My Daily drive 1988 Gti cabriolet

The car has been off the road for a few weeks and some jobs done, 2 new front wheel bearings, new CV boots as they was starting to crack, new nr side steering rack boot also showing signs of cracking, painted up brake disc covers as I tried to remove them but the bolts are well and truly rusted so I've left them well alone for now.
Also had a go at the windscreen and rust along the seal, you could still see the black over spray underneath the seal when VW sprayed behind the dash.

Crack from stone chip last year, I was lucky and it did not get any bigger over the 11 months.


Managed to make another crack when pushing the screen out!


Screen out, managed on my own by just getting the top out then going outside the car and pulling.


Only bits of rust I could find so pleased at the results, this was the original windscreen.




Bit of cleaning




Grinding and Jenolite


No holes :-) Paint primer tonight then wait for a couple of days then top coat and find a new windscreen.

Nice work Mark, looking forward to seeing how these repairs look before you put everything back mate!  

I'm going to paint them with a brush as the car really need to be repainted soon as it's never been done and the paint is very thin along the crease lines, you can see the grey primer!
As of 3 years ago I've stopped t-cutting the paint as it's so thin.
I just want to protect the metal and stop the rust spreading then back into daily service on the road for the winter.  

Great to see members using their cars in the bad weather as well as the good!  

Lets be honest even with the age and their oddities there are still fun to drive, especially in the winter.  

But I have to be honest I'm a chicken when it comes to driving a Mk1 in the winter here in Austria.    

Mind you by November the 1st I have to put the Winter wheels and tyres on the Mk6 because it's law here now but I'd love to see my tyre guys face if I asked him to retread my Mk1 for the winter.

He'd die laughing!    

A little bit more done last night, primer on the bear metal around the windscreen opening and I finally got a new 292 relay for a lights on buzzer, great it's just a straight forward plug in a relay job and job done. Works well the only problem I can see or should I say hear is that the relay is not very loud, once it's in the fuse box and the cover is in place I'm not 100% sure I'll hear it if rushing to get out of the car but time will tell when it's back on the road and it's lights on for the commute to and from work.






Pictures from having new front bearings fitted and painting up the brake disc cover plates as a little rusty.







Also fitted new top mounts and tried Meyle ones and read a tip of filling the inside with silicone to make them last a bit longer so I'll see how they last.

Awesome little read

Update…

It's back in daily service and passed it's MOT in December with no advisories.  Rust sorted around front windscreen.
The brown mark is just a stain from the old seal, I'm please with the finish as I used a brush to paint the paint on. The car will be resprayed this or next year depending on money and time.









Then it rained after new screen fitted and it leaked!
The seal in the passengers corner seems not to sit flush, its as if the new screen is a little so small in that corner.


It was Christmas time.




Christmas light on the dash!  

Forgot to take any pictures of the front suspension rebuild refit, 2 new front wheel bearings, new passengers side steering rack boot, hub carriers and brake disc covers all painted.

Some more pictures of a dirty car.







Then this happened last week….. Bloody POT HOLES!!!
It was hidden in a big puddle which I had to go through as I lorry was heading towards me, I was only doing about 25mph when I hit it with a big bang.









The other side of the rim is fine.


Not sure what to do yet…..

I'm sure you can get payment from council pothole fund. Not sure the detail..but it's probably on Google.  Think it's go photo hole if you remember where is. Then sent estimate for damage.. check wishbone and tierod then price up for new old wheel. And fitting. Break it down as such, get a quote or 3. And then look for pothole fund http://www.potholes.co.uk/claims/how_to_claim

Today I finally reached 300,000 miles, cars still going well but I'll update this thread as a few things have changed like the old rear springs broke so I'm back to being lowered again, the Boge shocks and springs are just a little to hard for my liking so I'm back to avoiding drain cover and any slight bump in the road.. When funds allow Ill get a new Blisten and eibach set up. Noisy rear wheel bearing and full service is 1st on the list, new HT leads, dissy cap, rotor arm, spark plugs and fuel filter all on order.  

Old springs next to the Boge set up, bit of paint on them to freshen them up.



Had a bit of welding done to the passengers door lower hinge as the A pillar started to rot away. I had to strip the car down so they could remove the front wing.
A bit crusty around the arch, gave me a good change to clean up behind the body kit.





I was still using the car while stripping bits off, good job for cable ties..




 Pleased with how solid it is as the kit has never been off before




Lower hinge and check strap fixing flapping about…





All fixed.. not the best welding I’ve seen..




Good change to take the carpets out and give the floor a good clean, found this plug underneath the sound deadening, any ideas what it’s for?


Nearly back together…


And today’s big moment….




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