensive replacement?  I have struggled even find one so far..

Any help appreciated, I look forward to chatting with you and hopefully will be able to post some before and after pictures in the future!!

Hi there, welcome to the site. Glad you've decided to keep the cabby and fix her up a bit. Get some pics up, she sounds like a good un.

Sorry, can't help with your technical queries but this is definitely the place to come.

Hello and welcome! Hydraulic pumps for the hood, crop up every now and again on ebay! There is one on now! Used granted but I don't think you will find a new one! Mats…The only sets I have seen are the ones in my car and a spare show set which were left in the boot of the car when I bought it! Saving those though! They are dark grey fluted carpet with "VOLKSWAGEN" embossed in plastic at the end nearest to the seat chasis! I doubt very much if you will ever be able to find any of these! Like most cosmetic and trip parts, finding origional is virtually impossible! The worst side to that is knowing that someone has the part you want somewhere and is just saving it on the off chance that they might one day need it! I'm guilty of that myself too!  ops:  I think VW could make a killing by re issuing some mk1 trim! I think the cabriolet will be ok for second hand parts for a few years yet, but bare in mind some of the members of this club have their own shops…ie Crazyquiff..If you join for ?20 you can access all parts of this site, see what other members have for sale and even put out wanted adds if you like! Someone on here will be able to help you, I'm sure! Best of luck!  

have you checked the fluid level  for your power hood? this could cause problems if it is low.

Where do you top up your power hood fluid level and what with? There is a nut on the upper side as it sits in the car that looks about right I have a photo of mine that I just took to show this for the purpose of this thread! I can email it to someone if they know how to get it on here! Then we can all understand what to do! Mr GTI, do you know how to get pics on? If so, send me your email address and I will send you the photo! I'm pretty sure that it is power steering fluid, I remember asking at my local VW dealer last year, it was about ?8 a bottle if I remember rightly!  

How about this then:

The fluid part number from vw is G 002 000 and comes in 1lt form

Thanks MrGTI, so where do you fill it up? Is it the nut on the upper side, near the pressure release key?..Thanks!

hmmm, I would guess it is that nut on the top? I had a look on etka and that is preety vague as well, although as you said it is power steering fluid that is used for top up.
I'll try and find my haynes manual and see if that is any clearer

Check out this from the Bently manual…

http://uk.geocities.com/rossonline@btinternet.com/GOLFS/Poweredtop.doc

For some reason it would'n't work as a link so you'll have to copy and paste it into you web browser! Hope it works!

I've just uploaded it especially! Its 3.6Mb so I hope you have a speedy connection! The Yahoo Geocites website only allows so much data to be downloaded an hour so you may have to take it in turns! Host it somewhere else better if you can!

….at the risk of breaching copyright…..from stuff for updating the Cab Buying Guide…..Walt, I might like to use the pic of your pump????

Right click and 'Save Target As…'

Powerhood.pdf

Powerhoodcircuit.pdf

Thanks everyone, I will look into those types re the hood…I know I've definitely never added (or knew about!!) any fluid!!