# What did you do to your cabby today?



## Bama420 (Jun 9, 2011)

Looked quickly and didn't see one of these here like in the mk3 and 2 forums. I figured I should bring one to us cabriolet owners. Let's post as many pics as possible since that's all Vortex members are interested in.

I'll start with:
Today my '90 Triple White got front pads and resurfaced rotors in the front and new shoes, hardware, cylinders, grease seals, and resurfaced drums in the rear. Did a front camber adjustment and a much needed brake fluid flush and bleed. Pics to come tomorrow. 

I also gave it a much needed bath and a good vacuuming. I had to put my MOMO's on the rear and move the rear wheels up front due to some very bald and flat tires on the front 14's. Here's pics!


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## czastrow (Feb 20, 2011)

new top complete :thumbup:


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## iamdagerman (Feb 19, 2006)

What rear wheels are those?


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## Bama420 (Jun 9, 2011)

iamdagerman said:


> What rear wheels are those?


Those are my MOMO Quasar 15x7 et37. Their home is on my Plymouth, but since I need a couple tires and had my Gram Lights lying around, I put the Rays' on the Plymouth and the two MOMO's with good tires on the cabriolet so that everything has good tires until I fall over more money.


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## Bama420 (Jun 9, 2011)

Nobody does anything to their Cabby's? Let's see some pics, guys...


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Last weekend, I changed out the passenger side front wheel bearing on my first 91 Etienne because of wheel noise. Now the noise is less but not totally gone, so planning to do the drivers side next weekend. 

My green 92 has a wiring issue with the horn/triple gauge wires..some short blowing the fuse with key on.
Haven't figured that out yet...oh and the exhaust manifold is loose so its got some blowby. 

My cars in my sig.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Bama420 said:


> Nobody does anything to their Cabby's? Let's see some pics, guys...


How do you think I do all the how to's...........


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## tinker6468 (Feb 2, 2006)

sanded down body filler to the driver rear quarter panel, sanded/prepped door jams, started taking door apart to sand/prep. Hope to have driver side fender, door, jams and rear quarter panel sprayed in primer this weekend. 

Goal is to have new paint by end of February to mid March


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Bama420 said:


> Nobody does anything to their Cabby's? Let's see some pics, guys...


Mine's been under a cover for several months... and on a battery tender.  I'm afraid she's taken a back seat to the big blue brick parked next to her. After this weekend (Buses By The Bridge! ), I'll get busy with the Cab... she's leaking gear oil. :facepalm:


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## GreasySideDown (Mar 4, 2011)

Finished welding up the stainless exhaust. TDI Cabrio '95, will have air ride next week. Also popped a new wheel bearing in it while it's in the air. 

New top + rebuilt AHU + MK4 seats + Air Ride +New Everything= One Happy Cabrio. Now if only I can find black door panels and a black rear seat.


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## Run_That (May 16, 2009)

Couple days ago I got around to addressing the following all in one go while it was apart..

- Replaced glovebox latch with a non-broken one
- Fixed the chirping red gear in speedo
- Fixed the coolant and fuel gauges (missing/loose nuts on the backside)
- Replaced broken heater controls (busted mounting tabs and broken off upper arm)
- Replaced the vac distributor diaphragm
- Replaced dash bezel with non-broken one (no toggle switch holes either.. )

Done with the interior, now for everything else.


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## jsmyle1%... (Jun 6, 2006)

Installed a Reiger front lip...


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## Bama420 (Jun 9, 2011)

Seafoamed the intake
Adjusted my idle
Removed, cleaned, and reinstalled all the oil pressure sensors/switches to get that blinking light off.
Topped off the coolant
Gave it a bath.


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Removed drivers side steering hub on EA #1.
Took it to a friends machine shop and pressed out the old bearings, pressed in the new ones.
Found the outer tie rod was bad, replaced that too. 

Noticed the top shock bolt on drivers side was little loose and tightened that. 

Now no more bearing noise, since I changed the passenger front bearing one last weekend. 

Installed seat slider kit on EA #2.


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## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Picked up a keyless module from a p&p. Rly wanted to get a fog wire harness (maybe the lights too) but there was to much snow on the ground, and didn't feel like rolling around in it, while working on stiff wires. 
Been meaning to take a pic of my girl, maybe will do that tonight and post it up (MK3). :beer:

Sent using my chin on My CyanoPad


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## Spokane Pepe (Nov 18, 2011)

I sanded the hell out of her using 80 grit. She is gonna look pretty soon.


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## Hextro (Aug 7, 2011)

I just went to the bone yard and picked up the throttle body and intake manifold for my 89 cabby. found a 91 fox and a few MKIII's.. the fox was a super score though.

we're racing our 89 in an endurance race series this year. not exactly your dropped and poked chill ride, but loving the mods and the car none the less 

cheers!

(picks of the new parts coming tomorrow)


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## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

Found out my radiator REALLY REALLY WON'T FIT with a factory boost return tube. Gotta go dig up a Polo rad tomorrow...


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## Hextro (Aug 7, 2011)

here are a few pics of what we found this weekend for our 89 1.8 cabby

our score










and its gone!










this is what it came out of










This is our baby in need of some HP!


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## Lunchbox2021 (Sep 14, 2011)

i disabled my DRLs and installed fog lights


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Drove it back and forth to work today...and had absolutely no problems!

LOL!!


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## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Lunchbox2021 said:


> i disabled my DRLs and installed fog lights


Gotta do that with a VAG-COM to disable the DRL and get a euro switch, right? 

Sent using my nose on a Jitterbug!


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## Lunchbox2021 (Sep 14, 2011)

Cmethvin said:


> Gotta do that with a VAG-COM to disable the DRL and get a euro switch, right?


everything i do is budget build stuff. i bent the #15 pin for the DRL and just put a switch under the dash for the fogs


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Hey lunchbox, I'm in New Orleans. We should say hi in person sometimes.


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## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

I put my balck VW emblem on the front, installed the smoked lower side markers and put on my euro plate. 

















Now it's time to take her for a bath :beer:


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## oneunder (Mar 31, 2009)

I dreamt about it and am trying to figure out how to best deal with my rubbing issue I have on the rear passenger side.


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## Run_That (May 16, 2009)

- Replaced the glove box door (someone took the padding off?)
- Installed the knee bar again

Drove it 100+ miles today on ****ty roads and loving it.


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## czastrow (Feb 20, 2011)

we moved into a new place and now it has a garage :thumbup:


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## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Drove her in the fresh snow with my son (so no hot rodding or e-brake pulls  )


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Not a Dam thing...


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## sehaare (Aug 4, 2003)

dug it out of the snow and squeezed both the 81 and 92 into the garage.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Lunchbox2021 said:


> everything i do is budget build stuff. i bent the #15 pin for the DRL and just put a switch under the dash for the fogs


Easier and less destructive way, pull down the fuse panel, locate the single wire yellow connector and unplug it. DRLs disabled on your MK3 without bending/damaging tabs, and can easily be re-enabled should you decide you want them, or to sell the car. :thumbup:

The cabby only got caught in the background of this pic as I worked on the wheels for the MK2 project, last night.


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## jsmyle1%... (Jun 6, 2006)

Washed her........drove her.......took a picture of her....










Bought sumin' for her....

Now, I'm gonna tackle changing the color of the boot.


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Turned 125,000 miles on a trip to the grocery store, with the top down in mid 70's weather.......


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## Run_That (May 16, 2009)

I am jealous..


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## jsmyle1%... (Jun 6, 2006)

Run_That said:


> I am jealous..


needs a wash...


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## hyperlightboards48 (Nov 30, 2010)

mid 70s! it got in the twenties today so i figure it would be a good day to park and tarp mine


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## Run_That (May 16, 2009)

Yeah it's unfortunate. The car sits in a garage most of the time but can't avoid getting dirty on wintry roads.

I just cleaned the airflow plate area and fixed a intake boot issue. And shortly will be tending to an exhaust rattle at the sway bar. I must be one of the only around here to be driving/fixing things in the winter.


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## Bama420 (Jun 9, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Easier and less destructive way, pull down the fuse panel, locate the single wire yellow connector and unplug it. DRLs disabled on your MK3 without bending/damaging tabs, and can easily be re-enabled should you decide you want them, or to sell the car. :thumbup:
> 
> The cabby only got caught in the background of this pic as I worked on the wheels for the MK2 project, last night.


GLH pizza cutters?


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## yellorado (Oct 8, 2001)

not very much since she's sleeping for the winter, its -1000 deg here and theres 100 ft of snow everywhere:screwy:

well not really, but it sure seems like it to me!!!

i did go for a drive with the wagon and picked up two full sets of used 195-50-15's (one yokos and one toyo proxes) so i have good rubbers on all three set of mags i rotate on it during the summer months


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## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Changed the valve cover gasket, and the intake gasket (2.0 aba Mk3) ... Unfortunately, lost one of the hex bolts while taking off the back bracket/bolts.... Dropped it in the undercarriage and couldn't find it on the ground :banghead:, so hopefully it'll fall out.. Everything else went smoothly, cept I found a bit of water/moisture inside the valve cover (let's hope it's because it's 10 degrees F up here.) 

Sent using my chin on My CyanoPad


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

bought it. threw a battery in it. then drove it home.

only hiccup was a small coolant leak from the rad.


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## happybunny (May 7, 2005)

I picked up this to put in it-


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## 87CabrioSK (May 27, 2010)

Brushed off a foot of snow. Started her up...
Sat in her for 15mins with a beer, dreaming of spring. What a machine!


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## Spokane Pepe (Nov 18, 2011)

Ordered a Euro plate - should be in next week.


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Got a call from my kid last night who was out in Etienne #2. Seems the passenger side axle came off on the tranny end, spilling its guts all over the road. 

Loaded the tools, jack, and a spare cv joint into the pickup. Found that 4 of the inner cv joint bolts were missing and the two bolts left had snapped leaving the remainder of the bolt in the hole. Was able to get one of the broken bolts out. 

Went to auto store, bought 5 of the 1.25x45mm M8 bolts. 
Pulled off the inner cv joint that fell apart, reinstalled the one I brought with me. 
Put 5 new bolts in place using lock washers, dropped it back to the ground and the kid drove it away. 

Need to find two of the plates that go on the axle bolts as they are missing. 
Ordering new bolts from germanautoparts as well as a shifter rebuild kit which this car needs. 

Another day in the life.......


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Pulled my tranny ( in the rain ) so it can be sent for a rebuild. Stupid pinion bearing. All in all it went pretty smooth, considering the weather, and the fact that I'm working with an 1/8th of the tools I normally have available.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

CajunSpike said:


> Got a call from my kid last night who was out in Etienne #2. Seems the passenger side axle came off on the tranny end, spilling its guts all over the road.
> 
> Loaded the tools, jack, and a spare cv joint into the pickup. Found that 4 of the inner cv joint bolts were missing and the two bolts left had snapped leaving the remainder of the bolt in the hole. Was able to get one of the broken bolts out.
> 
> ...


 When I lost the axle plates I just used 2 washers. 2 years no issues.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Did nothing but Drive it today............


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## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

briano1234 said:


> Did nothing but Drive it today............


 Isn't that half the fun?!?


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## Run_That (May 16, 2009)

Ordered some new injector seals and also placed an order for some parts to spruce up the interior/exterior.


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

stripped the interior of the 92 carat i just picked up.....it was completely destroyed :thumbdown: 

but i found no rust. :thumbup:


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## Bama420 (Jun 9, 2011)

Refurbished the grill, front emblem (which will be redone with better paint), rear pan, and front lip. Pictures don't do much justice. It looks ten times better in person. 
Before: 








After: 








Before: 








After:


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Your top isn't folding correctly...probably because the side straps aren't installed right. On that last photo, you can see the side strap laying there, not attach to anything. Those help the top to fold correctly when its in the down position. The padding IS folding right. 

This pic shows the top folded right, as far as I know.


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## happybunny (May 7, 2005)

I got halfway through scraping the ice off of the windshield then realized that thanks to my leaky windshield seal I had just as much ice on the inside of the glass. I was starting to run late for work so I swapped keys with the wife and took her car.


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## Eastep (Nov 15, 2010)

*1-24-12*

Yesterday I swapped out my old cracked center vents for a "new" non cracked vent. Ditto with the dash facing. The dash face doesn't have the chrome stripe, but that's okay, I wasn't a fan of it anyway.


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## Bama420 (Jun 9, 2011)

Cajun: Hmm, never really thought about that. I'll look into it. Thanks. 

On topic: washed it today. Looking good.


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## nicktcfcsb (Jun 23, 2011)

installed wing vent windows!


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## Run_That (May 16, 2009)

Put new plugs in. It was a little overdue for em.


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## static-psi (Jan 19, 2009)

my car found a new friend and let my dog go for a ride


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## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

Today I replaced my crank position sensor. Love the looks you get when you have the tool box out in the parking lot and the front of the car jacked up. now I'm back on the road again.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Eastep said:


> Yesterday I swapped out my old cracked center vents for a "new" non cracked vent. Ditto with the dash facing. The dash face doesn't have the chrome stripe, but that's okay, I wasn't a fan of it anyway.


 Met this guy and saw his Cabby Wednesday night at the local GTG. 



Bama420 said:


> GLH pizza cutters?


 Yeah, or something. Turbo Dodge wheels. The other two are gonna need a little more work than these two.


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## static-psi (Jan 19, 2009)

picked up a euro rear bumper.


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## They_Call_Me_Bob (Mar 21, 2006)

Topped off the tranny fluid, replaced all the bulbs (but for the headlights), cleaned her thoroughly, and conditioned the top.


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## happybunny (May 7, 2005)

Did this yesterday, but finally had time to post it today- picked up a set of euro bumpers


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Picked up one of those little Honda half sized radiators at the 'yard. Sadly, it's too tall.


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## CabbyScott (Jun 27, 2011)

Took a picture of it and started dreaming of spring. 










Still need to get some paint for the lower portion of the windshield frame and put the new windsheild in.


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## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Backed her up, and pulled her back in the garage, cuz I was working on the garage opener.... Then wished it was spring. 

Sent using my chin on My CyanoPad


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## denniro (Nov 4, 2006)

Bought about $1200 worth of parts. Clutchy, timing belty, struty, suspension bushingy, motor mounty, brakey kinda things.


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

i drove mine.....:laugh:


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## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

I replaced both side view mirrors glass. The old ones had wierd brown waves along the edges.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Blue one Nothing but drive it...... my Green one had to have the Alternator replaced last week. took longer to get the warranty Alt and have it tested from the "auto jobber" than to remove and replace the old one. 

On a side note, getting it tested at the autojobber of choice, is a good thing, as they can print out the test or display it, and you can jot down the voltage and amperage of the new unit. So that when you place it on your car and start it after, you can measure the voltage to the battery to determine how bad your cables are.


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

drove it for the first time since i bought it 2 weeks ago.  
as picked up...... 









as of 1pm today


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## hyperlightboards48 (Nov 30, 2010)

Made my interior quiet 

Fixed my noisy vents... amazing how nice it is not to have those things whistling... thanks for the write up brian :beer:

Took apart dash, found a bunch of missing screws and replaced them. 

Cleaned every switch button and controls while i had the dash apart. Looks 100 times better

Unpluged 3 of the four speaker po blew them... im rocking just the passenger front for now.


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## 08jettas (Jul 2, 2008)

Still polishing my wheels :facepalm: . And doing alittle paint work around the "p" s on the rims !!


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## Stashm2 (Oct 25, 2011)

Today I got new tires for my used 97 Jetta Rims and put them all on my car looks much better than the ghetto 17's and Gave it new front shocks and springs  Set camber per a thread here seemed to work well. New rears should be here on monday! Drives like a new car with these wheels.


















:thumbup:

And I missed Rodrigas My 92 Mexican Jetta may it live on in other VW's some where out there.


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Planning to start my electrical revamp of the dash and lights. Also doing the front brakes strut bearings and front wheel bearings. Have all the parts just have no time. I'll post up pics when I start


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## dubsonparade (Jul 4, 2006)

Looked at mine sitting in it's upset leaking fuel state. Got a lot of things planned for it over the warmer months. :thumbup:


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## Julianxt737 (Sep 8, 2011)

Was more yesterday night and in the morning today lol
Replaced Brake Booster and Master Cylinder...next up, pads and shoes and full brake system bleed


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## Fe3lgud0007 (Mar 4, 2012)

i did this today! http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/196/1330912493574.jpg/


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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

sewed myself a new shift boot:beer:


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## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

waxed a bit while having a few cigs!:thumbup:


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## AlexMBM (Nov 7, 2011)

Pulled the old fuel pump (external), re did some vacuum lines, and changed my passenger axle!:thumbup:


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

92 Cabby was running bad and had idle surges. Replaced idle control valve. Found much valve cover leaks...replaced with rubber valve cover from germanautoparts. found main big air tube practically disconnected from air box. Still have to fix exhaust gasket leaks from head to manifold. 

had a 99 cabrio towed home..so the fun starts on that.


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

mAutopsy said:


> sewed myself a new shift boot:beer:


Post up some pics of it.


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## KFo86 (Feb 14, 2012)

changed my gear oil, cleaned up my battery terminals. And did a little touch up job on some rough spots in my paint.


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## cab89 (Jul 25, 2011)

*What I did today*

The alloy wheels (actually the clear coating) were dull and nasty. I cleaned them today with brillo pads, then used #400 wet sandpaper on them, cleaned and dried them, then sprayed them with 3coats of a high quality gloss clear paint (Valspar). I didn't even take them off the car, I just masked the tires. The wheels look brand new now and it was totally simple. When the paint cures, I plan to put a silicone spray type auto finish coating on them so the brake dust won't stick.:thumbup:
That went so fast and well, I then attacked the famous left leg leak by messing with the top, adjusting, and re-doing the silicone sealent areas. We will see.


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Removed damaged top radiator support from 99 cabrio. Found wires to passenger side headlight cut and gone. installed new battery.


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## Stashm2 (Oct 25, 2011)

Cleaned up rear Springs and resprayed with epoxy paint as well as the upper spring seats.. Made new flanges for the lower spring seats as the originals were gone and the KYB's did not fit my new struts... Ordered new engine mounts all around.. New oilpump and windage tray are next on the list. Then fixing windsheild rust... and touching up paint. Should get the rear Struts in tonight (they are in and what a difference that made!). :thumbup:


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## p0ssuid0 (Nov 1, 2009)

Bought a set of Saw-Blades, 16"x9.5" all around, for my mk3.5! A bargain (considering that I live in Europe, and the Corvette C4 wasn't sold in here, eheh)


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Made a whole new wiring harness with relays for my new quad grille! and started cleaning my wheels so they look nice for when the car comes out of paint!


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## QA2 (Feb 28, 2012)

Pulled the dash to change the vacuum servo. Going back in with the dash today after I trace the charge light wire to find the short. 

I will figure out how to post pic's later, out to continue on the job.

85 Cabriolet


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## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

Picked these up:


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## Tate393 (Jun 21, 2011)

s2kvondeutschland said:


> Picked these up:


those seats are dope man!! where did u find those??


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## Tate393 (Jun 21, 2011)

Today was a sad day my friends.... I am in school and i daily drive my mk4 1.8t and my mom drives my passat but "Milley the Cabby" sits all lonely in my garage. But to get to the point, my family sold our house and we are movin over 1,500 miles away so it was time to downsize the inventory... so yes, i unfortunately had to sell my baby.  my first ever VW that i bought salvaged and fixed up. RIP babe. ill miss you. :heart:
heres an old pic of her.


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## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

Buddy of mine in Obernzenn had them in his basement, traded him some Golf 3 GTI reds straight up. I'm going to try to make some bases for them tomorrow while I look for a legit power set from a Jetta.

I think they're originally out of an E30.

Edit: From a 911. 993 series.


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## Tate393 (Jun 21, 2011)

s2kvondeutschland said:


> Buddy of mine in Obernzenn had them in his basement, traded him some Golf 3 GTI reds straight up. I'm going to try to make some bases for them tomorrow while I look for a legit power set from a Jetta.
> 
> I think they're originally out of an E30.


real sick man. solid grab :thumbup:


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Cleaned the windows, checked the fluids, Rain-ex'ed the Front.... Oh and I drove it to fill the tank.
24.8 mpg on my Auto.


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## dubsonparade (Jul 4, 2006)

I got the rest of the parts to fix my fuel leak. :thumbup: That is getting done next weekend. Then focusing on fixing the exhaust and oil leak. :beer:


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## 08jettas (Jul 2, 2008)

friday I started buffing paint and today touching up front end with paint before I install small euro lip and reinstall my front bumper .


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

I got and installed the air filters the other day.


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## Moodycabby (Mar 7, 2012)

*Bought my first car *

I bought my first car, my first Dub a beautiful new to me 97 cabby with 109,000 miles on it! I'll post an introduction post with pics tomorrow for you guys


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## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Installed AC relay PO had removed for some reason; charged system, getting ready for summer


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## spam16v (Mar 1, 2003)

It got dropped off @ the house yesterday. Pulled it in the garage, looked at it, opened the top & went back inside.


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

clipper.......









no clipper....


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## BFDeihl (May 29, 2000)

Installed new JVC media receiver. Mounted bluetooth microphone in top switch blank-- works great!


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## czastrow (Feb 20, 2011)

put it up for sale


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## Lunchbox2021 (Sep 14, 2011)

Obnoxious straight pipe!!!!


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## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Recharged A/C, Replaced cruddy old vacum lines


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

put in a K&N box filter.....weeeee


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## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

Took off the "CABRIO" badge from the trunk. Driving with the top down all day since its sunny and in the 80"s in Charlotte today.


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## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Finally picked up a center cap for the one wheel that was missing it from LakeView, made a big difference to me anyway


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## ToplessBunny85 (Jan 6, 2009)

Took advantage of the warm weather and filled in the badge holes in my hatch in preparation for the cars makeover. Also took the fender flares off and painted them black..... and discovered a hole rotted underneath the driver rear one. 

Oh well, that just means next year I'll be cutting them out and welding on some wider flares! :laugh:


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## trbodubn (Aug 30, 2010)

Finished up replacing the axles and lower ball joints :thumbup:


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## cab89 (Jul 25, 2011)

I spent most of the day taking the top apart to adjust the fit, clear silicone under/on everything, condition/clean the rubber seals, to try and stop the famous "leg leak". Now waiting on ANOTHER latch. The USPS tore the box to pieces for the other latch, it fell out of the box, so they delivered me a torn up empty box. Great job USPS!It's not like those things are easy to get


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## Stashm2 (Oct 25, 2011)

Took off the aftermarket fiberglass bumper.. ( I broke it loose at a steep intersection... woops) and found rusty horors beneath.. Should be an easy fix just ugly.. And yes the horible ricer front clip will go back on as I like it.









Pulled it all apart and removed windsheild to fix the rust there :thumbup:


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## czastrow (Feb 20, 2011)

decided not to sell it  and looked up possible solutions to problems to tackle tomorrow


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Found that my dang near 20 year old radiator is leaking at the upper hose, so I spose I will replacing that in the next few weeks....


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## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Installed Drivers side Door window and rear quarter window motors and regulators. I'm feeling a massive since of accomplishment get this done  

I also got rid of my occasional skip with a new rotor button and cap. 

Best day for the car so far.


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## trbodubn (Aug 30, 2010)

Replaced the clutch cable and did the ghetto fab firewall grommet repair, a few more weekends and the little cabby will be ready for some fun stuff.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

ordered a speedo cable this morning 

fab'd a bumper up for the rear of the car.. tomorrow I am going to finish a matching one for the front 






























I just bought it sunday.. so i'm doing what i have to for NH inspection


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

made a rear deck for mini golf........from Home Depot supplies, 20$.....including steel bars and the hardware.


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## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

Washed it, swapped in the proper reverse light switch, re-wired my ECU to a prettier location, JB-welded my rearview until tinker mails me the one off of his parts car, test fitted some OG Rial 13x6 ET13's, and drove it to make this stupid video of my 750i with open headers: 





 
Miley, the golf carpet is the cat's meow.


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## 18t papa (Dec 28, 2009)

Washed and vacuumed the girlfriends Cabby!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

okay i finished the front bumper.. 

i made some changes.. 

I decided that i wanted more visible blinkers.. So i bought some tiny little marker lights and wired them to the existing blinkers so that they would blink when the marker lights do. I ran the wires through the tube that I used for the bumper.. so its really clean looking. I will get a picture in the morning. I'm really digging these tube bumpers  











It was dark when i finished so i will snap some pics for you guys when i get a chance tomorrow! 


speedometer cable came in today.. anyone know where i can get instructions on how to install it? 





I'm torn on keeping it silver.. or painting it black like the back one.. I kind of like the silver.. which would mean taking the paint off the rear one to match it.. so idk lol


----------



## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

got my duckbill installed, and swapped in new headlights.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Sent from my VM670


----------



## pherlopolus (Aug 31, 2011)

just given my seats and door cards a quick clean, it's sitting in the sun drying now


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

so far i looked at it from my livingroom windows a few times......


----------



## T5i drives a VW (Aug 17, 2009)

Bought a 89 Cabby Yesterday... Needs few things but one of the coolest dubs I have owned.


----------



## euroteknique (May 16, 2004)

I got mad at it after working on it and went into the house today is a new day. 

I hope


----------



## boner (May 19, 2002)

pulled it outta the garage on the weekend for the first time this year. gave it a quick wash and vacuum and tossed the keys to the wife. job done. gotta get the steering looked at tomorrow though. 

still, two summers and this will be the first service issue other than a couple of teething issues when it was completed. not expecting anything else this year (just jixed it i know  )


----------



## spam16v (Mar 1, 2003)

ordered the few hoses left to be replaced from GAP, cap/rotor, plugs and a valve cover gasket. Back in service when parts get here tomorrow.


----------



## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

Watched it gather two inches of pollen dust


----------



## jettaglisteve (Dec 2, 2002)

well last night i drove from north east pa to southern md... with the top down... longest trip since the motor swap was done... no issues!!!


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

BIGDAVE1050 said:


> Watched it gather two inches of pollen dust


----------



## happybunny (May 7, 2005)

Caught the edge of the icescraper on the top when brushing the snow off yesterday and gave the top a nice rip.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

found heater control knobs on ebay and the rear cabriolet emblem. it will be nice to have heat control


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

Yesterday i replaced front and rear motor mounts- great improvement 
Today- Cleaned engine compartment (2 cans wd40, 1 gallon Toatally Awsome, 1 can Gunk engine cleaner, and 1 can crc contact cleaner). Also seafoamed the intake, gas, and oil


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

mAutopsy said:


> Yesterday i replaced front and rear motor mounts- great improvement
> Today- Cleaned engine compartment (2 cans wd40, 1 gallon Toatally Awsome, 1 can Gunk engine cleaner, and 1 can crc contact cleaner). Also seafoamed the intake, gas, and oil


What is sea foam?


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

vwcrackerjack said:


> What is sea foam?



http://www.seafoamsales.com/motor-treatment.html


----------



## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

Thanks to a quick (but strong Thunderstorm) the glue on the back of my top gave way. So I put black Duct tape on my black top. (Does that count as a mod?)


----------



## 18t papa (Dec 28, 2009)

BIGDAVE1050 said:


> Thanks to a quick (but strong Thunderstorm) the glue on the back of my top gave way. So I put black Duct tape on my black top. (Does that count as a mod?)


Id say its preventative maintenance hahahaha


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

got pulled over for not having a sticker (which i dont need for another few days since i just registered it. ) got pulled over last night for having non working tail lights.. which i wasnt aware of ..

so today i replaced the tail light fuses and they instantly popped .. time to make a post with pics and hopefully someone can give me a hand or point me in the right direction.


----------



## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Replaced EGR tube with good one I got from scrap yard, and installed antenna base so no more floppy antenna.


----------



## jessydubb (Jun 14, 2010)

Mounted my freshly powder coated wheels and went down to summer height 👍










---
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?draaeu


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

restored tail and brake light functionality! 


one step close to inspection possibilties! (if they ignore my ride height  )


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Doing wheel bearing


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

And wheel hub previous one was smoked. Got it all don't took it for a spin and I had too much camber my inner tire was rubbing coil. Plus my brakes were air locked. So I fixed all that too. Back in the road again.


----------



## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Installed new upper transmission mount and replaced shifter bushing.


----------



## trbodubn (Aug 30, 2010)

Re-wired the PO's awesome radio installation and installed a new jvc head unit with new boston rears, I need to get something for the fronts so the new speakers will fit properly. 

I'm really thinking that new Vw owners need to be tested and quizzed on owning and maintaining a Vw, so much crap on this poor car was Jerry rigged and thrown together you would have thought it was an old Chevy


----------



## spam16v (Mar 1, 2003)

Washed the engine & now the hvac blower doesn't work. Have to yet to investigate. So I broke it today.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

just made a custom adapter so i can rock a nice brand new K&N cone filter right off the mass airflow sensor


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

#2 91 Etienne - Installed new shifter kit. Installed new rubber valve cover gasket.


----------



## MattPlante (Sep 22, 2011)

A/C delete, P/S belt delete. Cleaned engine. Now to find a fuel distributor and install new injector seats. Should be running soon. 


---
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?1u5hye


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

finished up the p/s and a/c delete. wired the headlights on relays, and changed my radiator hoses.


----------



## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

Used mine to haul lumber. Who needs a truck?


----------



## 18t papa (Dec 28, 2009)

Re-screwed in the screw that holds the lower center console thing down, and cleaned out the glove box :laugh:


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

put the fan control knob on the console and the cabriolet eblem on the back.


----------



## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

does what a co-worker did to my cabby today count?


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

AMAZING...hahaha


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

went to the local u-pull yesterday, and found a 85 Jetta GLI- Promply removed door handles and gaskets. (I remember from my fox that michigan winters are harsh on the VW handle). also removed a mirror, and should go get the other one so mine match. Installed the mirror today and tightened up my window so it stops rattling. 

Also, looked at the Audi TB on my bench and pondered that for a while...and didnt install it


----------



## 87CabrioSK (May 27, 2010)

Also picked up a used drivers side mirror, in great shape and installing today. Found some outer door handles on an old Jetta that have chrome/metal finger pully thing, haven't seen that before. Might grab those this week.


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

just finished painting my new wheels red.....heehee


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

mileycyrus said:


> just finished painting my new wheels red.....heehee


when are they going on the car i really wanna see how it looks with the paint should be dope


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

KnuckleUp2 said:


> when are they going on the car i really wanna see how it looks with the paint should be dope


+1
Taking it parallel parking...License test Friday!


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Sean A said:


> +1
> Taking it parallel parking...License test Friday!


I took my son to a parking lot and set up cones cabby size to parallel park, I made him practice until he got the hang of it. When I took him to get his license, the DMV tester said he has never seen a 16 yr old get a 98 on the test, and that he paralleled park better than some old drivers. When he came out he said that parallel parking was a breeze... He had so much room... I smiled and said we practiced for a cabby, they have it set for SUV's...  But the DMV guy as he was walking out to the car he said which one is yours, I pointed to the totally cleaned and waxed topless Cabriolet, and he said "75 degrees, sunny Friday afternoon, and this is my last test for the week, and an Convertible..." I knew my son was going to pass....

Good Luck...


----------



## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Not a damn friggin' thing. :facepalm:



briano1234 said:


> I took my son to a parking lot and set up cones cabby size to parallel park, I made him practice until he got the hang of it.


Did the same thing with cones, only in front of my parents' house due to the curb. Don't know about now, but back in my day the CA DMV required _either_ parallel parking or a K-turn during testing. I took the test in my Cab and had to do the K-turn, which I preferred! I got a 97 on the test; dumbass evaluator took off 3 points for going the road's speed limit in a school zone, after school hours. I was going to argue about it because the signs clearly say "15 MPH WHEN CHILDREN ARE PRESENT"; it was around 4:30pm, no kids around and school was out at 3:00. But my little voice said, "It's only 3 points, who cares?! Grab your license and run!" :laugh:


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

True story, young driver in 92 cabby...taking driving test.

When instructor asked what kind of car was going to be used and heard it was a 92..she made comment like 'must not be in good shape'.

by the time the test was over, she was smiling and enjoying the weather..
"man that car sure is fun and drives well".

100% passed.


----------



## taunimoody (Mar 7, 2011)

Put some coilovers on it the other day and I'm getting new tires and an alignment today. Maybe wash and wax if it stops raining.


----------



## trbodubn (Aug 30, 2010)

New door handles and a idle screw :thumbup: this car is coming along nicely. I'm picking up a new techtronics exhaust this weekend. I'm having a blast working on this damn thing.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

briano1234 said:


> I took my son to a parking lot and set up cones cabby size to parallel park, I made him practice until he got the hang of it. When I took him to get his license, the DMV tester said he has never seen a 16 yr old get a 98 on the test, and that he paralleled park better than some old drivers. When he came out he said that parallel parking was a breeze... He had so much room... I smiled and said we practiced for a cabby, they have it set for SUV's...  But the DMV guy as he was walking out to the car he said which one is yours, I pointed to the totally cleaned and waxed topless Cabriolet, and he said "75 degrees, sunny Friday afternoon, and this is my last test for the week, and an Convertible..." I knew my son was going to pass....
> 
> Good Luck...


Haha, I love parallel parking in that thing :thumbup: so easy, couldn't imagine doing it with anything else. I put one of those small mirror things on my right mirror so I can see if my back tire is near the curb, hopefully he allows that lol. Thanks!


----------



## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Ordered a new instrument cluster with the white gauges, partially because the temp gauge on mine doesn't work and partially because I just like the white gauges

Car is starting to feel like home


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

repainted the badges on the back with some touchup paint.


----------



## BFDeihl (May 29, 2000)

Got tired of the Cabriolet leaking oil. Installed a Schrick oil pan I'd had sitting on a shelf along with a new pan gasket/windage tray. Now all four vehicles (two VWs, a BMW Baur TC and a Kawasaki) in my "two-car" garage are oil tight! :thumbup:


----------



## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

Today, so far I put the New radiator back in, toped off the fluids, also fixed the crazy horn that kept beeping LOL. Now I'm trying to figure out why my oil pressure light will not stop buzzing.:banghead: I have no Oil leaking, and a new fresh oil change. 
how do you test and oil presure sender or sensor ontop of the oil pump?

Thanks:thumbup:


----------



## waterwagon (Apr 7, 2002)

MissHood said:


> Today, so far I put the New radiator back in, toped off the fluids, also fixed the crazy horn that kept beeping LOL. Now I'm trying to figure out why my oil pressure light will not stop buzzing.:banghead: I have no Oil leaking, and a new fresh oil change.
> how do you test and oil presure sender or sensor ontop of the oil pump?
> 
> Thanks:thumbup:


Will we see this car this season? I really hope so. 

There should be two oil pressuere sensors,on top of the oil filter flange, one high and one low. It sounds like the low pressure switch may be bad or have faulty wiring if the buzzer will not go off.


----------



## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

waterwagon said:


> Will we see this car this season? I really hope so.
> 
> There should be two oil pressuere sensors,on top of the oil filter flange, one high and one low. It sounds like the low pressure switch may be bad or have faulty wiring if the buzzer will not go off.


Yes!!! you will see this car this year! I'm just excited to be driving my own car this year to gatherings and to have some fun! I didn't see another sensor on the bottom but I will check again, maybe i'm just not seeing it and dont have a wire pluged in. 

the car looks so-so but whatever, This year is gonna be fun


----------



## waterwagon (Apr 7, 2002)

I just looked at my Bentley and the low press.(0.3 bar) should have a yellow wire going to it. The high press.(1.8 bar) switch should have a blue/black wire going to it. The high pressure switch might be on the side of the head if you have the 3 guage center console.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

I passed my license test! The guy that tested me was a vw fan aswell and he was very nice. We talked about my car a good bot. Got points off for going too slow in first, but my throttle cable is sticking because we didn't hit it with WD before. So tonight that's probably on the agenda.


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Nice!! Vdub fans are everywhere!!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

i drove it... to go pay for our new 95 cabrio. eternityiswithin is going to do the alternator and struts and possibly the drivers side front axel. then i can to register and inspect it and hand over my mk1 keys to him. 

going to miss the army cabby .. but the newer auto will be better seeing that the wife can drive it too


----------



## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Broke an Axel yesterday, fixed now. Back on the road


----------



## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

waterwagon said:


> I just looked at my Bentley and the low press.(0.3 bar) should have a yellow wire going to it. The high press.(1.8 bar) switch should have a blue/black wire going to it. The high pressure switch might be on the side of the head if you have the 3 gauge center console.


Twas a silly mixed up with wires and not the correct high Temp sensor, I did use the bentley. I took the high temp sensor and the other small sensor off the 92 motor I had, and cleaned them up all nice. Then I forgot to tighten one so I now have an oil mess:banghead: 

After I cleaned up the mess all over the floor, I fired her up let her run for 10 mins. NO more Buzz Kill  Now the exhaust rattles:laugh: LOL These Things Happen:laugh:


----------



## waterwagon (Apr 7, 2002)

MissHood said:


> NO more Buzz Kill  Now the exhaust rattles:laugh: LOL These Things Happen:laugh:


Glad you sorted that out. Good stuff :thumbup:.

I have an exhaust rattle to; fixed that problem wit a 10" sub in the trunk, now everything rattles.:laugh:


----------



## dubsonparade (Jul 4, 2006)

Nothing today. The parts gods delivered parts which means I need to get on the ball install all these parts I have laying around so I can actually drive my Cabby.


----------



## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Got my PCV grommet in the mail yesterday from GAP (old one had a crack in it)... they sent it in a box 100x the size of the damn thing, didn't think they shipped it (was filled to the brim with packing peanuts!) Put that on...


----------



## Moshua (Jul 20, 2010)

got some mk3 sport plaids for the cabrio, passenger side is mint needs some cleaning and drivers is a little faded and small hole on bolster but overall pretty decent. I love how they look in my cabby


----------



## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Re wired passenger side hi beam, finally working


----------



## imoldgregg (Feb 8, 2010)

Adjusted my windows, got rid of the birds nest under the dash and installed my radio using factory wiring, cleaned and tightened my grounds, replaced a ton of fuses, made all my console gages work and im still not done....I really hope I figure out this heater motor soon


----------



## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

waterwagon said:


> Glad you sorted that out. Good stuff :thumbup:.
> 
> I have an exhaust rattle to; fixed that problem wit a 10" sub in the trunk, now everything rattles.:laugh:


sounds, like a plan to me! LOL noisy little cars.

Today me and my dad are playing with the top, currently searching up DIY's and as much info as I can. oh BOY, Lets see how this turns out.:facepalm:


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

imoldgregg said:


> Adjusted my windows, got rid of the birds nest under the dash and installed my radio using factory wiring, cleaned and tightened my grounds, replaced a ton of fuses, made all my console gages work and im still not done....I really hope I figure out this heater motor soon


I had a broken brush spring in my '82 that kept my heater blower from working. Replaced the springs and all was right! Should be able to get them from the hardware store for a few $$.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

MissHood said:


> sounds, like a plan to me! LOL noisy little cars.
> 
> Today me and my dad are playing with the top, currently searching up DIY's and as much info as I can. oh BOY, Lets see how this turns out.:facepalm:


Go, Alicia, go!!  I used various bits and pieces of 3 different DIYs when I did my first one. Just take your time, and you'll be fine. :thumbup:


----------



## quibe (Dec 2, 2004)

Gave her a good spring cleaning!!!


Untitled by E Sqrd, on Flickr


----------



## gunnarpaul (Mar 3, 2008)

quibe said:


> Gave her a good spring cleaning!!!
> 
> 
> Untitled by E Sqrd, on Flickr


Good looking car :thumbup:


----------



## 18t papa (Dec 28, 2009)

Got an eBay replica key cut for $2 and it works perfectly!


----------



## tmmorin (May 10, 2010)

Took her out of the booth :beer::laugh:


----------



## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

Took the silver pin strip off. Now I need to wax and buff to get ride of the shadow. Cant wait to get this thing painted.


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

Earlier this week I removed the clipper kit, no bad rust, but about 30lbs of dirt. Ugly bumpers for now. Today I changed the trans oil, Pennzoil syncromesh, made a world of difference


----------



## trbodubn (Aug 30, 2010)

Finally got the exhaust put on I noticed the fuel accumulator has a small leak so that's next on the list.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

parked it on the road with a couple for sale signs


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

swapped rims between the 91 etienne and the 92 carat. actually was putting back the correct rims on each car. had swapped the set a while back to get em polished..but that didnt happen so was just putting the right rims back on the right car. 

still working on the 99 cabrio to figure out why it wont spark.


----------



## dubsonparade (Jul 4, 2006)

Got my fuel lines replaced and the car running again after 3 months. Going to start replacing the mounts and t-belt this week. :thumbup: for having a running Cabriolet again. Also went on a top down cruse around town. Allergies are not bothering me so that was it for today. :beer:


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Shaved new hatch primed it and installed it! Added antenna and rolled my fenders. A very happy Easter for this


----------



## ToplessBunny85 (Jan 6, 2009)

Nice! I did some bodywork on mine today too. Filled in the corner of my fender that used to be crushed in. Soon it will be time for paint!


----------



## bartsimpsons09 (Mar 29, 2012)

i hope you dont mind but i took a screenshot and saved it as my wallpaper lmao 


Bama420 said:


> Looked quickly and didn't see one of these here like in the mk3 and 2 forums. I figured I should bring one to us cabriolet owners. Let's post as many pics as possible since that's all Vortex members are interested in.
> 
> I'll start with:
> Today my '90 Triple White got front pads and resurfaced rotors in the front and new shoes, hardware, cylinders, grease seals, and resurfaced drums in the rear. Did a front camber adjustment and a much needed brake fluid flush and bleed. Pics to come tomorrow.
> ...


----------



## originalvw (Jan 30, 2007)

adjusted my coils to for LB's 

 

Uploaded with ImageShack.us


----------



## tmmorin (May 10, 2010)

Looks good! :beer::beer: 






originalvw said:


> adjusted my coils to for LB's
> 
> 
> 
> Uploaded with ImageShack.us


----------



## cboscia6 (Jun 10, 2011)

*Ariettas, finally!*


----------



## mtemal (Apr 8, 2010)

I got the front seats, door cards,and new left rear window installed. I also took out a huge bag of trash full of crap I had laying about in the car. The red seats are from an 81 rabbit. It turns out the seat slide design for the passenger seat is different from the cabbys. I had to swap the seat frames to make it work. Vw thankfully used a rather simple seat design. 

Scroll till you see the red seats!
https://plus.google.com/photos/116597930196314953092/albums/5452011410846159825


----------



## BFDeihl (May 29, 2000)

Started off the day degreasing and high pressure washing the engine bay. Then replaced the leaky cork 3pc cam cover gasket with the later model 1pc rubber one (also installed the necessary shoulderless studs). Put in an upper oil baffle, checked valve clearances, bead blasted and repainted upper belt and cam cover. Changed cam belt and tensioner. Set timing and injection to spec. 

The '85 is now running like a raped ape. Still need to recharge A/C and restore function of the vacuum operated cruise control (prior owner abandoned it when he put in an A2 TB). 

It's sure nice getting back into the 8V world. I'd almost forgotten what great engines they are! :thumbup:


----------



## Ledd (Jan 8, 2012)

Today I uhh.. wrote some words in the dust my cabby is starting to collect. :facepalm:


----------



## GroceryGetter82 (Apr 6, 2012)

Miss her, thinking about pulling the trigger on another one. (just have to convenience the Mrs.)


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Warshed it :thumbup:.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

i washed mine today too for the 2nd time this week haha:thumbup:


----------



## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

Found a boost leak. Went from 11 to 16psi. 

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee :laugh:


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Added chrome side stripes.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

i made a skid plate for my oil pan out of some steel and tested that b!tch out!!!! that things gunna take quite a beatin sorry no pics of it but ill post some soon


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Shavin side markers off!!


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

vwcrackerjack said:


> Added chrome side stripes.


i got thsame chrome stripping it looks good man:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Black 90 cabby for a friend.

Started at 9pm, finished and cleaned up at 1:45am...
replaced both axles and power steering pump.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Yesterday I trimmed the replacement (old one got damaged) ABA upper timing cover to clear the MK1 engine mount. Baby steps.


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

New tires, and I installed my new radiator. No leaks and traction


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

I thought about all the things i want to do......


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

last two days i grabbed the bondo and started working on a few spots that needed some attention  

tonight i will order my outertierod, wheel bearing and shift rebuild kit from GAP


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

New (to me) rain guard and rubber.


----------



## Businessman (Feb 3, 2012)

What I did to my Cabriolet today, I took a picture of a random rabbit that happened to be near my volkswagen rabbit. 


image hosting


----------



## dubsonparade (Jul 4, 2006)

Drove mine to and from work twice today. Then drove to Wal-mart to pick up some oil for my Volvo and Dinner for the Girl and myself. Very nice 85+ degree day here in PA. Many more to come. :thumbup:


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

Businessman said:


> What I did to my Cabriolet today, I took a picture of a random rabbit that happened to be near my volkswagen rabbit.
> 
> 
> image hosting



thats awesome i stopped in the middle of the street to let one cross the street in my cabby the other day


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Painted over some spots that i patched over with some bondo. 

just some random gray and flat blacks that i had laying around. I'll probably grab some more flat army green and redo the entire car after.. we'll see


----------



## VT-MKJett (Dec 25, 2011)

I drove it. High 80's is southern VT today.


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Turned 128,000 miles on Etienne #1 driving it to work yesterday.

I love the mileage I get with this car.


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> Painted over some spots that i patched over with some bondo.
> 
> just some random gray and flat blacks that i had laying around. I'll probably grab some more flat army green and redo the entire car after.. we'll see


ur siggy is cool......but broken...it just links it.....lol


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

Finally fixed my ****ing horn!!!!:d


----------



## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

In the last week I've:

Installed new front wheel bearings, both sides
Replaced bad drivers side wheel hub
Replaced factory 7 spoke alloy's with new 16in rims
Installed new instrument cluster
Installed smoked tail light and side marker lenses

Starting to look good!



Next week, hopefully I'll get the rear brakes updated to disc!


----------



## h8Tr_ (Jul 24, 2008)

Dropped the top and top her to work, had a great time the weather is still nice in Miami.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

i painted my borbet type Ms black they look like completely different wheels they came out awesome!!!:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

h8Tr_ said:


> Dropped the top and top her to work, had a great time the weather is still nice in Miami.


my buddy just bought one in Miami....16v., hes getting it tomorrow....it was the grey one on CL


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

put all my new parts in the back seat so if i get pulled over for riding without an inspection sticker i can say i am on the way to the garage to drop the car off lol..


----------



## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

today, well earlier today.. I go some tunes in the cabby. I threw in a decent headunit and so far got 3 speakers working! I haz Tunez:heart:


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

Installed new door strikers, and ordered a oil pan and valve cover gasket.


----------



## originalvw (Jan 30, 2007)

Sanityana said:


> In the last week I've:
> 
> Installed new front wheel bearings, both sides
> Replaced bad drivers side wheel hub
> ...



lower that **** then you'll be dubbin



Uploaded with ImageShack.us


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Boom! 


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## 2veedubz (Feb 5, 2005)

Today pulled both wheel hub assemblies tomorrow getting new wheel bearings and hubs pressed in reassembling and putting the corrado steallies back on


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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

New valve cover gasket, and I repainted the cover. Also a intake mod, took out restrictor part, stuff the flexible part in the airbox, trimmed so flap would work, and extended intake down to fender area using part of a shopvac extension


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## They_Call_Me_Bob (Mar 21, 2006)

New ignition switch in under an hour!


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

DROVE THE **** OUT OF IT WITH MY DAUGHTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!.... 

shes almost 9.....loves the car....lol...


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

timing belt, tensioner and, water pump


---
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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

ordered a new top, black one to replace the ugly, torn white one i have. Should be fun, have read as many how to's as are out there.... Still seems a little scary but it shouldnt be that bad.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

brought the 95 cabrio home to put on the side of the road for sale... offers?! lol 


also scored a nice set of 13" wide rims for the mk1. currently sitting in the basement covered in citristrip. Want to get the black spray paint off and repaint them.. or possibly polish them if i'm feeling ambitious later  










these rims came from a mk2 jetta.. 


anyone happen to know the width of them? and what size tires i should get for them? 


right now i have 175/70/r13 on my cabby and get very minimal rubbing . I dont want to get any thinner of a sidewall since my oil pan is already only like 3-3.5" off the ground. I want the same sidewall if possible just not sure on the tire depth


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

that size tire will work....i think they are 13/5.5 

they put those on Cabbys stock as well.....


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

"I dont want to get any thinner of a sidewall since my oil pan is already only like 3-3.5" off the ground. " 


thats cute......like a 4x4........


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

mileycyrus said:


> "I dont want to get any thinner of a sidewall since my oil pan is already only like 3-3.5" off the ground. "
> 
> 
> thats cute......like a 4x4........


 where would i measure to find the width? 

from inside of the rim lip? or outside?


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

SCROLL DOWN TO "wheels" 

http://www.cabby-info.com/cabriolet.htm


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

http://www.cabby-info.com/images/Wheels/WheelGuide.pdf 

looks like they are 5½Jx13 ET38 

good call!


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

the 2nd wheels section.....i was right....YAY ME.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

what do you suppose they are worth normally? I need tires.. i would be torn between selling them for money for rubber.. or just spending the money on the tires.. i have steelies that are perfectly fine..


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

not much, they are really common......you may be better of keeping them and painting or polishing them,....


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

alrighty  


i just finished the first stripping of them. just have a little left to let the citristrip sit on over night and they will be bare. 

Thinking of polishing the face/spokes and painting the rest black.. Maybe try to polish the lips too


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Josh took off the spindle today so i could take the the new bearing to the garage to get it pressed  

Found i needed a new tierod end on that side too. 

also discovered that my sway bar was poped out of the control arm... probably why i was getting a little clunking when driving around and toss through the gears quickly. 

So hopefully by saturday the cabby will be stickered  with two new tierod ends, one new bearing, new rims and 4 new tires, new speedo cable and a shift kit! should feel like a new car


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

just ordered the other tierod end  

not looking forward to driving my f250 around for a couple days while the cabby is down


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> http://www.cabby-info.com/images/Wheels/WheelGuide.pdf
> 
> looks like they are 5½Jx13 ET38


 how wide can i go without it looking silly? 

i wouldnt mind a little wider.. but i also want to keep the price down.. any recommendations? 

currently running 175/70/r13s on steelies.. would like to know some other good options. 


i will say so far the ones on the car seem to handle well and are pretty quiet


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## hyperlightboards48 (Nov 30, 2010)

Figured out how to tighten my vent windows 

Edit: How to tighten 
http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?5669263-Tightening-Vent-Windows&p=77097055#post77097055


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## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

hyperlightboards48 said:


> Figured out how to tighten my vent windows


 How? Mine are driving me nuts. 

