Appropiate engine conversion for MK1

hello,

I was wondering if anyone could enlighten me on an appropiate engine conversion on my 1980 GLD. Im thinking of a 1.8 16v on twin webers. I plan to upgrade the brakes and suspension.

Im not looking for a massive horsepower engine. eg. VR6, superchared or turbocharged. Just something that i can lightly moddify.

I currently have a 1.6 LS 4 speed engine running on a single webber. It actually goes very well. 0-100km mid 8's and a top speed of 185km (  and it just kept on wanting to go faster).

But i want more…but no overkill
any suggestions?

cheers

retro_mk1 said

1980 GLD.

They can't be very common! I don't think the purists would appreciate you modding that!

As for the choice of engines, a 16v on twin webers is a good choice and depending on what else you do to it, you could be looking at as much as 170BHP out of it! Plenty of power to keep a smile on your face!

Im not a big fan of carbs on the 16v engine. I think the k-jet works more than well enough while being more economical. 2.0l 16v is ideal but the 1.8 16v is still fine when properly setup.

Dont know whether its been done or even if its possible but a golf 4 150 bhp tdi engine must be the top tip , keeps it diesel so you wont have to change the tank and fuel lines and in a mk1 i reckon it would be a little stormer. Other than that the easiest way and probaly the most reliable would be a normally aspirated 2.0 bubble block (audi 3a) with a mild head port (tsr pack a)and cam with a single twin choke webber , no nasty wiring to do , no twin carbs to go out of tune and quite torquey and all running off a standard fuel pump .I belive you would need to change the tank and fuel lines to avoid contamination , not sure if the engine mounts are in the same place as a gti though so this could also be a problem.
 As mentioned youve got quite a rare little car and even if you did the 2.0L option you still wouldent have much more power than a standard Gti so probally not worth the effort .

geezer does the gld have a different fuel tank to the Gti ?

cheers Stu

@ geezer - It has been done. I saw a MK1 Caddy with a PD lump at Edition 38 last year. It looked mint and it was really well done.

@ Retro mk1 - is it a diesel?

I probably should of mentioned that I am in Australia. The diesel GLD is as common as the LS or the GLS.

The reason I converted the GLD is because I had a petrol LS engine ready to go. I found a 1980 GLD with perfect interior, but the previous owner didnt put oil or water in the engine and so it cracked the head badly :x.
I still have the GLD engine in the shed.

I wouldnt know if the fuel tank is the same as a GTI because in Australia we never officially got the GTI's.
It has a diesel fuel tank in it at the moment. The car has a perol engine and goes very well with the diesel tank.

You are aswell to go the carb route - probably easier over there if you can't get Mk1 GTI bits easily anyway.  A friend of mine used to run an autocross Mk1 on a 2.0 16v on twin 45's and it was producing 230bhp although for reliable road use, 170bhp is a more realistic figure to aim for.