Present: MkI - The Story

**deemoE36** · 01-02-2008, 09:58 PM

Also called Volkswagen Rabbit
Volkswagen Caribe
Volkswagen CitiGolf
Volkswagen Cabriolet
Volkswagen Caddy
Production 1974â€“1984
1974-present (South Africa)
Assembly Wolfsburg, Germany
New Stanton, Pennsylvania
Uitenhage, South Africa
Puebla, Puebla, Mexico
Body style(s) 2-door convertible
3-door hatchback
5-door hatchback
2-door pickup truck
Layout FF layout
Platform Volkswagen A1 platform
Engine(s) 1.1L 60 hp I4
1.3L 55 hp I4
1.6L 75 hp I4
1.8L 90 hp I4
1.8L 112 hp I4
1.6L 55 hp I4 diesel

Transmission(s) 3-speed automatic
4-speed/5-speed manual
Wheelbase 94.5 in (2400 mm)
Length Cabrio: 135.1 in (3432 mm)
Width Cabrio: 64.6 in (1641 mm)
Height Cabrio: 55.6 in (1412 mm)
Related Volkswagen Jetta
Volkswagen Caddy
Volkswagen Scirocco
The first Golf (VW internal designation Typ 17) began production in 1974, although it was marketed in the United States and Canada from 1975 to 1984 as the Volkswagen Rabbit and in Latin America as the Volkswagen Caribe. It featured the water-cooled, front wheel drive design with the addition of a hatchback. The Golf was Wheels magazine's Car of the Year for 1975. The name is short for Golf-Strom, German for Gulf Stream; it was named for that oceanic current to reflect its international character. [citation needed]

The Golf was designed by Italian automobile architect / designer Giorgetto Giugiaro, of the ItalDesign design studio.

Slightly modified US-made Mk I. Front bumpers and headlights are original.In 1978, Volkswagen began producing the North American "Rabbit" version of the Mark 1 Golf in New Stanton, Pennsylvania, thus becoming the first European car manufacturer in modern times to produce a vehicle in the United States. (The plant was called Westmoreland because New Stanton was in Pennsylvania's Westmoreland County.) Former Chevrolet executive James McLernon was chosen to run the factory, which was built to lower the cost of the Rabbit in North America by producing it locally. Unfortunately, McLernon tried to "Americanise" the Golf/Rabbit by softening the suspension and using cheaper materials for the interior. VW purists in America and company executives in Germany were displeased, and for the 1983 model year the Pennsylvania plant went back to using stiffer shocks and suspension with higher-quality interior trim. The plant also began producing the GTI for the North American market. ('Rabbits' were built in Pennsylvania until 1984.) The first VW Caddy pick-up, based on the Mark 1 Golf, was also created at the Pennsylvania plant.

GTI displayed in a museumThe GTI version, launched in Europe in 1976 and in the U.S. in 1983, virtually created the hot hatch genre overnight, and many other manufacturers since have created special sports models of their regular volume-selling small hatchbacks. The idea behind was rather straightforward - take a basic-transportation economy car and give it a high-performance package, making it practical and sporty. It was one of the first small cars to adopt fuel injection for its sports version, which raised power output of the 1588 cc engine to 110 PS (81 kW/108 hp). In 2004, Sports Car International declared the Golf GTI Mark 1 to be the 3rd best car of the 1980s.

There was a minor facelift in 1980 which saw the adoption of larger rear lamp clusters (more in line with Giugiaro's original concepts), revised bumpers, a new dashboard with a more modern-looking instrument display, and for US versions square headlights.

Mark 1 Golf CabrioletThe convertible version, named the Golf Cabriolet (or Typ 155), was sold from 1980 to 1993 (a convertible version of the Mark 2 Golf was not made, so the Mark 1 Cabrio with slight modification was produced until the introduction of the Mark 3 Cabrio). It had a reinforced body, transverse roll bar, and a high level of trim, and interestingly kept the pre-1980 style of rear lamp clusters. The Mark 1 Cabriolet is of unibody construction built entirely at the factory of Karmann, from stamping to final assembly; Volkswagen supplied the engine, suspension, interior, etc. for Karmann to install. The vinyl or cloth tops were insulated and manually or automatic operated, with a heated glass rear window.

As of 2006, Volkswagen of South Africa still manufactures two variants of the Mark 1 Golf, the five-door Citi Golf and the Volkswagen Caddy pickup. On September 22, 2006 in order to celebrate the continued success of the Mark 1 based Citi Golf in South Africa, Volkswagen SA announced the limited edition Citi R which is powered by a 90KW (120HP/123PS) 1.8L fuel injected engine with a five-speed manual transmission as well as a GTI trademark red outlined front grill.

There was a special version, named LX with 1.1L engine, which produced more power than 1.3L. This version had a tuned GTI-like front grill, four front headlights, spoiler, alloy wheels and Recaro seats.

VW South Africa currently (2007) manufacture a large range of Mk1 variants, namely the Citi Golf range. The range starts with a standard Citi Golf, in either 1.4 or 1.6 litre fuel injected models. Many variants of the standard version are/were available with different extras packages, which included the Citi Rythm, Citi.com and so on. The current range topper is the VeloCiti, also available in 1.4i and 1.6i, made as sportier versions of the standard Citi to replace the previous sports version, the Citi Life. The latest Citi Golfs produced feature modern features, such as a new dashboard adapted from a VW Polo, and minor body "facelifts" such as revised tail-light clusters. The Citi Golf is still one of the best-selling and most popular small cars in South Africa.

The Volkswagen Rabbit GTI, the North American version of the high-performance Golf GTI, debuted in Canada in 1979 and in the United States for 1983 model year. Assembled from parts made in Mexico, Canada, Germany and the U.S. in Volkswagen's Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania assembly plant, it had the same Mark 1 chassis, and the same A1 body type as the Mark 1 Golf GTI that had been on sale in Europe since 1976, with a few exceptions. Key distinct features of the Rabbit GTI were its squared front end styling, and its alloy "snowflake" wheels. The interior came in red or blue felt and leatherette trim. The squared styling of the front end, particularly the wraparound direction indicator lights, gave it added safety and slight improvement in performance. Under the hood, the engine was a JH 1.8 liter 4-cylinder petrol engine that ran on unleaded fuel. The JH 1.8l was transversely mounted, and it would peak in stock condition at 90 HP, delivered through a close-ratio five-speed transmission. Claims for gas mileage of near-perfectly tuned Rabbit GTIs range between 25 and 30 miles per gallon.

When the Rabbit GTI first appeared in Canada, it featured the 1.6l engine and five-speed transmission. It was initially available in red, white, and black. These Canadian cars were German-built and were nearly identical in bodyshell and interior appearance to the 110hp Golfs built in Europe. Unfortunately for enthusiasts, the entire driveline and running gear was identical to the other Canadian versions. Five-MPH bumpers were fitted as well as anti-intrusion bars within the doors. The integral towing eye fitted to the front of the European car was deleted as the crashworthy bumpers had towing facilities as part of their design and the car had been crash-tested for Canada with the North American front apron. The car was very attractive but drove no better or worse than a Rabbit of the same era. Only with the arrival of the American GTI was a faster Golf available in Canada, and it was down 22 horsepower compared to the 1.8 litre Golf GTI Mark I.