I changed my oil today and fuel filter also. Replacing a blown shock mount on it Friday.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

patched a tiny hole in the floor with some bondo to make the inspection station happy, banged out a tierod end from the hub.. tomorrow Josh should have her all put back together


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## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

i painted the valve cover yesterday and the big bulcky maf sensor and few other random things super black to clean up the engine i go outside to check them and the portible shed they were in was knocked over from the wind and all the **** was un the ground and still tack now i get to strip them and redue them all over again:banghead:


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## jaime87cabby (Apr 25, 2012)

yesterday 
i got an alignment done and i dropped it, 2 inches 
also adjusted drivers side door it was hanging a little low 

today 
i replaced front tires 
put the top down turned the music up and i drove.... 

i love my 87 cabby


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## ASBug (Oct 17, 2008)

Fixed the AC in the '82. 
WOW York Compressors are HP Hogs... 
KC


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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

Made some custom t bar bumpers at wofrk, and tomorrow im going down to parts place inc.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I looked at it today as it was up on jacks getting work done... i miss the car.. sick of driving the truck around lol


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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

New exhaust and purchased some items for the new top I gotta put on


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## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Got new shocks and struts on her (stock, but hey, was only 200 plus a twin for my buddy doing the work). Will have pics up once phone is charged, old ones were so bad, they didn't even decompress once off! Did an oil change while she was up too. 

Sent using my chin on My CyanoPad


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

TT chip new IM shaft sprocket. And after I got it done my turn signals and hid lights started working again after 4 mo the of not working? Idk what the hell I did to make it work but something good. Boom


---
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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Still trying to figure out why the 99 cabrio has no spark.....did several tests, no luck yet.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

took another primed up the rims im going to put on the cabby this week. 


(a side note) 

I need a passenger size cv axel.. anyone have one for sale? 

the threads on the stub are completely gone. a front right stub axel would work too.. but it seems that they are sold as part of the whole cv axel shaft assembly 

someone within a day via UPS ground would be sweet.. or local to NH would be even better  I want to drive car this week


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

rims primed up. 

I kind of like them this color.. but think i am going to paint them gloss black with chrome faces on he spokes


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## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Was slightly toast. 

Sent using my nose on a Jitterbug!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

ordered the CV axel for the car. not only did the local parts store have it cheaper i'll have it by 11am! woohoo. might be able to drive the car tomorrow!


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> rims primed up.
> 
> I kind of like them this color.. but think i am going to paint them gloss black with chrome faces on he spokes


 

NO CHROME.....lol......just the black would look good.......


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

OR......just get the Duplicolor Engine Enamel "clear"......and keep the grey....that would be rad!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

mileycyrus said:


> OR......just get the Duplicolor Engine Enamel "clear"......and keep the grey....that would be rad!


 
went black.. but i did kind of like the grey.. i can always repaint them someday


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Put the new CV passenger side axel in today. did the other tie rod and removed the sway bar(which was already popped out on the passenger side.. and the mounts on the pass side were busted). 

we also did most of the shift rebuilt kit.. its a little off now.. i need to jack the car up to adjust it. i need to push down slightly to get into 1st 2nd now. I was reading i need to jack it up and loosen the clamp on the spline rod and adjust it a tiny bit so i can get the gears back in the right place.. 

tomorrow she'll get new rubber  

maybe if i cant get the guys to fix the linkage while they have the car on the lift doing the tires


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Control arm poly bushings and upper and lower stress bars


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

sniffle sniffle.... 

pushed her into a parking lot after the plastic clutch cable hook thing broke (hooks the cable to the pedal).. on the way home from putting new tires and rims on it.... 










on the upside.. looks much beter without the white steelies 

offset is better too


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

New Clutch Cable! and finally got to drive her home! 

Hopefully tomorrow night she'll get the **** linkage adjusted and then the final tierod end put on. I really need to invest in a jack (and some jack stands)


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## Mach5er1 (Jun 1, 2006)

*lets see the pics*



KnuckleUp2 said:


> i painted my borbet type Ms black they look like completely different wheels they came out awesome!!!:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


 Any chance you have pics of the finished product on the Cabby? I too have Type M's on my 92. Love to see them in black!


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## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

Mach5er1 said:


> Any chance you have pics of the finished product on the Cabby? I too have Type M's on my 92. Love to see them in black!


 i dont cuz they dont have tires on them but they look incredible there super black and very glossy


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## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

im in the process of moving right now but ill try to take one off the car at least tomorrow


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

finally got the inspection sticker today! its been a long month and a half of making repairs here and there to finally get her legal!


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## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Old radiator out, new one in tomorrow.....goodbye calcium sludge


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## They_Call_Me_Bob (Mar 21, 2006)

Lowered it!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Looked at it sitting sideways in the back of the garage, again.


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

Ordered a complete new top kit, save for the top pad.. Well that was the easy part lol, I'm off to mentally prepare for install while my package is en route..


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

last night i dropped the speedo gear into the tranny.... so today i guess i let my tranny chew it up 




also picked up some marine vinyl in white to start working on the door cards.. 

my interior is going to be amazing. Doing all white doors with black stitching and then when its al done we are going get some good paint and blood splatter the whole interior of the car.. going to look like a sick murder scene zombie attack. 

also plan to have a zombie painted on the underside of my hood too


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

prototype drawing without the stitching incorporated


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## hyperlightboards48 (Nov 30, 2010)

^^^ look forward to seeing


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## beachamt (Feb 7, 2012)

*swap*

Drove across Florida to get a jetta hood headlights and grill for my 1997 cabrio. Then put it all on. Pics later, my phone camera doesn't exactly work anymore.))


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## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

:thumbup:Started my cab! I'm in the process of trying to get my own insurance for all my cars ATM. Once I get some money together for that I'm hopefully going to start driving it!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

MissHood said:


> :thumbup:Started my cab! I'm in the process of trying to get my own insurance for all my cars ATM. Once I get some money together for that I'm hopefully going to start driving it!


Congrats, Alicia! :thumbup::thumbup:


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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

so i installed the tbar bumpers, looked good, but the wife says their not safe, so back to the ugly clipper bumpers for now.
Made my side cables for the new top project coming up. 
And this weekend i installed a new oil pan gasket, cleaned, brushed, and painted the pan.


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## ToplessBunny85 (Jan 6, 2009)

Painted my car!!!!!! Just a few minor details such as some nice pin striping, and she'll be all set for show season!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Finished my first set of bloody door cards 
http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?5682536-DIY-Custom-Rear-Door-Card-Tutorial


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Drove it to work and used some weird kind of putty that's like rubber on my ashtray and glove box to stop them from rattling and it works great!!


---
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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

got the speedometer working today (got the speedo gear from the dealer (and the c clip) ) 


it works great! downside.. my odometer still doesnt work lol. 

Also finished the bloody door cards 


Installed on door:


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## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

I replaced the engine mount, and the jounce bumper. Then drove her home for the first time. I gotta say, she may not be perfect, but what a blast to drive.. :laugh::laugh::laugh:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

caught a guy and his daughter taking pictures of my car today. he stayed to chat for a couple minutes about it  I guess he has one too and they were impressed with its style  Stopped at the dealer today to grab parts and a salesmen ran out to chat about it said hes seen it all around town and really likes it  who would have thought a ratty 89 cabby would get so much attention lol


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> got the speedometer working today (got the speedo gear from the dealer (and the c clip) )
> 
> 
> it works great! downside.. my odometer still doesnt work lol.
> ...


Nice. What's the rest of the car look like. That's very creative. Love it!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

vwcrackerjack said:


> Nice. What's the rest of the car look like. That's very creative. Love it!
> 
> 
> ---
> I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?tr1i3x




check my sig  

I just started on the interior stuff . have a few ideas. just need the spare cash and spare time to put into it


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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

Drove by another cabby, so far i have seen two others in my little town of 20,000 folks. 

it's great, other VW drivers always give a nod when the see a MKI rolling around


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> check my sig
> 
> I just started on the interior stuff . have a few ideas. just need the spare cash and spare time to put into it


Oh yeah I saw it in some earlier posts. Nice. Same thing on mine with first and second I bought the bushing kit but I'm a bit nervous I'll start messing with it and it won't go in any gear. Gotta do it soon though it's getting worse. 


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

i know how to fix the linkage but i dont have a lift or a jack to get the car up to fix it. 

i was thinking of bringing it to the dealer down the street and have them play with it. and have them do a tranny flush while they have it on the lift. lol see if i can get them to commit to a flat price rather than going hourly. its going to take them 5 minutes to adjust the linkage.. Its literally. loosen a nut, slide the rod out. rotate a notch or two and put it back in.


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## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

Spent about 45 minutes trying to remove the "stickers" from the seat backs. GRRR. Who would do that to such an awesome car?


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Finally painted by front bumper tube.. looks much better. 











Added Hood Prop:










also took the skins off a pair of back seats i scored from a friend... hopefully in the next couple days i'll find a material i like for doing the rear seats. If i can find the time this week i should have a newly refinished pair of rear seats


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## ToplessBunny85 (Jan 6, 2009)

I tried doing some legit pin striping on my car yesterday, turned out pretty good for my first try!

Ed Roth would be proud. :laugh:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Installed front door speakers


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

i'm prolly going to have to redo my door cards.. the paint wont dry for some reason... idk if it has to do with its on vinyl or what.. but its still sticky and can smudge  anyone have any ideas to get it to set? 

I've had it for two days with the top down to air it out and hopefully have the sun get it to dry .. but no luck so far


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## happybunny (May 7, 2005)

tinygiant said:


> i'm prolly going to have to redo my door cards.. the paint wont dry for some reason... idk if it has to do with its on vinyl or what.. but its still sticky and can smudge  anyone have any ideas to get it to set?
> 
> I've had it for two days with the top down to air it out and hopefully have the sun get it to dry .. but no luck so far


Use vinyl paint. It's usually marketed as cloth/vinyl/carpet paint.


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## happybunny (May 7, 2005)

Installed a new brake master cylinder today.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

happybunny said:


> Use vinyl paint. It's usually marketed as cloth/vinyl/carpet paint.


prolly will try that. sucks that the other stuff didnt set.. i'll get the vinyl version and test it out before doing the whole door card thing again


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## happybunny (May 7, 2005)

tinygiant said:


> prolly will try that. sucks that the other stuff didnt set.. i'll get the vinyl version and test it out before doing the whole door card thing again


I had no problems with the vinyl paint drying on my interior or on my top.


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## 86DEATHWISH (Feb 29, 2012)

primed the core support, and hood


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## Glumrug (Apr 16, 2012)

Today I decided to do a full tune up on the Cabrio I bought last week. It had a bad misfire when cold.

I should have taken pictures, spark plugs 1 & 2 were obviously never fully threaded in (both were over 1/8 inch away from being in all the way), 3 good sized cracks in the distributor cap, and the rotor insulation was coming apart. Oh, and the cap was on backwards. No wonder they thought the engine was shot. 3 of the wires broke off inside the distributor cap (cheap wires maybe?) but I was replacing it anyway.

I also cleaned my throttle body to take care of a P1582. Man there was alot of build up in there. Despite the fact the PCV seemed fine when I looked at it, there must be something wrong with it, its obviously letting way too much oil into the engine.

I'm honestly surprised the car was running at all when I bought it.


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## Mykul01 (Mar 3, 2011)

*Cleaned Her up for Mothers Day*

Finished the majority of my engine and trans swap and got Her all shined up for the week :laugh:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

^^^ i want your interior!


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## Mykul01 (Mar 3, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> ^^^ i want your interior!


Thanks for the complement! I designed the color scheme. Cream vinyl with charcoal tweed inserts and heated seats. http://www.mtmfg.com/ is who built it! :beer:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Mykul01 said:


> Thanks for the complement! I designed the color scheme. Cream vinyl with charcoal tweed inserts and heated seats. http://www.mtmfg.com/ is who built it! :beer:


i sold my 08 yaris and bought the cabby to free myself and my budget from paying off a hefty car loan... this cabby isn't making saving that money any easier.. 


I just took the covers off a donor pair of back seats. I'm going to try my hand at making new covers.. if it doesnt work out. I'll probably order from that site.


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## NPoulos24 (Apr 15, 2012)

*Great Luck*

So a week ago my intermediate pipe broke and the mufflers fell off so monday night I put a new Exhaust on the car then at work on tuesday I left flr lunch and discover my windshielf cracked it serms my work never ends for all the repairs I could be putting gas in my truck lol but I do enjoy driving this car


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

installed a 10" POLK Woofer with 200w generic amp. Works great! 

just need to grab one more set of speakers for the back to give me some more power in the mid/high

Or maybe that and a set of tweeters in the front too. 

Will snap a picture tomorrow. basically just cut a piece of plywood for now to cover the spare tire area so i could put the amp and sub on top. Surprisingly enough the car doesnt rattle from it. (probably because it rattles on its own just from running lol)


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## vwagogo (May 25, 2009)

Passed Smog! :thumbup:


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## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

vwagogo said:


> Passed Smog! :thumbup:
> 
> http://i303.photobucket.com/albums/nn140/Heatherkitty76/IMAG0248.jpg


Really? On an 85 they still have you test? Damn, that sucks. Glad you passed it though! Time for a :beer:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Decided to clean up the rear Glovebox today "P 

put down a 1/2" thick sheet of insulation cut to fit over the spare spot










Then I wrapped a piece of thin plywood with some white vinyl and placed it on top. Screwed the amp down to that and positioned the sub. 

I didnt take a picture but i also made a little protector for the amp that covers the front of it. 










Top Shot:










Monday I will be grabbing a complete set of white rear and front seats


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

*91 Etienne #2*

Son was driving the car to his graduation last night. Something happened to shifter, got stuck in 5th.

After the ceremony, I managed to get 3rd and 4th working, drove it home with only those two gears.

Today, jacked it up. Found the end of the shorter shift linkage rod had pulled off(the ones with ball joints on the ends). Dug thru my old used parts and found another one that had been removed. Put it back on, voila, shifter fixed. 

Also worked on 99 passat. its pulling code p1338. changed cam position sensor, same code. now need to verify timing is spot on.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

CajunSpike said:


> Also worked on 99 passat. its pulling code p1338. changed cam position sensor, same code. now need to verify timing is spot on.


2.8V6 or 1.8T? I've seen some bad spots/broken wires cause cam sensor codes in the V6 cars.

As for the Cabby, I piled more stuff in front of it in the garage yesterday to make room to get my friend's '01 Cabrio at least part way in to change the timing belt.


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## Glumrug (Apr 16, 2012)

I changed the fuel filter.

At 133k it looks like it still had the original one on there. VW/Audi stickers on the filter, and factory clamps. The fuel tank side drained a nasty green sludge. I'm starting to think that none of the previous owners of this car knew what preventative maintenance is. Everything I check needs replacement.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Today I got my friend's 3.5 running better and was rewarded with his set of euro fenders from his abandoned MK1 project. :thumbup:


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## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

*Another cabby in my stable*

New to me 92, I did lots of cleaning today. filled and changed fluids. and lots of other things!


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

YJSAABMAN said:


> 2.8V6 or 1.8T? I've seen some bad spots/broken wires cause cam sensor codes in the V6 cars.


1.8t Was running perfectly until the accident.
If you didn't hear, barely had it on the road 7 days when it was the middle car in a 3 car pancake.

After got hit, it ran semi rough but we got it home.
top edge of the timing belt cover was cracked and broken by the hit. belt itself does not appear damaged.

Parked it for a couple weeks till ins figured things out. went to move it under the carport. ran real bad..died 1/2 way thru the move. had to push it under the carport. put in brand new cam sensor..still same error.

it will crank over fine...occasionally sputter, but no start. clear code, comes back. I didn't think the cam sensor plug took any pressure, but who knows. guess I should check the wires closely for continuity.

I've pulled off all the damaged parts, put it back together..about 2/3rds done. Just need it to run again.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

traded/bought/installed white leather seats today. also replaced the ashtray that was broken


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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

Broke my clutch cable, lucky I was only a couples miles from home. ordered a new one. Have to repair the firewall as well. A good holiday weekend project, though I was hoping to install the new top


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

drove it.......stopped at a wawa......came out to a no start. 
waited a good 1.5 hours .....tried again.....no start. 
called for a tow....10 minutes later....started. 

automatics suck.


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## tinker6468 (Feb 2, 2006)

Started painting:


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## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

Bought coilovers today. Should have them next week


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

This 





































Well actually did this a couple days ago, but have been busy with life since then. 

Today I treated any signs of rust, repaired some odds and ends, cleaned and lubed the frame, made my side cables, and am about to repair the top pad with some fresh material  

edit: oh, and color-matched my visors to my new headliner


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Washed, polished, and waxed the blue bunny.... It said ahhhhhhhhh thank ya.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

lil_squeeker said:


> drove it.......stopped at a wawa......came out to a no start.
> waited a good 1.5 hours .....tried again.....no start.
> called for a tow....10 minutes later....started.
> 
> automatics suck.


 No Ford-style remote solenoid for the heatsoak fix, yet?


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## Glumrug (Apr 16, 2012)

Today I fixed the trunk release lock. It obviously hadn't been used often or lately, and was completely locked up. Had to think creatively to get it apart without it breaking. 

The lock cylinder was clearly supposed to be turned to be removed. (Seriously, why do they do that. If the lock was in working condition, I wouldn't have to remove it; unless it had to be rekeyed at which point, you still face the same problem) 

I also cleaned the passenger seat and seat belt very well. The seat looks great; the belt properly retracts now. Its just a little slower than I would like.


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

This 









































































New headliner installed, repaired the damaged top pad, had a beer :beer:


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## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

Drove one of them for the first time in a few days cause the Mk5 is down for repairs haha


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

YJSAABMAN said:


> No Ford-style remote solenoid for the heatsoak fix, yet?


 nope not yet. :banghead:


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Ordered header, and Cat for the blue bunny. Ordered top kit for Green Cabby.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Prob nothing to mine, today, aside from getting my euro fenders. Helping my buddy install the coils on his MK3.5 this afternoon, though. I'll have to take some before/after pics.


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## Glumrug (Apr 16, 2012)

Some of the trim has been lose since I bought the car. I pulled the old tape and replaced it. 

One of the handles for the manual roof didn't want to open fully, I sprayed a small amount of silicon lube into it and now it works great.


----------



## Sanityana (Mar 4, 2012)

Got the calipers painted and the rims cleaned up


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Prob nothing to mine, today, aside from getting my euro fenders. Helping my buddy install the coils on his MK3.5 this afternoon, though. I'll have to take some before/after pics.


 Ok, so no before, but here's the after. Much better!


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## NPoulos24 (Apr 15, 2012)

*electrical*

I have lots of electrical problems with my car i was checking the fuse box and found an aftermarket alarm wired into just about everything so I spent the last few hours removing it and repairing the wires then the brake and abs light were on so i pulled the plug to the j104 and the connectors in it were green so i cleaned them up and now i need to clear the codes and see whats next


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I think i've decided to keep my car ratty colored as the base/background and air brush or free hand awesome zombies on the car... I would really like to do them myself if possible.. Its been a while since i've taken my time to really draw anything.. So i just found a picture online and decided to free hand it and see what i could come up with. 

here is what i was able to pull off.. few more weeks of sharpening my skills and i should be able to do some sick art on the car 

I might just use white and black paint pens.. or i just got my hands on a nice airbrush setup.. i'll have to practice a bit with that and see if that is a medium i can work with. 


pretty stoked about this drawing.. the car will look sweet If i can have black and white zombies all over the car


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## mtemal (Apr 8, 2010)

Went to torque down the valve cover on the girls 1990, turns out the top left stud had some stripped threads.. Quick trip to German Auto Parts and this is what I ordered: 


Items: 

Volkswagen Valve cover gasket update 14.95 1 

Volkswagen Shift linkage rebuild kit 17.64 2 

Volkswagen Engine mount, front. Loca 4.95 2 

Volkswagen Clutch cable, manual adju 16.54 2 

Volkswagen Bosch CIS fuel injector p 9.62 1 

Order Total: 102.83


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

here is the start of the idea and layout of the car


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## tinker6468 (Feb 2, 2006)

Painted the hood, fender, doors and rear hatch - this week it will be the chassis, fender flares, side skirts and bumpers. Then put it all back together


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

vacuumed the water out.....i left my ****ing top down and it rained.....:facepalm: 



oh well.....lol


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

mileycyrus said:


> vacuumed the water out.....i left my ****ing top down and it rained.....:facepalm:
> 
> 
> 
> oh well.....lol


 That's why I loved the drain holes in the floor of my Wrangler! They were in when I got it, then it sat through one nasty storm with only a bikini top on (no doors, even) and the plugs came out and never went back in! Sucked a wee bit when fording deeper water, but it all went right back out!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Ok, so no before, but here's the after. Much better!


 Heard from this guy, today, coils settled, axle rubs the frame, needs to go up 1/2" or so. :laugh:


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## gpowell (Mar 30, 2010)

*Finished my winter build, took it to a show*

Purchased Nov 2011, drove it home, worked off & on through 5-26. 16 x 8 whls, shocks and springs down 1 1/2", stereo, speakers, subwoofer; tint, fluids/filters, clear sidemarkers, painted grille, shaved, pulled headlights apart and painted interior black + glued in angel eyes, fogs in lower grills, and don't forget the hula girl on the dash. Son said it was a girl car when he first saw it, now wants to drive it! 
Next is an alignment, change trans fluid, and work on those pesky door squeeks!


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

what did you do to your "CABBY" today?????:facepalm: 

anyway...... 


adjusted my idle....and washed and vacuumed her.....getting ready for my 2nd 16hr drive!!


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## Vosty3 (Aug 11, 2011)

I called my mechanic to check on the transmission rebuild. Looks like it just landed in Los Angelos here's to hoping it comes back quickly so that I can get my wifes car repainted and all the parts installed I ordered before the wife and I's 10 year anniversary.


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## Vtwinbiker (Sep 8, 2010)

In the last three months or so: 

- Installed projector outer headlights 
- Cleaned stock inner headlights 
- Installed headlight relays 
- Fixed all the dashboard lights 
- Replaced glovebox lid 
- Fixed the whistling dash vents 
- Coolant flush, replaced all hoses, new thermostat & radiator thermo-switch 
- Installed Missing Linkz shift kit 
- Found & fixed 2 more vacuum leaks 
- Installed a killer stereo 
- Replaced rear speakers 
- Replaced front brake pads 
AND 
- Raised many a beer to kamz, briano, and everyone else 
on this and the other vw/cabby forums that offer their assistance 
and knowledge which has helped make me look like SuperDad 
in the eyes of my daughter!!! 

:thumbup::beer:


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## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

vtwinbiker said:


> in the last three months or so:
> 
> - installed projector outer headlights
> - cleaned stock inner headlights
> ...


 awesome!


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Put in my new ppi amp and 5-1/4 components. 


---
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?v5vywe


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## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

Tried to drive it to the car wash, had to turn around and go back home:facepalm:


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## mtemal (Apr 8, 2010)

Finished the Valve cover install on the Girlfriends 1990.. Talk about a massive pain in the ass. Those studs just didn't want to come out. Thank goodness for PB Blaster and some help from her dad and some vice grips. Still gotta clean off the old oil on her engine and fix the steering wheel rattle.


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## Mykul01 (Mar 3, 2011)

*Did a little painting*

So I wanted to give my cabby a little different look! I'm not ready to paint the whole car yet. So I wanted to fix a few of the bad spots. Really it's just the top of the clipper kit! Tops of the bumpers and the fender flares! So I always liked the look of the black fender flares. So I sanded taped and painted my clipper kit to get ride of the ugly clear coat that was coming off! All opinions welcome! Good or bad! 
Before 
















after 
























It gives it a less sporty look! IMO but its growing on me! Looks better than peeling clear coat!


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## GreenCabrio99 (May 5, 2012)

Got new tires, struts, shocks, and a bearing job in front! Like riding on air now!!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

MissHood said:


> Tried to drive it to the car wash, had to turn around and go back home:facepalm:


 :thumbdown: Guess we won't be seeing it on Sunday?


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Mykul01 said:


> So I wanted to give my cabby a little different look! I'm not ready to paint the whole car yet. So I wanted to fix a few of the bad spots. Really it's just the top of the clipper kit! Tops of the bumpers and the fender flares! So I always liked the look of the black fender flares. So I sanded taped and painted my clipper kit to get ride of the ugly clear coat that was coming off! All opinions welcome! Good or bad!
> Before
> 
> 
> ...


 I've seen one or two done with the whole clipper kit in textured black, it looks pretty good, IMO!


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

This: 


















Since it started raining I threw it outside for a 'test run' opcorn:


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## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

Left it in the garage where it belongs due to NH becoming a rainforest.


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## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

rad cabrio man i absolutely love the purple d90s those are my absolute favorite wheels and purple looks awesome on them!!!! :beer::beer:


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## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

KnuckleUp2 said:


> rad cabrio man i absolutely love the purple d90s those are my absolute favorite wheels and purple looks awesome on them!!!! :beer::beer:


 :laugh: :beer:


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Vtwinbiker said:


> In the last three months or so:
> 
> - Installed projector outer headlights
> - Cleaned stock inner headlights
> ...


 Your Welcome, shoot I feel like I didn't do anything. I installed a External Oil cooler and documented the parts used, then did a plug, oil and filter change, drove it for emissions and it passed. Got to do the top and padding next week.


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## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

tinygiant said:


> restored tail and brake light functionality!
> 
> 
> one step close to inspection possibilties! (if they ignore my ride height  )


 
Don't drive through Meredith!!


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## vwagogo (May 25, 2009)

Replaced the rear window frame last night. Pain in the a$$ job. Whomever the PO had re-roof this baby before sure didn't want that frame to come out easily.  

After breaking the staple gun, cracking the new frame (probably from tapping the staples in with a hammer) and muscling the vinyl to wrap the frame to get enough material to actually staple it down, getting the window back in, 4 hours later... I know why people leave out the rear window completely when installing a new roof!

The old frame.


















The BF putting in the last of the staples.


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

vwagogo said:


> Replaced the rear window frame last night. Pain in the a$$ job. Whomever the PO had re-roof this baby before sure didn't want that frame to come out easily.
> 
> After breaking the staple gun, cracking the new frame (probably from tapping the staples in with a hammer) and muscling the vinyl to wrap the frame to get enough material to actually staple it down, getting the window back in, 4 hours later... I know why people leave out the rear window completely when installing a new roof!


haha, sounds like you had your work cut out for ya! 

As a side note - putting in the rear window when installing a new top can be quite a pleasant process as the last thing one does before popping in the window is to trim the excess material (this excess material makes pulling the top tight possible). What you guys did is above and beyond and I bet most would not even bother trying to just replace the window frame without replacing the whole top. Mind I ask why you decided not to replace your top while you were at it? 

And you probably only cracked the plastic part of the frame, not the wood I hope - shouldn't be a big deal


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## vwagogo (May 25, 2009)

CAOSyAMOR said:


> haha, sounds like you had your work cut out for ya!
> 
> As a side note - putting in the rear window when installing a new top can be quite a pleasant process as the last thing one does before popping in the window is to trim the excess material (this excess material makes pulling the top tight possible). What you guys did is above and beyond and I bet most would not even bother trying to just replace the window frame without replacing the whole top. Mind I ask why you decided not to replace your top while you were at it?
> 
> And you probably only cracked the plastic part of the frame, not the wood I hope - shouldn't be a big deal


The roof is actually in great condition. There are no rips or holes and the seams are all good, and cleans up very nicely. You can see in the last picture a very small rip near the left bottom corner which is fairly new and only happened because the broken window frame was allowing the roof to sag in that area. Not to mention we found a perfect condition frame with absolutely no rust at the junk yard for $15. :thumbup: Can't get a new top for that! The frame is metal and plastic, no wood. And it was just the plastic that cracked.


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## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

Well yesterday, I pulled off the ISV, and it was seized up, so snaged and ISV off of another motor I just conviantly had laying around. :laugh: put that all back together, and today switched up a MAF sensor. still having abit of ignition timing issues. 

next step, pull of the value cover, and replace new gasket and a better cover. because of some leak oil that can be seen burning off when the car get rand for long periods of time. 92 is going to maddness!!:thumbup:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

finally got the right weight oil for the cabby today  

also the new hood lift for the trunk came in and the replacement 3rd brake light. 


I also got a new front motor mount that i need to put in.


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## muno (May 29, 2012)

Painted my top. Went from gray to black. 

Used four cans of this:










I am very pleased with the results. :thumbup:


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## StephanieGA (May 10, 2011)

that looks pretty awesome. You'll have to let us know how it wears. 

Stephanie in GA


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## BIGDAVE1050 (Sep 14, 2003)

Got rid of my wheel gap

Before

















After


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## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

*Reverse lights?*

Would a bad reverse light switch makes the lights work sometimes but most of the time not? Is there a test I can do that doesn't rely on the lights coming on in order to see if the switch is bad?


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

finally got around to doing the rubber valve cover gasket on the 92. and pulling off the non existent cruise control. 



















also doing the starter relay in preparation for June Bug at maple grove on Saturday. ( havent driven it since it almost left me stranded at a wawa a few weeks ago due to starter heat soak. ) also picked up some new battery cables and whatnot.


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## mtemal (Apr 8, 2010)

Changed clutch cable on my 1988 and swapped the ac relay from my 88 to the girls 90 cabriolet so she can have max (4) air since mine is busted . Gotta change the oil and get tint for the 1990 ASAP


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## GreenCabrio99 (May 5, 2012)

Changed the driver side burnt out turn signal bulb.


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## Velvetchrist (Jan 15, 2009)

*Radiator*

Swapped out my leaking radiator for a leak free version  

have alot of wiring to go through this weekend some pals and I are having a mk1 sunday wiring funday.......:banghead:


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## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

I painted checkers on the hood and bought fog lights from advance auto and some red night shade and made some turn signals and set them in were the bumper brackets go 








i also sprayed the rear turn signals red so my tails are just red and clear and im really happy with the results 








i also got my hands on a mk3 gti drivers drivers edition shift knob (and both boots for $25 but the boots wont fit)


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## MattPlante (Sep 22, 2011)

Put it on a tow dolly and drove 550 miles from Chickasha, OK to Albuquerque, NM. Next stop, motor swap.


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Turned 130,000 miles on my 91 EA daily driver.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Replaced the roll bar foam, cleaned the carpet, installed new door striker pins, on the Green Cabby.


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Ordered racelands and these klutch 15x8.5's










---
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?wb1yk0


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## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

I did some POR15 treatment. I also got my sound dampener in the mail. That on top of the wire I ordered. It will be an awesome weekend!


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

finished battery cables and solenoid install. 92 is running great! 

next stop.....june bug at maple grove tomorrow. :thumbup: 

june bug xxv @ maple grove raceway, PA


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## dubsonparade (Jul 4, 2006)

I pulled my coolant hoses, fuel lines, and wiring to make way for my 100k mile ABA swap that is going in a few weeks. Tomorrow after work. I am helping the Girlfriend refinish our kitchen table then working on pulling dash and knee bar to start wiring. Have to order some goodies from GAP for the ABA. Like timing belt and water pump. Then during the week I will have the motor out and can get a list together for the trans. :thumbup:


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## Fe3lgud0007 (Mar 4, 2012)

welp.. i did the angel eye mod a little bit ago, i am very pleased with how this turned out to be honest


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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

Tore the top off! Now i have to repair padding and window frame before the new top goes on.


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## MattPlante (Sep 22, 2011)

Started pulling the motor apart for the DIY AEB swap. Most of the wires pulled and labeled. It's going to be a long road ahead but I will (hopefully) put together a DIY/ build thread.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

mAutopsy said:


> Tore the top off! Now i have to repair padding and window frame before the new top goes on.


 Doing another top on my Green one too. Got the top off, and the padding removed, oiled and cleaned the frame, and removed the bazillion staples on the window and padding bar.


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## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

Tonight i cut out the rusted section of the rear window frame, and welded in good metal. Still have to cut/ grind/ file the piece down. I will post some pictures soon. got some fabric to repair the top of the insulation today as well. cleaned all the seals, frame, etc. 

Pictures here: http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?5690378-My-Cabby-91-Tornado-Red&p=77888854#post77888854


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Let's see: 

Saturday: Added an additional snap to each side of the top boot. Was tired of the air getting under the boot and unsnapping it. 

Sunday: Pulled the lower console to replace the bulbs in the gauges and to find out why the Oil Temp gauge was not working. (Found out that the sender wire was broken under the dash and was grounding on some metal portion of the dash frame---which is why the gauge would peg Full Hot the minute I hit the key. Am rerouting a sending wire today). 

Sunday Night: Scraped 29 year-old dealership stickers, AAA stickers, tape left over from deer alerts, and the "unleaded fuel only" sticker off the body of the car. *What a nightmare!* 

Monday: Spent a short while refreshing/replacing all of the underhood grounds, and cleaning up the battery connections. *Time well-spent!* 

This Morning: Taped off and painted the area surrounding the lower gauges a contrasting silver. Make them easier to read. 

Later: Planing on painting the frame rails under the rocker panels with black textured truck-bed paint. Should last for awhile. 


I really need to get a life...... 

DW


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## benrk (Feb 19, 2012)

vwcrackerjack said:


> Ordered racelands and these klutch 15x8.5's
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
I'm really digin those wheels, oldschool look, more like Rial than BBS :thumbup:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Dropped it off with the grimwater boys to align the linkage at ampet auto 

Sent from my VM670 using Tapatalk 2


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## backinthegame (Dec 14, 2004)

briano1234 said:


> Doing another top on my Green one too. Got the top off, and the padding removed, oiled and cleaned the frame, and removed the bazillion staples on the window and padding bar.


 The worst part of doing a top. It feels like hours have passed when you're done pulling all those God forsaken staples.


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

muno said:


> Painted my top. Went from gray to black.
> 
> Used four cans of this:
> 
> ...


 Is the top you painted vinyl or canvas? I'd like to paint mine but it's vinyl don't know how it will hold up


---
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?qdlwnq


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## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

Hardwood floor in the trunk. (I don't recommend this project!)


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

This evening: Slight change from above plan. Looks like the frame rails will be painted tomorrow. So, instead, I pulled the grill in anticipation of installing my Cibie H4 headlights, left over from an MGB project, waaaaay back in 1979. Maybe '80. Ordered a relay harness for the lights, and figured that I'd spiff up the grill, while I'm there. Disassembled it to its component pieces. Washed everything (Lots of bugs and dried mud!!). Took off the aluminum surround trim and hit it with some steel wool. Pulled the VW roundel. More steel wool. Painted the alum trim and the roundel a nice, bright, red--similar to the GTI color. Put the first coat of black on the grill itself. Took a small brush and painted the 'Volkswagen' rear badge red, as well. Will do the 'Rabbit' badge tomorrow and see how it looks. Started to get dark, and the bugs were getting to be a real annoyance. Going to fix myself a Martini and relax. 

Life is good.... 


DW


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

had my shift linkage aligned to find out i need two motor mounts.. 

on the way home from the garage i just happen to be behind a car that decided to shoot up a rock in just the right position to crack my windshield. It hit top dead center.. I watched it go from a chip to an instant crack from the top to the rear view mirror mount


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## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> had my shift linkage aligned to find out i need two motor mounts..
> 
> on the way home from the garage i just happen to be behind a car that decided to shoot up a rock in just the right position to crack my windshield. It hit top dead center.. I watched it go from a chip to an instant crack from the top to the rear view mirror mount


 WEAK! 

I put down coat number 2 of POR15 on the floor board. once that dries, it is dynamat time!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Humble Mechanic said:


> WEAK!
> 
> I put down coat number 2 of POR15 on the floor board. once that dries, it is dynamat time!


 This will be a project for my truck (Big Dodge, not a caddy) as soon as the holes are all patched! 

Cabby got some looks of longing when I was in the garage last night, but that's about it. I started fitting my Euro fenders the other day and was highly displeased with the amount of abuse they took in the shipping process. Oh, well, they were all but free. Still going to be easier to work with than the beat-up stockers.


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## PoOrManDesigns (May 28, 2012)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Ok, so no before, but here's the after. Much better!


 Didn't even know you took this pic. Needs bigger wheels


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## PoOrManDesigns (May 28, 2012)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Heard from this guy, today, coils settled, axle rubs the frame, needs to go up 1/2" or so. :laugh:


 found out it wasn't rubbing frame. lug bolts were not tight wheel was falling off had similar feel to frame rubbing.


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

drove it to the junkyard and scored a set of power grey recaros for $40 :thumbup:


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

and installed.....and both motors work


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Happily (for me, that is) the mail carrier handed me the envelope containing the relay headlight harness that I could have sworn I ordered only the day before yesterday. Nonetheless, I ran the harness, clamped and zip-tied all the wiring for a nice, neat job **Still haven't decided where to mount the relays, 'cause they seem to end up in the same area that the battery, airbox and fuel injector unit all want to be. I'm going to have to get a little creative.** Painted the headlight clamping rings. Then got a good look at the 30 year old pinstripe job that the PO paid extra money for, back in '83. Looked like crap, but with the judicious use of a razor blade, both sides' striping was dispatched in about 20 minutes. JUST A WORD OF ADVICE: The tape will come off easily. The glue will stay!. Your local auto parts emporium (in my case, AutoZone) will have, way at the bottom of the Dupli-color rack, 3M Adhesive Remover in a spray can. It's the best $9 you'll spend. Takes off old tape glue, bumper sticker glue, car dealership sticker glue, no matter if it's been baking on the car body for 30 years. This stuff is, frankly, a Godsend! 

Oh, and switched over to the 'new' steering wheel that I bought this past winter. Much better looking, 'cause it's in much better shape. 

DW


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

driled holes in my floor to let the water out...im in florida......ugh....


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

mileycyrus said:


> driled holes in my floor to let the water out...im in florida......ugh....


 Why don't you just put the top up when it rains?


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Bought a pair if Silverstar Ultra H4s for the Cibie 7" euro-rounds. Since I was having dinner with the GF, really only had time to stand and stare at the car and plan what I'm going to get done today. 

DW


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## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

CAOSyAMOR said:


> Why don't you just put the top up when it rains?


 it was up....we got flooded......


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## Green_Lantern98 (Apr 4, 2007)

^ Thankfully i'm in one of the highest areas in Pinellas County. We still got 12 inches of rain. The inside of my car smells musty so i have leak somehwere... But i purchased some parts today just waiting for them to arrive: 

-Front & Rear Pads 
-New Rear Rotors 
-Passenger Side Hub & Bearing 
-Passenger Side Axle


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

im the lowest on my street, in Holiday........theres a video on my page, and it was shot before it got to the highest...ugh


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## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

*Debby*



mileycyrus said:


> it was up....we got flooded......


 Oh yuck! We ended up only getting 0.16" on Sunday and nothing else. My cabby still spent a couple of days under a tarp with a jack on the hood to hold that sucker down. Hopefully dry days come your way and you can dry out before the stink sets in.


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## StubbornDutchman (Jun 12, 2012)

Girlfriend got some more sewing done on my new hand sewn leather interior for the '81.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

mileycyrus said:


> it was up....we got flooded......


I've been expecting a pic like this from you. :thumbdown: We need to send your FL flood inducing rain out to CO to put out the wildfires.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

well.. we replaced the front motor mount.. the week before the linkage was adjusted.. I was stoked to finally be able to shift through the gears with them all in place. 

Everything was running so smoothly... then after work on the way home I shifted into 4th gear and then couldnt get out... then when i stopped the car and put it into a lower gear (car off) it wouldnt shift either.. So We found that the rubber bushing on the clutch arm was torn and half gone.. So we figured that it was just that. 


I drove 30min home with just 4th gear (thank God for ez pass tolls) 

Ordered a new grommet (clutch attachment kit) Replaced that tightened up the clutch cable and nothing changed....

Wont pull out of gear.. and when i get it into Neutral (car off).. then turn the car on i have very little play on the stick and it will grind trying to go into any gear...

i have the clutch cable adjusted nice and tight too.. very springy clutch pedal. 

when the clutch is fully to the floor the car still wants to move a tiny tiny bit... 

always something with this car.. check my sig and see the long list of things we've done already.. 

i'm hoping something is just out of adjustment and my syncros arent bad.. or the tranny is done for.. clutch wouldnt be too bad of a problem. 


starting to get a little discouraged. lol so much has been done, i keep feeling like i'm going to get to the point where there will be nothing left to do.. and then something else happens..grrrr


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## benrk (Feb 19, 2012)

sounds more like a clutch than trany problem, Freightliner had trouble with their clutches in '07 the little damper springs in the clutch disc would break & pieces would get stuck between clutch & pressure plate/flywheel, felt much like what you're describing...


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

good to know.. clutch would be cheaper to deal with.. 

i cant wait until this car is reasonably reliable.. 


i'm going to get some stickers made up for it that say 

"zero to broken in 3.4 seconds" 

lol


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

benrk said:


> sounds more like a clutch than trany problem, Freightliner had trouble with their clutches in '07 the little damper springs in the clutch disc would break & pieces would get stuck between clutch & pressure plate/flywheel, felt much like what you're describing...




lol probably from the linkage being off for a couple months.. taking off in 3rd from time to time.


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

Fixed my bulging top 

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...iolet-Top-in-30-seconds-Best-of-all-it-s-FREE!!

Before:










After:


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Last night, despite the heat and humidity, accomplished the following: Installed the Silverstar Ultras in my Cibie 7" Euros and hooked everything up. Re-installed the repainted grill and headlight surrounds. Installed the trunk strut that I got a helluva deal on at Advance Auto. Stripped the last of the add-on cruise control (total cobbler's job) and threw it all in the trash. Added the replacement pocket (purchased from Crutchfield) in the upper dash, where the radio used to reside. Looks great, and I'll appreciate the storage more than a radio that I can't hear. Re-assembled the upper dash, after cleaning and detailing all the little pieces and replacing the bulbs. Rewired the lighting on the lower gauges, and ran out of time and desire. Had a drink. Went to bed. Will be re-installing the lower console tomorrow.

DW


----------



## mrgti1983 (Sep 11, 2005)

Before:









After:










My tool:










Also refreshed my passenger turn signal as all the reflective paint had dulled:


----------



## 86DEATHWISH (Feb 29, 2012)

Painted the cabby 
http://i1269.photobucket.com/albums/jj597/86DEATHWISH/IMG632.jpg


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Mr GTI: With what did you polish those bumpers? Or did you just paint them?

DW


----------



## mrgti1983 (Sep 11, 2005)

Dragonwing said:


> Mr GTI: With what did you polish those bumpers? Or did you just paint them?
> 
> DW


It was a mixture of Mothers chrome and aluminum polish and the oil that came out of the bumpers. :laugh:
I have a bumper I pulled off of my old 80 rabbit that i was going to swapnwith this one as there is damage on this rear bumper. the chrome on my other bumpernis still perfect and when I put the polish on it it just shined. But the bumpers on this car are dull so I don't think I'll be swapping them right now. I was looking into getting the front bumper chromed but I'm not too sure, I kinda like the dull look.


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Just got tracking number for my klutch wheels. 15x8.5.








Anyone have pics of these mounted on an mk1?


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> well.. we replaced the front motor mount.. the week before the linkage was adjusted.. I was stoked to finally be able to shift through the gears with them all in place.
> 
> Everything was running so smoothly... then after work on the way home I shifted into 4th gear and then couldnt get out... then when i stopped the car and put it into a lower gear (car off) it wouldnt shift either.. So We found that the rubber bushing on the clutch arm was torn and half gone.. So we figured that it was just that.
> 
> ...


I think your cable adjustment is off. Tightened up the whole way often doesn't release the clutch fully. Loosen your cable and see how she does. :thumbup:


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

YJSAABMAN said:


> I think your cable adjustment is off. Tightened up the whole way often doesn't release the clutch fully. Loosen your cable and see how she does. :thumbup:


I hope so. Would be awesome to problem free lol

Sent from my VM670 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

WOOO HOOO!

come to find out the cable was just too tight.. So i turned it loose a little and tried it with every turn.. eventually it was perfect!! 

i'm so relieved that i dont need to put any other funds into it.. and i can drive it around and part the F250 lol


it shifts butter smooth. 

i'll probably have grimwater guys at ampet give it another shift linkage adjustment after we do the tranny mount next week. 

then we should be good for a while. 


2nd gear is still a little in the lockout and i cant go from 4th to 3rd.. 2nd to 3rd is fine.. 

so so so relieved. Vortex is awesome. thanks to those who give advice on here!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Painted passenger seat with dupont Fabric Paint. Wanted the seats to look nice and white again. 

Probably will do them all with one coat then go back and do another coat after. 

comparison (looks better in person.. its super bright out so the camera doesnt work the lighting very well on my cell)













Next I Got some Red fabric paint and Did a blood finger paint of the VW emblem. Then splatter painted the rest of the trunk cover


----------



## benrk (Feb 19, 2012)

Dragonwing said:


> Last night, despite the heat and humidity, accomplished the following: Installed the Silverstar Ultras in my Cibie 7" Euros and hooked everything up. Re-installed the repainted grill and headlight surrounds. Installed the trunk strut that I got a helluva deal on at Advance Auto. Stripped the last of the add-on cruise control (total cobbler's job) and threw it all in the trash. Added the replacement pocket (purchased from Crutchfield) in the upper dash, where the radio used to reside. Looks great, and I'll appreciate the storage more than a radio that I can't hear. Re-assembled the upper dash, after cleaning and detailing all the little pieces and replacing the bulbs. Rewired the lighting on the lower gauges, and ran out of time and desire. Had a drink. Went to bed. Will be re-installing the lower console tomorrow.
> 
> DW


I don't know how much you're driving with your lights on but if it's your daily driver you'll find those silverstar ultras quite expensive over time, I had them in the truck & got less then 1/2 year out of them, I'm back to Phillips Xtravision, they're cheaper & last a lot longer with nearly as good lightoutput.


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Naw. It's not my daily driver. I was going to install a 50W HID conversion kit, then thought that a set of 80/100W H4s would be OK, but decided that both would be overkill. Talked to the counterman about the Silverstar X, and he confirmed what I had heard: Great light-lousy life....like 250 hours worth. For the extra cost, he says: "Why bother?" So I settled on the Ultras.

I know that the Ultras have diminished life, but I figured that, as an occasional vehicle, if I get two seasons out of them, then I'm OK with it.

DW


----------



## xamx (Feb 9, 2010)

new discs, pads, drums,wheel cylinder..


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Re-installed the lower console to-night (including all of the clips, screws, washers and rivets required) and came to the conclusion that the gauges, as installed by the factory, are positioned so that they put maximum stress on the wiring. According to the lengths of the run, the more comfortable positioning of the gauges is (from the left): Oil Temp; Oil Pressure; Voltmeter. The wiring just seemed to fall into place with this gauge set-up as opposed to having the Voltmeter on the left and the temp on the right.

Painted the ashtray (wish there was some kind of storage pocket that fit into that space) since it is apparent that the plastic used to mold it is really prone to fading and discoloration. Reinstalled everything. Took her for a shakedown cruise to make sure that the steering wheel was straight. Everything works.

Now for the bumpers......Bwaaahahahahah!

DW


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Yesterday I primed and painted the back of the car black. 

tomorrow i plan on wet sanding and possibly doing another coat of black. 

then its on to getting my hands on some awesome metalic lime green to do the rest of the car with


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Just ordered tires for new rims. Praying everything arrives before waterfest.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

finally remembered to have a spare key made for the car. 

Today i wet sanded the back that i painted yesterday, and i degreased the engine and sprayed it down with wd40 after. 

looks much better. still have a couple more sessions to do to get it looking nice. tranny is nice and clean now as well as the engine block.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

just replaced one of the VDO gauge lights with a LED bulb. works great  

also was able to get one of the others working by wiggling it. 

had some vibration under the car from an exhaust heat shield. was able to bend it up a little to stop the exhaust from rattling on it.. lol wheel see how long that lasts..


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Attempted to change my coil overs. The rear bottom bolt wouldn't budge. Tried impact gun hammering it it wouldn't move. That bolt doesn't thread in does it? Looks like it just slides in and bolt and washer go on right?


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Despite the oppressive Cleveland heat, pulled the bumpers off the car and disassembled them down to their component pieces. Left the bumper shox on the car, since it was too hot to mess with their uncooperative selves. I'll just drill them where they sit. 

Haven't yet decided yet what to do with the bumpers. As I see it, I have 4 options:

(1) Polish and clear-coat
(2) Have them primed and painted
(3) Powdercoated
(4) Have them vinyl-wrapped in black

While the first three choices all have their appeal, I'm actually considering #4. I think it will be more cost-effective, and I'm thinking that the vinyl will add some additional durability against bugs, stone chips, and the occasional bump. 

Still weighing the options.

DW


----------



## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

Instaled a fuel filter, new radio, and new alternator belt..than I quit bc of the hot weather. I really strive to wake up earlier, just so I can get some work done before the hot sun comes out.


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Got new rims today!!









Tires should be here this week too!!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

^^ very nice rims!




today i repaired a chip in my windshield
http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...ess-Thread&p=78095193&viewfull=1#post78095193


----------



## tinker6468 (Feb 2, 2006)

Finished spraying clear on parts and mounted up the fenders - only the hood the grill/lights etc and a few other mics body parts and she is back ready to roll down the street


----------



## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

MissHood said:


> Instaled a fuel filter, new radio, and new alternator belt..than I quit bc of the hot weather.* I really strive to wake up earlier, just so I can get some work done before the hot sun comes out*.


Doesn't matter, it's 5 am here, and already 80* and 100% humidity!


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Installed one coilovers and strut mount


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Just too freakin' hot to even think about wrenching tonight, but I did manage to take both bumpers for a little tour of the city today:

First stop: The vinyl-wrap guys. Took a look, and said that wrapping the bumpers would provide excellent abrasion resistance from bugs and road trash, wouldn't shrink, and is UV stable. Turn around time--3 days. Cost: $100 each plus tax. Hmmmmm.

2d stop: Powdercoater #1. Was excited about the job. Recommended the middle of the three finishes (super gloss-semigloss-flat) for longevity and resistance to abrasion and car wash chemicals. Turn around time--5 days. Cost: $125 plus tax for both, BUT, I have to have the bumpers media blasted and cleaned myself. Cha-chging!

3d stop: Powdercoater #2. Was mildly interested in the job, but looked like he was suffering from heat stroke. Said he'd do both, including prep, for $320. Whoa!!

