Having a 4 seater convertible is great for me and my dog for the summers in Oz. It's a tidy 121,000kms 95 MkIII 2.0 8v 5 speed manual.

But the convertible bit is the best and possibly the only good bit of it, by far. This is partly because I've been spoiled over the years by having new company cars every 3 months from the VW group in the UK in the past. These have included some great handling and responsive cars like SEAT Cupra Rs, Golf MkV GTis, Octavia vRSs, and a couple of interesting chipped Ibiza/Polo diesels, all of which were great fun to drive.

Now, I know I'll never get the poor old steam-driven girl to be anything like the above, but, so that I can stay loyal the VW group and avoid buying a 3 series, I wouldn't mind getting her to go, stop, handle and generally respond somewhat better.

In other places I've read that the only cost-effective engine mods are a better air filter system, bigger exhaust, a chip and maybe a 268 cam. Is this right? And worth maybe 135bhp compared with the stock 115? Or is 150bhp gettable without a turbo, as a turbo would rule out my son learning to drive in it?

Suspension-wise I guess I might be limited by it having a floppy convertible chassis? For sure, whenever you go over a bump the whole car wobbles and the doors rattle. Maybe strut braces and poly bushes would help? And/or springs and shockers and bigger wheels and tyres? Or will all or some of these make the body rattle about even more?

Is there an uprated set of engine mounts that'll stop the engine feeling like it's rocking so much as more throttle is added or released?

It got new front discs when I bought it so they'll last a bit yet, but will braided hoses usefully improve the pedal feel until I put better discs and pads on?

Is there a way of fitting a leather steering wheel to replace the plastic original? That would be the only cosmetic mod, by the way (unless bigger wheels will improve the handling), as I don't want the car to attract any uneccessary attention - it's insecure enough as a soft top!

The plan is to spend maybe $4-5k on improvements, then the car gets handed down in a couple of years as my son's first car and I'll need to find an alternative 4 seater convertible. I do fancy an M3. But then I also fancy winning the lottery!

Seriously, all real-life experiences of any of the above will be greatly appreciated to save me re-inventing the wheel.

Thanks in advance and sorry for such a long post.