Bought a MK2 GTI

[sports racer]

Haven't told her yet.

I am so

[golfmeup]

Ummm, good luck with that!!

[golfmeup]

Have you received the car yet?

[sports racer]

It was dropped off with the shipping company in Brisbane this morning. I'm hoping to pick it up in Sydney on Saturday.

When I get it I'll let you know how good/bad Hottuning coilovers are on NSW roads. When I had the car it came with worn out standard shocks with very cut down springs and it was harsh over rough surfaces. I replaced them with standard (2nd hand) shocks with slightly cut down springs which was better but you knew you were in a car designed in the 80's. Hopefully the coilovers will be better. I've got a rear sway bar to fit which will cure the body roll so the springs can be setup a little softer.

I'll also see if I like the BBS RA's. I saw some nice 5 spoke 17's this morning ..............

[golfmeup]

Not far off then!!
Exciting stuff!!

I'm sure those coil overs will be an improvement over shortened springs.
That rear sway bar will definitely help.

Lol: I'm keen on those RA's if your tempted to part with them

[sports racer]

Finally picked up the Golf and got it home but not without major dramas.

I had it transported from Brisbane to Sydney with Patricks who did a great job. Dropped off Monday, delivered to their depot and ready to be picked up Wednesday. Because they aren't open on Saturdays (the only chance I had of picking it up) I rang Matt at Camden GTI on Thursday to get it for me and park it at his workshop which is only a couple of k's down the road. Matt rings me up late Thursday to say he has the car at his workshop, it's really rough to drive and it has no number plates! Fook!!! This car is supposed to have 4 months rego, that's one of the reasons I bought it!

Quick call to Jason in Brissie to check what's going on. Yes it's registered but he took the plates off so no-one can drive it, get into trouble and he gets the fine. He's going to post me the plates after I reassured him (and emailed a letter saying it's all my responsibility now).

I also had to pick up a Passat from Sydney the same day. The Passat is unregistered but I thought I could get a temp permit to drive it to Braidwood (300 k's) so I arranged a couple of mates to go up and get both cars. Then 1 mate couldn't make it and the other one had a prior commitment up until 2pm so we would have to leave late. Also to get a temp permit for the Passat ment it would have to be inspected by a pink slip mechanic and I knew it wouldn't pass (4 bald tyres and an engine oil leak) so I borrowed a mates trailer and we left at 2:30 yesterday (Saturday).

When we got to Campbelltown it was well after Matt's closing time but he left the Golf parked at the pub with the keys hidden so I fitted my temp numberplate on the back and took it for a drive. It wasn't anywhere near as bad as I was expecting. The suspension wasn't too bumpy but when you turned the steering there was a loud scraping noise, like the backing plates were rubbing on the rims. At least in a straight line it's much quieter.

Here's it at the servo at Campbelltown with the Passat in the background.



I drove it 80 k's to Pheasants Nest and we swapped drivers so my mate could see why I bought a MK2. Later on when we were supposed to swap back he said he's happy to keep driving the Golf and when we got back to Braidwood at 1 am he had a big grin and wanted to know where could he get one for himself.

So now I've got to find out where the noise at the front end is coming from, get the radio working and fix the droning in the exhaust (happens at 100 kph which is exactly where I do all my driving). The drivers door is hard to open and the window doesn't wind down. There's a dozen little noises I have to track down but it is amazing to drive!

The suspension is hard without being excessively so. The performance is so-so but picks up around 3000 rpm so it's got a hot cam and I know a euro downpipe will make a big difference. I've got a rear sway bar to fit but may not need it - there's almost no body roll when you try to push the car.

This is going to be my daily so by next weekend it will have another 800 k's on the clock and I'll be able to tell you exactly what problems it has and what was done to fix them but for now I have a smile that can't we washed off and am looking forward to going to work tomorrow!

Cheers

Paul

PS Thanks Matt for helping out - much appreciated and I hope the beers go down well.

[sports racer]

And I still have to pry it off my mate - he took it home!

[passatstef]

yes it was paul but we got home safe and sound.i know i went to bed straight away lol.the passat was in good condtion and the first thing i went for was the floor and checked for water which we all know the tcu modual sits in the black box front of the drivers seat.thank god it was dry so pual asked me to take it for a drive down the road and i gave it curry and it passed with colors.so this arvo paul dropping the passat at my place so i can do some work on it and he can pick up his pride and joy.we had had a fun time in sydney and i finally got to meet matt and had a good convo but we had to get moving as time was going fast as we all know when having fun.the thing i noticed with the golf was how good was the fuel it was using.it still had a full tank when we fueled up last night.**** thats bloody good.we stoped a goulbourne and **** my head was hurting big time so that was good timing to get some nurofean and coke into me and i felt better.paul and i will keep you posted whats happening and i tell whats happening with the passat.

[golfmeup]

Sounds like a bloody journey and a half but glad you got it all sorted and the golf finally in your hands.

You are gonna have a ball sorting it all out.
Can't wait to see this beauty getting given a new life again.

Awesome stuff!

[sports racer]

Found out what the scraping noise coming from the front right wheel is - a loose wheel bearing. I tried tightening the bolt but broke the extension socket so I'll see if my mate has something stronger. Even taking it off was too hard. The nut will undo a few turns then gets really tight. I'm using a 1 metre extension bar so that sucker must be on really well.

Got the number pales off the previous owner so at least she looks properly registered instead of the home made plate I had on the back.

Cheers

Paul