4th stop: Metal polisher. Was interested in the job, but would only polish. Would not clear-coat afterwards. I had to have that done. Boss wasn't in, so he couldn't give me a price. Told me to leave them and he'd call me. Yeah, right.

Still need to see my bodyman for a price on prep and paint. ALSO, had the great idea that I might just have them black anodized, which looks like the strongest and least expensive alternative out there. Will find out Monday.

Stay Tuned!

DW


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

To conclude: Local anodizer did offer the strongest coating choice of the bunch, but was also the most expensive....by a multilpier of 3. So, scratch that idea.

Local bodyman took a a look this morning, too, and agreed to do them. He'll sand and prep the bumpers, and then electrostatically apply a couple of coats of black, topped off with a urethane clear coat, reduced to a a 75% gloss, for $100. I left the bumpers with him. Now to paint the bumper soft parts.....

DW


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

repaired some cracks and holes on my drivers seat

made a tutorial thread here: http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...-my-seats-(pic-heavy)&p=78116124#post78116124


----------



## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

Cmethvin said:


> Doesn't matter, it's 5 am here, and already 80* and 100% humidity!


aww, you poor man. :beer: :laugh:


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

MissHood said:


> aww, you poor man. :beer: :laugh:


I did nothing to my Cabby today, it was in my hot ass garage at home. I was enjoying the 80* and low humidity of the air conditioned shop my MK2 project is in.  Beat the hell out of the 100* plus heat with ridiculous humidity.


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

96* today. Heat index of 104* Humidity off the charts. So, I painted the bumper soft parts today. I'm an idiot.

DW


----------



## Honey_Badger (Feb 21, 2012)

*Last night I put on my new Raceland Ultimo Coilover kit.
Had a tough time getting at the rear shocks inside the cabin. After many hours of trying to get a ride height I could get off the lift before the shop closed in 10 minutes, its still a little to low for my taste. I guess I'm going to have to go up another inch on the coil overs so I don't rub tires when I make a medium to heavy turn. Slowly I'm getting ready to do autocross in this car.








Kids in the backseat, stopped off at Autozone to buy some oil and filter since my car cannot clear the safety bars over the pit at the local oil shop. Gonna have to take my car back on post again to change my own oil. Don't get me wrong, I got no problem doing it myself, I just like the convience of paying someone to do it for me sometimes (like when I have the kids with me).








Couple of days ago I had my new exhaust installed. Cooper @ C&J in University Place, replaced my old expired cat with a high flow cat and a one inlet to two outlet muffler. He tore down everything from the downpipe back and put in 2 1/4' piping. He welded a pair of stainless exhaust tips on the end as well. We were a bit amazed at the sound it produced. I usually get compliments on my exhaust from verious places I been recently. I personally like the look because it has a "euro" stock flare to them. I really didn't feel like having a coffee can sticking out of my rear bumper. I don't plan on prettying up the car anytime soon as its my daily driver that will used for an autocross beater occasionally. Maybe someday I will repaint her and give her pretty rims. I do need a rear disc brake conversion kit soon  *


----------



## morimori (Jul 19, 2003)

vwcrackerjack said:


>


:thumbup:


----------



## vwagogo (May 25, 2009)

So I guess its hot where alot of you are? LOL Well its a gorgeous 75 with about 70% humidity in America's Finest City! 

This past week... installed some Racelands, new wheels and tires, had to bend, roll, pry, and cut for the perfect fit. HID's installed. Took it for the first fairly rub free drive today.  

Next up.. rotors and alignment. :thumbup:


----------



## egranlund (Jul 21, 2008)

Finished installing cruise control and it works! My commute is going to be a lot nicer now. :wave:


----------



## KeatGLX (Jun 3, 2010)

Bought it (White 1984 with a black top) for $290 :thumbup:
Glad to join the club:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Had a few extra minutes of spare time yesterday. And since the heat here was a very delightful 82*, I decided to have a go on the rear bumper shox (largely because the car is nose-in into the garage.)

Nice, sharp bit. Rags. Large piece of protective plastic to drill through. Block of oak. 5# BFH. All ready to go.

Drilled through the small piston of the first shock. Got a spray of gas and done. Drilled through the larger piston and got.....nothing. Hmmmmm.

Draped a rag over the shock. Lined up the block of wood and the hammer. Gave it a semi-beefy tap and.....the rag blows off of the shock and my garage is treated to a 20' spray of shock oil which coats the back of the car, my motorcycle, my lawnmower, my chainsaw as well as the garage wall, floor and door.

I'll guess be doing the remainder of the shox a bit differently....

DW


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

KeatGLX said:


> Bought it (White 1984 with a black top) for $290 :thumbup:
> Glad to join the club:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


great price!!


----------



## doober80 (Jul 3, 2009)

this weekend included:

painting the front pan and rad support.



















and started making a license plate recess:


----------



## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

keatglx said:


> bought it (white 1984 with a black top) for $290 :thumbup:
> Glad to join the club:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


we need pics!!!!!!!


----------



## jacobroufa (Jun 18, 2012)

Got my first cabby! 1992 Wolfsburg Edition with some light mods. GTI springs and snowflake rims. New top WITH the cover for when it's down. Midnight blue in color, but will soon be something different. 

Right now my buddy I bought it from and I are getting it ready for Dubs in the Valley. Powerwashing the bay, re-attaching trim that his wife somehow ripped off, tearing down the engine to re-do seals and paint it. Removing AC because it no longer works and I don't want it anyway. Removing PS pump because he got a manual rack for it.


----------



## benrk (Feb 19, 2012)

doober80 said:


> and started making a license plate recess:


I'm somewhat undecided on what to do in the rear but I kinda like this solution :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## doober80 (Jul 3, 2009)

almost done.


----------



## KeatGLX (Jun 3, 2010)

Humble Mechanic said:


> we need pics!!!!!!!


Will deliver soon, going camping for a few days and have no time lol. dont worry, itll look the same in 4 days as it did for 2 yeas sitting outside in someones backyard


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

replaced oil temp sensor.. now the gauge works!


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Was looking over the lower 1/3 of Nimbus with the thought of freshening up the paint scheme a little, and noticed that the PO bashed in the front valence a bit. So, put down my Martini, grabbed a thick rag, a scrap of wood and a beefy pair of pliers and bent out the crashed portion of the valence. Looks pretty good. Will look even better when I add the chin spoiler.....I hope.

DW


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

today I changed the fuel filter and seafoamed the intake again. Lifters are getting ticky, new ones soon.


----------



## KeatGLX (Jun 3, 2010)

$290 :thumbup:








sorry for the bad ipod pic


----------



## Spokane Pepe (Nov 18, 2011)

Nice find 

I sanded my cabby with 400 grit almost ready for primer!


----------



## joser11 (Aug 8, 2010)

bought it!

1k


----------



## KeatGLX (Jun 3, 2010)

Washed it!


----------



## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

For the first time in about 9 months, I drove it... top down and drizzling.


----------



## KeatGLX (Jun 3, 2010)

marvel Mystery oiled the engine and it turns over great. Treating some wires and grounds. new battery. going to try and get the fuel distributor to work tonight. want it to run by tmrw, then comes clutch work.


----------



## mAutopsy (Feb 20, 2012)

I put on my lower control arm brace the other day, what a difference 
Today I drove to the parts store for some parts for the other ride (1993 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon), and got complemented by a guy in a BMW 'vert. 
Then got caught in the rain for a minute.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

figured i would add some HP with a new sticker 



















"fingers crossed" had nothing to fix today!


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Went to MK1 Madness today and got some inspiration. Came home and looked at mine tucked in the back of the garage, again, with longing.


----------



## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

Posted it up for trade. (or possible sale) Anyone have a MkI Diesel? Let me know!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

put the refinished emblems back on 










more close up pics in sig link


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Little inspiration yesterday...and no parts yet. Bumper painting should be done tomorrow. So, I painted the wheel center caps. Was going to get fancy with them, but after doing one, concluded that it looked too 'circus-y' so I went back to plain black all around.

May pull the Karmann emblems to-night...unless the GF is going to cook for me.

DW


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

replaced both my fuel pumps again! 3 time:facepalm:


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

vwcrackerjack said:


> Got new rims today!!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


sweet rims! What kind are those?


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> I've been expecting a pic like this from you. :thumbdown: We need to send your FL flood inducing rain out to CO to put out the wildfires.


please take our rain, tired of washing my cabbi only for it to rain in the afternoon without warning...grrrrrrr


----------



## jaime87cabby (Apr 25, 2012)

oshwass1962 said:


> please take our rain, tired of washing my cabbi only for it to rain in the afternoon without warning...grrrrrrr


saw the news rain should be gone for a while. wash your car tomorrow, hopefully it'll stay clean. 
87 cabby hudson fl. we need a meet up somewhere around here a lot of cabbys and no local meet ups:beer:


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

oshwass1962 said:


> sweet rims! What kind are those?


Klutch wheels.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

busted a wheel bearing! only 3 months old! 

hoping local parts store has one in stock so i can get the car taken care of tomorrow


----------



## Idubtheevee (Jul 13, 2012)

*todays mission*

Hi everyone..cool thread its nice to read what everyone is has been doing.

Today I am going to install a front engine mount rubber.. 
I re-glued my rear vision mirror back on last night and that seems to be holding up well! 
This afternoon im going to drop in at an exhaust workshop to get a quote on fitting my headers and flow through cat and getting the rear part of the exhaust made up


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

jaime87cabby said:


> saw the news rain should be gone for a while. wash your car tomorrow, hopefully it'll stay clean.
> 87 cabby hudson fl. we need a meet up somewhere around here a lot of cabbys and no local meet ups:beer:


i up for it since tampa is a honda infested town.. .lol...need more dubbers to hang with


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

As threatened, I pulled the Karmann side badges this evening, razored off the remnants of the sticky tape, dissolved the left-over glue and rubbed out the dirty badge outline in the white paint. Ahhhhh. Looks much cleaner. Now that it's a bit cooler out, maybe I'll do some painting tomorrow.

DW


----------



## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

Pads and rotors up front. Tried to swap the washer fluid pump, but the part was wrong. Still have the ignition switch and passenger axle to do...


----------



## DEGS (Nov 13, 2010)

*Boot cover*

Scored a matching boot cover for stampy at the local junkyard for $35. It has absolutely no rips and has the snap on buttons and straps. It cleaned up real nice. Thanks briano123 for the tip on using magic erasers. the rusty spots are still a tad bit yellow, but are not very noticeable.


----------



## ramblin99 (May 15, 2006)

Put a girl in it!


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

ramblin99 said:


> Put a girl in it!


what body kit is that?


----------



## jaime87cabby (Apr 25, 2012)

oshwass1962 said:


> i up for it since tampa is a honda infested town.. .lol...need more dubbers to hang with


let me know where you would want to meet and ill see if i could get some more ppl for a small meet up


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

jaime87cabby said:


> let me know where you would want to meet and ill see if i could get some more ppl for a small meet up


how far you from tampa?


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

oshwass1962 said:


> how far you from tampa?


oh yea...i washed my baby today and it didnt rain..:thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## jaime87cabby (Apr 25, 2012)

oshwass1962 said:


> how far you from tampa?


about 30 mins north in hudson florida


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

jaime87cabby said:


> about 30 mins north in hudson florida


ill hit you up in a message


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

took out the hub assembly .. getting the front pass wheel bearing replaced (again) tomorrow. 


Germanautoparts.com is awesome. the bearing i am replacing was only 3 months old. they are warrantying the dead one, shipping me a new one quick and free. They also let me add some items to the order and still get shipping for free! 

so next week we will probably do the oil pan , valve cover seal (upgrade kit and seal) and a new cam oil baffle


----------



## Moshua (Jul 20, 2010)

i made some faux "euro" turns, textured bumpers, and painted the grille black


----------



## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

Passenger half axle. Hour and a half job without disrupting the recent alignment.


----------



## kinggargantuan (Jun 4, 2011)

4 new tires. cabby drives like new. I LOVE IT! :laugh:

side note - anybody use plastidip spray on here? i blacked out my emblems and hubcaps awhile ago. they just came out with gunmetal spray plastidip so i might do my steelies next.


----------



## kinggargantuan (Jun 4, 2011)

Dragonwing said:


> Despite the oppressive Cleveland heat, pulled the bumpers off the car and disassembled them down to their component pieces. Left the bumper shox on the car, since it was too hot to mess with their uncooperative selves. I'll just drill them where they sit.
> 
> Haven't yet decided yet what to do with the bumpers. As I see it, I have 4 options:
> 
> ...


5. plastidip.


----------



## Spokane Pepe (Nov 18, 2011)

Did not work on her cause I am **** faced. Never drink and work on an ole cabbie theryt disercve more.


----------



## They_Call_Me_Bob (Mar 21, 2006)

New pads and rotors, new control arms, new lower sway bar inner and outer bushings, four point lower saw bar, lowered it another 1/4 inch, scrapes all over the place.

Productive day.


----------



## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

Put rims tires and coilovers in today.


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Why does the tire look all wrong on that rim? Are the rims too wide for the rubber?

DW


----------



## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

Dragonwing said:


> Why does the tire look all wrong on that rim? Are the rims too wide for the rubber?
> 
> 
> DW


:facepalm:


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Hey, Poop, sorry if I offended your sensibilities, but to me, it looks kinda....well..... goofy.

DW


----------



## They_Call_Me_Bob (Mar 21, 2006)

Dragonwing said:


> Hey, Poop, sorry if I offended your sensibilities, but to me, it looks kinda....well..... goofy.
> 
> DW


It's tire stretch, many VW people love it! Just as many hate it.


----------



## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

Dragonwing said:


> Hey, Poop, sorry if I offended your sensibilities, but to me, it looks kinda....well..... goofy.
> 
> DW


I know this may come as a huge surprise to you, but it *ACTUALLY* has a function, aside from just looking "goofy." Regardless of anyone's opinions on the aesthetic value, even my own, tire stretch is quite common. Get with the times.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

i see more and more cars with stretched tires these days. i think they look pretty neat. epecially when the car is super low


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

PartyPooper: Nothing comes as a huge shock to me these days, but OK, I'll bite. What is the ACTUAL function, (aside from leaving the rim exposed) that makes it better than mounting a low-profile tire that actually puts tread on the ground UNDER the width of the rim. No bull****....I'd really like to know, only because it seems to me that, under spirited cornering, the likelihood of peeling a 'stretched' tire off the rim is a real risk. Is it?

DW


----------



## boris velez (Oct 30, 2011)

whats the tire specs?


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

vortex thread on everything you need to know about stretched tires  

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...tched-tires-and-poke**-but-were-afraid-to-ask


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Read it and came away with the understanding that it's just for looks, and serves no practical automotive purpose. Just puts your rims at risk from errant curbs. Psssh....

DW


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Dragonwing said:


> Read it and came away with the understanding that it's just for looks, and serves no practical automotive purpose. Just puts your rims at risk from errant curbs. Psssh....
> 
> DW


pretty much. 

i dont think that the rims are any more at risk though. if you're gonna rash em they would get rashed either way. 

my guess is that the tires would wear quickly too


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

For anyone who doesn't know where this originated from...... Us Vw people as well as others use it basically for looks and the ability to lower ur car without slicing up your tires. But it came from the drift car scene. When they stretch their tires they have basically 0 sidewall flex so they get all the power to the street during turns etc needed for what they do. We obviously don't need to do this in our front wheel drive cars but it looks cool to me and yeah u have to drive very carefully but I'm not looking to beat up on my 20year old car that I break my back and hands to keep looking nice. That's what American cars r for.


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## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

^ This.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Played around with oil caps for my newly acquired Moroso valve cover. I don't' like the angle the stock VW caps wind up at, looks like I have to have a custom aluminum top piece made for the VW bottom portion.


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## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

tinygiant said:


> pretty much.
> 
> i dont think that the rims are any more at risk though. if you're gonna rash em they would get rashed either way.
> 
> my guess is that the tires would wear quickly too


Chances are, as stated, if you're going to rash a wheel, it's going to happen. It's not the curbs fault if you drive into it. Stretch, in itself, does not decrease tread life, it's just that, usually, guys with crazy stretch are also set up with crazy camber, which DOES kill tread.


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## benrk (Feb 19, 2012)

To me the function of the stretch was always optical, you get that nice wide stance that many want with the rims poking out somewhat while the tread is still covered & therefore you actually are street legal, I know here in North America that is of lesser importance as there seem to be many jurisdictions that have different problemsvthan wheelfit on souped up cars, but many cars I've seen over here with wheel poke w/o stretch would make it about a block or two in a German city before the 1st cop would pull 'em over, scratch the stamps off the plates & order a tow truck...


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

PartyPooper said:


> Chances are, as stated, if you're going to rash a wheel, it's going to happen. It's not the curbs fault if you drive into it. Stretch, in itself, does not decrease tread life, it's just that, usually, guys with crazy stretch are also set up with crazy camber, which DOES kill tread.


The camber won't affect tires if u dial it in with 0 toe


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## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

Sure it will. If you're on gnarly camber and your outer tread is off the ground VIP style, your inside tread will wear out much quicker.


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## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

Window washer fluid pump. It is of the MKIV variety, not the MKIII... Somebody let europartsdirect.com now.


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## 93cabbyg60 (Jul 19, 2012)

What's the size and offset of those wheels. and what size tires did ya put on em?


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## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

FL 2.0L said:


> Window washer fluid pump. It is of the MKIV variety, not the MKIII... Somebody let europartsdirect.com now.


what part of fl you in?


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

new wheel bearing. hopefully this one lasts more than 2 months.


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Worked on the driver's side of Nimbus, yesterday. Pulled the wheel arches, and painted them the wrong color. Will have to fix that. Painted the lower beltline a nice gunmetal grey. Came out quite satisfactory. Today, added a tasteful red pinstripe to ease the transition from the white to the grey. When something turns out just as you envision it....that makes for a good day. 

Paint shop says that the bumpers are done. I'll pick them up when I'm done with the body, and attach them to the collapsed bumper shox. 

Now I can turn the car around and do the same for the passenger side. Why do I keep thinking that that side is going to be a real ass-ache?

Pix to follow when completed.

DW


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## NimreyDX (Jul 20, 2012)

Replaced the clutch cable on my cabby a few days ago. The cable pulled through the firewall and didn't have anything to pull against . Ended up using an extra washer to keep it from pulling through this time... Drove it a few days, and then broke a piece of shift linkage... hopefully it comes in today. I have places to go!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

NimreyDX said:


> Replaced the clutch cable on my cabby a few days ago. The cable pulled through the firewall and didn't have anything to pull against . Ended up using an extra washer to keep it from pulling through this time... Drove it a few days, and then broke a piece of shift linkage... hopefully it comes in today. I have places to go!



been there. replaced the clutch cable then did the linkage.. then had to get the linkage aligned.. then the rubber grommet on the attachment kit broke.. lol i think my whole linkage and shift related pieces are all replaced now


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## vwcrackerjack (May 15, 2011)

93cabbyg60 said:


> What's the size and offset of those wheels. and what size tires did ya put on em?


15x8-1/2" et 17 with 165/45/15 also runnin 32mil spacer in back and 20 up front. I love the look. Pics don't do it justice. But the stance is great. Lost one center cap already on the first freakin ride man. Bummed out about it. But I gotta say this car handles amazing with the set up. To my surprise. Low and slow. Watch for potholes.


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## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

oshwass1962 said:


> what part of fl you in?


 Cape Coral.


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## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

Daughter had the windows tinted...


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## BoraVR (Mar 14, 2005)

NimreyDX said:


> Replaced the clutch cable on my cabby a few days ago. The cable pulled through the firewall and didn't have anything to pull against . Ended up using an extra washer to keep it from pulling through this time... Drove it a few days, and then broke a piece of shift linkage... hopefully it comes in today. I have places to go!


 Just went through this last week - replaced cable on Monday, was downtown Friday night and lost the clutch.. made it home clutchless, going in 3rd most of the way. Followed the DIY on 152.com and had it back on the road the same night :thumbup:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

well i blew through the new wheel bearing in less than a week.. figured i would try replacing the hub with a new bearing and see if that makes a difference. 

would prefer not to have to buy a wheel bearing every week lol


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## kinggargantuan (Jun 4, 2011)

FL 2.0L said:


> Daughter had the windows tinted...


 man i wish my top looked that good.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

well i received my hub and new bearing and decided to work on getting everything off to go get the new stuff pressed. 


first off .. i think my bearing got so loose that it nudged the axel nut and wore the threads a little.. stripped some on the way out  i just replaced that axel too. 


Next everything was coming off smoothly until i reached the top bolt on the caliper.. it wont move at all.. tried a 18" breaker bar, sockets, wrenches.. it wont budge. its getting to the point now where it might not be able to be moved by wrench if i keep it up. the bottom bolt came out easy.. but the top .. not so much. i was able to get the whole caliper to rotate up when i took the bottom bolt out.. Not sure why the bolt wont move.. unless some how it attached it self to the caliper... idk.. probably going to have to wait until josh is around monday to look at it.. 

in the mean time its soaking in pbblaster with hopes that later it will move. i'll replace the bolt too when i get it out. 

so much stupid little stuff with these cars. its my fault for not replacing the hub with the bearing though.. i know better now


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## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

tinygiant said:


> well i received my hub and new bearing and decided to work on getting everything off to go get the new stuff pressed.
> 
> 
> first off .. i think my bearing got so loose that it nudged the axel nut and wore the threads a little.. stripped some on the way out  i just replaced that axel too.
> ...


 If you have a small plumbing torch, heat the nut until its good and hot, that might break loose by hand. Also, if you put your bearing in the freezer for a couple hours, it will almost slide right in. :wave:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

PartyPooper said:


> If you have a small plumbing torch, heat the nut until its good and hot, that might break loose by hand. Also, if you put your bearing in the freezer for a couple hours, it will almost slide right in. :wave:


 add one dremel, subract one bolt  

i got it off and bought two new bolts for it. 

the shop i wanted to have press the bearing closed at 4pm.. i finally finished at 4:10 go figure. 

but i feel triumphant that i was able to pull it apart  

the downside.. big downside .. this is what the axel looks like after getting the nut off. you can see where the nut was knocked or worn forward on the stud. i just replaced this in May.. has a lifetime warranty.. but probably not for that


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## wdvolks (Jul 25, 2011)

http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/479793_3410745062698_1339926859_n.jpg 

Picked this up today, for $0.00!!!! Now i need to figure out what i want to do with it. Its been in storage for 7 years, and has a 99 Jetta 2.0 in it, but its not wired up. Project time!!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

wdvolks said:


> http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/479793_3410745062698_1339926859_n.jpg
> 
> Picked this up today, for $0.00!!!! Now i need to figure out what i want to do with it. Its been in storage for 7 years, and has a 99 Jetta 2.0 in it, but its not wired up. Project time!!


 dang. lol i want a free cabby! would offset the money i spend on keeping mine running


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## wdvolks (Jul 25, 2011)

Its going to cost me quite a bit just to get this thing running. but i figure maybe by next summer it will be road worthy


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## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

kinggargantuan said:


> man i wish my top looked that good.


 Ahh! I forgot to mention that! One of the reasons I wanted to throw up a quick photo was to show how good the 2 year old, self-installed, $200 clearance top from VW is holding up! It was such a tedious job, but definitely worth the effort. One wrinkle that was present right after install quickly smoothed itself out. Thanks for mentioning it and thanks for the remark!


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## 93cabbyg60 (Jul 19, 2012)

yea i got a 93 with some bbs rs but i want more offset


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

nothing


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## Greensteeldragon (Nov 17, 2010)

torn out most of the interior (tan) and started replacing it with black, the tan interior was beat to hell, and the po told me there was a dead bird in it for a couple months :facepalm: still looking for black rear door cards if ne body know where to get them


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## DEGS (Nov 13, 2010)

fixed the wiring to my hazard lights, put my HVAC and instrument panel back together, got an aluminum coolant flange to heater core from the junkyard, added G12 coolant, and put my duckbill on.


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## MattPlante (Sep 22, 2011)

Went to the j/y and picked up some lower chrome trim from a pre-clipper cabby. Does anybody know if early cabriolets had a different rocker panel to cover up the reinforced frame underneath?


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## benrk (Feb 19, 2012)

MattPlante said:


> Went to the j/y and picked up some lower chrome trim from a pre-clipper cabby. Does anybody know if early cabriolets had a different rocker panel to cover up the reinforced frame underneath?


 Not that I would be aware of, the reinforcements were "hidden" by black underbody coating while the rockers are body color.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

getting my cv axel replaced for free from the store i bought it from.. big relief to the wallet after having to do the bearing and hub this week too. 

part will be in tomorrow so tomorrow i'll be putting it all back together  

i'm starting to have an understanding with my cabby lol. not being a mechanic its "fun" learning about this stuff 

:thumbup: to vortex and all the tutorials


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Let's see: Despite the continuing promises of Body Shop Guy, bumpers are still not done...though he *promises* that they'll be done tomorrow. (figured I give him 'till Thursday, just because I know how he is). Meanwhile, got Nimbus turned around in the garage, so I can sand/paint the off-side lower beltline. Removed the wheel arches. Thoroughly packed with mud, grease and crap. Cleaned everything up and noticed a bit of a rust problem at the front wheel arch, and right at the seam on the rear splash pan. Took care of the rear pan and painted the small area inside the strengthening creases a nice wrinkle black. Found that the Chrysler color CC347 (which I believe is PW4) is a dead ringer for the Alpine White (or at least the small area that I painted, which will be hidden by the bumper). Hit the rusty area on the wheel arch with some Permatex rust killer. This stuff is fantastic! A small fiberglass patch is next. 

DW


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

made a meme today


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## a4edwin (Nov 14, 2010)

vwcrackerjack said:


> For anyone who doesn't know where this originated from...... Us Vw people as well as others use it basically for looks and the ability to lower ur car without slicing up your tires. But it came from the drift car scene. When they stretch their tires they have basically 0 sidewall flex so they get all the power to the street during turns etc needed for what they do. We obviously don't need to do this in our front wheel drive cars but it looks cool to me and yeah u have to drive very carefully but I'm not looking to beat up on my 20year old car that I break my back and hands to keep looking nice. That's what American cars r for.


 this is absolutely not the origin of the stretched tire look!


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

No, it's not. As I understand it, the whole thing started in Germany/Belgium. Their motor vehicle laws, which are several degrees tougher than ours in the States, required that the tire tread be within the fender line. As such, it meant that the owner was, therefore, precluded from running wider or lower offset wheels. The solution was to put narrower tires on the wheel to keep the tread and sidewall within the plane of the fender, so as to maintain legality. 

DW


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

was rummaging around in the basement and found some metal pieces that happen to have the same spacing as the side markers (that have been disconnected inside) 

figured i would replace the reflectors with them.. now i need to find something to put in them.. maybe some mini german flags or something  











i might not keep em either.. just got me thinking  


and i almost forgot.. my cabby has a new pet


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## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

I bought a MK3 GLX Jetta. You might think that has nothing to do with the Cabby. BUT, that is not true. The engine will live in the cabby soon.m VR6 Cabby coming soon:laugh:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Back on all fours! 











put in the cv axel and new hub and bearing. Feels so so much better. 

i wish my engine was quieter lol so i could really listen to it roll but it think it feels really really good. 

before when i would accelerate i would get a small knock.. i think its because the nut on the axel had jumped a thread and became loose.. that and the hub was so worn that the mechanic said he was able to pretty much just slide it out of the bearing .. eek 

feels awesome now! hopefully it will be the last time i replace all these parts.. its round 2 for the axel round 3 for the bearing and round 1 for the hub  


probably would have saved all the trouble just replacing the hub with the first bearing .. lesson learned


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## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

brought 'er home :thumbup: 



















She's a little rough but all in good time... :screwy:


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## wrathofpaul (Apr 5, 2012)

did a bit of an interior clean up.. Pressure washed the entire carpet (after taking it out of the car of course) and while I was there I put some cardboard down on the floor as padding and sprayed the floor with rubberized coating to reduce noise a bit.. then I did a quick coat of trim paint on the entire dash and now it looks like new. I also cleaned the door panels and hopefully stopped the leak which appears to come from said door panel and end up on the rear passenger floor....


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## ramblin99 (May 15, 2006)

Zender Z20


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## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

BerryB said:


> brought 'er home :thumbup:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 carfull Berry, dont leave those 2 alone (bug and cabby), they might mate...lol


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## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

oshwass1962 said:


> carfull Berry, dont leave those 2 alone (bug and cabby), they might mate...lol


 Funny you say that, my dads got a mk2 on the way haha


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## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

BerryB said:


> Funny you say that, my dads got a mk2 on the way haha


 tell him congrats!....lol


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

double checked the pass wheel assembly after driving it for a day. found the set nut for the tierod end wasnt snug.. fixed that and now my front end is super tight. If i kick the tire the only thing that makes any noise is the brake pads .. the steering is super tight now too


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Weather cooperated, so I taped, prepped, and painted the lower beltline on the passenger side of Nimbus, last night. Fixed a small rust spot on the rear roll pan that I hadn't noticed. Painted the lower rockers. 

This morning, washed and sanded the wheel arches. Painted the rust repair. Ordered some small bits from the local Dealer. 

Tonight, will likely paint the wheel arches and add the body pinstripe to finish off the paintwork. 

Almost there! 


DW


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## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

Ordered the MKIII seat guide kit from ECS tuning for the '02 Cabrio and swapped them. There are a couple of bits on the Cabrio seat that the kit doesn't include, but certainly good enough. 

It was nasty down there, but no french fries. Several pens in the tracks.


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## jacobroufa (Jun 18, 2012)

Cried because my Cabby isn't gonna make it to Dubs in the Valley up in Oshkosh, WI this weekend... Spent the better part of the last 5 weekends working on her to get her ready in time for DiV and go to do final timing and first turn over tonight and lo and behold there's a spot of fuel on the floor. Line's corroded and my buddy and I just don't have the time to get her done before tomorrow.....


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## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

jacobroufa said:


> Cried because my Cabby isn't gonna make it to Dubs in the Valley up in Oshkosh, WI this weekend... Spent the better part of the last 5 weekends working on her to get her ready in time for DiV and go to do final timing and first turn over tonight and lo and behold there's a spot of fuel on the floor. Line's corroded and my buddy and I just don't have the time to get her done before tomorrow.....


 Jb weld, dude. Eff safety, there's a show to get to!


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## 05GTI6677 (Aug 22, 2010)

Last night I sat nose to nose with it all night while it was raining trying to talk myself in to keeping the 1.8 in it and trying to find wheels for it. While drinking a few beers of course. :beer:


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## creterunna (Feb 10, 2006)

*MK3 CABRIO BAKE JOB DO NOT BUY THE Front by Wearever Silver (part#MKD 780) / Brake Pads*

ON MY SONS 1999 front disc brake job we bought new rotors and pads at advanced got home and the wearever mkd780 pads were way too thick to get it all back together :banghead: :banghead: 
so I went back AND returned wearever pads and paid an extra 40 for the 
Wagner ThermoQuiet® Brake Pads - Front Part No. MX704 
THEY ALLOWED FOR IT ALL TO GO BACK TOGETHER WITH NO PROBLEMS.:bs::bs::bs: 
i have heard others wonder what they were doing wrong so thought i'd share this headache we had 
THE CALIPERS WERE DEFINITELY pushed in all the way the pads are just way too thick


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## badpenny (Jan 13, 2007)

I built a doggie villa out of cabby parts and wood I had lying about. 








Ungrateful puppy, doesn't know how awesome it is to have your own home. 








During construction. You can see cabby frame pieces that were used for the roof. 47 inches wide.


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## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

I didn't really do this TO my Cabby, but FOR my Cabby. 

I picked up a 1998 VR6 Jetta. I spend the day pulling the engine and interior. The car is a total POS, but I don't even car. It will be givin a proper crushing when I am done with it 










Here is my pile of parts 










The engine has a bad head gasket so I will be doing a complete rebuild I will break the engine down next week and evaluate the damage.


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Hung the last wheel arch. Touched up the unsatisfactory painted areas that were a little too boogered. Attempted to stripe the driver's side of the car to finish it up.....and promptly ran out of tape before I could do the rear quarter panel. So, today, I had to buy 40' of striping tape to take care of 5' of panel. :banghead: 

Then, this morning, went to my painter. You know, the guy who *promised* me that the bumpers would be done in three days.....then in a 'couple of more days'....then day after tomorrow....then 'getting right on them'......Yeah, that's the guy. Latest deal is: "On Saturday." Glad he's not painting a wheelchair for my sickly Grandmother. 

And, I wait........:facepalm: 

DW


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## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

Exhaust


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## PartyPooper (Sep 4, 2009)

^ Nice :thumbup: 

I put a new starter in. And FINALLY went for a short cruise on my air ride setup.


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## 05GTI6677 (Aug 22, 2010)

Removed my front bumper and relocated my signals behind the grill using some "ingenuity"  

It was a pain in the butt though mixed with the 109 degree heat :banghead: 

Here's some pictures, next is the rear :thumbup: 

 

I found a birds nest in my frame rail :sly: 
 

Mounted and put back together 
 

Bumper off


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Only 110ºF today, so I thought, "What the hell, let's get her emissions test done". Top was down and the test guys fought over who'd drive it. :laugh: She passed with flying colors.







Before driving off, one of the test guys says, "Did you just buy this car?" "No, I've had it for 23 years." Test guy:  

Then I stop at Del Taco on the way home... guy driving an '08 "Rabbit" walks in, orders his usual meal (he's a regular customer apparently) and we start chatting. Guy: "Haven't seen one of those in a long time. My first car was a 1970 Bug. So, what year is your Volkswagen, an '86?" Me: ":what: Uh, yeah, exactly right! It's an '86!" Ten conversation minutes later, I finally leave with my tacos. 

I :heart: my car.


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## strat62plyr (Aug 6, 2012)

^^^^Awesome^^^:thumbup:


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Kamz: I'm intrigued that your state still requires emissions testing on cars of that vintage. In Ohio, at least, vehicles that reach 25 years old become eligible for 'Collector' or 'Historic' plates and, as such, are exempt from smog testing....even in the worst areas of the state (pollution-wise), like Cleveland, Youngstown, Findlay, Toledo and Columbus. 

Just wondering..... 

DW


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## 87Cabriolet (May 9, 2009)

Dragonwing said:


> Kamz: I'm intrigued that your state still requires emissions testing on cars of that vintage. In Ohio, at least, vehicles that reach 25 years old become eligible for 'Collector' or 'Historic' plates and, as such, are exempt from smog testing....even in the worst areas of the state (pollution-wise), like Cleveland, Youngstown, Findlay, Toledo and Columbus.
> 
> Just wondering.....
> 
> DW


 Here in Arizona if a car is 25 years old or older it can have Historic Plates. And if its in the Classic Car Registry it can have Classic Plates. But unfortunately I don't think those special plates exempt it from emissions. The Classic Car one might. But people were telling me you have to have a special classic insurance or something. Cars '67 and older don't test at all. Its stupid if you ask me, but I think mine will pass so for now I will deal with the testing.


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## 87Cabriolet (May 9, 2009)

Well about a month ago I finally got her running again. I can't believe I let it sit for so long, I forgot how fun this thing was to drive. 

I noticed some lifter noise, turns out I was a quart low on oil. I guess the slow oil pan leak over the two years I let it sit leaked that out. It doesn't seem to burn oil. Then my alternator belt twisted and broke, I guess I am missing a bolt (or forgot to put it back after the timing belt job) so the alternator wasn't sitting right. And I found a hose clamp I never tightened on the fuel pump, fixed my surging issue. 

Today I think I am going to play with that AAR valve. Then check to make sure the power steering pump is still good, and if so, buy a rebuild kit for it, well see how something like that goes. Maybe put the factory radio back in after I fix the wiring. And order some new rack and pinion boots along with a ton of other goods from Autohaus and Rock Auto. Of course since it will be like 115* out today, I may just end up not doing any of that!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Dragonwing said:


> Kamz: I'm intrigued that your state still requires emissions testing on cars of that vintage. In Ohio, at least, vehicles that reach 25 years old become eligible for 'Collector' or 'Historic' plates and, as such, are exempt from smog testing....even in the worst areas of the state (pollution-wise), like Cleveland, Youngstown, Findlay, Toledo and Columbus.
> 
> Just wondering.....
> 
> DW


 Here in Ga. If the car is over 25 years they are exempt from Emissions, and you can get Antique Plates, in some states, Antique plates are cheaper, and limit you to when you can drive your car as in to meets, swaps, shows..... But not in Georgia.... 

ps. What did I do to my Cabby today? Not a Dang thing......


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## They_Call_Me_Bob (Mar 21, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> Here in Ga. If the car is over 25 years they are exempt from Emissions, and you can get Antique Plates, in some states, Antique plates are cheaper, and limit you to when you can drive your car as in to meets, swaps, shows..... But not in Georgia....
> 
> ps. What did I do to my Cabby today? Not a Dang thing......


 Maryland is 20 years or older for Historic or Street Rod tags. No emissions, no inspection, ever, 1/2 price registration! 

I drove my Cabby today. Had to adjust the clutch cable again last night.


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Dragonwing said:


> Kamz: I'm intrigued that your state still requires emissions testing on cars of that vintage. In Ohio, at least, vehicles that reach 25 years old become eligible for 'Collector' or 'Historic' plates and, as such, are exempt from smog testing....even in the worst areas of the state (pollution-wise), like Cleveland, Youngstown, Findlay, Toledo and Columbus.
> 
> Just wondering.....
> 
> DW


 Yep, but only in the two major metro areas, Phoenix (Maricopa County, actually) and Tucson. 

We have two levels of collector status, already pointed out: "Classic Vehicle", which "must be on the list of classic cars filed with the Motor Vehicle Division by the Classic Car Club of America, www.classiccarclub.org," and "Historic Vehicle", which requires the car to be 25 years or older. As of 2007, collectible vehicles are no longer required to be emissions tested: "ADEQ and the Arizona Motor Vehicle Division have begun to implement this exemption. Owners of collectible vehicles must contact their insurance carriers to arrange for the required insurance. The carrier will notify MVD electronically, allowing the vehicle to be registered as a collectible vehicle." 

Even if my car qualifies, I'd rather not go through that hassle and I don't like the copper "collector" plates we have. Should my car happen to fail in the future, it's simply getting re-registered at my parents' address, which is in the no-test-zone of Yavapai County.  This last test, though, proved to me a couple of things: 1) The new test facility I decided to try 2 years ago skewed the results because the car had to sit for so long thanks to their computer system going down as soon as I drove in, and the dumb broad driving the car kept stalling it. 2) The triple plat non-resistor plugs I put in before the test sucked ass, just as I thought. The new single copper resistor plugs rock.  The results this year were exactly what they were 4 years ago, except the NOx being .20 higher (2 years ago, the car was _this close_ to failing NOx). 



87Cabriolet said:


> Cars '67 and older don't test at all. Its stupid if you ask me...


 Our testing requirements are actually harsher than California's, go figure. In Calif., the cut-off is '75/'76, somewhere around there. And last I read, they were trying to bring back the rolling cut-off, where every year another model year becomes exempt from testing. 

I totally agree with emissions testing especially in Phoenix where the air can get pretty bad (particularly down along the industrial I-10 corridor), but it's incredibly stupid for cars that aren't driven but 1000 miles a year, at the most, like mine. Not to mention that insipid OBD test: It costs the same as the dyno-sniffer test, yet takes a fraction of the time (3 cars were OBD tested in the time it took the guys to test my car!).


----------



## DT EXP (Jun 15, 2007)

New shoes for the cabrio along with new tail lights!


----------



## Greensteeldragon (Nov 17, 2010)

DT EXP said:


> New shoes for the cabrio along with new tail lights!


 what are those they are purdy! 

--------------------------------------------- 

po never changed filter, neither did the gf :banghead: 










valve cover gasket, new NGK spark plugs (po had autolites) and eurosport wires 










fvck SAI pump started removing that next step is chipped


----------



## vwagogo (May 25, 2009)

Finally replaced my speedo cable after driving with the flow of traffic for about 6 months.


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

vwagogo said:


> Finally replaced my speedo cable after driving with the flow of traffic for about 6 months.



That takes skill, i couldn't do it. Made me too nervous


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Decided i would have some fun with the underside of the cabby hood today. Started with a degrease and a pressure washing.. then i dawn dish soaped it and pressure washed it again. 

sprayed it with a grey paint. then went to town with my airbrush  only the 2nd time ever painting with it. I'm pretty happy with the results













then i decided to paint part of the engine bay and bloody that up too!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

still had some artsy ambition left after playing with the car and did this up 










i'm selling it for $80 obo if anyone is interested


----------



## manc (Sep 2, 2011)

rattle canned the **** out of my mk1 cabrio goin greeen  adjusted the top a little too


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

gave my girl a bath and waxed her up! :laugh:


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

oshwass1962 said:


> gave my girl a bath and waxed her up! :laugh:


and 2 hours later it rained!:facepalm:


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

oshwass1962 said:


> and 2 hours later it rained!:facepalm:


I know right? #firstworldproblems

I cleaned the inside and I am surprised at how clean it looks. I should of took pictures.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...ess-Thread&p=78612028&viewfull=1#post78612028

Better attempt at painting the engine bay and decided to do exterior of the car too


----------



## 05GTI6677 (Aug 22, 2010)

I did a little safari project in my garage today, started out as a joke and ended up really cool. Pictures will be uploaded later once everything is dry :beer:


----------



## 05GTI6677 (Aug 22, 2010)

Here's the pictures! 
Taped up and cut out an outline-


Cut out the outline-


Painted and peeled the tape off-


Even gave it a tail-


What are every ones thoughts? I'm sure a few wont like it but for $80 which includes Starbucks & beer in a garage I think its pretty sweet.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

$80 for that AND Starbucks? :O

It looks nice haha, needs m0ar low though. opcorn:


----------



## 05GTI6677 (Aug 22, 2010)

Sean A said:


> $80 for that AND Starbucks? :O
> 
> It looks nice haha, needs m0ar low though. opcorn:


Yeah coils will be the next purchase for sure. Thanks though :thumbup:


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

lol how many rolls of masking tape did you go through?


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

found more daylight to tweak things a little more 

took off the "flag holder" things i added last week and made up some custom reflectors. i had to drill two holes in the rear pannel since its almost all bondo lol. but i wanted the two holes next to the reflector so i could have the bolts there all the way around. 



























I also found out today that the little trim piece on the handle comes out.. so i painted that up too


----------



## 05GTI6677 (Aug 22, 2010)

tinygiant said:


> lol how many rolls of masking tape did you go through?


6 rolls of 2in wide lol


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> found more daylight to tweak things a little more
> 
> took off the "flag holder" things i added last week and made up some custom reflectors. i had to drill two holes in the rear pannel since its almost all bondo lol. but i wanted the two holes next to the reflector so i could have the bolts there all the way around.


:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

Sean A said:


> I know right? #firstworldproblems
> 
> I cleaned the inside and I am surprised at how clean it looks. I should of took pictures.


what you got sean?:beer:


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> found more daylight to tweak things a little more
> 
> took off the "flag holder" things i added last week and made up some custom reflectors. i had to drill two holes in the rear pannel since its almost all bondo lol. but i wanted the two holes next to the reflector so i could have the bolts there all the way around.
> 
> ...


wow! military issued cabby...AWSOME MAN! :thumbup:


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

oshwass1962 said:


> wow! military issued cabby...AWSOME MAN! :thumbup:


its funny.. its only this color because its the color It was when i bought it.. I'd much rather have a really nice bright green or something different.. but its much easier and cheaper painting it flat with rattle cans  

it is definitely nice to see it in one uniform color.. rather than 3 colors with bondo


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> its funny.. its only this color because its the color It was when i bought it.. I'd much rather have a really nice bright green or something different.. but its much easier and cheaper painting it flat with rattle cans
> 
> it is definitely nice to see it in one uniform color.. rather than 3 colors with bondo


true that!


----------



## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Finally got the bumpers back from the painter last night. Assembled and hung them. Will put in the body plugs and hang the small duckbill, collapse the drilled bumper shocks where I want them....and she's finally finished, body-wise. Turned out exactly as I had hoped. Photos will be coming, as soon as I'm done.

Now to drive it a bit, then begin work on the suspension re-bush.

DW


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

oshwass1962 said:


> what you got sean?:beer:


87 cabby :thumbup::thumbup:

Ot: lost my keys -.-

&&

Photographed it...I am happy with the results.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

got some white bottle caps put them on my red cabby with white leather interior and top then i took the helper springs out of my racelands and slammed the s*** out of my cabby!!!! i couldnt be happier with my car right now:beer:
all for the sake of "MOAR LOW" (my rocker panels are 3" from the ground my oil pan is just under 2" and my cat is just under 1")

































(dont worry guys the clipper kit goes back on tomorrow!!!!)


----------



## SoulK (Sep 7, 2010)

So finding a lip for my mk3.5 seems near impossible so i took it upon myself to custom fit a lip from a volvo onto my cabby, reminds me of the cupra R lip and gives it a bit more of an aggressive look IMO :thumbup:


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

and bleach-whited the crap out of my top and its look good and white again!!!!


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Heh, silly grandfather spelled it Cabe . I think he tried to spell Cabriolet, spelled it wrong then said **** it haha.









Damn I have been doing some much with my car recently, losing my key, making a new key...I need some sort of build thread...

/sarcasm


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

today i put my clipper kit back on and love it !!!!!
















































:thumbup::beer:


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

*Wet*

I laid towels in my back floor boards and then drove around the get all the water out. I'm considering drain holes!


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Used the 91 cabby to go and get a water pump and timing belt kit to fix the 99 passat.

91 Cabby runs... 99 passat needs work..go figure.


----------



## vdubbsinNH (Jul 19, 2012)

*I was working on my mk3*

today as I was working on my rack on my mk3 I got a call about a cabby I had asked about.. mk3.5 for 500.00..runs auto with all power options and leather..and 74k miles. no rust or body damage..needs a throttle body clean and speed sensor as it shifts late..I am thinking once its done I will have a running red mk3 5spd for sale..and the new cabby drove the hr home great..


----------



## dave93cab (Jun 26, 2012)

Replaced my positive battery terminal, finally got rid of both of the fubared originals and upgraded the batt to starter cable. Alternator to starter is next.

Also capped off the warm-inlet vacuum ports and removed the hose


----------



## Greensteeldragon (Nov 17, 2010)

still cleaning but the new wires looks good










have to mod my old mk3 gti door cards for the mk4 door lights


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

hired this guy to clean my car but he is taking to damn long!:laugh:


----------



## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

oshwass1962 said:


> hired this guy to clean my car but he is taking to damn long!:laugh:


HAHAHAHAHHAHA! That is awesome!


----------



## otokoto2 (Aug 8, 2012)

*bbs rs*

what size are those wheels and offset, they look good., thanks


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

otokoto2 said:


> what size are those wheels and offset, they look good., thanks


who is the question directed too?


----------



## dave93cab (Jun 26, 2012)

Installed my new shift boot with white stitching


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

removed some lighting wiring that i am no longer needing. yesterday i decided to vac the inside, found 50cents! one of the quarters was under the carpet and from 1976. i wonder how long its been there


----------



## Greensteeldragon (Nov 17, 2010)

got bored played with the trim










finally the parts i need to get her moving again!


----------



## xamx (Feb 9, 2010)

swapped Tops


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

took mine to the beach, just a second gear cruise. then i ordered her a shift linkage rebuild kit


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

About to drive mine to drakes island in wells maine for some body boading . Great day for the beach! Water temp is 69F 

Sent from my VM670 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

otokoto2 said:


> what size are those wheels and offset, they look good., thanks


15x8 rear (35) 15x7 front (25)


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

valve cover seal and oil baffle replacement! 

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...ess-Thread&p=78770945&viewfull=1#post78770945


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Snapped another piece of **** handle....


----------



## Greensteeldragon (Nov 17, 2010)

modded my old gti door cards



















now trying to find rear door cards :banghead:


----------



## wdvolks (Jul 25, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> About to drive mine to drakes island in wells maine for some body boading . Great day for the beach! Water temp is 69F
> 
> Sent from my VM670 using Tapatalk 2


So jealous!!


----------



## wdvolks (Jul 25, 2011)

I'm still waiting for the garage to be built so I can have a place to work on mine!!


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Put the new handle on. Shout out to http://stores.ebay.com/Mk1-Autohaus . Ordered yesterday and got it today. Not as cheap as GAP but shipping time was worth it.


----------



## Ownza (Jan 19, 2009)

I drove around with the top down....And then my clutch pedal went straight to the floor/sounded like I popped the hood. :facepalm: New Cabrio, and the same (similar?) problem that i had with my old cabriolet. Ha! :banghead: I dickered with the cable to see if it was broken. It doesn't seem like it. Pedal still lifts the release arm, but so does my hand. Dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnn. I think i'm going to pop my green trans thinger off tomorrow and have a look see! I hope it's just the finger or something. http://www.brokevw.com/TO.html 

Oh I forgot to say something else that's different than last time! My clutch pedal stays either up all of the way or down all of the way. It doesn't have resistance in the middle. It just kind of flings up or down after the initial slight pressure. Odd, eh?


----------



## Ownza (Jan 19, 2009)

Today i went ahead and fiddled with my car some more.... Ended up taking the green cap off. The throw out bearing looks ok. (spins with the push rod in it in my hand, and does not seem broken.) The finger on the other hand....It has a crack all the way through on the O part. I mean, could that be the -only- reason why the clutch has 0 resistance/goes to the floor? I wouldn't imagine such a small crack to make such a big noise when it decided to go. (Sounded like the hood was popped) At least it's something...Here's to hoping that the push rod didn't puncture the pressure plate.  :laugh:


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Replaced the front brake pads.


----------



## corbin4538 (Sep 3, 2012)

Adjusting clutch cable to get rid of some of the play. still waiting for pb blaster to loosen the nut so i can finish that up


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

polishing the lips on my white bottle caps


----------



## kutza (May 26, 2004)

Found out I am Alergic to my MK3.5. The previous owner had a cat. I cant even be in the same garage as the car. :banghead:


----------



## vwagogo (May 25, 2009)

AC delete!


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Took top boot off for more room and overall cleaner look. And tried to lube the throttle cable once again with no success. Does anyone know what the problem could be? The throttle is sticky.


