Is it Worth Carrying On With It??

Alright there people. Im in two minds wethor to get rid of my mk1 or keep wasting money on it. For starters its only a 1.1 with a smoky exhaust and a nakerd engine. This thing is its it mint condition, respray, coils, wheels, system, interior chrome bumps etc. BUT i hit a curb a while ago and now the car crabs down the road, clunks when turning, and 1 of the front coils is broke, two snapped off wheels bolts in front hub, loads of bits missing, needs new clutch….Is it worth it? would the chassis be bent? would it pass an mot? i dunno wat to do, i really wanna finish it but it impossible for me….

opinions…

I really want a mk2, a frsh start with no problems no driving sideways etc etc lol, but i've recently spent a fortuen on parts for this heap…should i get another mk1?    

you might be able to gain some of the money back from braking it? Its difficult to know when to draw the line when sometimes it seams all you do is pay out.
It sounds to me as if you got your heart set on a mk2 or a different car, if so you won't be content until you tried one so go for a few test drives and see what you think. i really rate the mk2 GTI as a great all rounder and good for soaking up the miles if you have to use it daily.

You are right m8, i've been wanting a mk2 for a while, GTI isnt on the cards tho coz i cant get insured so it'd would have to be a 1.3 :roll:

I love the mk1 tho, even when i was 15 every1 in school were talking and drawing pictures of scoobys n the like, n all i ever talkd about was the mk1, im 20 now n feel it might be the time to move on but…..the amount of comments and looks i used to get when i used to blip my mk1 about town…even now… wheres its been sat in the garage for about 4 month, when the garge doors up poeple ask me q's about it. A part of me wants to get it up and running, its looks all sorry for itself sat there…i know it could be a good car really just needs some love…but man its a stressful thing thinking about. Fancy a mk3 polo GT tho..as i know i can get insured on it… :dontknow:

I dont wanna spend money getting a new rear beam front hubs wishbones etc n find it still crabs to the side….

lowmk1,
I started off with a mint low mileage white mk2 GTI (E638 WKA), I cherished the car and polished everything on it weekly. The car seemed fairly quick and returned 53mpg on the motorway at 65mph. I especially liked the twin exhaust and the rear view of the car. Everything changed when I bumped into a MK1 GTI owner, he let me drive the car and the rest is history. I was hooked. Jump into a mk2 GTI drive it, then step into a mk1 GTI, you will then understand.

Had two MK2 gti's one is still my daily driver and as said they are great cars , refined and still quick by todays standards . So on my drive sits a nice atlas grey mk2 gti with a pack c tsr head and 143 bhp its lowered and has ronal turbos ive owned it for 2 1/2 years and i love it , so why 9 months ago did i buy a very worn 83 gti 179,000 miles (in lhasa green) and before taking it off the road to restore it  would i drive it in preference to my mk2 ?. I just grin from ear to ear when i'm in it , and when the restos finished it'll be the mk2 thats up for sale . Fancy a swap?

I agree, smile is better with the mark 1 (although the mark 2 is the better car)

I think its just a head or heart thing . MK2 is the more complete package

lowmk1
          A mate of mine smacked his Golf Hard on a kerb and had the same problem you have , crabbing and jumpy steering . Turns out the steering rack was bent , i would think yours has gone the same way .
Would i carry on ?   YES YES YES the list you have of problems is not much when you break it down . At least finished it's worth a lot more dosh towards a new one ….

look forward to seeing it in August then at the MK1 meet ? Good luck …….

The mk2, I agree is a more refined drive with better brakes and seems more grown up, having said that the mk1 GTI is sheer raw power with better power to weight ratio than the mk2 and better handling. Infact it is only the mk5 GTI that beats the mk1 power to weight ratio and that is only by a whisker.

I agree with chudd anyway to get a good price you would have to do most of the work and by that time you may as well keep it and enjoy it . But if you really want a mk2 then thats your choice but if you do and then miss your mk1 would you be able to find another one in the same condition as yours for a sensible price . A weekend with black hands and your car would be sweet again .  

lhasa said

The mk2, I agree is a more refined drive with better brakes and seems more grown up, having said that the mk1 GTI is sheer raw power with better power to weight ratio than the mk2 and better handling. Infact it is only the mk5 GTI that beats the mk1 power to weight ratio and that is only by a whisker.

Thats why im putting a 2 litre 2e lump in mine 'the original updated' pah  bring it on lardy

llhasa mate youre wrong. The mark2 16valve had a higher power to weight ratio. However the mark1 is still miles more fun to drive. End of story!!

 Thanks for the words peeps

I just been and sat in it for the past 20 mins, its put me in a better mood. Visualy the car is mint, just the machanics side..

Cudd you say this happend to your mate, did he fix the problem? how did he do it? did everything work fine after that, ie no crabbing etc?

So all i would need to replace is rear beam, front wishbones and steering rack? would that be all thats needed? i just about struggld to fit the front breaks, i think doing summet like this would be way over my head…

:posh: Mk1 All the way!

lowmk1 are u the same fella on ebay thats after another mk1 golf?

Get yourself a haynes manual and some spanners and dive in . If you get stuck ask .

actually i have got a spare set of front mk1 wishbones if you need them .

before writting it off you need to have a closer look at whats wrong, you could find out by replacing just one part you've fixed it. look at the wishbone  - compare each side - look at the rack - rods should be nice and straight, look at the way the wheel sits in the arch - could be the hub if sitting at a positive camber etc…..all these parts are fairly cheep to replace and arn't that hard to do.
As said earlier get a haynes manual and dive in and if you get stuck post up your prob's

more likely to be your wishbone mate, theres one here for nowt if you get it off yourself

Never give up.

Mk 1's are VERY easy to work on IMO.

If you get rid of it, you'll regret it.

They're like a pleasent disease.

If you need advice, ASK.