Golf Gti Mk1 - Family car?

rustys_mk1 said

i think my point is being missed. all i'm trying to say is if you want a mk1 as a daily driver and for ferrying the kids about you should consider the safety factor.

By Jingo I think you may have something there! I'll start considering it straight away.

T  

Interesting topic this…
   My girlfriend was involved in a 5 car pile up in my old mk1 at some traffic lights when a brand new Polo hit the back of the stationary 4 cars at around 45mph (the driver had suffered a heart attack.)
   There was only a Fiat Brava inbetween the Polo (which had quickly caught fire) and my girlfriend who was in the Golf. The Brava driver suffered a broken leg, the heart attack victim recovered, everyone else had minor injuries. Having seen the aftermath of the crash, the much more modern Brava had crushed like a tin can (the petrol tank was near the roof 8O ) and the 2 modern cars in front of the Golf were both badly damaged.
   The Golf itself had a slightly damaged grille, front bumper and the rear panel was stoved in a few inches. Much to everyone's surprise, I could drive the Golf away once the police had finished their enquiries - all the other cars needed recovery trucks or a dustpan and brush. I did however hear one police man say "we see it all the time in accidents, the people in old Volkswagens always come off better." Okay, Maybe not against a truck or 4x4, but you get my point  
   Incidentally, the Golf ran for another year in its 'slightly shorter' state . We now have a Citi Golf with child seat in the back which is used every day and I sometimes have the child seat in the front of my stripped and caged mk1 GL.
   Also, if you look to see what cars banger drivers choose, you know they're going to be pretty tough. 1988 Nissan Bluebird - the toughest car ever made  

Banger racer's favourite is Jaguar XJ but they've been banned in a lot of races cos they just end up destroying all the other stuff.

paul_c said

Banger racer's favourite is Jaguar XJ but they've been banned in a lot of races cos they just end up destroying all the other stuff.

Proves their strength. FSO Polenez, Saab 99's also banned from many tracks for the same reason 8)

rustys_mk1 said

don't know the speeds involved in this crash but it don't look healthy quite a bit of penetration into the cabin…..

mk1 crash 2 - YouTube

I think the lack of rear seats with a home made mdf bass bin and "Ripspeed style blue dash and steering wheel combo" say it all in this case

JonC said

Interesting topic this…
   My girlfriend was involved in a 5 car pile up in my old mk1 at some traffic lights when a brand new Polo hit the back of the stationary 4 cars at around 45mph (the driver had suffered a heart attack.)
   There was only a Fiat Brava inbetween the Polo (which had quickly caught fire) and my girlfriend who was in the Golf. The Brava driver suffered a broken leg, the heart attack victim recovered, everyone else had minor injuries. Having seen the aftermath of the crash, the much more modern Brava had crushed like a tin can (the petrol tank was near the roof 8O ) and the 2 modern cars in front of the Golf were both badly damaged.
   The Golf itself had a slightly damaged grille, front bumper and the rear panel was stoved in a few inches. Much to everyone's surprise, I could drive the Golf away once the police had finished their enquiries - all the other cars needed recovery trucks or a dustpan and brush. I did however hear one police man say "we see it all the time in accidents, the people in old Volkswagens always come off better." Okay, Maybe not against a truck or 4x4, but you get my point  
   Incidentally, the Golf ran for another year in its 'slightly shorter' state . We now have a Citi Golf with child seat in the back which is used every day and I sometimes have the child seat in the front of my stripped and caged mk1 GL.
   Also, if you look to see what cars banger drivers choose, you know they're going to be pretty tough. 1988 Nissan Bluebird - the toughest car ever made  

the reason the other cars looked bad is because they have crumple zones where as the golf doesn't. rigid doesn't mean good it just means when the car stops dead in an accident the driver takes the full brunt of the decelaration rather than a slower decelaration where the car takes the brunt of it. so the fiat would have already absorbed most of the impact. the fact that the polo driver and fiat driver survived is testament to this.