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

Ownza said:


> Today i went ahead and fiddled with my car some more.... Ended up taking the green cap off. The throw out bearing looks ok. (spins with the push rod in it in my hand, and does not seem broken.) The finger on the other hand....It has a crack all the way through on the O part. I mean, could that be the -only- reason why the clutch has 0 resistance/goes to the floor? I wouldn't imagine such a small crack to make such a big noise when it decided to go. (Sounded like the hood was popped) At least it's something...Here's to hoping that the push rod didn't puncture the pressure plate.  :laugh:


 You know what's odd? I went on a rescue mission to fix my girls mk2 jetta diesel because she was having clutch problems. Cable looked fine on both ends...everything looked kosher. I popped a new throwout bearing in it because I had one laying around (even though I had a hard time imagining how it would have failed). When I had her hop in and step on the clutch (me sitting down by the wheel well) I saw the trans moving in a peculiar way and gave out a good WTF. Popped the hood only to find that the top two transmission bolts had shaken out!!!!! The springs in the 16v pressure plate that I got must be all kinds of strong because it was straight pushing the transmission away from the block hahaha. I guess I need to use plenty of loctite on those bolts. Now I know :laugh: 

Also, but the new dash trim in my cabby today with a radio delete panel. Nothing to steal here! Carry on!


----------



## dougsvdub (Nov 3, 2009)

Today i reinstalled the AC drainage pipe on the passenger side. No more river in my car


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

decided to do something productive and did the fuel filter 

not sure on age.. but looks pretty old 










umm....this came out the input/dirty side 







[/QUOTE] 


next will be the seals and holders on one wiggly injector.. we'll see how it sprays and see if we might just clean and do them all.


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

*Drain lines*

I'm trying to track down all the drain lines and drain holes after discovering the one in the trunk was plugged with horsehair and leaves. At least it wasn't gas pouring out like I originally thought!  

Do I need to remove my clipper kit to see the ones along the sides of the body?


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Gonna polish my teardrops tomorrow. Gonna take pics n ****, should be fun.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

Sean A said:


> Gonna polish my teardrops tomorrow. Gonna take pics n ****, should be fun.


 niiice i just finished polishing my bmw bottle caps im gunna post pics tomorrow it was to dark


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Got done with the first two wheels...doing the second two tomorrow. That was quite the headache, and I still only got a mediocre job out of it. Although they look a hell of a lot better than before. 

Two diffrerent wheels, pictures taken when one was complete and other was about to begin. Some of the marks on the wheel are from the stripper....thats gone now. Didn't do anything about the curb rash. Polishing tomorrow. 

Edit: nevermind I sanded all of them...Just have 2 more hub caps and polishing to do tomorrow.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

my polished and painted bottle caps 








i also started to clean up the engine bay by re routing my washer pump and res. under my rain guard and stared to delete my A/C now i just need the spacer for the pulley so i can get the compressor out but its looking alot better already


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

KnuckleUp2 said:


> my polished and painted bottle caps


 Your wheels came out sick!! I have been wanting to do something with my bottlecaps but not really sure where I want to go with it. I saw some black ones on a mk3 a few days ago that got me thinking but this?? Wow. I am tempted to try this with black so I don't have to worry about cleaning them. what kind of paint did you use?


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

i used dulicolor color match spray paint (vw candy white) 
this was them before. i sanded them down i also grinded off were it used to say bmw e36 and the lip for the hub flat becaus it was chipped up


----------



## KYDUBBER (Oct 5, 2010)

Added a much needed upgrade today. 










Also removed carpet and shop vac'd a few decades of crud


----------



## dave93cab (Jun 26, 2012)

vw_pilot "DigiFast 2", not expecting big things but gonna take her out for a test drive this evening


----------



## dave93cab (Jun 26, 2012)

KYDUBBER said:


> Added a much needed upgrade today.


Did you mount those directly to the door with a baffle? Any clearance issues? 6.5" right?


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Clutch cable in my 91 was feeling too stiff. Pulled it out and lubed it up with some nice grease. Very soft and easy to push the clutch now...unfortunately found the drivers side axle blew its rubber grease seal on the wheel end....I feel a axle replacement coming on.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

added the black VW symbol in the blood splat. Was hoping that sticker would arrive before the Volksbahn show. but it arrived today.. day late. still looks sweet!


----------



## danderso (Oct 14, 2008)

tinygiant said:


> added the black VW symbol in the blood splat. Was hoping that sticker would arrive before the Volksbahn show. but it arrived today.. day late. still looks sweet!



That's awesome!!!


----------



## danderso (Oct 14, 2008)




----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

lol


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Re-threaded the stripped hole for the hub cap and put it back on.


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

Trying to figure out why I'm sounding like a shopping cart sometimes. This should be a fun hunt.


----------



## Loccusstgti (May 12, 2009)

Put in $30 junk yard score of white rear leather seat from a 92. Cleaned em up and they look great! Also put in the cluster and radio surround that's immaculate from the 92. That was yesterday actually but forgot to post.


----------



## VW1991Jetta (May 12, 2010)

*89 Cabriolet Wlfsbrg/Helios*











Cleaned her up real nice, slammed her down as much as possible without rubbing, took a picture!


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

VW1991Jetta said:


> Cleaned her up real nice, slammed her down as much as possible without rubbing, took a picture!


dude im lovin the argile hood, whats your wheel/tire setup?


----------



## VW1991Jetta (May 12, 2010)

Thnks man its much appreciated! They are ESM 009 Borbet Type A reps, 15x8


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

fixed a leaky upper radiator hose, and topped off coolant
put the low profile oil pan on with rubber gasket and new plug/washer. 
Changed oil filter and added 20w50

tomorrow we hope to finally get the timing belt on and put it all back together and be done


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

danderso said:


> That's awesome!!!


thanks! seems its either love it or hate it.. got some attention in the epic fail thread.. but i have to say more photographers were taking pictures of my car than any other cars at the show sunday


----------



## dave93cab (Jun 26, 2012)

VW1991Jetta said:


> Cleaned her up real nice, slammed her down as much as possible without rubbing, took a picture!


me gusta


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

VW1991Jetta said:


> Thnks man its much appreciated! They are ESM 009 Borbet Type A reps, 15x8


no problem, lookin great! at least i know i will be able to fit 14x8.5's under mine


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

fixed my sub, had to swap it out with another i have.....ugh...no more plated box...for now, but it sounds good again!!!


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*FV-QR*

Pulled the PS pulley & belt off to preserve my PS pump while I await a replacement PS reservoir.


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

i pulled out the back seat and scrubbed about 20 years worth of grime off of the leather. they do look a lot better now.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

while doing the onslaught of things to the car over the last couple days we also found my spark plugs had quite the collection of hard deposits on them.. so they were replaced.


so today the timing belt was replaced and the car set tdc
new tensioner
alternator put back on



i need a new adjuster screw for the alternator.. the other one was soft and rusty. Tomorrow I grab that and a new belt for the alternator. 

we did the a/c compressor removal but when i put my alternator into the engine block where the a/c bracket was the fan on the alternator makes contact with the shroud that protects the timing belt.. So we put the bracket back on and tomorrow i'll just find a new v belt to make it work. 

I think josh did the tranny mount too.. we'll see tomorrow. I cant wait to drive this thing its going to sound and feel soo soo different


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

continued to work on the interior. took out the front seats and then the carpet. cleaned about 20 years of dirt and crud from the carpets, and cleaned up the seat tracks. will put it all back together tomorrow.


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

parked next to one of them..


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

Got a chance to play with my adjustable cam gear and 270* cam...

4* advanced, fun stuff !


----------



## ToplessBunny85 (Jan 6, 2009)

Made my tail lights purdy! No more white, just red and orange. Made myself a set of all reds too.


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

sprocket007 said:


> Got a chance to play with my adjustable cam gear and 270* cam...
> 
> 4* advanced, fun stuff !


I am looking forward to that day! I have always been an inline-6 fan too though so I love me some bottom end torque. Did you get to play with retarding the cam a bit too before you settled in? I am very curious to see where the it starts to die out on the upper RPMS. 

I would probably stick with the top end performance too, these little engines sure do like to breathe!


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

flowmastergfunk said:


> I am looking forward to that day! I have always been an inline-6 fan too though so I love me some bottom end torque. Did you get to play with retarding the cam a bit too before you settled in? I am very curious to see where the it starts to die out on the upper RPMS.
> 
> I would probably stick with the top end performance too, these little engines sure do like to breathe!


I went straight to the advance, I like the low end torque around town, it really is fun to play with!


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

o0o0o0o! I had it backwards:facepalm: Advancing *is* for low end torque. That is what I was curios about! particularly since I will eventually be running an 0.71 5th gear. I want to cruise at a low rpm but I don't want hesitation if I have to pick up the pace! When do you notice the efficiency dying off at higher RPM's?


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

Fit a 2 inch center in/ offset out thrush turbo muffler on mine today, so happy to drive her without a headache everytime.  its mellow but has a good healthy sound.


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

flowmastergfunk said:


> o0o0o0o! I had it backwards:facepalm: Advancing *is* for low end torque. That is what I was curios about! particularly since I will eventually be running an 0.71 5th gear. I want to cruise at a low rpm but I don't want hesitation if I have to pick up the pace! When do you notice the efficiency dying off at higher RPM's?


well I guess it depends what you like, for me the 3-4* advance seems to feel the best to me, Speedy around town! The other factor is how accurately you set up your static timing, cam, tire size etc.
The adjustable cam gear is really easy to use, you can quickly change your setup in one minuite! Get one you will quickly find out what you like!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Finally Drove it home!! 











over the last week we did:
Timing belt w/new tensioner
fuel filter
all new spark plugs
tranny mount
oil pan w/new plug and rubber gasket (no more leaks!)
upper radiator hose (no more coolant leaks!)
Injector seals and seats
a/c delete
new alternator belt and spacers on pulley for proper alignment
lucas oil injector cleaner in full tank of gas

feels like a completely different car! so quiet now without the grindy a/c compressor. 

the power steering belt is a little squeaky and the car is a tiny sputtery.. so wed i'm dropping it off at DAS auto to have them double check the timing and properly tension the belt.


----------



## The_Rabbitman (Oct 9, 2006)

Put my Berlin Klassik decals on...


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

Autotech exhaust, 
6* advance, 
new oil pump!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

new cap and rotor today


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

sprocket007 said:


> well I guess it depends what you like, for me the 3-4* advance seems to feel the best to me, Speedy around town! The other factor is how accurately you set up your static timing, cam, tire size etc.
> The adjustable cam gear is really easy to use, you can quickly change your setup in one minuite! Get one you will quickly find out what you like!


 Doing my exhaust on friday and got myself a cam gear ordered today!


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

flowmastergfunk said:


> Doing my exhaust on friday and got myself a cam gear ordered today!


 

Haha ! that is awesome! get a cam too! 
Enjoy!


----------



## jetta trek (Nov 11, 2007)

Bought IT!!!!! $700 no rust. Giggidy:thumbup:


----------



## Lunchbox2021 (Sep 14, 2011)

well, for the first time in almost 2 years i was able to lock the doors and enable the alarm


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

sprocket007 said:


> Haha ! that is awesome! get a cam too!
> Enjoy!


 This is a can of worms...but at the beginning of the month, the local junkyard is having a 50% off sale so I am going to buy my ABA engine! I am sticking with my CIS, but my car is hydro and I am thinking about going solid. I need to figure out which route I am going to go before I get a cam. I like that the hydro cams are cheaper! 

Either way, when I pick up my ABA, I am going to yank the crossflow head and put another CIS head on before I check out. That way I can start doing headwork while my cabby is still drivable. The engines are usually $250 with the core charge and everything attached to it (no warranty) so 50% off is a steal! I should be able to piece together a perfect core and get a bunch of goodies in one swoop! Pre 95 block, newest alternator I can find, extra fox intake, extra big TB, extra dual outlet manifold, ETC. I will just need to spend a day in the yard "building" my motor, only to take it back apart. 

Depending on what their stock looks like at the time, I am not sure which style head I am going to get for my extra :/


----------



## Jpfegley (Mar 30, 2012)

had some nice weather, car needed a bath.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Tightened 5 looks manifold studs and replaced one. 
Drove it and it is soooooooooooooo quiet.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

briano1234 said:


> Tightened 5 looks manifold studs and replaced one.
> Drove it and it is soooooooooooooo quiet.


 :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## slade1121k (Sep 20, 2012)

Finished a month long major overhaul of my baby today, installed new CV axles, "both sides" ; New starter ; new oil pan gasket ; cam gasket ; all new fluids ; new clutch and pressure plate ; new transmission seals 3, 1 input, 2 output ; new motor mounts ; and cleaned every oil spot from the engine. So that is what I've done for my cabby tho not in one day but today I finally drove her and she purrs.


----------



## rodrigoa18 (Aug 20, 2011)

*Hi*

Did you change your head lights ?


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

drove it to work with a screaming speedo cable


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

flowmastergfunk said:


> This is a can of worms...but at the beginning of the month, the local junkyard is having a 50% off sale so I am going to buy my ABA engine! I am sticking with my CIS, but my car is hydro and I am thinking about going solid. I need to figure out which route I am going to go before I get a cam. I like that the hydro cams are cheaper!
> 
> Either way, when I pick up my ABA, I am going to yank the crossflow head and put another CIS head on before I check out. That way I can start doing headwork while my cabby is still drivable. The engines are usually $250 with the core charge and everything attached to it (no warranty) so 50% off is a steal! I should be able to piece together a perfect core and get a bunch of goodies in one swoop! Pre 95 block, newest alternator I can find, extra fox intake, extra big TB, extra dual outlet manifold, ETC. I will just need to spend a day in the yard "building" my motor, only to take it back apart.
> 
> Depending on what their stock looks like at the time, I am not sure which style head I am going to get for my extra :/


 you guys have some nice junkyards. mk1s and vw's in general are scarce in the junk yards where i live.


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

mouser98 said:


> you guys have some nice junkyards. mk1s and vw's in general are scarce in the junk yards where i live.


 was at junkyard last weekend... more mk3's then i could count.. hence more ABA's then i could count. :screwy:


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

mouser98 said:


> you guys have some nice junkyards. mk1s and vw's in general are scarce in the junk yards where i live.


 seriously i cant find a mk1 in a junkyard to save my life haha


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

removed my knee bar and cleaning up a mkI lower dash to install in its place. 
Wired up some LED lights for the 3 gauges in the lower console. 
Thinking about a autotech header.....


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Replaced the passenger side rear brake drum. One of the lug nut holes had stripped. Didn't feel safe riding on three good lug nuts. 

to do: replace drivers side axle due to the boot spilling its guts all over the bottom of the car.


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

KnuckleUp2 said:


> seriously i cant find a mk1 in a junkyard to save my life haha


 Even as cool as our yards are, I rarely see a1 rabbits or jettas. Cabby's are pretty common but that's it. They get littered with mk2's and mk3's. The newer ones get stripped fast though. I have seen a passat 1.8t and TDI recently, but didn't have the time or spare cash to pull the motor. That is a good way to make a quick profit though!


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

flowmastergfunk said:


> This is a can of worms...but at the beginning of the month, the local junkyard is having a 50% off sale so I am going to buy my ABA engine! I am sticking with my CIS, but my car is hydro and I am thinking about going solid. I need to figure out which route I am going to go before I get a cam. I like that the hydro cams are cheaper!
> 
> Either way, when I pick up my ABA, I am going to yank the crossflow head and put another CIS head on before I check out. That way I can start doing headwork while my cabby is still drivable. The engines are usually $250 with the core charge and everything attached to it (no warranty) so 50% off is a steal! I should be able to piece together a perfect core and get a bunch of goodies in one swoop! Pre 95 block, newest alternator I can find, extra fox intake, extra big TB, extra dual outlet manifold, ETC. I will just need to spend a day in the yard "building" my motor, only to take it back apart.
> 
> Depending on what their stock looks like at the time, I am not sure which style head I am going to get for my extra :/


 im condidering a 2.0 bottom end swap aver winter...


----------



## The_Rabbitman (Oct 9, 2006)

Removed A/C compressor, and bracket, relocated alternator, broke the old belt, now need new one...


----------



## Wild83Hare (Apr 18, 2004)

Today I replaced the oil pump because it was squalling. 
So, I figured while I had everything off, I'd make it look a little better. 










































It still has several issues before it is road worthy...


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

replaced the seals again on injector 1. nice to be able to drive it around again!


----------



## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

I replaced my throwout bearing, it's been noisy the past few days... gee, wonder why.... this is how it came out:


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

*What my yard looked like today*

I think I have enough vw's...do you?(grin) 

Left to right 
Silver 99 1.8t Passat sedan 
Burgundy 91 Etienne Aigner Cabriolet 
Green 2001 1.8t Passat wagon 
Green 92 Vw Cabriolet Carat 
Burgundy 91 Etienne Aigner Cabriolet 
Black 99 Cabrio


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

CajunSpike said:


> I think I have enough vw's...do you?
> 
> Left to right
> Silver 99 1.8t Passat sedan
> ...


 so who's the favorite?


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

I daily drive the 91 Etienne on the left. It gets about 25mpg in town..30 on highway. When it needs work(not often), then I use the 99 Silver Passat. 
The 01 Wagon is the fastest of all these. It can spin the tires no problem. 

The most expensive car in this pic is the 01 Wagon for $700(had bad front end damage). All the other cars cost less than that, or in the case of the 99 Passat and the 99 Cabrio...were free.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

CajunSpike said:


> I daily drive the 91 Etienne on the left. It gets about 25mpg in town..30 on highway. When it needs work(not often), then I use the 99 Silver Passat.
> The 01 Wagon is the fastest of all these. It can spin the tires no problem.
> 
> The most expensive car in this pic is the 01 Wagon for $700(had bad front end damage). All the other cars cost less than that, or in the case of the 99 Passat and the 99 Cabrio...were free.


 thats great. 

i'd love to find a free car. my wife is still scared to learn stick. i'd love to find an automatic vw for her to use.


----------



## csrgti (Aug 18, 2009)

Cajun did you ever get the free Cabrio running?


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

drove it to get smokes at the gas station.....found this... 










I WIN.


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

aba turbo cabby


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

nice, but.......what did you do to it today?


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

mileycyrus said:


> nice, but.......what did you do to it today?


 drove it to work


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

ha still counts, teardown and rebuild will begin this winter. New turbo, stand alone, rebuild head, clean up wiring and bay. probably rattle can it some other color.


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

oh it does....i was just playing...lol 


im doing my valve cover again...new VC gasket, ect....


----------



## Stashm2 (Oct 25, 2011)

*Weekend Stuffs*

Finnaly Painted winsheild Rust repair.. not great but its metal again... Got new used fenders off a 78 Diesel Rabbit fromt the Pick and Pull, lots of new this and thats... Hope to have it drivable again for winter. Maybe Install the new winsheild tonight.??...  DOH! :screwy: 


Also in the mean time.. New tires and Wheels... AC Delete.. New Shocks.... Been in the barn more than I have driven it but ya know..


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

renewed my valve cover.


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

csrgti said:


> Cajun did you ever get the free Cabrio running?


 Ashamed to say I did not. Could never solve the 'no spark' issue after trying everything I could think of. I took this photo because I sold the Cabrio for $400 and the new owner was going to pick it up that night. Was the last day all these cars would be together. 
That was only the second VW I ever gave up on..the first being the 91 Jetta that I had in the garage before the Cabrio showed up. 

Also the 92 green Cabriolet is now in the garage because its an 'extra car' at this point.


----------



## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

i drive by your house almost everyday on my way to work, always looking to catch you on the road. cabby looks good. 


my1stgolf said:


> drove it to work with a screaming speedo cable


----------



## danderso (Oct 14, 2008)

Installed led's in my cluster and center console gauges! 

Sent from my HD7 using Board Express


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

washed my wheels....lol..


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

tryn to pick up a set of 4 white 13" Zandvoort wheels


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

my1stgolf said:


> tryn to pick up a set of 4 white 13" Zandvoort wheels


 i grabbed mine on Craigslist 2 minutes from my house for $35 for all four! 

spent a couple days stripping and sanding them before painting them gloss black


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

my1stgolf said:


> tryn to pick up a set of 4 white 13" Zandvoort wheels


 Somebody local offered me a set of these..exact same wheels..I sd no thanks cuz my cars use the 14" wheels.


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

i found a set tryng to arrange shipping with the guy


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

Cleaned my door latch and still not getting a click when pulling the door handle, either inside handle or outside handle. Door opens but sometimes you have to give it a shove. Does this mean it needs a sag adjustment?


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

jenoper said:


> Cleaned my door latch and still not getting a click when pulling the door handle, either inside handle or outside handle. Door opens but sometimes you have to give it a shove. Does this mean it needs a sag adjustment?


 id say you need a new latch, my door is saggy as hell but the latch works fine.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Going to clean it inside and out, check belts, fluids and air pressure for 200 mile drive to h2o.


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

Sean A said:


> Going to clean it inside and out, check belts, fluids and air pressure for 200 mile drive to h2o.


 jealous  no H2o for me this year :facepalm:


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

my1stgolf said:


> jealous  no H2o for me this year :facepalm:


 That sucks  

Belts =  
Fluids =  
Gave wheels quick 10 minute polish with polisher I got from Auto Zone. They don't look to great, just sanded them to 800 a week or two ago to get rid of the corrosion and it was a really impatient job tbh...but I like them regardless. Blur in pic = only took one >.> 

Tomorrow = Good wash, vacuum, interior cleaning, it should be looking slick.


----------



## KYDUBBER (Oct 5, 2010)

dave93cab said:


> Did you mount those directly to the door with a baffle? Any clearance issues? 6.5" right?


 Sorry for the delay in my reply. Had surgery to remove cancer from my bladder and kidney. 

I fabed up a wood ring to screw the 6.5s directly to the door cards. Holds nice and just clears the window.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Front tires were at 25 lbs  got them up to 32 and backs to 29. Washed the car and vacuumed the inside.


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

put m roofrack back on with new hardware......much more secure now....


----------



## Wild83Hare (Apr 18, 2004)

Today, I put the Tokico suspension from my totaled GTi on it. I think it makes it look better... it certainly makes it ride better.

Before:









After:


----------



## Captain Cabby (Oct 1, 2012)

*Made it lower...*

It's a little lower and pretty level,



















Don't mind the drips, not from the Cab.










I'm not sold yet, I think it can still get down some more, but I'm going to ride it like this for a couple weeks.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Started painting everything that's black with a satin black trim paint (gas cap today, bumpers, fender flares, 6 piece trim etc later). Duckbill goes on Wednesday. Still wanna space / lower / get rocker trim / repaint rocker panels and repaint chassis frame rail / replace ****ty 10 dollar grille eventually / replace tail lights and cracked side markers / replace throttle cable / buy orbital sander to resand and polish wheels / replace windshield wipers / replace rear view mirror / 

Disregard this btw, just my checklist lol.


----------



## Lishie (Feb 9, 2012)

I accidently left Vanessa's (my Cabrio) top down the other day and it POURED! Seriously, we got 5 inches of rain and I didn't realize the top was down until after it stopped! :facepalm: My car definitely has a personality and whenever she's mad at me, she gives me trouble. (She also self adjusts the volume of the radio when she likes/dislikes a song but I digress) Sure enough - when I drove her after bailing out all the water and drying her out, while sitting at the bus stop she started spewing antifreeze ALL OVER and overheated. :banghead: I'm stuck at home waiting for UPS today so I can't go get the parts I need but figured I'd try and make it up to her somehow so I've been detailing the engine compartment and detailing the inside of the car all morning. I figure a little TLC can never hurt...


----------



## VW1991Jetta (May 12, 2010)

*FS*

She is for sale guys! Buy it up she needs another good home since I'm moving ;(


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

finally got the right belt for the waterpump/PS and crank no more squealing! 

recieved a new CSV in the mail that i plan on swapping out in a day or so. I need to get my hands on new crush washers for the fuel line on the rear of the valve


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Had no time but I got the clips today for the duckbill, so I put that on. Bumpers and fenders get spray tomorrow if all is well. Probably do the grille, trunk decal and trim while i'm at it.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Sprayed the fender flares today. Was really hoping to do the bumpers as well but it took nearly two hours just to get the damn things off (too lazy to take the wheels off, so the screws were a pain to get out.) It gets too damn dark too fast. I have this big ass garage behind me, if there were no tractors in it I would be going to town >.>

Used this:








Was happy to see this (not happy about 4x4 status):








Before / After:








Done:


----------



## ToplessBunny85 (Jan 6, 2009)

Drove almost 2600km in one week! To H2o and back. Not one issue! Well other than me lowering the car and breaking a fuel line, but that wasn't the cars fault.


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

took apart the front suspension and put the new coilovers in and then spent some time adjusting them and rolling the fenders to stop the tire from rubbing and i still have some body work to do to stop it


----------



## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

creterunna said:


> ON MY SONS 1999 front disc brake job we bought new rotors and pads at advanced got home and the wearever mkd780 pads were way too thick to get it all back together :banghead: :banghead:
> so I went back AND returned wearever pads and paid an extra 40 for the
> Wagner ThermoQuiet® Brake Pads - Front Part No. MX704
> THEY ALLOWED FOR IT ALL TO GO BACK TOGETHER WITH NO PROBLEMS.:bs::bs::bs:
> ...


Been there, done that. Exactly that.

Pulled the quote from awhile ago, BTW.


----------



## slade1121k (Sep 20, 2012)

Just got done cleaning her all up and waiting for new paint job on the hood to dry, honestly I like it topless :laugh: time for a drive tho.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

its in time out while it waits for a new power steering belt. hopefully this one will work .. sick of this slipping belt issue


----------



## Wild83Hare (Apr 18, 2004)

Replaced all engine/tranny mount bushings with heavy duty/red poly bushings. Now the dash REALLY rattles. :thumbup:


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

Wild83Hare said:


> Replaced all engine/tranny mount bushings with heavy duty/red poly bushings. Now the dash REALLY rattles. :thumbup:


I just did the same, i had to get new mounts for my exhaust or else it would hit my body.


----------



## Shawn B (Nov 27, 2003)

Looked at pictures of it, again. Still haven't got it home yet ......


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Replaced brake master cylinder in 91 Etienne #2.
Found out the lower alternator bolt was missing..replaced it.
Replaced intank fuel pump...might have to replace external pump.


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

Imagined it with the stance, paint, wheels and interior its gonna get, if that counts


----------



## topduko19 (Sep 29, 2003)

Did the rear wheel bearing & tightened it too much...
Then the wheel came off & destroyed the passenger side...:banghead:
Horrible day...
Got another door & now I need a fender...
Sooo sad..


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

topduko19 said:


> Did the rear wheel bearing & tightened it too much...
> Then the wheel came off & destroyed the passenger side...:banghead:
> Horrible day...
> Got another door & now I need a fender...
> Sooo sad..


ouch ! been down that road with my cabby but they are worth every penny to fix


----------



## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

Removed broken window regulator. I have an incredible urge to throw it as far as I can every time I yank one out.









$300+ worth of regulator.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Just found out my dumb ****ing ass sprayed the flares with charcoal grey instead of satin black, because Rustoleum decides to put them in the same exact bottle and not label the bottle. So I guess I am going back to auto zone to spend another 15 tonight on paint. Gonna try to take the one i didn't use back. I am getting Dupli-color tonight and I am going to try to spray the bumpers, flares, gas cap and trunk decal at least.

----

Figured out the color is on the cap derp -_____-
Bought some dupli-color trim spray for the bumpers and trunk decal. Hopefully bottle will be plenty. The guy rang me out for $7 bucks on a can of dupli-color and a pack of 220 wettodry lol. 

Anyways, all I did today was hit the top with some simple green and a brush. Got some of the dirt off of it, looks a little better. Gave it a wash too. only $2 bucks for 12 minutes at my local car wash now . Tomorrow I should be spraying bumpers and trunk decal. Or I might just be lazy again like today, idk. Oh and I now have $20 dollars and no job. So that's a thing.

tl;dr: nothing happened.


----------



## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

FL 2.0L said:


> Removed broken window regulator. I have an incredible urge to throw it as far as I can every time I yank one out.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Yeah, those damn things are awful!


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Opened the hood checked the fluids air in the tires, and let Son drive it to Athens............
Gotta love days that that.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Took a picture :laugh: now what's coming tomorrow is another story. I'll actually be doing some work to her hahaha And she's gettin a new set of wheels tomorrow as well!


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Nice! What are you plans for those wheels? I'm considering downsizing from the 15s I've got currently


----------



## RemixerProducer (Aug 11, 2011)

Finally got mine put of the garage and on the road to test everything. Here she is as of now


----------



## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

Washed her for the first time in what seems like forever. Also pulled the heater box out for some r&r


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Got in the car, noticed that the top was down, and drove it. Isn't that what you should do to your cabby every day?


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

briano1234 said:


> Got in the car, noticed that the top was down, and drove it. Isn't that what you should do to your cabby every day?


I did this yesterday aswell haha. Froze my ass off but it is what it is.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

By passed the power steering pump. sick of the squealing and destruction of whatever belts i put on it. I left the pump on the car but bought a new belt to run from the crank to water pump to alternator. 


somehow my timing belt losended up and skipped time. God Bless non-interference engines lol. 


So i have the flywheel and crankshaft lined up. but the distributor line is at 12 oclock and the rotor is at 3oclock.. going to have a friend come help me with that. I cant turn the distributor enough to make the rotor line up with the distro. 

hopefully we can figure it out. then i can drive it again! lol this should be then end of most of the issues i've been having with belts and such. I think the next thing to do is to replace injector number 1. then it should run really smooth again.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Not today... but yesterday...

Had to drive down a gravel road for a little bit. Apparently a rock or something wedged itself between the lower timing belt cover and the engine... pushed the cover out enough to come in contact with a pulley. This caused a horribly loud squeal. Before I could get home to really inspect the problem, the timing belt popped off!

Had to get a trailer and tow it home. Going to start wrenching on it shortly. I was hoping to have the replacement Alt pulley in my possession before touching the belts again, but alas, not all goes as planned. Guess I'll have to get my hands dirty today and again soon to finish removing the AC.


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

tinygiant said:


> somehow my timing belt losended up and skipped time. God Bless non-interference engines lol.


My biggest fear when I had a diesel. I love these engines too


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

so what do you do if the rotor is so far off from the distro that you cant rotate it enough for it to line up?


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> so what do you do if the rotor is so far off from the distro that you cant rotate it enough for it to line up?




i figured it out.. that middle gear spins the rotor.. just slipped the belt off and turned it. 


its all timed and running now. 

got the wife involved and had her turn the distributor until it was smooth.. running pretty good actually


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

finished my five day ordeal.... timing belt, water pump and housing (biggest pain in the ass ever) replaced all my v belts and gave her fresh coolant and a new thermostat. every other bolt i took off decided it wanted to break and it just so happend that right when i needed a new part i couldnt get it til the next day... now i'll enjoy her for a while


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

MissAnthropic said:


> Washed her for the first time in what seems like forever. Also pulled the heater box out for some r&r


what size are those tires? love your stance


----------



## StubbornDutchman (Jun 12, 2012)

Bought an '84 Karmann as a parts car on the weekend. Started tearing into her today. I need many parts for my '81.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Just finished replacing the timing belt after the latest fiasco with the lower cover. The cover melted and a chunk of the plastic wedged itself between the crank pulley and the block.

Now I'll be rolling cover-less for a little while.

I'm also expecting The Man in Brown to drop off some goodies today... replacement alternator pulley (to delete the AC compressor), injector rings, and a new O2. Too bad he didn't show up an hour ago... I could have put the pulley on while my hands were still dirty.


----------



## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

I just ordered the cable conversion for my Cabby's VR.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

just ordered 4 injectors with hats. hopefully it fixes my studder


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

Shifter conversion?


----------



## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

mattchirhart said:


> what size are those tires? love your stance



Thanks! 175/70/13 balloon tires on BMW steelies. I wish I could come across something in a 60 series tire.


----------



## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

Today I removed all of this and decided it takes up way too much room under the dash, especially since I no longer have a/c..... so next week I'll begin making my own heater box


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

MissAnthropic said:


> Today I removed all of this and decided it takes up way too much room under the dash, especially since I no longer have a/c..... so next week I'll begin making my own heater box


do a DIY ... might do the same since i've removed mine too


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Changed the Same heater valve for the 4th time this year.... I HATE CHEAP PLASTIC "ORIENTAL" PARTS................


----------



## golfsam76 (Oct 5, 2012)

*STICK*

why you no stick?


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

still tryin to figure out this fan issue i have. got out of the car the other day and noticed the fan was still running. came back outside and hour later and fan was still running. clearly an issue... things that have been ruled out. not the relay and not the switch. u can unplug both and the fan still runs.. keep in mind this car has a ABA swap in it. the cabby had ac at one point and so did the ABA so i believe that is the issue. Only prob is it seems to be intermiten . fan did come on this morning. im ready to freaking scream at this point because it just makes so sense at all.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Like an idiot... I decided to spend some time to replace the O2 sensor. Well, after shooting the O2 for a while with some wd40, I attempted to remove the sensor. A few minutes later, the sensor popped out... stripped the threading in the manifold. Now I have a big hole where the sensor should be, making the the car sound like its poorly carb'd. 

I've got a replacement manifold to be picked up this week/weekend... not sure I'll be able to drive it down the street, let alone to work 5 miles away the rest of the week.


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

I put on the 3000th mile since I've had her, 13 months. I hope the next 3,000 go this easy.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

jenoper said:


> I put on the 3000th mile since I've had her, 13 months. I hope the next 3,000 go this easy.


i'm sorry but you probably just screwed yourself with that statement


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> i'm sorry but you probably just screwed yourself with that statement



SO ****ING TRUE

Jesus, I find my self knocking on wood every three seconds since I started dailying my cabby.:screwy:


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

I came up with what appears to be, so far, a decent temporary patch until I get a replacement manifold this weeken. d. I fired up the car and it doesn't sound carb'd anymore

My concern... for some reason now, as soon as I turn the key, before even cranking, the fan comes on and stays on. I've had the car running in the driveway for a little while now and the fan is still going. Does having the o2 sensor out and not plugged in have any impact on the fan operation??


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

BerryB said:


> SO ****ING TRUE
> 
> Jesus, I find my self knocking on wood every three seconds since I started dailying my cabby.:screwy:


LOL, same.


----------



## wrathofpaul (Apr 5, 2012)

Painted the headliner! used some Vinyl and Fabric paint. man, it's like I got a brand new headliner. also some black seat covers to match... and a fresh coat of paint for the dash and the plastic door inserts. All I have left to do for the interior is new red carpeting... and i may want to upgrade to actual upholstery for the seats, but for now these $30 seat covers aren't bad.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

BerryB said:


> SO ****ING TRUE
> 
> Jesus, I find my self knocking on wood every three seconds since I started dailying my cabby.:screwy:




lol that just gave me an idea.. Installing a small block of wood in the car that is easy to knock on. lol 

people would be like.. "whats that?".. and i would be like "insurance"


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

sort of a silly thing.. but i found these on ebay really cheap 











so i ordered them.. they fit and look neat


----------



## Wild83Hare (Apr 18, 2004)

I replaced my heater core and lubed my heater fan.
I looked at some "how to's" before I started and they had you cutting the side of the heater box and all sorts of crazy stuff. I swapped mine without even taking the center console loose.
If you pull the four screws from in the rain tray, remove the throttle pedal and disconnect the brake pedal, you can slide it in and out without much trouble. 

Sent from my robo-phone.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I'm proud of my car tonight. 181 miles today without any big issues. I had some clutch cable adjustment issues on the way down.. but nothing i couldn't work around .. luckily it was all highway the way down so i didnt have to shift. I fixed it before we left and had a great ride back


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

Tiny, I hope you don't have the same issue I just went through! I finally had a clutch pedal bracket break on my for the first time! It broke right where the cable comes through the firewall! Luckily, I fixed it with a big washer and a few nylon spacers. I freaked out when I imagined having to pull that entire pedal assembly! That did NOT sound fun!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

flowmastergfunk said:


> Tiny, I hope you don't have the same issue I just went through! I finally had a clutch pedal bracket break on my for the first time! It broke right where the cable comes through the firewall! Luckily, I fixed it with a big washer and a few nylon spacers. I freaked out when I imagined having to pull that entire pedal assembly! That did NOT sound fun!


nah.. my assembly is good. i have a feeling its one of two things.. 

my clutch cable might have been a tiny twisted when i set it and tightened it.. so over time it untwists a rotation and makes it off a hair 

or

The white bell housing thing on the cable is not sitting right on the grommet and makes it funky.. 


either way wiggling the cable or twisting a rotation one way or the other usually does the trick. and sometimes it fixes itself.. lol


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

just cleaned my windows......does that count?


----------



## jacobroufa (Jun 18, 2012)

Replaced my radiator and hoses, and also replaced my speedo cable. Unfortunately now that I have a working speedo, of course the only light on my instrument cluster that works is the one over the tach.... So I also ordered some LEDs from superbright so I'll have good lighting for instrument cluster and VDO gauges next week. :woot:

Hopefully today I can get ahold of my friend that has a spare window so I can finally have a working defroster as well. Also maybe I can talk him into helping me adjust my shifter so it's not so sloppy.


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

ok ok ok......I put this on too!!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

drove another 210miles today with the grimwater group for the run to the hills mountain cruise.. 

awesome time. long arse drive. we left at 8:30 and we just got back at 4


----------



## jacobroufa (Jun 18, 2012)

Drove around with a huge smile on my face because it was 60 degrees out and perfect for top-down weather...


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

replaced my B pillar gaskets!!


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

mileycyrus said:


> ok ok ok......I put this on too!!


What brand is this bar? I'm almost tempted to make one like this myself. I have some limited welding experience and I might be able to fab this up pretty easily.


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

I honestly dont know.....I was hoping someone on here would tell me....lol


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

Adjusted my idle back down on lunch


----------



## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

I cleaned the TB and the fuel metering plate(or whatever it's called). Next up, charge the battery and drive her on Friday.


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> lInstalling a small block of wood in the car that is easy to knock on.


Well i can check that off my list...










I installed my rear "euro" bumper, still waiting for the front...










Also chopped off the fart can my car came with. Installed an oem one. No pics though:thumbdown:


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

MissAnthropic said:


> Thanks! 175/70/13 balloon tires on BMW steelies. I wish I could come across something in a 60 series tire.


hoosier road race r35. 20x8x13

These ones have been sitting inside for a few months so they're deflated as you can tell by the second picture.


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Saying as I've only had my cabby for a week, I started maintenance. Beginning with the fuel filter....









Only paid $1000 for it.








It's only on a trailer because I drove 5 hours to get it haha


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

HubsMKIV said:


> Saying as I've only had my cabby for a week, I started maintenance. Beginning with the fuel filter....
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Place the year of your cabby in your profile so we won't have to keep asking make model and year......


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

briano1234 said:


> Place the year of your cabby in your profile so we won't have to keep asking make model and year......




Will do thanks for the heads up. It is a 1983. I'll get that on there tonight.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

HubsMKIV said:


> Saying as I've only had my cabby for a week, I started maintenance. Beginning with the fuel filter....
> 
> 
> 
> ...


thats nothing.. lol look at what mine looked like... 




tinygiant said:


> decided to do something productive and did the fuel filter
> 
> not sure on age.. but looks pretty old
> 
> ...


----------



## boner (May 19, 2002)

Doin stuff.... Basically the plan is eradicate all thoughts of rust via the use of wire wheels and POR-15. End result will be a tuff cabby that will withstand the abuses of an Ottawa winter. Unfortunately finances dictate that a full on paint job to replace the sloppily done purple is not on this year.

Reason forthis car being winter driven is that we have 5 cars for 2 drivers. It's silly. Need to make this one tuff so we can ditch the passat.


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> thats nothing.. lol look at what mine looked like...




Bleh. I hope this solves the choking and bucking issue.


----------



## VW1991Jetta (May 12, 2010)

tinygiant said:


> sort of a silly thing.. but i found these on ebay really cheap
> 
> 
> 
> ...



haha bought these the other day as well in silver for my cabby! nice little touch


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

started teaching my girlfriend how to drive the stick... turns out im bad at explaining how to do it. and the cabby started groaning when you engage each gear.. hope its not life threatening


----------



## jacobroufa (Jun 18, 2012)

Replaced all the instrument cluster and VDO gauges lights with LEDs, removed the green filters, and switched the polarization filter over the clock so it's now inversed (white on black instead of black on white). Talk about a change for the better!


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

i walked past one of mine to get into my mk5, sat in the mk5 then got out and drove the cabby instead
even with a trashed transmission its still more fun
also picked up a new rear bumper and small duckbill for it, trying to save for new coils and seats


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

jacobroufa said:


> and switched the polarization filter over the clock so it's now inversed (white on black instead of black on white).


Did I miss the How-To for this?? That is looking good!!


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

I picked up a 1997 Cabrio for a parts car. Top, exhaust, and tires are going to my brother for his 1998 Cabrio... engine, tranny, wiring, cluster, dash, etc, etc, are staying with me to eventually swap into the Cabby!


----------



## jacobroufa (Jun 18, 2012)

gordinho said:


> Did I miss the How-To for this?? That is looking good!!


Thanks gordinho! It's much cleaner, I think, and a ton easier to read than the green-filtered clock.

So, when you're disassembling the clock, get it down to the very furthest you can take it apart. You should have six screws out and be holding the flat beveled clear plastic piece that actually displays the clock in your hand. From there you can kind of see/feel the polarization film/filter. It's glued on with a really strong adhesive, so I had to use a razor blade to start to peel it off. Peel it the rest of the way and when you have the two pieces separated, use isopropyl alcohol or some other solvent, and a q-tip, to get the glue off. You will likely have to rub that pretty firmly, as the glue is very strong to begin with and pretty old. I couldn't get it all off, but I got the majority of it, in the center. It still looks fine to me. Now just flip the filter around so the clock looks dark instead of light and reassemble.

I found this information here: http://www.oichan.org/mods/lcd/lcd2.htm . He uses pictures as well, to describe the process, so it might be easier to follow than my how-to.

A couple caveats though that he doesn't talk about in that article. Be careful when you take the clock apart. the plastic part of the LCD has two rubbery things on the side, that's what transmits the pattern to the clock. Don't mess those up. If they fall off (I couldn't get them to NOT fall off) just keep them to the side and put them back when you reassemble the clock. Also, be sure to put the screen back the way it came in. Don't flip it 180* or you'll have some screwy looking numbers and will have to take it all apart just to flip it back around. I had to, anyway. Time well spent, but still, learn from my screwups! :thumbup:


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Fuel filter and battery posts. Also got rid of the dry rotted tires and just threw some steelies on it until spring.









sent from ma teleskop


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

shop vac'd the inch of water out of the drivers side floor  i though i went unaffected by the hurricane. went to move the car today and realized the window was popped out a little. so the drivers side was a little flooded. 

hopefully it wont rain tomorrow so i can leave the window open to get the moisture out


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Tucked it away in it's new home for the "Super Storm" last weekend. Finishing up some more work in there today.


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

Made it home!











Drove a total of 1400 kilometres this week nothing bad - Until im heading home and no brake pressure at all...

So what did i do to my cabby today?

mulched the diaphragm in my master cylinder... Now she spits and sputters :thumbdown: Barely goes, and barely stops.  poor thing.


She'll be back on her feet in no time after a little rehab in the make shift garage.


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

i did this yesterday ....timing and timing belt... woot go it the first try new ac compressor and all new belts ..... befor i took the timing belt off we put the cam gear dot were it should be to see how far off the timing was..the int shaft notch was pointing down and the distributor was way off idk how the car even ran befor i re-aligned everything


----------



## Wild83Hare (Apr 18, 2004)

I changed my right front axle and added red poly bushings.

















The new axle is slightly smaller...









My helper...


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Started disconnecting wiring and fuel lines while my wife prepped the mkvi for the Little Rock Fall Team Bash. 
sent from ma teleskop


----------



## Dangerranger (May 4, 2010)

Last night* replaced the ripped vinyl top with a black cloth top. took about an hour and Im a happy dry camper again :laugh:


----------



## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

picked up some vent windows and a black power window kneebar with switches at the junkyard. then looked at it in the garage. 16v swap almost done.


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

Replaced my gay ass steering wheel with a gti wheel









This thing is giant.



on a side note the old mk1 momo hub and cheapo ebay wheel are for sale. If you want the hub hit me up Ill ship canada and continental u.s.


----------



## Green_Lantern98 (Apr 4, 2007)

Picked up some new wheels today:










16x7 Stern Randia et35.


----------



## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

installed the black kneebar and console. also put the rest of the dash back together.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

lil_squeeker said:


> installed the black kneebar and console. also put the rest of the dash back together.


Info on the shifter?


----------



## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

it's just a stock shifter that i re threaded for an old Hurst t-handle. i don't think i can keep it though.....it hits the seat bolster in reverse and 1/2nd.

i think it would have fit fine with stock seats, but the recaros are wider.

it would work if you have the seat all the way back like in the picture.


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

*I tried*

I tried to find the short in my speakers but no matter where I wiggled it wouldn't cut out (of course.) Hopefully it will not? work again at a more convenient time for me to find the damn thing. :banghead:


----------



## talbet (Nov 15, 2012)

Received one of the three motor mounts it needs in the mail. And drove it with a massive vibration. It still looks cool though!


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

went with my gf so she could buy engine restore for when we do the oil change soon


----------



## topduko19 (Sep 29, 2003)

Got some porsche rims








Then got my coilovers installed...
Dropped?!?!?:thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

scrubbed the hell out of the carpet cleaning it and got all the way down to the real color.....i had no idea it was black "jk" lol


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

Ordered my ngk iridium plugs and ngk wires  happy thanksgiving everybody


----------



## E30blitz (Nov 1, 2012)

Tried to patch up the small cut in the side , with duck tape ( fail)


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

from the fair amount of smoke coming from under my hood when i pulled into my house i'm guessing i sprung a coolant leak... it was too dark out to tell where it was from.. but id didnt overheat at all.. lucky too it was after a 1.5hour drive and when i checked the fluid there was almost none in the reservoir. Hopefully its an easy location to fix. the spray pattern makes me think it originated from the driverside.. 

the return line to the tank was dry, upper and lower radiator hoses were dry a the connection points.. i'm thinking it might have been the lower tank hose ..i'll know better in the morning


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

topduko19 said:


> Got some porsche rims
> 
> 
> 
> ...


looks so much better lower


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> from the fair amount of smoke coming from under my hood when i pulled into my house i'm guessing i sprung a coolant leak... it was too dark out to tell where it was from.. but id didnt overheat at all.. lucky too it was after a 1.5hour drive and when i checked the fluid there was almost none in the reservoir. Hopefully its an easy location to fix. the spray pattern makes me think it originated from the driverside..
> 
> the return line to the tank was dry, upper and lower radiator hoses were dry a the connection points.. i'm thinking it might have been the lower tank hose ..i'll know better in the morning


i had a split in the coolant distribution hose that goes from the water pump to the head flange. 

glad german auto parts had free shipping today! I ordered the hose and a full set of seals and holders for the injectors i bought last month. 

also very glad that gap is a day away via fedex and that they deliver on saturdays! i should be able to back up and running tomorrow


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

coolant hose replace! no leaks that i can see. 

hopefully i dont have any other lines go. we'll be going 1.5hours to my mothers place for thankgiving tomorrow


----------



## Firestarter[GER] (Jun 25, 2006)

*89 Cabby, Winter Project*

Hello,
My wife and I owned a 89 Cabby from 96 until 08. I thought that I got lucky and bought our old 89 Cabby back, in August 2012.
Problems:
1) Rust, rust, rust... from 23 years in Michigan and Wisconsin
2) Bad driver side door, drivers side rocker panel, hood and trunk hatch
3) Torn convertible top
4) Suspension and brakes are shut
5) Gas tank is leaking
6) Cat is missing and the rest of the exhaust is rusted out
I'm going to completely dismantle this Cabby, see what else needs to be replaced...

I'll upload pictures and post here soon,

Cheers,

FS


----------



## Firestarter[GER] (Jun 25, 2006)




----------



## Firestarter[GER] (Jun 25, 2006)

Here we go, tear down:


----------



## Firestarter[GER] (Jun 25, 2006)

I just love a holiday like Thanksgiving, one week of garage time...


















:screwy:


----------



## Firestarter[GER] (Jun 25, 2006)

Firestarter[GER] said:


> Hello,
> My wife and I owned a 89 Cabby from 96 until 08. I thought that I got lucky and bought our old 89 Cabby back, in August 2012.
> Problems:
> 1) Rust, rust, rust... from 23 years in Michigan and Wisconsin
> ...


Here is the list of parts that I have and install is either done or in progress:
1) Front Grill, Headlights & Highbeam - no Batch : Concept 1
2) Hood and Oil Dipstick & Funnel : VW Parts Direct ( USAutoParts.net)
3) Driver Door : Pull-A-Part, Car Salvage
4) Front Smoked Signal Lights : Ebay
5) Tail Lights Smoked : Black Forest Industries
6) Black Convertible Top, Padding & Tension : M&T Manufacturing
7) Wheel Spacers, rear +25mm : ECS Tuning
8) Catalytic Converter, Cat-back Exhaust : Techtonics Tuning
9) Fuel Tank : UsAutoParts.net
10) H&R Lowering Springs, 1.25" : Autoplicity.com
11) Sachs rear Shocks w/hardware : UsAutoParts.net
12) Hella 7" Round Conversion (HB2 Bulbs) : Tirerack.com
13) 2 Striker Pins for the Doors : Concept 1
14) 2 replacement Horns : Concept 1

Thinking about the Convertible Top and the Gas Tank is driving me crazy, not sure I can do those.

Cheers,

FS


----------



## Firestarter[GER] (Jun 25, 2006)

Here we go, Thanksgiving Holiday progress:

Hood installed:









Door installed:









Exhaust...have to take it back off to get the Tank in:

















The Exhaust is mounted but not tight. You can see the Gas leak, that's why.

Here is the big Tank, just stored for now and leaning against the Passenger Door.









I have no idea how to get the old Tank out and the new one in.

Cheers,

FS


----------



## Firestarter[GER] (Jun 25, 2006)

Ok, this will conclude this Holiday workout.
Install will be done right after the new paint job, due December 2012

Grill, Head lights, Signal lights front, Tail lights


----------



## The_Rabbitman (Oct 9, 2006)

Firestarter[GER] said:


> Here we go, Thanksgiving Holiday progress:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


To get the tank out, you need to undo the rear strut bolts, then jack the car way up, gently let the axle swing all the way down. depending on your brake lines, you may need to disconnect the hard lines... When the axle is out of the way, you can access the gas tank, and disconnect the fuel lines and unbolt it from the floor. It's not a fun job. If I ever have to do it again, I will likely pay someone to do it... And I've done pretty much everything you can do to these cars.


----------



## topduko19 (Sep 29, 2003)

Finally put in my LED interior lights


----------



## DT EXP (Jun 15, 2007)

got my new to me Rears seats, door cards, carpet in tonight!


