A Rare Opportunity... 1979 Series 1 GTi

Model: Series 1 1.6 GTi 4 Speed

Year of manufacture: 1979
Mileage: 161k
Price: Serious offers around £7500
Location: Oxfordshire
Condition: Project

Description: So, after 6 years of ownership I've finally come to the realisation that I'm highly unlikely to have both the time and money to give my beloved series 1 the attention it deserves in the foreseeable future and I don't want to see it parked up for another 6 years - I'd rather someone else loved and cherished it and used it like it should be. I've also got the itch to convert a LWB Sprinter and go travelling while I'm still in my 20's and the sale of the mk1 would help facilitate that.

The run down… this is a project, make no bones about it. It's not some basket case rot box like most s1 projects you see out there, but it does need a few repairs (lets face it, she's older than me and I've got a bad back, bad knees, bad hips, and she came with no cuddly rust proofing from the factory to caress her sweet panels, so she's not done badly!). The previous owner has replaced the O/S sill and carried out a repair on the O/S front inner wing which is perfectly sound, but not aesthetically pleasing and not up to my standards so I would advise it was tidied up. There is a hole in the N/S front inner wing and would need patching, plus the rearmost section of the O/S sill is going a little soft. Other than that, she's pretty much solid structurally, with a couple of random blemishes here and there which will need doing. Obviously it is going to require a respray and I'd advise undersealing too. Bulkhead, fuel filler, floor and boot floor (inc spare wheel well) are all structurally sound.

The engine hasn't been started in my ownership but turns over nicely by hand and feels like it has good compression. It will, however, need new fuel lines as they look a little past their best and it was always my intention to fully strip the engine and inject it with a few goodies, however this shouldn't be necessary and a simple gasket and belt change along with some new oil would probably have her singing her sweet tune in no time.

Spares package… she comes with a spare pair of wings, bonnet, boot, glass, lower front panel, Polybushed steering rack, front hubs, front brakes with braided lines, clutch, various suspension parts, plus a box of brand new parts including pads & discs, cambelt, oil filter, air filter, etc etc. Parts I know are missing are driver's side door card and the passenger's side under dash tray. V5 is in my name and I also have the original mk1 owners booklet.

on to the subject of price… Some may think it's too cheap, some may think it's about right, some may think it's too expensive - I have based my price upon insurance valuations, market trends and s1 prices (when they actually come up for sale). Good condition s2's are now reaching valuations of £25k+ and s1's will always be worth more due to their significance and rarity (I've seen basket case s1's with more than half the parts missing advertised for more than £10k!). If you put in the spanner time and a few £k in parts and paint this would quite happily be a £25k+ car and will only rise and rise in years to come. If I had the time, the cash and a secure and well stocked garage there's no way I'd be selling this, but unfortunately that isn't the case.

If you have an opinion about the car, the price or what you had for breakfast, please keep it to yourself. Only serious buyers need apply. Photos show car in various stages of strip down/rebuild over the last few years (I started to restore it twice but was hampered both times by lack of time). Car is located at my parents' place 200 miles from my home, but if you require any pictures/videos of anything particular I will do my best to arrange it.

Cheers, Max.