Tian said

rustys_mk1 said

i think my point is being missed. all i'm trying to say is if you want a mk1 as a daily driver and for ferrying the kids about you should consider the safety factor.

By Jingo I think you may have something there! I'll start considering it straight away.

T  

 i don't get the comment why banging your head?

Mk1 Golf has crumple zones.

paul_c said

Mk1 Golf has crumple zones.

fair enough didn't realise that  ops:

It stands to reason that a mk1 golf or mk2, corrado or any of the early dubs wont match up to current ncap tests

on the road though its a different matter, the mechanics of EVERY road crash are entirely dependant on millions of factors

You cant say a mk1 golf is less safe than say for instance a Porsche cayenne, you are equally as likely to be killed or injusred in the porsche as you are a mk1

read on i will explain……….

Having attended numerous serious road traffic collisions personally with the job i do , i have seen cars deformed and mangled beyond recognition, both new and older cars without all these "comfort blanket" of air bags etc, that have been hit by bigger, heavier newer vehicles and the drivers and occupants have walked away without a scratch

I have also seen relatively low impact crashes with the likes of Lexus, saab`s and BMW`s were the drivers have sustained injuries from air bags deploying, flying glass, and even seats breaking!!!!

The metal in older cars is the same metal, the cars still have crumple zones of a fashion, chassis rails, sills, bulk head, if someones speed is high enough though you could be in an F1 car or a solid block of steel and still be killed if the impact is high enough

Newer cars are all designed for partial destruction on impact, thus transferring the forces of a crash into the structure much like the early volvos did, thats why newer cars always appear to be total wrecks in a crash but are often repairable

Yeah a mk1 golf may have old safety testing but i wouldnt say it was any less safe than a 2 year old mondeo in the REAL WORLD!

rustys_mk1 said

paul_c said

Mk1 Golf has crumple zones.

fair enough didn't realise that  ops:

There's lots of other safety features in a Mk1 Golf too!

i have a series 1 5 door and the wife has a series 2 gti and we have a young son and another baby on the way and no intention on getting rid of either car and happy to carry both in the car.

YUP like collapsable steering columb, collapsable chassis legs, to name but 2

Some interesting opinions.

For a comparision a few crash tests to consider….

Mk1 not found yet

MK2

MK3

MK4

MK5

Old vs New

Interesting to see how much the cabin space gradually deforms less and less over time.  Shame no mk1's for comparison.

In answer to the original post i see no reason to use the car as a daily and have done

I dont personally have children, but when my sister came over from tenerife with my 2 twin nephews both about 2 years old, we all debated on who would take her back to the airport, my Mum and stepdads 05 BMW 320 and 04 toyato celica couldnt fit them on their own, so would have both needed to go, my dads, 55 POLO could take baby seats and no luggage, so up i step, 2 babyseats on back seats, suitcase in boot with pram on top of it, some more luggage stuuffed in around kids and sister in front seat. Drove them comfortably the 100 mile trip to the airport!!!
and that was in my 83 GTI…

rustys_mk1 said

anyone spoke to deejay since his crash he'll be able to tell you how safe they are?

I have not spoke to him, have messaged him, but he aint replied.

I have seen his car after his crash though, and to be honest looking at the type of accident it was, he was lucky to get out alive, and i reckon it would of been regardless what type of car he was in.

I have pics of it, but don`t wanna post them without deejay saying its ok, might bring back bad memorys etc

Thanks for the comments! I never thought there would be so many posts!

Only earlier today I purchased a MK2 Golf Gti so will no longer be buying the MK1 I mentioned earlier.

Both are great cars though. Very happy with mine, my first VW.

good choice.

The MK1 still feels more solid than some modern small cars!  



pret auto

my kids used to go for runs in ekj512y wi me and the wife when they were 6 months old and now they are 3 yrs old and will be spending summer doing the same in my white mk1, i had a mk1 xr2 last year and i never took them in that but for an old car the mk1 is as good as any small car today IMO just listen to that thud when you shut yer doors  QUALITY 8)