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Looks good man ^


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

changed my negative/ground from battery to frame rail and from frame rail to trans....the one i pulled out of the car was f***ed up


----------



## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

finally got the rebuilt 16v and manual trans in and successfully running on digifant II. fired right up on the first try. 

taking it for a shakedown run this weekend.


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

Ngk iridium spark plugs and ngk wires  exhaust gasket on my next day off.


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Found yet another "What did you do to your..." thread to post to.


----------



## DT EXP (Jun 15, 2007)

Fronts done now! Love them..


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

I ran out of gas for the first time ever. My fear of this burning the fuel pump was unfounded or maybe I just got lucky.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

DT EXP said:


> Fronts done now! Love them..


 who did the upholstery work?


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

GOT SOME GOODIES! 

hella quad round 
two front bumpers 
bilsteins


----------



## gangstajett89 (Dec 31, 2008)

washed up the AE.... up for sale now too....


----------



## E30blitz (Nov 1, 2012)

Today was not its day 
Tommorow does not look good either 
Maybe this weekend 

I might tinker it


----------



## boner (May 19, 2002)

Painted the inside floor with POR. Just hafta do the drivers side lower rocker and wheelarches and i can start reassembly.

Winter conditions can kiss my butt!


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

plasti dipped my RS reps


----------



## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Replaced the broken/leaky coolant flange. If you look at the 'top' portion, you can see the chipped edge on the inside. That's why the damned thing was leaking. Now, it's just on to bleeding the system.


----------



## dave93cab (Jun 26, 2012)

Dectane Tails installed..


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

How about "what did somebody else do to your cabby today?" 
















I have done very well this evening not using expletives to describe the person that did this...but that might change once I start dealing with insurance BS


----------



## dave93cab (Jun 26, 2012)

So sorry to see that. Good luck with everything


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

Thanks dude. I am pretty damn heart broken but at least it happened before I finished it! :beer:


----------



## BetaOp9 (May 4, 2006)

Removed the front plate holder. 

Replaced sealed outer lights with some fluted glass h4 bulb holders with crosshairs, tossed in some Silverstar Ultra's and put bulbs in the inner housings. 

The light pattern and brightness on the new outers are fantastic. A HUGE difference, as I can now drive safely at night. The original sealed Hella lights on full bright aren't anywhere near as bright as these. 

Hoping to find some new inner housings to complement these or just delete them completely. 

Also tracked down missing fuse for the passenger side low beam that was missing since I got it. Glad I checked as I had originally assumed it was a bad bulb, upon replacing it thought it might have been bad wiring. Luckily I remembered to check the fuse panel and low and behold an empty fuse.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Cmethvin said:


> Replaced the broken/leaky coolant flange. If you look at the 'top' portion, you can see the chipped edge on the inside. That's why the damned thing was leaking. Now, it's just on to bleeding the system.


I hope you replaced the valve cover gasket and oil pressure switch, too, or the new one won't last real long. The oil leaking down on the o-ring swells it, causing the plastic to crack. :thumbup:


----------



## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> I hope you replaced the valve cover gasket and oil pressure switch, too, or the new one won't last real long. The oil leaking down on the o-ring swells it, causing the plastic to crack. :thumbup:


That was actually done this past spring, thankfully! Thanks for the tip though!


----------



## Stashm2 (Oct 25, 2011)

*New used fenders off a 79 Rabbit.*










Re installed my Fenders, Now I need a bumper and a new stripe cut to match the rest of the car.. Dusty in the Horse Barn..







Grabbed this little guy off the rabbit too just too cute and cool to pass up. sorry on the fuzzy.


----------



## dave93cab (Jun 26, 2012)

Flushed my coolant, new thermostat, metal thermostat housing, replaced a couple of the hoses and got a new expansion tank installed. Can actually see how much fluid is in there now


----------



## BetaOp9 (May 4, 2006)

dave93cab said:


> Flushed my coolant, new thermostat, metal thermostat housing, replaced a couple of the hoses and got a new expansion tank installed. Can actually see how much fluid is in there now


Wow the new expansion tank makes a huge difference in the look of the bay. I may pick one up myself just to clean things up. :thumbup::thumbup:

Sent from my SGH-T959 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Used it's hood as a work bench, again, yesterday.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Started it up to find that the exhaust is rotting away faster then I expected. Big hole in the exhaust somewhere and it sounds like a ricer with a fart can now... Time to get it up on stands and start pulling things off.


----------



## talbet (Nov 15, 2012)

waited for a part to keep water from pouring rain water into the passenger side window thus ruining speakers.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Drove it. Looks like i've been mudding, needs a wash desperately. The Taco Bell rappers are piling up too.....so I think I'll give it a good clean today lmao.


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

Cmethvin said:


> Replaced the broken/leaky coolant flange. If you look at the 'top' portion, you can see the chipped edge on the inside. That's why the damned thing was leaking. Now, it's just on to bleeding the system.


I JUST DID THIS YESTERDAY!!!!.....lol, along with some other lil trimmings, and fixes....
killed the lower timing belt cover...and removed the extra pulley from the A/C, and replaced the same flange that you did....still on the hunt for an aluminum one 









lost a bit aof weight.


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

replaced the battery in the walmart parkinglot on xmas eve in the snow lol


----------



## Spokane Pepe (Nov 18, 2011)

Got it timed and running great now. Took some doing after removing the AC and sorting out the vacuum lines. Also put in a new alternator during the process.


----------



## mr pibbs (May 13, 2012)

I dropped it off at the shop. :facepalm:

It was strange how hard it was to let some stranger work on the car, but I need it running.


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

started on the pondering on WTF all do I need to do before I can put an engine in my crazy bastardized new cabby?


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

At 10pm last night I had a 10 pound bag of cat litter bust as I was putting it in the front seat. Clumping litter everywhere! Wouldn't be a big deal except there was a puddle of water (stupid surprise rain storm) under the seat. Today I will be scraping clumped cat litter off my floor boards


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Battery light came on last night on way home from work, voltage dropped to 10. I made it home late and didn't get a chance to look under the hood.

This morning, popped hood and saw the alternator belt torn to shreds. Picked up the spare, loosened the AC condenser, and put the new belt on. Problem solved.

Also decided to put a tarp over the top because of all the rain we've gotten lately and the inevitable snow that is yet to come. I'll take a pic of this later or tomorrow, its freaky looking. Hopefully it helps keep most of the water out. The floors are soaked right now!

I also noticed one of the headlights out last night, so I looked and couldnt get either HID to come on. Rather then spend too much time out in the cold determining the issue, I put the original sealed beam lights back on for the time being. Now it really looks freaky

Slammed white cabby on borbets with a blue tarp covering the top, badgeless grille and old sealed headlights... NICE!


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

plowed snow driving it last night lol


----------



## mileycyrus (Jun 1, 2011)

yesterday.....Pacesetter Header installed.....:heart::heart::heart::heart::heart:

today.....adjusted my clutch cable stop cylinder, stopped the squeaking plastic grinding sound...YAY


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

just left the shop with nice new tires lol


----------



## mr pibbs (May 13, 2012)

Drove it... For the first time.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

flowmastergfunk said:


> started on the pondering on WTF all do I need to do before I can put an engine in my crazy bastardized new cabby?


Electric, 'eh? There's a guy in my area with an electric converted old Saab 96. Think he's up to around 100 mi on a charge. What kind of range are you looking at? :thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Electric, 'eh? There's a guy in my area with an electric converted old Saab 96. Think he's up to around 100 mi on a charge. What kind of range are you looking at? :thumbup::thumbup:


You know, I actually went to pick this thing up because the ad said "rabbit convertible, clean body, no engine or trans, make offer". I was just looking for something to dump all my parts into and put my new motor in since my crabbit was wrecked. I grabbed it for a few hundred bucks but it has actually got me thinking about what a shame it would be to undo all the work that it took to make this thing electric. I can see a small fortune going into 18 batteries, cables and an electric motor though. It has an interesting history but I think I am just going to cut out some battery trays and run what I got!:what:

tough choice though! It had lived as an electric car for the last 8 years but the guy took out all the good stuff.


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

I replaced my passenger's side side marker bulb and the driver's side bulb immediately blew so I cracked a beer.

I also ran into my mechanic and he said he missed me. :laugh:


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Not a dang thing....Oh Drove it to work, do that count?


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

Front air dam install and front euro bumper install. If it wasn't so cold I would install my side skirts too 

(I also didn't notice the bumper was crooked until after my girlfriend took the picture)


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## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

took the wheel off to pull the camber alittle bit and found out that jack Williams tire lost one of my hubcentric caps when they did my tires on saterday morning .....i called them and they couldnt find it so if they didnt find it when i call tomorrow im ganna make them buy me a new set


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## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Just snapped another alternator belt! What the hell!?!?!?!? This the day after my Trailblazer's front upper control arm broke! I now have NOTHING to drive. I don't have a spare alt belt because I just snapped the spare!


----------



## MKuervo (Jan 8, 2011)

Started to replace the timing belt, found out the intermediate shaft seal was leaking. Need to get me one. Tomorrow hopefully get seal finish timing belt, water pump, v belt, serpentine belt, and brakes.


----------



## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

Replaced my fan with something a tad more modern and a little less of a boat anchor:


----------



## Green_Lantern98 (Apr 4, 2007)

I bought something ive been wanting for a long time. ..


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

MissAnthropic said:


> Replaced my fan with something a tad more modern and a little less of a boat anchor:


Is that something you bought that bolts right in or did you have to modify it? 

sent from ma teleskop


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## onemean6 (May 30, 2010)

*exhaust*

changed the center immediate pipe. Car is still loud. Next i will do the manifold? or gasket. My luck it will be the manifold. need an automatic shift knob, still looking. 

last weekend did new brake rotors, wheel bearings and pads. control arms look crappy, will likely tackle them before spring.


----------



## Lil_revolution (Jan 27, 2011)

*New top.*

Was trolling ebay looking a new top. I had boughts white top, but sold out becauseI really wanted black or tan. found this for $40 shipped. The item description was horrible and no pics but I figured I couldn't really go wrong for $40.


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## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Lucky!!! So jealous right now!


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## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Installed a cheapo head unit and some cup holders...haha. Has anyone ever converted the tape holder into something else? I feel like it's such a waste of space. Nevermind, I took it out and it's just a little space. Cool.


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

After countless years of dreaming of some day owning a Cabby, I brought a sweet 87 home.

Showing the lady who was kind enough to cover my shift today what the hub-bub was all about..









Neuspeed race springs, bilsteins, ATS and totally inappropriate tires for the cold weather. Notice snow in grass.

Home with the Forester unpacked of some of the extra goodies.. Bristol RyePA, NIB black top with associated stuffs, damn near new snow tires on stock wheels, brand new front end with badgeless grill, headlights and Kamie spoiler thingy. Notice previous 2-wheeled transportation..









Has some work to be done, plans call for a fire breathing basket of death but until then, back to lurking around.


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## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

FoxSt said:


> After countless years of dreaming of some day owning a Cabby, I brought a sweet 87 home.
> 
> Showing the lady who was kind enough to cover my shift today what the hub-bub was all about..
> 
> ...


Sweet! I love it! :heart:

I spent all day cruising around in mine, it was nice to use it for something other than A-B transportation.


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## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

> brand new front end with badgeless grill


How much for the original grille shipped to nj 08527?


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Forgot how much warmer the car is with a 195 thermostat....
Toasty. The one I thought was 180 popped open at 165.....I replaced it because I thought it was stuck open and not getting the car hot in 39 degree temps.


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## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

gordinho said:


> How much for the original grille shipped to nj 08527?


Nothing for sale until I have the chance to really go through the car and see what's what.


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## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

MissAnthropic said:


> Sweet! I love it! :heart:
> 
> I spent all day cruising around in mine, it was nice to use it for something other than A-B transportation.


oh gad dem meaty tires.... :thumbup:


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## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Vacuumed/cleaned the car real good. The car was really dark at night so...I decided to put two red LED strips under the dash on both sides. Don't hate.


----------



## Dailydrivenmk1 (Jan 7, 2013)

*Roof Rack*

Just finished making a hinging roof rack for my rabbit convertible. Great little car but not much cargo space. Got the ideas from an older thread. It's actually made from conduit electrical pipe! Only problem is that I had to drill into the pillars. :facepalm: but its not like the car is in perfect condition. When the weather gets better ill post a pic with the top down.


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## AZrabbit (Jul 23, 2011)

Dailydrivenmk1 said:


> Just finished making a hinging roof rack for my rabbit convertible. Great little car but not much cargo space. Got the ideas from an older thread. It's actually made from conduit electrical pipe! Only problem is that I had to drill into the pillars. :facepalm: but its not like the car is in perfect condition. When the weather gets better ill post a pic with the top down.


Dam your pics wont show up for me!!!


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## Dailydrivenmk1 (Jan 7, 2013)

well see if this works


----------



## Dailydrivenmk1 (Jan 7, 2013)

I don't know, the pics show up on my phone but not computer.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

You have to upload your photos to a web share ie: photobucket, then post the url between







or click the photo icon, and post the url for the picture in that box.


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

Had trouble with my alternator getting enough juice to my battery throughout my daily rounds. And the cabby just hated waking up on cold mornings... So I decided it was time to replace my grounds. 


















...no comment 





The brown thing is my battery to frame ground and its supposed to be nickel plated copper. And the red cable is my motor to battery ground. Take a look at the terminals D:









There's an after shot, don't mind the strut caps. This is my 4x4 winter suspension


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## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

About to drive it to Taco Bell, AKA work -.-
Fml

Sent from the heavens using Jesus' hands.


----------



## 87CabrioSK (May 27, 2010)

I picked these up a while back but they are sitting til winter goes away. Not sure if I'll use them on my Cabby, I love my flakes!
Got a great deal on them with very decent tires. They are absolutely mint.
I don't know much about them other then they are ATS 14".


ATS Germans by 87CabrioletA1, on Flickr


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## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

Took it to Pensacola and back, about an hour each way. Car did great. Stupid garbage truck kicked up a rock and got my windshield though.


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

got the other door handle today, took off the old and put on the new lol....and washed the windows


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Pulled it into the garage and got it up off the ground. Complete new exhaust should be here in a few days.

Going to order exhaust manifold gasket, bolts, and manifold to downpipe gasket so I can finally pull out the bad manifold and put in my replacement.

Also, with the exhaust out of the way, I'll be dropping the rear axle so I can get the fuel tank out of the car to find and repair the leak I have somewhere in the tank. Going to be interesting. I'm hoping to get everything minus bolting up the cat-back done this weekend. What else should I try to do while under the car and all these parts being off?


----------



## 71StyleWagon (Mar 18, 2010)

Lowerd it


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Took it for a nice mountain drive before the snow comes back and I have to change wheels/tires.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

i went with single rounds and smoked headlights im very happy with it

















and the headlights are so much better then the crappy sealed beams


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Added my new sticker while she awaits an ignition.


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

HubsMKIV said:


> Added my new sticker while she awaits an ignition.


thats the greatest thing I've seen... :laugh:

May I ask where it was found? Or if you made it?


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## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

A friend of mine made it for me. I saw the picture online and had to make a sticker.


----------



## Stashm2 (Oct 25, 2011)

*New oil pump and muffler*

New 36 MM Oil pump windage tray and bafle... from GAP.. The pickup tube on the New pump was too long for the bafle to fit the windage tray.. So I had to use the one off the old pump.. Has anyone else had this issue?

On the bright side the presure seems a little better than the 200K Mile 36mm pump that was on it. 


Also a new muffler! yay its quiet again!


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Got the exhaust and intake manifolds off. I only broke 3 of the exhaust manifold studs so far. Rather then trying to force the studs that didn't break, with the manifolds off, I have more access to them and will continue to hit them with PB Blaster. I have a few days before the new parts arrive, so I've got time to let the studs soak.


----------



## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

Use a 50/50 ATF-Acetone mix. Works much much better than any commercial "penetrating oil."


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Cleaned up the carpets. This is my first pull of the seats owning the car so I was a bit shocked to see the pass side seat cushion tray rusting away. On a good note the tracks were decent. I greased the tracks and seat pins as well. Pretty good day. Ignition switch tomorrow.








Got some help from an old pal of mine.


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## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

got new hubcentric rings in the mail and put them on lol


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Pic not showing up... you need to host it, not link from your email.


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## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Ignition switch.


----------



## seattlemariners (Jan 15, 2013)

*rack*

Finished my senor project, a roof rack for my cabriolet.


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Got the struts back in and the flywheel dowel pins pressed in. No locktite, so couldn't bolt the flywheel on.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Dropped the fuel tank.... what a pain in the ass!!! I had to disconnect the brake lines at the axle or I'd probably still be working on dropping the tank. Spilled some gas and brake fluid... but its out!!!

I need to bleed the brake lines anyway, maybe even replace them....


----------



## flowmastergfunk (May 31, 2007)

gordinho said:


> Dropped the fuel tank.... what a pain in the ass!!! I had to disconnect the brake lines at the axle or I'd probably still be working on dropping the tank. Spilled some gas and brake fluid... but its out!!!
> 
> I need to bleed the brake lines anyway, maybe even replace them....


I finally pulled the tank from the poor crabbit today too! One of the last steps before sending it to scrap 

The only thing that sucked worse was taking out the actual fuel lines!!!!! That is one of those jobs that really could have use a lift instead of jackstands!


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

I got a new battery at Costco and immediately put an RV-style quick-disconnect on it (thank you NAPA). Now It's way easy to park it for the winter. Bonus: theft deterrent! 

Also figured out how to get the rear side-marker lights to flash with the turn signals! Can't wait to get parts after work and wire it all up good tonight! Squeeee!


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Took about 20 minutes to find this switch was the reason I couldn't turn off the headlights 










When pulled out the headlights are on but no other lights, ie interior or running/marker lights. Waiting for a little warmer weather to trace the wiring and try to figure out WTF.. unless this is some odd Cabby feature I don't understand.


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## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

FoxSt said:


> Took about 20 minutes to find this switch was the reason I couldn't turn off the headlights
> 
> When pulled out the headlights are on but no other lights, ie interior or running/marker lights. Waiting for a little warmer weather to trace the wiring and try to figure out WTF.. unless this is some odd Cabby feature I don't understand.


That's weird FoxSt... Looks like it might be and aftermarket part?


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

FoxSt said:


> Took about 20 minutes to find this switch was the reason I couldn't turn off the headlights
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Someones humorless attempt at a repair, it isn't stock.....
A new headlight switch and a Relay or 3 and your lights are usually better than OEM.

One of these days I am going to track "Someone, Nobody, Somebody and their cousin Wasn'tme" down and walllop the crap outta them folks!


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> One of these days I am going to track "Someone, Nobody, Somebody and their cousin Wasn'tme" down and walllop the crap outta them folks!


Thankfully I'm close to the last 2 owners, going back over 15 years.. neither of them are claiming to know anything about it, other than knowing it was there and what it did.

I'll happily join in on that hunt too :banghead:


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Received my "new to me" exhaust! So much nicer and cleaner then the rusted out original piping!

Thanks again, SenorBrandon!

Going on vacation tomorrow, but when I get back, its going to be a busy couple of days working on the Cabby to get it back on the road!


----------



## boner (May 19, 2002)

re-buttoned up the wife's cabby vr last night after a few months of breaking it down and PORing the entire bottom. charged the battery overninght and it started third try this morning. just gotta spend another hour down there torquing a few bolts and aligning the shifter and it becomes my winter car as of monday.


----------



## Stashm2 (Oct 25, 2011)

I removed the Remnats of my Clipper kit, and the Body kit the previous owner had on it and gave it two Euro bumpers, Will have to wait till spring to re-paint under the kit. On the good side no rust  



























Still working on taking off the Glue on the Wheel arcs.. not sure what to do with the Ground Effect kit yet. If anyone around NY has interst in it shoot me a message.


----------



## boner (May 19, 2002)

Finished it up on the weekend and drove it for the first time in 4 months. Of course it was a shock to it. From an insulated garage to -24.... Sorry!

On the flip side, old, inefficient vr6 ftw!!! Heat coming from the vents within 2kms!!!! I'd be halfway to work before the passat 1.8t i sold this weekend would even think about providing warmth!!! And that is when it is 10 degrees warmer than this morning!!!!!

I love driving my wife's car!!!!


----------



## MissHood (May 9, 2004)

Pulled Yet Another head in less than 2 weeks time. The fuel line on the 2nd motor were a bitch to get out, I guess the oring's were stuck. so I torched the bitches, melted them and the line came free. Now the head is in my back seat ready to drop off at the shop. 
-Alicia


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

Got way too pissed off at some CIS problems I was having with the 16v. So I had to send her away to CIS bootcamp at a friends shop.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Does driving it count?  

Found I had a new squeak, pulled the Visor away from the head liner and it went away.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Also drove it to work (school) and also heard a new sound:facepalm:. Hopefully just due to the abnormally cold ass weather. Been running strong for a good 6+ months now :knockonwood:.


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

saturday tore into the ABA to replace headgasket, water pump and belts. valve seals were shot headgasket didnt look too bad. found a boost leak in the turbo piping and gasket it in turbo is bad... perhaps a 16v swap is in order. Gettn tired of this motor.. :facepalm:


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Dropped the top on the way home from the dog park and enjoyed some warm January weather. 










Also, took out the back seat and cleaned the years of a child's candy, wrappers and who knows what else little ones make a mess with.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Replaced control arm bushings, fixed the threads for the DS front control arm bolt because the previous owner took a 1/2 coarse thread american bolt and forced it into a 12x1.5mm threaded hole because the probably lost the original bolt:facepalm::banghead:!! I don't know how you could misplace it cause it's a big bolt! 

Installed a new DS door latch. 

And made some nifty exhuast clamps to help tighten up my exhaust that look like what's on the left end of this exhaust piping  









Not my exhaust by the way haha


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Slightly modified my cup holders (lol) so the vent fits into it's slot properly now (with a little bending......) 

Oh, and I guess I took the tape holder out as well since that was taken. #heavilymodded 

Before: 


Sean A said:


>


 After:


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

had to cut the driver side fender so that it would stop getting sucked in the wheel when i made a right turn cuz some a** hole hit the cabby just hard enough right in the driver side clipper to push in the dent that was already there father in ...all wile i was in walmart so i have no idea who it was ....and since they hit the plastic no paint was left behind so i dont even kno what color car it was


----------



## Stevesvws (Apr 12, 2004)

New exhaust today. TT with a Magnaflow. Sounds really nice. Just a deeper tone than stock until you step on it. Real smooth deep note. Can't wait to drive it with the top down. Too bad it's 20 here today.


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

finished putting the clipper kit back on after cutting the fender yesterday and pulled the big ass dent out of the driver side fender


----------



## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

Replaced the front wheel bearings, it's so quiet now (well, except for the wind noise) like a new car!


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Changed the transfer pump but since that doesn't make for good pictures, I changed to the badgeless grill and spoiler. Also drove around town with the top down before snow moves in tonight.


----------



## bugsy98nb (Oct 31, 2003)

Sean A said:


> Slightly modified my cup holders (lol) so the vent fits into it's slot properly now (with a little bending......)
> 
> Oh, and I guess I took the tape holder out as well since that was taken. #heavilymodded
> 
> ...


Nice :thumbup:


----------



## Stashm2 (Oct 25, 2011)

Drove it 115 miles with no issues.. Go out for a 6 mile round trip drive. And it bucks and sputters.. Wont idle over 600RPM.. Cutting in and out.:banghead:. first thought was Fuel pump but no odd noises there.. So Having had this same issue with my old 92 Jetta changed the mass air flow sensor or the whole air box actually and vwalla problem gone.. for now.. too cold to mess with it much more so I put it back in the barn for a warmer day. :sly:


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

Stashm2 said:


> Drove it 115 miles with no issues.. Go out for a 6 mile round trip drive. And it bucks and sputters.. Wont idle over 600RPM.. Cutting in and out.:banghead:. first thought was Fuel pump but no odd noises there.. So Having had this same issue with my old 92 Jetta changed the mass air flow sensor or the whole air box actually and vwalla problem gone.. for now.. too cold to mess with it much more so I put it back in the barn for a warmer day. :sly:


Had the same problem... lost my ****ing beans being frustrated in the cold so I had it towed off to a friends shop.


----------



## finky (Mar 19, 2010)

I shoveled the snow off of the tarps. Then I fixed the top tarp that the wind blew loose. Now the cabby can finish it's winter nap (or at least rest until I blow up my jetta and it needs to be called into duty).


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Scraped ice off the windows, praised the gorilla taped top and praised the snow tires, while cursing my choice of shorts and a t-shirt. Amazing the difference 8 hours can make.


----------



## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

Wheels on it.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Put the manifolds back on yesterday and put some JB Weld along the leaking seam of the gas tank. I should be putting the tank back on by this weekend. Then I can finish putting the new exhaust on and put the rear beam back on. I can't wait to drive it again... been too long.


----------



## notch8 (Nov 16, 2012)

*My 1997 cabrio (my toy)*

Installed the newly repainted, flat black, driver's door handle. Passenger side already done-both were faded white-not now!
Removed trunk lock, license plate lights and trim cover. Car is red-cover was bleached white on top -no more-now it's shiny red!
Have surface rust around the plate/trunk opener area-plan on sanding and repainting but will have to wait on warmer weather now! Lots more to do-come on spring!
Will post pics when I figure out how!


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

put them up on photobucket or a site like it and copy the img link then paste it here


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

OK... well, I put the fuel tank and the exhaust in. I had to disconnect the brake lines to get the beam low enough to take the tank out. Now, the hard metal line on the pass side won't thread into the small rubber hose section. I think I can just replace the rubber section, but does anyone make lines that replace the rubber section as well as the thin metal line that goes to the drum?


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

got in to the car and looked at the mileage and smiled it finally rolled to 190,000 ...10,000 more mile to 200,000 lol


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

broke the plastic return nipple off my radiator today, when i was putting tension back on the alternator that keeps loosening itself up... arghh!!

after researching the internet to see how other people solved the problem, i decided to try JB Weld. I looked around the house and found the ink tube out of an ink pen that was 9/64 in OD, cut off a 3/8" length, drilled out the broken-off nipple and jammed tube into the nipple, leaving about an eight of an inch sticking out. then i drilled out the hole in the radiator with the 9/64" bit. and let the coolant leak out of the hole. when it stopped i cleaned it up really good, coated the end of the nipple and the extending ink pen tube with JB Weld, then slid the ink pen tube up into the hole in the radiator till the nipple fit up snug.

i haven't had much luck with JB Weld but i knew superglue would not work well in this application, and other people swear by it. so we will see how it holds up.


----------



## notch8 (Nov 16, 2012)

*97 cabrio*


----------



## Nick Boudin (Jan 5, 2012)

Finished the engine bay, pushed it into the driveway so I have room to rebuild the engine and trans.


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

Gave her a much needed bath, also went to the local JY and got 2 new hood hinges and a cup holder, going back for a DS vent window. 

It had a bunch of good parts if anyone is looking :thumbup:


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

Sr. Karmann said:


> Gave her a much needed bath, also went to the local JY and got 2 new hood hinges and a cup holder, going back for a DS vent window.
> 
> It had a bunch of good parts if anyone is looking :thumbup:


i could use a non-corroded hood latch


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

mouser98 said:


> i could use a non-corroded hood latch


I will check on it next weekend :thumbup:


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

Sr. Karmann said:


> I will check on it next weekend :thumbup:


that's awesome man, thanks


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

mouser98 said:


> that's awesome man, thanks


:thumbup:


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Was followed to work by a concerned soccer mom telling me that I almost "rolled over" because I 3-wheeled through a corner..


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

FoxSt said:


> Was followed to work by a concerned soccer mom telling me that I almost "rolled over" because I 3-wheeled through a corner..


:laugh:


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

pulled the radiator, flushed the cooling system, deleted the digifant harness, replaced the wire from the fuse box to the coil, deleted the ad-hoc system i had set up to run the coil, forcibly removed the stuck plastic plug in the tranny and replaced it.


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

Replaced the hood hinges after a towing incident sent the hood flying open on the freeway and broke the old ones.

Removed the Zender kit and accessed the rust situation :facepalm:


----------



## wrathofpaul (Apr 5, 2012)

Replaced my radiator fan. man the old one was SHOT, lol. also did an oil change and tested my oil pressure with a manual gauge. perfect 2 bar/2000 rpm. what a relief ! lol


----------



## oopseyesharted (Mar 2, 2005)

Well after a dumb bitch pulled out in front of me this morning and totalled my forester, I guess i am registering and driving it starting tomorrow.


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

oopseyesharted said:


> Well after a dumb bitch pulled out in front of me this morning and totalled my forester, I guess i am registering and driving it starting tomorrow.


That sukks, those are cool cars! Hope no-one was injured and at least you'll get to enjoy the Cab :beer:

Attepted a first start on old CIS, no good, couldn't get steady spark, so I removed the CIS system completely. Also removed front bumper rebar


----------



## Swagger76 (Sep 30, 2011)

Euro bumpers and front lip spoiler installed!! Looks great! Next up, coils and new wheels. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

cleaned the snow off that sh*t and drove it for some snowy fun :laugh:


----------



## oopseyesharted (Mar 2, 2005)

Second post today. Installed mk2 sport seats, installed CD player, did full tune up, and cleaned the windows.


----------



## phish32786 (Nov 18, 2011)

Installed Low/High Beam Relays, still really dim on the passenger side. Time to take a dose of Briano1234 and check my grounds....


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

made a custom sub box for my cabriolet


----------



## oopseyesharted (Mar 2, 2005)

What does the bottom of your enclosure look like?


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

installed new radiator, cleaned up the battery to frame to starter grounds, added spacers to my carb to smooth out acceleration.


----------



## KnuckleUp2 (Jan 4, 2011)

oopseyesharted said:


> What does the bottom of your enclosure look like?


a big square box lol and i dyno matted the whole trunk today


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

this is my enclosure but your takes up less space


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Taking advantage of my resources...gave my uncle a center cap to get the size so he can re thread the stripped hole. Free :thumbup: 

I wish it was spring/summer . First winter with the cabriolet, and I miss having the top down.


----------



## Gantman (Jul 11, 2010)

Swapped the wheels out


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

Couldn't get it started after fixing my bucking problem. So I dug it out of a snow bank with a friend and pushed it over next door to the volkswagen specialist.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

The saga continues! I began bleeding the brakes today. The bleeder valve on the driver side rear drum broke off! The valve is so rusted that is just snapped like a twig when I put a little pressure on it with the wrench.

I guess I should look at upgrading my rear brakes to discs...


----------



## oopseyesharted (Mar 2, 2005)

My old rabbit did the same thing^^^^^^



I drove mine to work for the second day in a row and it didnt blow up yet.....SUCCESS!!!!:thumbup:


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

I still have that mk3 cabrio sitting in my driveway.... I might just remove the drums from that. Is that a simple bolt on or do I need anything else?


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Washed it good, cleaned all of the windows. And the rear view mirror fell off whilst cleaning the interior windshield, so I am buying a new one. Old one was corroded anyhoosers.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Put this is


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

new (used) hood on, new headlights in, more engine management parts ordered, glue removed from zender bodykit, attempted to clean the interior, white, not so easy...


----------



## MK1_ryebread (Jun 4, 2010)

Ripped out my power steering, A/C delete, a bunch of brackets and bolts and hoses deleted. New timing belt & tensioner, water pump, serpentine belt, alternator, thermostat. More info in my thread, but here are some pics.


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

MK1_ryebread said:


>


*COOLFACE!!!*

Lovin the sticker man :laugh:

Problem officer?


----------



## wdvolks (Jul 25, 2011)

I looked sadly out my kitchen window at it burried in about 3 feet of snow
Can't wait til spring so I can find a TDI donor car


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

walked past it to drive the car to help a buddy fix his mk2
i need to get a new transmission for it already, its starting to look sad


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Ordered some mud flaps. Now need to order a fuse box. 

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

ordered a transfer pump today


----------



## dubvinci (Jan 22, 2007)




----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

ordered some goodies and i hope the guys at GAP liked my special instructions lol...










pyramid head FTW


----------



## Stashm2 (Oct 25, 2011)

Found my timming was off, and crank timing pully was striped... Stoped at GAP and picked up parts. They really have great customer service there :thumbup:.. now to fix it all...


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

Stashm2 said:


> Stoped at GAP and picked up parts. They really have great customer service there :thumbup:.. now to fix it all...


Uber jealous for just being able to swing on by, those guys and gals ARE great!!! :beer:


----------



## dubvinci (Jan 22, 2007)

picked up wheels and ordered tires...165-40-16 front and 205-45-16 rear....

with all my measurements this is how it will sit when layed out....


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Installed 200mm drums!


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

Ripped out the dash, and fixed my heater! Heat = good. 

Also made some stickers to go along with my 80's theme I'm planning for her.

Took some really crappy photos, just for posterity. She's a dirty girl, and will get a sudsy bath tomorrow!

*Please note: Tennis ball is for the wife! :laugh:


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Little F'CK'er took me out for a top down cruise around town before a blizzard warning took effect..










Got pulled over for over 30 over the limit, passed a roadside, got a ticket for much less.. (tried multiple times to flip this picture.. perhaps the roadside was judged on a sliding scale..)


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

replaced the transfer pump... easy day lol :laugh:


----------



## Lunchbox2021 (Sep 14, 2011)

finally painted it last week








and replaced the top today i never wanna do that again


----------



## paintballguy424 (Mar 4, 2009)

Changed the oil and took it around town with the top down for the first time. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Working on the coilovers. Had to stop last night because I snapped my only hex key socket.









Sent from my LG-E970 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

Got my wiring loom done to relay my headlights tomorrow...gads I hope it works. 








**EDIT: Yep. It works! Holy crap my headlights have to be 70% brighter! Amazing!


----------



## AZrabbit (Jul 23, 2011)

fredges said:


> Got my wiring loom done to relay my headlights tomorrow...gads I hope it works.


Greatest Electrical mod i have done to my car it gets rid of the candle lit headlights hahah

Just actually relayed my stereo today and it made a huge difference as well. Before my stereo would shut off at about half volume now its all good. 2 6 1/2"s, 2 6x9s, 1 12 inch sub on a 500.1 and jvc arsenal deck


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

Good to hear. I'm intrigued about the stereo relaying... Might look into it myself... 

I'd like to do a "+1" to my headlights and get new, brighter lamps. What should I get? I don't need fancy, just "a little better than stock". You know, to take advantage of the new wiring, but without taxing it too much...


----------



## Odanatahums (Jun 10, 2012)

*I bought one*

So, what did I do to my cabby today? I bought one! Very excited. Just wish the weather would warm up so I can get out and play with her.


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

put my dirty wheels on it


----------



## oopseyesharted (Mar 2, 2005)

I scrubbed the hell out of it and dropped the top for the first time this year. It was great!


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

I need to add: Took WifeUnit and DogUnit for a spin at dusk, and I can actually see light in front of the car now that I relayed the headlights! Gotta get some Silverstar Ultras (thanks briano!), aim them, and I'm ready for night cruising this summer! Woohoo!:thumbup: And the heater is working now! My god, it gets hot inside with top up now! Poor DogUnit was panting, had to open a window for him. Yay, heat!:thumbup:


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Spent all day trying to convert a cabby to use a single passat in tank pump instead of dual pumps...worked for a while then quit.

Emptied out the tank...vacuumed about 4 cups of dust/trash/debris from the bottom of the tank.

reinstalled factory setup.....works perfectly now that all the crap is gone from the tank.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove the Green one TOPLESS tonight..... AWESOME......


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Blinkers stopped working as well as a wiring problem with the radio...might just be a ground issue, going to fix today. (if anyone has any input on this please share...lol. The turn signal light is dimmed when they are off and when they are on it's fully lit up but doesn't blink...)


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

replace the blown fuse.


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

briano1234 said:


> Drove the Green one TOPLESS tonight..... AWESOME......


Why do all the girls give you a dirty look when you mention driving around topless....?

:sly:


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

i like to yell take ur top off to cars with them up lol u want to talk about dirty look sometimes:laugh:

but all i did today was an oil change


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

briano1234 said:


> replace the blown fuse.


Touche

My grandfather took it to a guy while I was at school without my knowledge haha. And now my foot well LED's don't work, so that's a thing. Don't really feel like checking why lol.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Got bumped from behind (no ****). The car is untouched, not even a scratch. **** the rain.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2


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## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Got the coilovers installed now I just need to finish up the leveling.









Sent from my LG-E970 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## boris velez (Oct 30, 2011)

HubsMKIV said:


> Got the coilovers installed now I just need to finish up the leveling.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


What tire size you are running? Looks good...


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

Thanks. They are 175/55/15s no crazy stretch or anything.
15x7 et 28

Sent from my LG-E970 using Tapatalk 2


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## boris velez (Oct 30, 2011)

HubsMKIV said:


> Thanks. They are 175/55/15s no crazy stretch or anything.
> 15x7 et 28
> 
> Sent from my LG-E970 using Tapatalk 2


 You are running spacers? I got a set 15x7 et 25 but i think i will need spacer, not sure.


----------



## HubsMKIV (Sep 15, 2011)

No spacers right now. I don't know if Im going to have any issues against the coils. Its close but I havent had a chance to drive it yet as I'm awaiting parts. 

Sent from my LG-E970 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## jenoper (May 4, 2012)

I did an oil change. It took me 5 hours because the PO over-tightened the filter and I'm too hard headed to admit defeat and have my mechanic come do his 10 second magic. At least I was able to teach him a few things about Volkswagens in the mean time.


----------



## ryansux (Jan 18, 2004)

Pulled the transmission for upcoming clutch job. Just had her dropped off last night. Ready to get back into a 16v mk1. :beer::beer: Good to see you cabby forum.


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

Actually had some sun, and drove it today. My daughters think I'm nuts for leaving the top down. I had to pull off the freeway at one point because it starting raining. Drat! 
But she ran very well. 

However, my front right is howling, sounds like a wheel bearing. Probably not something I have tools or know-how to do myself.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

You can get an entire spindle setup with the bearing in place already.... Can't recall where the link is now, though.


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

still up for sale and in shock that its not gone yet


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Was locked out of the house for 20 minutes so used the time to vacuum it...Now it just needs a good wash and carpet shampoo.


----------



## BadMoonRising (Aug 22, 2011)

Replaced top because of big rips by rear window.... 

this morning realized "new" top leaks! 

:banghead: 

Oh well gives me chance to replace rear seat


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

gordinho said:


> You can get an entire spindle setup with the bearing in place already.... Can't recall where the link is now, though.


 Now that is something I'd like to find!!


----------



## my1stgolf (Jan 31, 2006)

fredges said:


> Now that is something I'd like to find!!


 X2


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Well, don't see the spindle listed specifically for the MK1s... I came across this while looking for bearings for my brother's MK3 Cabrio.... 

http://www.partsplaceinc.com/catalog/vw-a3-jetta-golf-gti-cabriolet-frontend-suspensions113.shtml


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

might this be it? 

...and the passenger side (which I need most...)...


----------



## RemixerProducer (Aug 11, 2011)

*here she is at about 85% complete*

i dropped the 16's because yes i know..... got some snoflakes and spent 35 hours stripping them sanding, then polishing them. not the best job in the world but as of now i do not have any fingers left..


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

The snowflakes look cool polished. :thumbup:


----------



## RemixerProducer (Aug 11, 2011)

Thanks!! I do not recomend this mod. It's a real pain in the ass. And when u get 1 done just think, 3 more to go. Ugh. Ha.


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

Wired in some under-dash LEDs tonight. Looks very nice! 


Before: 









After: 










Here, I made a gif...


----------



## oneunder (Mar 31, 2009)

RemixerProducer said:


> Thanks!! I do not recomend this mod. It's a real pain in the ass. And when u get 1 done just think, 3 more to go. Ugh. Ha.












I would completely agree with you. Have them blasted or dipped somewhere that does it professionally. They suck nuts to try and strip/sand. I ended up selling the set before I could finish all of them, thankfully.


----------



## RemixerProducer (Aug 11, 2011)

oneunder said:


> I would completely agree with you. Have them blasted or dipped somewhere that does it professionally. They suck nuts to try and strip/sand. I ended up selling the set before I could finish all of them, thankfully.


 I was close to doing the same! :banghead:


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

After you polish them, what kind of coating are putting on to protect them? Some type of clear coat? Brand? I think those rims are my second favorite cabby rim. Next to the BBS RA's.  Timeless beauty!


----------



## RemixerProducer (Aug 11, 2011)

I haven't used any protectant yet. Still searching for a good product. I heard bees wax is pretty good. I didn't want to go the clear coat route just because it fades over time and to get that high polish u got to re strip off the clear. Anyone out there that have found good aluminum sealant let us know


----------



## oneunder (Mar 31, 2009)

RemixerProducer said:


> I haven't used any protectant yet. Still searching for a good product. I heard bees wax is pretty good. I didn't want to go the clear coat route just because it fades over time and to get that high polish u got to re strip off the clear. Anyone out there that have found good aluminum sealant let us know


 http://www.spraymax.com/index.php?id=360&L=1

I used that stuff with good results. Flowed really well, covered nice and was relatively inexpensive. The gloss is fairly high, but I thought looked good


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

ordered the 4spd heater fan switch to see if that will allow me to use more than just the 3rd speed on my heat. 

also ordered the heater hose that goes from the head flange to the coupler to the heater core. 

noticed the flange was damp the other day so i'll be replacing that hose and reclamping it a bit better i guess. 

can't wait until the warm weather comes.. 

i plan to do the usrt shift all metal shift kit and i need to jack the car so i can secure my exhaust .. it rattles everywhere lol. 

windshield needs to be replaced before inspection time too


----------



## RemixerProducer (Aug 11, 2011)

Those look great!! Thanks for the link. Ill check that stuff out


----------



## oneunder (Mar 31, 2009)

Yea. They were on my '81 before I sold it. I thought they turned out well. And as is most things with paint, prep is key


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

My NOS Hella dual round grille for my cabby showed up at my door today


----------



## guyfromma (Mar 17, 2013)

I called a few salvage yards to get a price for a motor. Began the engine removal process. Removing Belts hoses ect.

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

fredges said:


> Wired in some under-dash LEDs tonight. Looks very nice!
> 
> 
> Before:
> ...


 hey we gt twin cars except mines blue including led under dash, nice job


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

started on the desighn for my door panels ...again


----------



## AZrabbit (Jul 23, 2011)

Might want to make sure your window crank will work


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

replaced my heater fan switch so i have speeds 1-3 now  


also replaced the hose from the head to the heater core hose.. seemed to be leaking down where the clamp is.. 

wiped it dry.. so hopefully it wont be wet next time i get done driving it. 


i noticed a while ago that i had some grease on the tranny figured maybe the CV axel was spitting some out.. today i noticed the boot was complete ripped in half.. 

i guess this will be my next purchase: 
http://www.germanautoparts.com/productdisplay/65469 

i reached in there and there is still PLENTY of grease inside.. So hopefully it will be fine for a little while longer


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Pulled everything but the dash out of the interior to start cleaning and fixing stuff.. boring stuff, no pictures.. 

However I did use it for a delivery.. F'n toilet! 









Also added some belt door handles while I work on getting the door cards recovered..


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

AZrabbit said:


> Might want to make sure your window crank will work


 i have power windows.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Gave the car a bath
Applied a new sticker 
Replaced the oil cap.. 


i've been having a bit of a stutter for a while in the engine.. Today when i was wiping things down i noticed a little sheen next to the oil cap.. pulled off the cap and noticed a tiny bit of white foam along the gasket of the cap. (oil is perfectly fine no head gasket issues lol) 

So i just replaced the oil cap with and brand new one .. and voila seems the studder is gone.. stupid vacuum leak i didnt even think to check.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Oh and also replaced the b pillar covers with new ones, re glued them and glued in the window gaskets on the pillar so they would stay put better.


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

got me some eyelids,


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

changed the main fuel pump yesterday


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*FV-QR*

Ball joint and exhaust hangers arrived today.


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

*Anchors away*

Finally dropped the AC


----------



## brandon2e (Dec 9, 2011)

Frankensteined this thing out of some random parts store vacuum fittings:










Because this bastard had a huge rip in it:










Is it pretty? Nope. Did it fix my no idle/stalling cluster****? Yup.

Hopefully I can find one in a junkyard at some point once I get down to making the bay cleaner/prettier. Car runs pretty damn good, though.


----------



## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

Today I replaced the a tie rod and ball joint in the black cabby and got the white one running! I just bought it last week, it'd been sitting at a shop for two years, the shop couldn't figure out why it wouldn't run :facepalm: I replaced a few relays and both fuel pumps today and now it runs like a top! Total parts spend of $190, totally worth it


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

yesterday i changed the wheel bearings and hubs and ball joints


----------



## Romeo Chi (Jun 23, 2005)

mk3jetta-man said:


> yesterday i changed the wheel bearings and hubs and ball joints



Did you do the bearings yourself or have them pressed in pro? What did you use if you did them? I am looking to get a press, and I wondered if 12 ton press was enough.


----------



## oneunder (Mar 31, 2009)

I would certainly think a 12ton would be enough. Thats a lot of pressure.

I had mine done by a transmission shop. Something like 30 bucks for them to do it.


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

Romeo Chi said:


> Did you do the bearings yourself or have them pressed in pro? What did you use if you did them? I am looking to get a press, and I wondered if 12 ton press was enough.


i did them at my moms boyfriends shop with a press but i did do it myself....



















it took only like 5 mins to do when everything was out lol

and ya a 12 ton press is good...the press i used i had to pump by hand and it was easy lol


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

BerryB said:


> got me some eyelids,


what lip is that you gotta installed?


----------



## gunnarpaul (Mar 3, 2008)

Installed TT down pipe and new cat and stainless cat back exhaust with the Borla muffler. Relayed the headlights and changed the oil. 

Pretty good day.

Still need to get wheel bearings so I can finish the brake conversion. Not in a huge hurry on it but I know napa has them in stock. So when I get those and another boost of motivation, that will get done. :beer:


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

oshwass1962 said:


> what lip is that you gotta installed?


just a gti air dam with a big dirty lip plastic welded to it. Pulled from a local race rabbit I think.
more photos of my lip on instagram and a few pages back I think...
instagram(DOT)com/berrybulm


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

BerryB said:


> just a gti air dam with a big dirty lip plastic welded to it. Pulled from a local race rabbit I think.
> more photos of my lip on instagram and a few pages back I think...
> instagram(DOT)com/berrybulm


it looks good, i lke it :thumbup:


----------



## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

New top&a/c deleted


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

FoxSt said:


> Finally dropped the AC


OMG, LOVE the hand shadow! :laugh::laugh::laugh: \m/


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

adjusted the camber on the driver side and tightened the bolts to the break dust shield ...i have no idea how they came lose


----------



## JVburnout (May 6, 2009)

Previous owner had the dirty white top painted baby blue:










I wasn't diggin' that, so I had the little bro spray the vinyl top down. Eventually I'll be getting a new top altogether.


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

JVburnout said:


> Previous owner had the dirty white top painted baby blue:
> 
> 
> I wasn't diggin' that, so I had the little bro spray the vinyl top down. Eventually I'll be getting a new top altogether.


looks good dood!


----------



## JVburnout (May 6, 2009)

Sr. Karmann said:


> looks good dood!


Thanks man


----------



## TheyCallMeBobv2 (Sep 7, 2012)

Took her out of winter hibernation. Fresh oil and gas! Top down driving. 

I'll clean her next week, and time for some bigger tires so I can dial up the coils.


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

almost lost a wheel on the way back from dubs on defrost and found out i have to change the thermostat lol


----------



## akabigmike (May 2, 2003)

replaced the airbag steering coloumn with a non airbag one..and all new wiper/turn stalks and ignition switch. replaced all the motor mounts with poly. 

quick question...which wire do i need to run to the coloumn to get the horn working again :banghead:


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Should be the ground on the frame to the Steering Rack Gear Box.


----------



## GingermanGolf (Feb 23, 2005)

Finally seeing some sunshine.


----------



## lkveggie (Nov 10, 2011)

Finally brought it out of storage this week!! Drove it with the top down and my dog in the back last Friday. Sadly, this week is calling for lots of rain, but I'm ready for full time convertible season!!


----------



## backinthegame (Dec 14, 2004)

akabigmike2 said:


> replaced the airbag steering coloumn with a non airbag one..and all new wiper/turn stalks and ignition switch. replaced all the motor mounts with poly.
> 
> quick question...which wire do i need to run to the coloumn to get the horn working again :banghead:


Brown wire from the clockspring.


----------



## akabigmike (May 2, 2003)

backinthegame said:


> Brown wire from the clockspring.


I've got a brown and blue wire..where do I put it now?


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

tryed to figure out why it was bogging on acceleration and stalling ..no luck yet


----------



## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

I can't believe how good that came out. What paint did you use?


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Started hearing a whine from underneath the car today. Also, sputtering on some shifts, like its starving for fuel. I've not replaced either of the pumps, think its time.


----------



## wrathofpaul (Apr 5, 2012)

bought some supplies from dipyourcar.com and Plasti-dipped the whole car white with metallic gloss. it came out a little textured but it looks WAY better than the original paint. I may spray some more glossifier on it with a spray gun. Also you can't see in this picture but I replaced the old black carpet with new RED carpet to go with the custom red door panels 











and this is what it looked like right after I bought it.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

wrathofpaul said:


>


Well I guess Plasti-dip isn't for your Screwdrivers and Pliers anymore. Looks nice.


----------



## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

How long will plasticdip stay on?


----------



## wrathofpaul (Apr 5, 2012)

POPOTROPOPIC3 said:


> How long will plasticdip stay on?


I did the wheels on my Camaro last year and it only has one small chip in it. I also did a stripe on the hood and it's still perfect. thats after 5000 miles.


----------



## backinthegame (Dec 14, 2004)

akabigmike2 said:


> I've got a brown and blue wire..where do I put it now?


Get the stalk switches from the airbag column and the non airbag column and look at them together. You'll see the horn contact at the bottom of the face on the non airbag stalks. Put the brown wire on the pin on the back of the switches. You don't need the orange wire, it was only for the igniter.


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

*Playing around..*

Packed up my copilot and headed out in search of cigars for TheNothing..



Sadly the tobacconist was closed but almost ended up visiting heaven.. Notice the massive amounts of snow from the 'blizzard' we had a couple days ago.


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

FoxSt said:


> Packed up my copilot and headed out in search of cigars for TheNothing..
> 
> 
> [/URL]


:thumbup::thumbup:


----------



## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

[/QUOTE]

Are you on springs or coils? 
It looks great!


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

POPOTROPOPIC3 said:


> Are you on springs or coils?
> It looks great!


Thanks! Neuspeed race springs.


