New Project Idea... Need some encouragement!

[aarunjury]

Hey all,

I've been hit hard with the VW bug since buying my MK6 GTI 7 months ago... That being said, I'm trying to convince myself to buy a Mk1 GTI Cabrio to do up with my tax refund due in a couple of months time. I would really appreciate hearing some ideas or warnings or even some encouragement! What do you all reckon?

Cheers

[5teve]

Why not a hard top mk1? I personally think they got more potential then a convertible

[STI65]

Go the hard top. Cabrios should be left for Zoolander orange-mocha-frappachino style montages.

[aarunjury]

HAHAHAHA @ STI65, nice call. I just thought the cabrio would be awesome fun driving to the Sunshine Coast on hot summer days with the top down...

[Stiggy_21]

Does anyoneconvertiblet differences there are between the early GTI cabrio and a later model cabrio (90's)?
I thought the late model ones had all the GTI running gear?

As cool as convertibles are, I prefer hard top mk1's, but I wouldnt stop anyone from getting one... Just hope they like swimming whilst driving

[ByronRichesMk1]

Does anyoneconvertiblet differences there are between the early GTI cabrio and a later model cabrio (90's)?
I thought the late model ones had all the GTI running gear?

As cool as convertibles are, I prefer hard top mk1's, but I wouldnt stop anyone from getting one... Just hope they like swimming whilst driving

[Jarred]

In Australia, late model mk 1 cabbys are the best mk 1's to buy!

They come with an injected 1.8, closer ratio 5 speed, vented discs with bigger calipers to make for decent brakes and factory swap bars all round. Most importantly - no rust! (well, maybe some, but most shouldn't)

Yes, the lack of roof is noticable, when you're putting around, hammering hard or cruising by the beach with the top down.

Don't be fooled into thinking it'll be ANYTHING like your mk 6.

But if you want a neat litttle project and weekender, it's perfect

[ntails]

Hey aarunjury, i know it may seem like a long way away but Ive got my girlfriends cabbie for sale down here in TAS. We purchased this sight unseen for NSW last year ($800 door to door freight)and although it wasn't as tidy as we had hoped i was surprised to find it had a late model AGG 2L already installed.

These are heaps of fun over summer but we just don't have the time to use it anymore.

VW MK1 golf cabriolet cabbie convertable | Cars, Vans & Utes | Gumtree Australia Launceston Area - Launceston 7250

Sorry for the shameless plug

[aarunjury]

ntails, not at all, appreciate it, will have a look Will it make the trip to Brisbane though haha?

And thank you Jarred, hahah of course I don't expect it to be anything remotely similar or close to my Mk6. I think the only thing the two cars will have in common is the VW badge
Thank you for the advice though, much appreciated. Am scouting out now! But yeah, like you say, it'll be my weekender

[gldgti]

The cabriolet...

I bought a '91 about 3.5 years ago, ostensibly for my wife as I was trying to get her to learn to drive and she didn't like driving my mk3 very much (too low, stiff, black etc).

It came with all the things you'd expect of a knocked about $3000 cabby - a torn roof, minor rust spots under the windscreen (lived near the beach) and old lady parking rounding off of the bumper corners.

Since then, I've done a lot of work on the little cabby. Its been a labour of love, but the wife absolutely loves the car - to the point where last week it had a fuel leak and she had to drive our Octavia to work for 4 days until I could fix her car on the weekend, and by the end of the week she was lamenting her car not being drivable to the point that I daren't wait a week for a new seal for the injector pump, rather I replaced with another old seal until I the new one comes just so she can drive it again.

They are fantastic fun either way - all the fun of a hardtop mk1 and then more when the sun is shining. We recently took the car to Adelaide and back for a holiday, and drove at least 1200km of the 3000km round trip with the top down.

BUT

Be prepared for it to leak and wet the corner of your seat. Be prepared (if you lower it) to notice the floppier chassis - its not something that will put you off cornering hard, but it takes some getting used to. And most important, it is still a mk1 - so be prepared to fix nearly everything at some point.

See my thread here to get an idea of the things I've done:
Turbo Diesel Cabriolet Project (with head porting pics)