Iv decided its time to stop spending on the Polo now, I'm happy with it and I'm just going to enjoy it for the next few months before i sell.

I'm pretty dead set on a mk2 golf, my plan so far are to buy a mk2 golf driver get it looking nice and in the mean time buy an engine and rebuild it.

The only thing is i cant decide on what engine

Was thinking possibly a G40 turbo lump but would i be better off with a N/A tall block engine?

Heard good things about the 2.0 mk3 bottom ends combined with a gti head (almost 200bhp when tuned)

Power wise I'm wanting between 140bhp - 150bhp but I want to have the option to go up to the 200bhp with the same engine (get cams in, tune ect)

Overall it needs to be a good reliable engine which can be good on fuel if driven carefully (high 30s MPG)

So i would like some opinions :-)

As for the standard golf engines iv heard you have to get the 16v's above 5k before they reach their peak. Which isnt really my style of driving i prefer low end power. So would the 8v be better suited for what its worth in extra fuel & insurance cost of the valver?

Please discuss.

Thanks.

Edited 29 March, 200818 yr by carver

you'll get 130bhp out a standard 1.8 16v so if your only looking for 140-150 bhp that might be a good way to start,

failing that the 2.0 16v is a good unit and you can get a full throttle body conversion for about 600 bucks!

8 valve all the way for your style of driving.

High 30s mpg, don't want to thrash the car to make progress, up to about 150 bhp...

I'd go 2.0 8v. The high 30 mpg bit will be a struggle though.

thanks for the replies so far.

What power does the 1.8 8 valve put out?

Whats the usual output after mods?

Standard 8vs are 112 bhp. Loads of bits are available for them, loads of different cam profiles etc, 4 branches and systems etc.

You can chip the later Digipants ones too.

Best bet would be a trip over to ClubGTI to have a gander probably!

Standard 8vs are 112 bhp. Loads of bits are available for them, loads of different cam profiles etc, 4 branches and systems etc.

You can chip the later Digipants ones too.

Best bet would be a trip over to ClubGTI to have a gander probably!

Think i need more then 112bhp, especially in with it being slightly heavier then the polo.

What power would the 2.0 8v make? I'm tempted by that even at the sacrifice of fuel.

The 2.0 8v doesnt have the power or performance of the rev-hungry 1.8 16v,but it has a little more torque. This makes the first 2.5k revs more useable,and the less revs you use,the less pedal you need,the less fuel you use. A 2.0 running at 2k is using less fuel than a 1.8 running at 3k,see.

mk2 g60

150bhp standard

charger chip and pulley = 190bhp

Yes but a G60 is even more fragile than a G40, and nowhere near as cheap to buy, insure, or maintain as an 8v GTI

9a engine ftw

Yes but a G60 is even more fragile than a G40, and nowhere near as cheap to buy, insure, or maintain as an 8v GTI

they also ain't that quick, my mate had a mk1 cabby G60 pushing not far off 200bhp and my 16v handed it its ass.

what bhp do the 16v's have as standard? i was told it was around 147 is that correct?

Yeah iv heard about g40's embarrasing g60's.

Think I'm going to be staying away from superchargers and either go for the 8v with mods or a mk1 golf with a g40 turbo lump

Personally if your going for decent low end performance then your never going to get high 30's in fuel economy realistically, i would go for the mk3 2.0l 16v, 150bhp as standard, no running costs of turbo's or s/chargers and with a few choice mods such as full stainless, cams and pulleys, induction and possibly TB's you'll see close to the 200bhp mark. Oh and the noise from a well modded N/A engine is sweet :-D

Oh yeah forgot, the same engine is in the mk2 ibiza 16v but i believe it is slightly higher bhp as the mk3 golf (156bhp i believe)

Food for thought anyway, good luck with whatever you decide to do

Edited 31 March, 200818 yr by polo_nutta

^^

amen

Mate of mine has a mk2 1.8 16V GTI with an induction kit and a Magnex backbox.....

....it sounds PERFECT. :)

I'm pretty stuck now

Gave the GT a proper good wash and wax today, parked it across the street went to watch tv and as i glanced out the window it was right in my view and i just fell in love with it again. It just looked great with the sun geaming off it, and it is a fun car to drive.

BUT

Theres a women down the street selling her mk3 golf gti for pennys, it needs work, something wrong with the engine but they arnt exactly hard to come by and the bodywork is mint.

Its the dark green, think it might be metallic. But i do like my old skool dubs.

Anyone know what insurance is like on the mk3 gti?

What will they MPG wise? 35mpg?

Well my mate's mk2 is group 18, he payed £3600 on his second year driving.... Big step up from a Westcoast Saxo 1.4 which was £1400 on his first year.... So BIG step up as you see....

Mk3's are heavier but more comfortable, well for the driver (power steering)..... but mk2's have round headlights...... and we all know round headlights are awesome! The dark green GTI colour is gorgeous by the way....

I'm pretty stuck now

Gave the GT a proper good wash and wax today, parked it across the street went to watch tv and as i glanced out the window it was right in my view and i just fell in love with it again. It just looked great with the sun geaming off it, and it is a fun car to drive.

BUT

Theres a women down the street selling her mk3 golf gti for pennys, it needs work, something wrong with the engine but they arnt exactly hard to come by and the bodywork is mint.

Its the dark green, think it might be metallic. But i do like my old skool dubs.

Anyone know what insurance is like on the mk3 gti?

What will they MPG wise? 35mpg?

Is it an 8v or 16v, 8v's are as common as dog shit on the pavement but 16v's are pretty hard to come by in decent nick ! Check the engine before you buy it though, if its major like a head gasket the your in for an arse raping if your no good with a set of halfords finest and once something like that has gone once the engine will never be the same again in my experiance !

If its not to major and its a 16v then buy it and fuck fuel economy, mk3 golfs weight slightly less then jupiter so fuel economy was never going to be there strong point

Lol I'm fine with doing head gaskets and it is a 16 valve.

But heavy and comfortable isnt what I'm after lol

If i get a golf its got to be a mk2. Otherwise i will be driving along and i will just be thinking damn should of bought a mk2.

I really need the fuel economy, 40 mile a day to uni - although it would be a fun trip with 200bhp lol

It does look pretty sweet even though it needs some love

mk3 golfs weight slightly less then jupiter so fuel economy was never going to be there strong point

This man speaks the truth!

Anyone know what insurance is like on the mk3 gti?

how old are you? when i was thinking about selling my car i got offered a swap for a mk3 gti 16v on keskins

I'm 19 with 2ncb and it was 1100 fully comp to insure the valver

I'm 19 with 3 years no claims. Was that 1100 with mods declared?