----------



## akabigmike (May 2, 2003)

backinthegame said:


> Get the stalk switches from the airbag column and the non airbag column and look at them together. You'll see the horn contact at the bottom of the face on the non airbag stalks. Put the brown wire on the pin on the back of the switches. You don't need the orange wire, it was only for the igniter.


Thanks!!


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

I decided to detonate my transmission and diff, luckily I was planning to do an 02A swap in the coming weeks.
Time to drive the beater mk6 R around til its done.


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

i love the fact that the mk6 is ur beater lol


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

haha its all about priorities. My car list goes in this order:
-90 Cabby w/ 1.8T (Broken trans now)
-90 Cabby w/ ABA (2000 miles away)
-07 GTI stg2 w/ Bags (Brother is borrowing)
-13 Golf R


----------



## bmurphy13 (Feb 14, 2011)

Well hello! I just bough a cabriolet wolfsburg edition a few months back. I really love this car! I have owned a few vws and currently drive a fox as my DD. The cabriolet drives nice and looks awesome. So I'm new to the thread and look foward to talkin with everyone! I'll prob have a few questions in the future lol. Ima try to post a few pics. I hope it works lol!

http://s1331.photobucket.com/albums/w585/vwfox13/?action=view&current=IMAG1008_zps53395518.jpg

http://s1331.photobucket.com/albums/w585/vwfox13/?action=view&current=IMAG1045_zps0d80a0f4.jpg


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

bmurphy13 said:


> Well hello! I just bough a cabriolet wolfsburg edition a few months back. I really love this car! I have owned a few vws and currently drive a fox as my DD. The cabriolet drives nice and looks awesome. So I'm new to the thread and look foward to talkin with everyone! I'll prob have a few questions in the future lol. Ima try to post a few pics. I hope it works lol!


NICE TRIPLE! :beer:


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

changed the thermostat


----------



## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

Drove down to Eurowise, and picked up my MK1 VR6 conversion kit! 

The kit is top notch! More info and a full review will be on the blog asap


----------



## bmurphy13 (Feb 14, 2011)

Sr. Karmann said:


> NICE TRIPLE! :beer:


Hey thanks! I really love it! Does anybody know a good cleaner to clean the top? I'm in need of seals and a new top but no leaks. It's just got 20+ yrs on it


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

Blew my radiator out, picked a 675mm radiator with no rot out of a golf, stuck it in place and it shall be a success... i have an inch to spare.... no more no less! It fit magestically and hopefully my cabriolet will run a few degrees cooler


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

So far this "spring" I've replaced my fusebox, fuses, and all available relays, created a rain diverter from aluminum flashing, and now I'm gearing up for the following in 2013:



Ignition Coil replacement
Rear shocks/springs
Back-up light switch replacement
Minor rust repair/paint job


----------



## brandon2e (Dec 9, 2011)

flipty said:


> So far this "spring" I've replaced my fusebox, fuses, and all available relays, created a rain diverter from aluminum flashing, and now I'm gearing up for the following in 2013:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


NEVERMIND, just found your DIY thread. Sweet, thanks.
How'd you make the rain diverter? Mine (the one right under the windshield under the hood, right?) fell apart when I took it out.


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

If you found my DIY thread you now know exactly what I know.

It's just 10" aluminum flashing, and elbow grease until I get a replacement diverter. As far as I can tell as long as your rain drains are clear and you're diverting the water toward them, you can't really lose.


----------



## Lishie (Feb 9, 2012)

I found "new" (to me) seats at a junkyard today for the front passenger and rear and a rear headrest. Mine are terribly torn and these are perfect! Took them home & steam cleaned them. As long as I was cleaning I cleaned my cabby inside and out too - even the rims which I NEVER do. Topped off all the fluids - got some much needed TLC

Hubby won't let me install the seats until we replace the top...guess that's next on the list!


----------



## Kbielawne (Apr 10, 2013)

My Cabby is out at the doctor this week. We are doing the cam shaft seal, all of the belts, shifter bushings, CV boot, replacing the oil, transmission oil. When I got the car I was having an oil pressure alarm when the car was hot. I found out the previous owner was running 5 / 30 weight oil. I am going back in with 20 / 50. Crossing my fingers this cures my oil pressure alarm issue. Bought a new set of headlights , new emblems for the trunk lid and switching the grille from euro back to OEM. When the car is back I will take some photos and post so you can have a look see.....


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## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

Kbielawne said:


> My Cabby is out at the doctor this week. We are doing the cam shaft seal, all of the belts, shifter bushings, CV boot, replacing the oil, transmission oil. When I got the car I was having an oil pressure alarm when the car was hot. I found out the previous owner was running 5 / 30 weight oil. I am going back in with 20 / 50. Crossing my fingers this cures my oil pressure alarm issue. Bought a new set of headlights , new emblems for the trunk lid and switching the grille from euro back to OEM. When the car is back I will take some photos and post so you can have a look see.....


im running 10/w40 with no issues


----------



## Kbielawne (Apr 10, 2013)

Hopefully it will be ok. If not maybe its a crappy oil pressure sending unit. Just got my bentley today. I have to read up on the oil alarm system. Does anyone know if the oil pressure senders supply both the alarm and the gauge together or are they separate ?


----------



## oshwass1962 (Oct 23, 2011)

finished my door panels


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

oshwass1962 said:


> finished my door panels


 Looks nice....Gee and to think all I did today was drive mine. :thumbup:


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Got sick of seeing this 
 

Gave a Fuchs 
 

Washed it 
 

Then drove it into the middle of a dirt field


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Replaced both fuel pumps... 
Installed scirocco Kbar... 
Cut legs on both front seats to lower them about 2"


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Exhaust snapped in half today... guess I will have some work to do this week

Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

not gonna lie.. car sounds pretty awesome with the exhaust chopped in half.. lol 



https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=551615704882466&l=4477775602257868852


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## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

Drove it, finally cleaned my seats:


----------



## GingermanGolf (Feb 23, 2005)

Took a couple pics


----------



## riddie (Nov 29, 2008)

thought about how much i missed it


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

GingermanGolf said:


> Took a couple pics


 Nice shot!


----------



## sourkraut2010 (Jul 28, 2011)

i put coils and wheels on my 85.....


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

sourkraut2010 said:


> i put coils and wheels on my 85.....


 those are some pretty neat wheels


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Reconnected my exhaust today. Sounds so quiet now.. I guess I probably always had a little sound leaking from that mid pipe before.



















Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


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## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Nice! I need to get a cat or resonator to put in place of the test pipe from my TT setup. Its too loud and tin-y sounding.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

i was quite amazed at how low and awesome the cabby sounded with the pipe broken after the cat. lol but i like to hear myself think... so i fixed it


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

s2kvondeutschland said:


>


 For some reason I find your seats interestingly, awesome as hell. 

As for what I did today. I finished the custom built lower half to my dashboard.. pics to come!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Replaced my negative battery terminal today. And founf my ecu mount to fender ground was un done.. I don't have the one that goes to the valve cover.. so I gotta figure that one out.










Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## FL 2.0L (Aug 1, 2002)

Sold it.


----------



## s2kvondeutschland (Mar 19, 2011)

dougkehl said:


> For some reason I find your seats interestingly, awesome as hell.
> 
> As for what I did today. I finished the custom built lower half to my dashboard.. pics to come!


 They're from a Golf II G60 Fire & Ice Edition. Same car I pulled my engine from.


----------



## oneunder (Mar 31, 2009)

tinygiant said:


> those are some pretty neat wheels


 I think they are off an Escort. 

I drove mine to work today for the first time in.....a long time. Entirely to early, as I really should have waited for a good rain or two, but I just couldn't help myself.


----------



## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

*IN nd running! In less then 5 days*


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Dragged my 92 carat out of the garage. Repaired the alternator bracket, installed a new fuel pump and new alternator..cranked it right up. Hadn't run in close to a year.


----------



## Gilguh (Sep 1, 2011)

Got The RA's Installed


----------



## Aeb-reid (May 31, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> not gonna lie.. car sounds pretty awesome with the exhaust chopped in half.. lol


 was going to chop mine off before the muffler haha. guess ima do it then. 

oh why i was coming here. My cabby is getting a chalkboard hood!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

new windshield!


----------



## phish32786 (Nov 18, 2011)

Started the top install. Hopefully should be done by the end of the weekend


----------



## Seattlejosh (Apr 27, 2013)

New to the Vortex but know lots about it already. Here is my cabby as of TODAY....Just did the Jetta Front end swap yesterday and added slotted brakes and gold calipers, also have a brand new eurosport exhaust with flowmaster muffler. Sounds awesome for a 2.0! Im excited to get on with this project. it is my DD too.


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Tranny back in. Cv axles hooked back up. Downpipe back in. Hydraulic clutch version 2.0 finished. 
One more day like this and it should be just about driveable.


----------



## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

MOBOZO said:


> Tranny back in. Cv axles hooked back up. Downpipe back in. Hydraulic clutch version 2.0 finished.
> One more day like this and it should be just about driveable.


 Literally just finished the same swap.(sort-of) whats your setup?


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

POPOTROPOPIC3 said:


> Literally just finished the same swap.(sort-of) whats your setup?


 http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?4824285-VR6-87-Cabriolet


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Got it sitting on its own four tires.


----------



## bugsy98nb (Oct 31, 2003)

took out my rear view mirror, visors and shift boot and wrapped them in some Blue plaid material  hopefully some new tires tomorrow a my current ones are not exactly road worthy anymore


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Clutch done and bled. Radiator back in. Almost there but I am hearing snow by the end of the week. Will this winter ever end?:banghead:


----------



## 87Cabriolet (May 9, 2009)

Made a massive order of parts. After I install them all it will be time to get it registered. Also looking forward to getting and installing my Scirocco K Brace I ordered. My car is and staying stock, but it can use the extra support, and everyone talks highly of the lower braces making a big difference. 

Next on the list after that is replacing the top, which is totally shredded...worst Ive seen.


----------



## csrgti (Aug 18, 2009)

Seattlejosh said:


> New to the Vortex but know lots about it already. Here is my cabby as of TODAY....Just did the Jetta Front end swap yesterday and added slotted brakes and gold calipers, also have a brand new eurosport exhaust with flowmaster muffler. Sounds awesome for a 2.0! Im excited to get on with this project. it is my DD too.


 The MK3 front end with mismatched MK3.5 rear end looks awkward and cheap to me. maybe I'm just old school in thinking your bumpers should match. Its the equivalent of having a clipper rear bumper with an aluminum front bumper on a mk1.But it's your car good luck with it.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Inspected the car. I have a friend that will ignore the low if everything else is on the up and up... 

the shop said because i have a power steering rack i needed to have the power steering belt hooked up. My power steering pump leaked like crazy and would always squeal.. so i bypassed it about 8 months ago.. so to make them happy i tossed on a belt and they stickered it. I live like 5 blocks from the shop so i drove home with the belt on (put it on in the parking lot of the inspection station) 

started squealing when i got home. and the pump had a really high whine sound. The power steering fluid reservoir was really really hot when i got back home.. So i grabbed a razor and just cut the belt off the pulley again. lol. 



In other news i started putting together a roof rack with stuff i found around the house and in the shed. The main structure of the roof rack is made from a old metal futon frame. I found some other random brackets and such to make some uprights to attach it to. 

I found a couple old brackets from one of my commercial mowers that i plan to mount to the car so that i can put a cotter pin in hte side to lock the back section in. I havent figured out how i am going to do the front support yet. 

right now i have it sitting on some wood to give me an idea of spacing 














































I havent attached anything yet.. as i am just sort of playing around with junk to see what i can make. I plan to put a cotter pin in the back lock bracket rather than a screw. I have the cotter pin that goes to the bracket somewhere around here.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

if i do end up using this i will be putting wood on the top of it too. for now i'm just mocking things up


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Replaced both fuel pumps again... this time no issues! 

I have to send the other pumps back for a refund as apparently the intank pump was defective and probably damaged the external pump in the time it was installed.


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

cleaned some connections and spun the distributor cuz it was idling low


----------



## Seattlejosh (Apr 27, 2013)

csrgti said:


> The MK3 front end with mismatched MK3.5 rear end looks awkward and cheap to me. maybe I'm just old school in thinking your bumpers should match. Its the equivalent of having a clipper rear bumper with an aluminum front bumper on a mk1.But it's your car good luck with it.


 It will be painted and I plan on finding an MK3 rear bumper for it so it looks slimline. I wasn't worried about the mismatched as its a work in progress, but it is my Daily. So, I gotta work with it. As time comes and goes, it will transform itself into something awesome. 

Thanks for the input though.


----------



## Seattlejosh (Apr 27, 2013)

seattlemariners said:


> Finished my senor project, a roof rack for my cabriolet.


 Dude, didi you make the brackets as well? I would love one for my cabby as well without having to spend a grand on the Votex rack. Looks super nice dude. I love it.


----------



## xamx (Feb 9, 2010)

removed power steering with a "loop" kit 

aint nobody got time for that!


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Details???


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## csrgti (Aug 18, 2009)

Seattlejosh said:


> It will be painted and I plan on finding an MK3 rear bumper for it so it looks slimline. I wasn't worried about the mismatched as its a work in progress, but it is my Daily. So, I gotta work with it. As time comes and goes, it will transform itself into something awesome.
> 
> Thanks for the input though.


 What's your plan for the rear quarter panel ? 
The rear bumper won't match up . 

Sorry for being an ass but I just don't get this modification it's either non matching bumpers or a ton of body work to get the rear MK3 bumper to work with the 3.5 quarter panel. 
All for a car that looks like all the other cabrios with jetta front ends.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

replaced in tank pump and spark plug wireset today. 

still has the studder.. i'm wondring if i got a bad cap and rotor last time..


----------



## Seattlejosh (Apr 27, 2013)

Dropped her on Raceland Ultimos and took the plastic dip off my wheels. I am in love with her all over again. Paint and some front end upgrades in the future. :heart:


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

I drove it! Aside from a tin-y sounding exhaust... It is so much fun driving this thing! The raceland coilovers and the Scirocco K-bar make this thing hug every turn! 

I can't quite determine if the tin-y sound is a result of a not so great muffler, too much airflow after the restrictive toilet bowl manifold and single downpipe, leaks from the clamped seams of the exhaust, or a combination of all of the above. 

I have an ABA manifold and dual downpipe sitting in my garage, but the DP doesn't clear the body. Debating on if I should cut the DP and modify to fit or sell it and the manifold in order to install a header?


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

much needed window cleaning


----------



## dubbin.in.co (Aug 18, 2010)

Ordered my kinetics ABA-T manifold


----------



## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

Got the engine pulled and the dash out. Lots of work until she is back on the road, but it feels good to see progress.


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

Humble Mechanic said:


> Got the engine pulled and the dash out. Lots of work until she is back on the road, but it feels good to see progress.


 Looks a bit like mine right now.


----------



## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

What are you working on behind the dash?


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

Ripping most of it out. Getting it gutted for racing. It's got 1.8t with a 02a


----------



## Humble Mechanic (Jun 16, 2011)

saveFred said:


> Ripping most of it out. Getting it gutted for racing. It's got 1.8t with a 02a


 AWESOME!:thumbup:


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Drove it top down. The way it is supposed to be.


----------



## dubbin.in.co (Aug 18, 2010)

Ordered R32 control arm bushings, wheel bearings all around, ball joints, tie rod ends, sway bar end links etc... For the 5 lug swap I'm picking up this weekend!


----------



## gunnarpaul (Mar 3, 2008)

MOBOZO said:


> Drove it top down. The way it is supposed to be.


 X2 And totally was reminded why I keep putting the almighty $'s into this brick that doesn't get driven 7 mo's outta of a year. :screwy::beer:


----------



## rabbitnothopper (Oct 19, 2009)

gunnarpaul said:


> X2 And totally was reminded why I keep putting the almighty $'s into this brick that doesn't get driven 7 mo's outta of a year. :screwy::beer:












yea


----------



## Danntheemann (May 8, 2013)

*what I did.*

Today, I drove to work with my oil light flashing for 52 miles roundtrip. Read the Bentley manual for a few and didn't learn anything. Found my alternator bolt laying on the ground in the road. But, managed to get it back in no prob. New belts from Sunday nice and tight. Top down 80 degrees. New to this site. How do I add a picture?


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

Danntheemann said:


> Today, I drove to work with my oil light flashing for 52 miles roundtrip. Read the Bentley manual for a few and didn't learn anything. Found my alternator bolt laying on the ground in the road. But, managed to get it back in no prob. New belts from Sunday nice and tight. Top down 80 degrees. New to this site. How do I add a picture?


 you have to 

1. put the pic somewhere you can get the image code like photo bucket 

2. copy img code 

3. when you post there are icons above the text box. look for the insert image one and paste the img code there and your all done


----------



## fredges (Apr 27, 2012)

Google imgur


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> Replaced the cap and rotor. When we replaced it last summer it popped off because the side clip want clipped.. I uust put it back and didn't think of it. Figured I would replace it since its cheap enough.. found a nice gouge in it
> 
> Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2



replaced the cap/rotor


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

saveFred said:


> Looks a bit like mine right now.


I, too, can identify with this! My dash is just kinda sitting there.

As for what I did to it today, put more **** on top of and around it. :laugh: Trying to get it firmly encased in my garage.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Ordering a new top from eBay. Wife has been telling me to just order it for weeks now... I think its about time I do.

Thinking of using these guys.. http://www.ebay.com/itm/281105165151

I'm going to reuse my headliner, pad, and window. Going to use Briano's DIYs for the side and rear cables.


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

gordinho said:


> Ordering a new top from eBay. Wife has been telling me to just order it for weeks now... I think its about time I do.
> 
> Thinking of using these guys.. http://www.ebay.com/itm/281105165151
> 
> I'm going to reuse my headliner, pad, and window. Going to use Briano's DIYs for the side and rear cables.


I've gotten a top from them...absolutely no issues and good service.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

CajunSpike said:


> I've gotten a top from them...absolutely no issues and good service.


Sounds good... order placed!


----------



## vwutahman (Jun 30, 2006)

Went from this:









To this:


----------



## Chase-B (Jan 20, 2007)

csrgti said:


> The MK3 front end with mismatched MK3.5 rear end looks awkward and cheap to me. maybe I'm just old school in thinking your bumpers should match. Its the equivalent of having a clipper rear bumper with an aluminum front bumper on a mk1.But it's your car good luck with it.


Im with you! I have a mk3.5 cabrio and love Jetta front ends but i would never do the swap on my 3.5. not a good look at all!


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

had both rear break lines blow on me at the same time


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

changed the idle screw oring.. the one on there was so bad when i took the screw off and touched the oring it broke in half like it was made of plastic. 

I have to go take a short drive with it and see if i feel the difference. already idles way smoother. I also think that the screw was almost all the way in too. which certainly wasnt helping things.


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

I bought it.


----------



## finky (Mar 19, 2010)

I took of the tarps that have been on it for probably 2 years. It looks fine except that the steering wheel is covered in mold. I am thinking about putting it into service while I work on my MK3.


----------



## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

Washing the winters




Checking tire pressure




Overseeing Dad's work




Ensuring every last drop of old oil is out before we put the new stuff in 




Final polish




Ohhh, shiny




Checking the 'Tex to see what's new


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Where can I get one of those jump suits...i'd rock that

Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> Where can I get one of those jump suits...i'd rock that
> 
> Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2




On the corner of needle and thread street and patch avenue :beer:


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Right on 

Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

tinygiant said:


> Where can I get one of those jump suits...i'd rock that
> 
> Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


Custom job the wifey did up


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Drove my cabby like I do everyday.. a few weeks back I had to replace my mid pipe coupler.. and sealed up the exhaust.. but today it started getting loud again.. so I looked under the car an found the flange end on the midpipe after the cat was split.. lol can't win









Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## SPCBruce89 (May 10, 2013)

Sat in and drank a beer Damn charging issue :banghead:


----------



## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

SK VeeDubR said:


> Washing the winters


Now that's a top quality shop manager there, very thourough :laugh:

:thumbup::thumbup: and a :beer: for you my friend


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

Drove it the other day and I lost all my gears besides 3rd and 4th out of nowhere. Tried shifting into 5th, but it shifts into 3rd instead. Then came to a light and it goes to 3rd when I try to shift it ito 1st. :banghead:


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

BMP_3918 said:


> Drove it the other day and I lost all my gears besides 3rd and 4th out of nowhere. Tried shifting into 5th, but it shifts into 3rd instead. Then came to a light and it goes to 3rd when I try to shift it ito 1st. :banghead:


time to replace the bushings on your shift linkage.


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

CajunSpike said:


> time to replace the bushings on your shift shaft.


Does this come with the shift shaft bushings?

http://techtonicstuning.com/main/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_11_360&products_id=1813

Or do I need to purchase it separately?


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

both are good kits..but neither comes with the shift shaft bushing..yes buy separately.


----------



## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

Sr. Karmann said:


> Now that's a top quality shop manager there, very thourough :laugh:
> 
> :thumbup::thumbup: and a :beer: for you my friend



Haha yeah he's meticulous when it comes to his Cabby


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

CajunSpike said:


> both are good kits..but neither comes with the shift shaft bushing..yes buy separately.


Where should I buy the shift shaft bushings? Any recommendations?


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

http://www.germanautoparts.com/Volkswagen/Cabriolet/Transmission/186/1


last item on page.

or

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VW-DELRIN-M...Parts_Accessories&hash=item43969905ce&vxp=mtr


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

CajunSpike said:


> http://www.germanautoparts.com/Volkswagen/Cabriolet/Transmission/186/1
> 
> 
> last item on page.
> ...


Do I need to purchase both? I know you said "or" but they look like two different parts. I'm not sure which one I should get.


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

the gap one is bolt on, complete item. 

the ebay one...you have to remove the mounting plate...drill out rivets...put in new bushing...bolt the plate parts back together..then mount back on the car.


take your pick.


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

CajunSpike said:


> the gap one is bolt on, complete item.
> 
> the ebay one...you have to remove the mounting plate...drill out rivets...put in new bushing...bolt the plate parts back together..then mount back on the car.
> 
> ...


Got it. I will be ordering the gap one. :thumbup: Thanks for the help.


----------



## p0ssuid0 (Nov 1, 2009)

Have been repairing the top's hydraulics, so it can work auto again :thumbup:


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*FV-QR*

Filled the tank with non ethanol high test.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Cleaned all the crap off the hood to open it and take a few pictures. I got a new phone and need to have pics of the project on it! :laugh: Been in slumber for about 5 years, now.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

had to get under the cabby today and tie the exhuast up so it doesn't scrape on the ground like it was doing yesterday. My flange on the intermediate pipe is split so it wanted to sag a bit. 

hopefully monday i will be able to get a new intermediate pipe locally so i can quiet the beast.


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

Got the large duckbill on the car finally last night, also raised the suspension a bit so i can stop rubbing the drainplug


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

riotbeast said:


> Got the large duckbill on the car finally last night, also raised the suspension a bit so i can stop rubbing the drainplug


Nice VR swap! Is it possible to do a VRT on a Mk1?


----------



## MK1_ryebread (Jun 4, 2010)

Removed bump stops, notched frame, and cut the springs.


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

BMP_3918 said:


> Nice VR swap! Is it possible to do a VRT on a Mk1?


Very possible and once i can get all the parts together its going to happen, but the two kids and the wife come first budget wise so thats probly a couple years out at minimum


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Used my cabby to get junkyard parts to fix the passat that was rear ended..and found the junkyard had a 93 passat with a vr6 in it.....


----------



## gunnarpaul (Mar 3, 2008)

CajunSpike said:


> Used my cabby to get junkyard parts to fix the passat that was rear ended..and found the junkyard had a 93 passat with a vr6 in it.....


Did you get it?


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

Parked next to it as I helped a friend clean up the shop a bit.
Gonna pull the shifter assembly out of a Passat on Monday and try and get it in so I can drive the car again. 
It's been too long and I hate driving the Mk5.


----------



## muno (May 29, 2012)

Washed it.  :heart:


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

Carpets and seats back in after finally installing speakers and new speaker wiring, getting really close to done for this driving season


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

gunnarpaul said:


> Did you get it?


No but I thought real hard about it...would only be about $125 to buy it. 
As much as I would love having that vr6 in my cabby, I think the wiring end of it would be my downfall.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

riotbeast said:


> Carpets and seats back in after finally installing speakers and new speaker wiring, getting really close to done for this driving season


:thumbup::thumbup: Big fan of black and tan interiors!


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

MK1_ryebread said:


> Removed bump stops, notched frame, and cut the springs.


Yup, now the bumpstop is the bottom of the strut. I'm sure those will last long. But, you know, what's the point in having a car you can actually _drive_ around in? :facepalm:


----------



## rabbitnothopper (Oct 19, 2009)

found a 96 cabrio in a junkyard
looked like it had 95% of its parts

ABA 2.0


----------



## finky (Mar 19, 2010)

Bought a new door handle and a BLACK convertible boot cover ($6) at the junk yard today:thumbup:.


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

Replaced a Koni strut with a twisted off adjustor and replaced the original ball joints!!!


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

Started it for the first time in a few days. Idle used to go up and down from 700-1200 RPMs, now it's steady at 1000. Weird. Still waiting on the shift shaft bushing so I can drive it again.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I reattached my b pillar cover.. something doesn't seem right.. am I missing something here









It seems the rubber gasket from the top likes to rip into the b pillar cover.. is there something that is supposed sit on top there to keep that from happening? 

Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


----------



## msleiman (Nov 6, 2012)

*14 hours later...*

Well, my Cabby has been a pain in the rear lately but we are making some great progress. I was lucky to find an 88 at a local junkyard and grab quite a bit off of it... definitely going back for more too! Within the span on 14 hours yesterday we (boyfriend and I) completed the following:

- New axels
- Replaced all parts of the grill (junkyard find)
- Changed the oil
- New fuel filter
- New oil filter
- Finished external fuel pump 
- Put on duck bill
- Cleaned brakes
- Put on new painted mirrors (junkyard find)
- New exhaust tip (a temporary until the custom exhaust)
- Replaced battery cable
- Painted new fender flares (junkard find... all 4!)

Waiting on the in-tank pump that should arrive tomorrow. Really REALLY REALLY hoping the in-tank pump will help with the idle issue (starts up fine but within 5 miuntes of sitting in neutral the car dies... I can hear the car pushing the RPMs up but it evenutally dies). The local VW shop charges $95 an hour to look at it...

WHEN I BOUGHT IT:


A MONTH AGO:



TODAY:




Cabby is still sitting sad, but we are putting the fender flares and the wheels back on tonight. Doing a good install on the in-tank pump tomorrow and hopefully taking it out for a quick spin! It's going to look quite a bit different!

Original wheels, grill, mirrors and back bumper all for sale if anyone needs them.


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*FV-QR*

Washed and waxed.

Fresh oil and filter.

Emery clothed and cleaned the distributor rotor and put a couple drops of light oil under it.

I replaced all my belts with the "real" Continental Conti-tech v-belts and a camshaft drive belt. 

Re timed the engine and found the intermediate shaft was ~30degrees out. It seems that even if you compensate by turning the distributor for the mis timed intermediate shaft, things ran rather rough. That cleared up with everything lined up as per the Bentley.

Adjusted the fuel mix for the proper dwell.

What a difference correct fitting belts make; It is incredibly quiet and all the accessories seem to be working better than ever. I had tried just about every domestic belt out there; gates, NAPA, no name, whatever and had a hard time getting close to the correct length, and never found exactly the right width! With the crappy belts the width was always a bit shy and the belts always eventually sunk down in the pulleys binding, fraying the edges, wearing out fast and never seeming to do the job. 

I will never put any other belt on a VW.


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

tinygiant said:


> I reattached my b pillar cover.. something doesn't seem right.. am I missing something here
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Ouch yup its tome
For you to replace your b piller seals, that rubber peice on top its supposed to be attached to both the front and rear rubber running down that piller


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

The shifter shaft bushing is coming in today. Any DIYs for that? Still haven't done the short shifter and shifter rebuild kit yet either. I did look at it the other day, but it looks difficult to get in to.


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

BMP_3918 said:


> The shifter shaft bushing is coming in today. Any DIYs for that? Still haven't done the short shifter and shifter rebuild kit yet either. I did look at it the other day, but it looks difficult to get in to.


you just have to drill out the rivets that hold in the stock shaft bushing and replace them with nuts and bolts.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

At the moment it's not something directly involving my Cabby. But I started cleaning my 16v that's going in my Cabby


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

just ordered a new intermdiate pipe.. my cabby is ungodly loud right now.. will be nice to have a quiet exhaust again.. 












next week i hope to order a new water pump and hopefully make the engine bay much quieter.. 

my water pump has some in/out play that i think is causing this noise


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

just spent some time on the driver rear quater palm sanding last years crappy bondo fixes. so smooth now.. much better..


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Now I know my top wasn't the greatest to begin with but the Gorilla tape was buying me a little time. I was really hoping to make it through the summer before having to install the new top included with the purchase of the car but last night's hail storm changed that priority.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove my Green one..Topless, and then switched to my Blue one topless.... AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

Fixed the shifter issue so I can drive it fine. But the odometer stopped working.


----------



## Cmethvin (Jul 3, 2011)

Not today, but I finally decided it was time to sell the poor girl. Traded her in. I'll miss her, but hopefully she'll go out to pasture and have a good time.


----------



## cmdshft (Oct 17, 2011)

Chilling at my friends VW parts warehouse of a garage working on my MK3. Diagnostic A/C check. Checked the front power switch and fan control unit, checked the compressor for freon and shiz, futzed with the HVAC, next up is to run through the wiring harness for any breaks in the lines.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

New Water Pump, Thermostat, flange and Coolant. 


Its funny I had a noise i couldnt pin point before that was really rattly and nasty sounding.. someone the other day recommended checking my water pump.. sure enough.. 

check this out.. been driving it like this for a good year now ... eek


*
what it sounded like when running *





so much quieter!! so now i just need to replace the intermediate pipe.. (its in the mail hopefully here tomorrow) because my car sounds very loud ...like this right now


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

Changed the oil. Short shifter should be going in tomorrow or Sunday.


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

sprocket007 said:


> Replaced a Koni strut with a twisted off adjustor and replaced the original ball joints!!!


Grr now strut bearings, tie rod end, and wheel bearings....


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

sprocket007 said:


> Grr now strut bearings, tie rod end, and wheel bearings....


down the rabbit hole you go.. 

been there lol


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

I finally got the 02A shift assembly installed and adjusted, just waiting to get my axle back from being rebuilt and hope everything works like it should


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

tinygiant said:


> down the rabbit hole you go..
> 
> been there lol


No kidding!!!

alignment shop said she was good now... I was super stoked I didn't have to do the control arms etc...

now I can enjoy the koni adjustable struts!

It was kinda weird I didn't notice that the front wheel bearings had a bit of play... it was minimal, im glad the shop picked up on it tho,,,


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

drove it today and encountered some unavoidable pot holes in traffic.. i crawled over them but it still snapped my exhaust (which was already just barely together) 

so being 100F outside today i had to hop out of the car undo an exhaust clamp and hammer the mid pipe out of the equation.. had a nice LOUD ride home... 

new mid/intermediate pipe hopefully will be here monday. car sounds quiet beastly right now. 

in other news the engine bay sounds soo much better after swapping that water pump and its running 10C cooler even in 100F weather!


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

tinygiant said:


> drove it today and encountered some unavoidable pot holes in traffic.. i crawled over them but it still snapped my exhaust (which was already just barely together)
> 
> so being 100F outside today i had to hop out of the car undo an exhaust clamp and hammer the mid pipe out of the equation.. had a nice LOUD ride home...
> 
> ...


That sucks ! I hate exhaust work followed closely by suspension work !


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

sprocket007 said:


> That sucks ! I hate exhaust work followed closely by suspension work !


yeah nothing more fun that working under a lowered car.. if the part comes in tomorrow i might take it to a local shop i go to and see what the guy would charge to toss it on the lift undo the three bolts and bolt on the new flange.. would probably take 10min.. or maybe see if he would let me do it for like $10 lol


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## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*FV-QR*

Installed Hella glass H4 e-code headlights and PIAA xtreme white plus 55/60 bulbs.

What a difference, I can see again.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Not today... but on Saturday, was driving my nephews home after they helped me do some yard work in the blistering heat. The in-tank pump starts whining... then... BAM! Had to push the car about 1 mile to my sister's house.... 

I had just replaced both pumps about 1 month ago! I must have some sort of electrical issue that is burning out my pumps! WTF. I'm considering ordering 2 intank pumps now and keeping one in the car at all times ready to go...


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

Did you do both pumps at the same time? Did you get Bosch or no name parts?



gordinho said:


> Not today... but on Saturday, was driving my nephews home after they helped me do some yard work in the blistering heat. The in-tank pump starts whining... then... BAM! Had to push the car about 1 mile to my sister's house....
> 
> I had just replaced both pumps about 1 month ago! I must have some sort of electrical issue that is burning out my pumps! WTF. I'm considering ordering 2 intank pumps now and keeping one in the car at all times ready to go...


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Not Bosch... I know... shame on me!

I ordered from RockAuto and it is one of their most popular pumps. I've been the only return case that the sales guy has seen in quite some time. Airtex is the brand.

I did do both pumps at the same time, though.


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## [email protected] (Apr 18, 2006)

gordinho said:


> Not Bosch... I know... shame on me!
> 
> I ordered from RockAuto and it is one of their most popular pumps. I've been the only return case that the sales guy has seen in quite some time. Airtex is the brand.
> 
> I did do both pumps at the same time, though.


When I did my in-tank pump a few years back I made the mistake of not using "fuel injection hose" between the pump and the pickup. The normal fuel hose I used dissolved and when the tank was low or going up hills the fuel pump would cavitate and the car would die.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

I don't recall if it is regular fuel hose or fuel injection.. but the hose is still intact.


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## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

gordinho said:


> Not Bosch... I know... shame on me!
> 
> I ordered from RockAuto and it is one of their most popular pumps. I've been the only return case that the sales guy has seen in quite some time. Airtex is the brand.
> 
> I did do both pumps at the same time, though.


Airtex pumps are absolute junk, i work in the automotive feild and we acctually warn customers if they go with the airtex pump its almost garenteed to fail, usually within the first year, 
The sales guy is full of **** cause i know every single one of their pumps we have done no matter what make or model it always ends up back with the pump junk


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

last night i figured i would adjust the passenger door to get rid of the sag.. 

so i grabbed the socket wrench and started taking off the bolts..... SNAP! 

so i had to then drill out on of the bolts and then had to end up completely drilling out the hinge on the door.. so now the bottom bolt threads into the door and the top has a nut on the backside of the hinge.. but i did get it a little more alighned. I have a feeling that its the actual hinges. 

i tried jacking the door up a little to bend the hinges but it didnt seem to help at all. 


still waiting for my intermediate pipe to come in.. car is soo loud running it with nothing after the cat.


----------



## cachaguavw (Oct 21, 2010)

*Just making a small delivery...*

Two 60 gallon wine barrels on their way to a wedding to be used as cocktail tables.

Just sayin.


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Trying to find the perfect balance of ride height, ride comfort, and tire rub.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Hoping to get it running again today. New transfer pump from GAP came in today. Driving up to South River where it is currently sitting shortly. Wish me luck!


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*FV-QR*

Tried to unfreeze one of the screws that hold the top latch handle in place. 
Applied solvent, waiting....


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Brought it home! New intank pump and new relay in place. I have to go over the wiring and grounds again. I'm getting voltage drops when taking it out of gear and the RPMs drop. The pump seems to work a little harder when this happens too...


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

installed the new midpipe. 

this is the first time my cabby hasn't had an exhaust leak somewhere since i've owned it. between replacing the water pump and the exhaust work today this car sounds like a normal car.. so quiet! 


I also decided to check the timing since i have a little hiccup still.. Seems the FW was at the 6d mark.. so i lined everything to TDC and its running great.. also spun the intermediate pulley since the distributor was in a weird position and could spin in both directions. 

running and sounding top self today. best since i bought it over 15 months ago!


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

I know this isn't really doing anything to the CAR per-se... but I got some SWEET vintage key blanks from MK1Autohaus on ebay, and now I've got badass looking keys


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

flipty said:


> I know this isn't really doing anything to the CAR per-se... but I got some SWEET vintage key blanks from MK1Autohaus on ebay, and now I've got badass looking keys


sure it is. its the little stuff that makes the car fun


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Installing all 3 layers on a 86, install the bumper ends front, and the trim on the passengers side.
Had to replace the top latch receivers as they were bent and broken. Eccentrics were out of wack and the J-hooks needed to be re-adjusted. Oiled the hinge points, replaced both the drivers and passenger door handles so I could open a door with out having to use the vent wing. Making progress, I might even do a DIY on the headliner. Oh made a Radiator Card, and replaced the original radiator to res hose as it wasn't much longer for this world.

Oh I have got all 3 layers removed...tomorrow the seals and trays. The top was sitting about 1/2 inch raised in the front because of the eccentrics and the receivers being out of spec.


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

Got my rebuilt PS axle installed
Car started finally after sitting a few months
Took for a little test drive to see how it feels and I wish I had installed the 02A a lot sooner cause it is so much more fun now
Tomorrow gotta retorque some bolts, check trans fluid and then its back to being my daily so i can park my Mk5 to fix that

Also today is the anniversary of D-Day


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

I was amazed at how having the intermediate shaft pulley not being lined up added a little hesitation chunk-chunk in my idle. I thought that compensating by turning the distributor would be fine; not so. 
It is also easy to see how balancing the shaft would make a difference. 

Did you check your valve timing as well when you spun the intermediate shaft? 
You may want to play a bit with pushing the timing advance toward the 6degree BTDC mark, as your performance should improve if everything is lined up.

I routinely time to the 6d mark, but I have some mods to the intake and exhaust flow. 


tinygiant said:


> Seems the FW was at the 6d mark.. so i lined everything to TDC and its running great.. also spun the intermediate pulley since the distributor was in a weird position and could spin in both directions.


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

Got tiered of waiting, still frozen.

Decided to drill out the offending fastener... 
handle replaced....

Now to source some latch strike plates that are not worn in a "U" where the hook contacts it..... anyone dismantling a 92 or 93?


teknikALLEN said:


> Tried to unfreeze one of the screws that hold the top latch handle in place.
> Applied solvent, waiting....


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

What gear ratios do you have in the 02A?



saveFred said:


> Got my rebuilt PS axle installed
> Car started finally after sitting a few months
> Took for a little test drive to see how it feels and I wish I had installed the 02A a lot sooner cause it is so much more fun now
> Tomorrow gotta retorque some bolts, check trans fluid and then its back to being my daily so i can park my Mk5 to fix that
> ...


----------



## saveFred (Sep 28, 2009)

honestly i forgot. All i remember is its meant for a B3 16v passat and has a 3.69? final
ill look for the code on it today when i do the fluid


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

So I didn't lock my doors last night and someone has given me a new project. Replace the stereo, dashboard bezel, and HVAC bezel. 

****ing amateurs.

Anyone have a line on either of those bezel plates? The cracked the whole ****ing thing in two.


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

Deciding on whether I should get Ronal Turbos for the car


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

Thanks, Brian, I will be doing a top soon and have seen your write up. 

I found this link that has some old Mk1 top adjustment info and a link to a write up by Forrest King ;~)

http://tinytex.com/1635806



briano1234 said:


> Installing all 3 layers on a 86, install the bumper ends front, and the trim on the passengers side.
> Had to replace the top latch receivers as they were bent and broken. Eccentrics were out of wack and the J-hooks needed to be re-adjusted. Oiled the hinge points, replaced both the drivers and passenger door handles so I could open a door with out having to use the vent wing. Making progress, I might even do a DIY on the headliner. Oh made a Radiator Card, and replaced the original radiator to res hose as it wasn't much longer for this world.
> 
> Oh I have got all 3 layers removed...tomorrow the seals and trays. The top was sitting about 1/2 inch raised in the front because of the eccentrics and the receivers being out of spec.


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

flipty said:


> So I didn't lock my doors last night and someone has given me a new project. Replace the stereo, dashboard bezel, and HVAC bezel.
> 
> ****ing amateurs.
> 
> Anyone have a line on either of those bezel plates? The cracked the whole ****ing thing in two.


I have a parts car in northfield if you want to come grab some stuff


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

MOBOZO said:


> I have a parts car in northfield if you want to come grab some stuff



Does it have decent seats by chance? I'm looking to replace my front seats, they're in pretty bad shape.

I'll PM you here to keep this thread from bloating further.


----------



## muno (May 29, 2012)

New control arms, bushings and ball joints from Meyle. Made a big difference in rigidity and handling.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

last night the exhaust disconnected.. i guess i didnt crank down on the clamp enough. its definitely good now  



its sorta weird having the car be this quiet.. the last week and a half its been cut after the cat.. kinda missing it.. lol i might have to invest in a different muffler later that has a little more tone to it. 

in other news the car is running awesome.


----------



## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Threw a tarp over it because of this rain. I really need to get the new top installed...


----------



## mkr001 (Aug 26, 2004)

I sold my cabby and I'm really upset about it. I wasn't so upset when I sold my '88 but this one hit me hard...


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

gordinho said:


> Threw a tarp over it because of this rain. I really need to get the new top installed...


I hear that  only I have a new top, but it still leaks in heavy rain because I have to reseal some things that were never sealed properly.. I get to drive home in this rain in like 15 minutes  

Oh well.. On the plus side, I did pick up a few parts for the 16v that's going in her and my carbs and new header arrived in NJ today, so hopefully I'll have a present at home


----------



## Danntheemann (May 8, 2013)

Washed, waxed, vacuumed and shampooed the carpets. Used an old oil pan to get my spray painting skill back. I want to do a motor detail soon. I will be painting oil pan, valve cover, timing chain cover, alternator blades and some other stuff. Still trying to decide if I want to do German flag colors or cabby white under the hood.. Also put air in the tires and cruised all day topless. Getting ready to paint my enkei 16" black as well. Gotta get some new lug bolts for them too. My top is getting worse each day. I can't wait for the do it yourself video so I can order up a top.. Decided to go with black top. Keeping the boot white though... Also found out that Mr clean magic erasers work wonders on the door cards. Nice having them bright white again.. Getting really tired of my motor ticking though.. Driving me nuts. Guess that's next whatever it might be


----------



## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

inner and outer tie rods, plus rack boots. 
strut boots. 
fuel pressure regulator. 
pulled all the seats, vacuumed the interior. cleaned seats and all other fabric upholstery.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

teknikALLEN said:


> Thanks, Brian, I will be doing a top soon and have seen your write up.
> 
> I found this link that has some old Mk1 top adjustment info and a link to a write up by Forrest King ;~)
> 
> http://tinytex.com/1635806


 Yes I installed my first top with Forrest's guide. I tell you after I did it his way, I knew there had to be a better and easier way to do it. So on my second Top, I started to document every step, and take pictures.... This is where I had some insight to improving some parts and where I could skip others. His guide left a lot to be desired and is why I started to write my own. 

Now on doing my 3rd pad install and headliner,,,, I have a few more tricks.. and improvements on the way the headliner is installed. Within the next few weeks I will be re-writing everything.... 

And if you want a sillier set of instructions, read the ones that came with my ez-on top.... Simple and to the point.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Got this stuff mocked up and one step closer to getting it into my cabby


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Not QUITE as exciting as the engine monstrosity in the photo above, but I managed to cleanly pry out the ash tray/12v lighter combo from my knee bar, and took out the lighter assembly. Replaced it with a marine grade dual USB port. No more stolen phone chargers for me! Looks factory, too.. it's even got a cool rubber attached cover thingie. 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0082CXEI8/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 

The rectangular piece is optional upon install, so I just ditched it. 

The plug itself did NOT fit in the hole that the lighter left.. it was probably 1mm too small, so I had to use a knife and a dremel to widen the gap a bit until it fit through, and there's a screw-on ring just like any toggle switch, etc to tighten to the facade. I had to snip the lighter wires and put new female blade ends on, that was pretty effortless once I used my multimeter to figure out what wire was what. 

Love it!


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

I also forgot to brag on my seats. Replaced fronts and backs this past weekend, thanks to a very helpful and cool user here from the forum. 

Had gross, stained, disintegrating and torn white cloth seats.... 

Now, I have this:


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Found out i'm not selling it for a while, gave me some motivation to make it as functional as possible... 

Replaced the wipers so far lol. Speakers and random interior plastic pieces coming soon lol...


----------



## sprocket007 (Oct 14, 2002)

Built this


----------



## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

Drove it to work with the top down since the weather is just perfect today.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Nothing...it's in the shop and I am really sad because I want to go for a cruise .


----------



## mr pibbs (May 13, 2012)

Removed the PO's pesky billabong sticker 
:facepalm:


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

Finished up getting speakers installed and door cards back in, pulled her outside to get some sunlight on the top

































Boy she needs a good bath :/


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Repaired the cigarette lighter. BIG CHORE.


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

new wheels, new brakes!


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Rear shocks and springs. WOW what a difference! The car feels snappier in acceleration and turns, makes no noise at all over bumps, and sits about 1-2 inches higher in the rear than it used to (I always felt like it was dragging ass).. LOVE IT. Feels like a new car. 

Loosely followed Briano's directions, but sort of did my own thing, used my jack to help position the strut mounts, and used air tools to excellent effect. Stopped after one side to get a giant bowl of Pho, then continued with the other. Had a helper, and couldn't have done it by myself. 

Also put in a stereo to replace the stolen one from a couple weeks ago... so I'm bumpin' in other ways. 

Good Cabby weekend, that's all I gotta say.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

BerryB said:


> new wheels, new brakes!


 What size tires are those?! They look MEATY :laugh: I'm a fan of meaty tires.


----------



## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> What size tires are those?! They look MEATY :laugh: I'm a fan of meaty tires.


 205 50 13... they poke like a motherlicker and ride like doodoo.


----------



## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

BerryB said:


> 205 50 13... they poke like a motherlicker and ride like doodoo.


 Looks so much better than silly stretched tires IMO. Imagine it rides better than stretched tires too. 

What are the specs on the wheels? They're hitting the nail on the head!


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

bought a friend for my cabby today 










http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?6068749-1973-Bus-Campmobile-Build-Thread


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

BerryB said:


> 205 50 13... they poke like a motherlicker and ride like doodoo.


 Damn!!!! I'm sure they do poke quite a bit, but I still like the look on those wheels.


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## Axis4/16 (Jun 17, 2013)

My girlfriend totaled her Yaris a couple of months back and was sitting on a sizeable wad of cash - this led her to buying her dream car: a VW Cabriolet. 

She found a 1992 with 92K miles, and even though it's a 5-speed and she didn't know how to drive it, she wanted it. I told her I'd help her fix it up if she'd pay for the parts. 

Flash forward two months and we were both out of town for about 4 weeks apiece. Just got back and I've been diving in. 

- Cleaned up all the grounds. 
- Put in the correct spark plugs. 
- Installed/attached the airbox correctly. 
- Cleaned the ISV, intake/throttle body, PCV. 
- Replaced many fuel/vacuum lines. 
- Replaced front and rear mounts. 
- Changed engine oil and filter and transmission oil. 
- Put in the correct battery. 
- Fixed exhaust leaks. 
- Cleaned cowl drain tubes. 
- Replaced cracked dipstick funnel. 
- Cleaned the rotor/cap. 
- General cleaning throughout. 

There have been many other fixes I've already forgotten, I'm sure. Still getting to know this car as I've never worked on a FWD vehicle before, and the only other car restoration I've done was on an '81 BMW 320i. Completely rebuilt about half a dozen Japanese motorcycles though - all 4 cylinder/16v, so I'm not wholly out of my element. 

Really interesting, fun car. Took it up to Mendocino county along CA 1 this weekend and I started to really fall in love with it. Funny that I always dismissed most VWs simply because they were FWD. 

Still to do: 

- New brakes front and rear. 
- Radiator flush and fill. 
- Pretty sure I've got a sticky/dirty lifter. Hoping that running some fresh light oil with some detergents will help, but I've got the upgraded rubber valve cover gasket coming, and I'll check them manually when I do that. 
- Windage tray to deal with oil pan weepage from a bad gasket as well as preventing oil starvation from these winding roads. 
- Needs a new air hose. Not the dreaded one on top, but the one that goes directly from the airbox to the intake down below. 
- Needs some more vacuum connections changed. It's such a bear, and I actually broke the little nipple that comes off the hose that connects the Brake Booster to the throttle body. Just plugged both ends for now, as well as the two nipples that come off the back of the throttle body and go to the charcoal canister. Would love to know how much of that vacuum/emissions stuff can be stripped off. 

Idles pretty well right now, as long as I have the vent on (in 1 or higher). If I turn the knob to "0", I'll occasionally get a hunting idle between about 600-1100 rpm that will go away if I click it over to 1 for a second and then back.  

Pretty peppy. Needs a new top, windows re-aligned, needs the heated seats hooked back up and a really good detail to the paint. 

Curious about the suspension. How will I know if the struts/springs need changing? The bumper for the passenger front strut is shot, and the driver's side looks less than cherry as well. Getting some clicking from the passenger side, in fact. 

All of this has happened recently, or over the past weekend. Today I'm just cleaning a bit, checking the plug burn and lubing the throttle cable. Pretty easy wrench day while I wait for parts to arrive. 

Love to hear any suggestions/hellos.


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## xtreme_euro (Dec 15, 2009)

Took her out for a drive.


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## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

FoxSt said:


> Looks so much better than silly stretched tires IMO. Imagine it rides better than stretched tires too.
> 
> What are the specs on the wheels? They're hitting the nail on the head!


 I just put air in them and re balanced em. They ride a little better now. 

13x8 et4 rota rb 
Heres a better photo with lighting of the wheels. They look a lot less "pokey" in real life. :beer:


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## AndreDrivesGolf (Mar 21, 2013)

Ill play. Just properly fitted the new wheels and threw on euro bumpers


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## csrgti (Aug 18, 2009)

BerryB said:


> I just put air in them and re balanced em. They ride a little better now.
> 
> 13x8 et4 rota rb
> Heres a better photo with lighting of the wheels. They look a lot less "pokey" in real life. :beer:


 I don't see how an 8 inch wheel with an offset of -4 can be less " pokey" 
I don't want to be mean and slam your effort but, that looks hideous.


