Originally I joined as I got a 1.4 16v coupe 6n2 as a backup car. I have a 3.0tdi A6 that I like to tinker with a lot, and still have a ton of electrical issues with it, the most significant being related to a manual to automatic transmission swap... so I do tend to keep it at a shop a lot. Also it did proove not much practical for a daily use.

 

But as my mother’s 6n2 gave birth to all of its fluids, I decided to give her mine and get something better, as I was already looking at a possible engine swap for the 1.4...

 

As a result I got a pretty sweet GTI. I did’t expect much. Got it from a dealer, which was already a bad omen , but the car was in a surprisingly good visual condition. It hasn’t been driven since at least an year (January 2017) with less then 7000km done in 2016. I got it on 138 000km, and its last history is from Switzerland from 2013 at 118 000km. It is kinda believable that it could have done only 20 000km in 2014 and 2015, but here rewinding the milage is still very much a thing. Still it looks like being close to that arlt least.

 

The car had its gearbox repaired while at the dealer. Everything else was in order. Of course for the first several days there were no brakes , until the calipers remembered how to work. I got it from another city, so it wasn’t the smartest idea to bring it home directly after sitting for so long, but it performed flawlessly.

 

Of course by Murphy’s law, exactly on the next day, I got the ABS lamp on, and a bit after that the Engine check on also. Thse were because of a rear light speed sensor and a misfire in cilinder 1. Alongside the standart service, I changed the spark plugs, the spark leads and the spark coil and the speed sensor. But still occasionally (I think when I sit in traffic) it does log a misfire, which I can’t even register. Will do a compression check next year before installing the LPG system, as nothing else looks suspicious.

 

The only other issue it had was that the left window didn’t work, while from the driver’s door I could only open the passenger’s windows with both positions of the switch. Also the central locking button on the door could lock the car but couldn’t unlock it. Today I repaired it by fixing a cut wire between the door and the body.

 

What I plan to do with the car:

 

- repaint the red parts - the current paint job is ridiculous and I’m not sure I like that it is not metallic. 

- repaint the calipers - also pretty badly done

- reupholster the steering wheel with red stiches and reupholster the ceiling

- update all the speakers (some are torn)

- get 14” alloys as it came with 15” ones, and my winter tires are 14... Will keep the 15 for the summer 

- soundproofing - that is a must. Not only for better audio, but also for the rare cases where I need to get it on the highway... It really lacks a 6th gear 

- refurbish the headlights and get new blinkers

- fix the hooks for the rear seats, because, of course, they both tore the moment I tried them

- at some point I’ll add rear speakrs and an amp

- as mentioned above - LPG system with lightweight bottle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally got some work done. Unfortunately a lot more that what I was aiming for 

 

The first task on the list was to install a LPG system (Digitronic AEB). All was fine but I had a nagging misfire error ever so often on cylinder one, that didn't stop coming up after I changed the spark plugs, leads and coil. I couldn't notice when it was happening and the car was performing fine, although I wasn't quite satisfied, but still I've never driven before this engine.

 

Still I decided to ask the shop to do a compression test... Cylinder 1 was showing 8 bars where the other 3 were at 12 bar. Two valves were busted, one exhaust and one intake. No idea of the cause at the time. The valves were changed, the head was done too, but just before putting everything together, one of the injectors' coil broke during cleaning. Apparently it was barely holding on  At the shop weren't sure if it was the cylinder 1 injector, but it didn't matter. Two weeks waiting for the part (these injectors are very hard to find in Eastern Europe... no so many Polo/Lupo GTI here) and everything is set.

 

Of course doing the head also meant that it would be a waste of work hours if I don't change the belts, pulleys, water pump, etc. too...

 

Couple of rear struts also, and the car now is as good as... relatively new 

 

Next on the list are the speakers. Does anyone know if it is worth it to try and retrofit the rear doors speakers? The previous owner had two speakers fitted in the trunk, but I'm not very keen on doing the same. Is there a place in the door for the speakers, and only the panels need to be modded/changed?

WIP 🙂