Ollies 20V Black GTI

So I’ve finally managed to buy my dream car.. my first MK1. It’s an 83 GTI tintop no sunroof with an AUM engine conversion carried out by Crazy Quiffs. According to the owner it was one of the first conversions they carried out. My initial plans with it are to clean up the engine bay and tidy up some questionable wiring. It’s missing a few body panel screws and a few grommets but other than that it’s straight as an arrow and nothing really in the way of rust.




The interior needs. But of attention but the long term plan with that is a full retrim.


First things first the Speedo isn’t working, so potentially needs a new cable. I’ve had a fiddle around with it but no joy..

The car came with a minor oil leak, sorted that on Sunday with a new cam cover gasket.

It has a noisy fuel pump, and the previous owner gave me a replacement with the car. The starter also might need replacing too.

But regardless of the little niggles, I drove the car home on Saturday afternoon through the Cotswolds smiling ear to ear all the way back. Still pinching myself that I’ve finally got myself a mk1.

Cheers everyone,
Ollie


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Looks good Guy94, I bet you were smiling with a 20v under the bonnet.  

 I think some of the GTi strips down the sides will finish it off lovely.  

mark1gls said

Looks good Guy94, I bet you were smiling with a 20v under the bonnet.  

 I think some of the GTi strips down the sides will finish it off lovely.  

  thanks Mark, and oh yes really stretched it's legs for the first time yesterday, heaps of fun! 😁

Great suggestion, thank you! I may rebadge the rear and just have a subtle 20V badge instead. First things first though, will probably be a shortened sump pan as this sits very low on this engine. And a quick release steering wheel for a bit of added security! And because the other is pretty worn out and generally not to my taste.

So today I’ve been chasing down something I didn’t think I’d have to deal with.. water ingress! In the front footwells and in the rear. I have established the rear is leaking from from the tailgate seal so that is straight forward enough.

The front is a bit more tricky. I have no factory rain tray as it’s been cut out - I have sourced one which will get welded in when it arrives. However the water ingress has only occurred since being parked up after a night of rain. There are two oval holes on the chassis leg exposed so I’ve temporarily plugged them with some duct tape as I fear water may be running down there. The engine loom grommet didn’t look to clever either so I have taped that up and will definitely be replacing that. Thirdly, I already knew the sill had been replaced on the passenger side, and now I’ve ripped back the carpet I have seen that there is quite a large issue…. Photos bellow. Will need to prioritise this, and get a professional opinion on the repair. Potentially the sill ought to be done again and some of the floor too.





So understandably I am a little down beat about the car today. But these are all things that can be solved with time & more money.

I have dried everything out in the car and left the carpet out to see if I can get a clearer path of where the water is coming from. If my temporary plugging efforts solve the problem then I will look to a more permanent solution. Pretty gutted about the sill/ floor situation though and just generally having to deal with water inside the car.  I took the car out for a drive this afternoon just to remind myself why I bought it in the first place.


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That's a bit of a pain, yes good idea to leave the carpets out to find the leak, I guess you have no heater fan if the scuttle has been removed?

[mention]mark1gls [/mention] still have the heater fan - obviously not ideal without a rain tray!! But I have found the source of the leak. Where the sill is not joined to the floor in that past shoddy repair, water is running in from there. Although it’s not ideal, big sigh of relief to get to the root of the problem. If I get a chance Saturday will take a flat disk to the the area so see how far into the floor any rot is. But I think I’ll need to replace the sill again as the repair clearly is not up to scratch.


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Besides replaceing loads of seals, I’m excited to begin with my first modification to the car, Porsche 944 door handles. First pass done with 320 grit. There is some pitting to the aluminium, but I think it adds character. Many hours will be spent this weekend working my way through the grits




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Golf ownership so far has been amazing. I’ve put 1000 miles on the car and loving every bit. I definitely think a gearbox upgrade will be on the cards for a longer 5th after doing some motorway miles. Currently working on some bits and pieces in the bay. I have an intermittent misfire on cylinder four and after stripping back the loom some of the wires are looking pretty sad with the core exposed. Another 1.8t loom from the breakers is on the way so I can start replacing some of it. Will also need to check timing.

Porsche S2 turbo door handles now fitted and love the way they look. I’m not going to go too mad with shiny bits but I think a chrome filler cap would finish it off nicely.



I gave the car a full service a few weeks back, including new pickup pipe and the ECS tuning hybrid sump. I also changed the oil pump for a new one whilst I was in there.





I also have a new rocker cover painted in wrinkle black to fit, along with the Porsche filler cap. Will fit that when I check timing.




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Aside from tidying up a few bits in the engine bay - I haven’t yet taken any pictures to update you all - I have managed to acquire some Comp mags  cx400 which I’m going to test fit tomorrow. I have split one down as I know they will be too aggressive for the front. Should be able to get some good measurements now.






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I have also sourced a rain tray that has been cleaned up and prepped. Will need a couple of patches but ready to be welded in hopefully before Christmas.



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Test fit of the Comp mags! Unfortunately will have to run a 20 mm spacer on the front as the rim hardware contacts the G60 calliper! Inch lip on the front to replace the 2 inch lip and we are mint. The track width should almost be exactly the same which is good enough for me. They really suit the car. All to be revealed in the new year when I get them rebuilt.


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New rain tray is in! It has now escalated into a full near side restoration.. new rear inner & outer arch. Due to the poor historical repair the whole outer had to be used. New full outer sill, patches on the inner, front n/s floor, new jacking point, and rectifying some previously damaged areas that were packed full of filler. It’s a bit of a shame as the previous owner paid for a full respray to get it looking good. Pretty half arsed job if you ask me. Unfortunately, it wasn’t good enough for me as I found plenty of clues of poor historical repairs over the summer.








Current progress shots. A bit more still to do, including the door, as the bottom is starting to rot out.


Sadly this means my plan of cleaning up the engine bay over winter will not be going ahead, but I will sleep easier knowing the rust is being cut out and good metal being put in.


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I think your doing the right thing and repairing the car to a great standard, it will be worth it in the long run.

Sillfloor/arch welding now all buttoned up.

Onto the rotten door next

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Looking great!
Great to see new metal going in.

lhasadreams said

Looking great!
Great to see new metal going in.

 cheers Ade - a little sooner than I initially anticipated, glad to be getting it sorted though

Have managed to source something a bit special to replace the knackered momo..




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And it’s arrived, pretty stoked. Feels like a good size but won’t know until I get it on the car, and take it for a drive. Hopefully will fit up to my momo hub.


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Little repair of the passenger side door, another job ticked off.



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Very professional… something I was going to have a stab myself, if I can build up the courage!

Be well pleased if I can get the same results.