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

I dunno, I think it looks pretty cool. Different for sure. I'd maybe put different rims on it but that's a matter of personal taste.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Today, I went on a harrowing and hair raising adventure in my Cabby. Most people would simply call this driving across town and back.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Seat covers arrived today.. been working on that 

did the rears and the door cards so far. probably will have to do the front seats later on. 




























coming out pretty good. Once its hot out soon i will probably take the rear seats back out and pull things a bit tighter when they are hot and stretchy


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## dirtydub33 (Nov 27, 2011)

where did you get those the look great ^


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## jmaggrahpics (Apr 4, 2013)

Well.. I am trying to get my Cabby running proper,


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

dirtydub33 said:


> where did you get those the look great ^


bought them from a member here on the forums. purchased them and never used them.. i scooped up the entire interior for 338 shipped.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove the blue to fetch parts for the Green one, I have the green one jacked up and the Cat re-installed on it.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

matty kirk said:


> Today, I went on a harrowing and hair raising adventure in my Cabby. Most people would simply call this driving across town and back.


:laugh::laugh: :beer::beer:


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

Well, I was rear-ended last month.. Guy sitting at the red light behind me decided it had turned green and that my car was no longer in front of him so he let off the brake and accelerated into my rear bumper 

So.. turn a bad story into a good one, right 

The rear bumper was the ONLY piece of clipper kit that was not otherwise scuffed or scratched and drilled from the PO and her less-than-stellar spatial awareness and 'park-by-feel' philosophy lol


Here are a couple examples of the clipper prior:

Notice the holes and scratches etc





I won't bore you with ALL the damage, but needless to say I was considering loosing the clipper all together until..


*Fresh Paint!!* 









Insurance paid in full for rear bumper as 100% not at fault.. Cash money for the rest 

Should look even better with a wash and wax :laugh:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Did the front seats today. Here is a picture of the passenger seat done. I'll grab a pic of it all.

I blistered and peeled half of my knuckles trying to stretch the vinyl. To zipper everything.. but its done and looks great.

Poor design on the headrests though. They don't leave enough room to stretch them over.. so there are some tiny rips.. but nothing I can't live with



Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

got both the front seats done. 

looks awesome.. definitely need a new carpet and headliner now and i need to fix a drip on the top (i think its the drippy knee syndrome) 

starting to look classy though!


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## csteinmetz (Oct 23, 2011)

*Washed her*


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Well, it's still immobile in the garage, but last weekend the woman and I "shined the hood" when our yard work was interrupted by a rain storm.  :laugh:


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## Axis4/16 (Jun 17, 2013)

Drove it to LA and back in 100+ degree heat.


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## BMP_3918 (Jun 21, 2011)

Axis4/16 said:


> Drove it to LA and back in 100+ degree heat.


Top down chillin :beer:


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## cabbievr6 (Aug 18, 2009)

The other day, cleaned it up for local show coming up.


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## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Going to toss this shell after finding some rust 



Love my well cared for, Colorado car! Can't wait to have a roof without holes in it.


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## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

FoxSt said:


> Going to toss this shell after finding some rust
> 
> 
> 
> Love my well cared for, Colorado car! Can't wait to have a roof without holes in it.


you do know there have been advancements in rust control


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## 1ABrian (Sep 12, 2012)

I made mini wipers and wiper arms for my chop top


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

We have been getting a ton of rain lately and with the new seat covers in i didnt want them to get ruined. I've had a drip for a while that mos times isnt bad but i got fed up with it yesterday and decided to investigate further. 

The drip coming from the drivers side top seal above the window. The part that seemed odd is the water wasnt coming from between the window and the seal, it was coming from above the seal. 

so yesterday i took the seal out and the rail that the seal fits into. Low and Behold, whoever installed the top last time only put weather stripping up 3/4 of the rail.. So the water was able to move freely under the rail and into the car. 

So i put some double sided vinyl insulating foam strip along the rail and screwed it all down. This morning. dry as a bone! 

If i feel we will have enough of a break in the rain today i might go do the B billar seals too 



i also noticed a pretty good drip on the back window.. i hope to get a dry enough spell that i can maybe get a bead of silicone behind the gasket all the way around.


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## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Want to come to NJ and help me with my top??? lol


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> We have been getting a ton of rain lately and with the new seat covers in i didnt want them to get ruined. I've had a drip for a while that mos times isnt bad but i got fed up with it yesterday and decided to investigate further.
> 
> The drip coming from the drivers side top seal above the window. The part that seemed odd is the water wasnt coming from between the window and the seal, it was coming from above the seal.
> 
> ...


Thank you for posting this.. I have a similar issue, but it's intermittent. I've been thinking when I got my top installed the rail was not sealed correctly. And now I know for sure!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> Thank you for posting this.. I have a similar issue, but it's intermittent. I've been thinking when I got my top installed the rail was not sealed correctly. And now I know for sure!


of course. I post everything I do.. its nice to keep track of and everyone else can benefit from the info. 

its really easy too.. its like 4 screws. just dont bend your rail removing it. be slow and careful. 


just finished replacing my B pillar seals


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## basketcase Etinne (Jun 22, 2013)

put a cheap set of tires on my 91 EA $310 for epic tour not the greatest but i only drive about 3k miles a year.

the old tires where extremely worn steel cord showing through on one of them chunks missing on the others and only two of them matched lol


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## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Put air in my back right tire again...it was at 5 PSI...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> of course. I post everything I do.. its nice to keep track of and everyone else can benefit from the info.
> 
> its really easy too.. its like 4 screws. just dont bend your rail removing it. be slow and careful.
> 
> ...


:thumbup::thumbup: That looks much better! I figured they arrived ok since I hadn't heard anything.


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## gtommec (Feb 15, 2013)

On the 01 I replaced the gloss black b-pillar trim with some matte black ones with the Karmann logo that i pulled off of a Cabrio in the junkyard. I also took the smoked side markers and indicators off and replaced them with all amber ones. Since I can't find any rear mud flaps i modified my NOS mkII "Golf" mudflaps and installed them.

On the 87 I removed the bumpers and replaced the outer door handles.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Began the process of bringing my beloved rabbit convertible under the knife for a little heart transplant to put a bit more pep in her step


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## 87Cabriolet (May 9, 2009)

While I don't want to jinx myself, I do believe today I fixed my hot starting vapor lock issues. As the car now seems to start right up when hot.

Now the cold start issue may still be a problem to work out, Ill have to wait until tomorrow morning to see if that has fixed itself as well...


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## Wargraven78 (Jun 20, 2013)

*Airbox mod*

I "Swiss Cheesed" my air box today. only took 5 min and I can feel a better response to the throttle....now if I could figure out whats wrong with my auto trans....


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## Axis4/16 (Jun 17, 2013)

New main fuel pump and fuel filter. Very pleased with the effect. 

As they say, "I did not realize how empty was my cup, until it was filled."


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

8v out, and 16v going in in just a few days 

For now it's time to get cleaning.. it's preeeeetttttttttyyyyyyyyyyyy dirty in there


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## FoxSt (Jan 22, 2006)

Yesterday I killed my Cabby. Still haven't really dived in to figure out exactly what happened but judging by the trail of transmission fluid and metal shavings, I'll be swapping trannies soon.

Clutch kit, with 16v pressure plate is on it's way. Have a line on a 2Y or possibly a 4K... Now if only I could make an LSD happen while I'm in there. Yay


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Filled the tank, and drove it to where my Daughter got rear-ended in her honda..... Let her have it for a few days....


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## jettaglisteve (Dec 2, 2002)

well not today but Wednesday I put new wheels on the cab...










today I just drove it cringing at every bump... and gave it a full tank of go-go juice


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## basketcase Etinne (Jun 22, 2013)

went to pick n pull in rancho cordova twice, wrong tools the the first time LOL

scored a starter, the missing PS adjusting bolt, the upper black door molding, the little caps for the windshield wipers, the 3 back emblems (previous owner painted them black yuck) and a windshield. everything was 1/3 off for members. only paid like $73 bucks for everything


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## Wargraven78 (Jun 20, 2013)

Replaced auto trans pan gasket and filter. 3qts of Lucas auto trans fluid and she got her pep back. Next is new coil, spark wires, plugs and distributor.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Found the spray paint color I used last year today. Touched the cabby up.
Also ran a bead of black silicone under the rear window seal to hopefully stop some drips I noticed last week.

So nice to see it in solid color again.. no more big bondo area











Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk 2


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## Wargraven78 (Jun 20, 2013)

*Stickerbombing*

Stickerbombed my gas cover. Also added more stickers and de-badged the trunk for future work. (all stickers used were for show and hot bhp...)

[URL=http://s1023.photobucket.com/u...m/albums/af355/Wargraven78/IMG_1378.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
[URL=http://s1023.photobucket.com/u...m/albums/af355/Wargraven78/IMG_1372.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

yes, I know it looks like crap, but no one will see it in a few days.
:beer:


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## jacobroufa (Jun 18, 2012)

Anyone know of a cabby shell for sale in the midwest? She actually started right back up, but I can't tell the extent of the damage yet. I want to get into another one asap...


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

My brother says there is a Cabriolet on the side of the road at a shop in Taylorville off of 48, but that is a far piece from Rockford to drive.

I would look at Craigslist for all the big Illinois cities.

http://www.onecraigs.com/craigslist...KU2Q&bvm=bv.47244034,d.eWU&ss=5655j2048765j23


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Repaired the accelerator cable bushing that fell out dropping the pedal to the floor. I found that a small rubber grommet worked rather well.


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

(Yesterday) For the first time in 9 months... DROVE IT!  

Quit driving it out of fear the gear oil was low; it's had a leak at the selector shaft for years. Removed the plug and the freakin' level was full :facepalm: (did a drain-refill anyway). This goes well with the oil pan leak (rubber gasket ain't what it's cracked up to be): Leaks oil, but dipstick always reads A-Okay. This car is seriously :screwy: ... :laugh::heart:


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Last weekend, I pulled the license plate from Etienne #2 and shoved the car in the garage for now.
It needs the clutch changed and I'm not gonna worry about it in the summer heat. 

Also found out green 92 brakes are pretty much going to the floor..so need a master cylinder replacement.

Even Etienne #1 is running bad when its cold(stumbling) and burning oil..hmm....


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## boscorrosive (Jul 20, 2005)

I bought a 2001 Cabrio Wednesday evening and put it in my garage. Thursday I took apart the rear brakes and figured out that the inner wheel bearing had come apart and messed up the spindle so I went to the junkyard and got one and a couple of hubcaps. Friday morning I fixed it, got it inspected, washed it and drove it. Today I drove it around in the rain and got a left knee wash.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

16V in


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## Wargraven78 (Jun 20, 2013)

*E-brake boot and paint*

This weekend I made a new E-Brake boot cover / armrest cover and painted the aft center console. I'll post the whole write up this week. But for now: The finished product.

[URL=http://s1023.photobucket.com/u...m/albums/af355/Wargraven78/IMG_0375.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
[URL=http://s1023.photobucket.com/u...m/albums/af355/Wargraven78/IMG_0376.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
:wave:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

last spring after i bought my cabby the clutch cable broke. a friend installed it and it worked great but eventually settled and needed a readjustment. It took me a while to get it just right.. 

at the end of the summer the car would randomly not want to go into gear.. got a little grindy.. which i actually found was the fault of the linkage bushings being messed up but last summer i thought it was the cable so i adjusted it a few times.. i was getting a little creeping at lights with the clutch all the way in. 

So i adjusted it and things were fine. With the exception of sometimes when in 3rd or 4th i would get a little slipping when accelerating quickly (coming out of the toll booth usually) 

So today i think i finally got the cable adjusted perfect. I can't spin my front tires lol but i can power through gears without any slippage. 

one stupid mistake.. when tooling around my neighborhood after testing out my first adjustment i forgot to push my hood all the way down.. at about 30mph my hood popped up and got a little torqued.. lol a good half hour of bending and twisting and coercion with a rubber mallet the hood latches and lays flat again. 

lol.. fix one thing to screw up another.. thats certainly the VW way


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## Aeb-reid (May 31, 2012)

Made my cabby a weighted darth vader shift knob!  ill post more when i put it in.(cars at mother in laws atm) 

http://imgur.com/Phjwb1i


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Aeb-reid said:


> Made my cabby a weighted darth vader shift knob!


pics...


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## zescstar (Sep 2, 2008)

Swapped my crumby cloth interior to white leather.


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## Aeb-reid (May 31, 2012)

^^^^ I need that interior in mine



tinygiant said:


> pics...


Lemme get home from work.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Aeb-reid said:


> Lemme get home from work.


nope.. immediately. post it while driving lol


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> nope.. immediately. post it while driving lol


Agreed! :laugh:

Oh, I took the front wheels off mine to start swapping the tires for the MK2 project. Should eb back on orlando temp rollers tomorrow.


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

zescstar said:


> Swapped my crumby cloth interior to white leather.


I went to the local yard and they had a good leather interior, but I didn't have the cash on me for it. Not thinking, I left and went to get it a few days later... A few days too late  BUT I will find a leather interior. I will make sure of it (first the windshield rust gets fixed).


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## cmdshft (Oct 17, 2011)

Added new speakers and head unit, did some dash speaker re-wiring and ordered a set of upgrade aftermarket dash 2-ways. http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...er-upgrade&p=82710279&viewfull=1#post82710279 

Also ripped out some voodoo wiring setup for interior lights, which were pure caca, wired right into the power leads in the headlight controls. 

Ordering new fenders and a hood, then a new front bumper.


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## cmdshft (Oct 17, 2011)

I had a POS magnaflow exhaust installed on my MK3 before I bought it, it literally fell apart at the pipe going into the muffler. Took it to a friend who had a G60 Corrado exhaust from a recent part out he did, installed on the MK3 2.0L 

Video: http://tinypic.com/r/nfiuyd/5


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## vswager (Dec 15, 2012)

repaired my ripped top  

after a deer ran in to / jumped into my top the other evening at dusk while driving.


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## basketcase Etinne (Jun 22, 2013)

ran an additional ground from the battery to trans bell housing as suggested by biano, had a new catalytic convert put on good old california $270 bucks, they told there is an exhaust leak at the manifold. i just rebuilt the damn thing new gasket etc, guess i will try re-torquing them when the engine is cool. it does go clicky clicky LOL oh and got to drive around with the top down


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## bob21115 (Jul 28, 2008)

*I brought her home and introduced her to her big brother my MKV .:R32*

I brought her home and introduced her to her big brother my MKV .:R32.

I pickup this beautiful 1989 Triple White Cabby with 24000 original miles.

More pictures in the build thread to come.


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## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

bob21115 said:


> I brought her home and introduced her to her big brother my MKV .:R32.
> 
> I pickup this beautiful 1989 Triple White Cabby with 24000 original miles.
> 
> More pictures in the build thread to come.


:thumbup::thumbup:


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## RW (Mar 21, 2008)

Test fitted my BMW fitment super rare E'clair wheels.


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## RW (Mar 21, 2008)

As view from the rear.


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## smoothazz337 (Nov 29, 2003)

Finally got in my tiny ass trunk and put some work in.....


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

puddle under the car today.. looks like i have a coolant drip. 

top of the water pump is dry.. gasket is dry.. looks like its dripping from the bottom by the thermostat housing.. thinking maybe the hosing came loose a tiny bit or something.. guess i know what i will be doing tomorrow or today..


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## TheyCallMeBobv2 (Sep 7, 2012)

Oil and filter change. New anti rattle clips, rotate tires, and I'm off to polish her up!


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Finally got to drive her with this in it


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

strangely enough.. the two bolts that hold my water pump on had become a little loose.. and the colant was dripping from between the pump and block. 

But my old water pump that i had already replaced was in bad shape and when i got into things today i noticed my coolant reservoir had quite the collection of metal shavings in it. So if anything good came of todays issue its that i was able to dump out the mess from the holding tank and flush the system really well. 

seems fine now


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## vdubbugman53 (Nov 7, 2006)

Today I finished putting the dash in after I installed a new Evap core and heater core. put new foam in all my vent flaps and a new gasket where the top of the heater box meets the car.

also installed a new condenser as that leaked too. BY lunch time tomorrow I hope to have an AC that blows cold.


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## TheyCallMeBobv2 (Sep 7, 2012)

TheyCallMeBobv2 said:


> Oil and filter change. New anti rattle clips, rotate tires, and I'm off to polish her up!


Finished the detailing. Dropped the top and went for a 160 mile spin to play some disc golf in West Virginia with the wife. Good times!

Pardon the iPhone pics.


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## seattlemariners (Jan 15, 2013)

Eurobumpers!! OEM. Got these from a car shipped from Germany. Also picked up some free flares and painted them. eace:








[/URL]


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

dougkehl said:


> Finally got to drive her with this in it


Did you push start it? You seem to be missing a starter.


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## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Actually this happened yesterday. 

Helped save an 89 cabby from the junkyard.

Found a 'tex member from Texas to come pick it up for restoration.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

MOBOZO said:


> Did you push start it? You seem to be missing a starter.


I had thought about it :laugh: but these were taken later in the morning after my girlfriend and I dropped it into the car at ~1:30 am lol So once it was in I was like yo, f$%k that I'm sleeping :laugh:


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## kinggargantuan (Jun 4, 2011)

vswager said:


> repaired my ripped top
> 
> after a deer ran in to / jumped into my top the other evening at dusk while driving.


my window is held in by mostly ducktape. :thumbdown:

i need to put a new top on. either that, or pop the window out and staple a nice 3" gasket from leather or something, that i can sew to the current top. 

every time i put it down, it goes back up with a new/bigger hole.

(yea i know, dont put it down. it's the only way i can carry my surfboards)


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Developed a coolant leak over the last few days.. brand new water pump, thermostat, seals and water outlet... after investigating i found that the water outlet/thermostat housing was warped. Silly plastic parts. 

So GAP sells a metal one now.. ordered that up. should be here saturday. hate when my daily has to sit on ramps. driving the truck is not cheap. 


luckily i should be able to to just toss it back together quickly saturday and be back on the road. 

Also cranked up my coilovers a bit. passenger side tire was getting eaten up


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## seattlemariners (Jan 15, 2013)

I crawled into a dry cabby this morning after it poured down rain all night!!  Adjusted the j hooks yesterday. Just in time for fall in Western Washington!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

finally got around to replacing the seals on a couple more fuel injectors. 

had the time while the car was on the ramps waiting for the new thermostat housing


wrote up a little DIY
http://www.projectvdub.com/tutorials-3/tutorials/mk1-8v-fuel-injector-seal-diy/


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## TheyCallMeBobv2 (Sep 7, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> wrote up a little DIY
> http://www.projectvdub.com/tutorials-3/tutorials/mk1-8v-fuel-injector-seal-diy/


VERY NICE! I will use this over the weekend, thanks!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

TheyCallMeBobv2 said:


> VERY NICE! I will use this over the weekend, thanks!


no prob! 


i like documenting what I do to the car. Helps me remember things for future projects.


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## RW (Mar 21, 2008)

Installed an OEM single round grill.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Thermostat housing replaced. if you ever need to replace your water pump get the metal thermostat housing. Fits soo soo much better.. and it wont warp. 


car is running much more smoothly with the injectors done. I should have ordered the other holder and oring when i ordered the housing the other day... oh well. something to do another day


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

shifter rebuild kit. 

wrote up a tutorial with pictures and such
http://www.projectvdub.com/tutorials-3/tutorials/mk1-shift-linkage-rebuild/



I need to order the bushing for the main shift rod. mine is blown out.. and i need to order a new selector ball, that is worn on the sides too


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## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Cleaned it out, vaccuumed and put the top boot back on...not sure if I like it on...Now it just needs a wash.

#wheelie #reverserake


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

screwed up my shift linkage today. lol 

i wanted to replace the main shaft bearing.. so i pulled the rod off the relay clamp and then realized thats what keeps things aligned.. 

worse part is one of the bolts for the main shaft bearing housing plate was rusted and seized so i didnt even get to replace the bushing.. I should have waited to see if i was going to be able to get that off before pulling the rod from the clamp. 

so tomorrow i guess i need to find a cassette tape and see if i can use that trick to get the rod aligned correctly. 

not enough hours in the day lol.


----------



## seattlemariners (Jan 15, 2013)

Finally installed my new dash bezel. A few months ago my car was broken into and the radio was stolen. The dash bezel was broken in 3 places and all brackets were busted off. Worst part was they could've just slid the radio out because it was slightly to long and wasn't clicked in!:facepalm:


----------



## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

seattlemariners said:


> Finally installed my new dash bezel. A few months ago my car was broken into and the radio was stolen. The dash bezel was broken in 3 places and all brackets were busted off. Worst part was they could've just slid the radio out because it was slightly to long and wasn't clicked in!:facepalm:


At least they didn't slit open the top! The PO of my car always left it unlocked so that no one would cut open the top if they wanted to seal something


----------



## seattlemariners (Jan 15, 2013)

That's a good idea. My new stereo has a detachable faceplate so I will lock it in the glovebox and leave the doors open. Don't want to replace my top anyone soon.


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Bummer about the bezel. I have three spares if anyone needs one, it's yours for shipping.

Today I tried like a mofo to get the chrome windshield trim installed on my gasket without taking off the windshield. Made it 1/3 of the way... and ran out of strength. DAMN that is hard. I'm going to take the trim into the place that installed my windshield and get them to do it for me, hopefully for free.

Then I put my timing belt cover back on after it never having been installed while I've owned the car (about 3 years now)... and then I drove for a block and the car won't start anymore. Seems to be unrelated, I think the starter finally went to starter heaven. 

I also took off the remaining dangling roof piston (one of two, the other was also not attached) and zip-tied the brackets to themselves so they will stop rattling. I was in an anti-rattle mood so I took this cool adhesive backed foam (about 1mm thick) from a local surplus store and cut it to shape on the inside of the ash/change tray, and the glovebox. WOW. Much more quiet while riding around. My end goal is to replace all front suspension this fall (after the paint job) ... control arms, strut towers, springs, ball joints, and tie rods... and have a silent ride even in the ****ty minnesota streets.

After that I'm going to locate my exhaust leak and plug that sucker. This car is going to run silent if it kills me (and it might).


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## EastTexasCabbie (Aug 17, 2013)

you have an extra bezel? I have been trying to find one for my 92. its also broken due to radio issues, but only cuz po wasn't very bright :bang head:

zip is 75644 i would be happy to pay for one


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

I PM'd you. I should also add that I also found a greased up and disgusting CIS/air filter clip, which my car was missing, and cleaned it up and installed. clearly the reason my car stopped starting.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

replace the heater controls finally. Its nice to be able to control temp and vents for once! 

also replaced the middle top seals and trays too.. 

they finally came in the mail after waiting 2 months! buyer beware of shaggymutt1 lol 


 Relay Lever ball tutorial

 Middle Top seals/ trays tutoral


----------



## seattlemariners (Jan 15, 2013)

Replaced my injector seals today. Also when I started it, it was much loader than it was yesterday. I found a huge hole in my muffler. :banghead:


----------



## Lucky58 (Aug 2, 2013)

Changing my rod connector for the cruise-control - back to original. Thanks to flying_oliver for the part.
And then replacing my worn pedal pads for accelerator, brake and clutch pedal with a new set.


----------



## xamx (Feb 9, 2010)

put this in last night


----------



## CajunSpike (Mar 11, 2009)

Drove it to work topless in the crystal blue skies this morning....


----------



## Moltenburn (Jun 29, 2010)

Went over the trunk and floor board carpets to make sure this monsoon we are getting in Denver does not rape my prized cabby.:banghead: Dry as a bone-ish so Win!!! :thumbup:


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

FINALLY my chrome windshield gasket trim is installed (by the auto glass place, for free!) so I can't wait for it to rain and NOT pour water all over my fuses and relays 

I have a starter, battery cables, and ignition switch to install this weekend. I may go for the starter tonight since it's arriving, but I don't have the triple square bits yet that I ordered from amazon.


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

flipty said:


> FINALLY my chrome windshield gasket trim is installed (by the auto glass place, for free!) so I can't wait for it to rain and NOT pour water all over my fuses and relays
> 
> I have a starter, battery cables, and ignition switch to install this weekend. I may go for the starter tonight since it's arriving, but I don't have the triple square bits yet that I ordered from amazon.


Where did you find the trim?


----------



## jseeley (Oct 28, 2008)

Took it to a drive-in movie (on Saturday night)









Perfect use of a Cabriolet.


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

MOBOZO said:


> Where did you find the trim?


A guy on craigslist was (still is) parting out an 83. The trim wasn't actually from the car, but he also has a beautiful 79 diesel rabbit that he restored, and he got the trim for it. Turns out his windshield seal didn't have the groove so he sold it to me. Also got a mint-condition seat cushion, which is needed because I've already eaten through the foam on the one I got from you  ... so I'm gonna install a plastic baffle/shield in this one.

Anyways, I've actually got enough extra chrome windshield trim to do another entire windshield, so if you're in need I'd hook you up for helping me out with the seats and shocks and stuff from earlier this year.


----------



## Smallchange (Jul 31, 2012)

Re-timed the engine and replaced the Bosch plugs with NGKs.

Everything is much smoother and quieter now!


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Replaced my valve cover gasket, and cleaned the living hell out of the cover itself. Replaced the studs and nuts as well. Also fully installed the timing belt upper cover for the first time ever, including that evil, evil 6mm hex bolt/bushing thing.... 

Reduced the idle to a healthy 1k (from a frantic 1.5k it's been at for years)... and the car is quiet as a dream. Going to have to take out the idle adjust screw to replace the obviously completely useless o-ring.

Hand-cut some thin adhesive-backed foam to line my change drawer/ash tray. No more change rattle.

Also removed the drivers' seat and put new plastic clips and rubber bushing on the three points of the seat that make plastic to metal contact. Niiiiiiiiice.... no more seat rock.


----------



## mk1scott (Jun 24, 2002)

oil change (yesterday) and hit 198,000 miles :thumbup:


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## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

mk1scott said:


> oil change (yesterday) and hit 198,000 miles :thumbup:


I think I just cracked 496 000... oops. 

Just brought him home after a little bit of work at the shop.



New master cylinder and driver rear wheel cylinder. Stops, actually this time though I swear!


----------



## mk1scott (Jun 24, 2002)

BerryB said:


> Just brought him home after a little bit of work at the shop.


MOAR!


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## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

mk1scott said:


> MOAR!


look me up on instagram... Takes to long to post here.

BERRYBULM



The cabriolet is my toy and the beetle is a restoration project.


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## mk1scott (Jun 24, 2002)

i don't do the instagram thing but nice beetle!


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

I didn't do anything for my cabby today.. YET....

But my practically new Bentley arrived in the mail yesterday, so I'm rarin' to go for my next job!


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Just ordered a new coolant expansion tank, cap, and a block heater... getting ready to Winterize Gertie. She's also got a new heater valve going in, I figure I'll do it all at the same time.

Anyone have a good how-to on putting in a block heater?


----------



## mk3_house (Sep 8, 2013)

Washed and Waxed! :laugh:


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Changed out my positive battery cable which was pretty nasty....pretty sure it's original. Cleaned all the contacts as best I could, and used vacuum tubing to replace the nasty cloth covered linkages all over the engine compartment. I'm going to change em all out next chance I get, they're everywhere. 

Also changed the ancient (also stock, I think) cloth-covered coolant hose from radiator to expansion tank with a rubber one and new hose clamps. 

Up next will be the battery to frame to tranny cable. Looking forward to see what happens when I get that major ground hooked up to a nice cable instead of the corroded factory one that's been on the car since I was starting high school.


----------



## 87Cabriolet (May 9, 2009)

Last week: Ordered the new top, padding, and tension cables.

Today: Cleaned and adjusted my AAR so I now have a fast cold idle as I should but never did before.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Took off trunk decal and gas cap and painted, then took off front and rear bumpers and spraying them tomorrow. Contemplating whether or not the fender flares need done as well.


----------



## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Drove to Prescott last Friday... came home Sunday with the first/reverse issue and some sort of oil leak. :banghead:


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

kamzcab86 said:


> Drove to Prescott last Friday... came home Sunday with the first/reverse issue and some sort of oil leak. :banghead:


See what leaving the Princess out of a normal routine will get you, her pitching a hissey-fit.

:laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh:


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Painted front bumper. Could of prepped a hell of a lot more but at least it matches the other trim pieces. Not the last coat by the way lol.









Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2


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## Lishie (Feb 9, 2012)

I put on a new (pretty) shift knob, what was on her was aftermarket anyway, and ugly. Gave her a good bath, inside and out - we live in a swampy area of FL & with all the recent rain she was COVERED in mud! Also Removed the rear badge and started bedazzling it 

I've started collecting miscellaneous parts that she needed, mostly cosmetic stuff, but am waiting on all my shipments to come in before I start putting any of it on. A vent to replace a broken one, a replacement grill, a new tramp stamp, side mirror cover, etc. I need to order a new top & I found wheels I'm considering - I've really wanted VW ones since I bought the car but I'm having a hard time convincing myself I "need" something that isn't broken....


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## 87Cabriolet (May 9, 2009)

Today I stripped down my top. Removed the old top and padding, as well as most of the staples.

Tomorrow I get to finish grinding down staples, cleaning/patching the headliner, oiling the frame, and cleaning up all the seals/rails. Hopefully I get the padding done tomorrow as well.


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## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

87Cabriolet said:


> Today I stripped down my top. Removed the old top and padding, as well as most of the staples.
> 
> Tomorrow I get to finish grinding down staples, cleaning/patching the headliner, oiling the frame, and cleaning up all the seals/rails. Hopefully I get the padding done tomorrow as well.


Looking at doing this soon, how would you rate the "difficulty" level? Just seems a tad intimidating, but have a fresh new top chillin in storage...


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## tinker6468 (Feb 2, 2006)

I just made the payment to purchase my 5th Cabriolet - a 1993, 72,000 original miles in need of some TLC. Planning this one to be my final build. Total price so far, $550. Build thread to come


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## basketcase Etinne (Jun 22, 2013)

enjoyed a nice top down ride in 82 deg weather.

also bought some new headlights standard h6024's as the projector headlights i bought off fleabay look nice but the lighting is terrible. spent a whooping $8.88 apiece at wally world


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## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

tinker6468 said:


> I just made the payment to purchase my 5th Cabriolet - a 1993, 72,000 original miles in need of some TLC. Planning this one to be my final build. Total price so far, $550. Build thread to come


ya paid too much  j/k :thumbup::thumbup:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Sr. Karmann said:


> Looking at doing this soon, how would you rate the "difficulty" level? Just seems a tad intimidating, but have a fresh new top chillin in storage...


I've done a couple, and I'd rank it probably around a 6 or 7 in difficulty, and probably more like 9 in patience. :beer:


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## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

YJSAABMAN said:


> I've done a couple, and I'd rank it probably around a 6 or 7 in difficulty, and probably more like 9 in patience. :beer:


Cool :beer:


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## 87Cabriolet (May 9, 2009)

Sr. Karmann said:


> Looking at doing this soon, how would you rate the "difficulty" level? Just seems a tad intimidating, but have a fresh new top chillin in storage...


Can't really say just yet, all Ive done is strip all the old stuff off, which is easy. I am now waiting on a new headliner which I thought I didn't need but did. I think putting it back together won't be too bad based on the teardown, definitely will need a lot of patience. I think the rear cable will be the worst, not only because the nuts are "hidden" inside the trunk, but because you need to keep it lined up while tightening it.


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## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

87Cabriolet said:


> Can't really say just yet, all Ive done is strip all the old stuff off, which is easy. I am now waiting on a new headliner which I thought I didn't need but did. I think putting it back together won't be too bad based on the teardown, definitely will need a lot of patience. I think the rear cable will be the worst, not only because the nuts are "hidden" inside the trunk, but because you need to keep it lined up while tightening it.


Right on, please keep me posted on any noticeable snags, probably looking at doing mine in the next 2 months or so, got some paint to strip first :banghead:


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## bugsy98nb (Oct 31, 2003)

replaced my heater fan. what a PITA is was getting the old one out :banghead:. But now I have Heat again


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## paulx24x (Jun 24, 2010)

Replaced my water-pump the day before h2oi. Next on my list in arm controls, bushing, ball joints. Notch my frame. Rust and dent repair this winter and fresh paint. :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


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## Lishie (Feb 9, 2012)

Got the new tramp stamp & emblem on my cab today 









Am trying to get a new grill on but ran out of patience & am taking a break. Stupid JC Whitney part doesn't seem to want to line up right.

Bought new struts & shocks today, which it REALLY needs, but I'm not handy enough to even consider attempting to handle myself. Considering I bought spark plugs 2 years ago & am still waiting for my husband to install them, I may just find a shop to handle the suspension. (although I'm considering getting my big girl pants on & doing the spark plugs myself)


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## Mulligan81 (Oct 4, 2013)

New Ac/water pump belt, spark plugs, wires, cap, rotor.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Took a picture  


IMG_20131008_080244_802 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

And I reinstalled my rebuilt MSD 8980 timing computer and now I have a spark advance curve! Finally lol. And I put in new Magnecor KV85 spark plug wires.


IMG_20131008_172835_644 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

Where's the "like" button? :thumbup:


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Sr. Karmann said:


> Where's the "like" button? :thumbup:


Thank you sir! :beer:


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## Sr. Karmann (Feb 5, 2009)

dougkehl said:


> Thank you sir! :beer:


:beer:


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## kinggargantuan (Jun 4, 2011)

emergency gorilla-tape surgery, in a car wash bay during rain storm. 

i need a new top badly.


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## curtle (May 12, 2013)

*Shifter bushings*

Every single bushing was missing, so I replaced them with the deluxe kit. With help from tiny giants write up. Next I am going to get rid of my AC. And reinstall the interior. Replace both tie rods. Get an alignment, and new tires. Then it's just cosmetic stuff.


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## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

New steering wheel for frodo...


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

:laugh:


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## csrgti (Aug 18, 2009)

BerryB said:


> New steering wheel for frodo...


That looks Gigantic, you should have at least went with a smaller/sportier 3 spoke Porsche wheel.


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## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

wished i still had one or had the money for another one lol


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## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

csrgti said:


> That looks Gigantic, you should have at least went with a smaller/sportier 3 spoke Porsche wheel.


1: Its the same size as OEM
2: Its the same shape as a mk1 rabbit stock wheel (two spoke)
3: When you have no power steering on a daily driven car a larger steering wheel is beest.
4: I don't really like the "sporty" look...
5: I do what I want.


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## sdvolksGTi (Sep 17, 2007)

*Bought One*


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Removed my rear seat! I don't use that thing :laugh:


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## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> Took a picture
> 
> 
> IMG_20131008_080244_802 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
> ...


Gorgeous! I'm jealous of the msd and carbs. :beer:

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk


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## Stableboy (Jul 21, 2013)

Re wired my Fuel Injection Power relay to my fuel pump relay, by passing it completely due to the terminals being corroded. Now my fuel pump runs off the ignition, and I brought her back to life after not starting/running for almost a year. Previous owner really didnt know what he had..


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

mattchirhart said:


> Gorgeous! I'm jealous of the msd and carbs. :beer:
> 
> Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk


Thanks man!:beer:

It's been an awful lot of work that's for sure, but well worth it!

Here's a video just cause


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## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> Thanks man!:beer:
> 
> It's been an awful lot of work that's for sure, but well worth it!
> 
> Here's a video just cause


Incredible! :beer::beer: I'm working on my 88 cab now. Just got all my motor mounts, poly inserts and poly mounts and new manual steering rack. Poly everything! And ordering race lands this week.  

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

mattchirhart said:


> Incredible! :beer::beer: I'm working on my 88 cab now. Just got all my motor mounts, poly inserts and poly mounts and new manual steering rack. Poly everything! And ordering race lands this week.
> 
> Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk


Thank you! :beer::beer:

That's what I did. Poly everything! lol it added a bunch of vibration which can be rather annoying from time to time, but for the most part I don't mind it! What are you doing for an engine?

And yes manual steering ftw! :thumbup:


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Well, after replacing the shifter linkages, the main shift rod, upgraded the engine, trans and suspension mounts and bushings to poly, replaced the shocks, struts and front springs, welded the bumper shocks, installed a set of ignition wires, cap, rotor, and some killer Denso Iridium Power spark plugs, I tackled the 30 year old vacuum lines. Man, some of them were pretty crispy! After replcement, though, she runs like 'buttah'!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

rear ended a minivan (rental) in bumper to bumper traffic.. while distracted looking at a new cop car sitting next to us. lol 

crappy thing i didnt have insurance.. 

good thing.. no real damage.. should buff out 


crappy thing.. officer did an accident report (which according to NH DMV doesnt need to be done unless there is 1000 or more in damages.. so hopefully i can get that report taken off ) 


good thing.. got insurance when i got home and the accident wasnt on my record.. so i'm paid up for 6 months. lol 


really cool thing.. i had someone from thesamba who was going to buy an extra rear seat i have for the cabby.. turns out he has a complete front clip with lights.. So we're trading straight up.. 

my car:
https://scontent-b-lga.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc3/p480x480/1424482_645514978825871_709311335_n.jpg










the van


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## backinthegame (Dec 14, 2004)

Too bad you chose to be a trendy sheep instead of having a real bumper. Looks like you would have at worst had to replace a bumper.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

I actually did this a few days ago, but I put a new shift knob in... It's big and it feels like your shifting with a baseball bat :laugh:, but it's nice and close to my steering wheel so I get a nice quick shift 


IMG_20131031_160131_777 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


IMG_20131101_075459 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Looks like you're shifting with a beer tap!


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

flipty said:


> Looks like you're shifting with a beer tap!


It's almost at that point :laugh: But shifting is so nice. I move my hand like 5 inches from my wheel and on to the next gear it is!


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## Russellsvr (Jan 26, 2012)

*just bought a 92!*

Friend of mine had a 92 triple white cabby. Finally talked her into me buying it and i have alot of big plans!


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## VAGBADGER-AZ (Feb 16, 2013)

took a photo for the 1st time in a long time of my mk3.5 at work.

<a href="http://s1131.photobucket.com/user/lowdubgti/media/70477FC6-3BC5-495A-8DE2-E5FDB1E90D0A-6375-000007A87036ADDA_zpsa0f8a67c.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m554/lowdubgti/70477FC6-3BC5-495A-8DE2-E5FDB1E90D0A-6375-000007A87036ADDA_zpsa0f8a67c.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 70477FC6-3BC5-495A-8DE2-E5FDB1E90D0A-6375-000007A87036ADDA_zpsa0f8a67c.jpg"/></a>


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Managed to not kill my battery trying to start her up in the 35 degree temp this morning without working chokes on my carbs.. She didn't like that too much:laugh:


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## Russellsvr (Jan 26, 2012)

Started it let it warm up and then shut it off

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

i did this yesterday


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Fixed the denting on the front of my cabby from the little rear ending i did.











Here was the damage 









Sent from my C5155 using Tapatalk


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

My new in-tank fuel pump arrived yesterday so this weekend I see a fuel pump replacement in my plans. I didn't get the other pump, but I am sorta financially (and time constraint) forced to do one at a time.


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## 65comet (Oct 7, 2013)

*Ouch!*



lil_squeeker said:


> i did this yesterday


So, what'cha gonna do? Fully insured or just liability? Keeping it to try and fix, keeping it for parts or sending it on down the road and getting another one?


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## Russellsvr (Jan 26, 2012)

. Just picked this up needs a couple little things nothing crazy


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## lil_squeeker (Nov 17, 2003)

65comet said:


> So, what'cha gonna do? Fully insured or just liability? Keeping it to try and fix, keeping it for parts or sending it on down the road and getting another one?


other guys insurance is paying. not sure on the amount yet. but im getting it back to pull everything that is still good. hopefully i can find a good transplant vehicle.


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## b5d (Aug 5, 2006)

this week my cabby got, coilovers,ecodes ,new carpet,head gasket,teardrops. Its been a busy week

tinygiant good to see that grill worked out for you:thumbup:


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## adrian1.8T (Aug 16, 2008)

dougkehl said:


> IMG_20131031_160131_777 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


What steering wheel is that?!?


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

put it up for sale  

http://nh.craigslist.org/cto/4177588611.html


looking to get into a vw wagon. I want some more space. will sell or trade the cabby ..


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

adrian1.8T said:


> What steering wheel is that?!?


Nardi Classic Wood with black spokes 

Better picture:

IMG_20131112_155213_400 (1) by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Cleaned these suckas lol


IMG_20131107_162728_225 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

Got the lips looking like this again

IMG_5371 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

enkei apache v 2 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Wash, vac, and pics


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Replaced my in-tank fuel pump. Using the fabulous resources of this forum and cabby-info it took a grand total of about 15 minutes from wrenches-up to drive-around.


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## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

Good stuff

Scent fromme¿


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## JduberU (Nov 15, 2013)

*Worked on the body some more*


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## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> Nardi Classic Wood with black spokes
> 
> Better picture:
> 
> IMG_20131112_155213_400 (1) by dougkehl1, on Flickr


Is that a new Nardi wheel or did you find it in a different car?

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

mattchirhart said:


> Is that a new Nardi wheel or did you find it in a different car?
> 
> Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk


I found it in a different car. I was sure I wanted to find a used one because the wear gives it character, but more importantly at the time I didn't have $300+ dollars for a wheel lol


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Put some filters on the stacks!


IMG_20131202_155515_063 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Replaced the bulbs in the console gauges and instrument cluster with LED's, removed the green film from the clock and the cluster. Put in red LED's which look great. And finally got around to building my relayed headlight harness for my outers and inners. Alread have the E-codes and french inners, can't wait to put it in tonight and see the beautiful light they make!!! Pics to come. Thanks to Briano on the instructions on Cabby-Info and instructions for building my own harness. Took some work, but it is beautiful...in my eyes anyway.:laugh:


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## SPCBruce89 (May 10, 2013)

*snowed in*

clearned her off a week ago and put her away for the winter


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Here's some blurry pics of my new relay harness for my headlights. Camera phone does not do it justice, haha.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

rix337 said:


> Here's some blurry pics of my new relay harness for my headlights. Camera phone does not do it justice, haha.


Wow that's really nice! I did mine and I did a poor job, but I'll be fixing that this winter while she's in the garage. Hopefully my new harness will come out that nice! :thumbup:


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Thanks, Doug. I see you got some Hella Amber Inners on your other post. I got a set from 1stVwParts last year. I love the way they look too. Nice score!!


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Thanks, Doug. I see you got some Hella Amber Inners on your other post. I got a set from 1stVwParts last year. I love the way they look too. Nice score!!


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## martycox88 (Apr 10, 2013)

*LOTS*

All new stuff put on - control arms, new bushings, strut inserts, strut mounting hardware, rotors, ball joint, tie rod ends, and new to me but from a pick and pull down the street, strut bodies with springs. Had to go get them due to mine being nothing but rust; couldn't get any of the nuts loose, no matter what I tried. 

Took it for a spin just a bit ago and I can tell a difference. 

Thanks everyone on here for all the how-to's.:laugh:


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## topduko19 (Sep 29, 2003)

put silver guage faces on my mk3...
[URL="[/URL]


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## topduko19 (Sep 29, 2003)

Just cut my shifter 1.5" and it feels great...
Thanks Dan J Reed


----------



## RogueRabbit83 (Jan 29, 2011)

Sanded, primered, and painted the metal inner front bumper. Build is linked in my sig :thumbup:


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## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

Started here up and let her idle 

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

The same thing I've been doing all week: Starting her in netagive degree temperatures and driving her around like she's brand new.


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## EastTexasCabbie (Aug 17, 2013)

started teardown for failed head gasket.. yay me..

blown from number 4 to coolant and from 1-2 slight compression. no cracks or warping on the head so tomorrow i get to clean up and reassemble.

whomever did the last timing belt got the timing way off. I'm surprised it ran. the cam was a couple teeth off and the distributor was way off.


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Bought a brand new top, still in the box, that the seller never got around to putting on the car that she sold. $100. Yay me!


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Sweet Dragonwing. So you decided against the plastic window, or does this one you got have the plastic one?


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## Dragonwing (Dec 1, 2011)

Naw, this one is for the glass window. Since the plastic-window top is about $225, the 'angel of frugality' perched on my shoulder won that argument and saved me a few bucks.

DW


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## EastTexasCabbie (Aug 17, 2013)

finished the head gasket, running now temps seem to be normal and no weird noises went a lot smoother than anticipated thankfully. now i need to figure out the oil pressure issue.


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## dmclane (Aug 7, 2013)

i drove my cabby to miami today and didnt breakdown today was a good day


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## noahinla (Nov 17, 2013)

replace cracked interior light housing and bulb

the housing was $5.75 from autohausaz.com - part# 823947105B

the bulb was $4.75 superbrightleds.com part# 4410-NW9

very pleased with the upgrade


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## EastTexasCabbie (Aug 17, 2013)

wired a relay in to the radio ignition feed and the power feed to the headlight switch. now i can forget the headlight switch and they turn off when I take the key out like my wife's kia does.


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## colombia00vr6 (Oct 6, 2004)

*I got my new toy last weekend *


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

couple days ago something bad happened.. 


i was sitting at a light and pushed the clutch in. when it got to the floor I heared/felt a pop.. Now the clutch is really easy to push in.. 


Pushes in.. doesnt work enough to put anything into gear.. works enough to pull out of gear though. 

car creeps pretty good with car in gear and clutch in. 


internal clutch spring? pressure plate? throw out bearing? actuator finger? i guess we'll find out when i drop it off at the shop. 

Really wish it wasnt winter, really wish i had a garage, really wish it didnt happen in the first place. 


since i'e had the car when i am in 4th or 5th and if i wanted to really give the car some gas it would slip out of gear.. so it just might be that the clutch was on the way out. I have been driving it for two years (in april) and have no idea if either of the 2 previous owners i met had done the clutch.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tinygiant said:


> couple days ago something bad happened..
> 
> 
> i was sitting at a light and pushed the clutch in. when it got to the floor I heared/felt a pop.. Now the clutch is really easy to push in..
> ...


Before you go taking the trans out to inspect the clutch in the cold without a garage (I feel your pain there, I just obtained use to my garage this winter lol) check your pedal cluster. Sometimes the bracket that retains the clutch cable on the pedal cluster breaks and renders your clutch useless. This happened to me in literally the same scenario that you're describing. I was sitting at a light and I pushed it in and then I felt a pop and the clutch became very easy to push down and it didn't appear to work anymore.

It's just a thought, but if that turned out to be the problem it would certainly be better than taking the trans out. Good luck :thumbup::beer:


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## xdevilx (Mar 3, 2008)

some stupid experiments :screwy:














































make some updates from a 96´s VR6 Highline


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## mk1scott (Jun 24, 2002)

Started the engine swap (still in the engine prepping stage). AWP 20v Turbo for the mk1.


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## seattlemariners (Jan 15, 2013)

Installed a TT Magnaflow cat-back system on the rabbit. :snowcool: Sounds great!!


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## Jesst0sterone (Sep 23, 2013)

quibe said:


> Gave her a good spring cleaning!!!
> 
> 
> Untitled by E Sqrd, on Flickr




is that lowered or are the rims just big?


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## mad dub (Sep 5, 2006)

Got my Xmas presents on-time. Funny thing is, I didn't even buy a cabby yet lol. Ironically, all I've been doing is shopping for a car I haven't even taking possession of yet haha.

However the seller graciously offered to store the car until Spring for me, seeing as I don't have a garage...yet. I just sold my air-ride MK5 with BBS RS's and am now venturing into the MK1/Cabby World. 

Any advice on installation? I read about removing bump stops? She's currently on 14" Le Castellets and I also just bought some Estorils for her. I also need help with tire profile for the Estorils once I lower her...


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## BerryB (Jul 10, 2012)

heh…



Got into an accident and had some fun replacing it before paint to cheer me up.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Wet sanding for the 2nd day.. man my arms are sore lol













mad dub said:


> Any advice on installation? I read about removing bump stops? She's currently on 14" Le Castellets and I also just bought some Estorils for her. I also need help with tire profile for the Estorils once I lower her...


Don't worry about the bump stops on 15's unless your wheels will tuck because the tires will hit the fender before the bump stops do anything...
The car in the pic is on 15x8 with 195/50's, and racelands. The coils are as high as they go in the pic!


Sent from my MB886 using Tapatalk


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

dropped it off at Das Auto to see whats going on with it.. pedal assembly seemed fine. so i'm guessing its the clutch.. it has been slippy for a while now.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

BoostedOne said:


>


Wow that thing looks awesome! Really diggin the color and the wheels are perfect too :thumbup::beer:


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Thanks! Got it all wet sanded and buffed, and put the side trim back on last night. Really needs a black top and interior too. 
I actually bought the car in mid September, and did it as a surprise Christmas present for my parents. They will be here in about 4 hours. It stunk to go over their house empty handed for Christmas with the excuse that their gift was delayed in shipping somewhere haha.
I feel like a one man Overhaulin episode lol. Once I get some sleep, will do a build thread.

Here's what it started out like


















Sent from my MB886 using Tapatalk


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## GroceryGetter82 (Apr 6, 2012)

BoostedOne said:


> Wet sanding for the 2nd day.. man my arms are sore lol


Makes me want to build another one. :thumbup:


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Heated my side vents  took some time, but now they blow warm air; worth every second of work put in


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## Lishie (Feb 9, 2012)

My poor cabbie has been parked for almost a month, putting me in a foul mood. She finally got new struts, spark plugs and wires this weekend. I test drove her today and yay! She's back on the road! To celebrate I got her a new steering wheel cover (with rhinestones) and a new sparkly cigarette lighter - because she can never have enough bling! I found VW wheels on Craigslist this am too, so I'm hoping to grab those for her also, I've wanted to put stock wheels on her for a long time...


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

ordered a new clutch and install kit. 

friend is picking up a used tranny this weekend and installing it for me . 


he's also going to do the passenger side brake shoes since i havent been able to get around to doing those. 

if he has time he is going to do the main shift bushing too. 


should feel like a new car when i get it back!


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Replaced my battery this morning. 3 years old and cranking a lot did it in with this extended run of ultra-low temps.


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Finally jacked the car up to pull the cover off and have a look-see:










:facepalm:

Also shined the flashlight up at the trans to see fluid dripping from it.


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## noahinla (Nov 17, 2013)

new shoes...


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## Russellsvr (Jan 26, 2012)

Started pulling my motor going to respray the bay take care of some rust and paint the block do all the gaskets and a header while its out clean up all the bs the previous owner ****ed up :banghead:almost out will be all done tomorrow


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## noahinla (Nov 17, 2013)

rented a Rug Doctor from the grocery store and shampooed all the butt juice the previous owner left behind.


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## cabbievr6 (Aug 18, 2009)

Finally got my wheels put on. need to sort out ride height, and get some hub centric rings for the fronts. 
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/12014431574/" title="Untitled by DPAutoHaus, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3825/12014431574_91ddba2920_z.jpg" width="640" height="480" alt="Untitled"></a>


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## Russellsvr (Jan 26, 2012)

Looks good!

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk


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## mk1scott (Jun 24, 2002)

Bought another one! Don't have any pics though :banghead: Going to need some leads on a mk3.5 passenger side front fender...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

flying_oliver said:


> Heated my side vents  took some time, but now they blow warm air; worth every second of work put in


One of the best mods I ever did to mine! 

Speaking of, I think I moved around some of the crap piled on top of it in the garage? :laugh: I have a problem...5 cars is definitely too many when 2 are full blown projects, 1 needs some maintenance to be road worthy, and 1 is broken. And that doesn't include her 2 cars! No wonder I drink so much :beer::beer:


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Finsihed up the building of a mandrel bent 2 1/4" exhaust for the 89 I built for the parents. It replaced a ghetto'd 1.75/2/2.25" setup..
Installation and maintaining will be nice since its all v-band clamped.




























I especially like this weld on the old one...









Why do so many people not take any pride in their work and halfass stuff so bad?


I also picked up my own cabby on Thursday night. 2nd owner car. Bought it from a couple who had it since 1992, and it hasn't been driven since 1998 when the auto trans crapped out. Its like a time machine.











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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

swapped in a 9a tranny + install kit
New Clutch
new drivers side CV axel
new brake shoes
New brake pads
Resurfaced Rotors
New Main shift rod bushing
Aligned Shifter 


have a new oil pressure switch to put in tomorrow and a new lower flange for the coolant since mine is a little leaky. 


still want to find out how to allow my gas to fill up at normal speed at the pump.. if i pump to quick it shoots back at me..


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## RW (Mar 21, 2008)

I pimped it!!!

http://s1203.photobucket.com/user/royalty1fun/library/Mobile Uploads


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Started to hang the exhaust back under it with a new borla and an extra o2 bung in the hopes of getting a wideband.


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## colombia00vr6 (Oct 6, 2004)

*new wheels*

new shoes! next coilovers :thumbup:


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Drove her for the last time with the original, falling-apart roof... 










...down to the top replacement shop for a new roof to be installed and, hopefully, the driver's seat back to be repaired.


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## noahinla (Nov 17, 2013)

kamzcab86 said:


> ...down to the top replacement shop for a new roof to be installed and, hopefully, the driver's seat back to be repaired.


you sticking with white or switching to black?


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

$20 says she keeps it white.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

colombia00vr6 said:


> new shoes! next coilovers :thumbup:


Man those ats's look great on there!!

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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

noahinla said:


> you sticking with white or switching to black?





flying_oliver said:


> $20 says she keeps it white.


$20 is yours. 

Yes, keeping it white. Someday she'll return to her stock glory (white USA bumpers, white flares, white Zandvoort wheels, no GTI stripes), so she'll be keeping her top white. :beer:


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Dang, Kam... if I'd known (granted it's been 8 months) I would have gladly sent you my entire seat back assemblies. Same apholstery and color, etc. I ended up throwing them away


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

flipty said:


> Dang, Kam... if I'd known (granted it's been 8 months) I would have gladly sent you my entire seat back assemblies. Same apholstery and color, etc. I ended up throwing them away


Aww, bummer! Yeah, probably could've used them! The problem with mine is that the main vertical wire broke clean in two where the spring attaches (I've been driving around without any lumbar support for years... quite uncomfortable!); it broke somewhere else too, but can't remember where. The right-hand seat release wire broke as well recently (I could fix that myself, but as long as the shop is fixing the other part...). They said that if need be they'd raid their old used seats stash, or a local VW junkyard.


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## colombia00vr6 (Oct 6, 2004)

thank you man! :thumbup: they're STR RACING wheels 



BoostedOne said:


> Man those ats's look great on there!!
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Dangit, I had two perfectly functional front seats that ended up in a dumpster because they sat in my garage for too long. Now I've got a new(er) passenger seat with a snapped cable and a non-functioning tilt-wheel... but I'm going to attempt to fix it. If I were in AZ I'd trade ya my warm start problem for fixing your seats  I seem to be good at interior stuff.


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## LAYINLOW (Sep 17, 2006)

A lot of tearing down and now rebuilding thanks to Bambi. New shoes ordered and on their way. coils already installed for the new year and stance


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## thumper1981 (Sep 13, 2010)

just picked up an 87 for 500. rust free and super clean. its been of the road for 3 years because the owner thought the fuel pump went bad. i swapped the horn fuse for the the fuel pump and it almost started! im gonna replace both of them anyways when i drop the tank because im sure its nasty.



after my wife cleaned the interior.


only part that sucks is its auto.


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## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

thumper1981 said:


> just picked up an 87 for 500. rust free and super clean. its been of the road for 3 years because the owner thought the fuel pump went bad. i swapped the horn fuse for the the fuel pump and it almost started! im gonna replace both of them anyways when i drop the tank because im sure its nasty.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Dont drop the tank for the pump, if your only replacing the pump pop the rear lower seat out










Broke_dubbin


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## GruuvenNorth (Dec 13, 2006)

Got me a scirocco K bar and a TT shifter bushing kit

I have coilovers...will I notice a difference with the K bar?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

GruuvenNorth said:


> Got me a scirocco K bar and a TT shifter bushing kit
> 
> I have coilovers...will I notice a difference with the K bar?


I'm sure you will notice some difference with the K-bar. I have a Neuspeed lower chassis brace (had it in there since I've been the owner) and my car always felt good once I installed coilovers, then when I installed a Neuspeed strut tower bar I really noticed a difference.

Today I got my header back on and now I'm waiting on oil squirters so I can install my new oil pump and get my oil pan back on!


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

I changed out My overhead light and Lic plate lights to LED panels that I had kicking around... Huge difference.


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## GruuvenNorth (Dec 13, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> I'm sure you will notice some difference with the K-bar. I have a Neuspeed lower chassis brace (had it in there since I've been the owner) and my car always felt good once I installed coilovers, then when I installed a Neuspeed strut tower bar I really noticed a difference.
> 
> Today I got my header back on and now I'm waiting on oil squirters so I can install my new oil pump and get my oil pan back on!


Nice! thanks for the details. 

I got these in the beginning of winter...took a while to find a matching set!:


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## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

GruuvenNorth said:


> Nice! thanks for the details.
> 
> I got these in the beginning of winter...took a while to find a matching set!:


Sick where did you get them?


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## thumper1981 (Sep 13, 2010)

riotbeast said:


> Dont drop the tank for the pump, if your only replacing the pump pop the rear lower seat out
> 
> 
> 
> I have to drop the tank because its been sitting for 3 years with a quarter tank of gas in it. I dont wanna ruin my brand new fuel pumps for not doing it the right way first.


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## GruuvenNorth (Dec 13, 2006)

Sean A said:


> Sick where did you get them?


Many vortex classified searches. one set was from the east coats and the other was from the west. :laugh:


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Well, I replaced the center vent foam, and does driving it topless today count?

lolololololololllllll.


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Yep, finally a good day to drop the top...

Briano, are you going to the Cruise the Coop in Dallas on Saturday? Hope to see you there...it's at Paulding Meadows Park off Hwy 61 about a mile north of downtown Dallas.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Fixed the cooling fan (bad relay) Fixed the heater blower motor (bad fuse) and added a Carbon Fiber steering wheel (need a VW horn button) and finally gave it a bit of an interior detail.


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## codyeugenebryan (Jul 16, 2013)

*3/24/14*

Replaced plugs and wires in my 91 Cabriolet. It runs SOO much better! I am fairly confident I'm getting much better mileage as well! If the weather would only shape up a bit more I'd have the top down. I've never had a convertible before and I'm incredibly glad I got this car. This will be the first and last winter this California car will have seen. BTW, could someone put together a list of things to replace/inspect, assuming nothing has been maintained this whole time? The car is at 165k and is holding compression well. 

I've recently:
*Changed oil/filger
*Replaced air filter

I am going to:
*Replace struts (leans pretty hard around the circular highway on/off-ramps)
*Replace Radiator and all cooling hoses (radiator has slight leak on the top left radiator mount brazing)
*Replace the valve cover gasket - Doesn't use much if any oil but the engine is pretty oily and I may as well start somewhere
*Replace the convertible top (not sure if I'm going to an upholstery shop or doing it myself yet)

<a href="http://imgur.com/On5wjW2" title="Mobile Upload"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/On5wjW2.jpg" title="Hosted by imgur.com" alt="Mobile Upload"/></a>


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## 1ABrian (Sep 12, 2012)

tacked in the hoop. Making rear supports tonight.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Adjusted my mixture screw, leaned it out a little.


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## Vosty3 (Aug 11, 2011)

Today I ordered new OEM Emblems from Greece for the decklid not sure why but these seem to be harder to find as of late. 









Within a week the wifeys cab should be back on the road just in time for summer. 
(Had a few tweaks going on over winter)
-Gauge Cluster Rebuilt
-3rd Transmission installed sense our ownership (If this rebuilt tranny goes bad I will sell her cab!!! :thumbdown
-Reworked Suspension. Coil-overs & Camber kit
-New wheels/tires Enkei Apache 2's 
-Neuspeed Throttle body
-General Wiring issues
+More 

Summer 2013


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

today I ordered a large duckbill for the cabby.. I used to have one on the car but sold it last summer after getting tired of it scraping the ground.. i've since brought he car up a tiny bit and really miss the look of it.. I figured with spring around the corner its probably safe to toss one on in a week or so. 

to inspect i'm going need exhaust work. 

my landscaping business will be sold on friday so next week i will have some money to put into the car to get it inspected for another year.. 

any recommendations on a nice sounding not too expensive exhaust? i dont want something ungodly loud,, but a nice low sounding hum would be nice.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

1ABrian said:


> tacked in the hoop. Making rear supports tonight.


Loving this! :thumbup::thumbup:


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Pulled the amp and sub from My XR4Ti that I'm sellin tomorrow and put it in My Cabby.... Took up more than 1/2 the trunk and I had to install it through the back seat ... Sounds good


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Vosty3 said:


> -3rd Transmission installed sense our ownership (If this rebuilt tranny goes bad I will sell her cab!!! :thumbdown


 Your cab looks sweet but why so many trannies?? If they aren't beaten or ran with out gear oil the 5 speeds last forever. 


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Few months ago I picked up my next cabby project.. since then its mainly been sitting because I have had other things to work on...










Its an 87.. bought not from the original owner but the people have owned it since 1991 and it has been off the road since 1998 due to a dead automatic. They finally decided to put it up for sale although the woman about cried when I picked it up. Due to only 11 years of use its in really good shape and pretty unmolested. Plan is a clipper, respray, and a modern engine. Not sure if it will be a mk4 2.0, 1.8t or a vr just yet...

Anyhow fast forward to Wednesday. Buddy works at a wrecking yard and I asked if they got any VWs. He said yeah some newer jettas and an old rabbit. I go over to look at the rabbit and it's a 90 cab! Pretty complete except they sold the ac compressor off it.. I open the hood and notice the engine is on an extreme angle lower on the driver side.. tore up rear tranny mount... 
Looking at all the parts that are on the car I need plus my girlfriend wants a cabby dash for her caddy I decide to throw out a number on the whole car. I guess I was a little generous because the yard owner immediately said "ok!" Lol... he goes to give me the paperwork so I will be able to take the shell to the scrap yard and turns out it still has a clean title! He said it runs but the people junked it because a tranny shop told them it needs a new 1500$ transmission. 

So I threw a battery in it last night and limped it in the shop. 

Sure enough someone did a clutch on it at some point and was either a 75lb weakling or they didnt own any decent tools. Of the two bolts that hold the tranny mount to the trans the front one fell out completely, and the rear one the nut fell off and the bolt was about to fall out.... after this happened the rear mount and front mount failed in a bad way. 









As I am lying under the car putting the last mount in I notice a 1/4 inch gap between the engine and trans!!! The ONLY bellhouing bolts left were the two starter bolts and the top one in the front that does the ground strap and they were all loose! Both back bolts fell out!!!

If this used to be your car(was registered in PA intil it was junked here in florida in fall 2013), you need another mechanic.. because the one who did this work is a plumb idiot! Lol... 










Now the car runs fine. Tranny fine. Clutch fine. With the clean title, it left me in a predicament. Do the red car or the white one??? Its about a shame to bust it up for parts

After consideration I think the red one won out... it has a story and a previous long term owner so I would rather save the red one even if its more work.



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## csrgti (Aug 18, 2009)

Don't ruin it just for parts, pull the clipper kit , then sell it . Take the money you made and buy a mk3 or mk4 for the engine swap.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

You had me thinking there for a minute.... 
But around here the clippers fetch a mint if they are in perfect shape. But if they are projects you cant give em away. So by the time I pull the parts off it I need its barely going to be worth its scrap value. If you look at the give away car in my sig file I got that car for 450$ including a hardcover bentley manual. 
Not to mention that if I try to retain the white one as a runner then it leaves me with running all over creation trying to get parts from wreckers.. in Florida the mk1 community is pretty small... central pa guys are spoiled...

So if I pull the clipper the car is worth like 200... it has a pillar rust, which is not a killer but does hurt the value. And several hundred in acquiring the other parts we still need peice meal...

On the other hand if I do bust it for parts and take what I need, I can put up the rest on the classifieds and help out others trying to keep their cars on the road as well since all those parts got to come from somewhere. I will say when I was building the yellow cab there were parts on this car I would have loved to see someone selling at the time. 

If the stories were reversed and the red one was from the wrecker and the white one was from a loving family the decision would be different since I have about the same $$ in each one. 
Saving them both doesn't make sense for me.. down here a non clipper cab in primo shape is a 2500 car. It needs very minor body work but a full paint job, its an auto with a bad tranny.. runs on ether but the main pump is locked up so it wont run on the tank and unless I put a cis pump in it I have no idea the condition of the cis unit...then it needs a top and some minor interior work but it all adds up to if someone else owned the car and asked me to simply paint it I wouldnt do if for less than 2 grand... 

So I guess if I just part the white one for the parts I need then offer up the rest of EVERYTHING thats useful it helps me and the mk1 cab community. 

The good thing is I live on 10 acres so I dont have to rush the part out... so if it takes a while for parts to get to people that need them no problem. One thing for sure is I won't send anything that someone could need to the shredder. 

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## csrgti (Aug 18, 2009)

Beleive it or not I run across at least 1 Cabriolet in every junk yard I go to in Orlando, not that they nescarily have any usable parts in them, but I do see full clipper kits wasting away ( couldn't find one to save my life when I wanted one though) 
I do envy you for having the room to keep a parts car my neighborhood comunity Nazis won't allow it.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

What yards you go to?
I usually do LKQ Orlando and Daytona, and Pick A Part when I can.. Pick A Part is the best bet for Mk1 and 2 parts, but still pretty lousy. I miss the 90's in a lot of respects LOL...
I haven't seen a Mk1 in LKQ Orlando since Fall 2012.. And they had 2.. There might still be a Mk1 in the Daytona yard(was one there a month ago), but man, that thing is gnarly... when I saw it, I thought it was a neglected Rabbit Convertible from like 82(all the clipper kit was gone) because of all the nastyness and rust all over everything.. Then I noticed the remnants of the black window trim and was like "wow".. i think I got an A-pillar plastic. Nothing else on the entire thing was worth taking off, even if it was free day..100mm knuckles would have been nice if they wouldn't have taken 2 hours in a bead blaster to make presentable. It was so rusty I think even the A-arms had holes in them... 
Havent been down to Pick A Part in a while. Last I was there they had a white 86. I went to town on what was left of that. It had a ton of parts I needed for the yellow car.


----------



## GruuvenNorth (Dec 13, 2006)

Threw in some MK2 GTX Rearos in it. The coulour is way off (brown interior, grey seats) but maaaaaaaannnn they be comfy!


----------



## csrgti (Aug 18, 2009)

Havnt been out to LKQ in a while 
Saw this today at Budget U pull it in Winter Garden 
[URL="[/URL]


----------



## mk1scott (Jun 24, 2002)

Wanna grab me one of those Karmann badges?


----------



## csrgti (Aug 18, 2009)

Sure If they're still there when I go out there again.


----------



## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

It kills me to see perfectly good resto candidates parted out. 



BoostedOne said:


> There might still be a Mk1 in the Daytona yard(was one there a month ago...
> Havent been down to Pick A Part in a while. Last I was there they had a white 86.





csrgti said:


> Havnt been out to LKQ in a while
> Saw this today at Budget U pull it in Winter Garden
> [pic]


VINs, people! Give me the VINs of these yard finds, please! 
http://www.cabby-info.com/Registry/registry.htm :wave:


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Installed new front speakers.... still had the original 1988 magnets in the doors(cones had disinegrated) and of course new wires had to be run as the old ones were broken in a few places... So a 1/2 hour job turned into a 2 hour job

Also swapped in some new plug leads... runs much better (the PO had the wrong ones on it)


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Workin on gettin the clipper kit on!



















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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Bought Me some new wheels for My Cabby.... Genuine Center Lines... 15x8 +35 And some decent 205/50/15 tires too boot... SOOOOPER ChEEEP.... Let the polishing begin


Before...




Just about done...


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Adjusted my air/fuel mixture and idle to proper settings. FINALLY.

If I had a helper for encouragement I'd have done my front struts too, but that'll wait until later this week, as well as an oil change and air filter swap.


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Trip to junk yard because I saw they had an 87 cab and a 82 rabbit on the inventory. The rabbit was so nasty I didn't want to touch it. There was nothing not broken or rusted through left except a non ac airbox and I wasnt going to brave the layer of rat poop for it...

On the cab I noticed it had good door handles and it had opening vent windows with moderately soft seals. After taking a few screws off I looked at the price list and just decided to just pull the entire pair of doors. They are rust free and mostly straight. They would have got me for about 80 bucks on the handles and vents anyhow.. complete they were a little more but I didn't have to spend 2 hours stripping them in the yard..
Cool thing was they also came with a set of poorly placed, older MB Quart seperates from back when Quart was top notch...










Also got the carpet, some dash vents, and a nice pair of visors. Woot! 

Lasty I got a motor mount bracket for a mk3 2.0... thankfully it was just laying on the ground. Going to use it to determine how to fab motor mounts for a VR... torn between a 2.0L AEG, 2.0L 16v, or a VR on the 87 project. 

Oh yeah for Kam, according to the sticker on the door, the vin on the junkyard car was wvwca0154hk000619

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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Way to go Boostedone! You're a real inspiration!


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

After a quick polish...... :toothy:


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

flipty said:


> Way to go Boostedone! You're a real inspiration!


Haha. Thanks. Was starting to actually do some body work tonight and fill the turn signal holes. 










I got precisely tha far and the fan motor locked up on the welder.. dang it. 










Over the weekend I did get things stripped down. 










I want to get the body mods done, fix the dings, then blast the minor rust spots and get the exterior in epoxy primer this week.

I should really get a build thread started too...


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Welded up the rear marker light hole, and worked the warpage back out...










The style I am going for with this car is 1990's German.. Clean lines..grille spoiler... Good color but not silly(Thinking silver with a lot of clear at the moment).. Smallish but wide wheels with a lot of dish..

Over the past few days I have been thinking part of that look is the single wiper.. when many do it they just plug the hole on the drivers side.. im going to smooth that as I always did(but haven't done in almost 10 years).. but this time I am going to step it up a notch and center the right side..










After finding true center it was time for the point of no return...

Time to get'r done...










Time to get'r done...

Gotter done..










The 2.75 to the right on the tape is to let me know later how much I need to shorten the wiper motor...

After some grinding...



















Now its time to enjoy a few of these...










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## basketcase Etinne (Jun 22, 2013)

Finally finished the front end rebuild on my 91 EA aka crabby cabby, and took for an alignment. She is smooth now, but like all old cars there's is always one more thing to do.


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Replaced my strut tower assemblies. Rides like a dream but NEEEEEDS an alignment now. Guess I'll be doing that and a tire rotation over the weekend.

Also figured out why my wiper fluid was not working. Hose worked its way into the old strut tower bearing and got torn to shreds.


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## cabbievr6 (Aug 18, 2009)

Went for a drive......


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I recently bought a plotter and can cut custom stickers. I have white and grey vinyl. And have a bunch of these mki stickers made up. If anyone is interested I can do like $5 shipped for one or 8$ shipped for two  


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Finally finished my fuel pump swap. Next up is to try and isolate the water leak. Tie rod ends arrived. Will be doing ball joints and tie rod ends as soon as gather up the gumption to afford axles and steering rack.


----------



## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

lower and added rims.

is this thing on?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Kinda hard to see in this picture because of the lighting, but I finally made an air box of sorts to keep air flow to my velocity stack consistent and free of water in the rain :thumbup:

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14003195961" title="IMG_20140424_175644_683 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7173/14003195961_6cac5dc218_h.jpg" width="1600" height="900" alt="IMG_20140424_175644_683"></a>


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

finally got the exhaust fixed, Just need to install the reverse switch now and it should inspect again. 

i also grabbed the cabby a 99 Passat Sister.. 1.8t 2.5" exhaust.. sounds nasty, pulls nicely


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Just finally put in the reverse switch too. Original tranny had the two prong and the 9a I tossed in had the big plug. Idk why I waited so long to do it. Super easy


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Sorted a rough running cold start issue... A disconnected vacuum line running into the drivers fender... Reconnected and runs way smoother... Also cleaned out the rain tray and "stitched" the plastic cover back into one piece... Musta been 1/2 a pound of crap in each side... used a stick to clear the rubber drains as they were packed solid... Added a "billet" gas cap too


----------



## DubbinMkII (Jul 8, 2002)

Just ordered 60mm studs from ECS, a MOMO hub adapter to put my old Personal wheel on, and some Lamin-x film for the headlights.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Washed it, Clay Barred it (prolly the 1st time it has ever been done) and gave it a quick wax.. Looks loads better


----------



## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Went from this









To this


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## Corrado_VR6 (Jan 16, 2002)

Finished the rears.....










:beer:


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Sanded. Alot. Its safe to say I will be blowing tornado red boogies for a few days. .









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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

replaced the accessory belt.. old one was a little loose on the way to dustoff and got chewed up.. new one is in and its proper tight.. cranking more volts now.. lol


----------



## thumper1981 (Sep 13, 2010)

got the coilovers and wheels on today.



crazy stretch


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Wheels look pretty good. What are they?

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## thumper1981 (Sep 13, 2010)

felgenwerks modern rs 15x8 et20

tires are 165/45


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Got my new shift knob in. Decided the wooden one I had in there was kinda uncomfortable, this one is much nicer in my hand.

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14118860241" title="IMG_20140506_070838_092 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7356/14118860241_4ca87b6ab7_b.jpg" width="576" height="1024" alt="IMG_20140506_070838_092"></a>


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

changed the accessory belt the other day.. mine got pretty chewed up.. 

tomorrow its and oil change an inspection sticker! 



ps.. vote for me over on the VWVortex facebook page for the top banner image  



toss me a vote! 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/VEE.DUB.VORTEX/permalink/10152438573327022/?qa_ref=pp


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## theMBV (Nov 15, 2009)

Charged up the battery, tested alternator, all working good. 

Pulled of 13" steelies, sanded off all the crap and rust, painted them black. Actually looks much better. Now just to find enough clips to attach the center caps again.
While it was on jacks threw on a duckbill and a Eurosport subframe brace.

Just seafoamed the gas, oil, and intake (yay smoke show). Nice to be driving her again.


----------



## allroad (Jun 27, 2010)

dougkehl said:


> Got my new shift knob in. Decided the wooden one I had in there was kinda uncomfortable, this one is much nicer in my hand.
> 
> <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14118860241" title="IMG_20140506_070838_092 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7356/14118860241_4ca87b6ab7_b.jpg" width="576" height="1024" alt="IMG_20140506_070838_092"></a>


Quaife? Those are the best, man. I had some replicas made up in black nylon.

---

Replaced the coilpack on the VR6 Cabrio. Total and catastrophic internal failure.


Edit: drunk post spelling.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Replaced the transmission mount on My 88 cabby.... What a difference... Also "rolled" the rear fenders and hammered bac the sheet metal in the front wheel well.... PO musta been lazy or something doing work on the trans, He hammered the metal out of the way instead of using the proper tool.... Every time I turned hard to the right the tire caught .... A few good wacks with a BFG and good to go


----------



## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

On my brothers cabby some poop head just cut inner wheel well metal away to get the trans out for a clutch job :what:


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## keganater (Apr 29, 2008)

Drove it  :thumbup:


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

allroad said:


> Quaife? Those the best, man. I had some replicas make up in black nylon.
> 
> ---
> 
> Replaced the coilpack on the VR6 Cabrio. Total and catastrophic internal failure.


Quaife indeed :thumbup: I have to agree, this knob has a great feeling in your hand.


----------



## Vosty3 (Aug 11, 2011)

New wheels on then washed it for the wife. :thumbup: Ready for summer now.


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## [email protected] (Apr 18, 2006)

Car was showing very low oil pressure after warmup which was odd as I have the upgraded oil pump installed, ended up being the oil pressure sender (the one on the side of the head), replaced it and all is good again much to my relief.


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

[email protected] said:


> Car was showing very low oil pressure after warmup which was odd as I have the upgraded oil pump installed, ended up being the oil pressure sender (the one on the side of the head), replaced it and all is good again much to my relief.


Lol... I basically replaced an engine last year, 75% for that reason. I bought a diesel of unknown history(but seller said it was good) for my caddy and used it for about 6 months.. The gauge read low and the oil pressure buzzer was always going off at idle. New oil pump same thing. New rod bearings since they are easy.. same thing.. came across a brand new(not rebuilt) never fired 1.9L crate engine for less than I could rebuild my 1.6 and swapped them.. Still low oil pressure and buzzer lol.. installed a mechanical auto meter gauge to replace my tired vdo and whattya know, oil pressure is 20 psi even at a hot idle.
Atleast we know my girlfriend will have a good 1.6 for her caddy when it is time to install the engine lol...

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## xivwix (Jan 29, 2004)

*Few little upgrades...*

Before



After : )


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Bought the basecoat










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## paulx24x (Jun 24, 2010)

Replaced a breakline hose, hooked some pcv up and replaced the oil cooking hose


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

replaced the power steering pump. gotta grab a couple bolts at work monday to get it finished and find the correct belt. then i can finally get the inspection sticker.. hate not being able to tool around in the cabby when its sunny and warm!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Replaced the broken dizzy with a spare unit, after making a Franken-tranny earlier in the week. Oh it is nice to drive a Cabby again....


----------



## TheyCallMeBobv2 (Sep 7, 2012)

Sold it! Off to a very good home. Now I might actually find out if it coulda been a show winner. I'll be back down the road!


----------



## bob21115 (Jul 28, 2008)

Wash Wax and Cleaned the top


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## Legoguy (Sep 18, 2002)

xivwix said:


> Before
> 
> 
> 
> After : )


What's this, a Canadian "Golf Cabriolet" in NJ? Usually they go the other way! :thumbup:


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Got all the bits and pieces back in after rebuilding the tranny 

Took it for a test drive 

Blew a heater hose :banghead:


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Put in a liquid filled fuel pressure gauge that actually works so I don't flood the crap out of my carbs :thumbup:

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14038839537" title="IMG_20140519_175546_048 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5544/14038839537_b6c1445e68_c.jpg" width="800" height="450" alt="IMG_20140519_175546_048"></a>


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Replaced the oil pan, plug, and gasket.

Was a bit of a pain but only because I get physically ill when lying on my back with my head flat for too long.

Put 20w50 oil in, and POW, my pressure is fantastic now.


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## =CC= (Mar 15, 2014)

Replaced alternator belt. Then started it....for the first time in 2 years!!! She fired right up, all rumbly and diesel smoky goodness. 

Looking forward to getting new tires and an exhaust.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Changed all My instrument lights to blue LED's.... Hope it looks good... will post pics later


----------



## Corrado_VR6 (Jan 16, 2002)

Finally put the flares on and gave her a nice bath


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## QA2 (Feb 28, 2012)

*Cruise Control*

Fixed the cruise control on the cabby today!! Still have to get the cold start issue resolved....


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Swapped Blue LED's into the instrument lights..... No pics of the dash though


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Primered and installed My new to Me KAMEI Hood Scoop.... Waiting to find a paint match for it


----------



## sourkraut2010 (Jul 28, 2011)

put new wheels on my cabby....


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## duffyeliza (Dec 3, 2007)

After watching a zillion videos and staring at my Bentley manual, I finally bucked up: new spark plugs (that second one took FOR-EV-ER), wires, & distributor cap/rotor, air filter, fuel filter...Felt pretty darn good when I was finished. Not too bad for my first time! (I think) 

New downpipe arrived (yeeeahh..not putting that in solo), ignition coil is ready to go in as soon as the rain lets up, and think I found an intake boot in the classified forum (yay! no more duct tape!) -- all in all a pretty nice week for Cabby!

Wish my all-girls' high school had offered auto shop. I could have learned how to do this years ago! Better late than never. 

Now if only the re-upholstery fairy would show up and fix my front seats. Dang confetti pattern. Add it to the list...


----------



## basketcase Etinne (Jun 22, 2013)

Stuck some air cooled karmann badges on my EA, they came all the way from England.







I like, plus even though the originals are beat hell I still have them if I change my mind


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Scored this for $30









What am I missing here?









and what do the big front straps attach to?


----------



## TDIMK6 (Nov 26, 2012)

fixed the front run signal now both lights come on with the headlights.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

MOBOZO said:


> What am I missing here?
> 
> and what do the big front straps attach to?


Im curious to know too. While building the 89 I managed to come across 3 covers. When I finished I tried installing them. Never did figure out how to install any of them where they looked right and didn't inflate like a bounce house going down the road...
On the other hand there was only about 3 weeks after the top frame was installed to finish every single detail on the car and ensure it was a reliable driver for my parents, so I admit I didn't try too hard.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

basketcase Etinne said:


> Stuck some air cooled karmann badges on my EA, they came all the way from England.


Hmmm. Although I am debadging my cabby and shaving a bunch of stuff, I think thats pretty cool and might see myself adding those. I like it.

Why did you have a set from the UK sent? Something different about the ones in the US? Or did you just find a set for cheap over there and shipping wasnt too bad on something so small? 


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## basketcase Etinne (Jun 22, 2013)

BoostedOne said:


> Hmmm. Although I am debadging my cabby and shaving a bunch of stuff, I think thats pretty cool and might see myself adding those. I like it.
> 
> Why did you have a set from the UK sent? Something different about the ones in the US? Or did you just find a set for cheap over there and shipping wasnt too bad on something so small?
> 
> ...


It's the only ones I liked on ebay, they come in brushed silver to. It was like less than $20 with shipping, the original referbished ones go for $30 or more and even the old beat up original ones people are asked like $25 for one


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

BoostedOne said:


> Im curious to know too. While building the 89 I managed to come across 3 covers. When I finished I tried installing them. Never did figure out how to install any of them where they looked right and didn't inflate like a bounce house going down the road...
> On the other hand there was only about 3 weeks after the top frame was installed to finish every single detail on the car and ensure it was a reliable driver for my parents, so I admit I didn't try too hard.
> 
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


You're missing plastic corners that go into the boot cover.
The large straps with velcro are supposed to be velcroed to the parcel shelf area (tilt the seat forwards). However I do not have luck with them staying there so I tuck them under the rear window frame.


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

flying_oliver said:


> You're missing plastic corners that go into the boot cover.
> The large straps with velcro are supposed to be velcroed to the parcel shelf area (tilt the seat forwards). However I do not have luck with them staying there so I tuck them under the rear window frame.


Do these plastic corners serve any purpose other than holding a shape?


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

The plastic piece is there to protect the boot from the latching mechanism on the top. I have never seen a boot rip or be damaged without the plastic piece and they are hard to find since most are broken from age and being flimsy plastic. My cover still has them in it but one is cracked pretty badly.


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## humbo (May 25, 2014)

Well, we took out a faulty blower motor, removed the CIS module in the process, took out the inoperative radio, removed the center console, ordered a new blower motor, ordered a parcel shelf, a rain tray, a new owners manual, a plug for the bell housing inspection hole, a new oil pressure gauge, repaired the right rear tail light assembly. Tomorrow--rest.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

It's hot out... my 16v does not like the heat.. mostly because of my crappy, really cheap radiator fan that flows like 800 cfm.. So time for a new one from Perma-Cool that flows 2350 cfm 

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14450179644" title="IMG_20140617_160431_927 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3903/14450179644_b31c8ca84d_c.jpg" width="800" height="450" alt="IMG_20140617_160431_927"></a>

Moved up in the world and bought some nice plugs for this thing too. They are super easy to install and don't require special tools for crimping :thumbup:

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14450182014" title="IMG_20140617_160508_572 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3859/14450182014_a61c2e40a7_c.jpg" width="800" height="450" alt="IMG_20140617_160508_572"></a>

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14451303075" title="IMG_20140617_160517_442 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5478/14451303075_49de45c91f_c.jpg" width="800" height="450" alt="IMG_20140617_160517_442"></a>

And I started to "swiss cheese" the bottom and sides of the box I made for my carbs.. Helps flow a little extra air from the bottom and sides, but still keeps turbulent air ripping through the grill from causing a disturbance of flow into the carbs and keeps the rain out of the stacks and ultimately my engine during the rain.

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14264658499" title="IMG_20140617_173655_832 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2911/14264658499_921e579ce6_c.jpg" width="800" height="450" alt="IMG_20140617_173655_832"></a>

And I took a nifty picture without the grill on her :laugh:

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14428186076" title="IMG_20140617_162351_941 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3853/14428186076_aacb4836a3_c.jpg" width="800" height="450" alt="IMG_20140617_162351_941"></a>


----------



## 99wolfsedition (Jan 22, 2007)

I fixed my 87 Cruise Control and now am the happiest person in the vw world..... for the moment. 

Sent from my LG-D800 using Tapatalk


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

99wolfsedition said:


> I fixed my 87 Cruise Control and now am the happiest person in the vw world..... for the moment.
> 
> Sent from my LG-D800 using Tapatalk


Wish I had cruise control.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

MOBOZO said:


> Wish I had cruise control.


Get thee to a wrecking yard and acquire the parts, harness, including the sensor on the back of the cluster, and the stalk. It is a relatively easy addition, oh, and get the valve cover too.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Washed, Waxed and cleaned the top on my Green one. Oh, I drove it too.

Maybe I will get to the interior next week.


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4WeeADcv6U&feature=youtu.be


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

i got a bonus at work, so instead of losing half of it to taxes had the boss order me megasquirt ms3x for the vr cab, so next bonus ill be ready for the hx35 turbo :laugh:


----------



## MissAnthropic (Jan 26, 2011)

Washed her and drove her


----------



## finky (Mar 19, 2010)

I fixed my crooked front bumper with a 10 lb. sledge... the vibrations broke a headlight. It is time for an upgrade. I also got my stuck rear hatch open for the first time in several years of ownership.

I also cut out some rust:


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

new tires/wheels and painted calipers red


----------



## mattchirhart (Aug 21, 2012)

Xex& (*x+$(
Rx,#

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

99wolfsedition said:


> I fixed my 87 Cruise Control and now am the happiest person in the vw world..... for the moment.
> 
> Sent from my LG-D800 using Tapatalk


Check back in next month

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


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## 65comet (Oct 7, 2013)

Did a rear brake job over the weekend going with new everything. One fantastic outcome, other than having brakes that work and didn't leak out, was the mileage improvement. Went with new Siemens bearings and quality red axle grease. Went from 32 mpg on the highway to 39! Just wish the weather would improve so I could install my new top. Getting ready to buy my second roll of white duct tape for this one.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Tried to get my power brakes hooked up because I figured maybe it's a good idea lol...... Got a brand new check valve. Everything looked good... The bladder in the booster is shot :facepalm::what::banghead:. This is the second booster I've put in this car.. Looks like I'll be switching to dual Wilwood master cylinders like I had originally planned


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Wash, wax, and photoshoot.



















and did not need to fix anything.


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

The old ford horn button wasn't quite cutting it......


----------



## Dumpedcabby (Apr 28, 2014)

*well this happened finally...*

15 x 9 widened corrado steelies and a whole bunch of cuttin and rolling and pulling and a set of raceland one piece coilovers later, I havea pretty cool looking cabby.


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Intalled new front rotors and pads.... Old ones we're heat cracked and shot... Installed a factory antennae, Get WAAY better reception than the crap replacement that was on it..... Redid My intrument lights with different blue leds. Hopefully it will be more even light


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)




----------



## skon (Apr 8, 2014)

Coils + other rims (13-inch from a colt...)


----------



## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Papa georgio, that is a nice clean look, I did mine with red leds. Yours looks great.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Went to Mk1Madness for the first time with her. It's only the second time I've ever taken my cabby to any sort of show. Won third place for the cabbies 

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/14521366779" title="IMG_20140720_211248_127 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3883/14521366779_209ff085df_c.jpg" width="450" height="800" alt="IMG_20140720_211248_127"></a>


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Last night around 10ish I was gettin gas.... Went to start and all there was was a puff of smoke... Cooked starter.... Hit the wreckers 1st thing this morning and found one that looked to be maybe a month old... $37.27 ... way better than almost $200 at the parts store


----------



## GSDKSD (Dec 24, 2012)

Fixed many previous owner blunders.


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Fitting.....










Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


----------



## GSDKSD (Dec 24, 2012)

Destupified the original wheels. There is nothing I hate in the world more than a piss poor rattlecan paint job to factory wheels.

Was going to replace with a set of Orlando wheels, but I decided to save the money and put it towards the new top instead. Getting the originals to shine back up only cost $20 in Aircraft Paint Stripper. And a little elbow grease and a reliable pressure washer. 

Before



After


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## mrgti1983 (Sep 11, 2005)

Wired in my hot start relay for my automatic, started to get my rear back together after swapping out a new frame/top. Was actually able to drive her after 1.5 years stored in my garage. Best part she started right up with no issues after running for awhile. Still searching for a heat sheild as well.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Drove it from Vancouver to Toronto.... Lost 5th gear just outside Brandon Man.... But the cabby was flawless otherwise... took 3 days of almost soild driving... 4602km door to door... I LOVE MY CABRIOLET


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Lost 5th gear just outside Brandon Man...


Not enough gear oil? 
Did you continue to just drive it in 4th close to redline? :laugh:

Glad you made it ok though!!


----------



## GSDKSD (Dec 24, 2012)

Got tired of listening to the old AC belt screech anytime I run it. So I replaced all the belts. What a nasty task.

And readjusted the idle switch so it will idle now with the AC on.


----------



## Flipsod (Aug 5, 2014)

New alternator prep:
cleaned all the connections to alternator
new battery terminals
filed out some damage to the star nut on the mounting for alternator (works great now even if it looks a little malformed)

just bought the car last week, lots of work.
I located a missing bushing for my shifter linkage

yesterday it was a dump out of the 10w30 previous owner was using, swapped out for 20w50 (seems to be leaking from oil pan though)

looking forward to hooking up alternator tomorrow and driving it around!


----------



## sassassin (May 7, 2011)

took out cruise module to be replaced


----------



## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Got the AC working on the Etienne!
I ended up flushing out every part of it and filling it all with pag oil.


----------



## cabrio00 (Jul 24, 2014)

Hurricane headed my way; bought a car cover for the Cabrio then bombed the crap out of it with Scotch Guard!
*keeps fingers crossed interior stays dry*


----------



## mrgti1983 (Sep 11, 2005)

This. 

Yes at the time this was all I had. Actually did pretty well but started to break down.



















Saw this on another post figured I would try it.











All in all it didn't seat well. I think ill try to seat the top of the bearing better another time. I will also probably buy an extra set for when this bearing decides to go.


----------



## mrgti1983 (Sep 11, 2005)

Did more engine stuff today:

Removing Alternator and Water pump housing:










Sanded and painted the valve cover and fan housing:










Followed Briano1234's suggestion and pushed in the guide on the alternator bracket to allow some washers:










Shiny Alternator and Water pump housing:










New rubber Valve gasket:










Part of the previous owners home made gasket:








:screwy:

My camera phone died so I don't have pictures of the valve cover in place, but I need to adjust the Timing belt cover or something, as I am getting an awful sound. But seeing how I ran out of sun today and the mosquitos are horrible here at night, maybe I will continue tomorrow.


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## SDvdublove (May 4, 2013)

washed and drove!


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

mrgti1983 said:


> Did more engine stuff today:
> 
> Followed Briano1234's suggestion and pushed in the guide on the alternator bracket to allow some washers:


That's slick! I just put the bolt back in loosely without the alternator/compressor and tap it with a hammer... That there is easier on the threads. 



> Part of the previous owners home made gasket:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


LOL classic! Almost more money in RTV than the gasket kit.

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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Finally got the baseplate for my ITG filter drilled out and new velocity stacks mounted. Now just to order the filter! Lol


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## jefrey (Mar 21, 2013)

I installed a new fuel accumulator, distributor cap, rotor, and wires. I also cleaned up a few grounds and taped wires in the trunk that were cracked. All in all, it was a good day with my cabrio!


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## imcintyre (May 18, 2013)

*Replaced Stock Shifter Knob*

I really didn't do this today but it was the last thing I did.
Today I drove to VAGkraft in the almost rain.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

flying_oliver said:


> Not enough gear oil?
> Did you continue to just drive it in 4th close to redline? :laugh:
> 
> Glad you made it ok though!!



Drove it right through.... was 4 - 4500 rpm for 2000+ km.... lol Made it like a champ... used a little oil though


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I ordered the missing linkz kit The other day hope it secures things up. I'm so sick of the sloppy linkage. Grabbed the solid kit with the weighted rod. Delrin relay bushings and the main shift rod bushing. Should get rid of the slop I hope


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## 65comet (Oct 7, 2013)

Washed and waxed for the first time after finally completing the new top install. Of course it started raining again. Pulled into gas station to fill up and put the top up.


----------



## Corrado_VR6 (Jan 16, 2002)

Picked up a set of clean Hella magic clears and test fitted the Magnaflow...... :beer:


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

This week was a big'un for Gertie.

Today I put on the new mk1autohaus outer drivers window scraper. Looks and feels perfect.

Yesterday I paid a muffler shop to hook me up with a whole new muffler and pipe. $130 WELL SPENT. Man, this car makes almost NO noise. THere's just a little bit of a very quiet belt whine while she's running.

Also diagnosed my clickity-clack noise whenever I hit a sharp bump. It's my front coil springs. I don't get WHY yet, but I'm checking that out. They're brand new and on PartsPlace rebuilt strut towers and bearings. Any ideas?


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## RW (Mar 21, 2008)

16X9 et18 TH-Lines...No Rubbing!!!


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

flipty said:


> This week was a big'un for Gertie.
> 
> Today I put on the new mk1autohaus outer drivers window scraper. Looks and feels perfect.
> 
> ...


Sure the clickity clack isnt the brake pads? Those little pad shims can wear out and fall out.


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

MOBOZO said:


> Sure the clickity clack isnt the brake pads? Those little pad shims can wear out and fall out.


I would assume that even if the clips were not installed (they are not, pads are a year old) they would shut up while the brakes are applied. Because it doesn't shut up when the brakes are applied. I'd LOVE it if it were the clips.

I took it to a shop that had some spare time, they put it on the rack and found that if you gave the wheel a smack it did indeed make the same noise, but if you gave it a smack while holding onto the coil spring, no noise. I saw it for myself but I am still willing to blame the ball joints, which I have the parts for and am going to replace soon.


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

flipty said:


> I would assume that even if the clips were not installed (they are not, pads are a year old) they would shut up while the brakes are applied. Because it doesn't shut up when the brakes are applied. I'd LOVE it if it were the clips.
> 
> I took it to a shop that had some spare time, they put it on the rack and found that if you gave the wheel a smack it did indeed make the same noise, but if you gave it a smack while holding onto the coil spring, no noise. I saw it for myself but I am still willing to blame the ball joints, which I have the parts for and am going to replace soon.


It was just a thought. That is what my clickity clack noise was.


----------



## foxhound1972 (Jun 16, 2012)

Finished with my wife's birthday present. 10" MB Quart sub 6 channel Mb Quart amp.







Also got a wind deflector. It's nice.


----------



## allroad (Jun 27, 2010)

Big fan of MBQ.

---

Today I disabled the lock on the passenger side of the top mechanism. Now I can raise the top from just the driver's side.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Unlike most, I drove it like I stole it.... Topless and moving down Ga400.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Hey! I would be driving mine like i stole it, except I have no motor transmission interior top paint and most other systems yet!

I can grab a bucket to sit on though if someone wants to come push while I steer lol.. vroom vroom

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## 92JETTGL (Jun 17, 2005)

Got her;
- new shoes 205-50-15's(can't find toyo proxes T1R 205-45-15 :banghead
- Koni's STR-Ts front and rear!


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

How to the 205-50's look? I figured they'd be getting on the balloony side on a mk1?



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## 92JETTGL (Jun 17, 2005)

BoostedOne said:


> How to the 205-50's look? I figured they'd be getting on the balloony side on a mk1?
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk



I will have pics. this weekend, I have a MK3.5 and right now it seats on 205-45-15 Toyos (2 are bald and can't find them to complete the set)


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

92JETTGL said:


> I will have pics. this weekend, I have a MK3.5 and right now it seats on 205-45-15 Toyos (2 are bald and can't find them to complete the set)


Im in for pics. I'm planning to go 205/50r15 or possibly 225/45r15. 

Contact patch ftw! Lol


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

BoostedOne said:


> How to the 205-50's look? I figured they'd be getting on the balloony side on a mk1?
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk




205/50/15 on a MK1


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## leah's_dad (Sep 6, 2006)

^^^ is that stock ride height? Looks pretty good, IMO


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

leah's_dad said:


> ^^^ is that stock ride height? Looks pretty good, IMO


He may have stock suspension, but the car is sitting lower than stock. The shadow on the wheels also can have an effect on how low the car looks.

Post 1722 and 1733 both are of cabbies at stock height.


Mrpapageorgio did you ever lower the front of your car? I know you were thinking about purchasing some Bilsteins or something.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Front is stock height.... rear has the "Cabby Sag"


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## GSDKSD (Dec 24, 2012)

always thought the rears of a lot of cabbies sagged down. Guess I have my answer~


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

I had Cabby Sag too, until I put new shocks and springs on the back. Then it's about as level as level can be.


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## GSDKSD (Dec 24, 2012)

Did a couple upgrades.

Got lucky and scored a glove box cover that wasn't peeling apart!



And the Pioneer CD player the car came with never sounded very good and would randomly act up, so I ended up rewiring the entire car and installed a Mark III Cassette radio.

I really hate how the previous owner tore up the dash bezel so it has to have a couple screws wedged in to hold it in place. I really need to find a new one, but anytime I have ever found one, some ignorant schmuck has destroyed it to take parts out of the dash.


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## allroad (Jun 27, 2010)

Snapped the clutch cable and had to drive it a few city miles without a clutch.

It's the only Honda part on the car and I suppose it couldn't handle the high spring-rate of the VR's Stage 3 clutch.


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## PAK65 (Feb 12, 2008)

*getting ready for a major overhaul*

I converted this to electric a few years ago. Today I took out the old lead batteries to upgrade to lithium






I'm also going to redo the entire car. Took off the bumpers and clipper kit. I am thinking about going without them. I like that look and it will lighten it up.


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## leah's_dad (Sep 6, 2006)

Turned my first wrench on my new acquisition. The exhaust was shot to begin with, and when the car was winched onto the trailer the clamp on the midpipe at the cat caught on the lip of the trailer and ended up bending the pipe like a pretzel around the rear beam. :banghead:

Because of this, I was unable to take the car for a drive when delivered (open cat is REALLY OBNOXIOUSLY LOUD) and she's just been sitting in the garage for the past two weeks.

Anyway, $175 later she's got a brand new exhaust from the cat back (midpipe, muffler and tailpipe, all from Amazon.) Got to go for a ride and was pleasantly surprised at how well she runs and drives.

Tucked safely back in her spot...


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## backinthegame (Dec 14, 2004)

PAK65 said:


> I'm also going to redo the entire car. Took off the bumpers and clipper kit. I am thinking about going without them. I like that look and it will lighten it up.


Boy, what an original idea. You do realize the structural significance the bumper serves other than just front end collision don't you? Hope you like chassis flex in your soon to be hipster sheep mobile.


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## GSDKSD (Dec 24, 2012)

backinthegame said:


> Boy, what an original idea. You do realize the structural significance the bumper serves other than just front end collision don't you? Hope you like chassis flex in your soon to be hipster sheep mobile.


I rather despise when people tare the bumpers off cabbies because they think it looks cool. No, it really doesn't look cool. It looks like crap, it just makes the car look like a beater piece of junk. No matter how hard you try, these NEVER look good with out the bumpers.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

backinthegame said:


> Boy, what an original idea. You do realize the structural significance the bumper serves other than just front end collision don't you? Hope you like chassis flex in your soon to be hipster sheep mobile.





GSDKSD said:


> I rather despise when people tare the bumpers off cabbies because they think it looks cool. No, it really doesn't look cool. It looks like crap, it just makes the car look like a beater piece of junk. No matter how hard you try, these NEVER look good with out the bumpers.


Both of these are excellent points and I do agree with both the chassis flex and saftey! 

But as far as looks go you can make an cabby or any mk1 look good without a bumper. My car has no bumpers and I've gotten diehard mk1 bumper fans admiring how my car looks. I'm not saying it's the best looking car in the world, but people seem to dig it. I will say though a number of bumperless cabbies are made into rather shanty and beat up looking cars for no good reason: it's sad really..

Anyway here's my car:



























And here's what I did: 

GOT THIS THING FINALLY


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## PAK65 (Feb 12, 2008)

I'm also going to redo the entire car. Took off the bumpers and clipper kit. I am thinking about going without them. I like that look and it will lighten it up.




[/QUOTE]



backinthegame said:


> Boy, what an original idea. You do realize the structural significance the bumper serves other than just front end collision don't you? Hope you like chassis flex in your soon to be hipster sheep mobile.





GSDKSD said:


> I rather despise when people tare the bumpers off cabbies because they think it looks cool. No, it really doesn't look cool. It looks like crap, it just makes the car look like a beater piece of junk. No matter how hard you try, these NEVER look good with out the bumpers.



Wow! What surprisingly hostile responses. I guess I stumbled into an ongoing feud that I didn't know about. Of course the opinion about looks is just that, an opinion. I think they look alright without. I was more concerned about weight and the big bumpers from the later models are heavy. I considered roll and was going to add a sway bar. I do appreciate your concern, even though you delivered it in such an obnoxious way. I have since decided to go with the euro bumper anyhow. 

If I was going to get flamed for anything I figured it would be for converting to electric....


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Don't worry about it too much. To each their own. My car doesn't have bumpers and lots of people like it. Yeah its not as safe, but whatever, these cars aren't exactly the safest cars to begin with. I'm choosing to take the risk so I can't complain if something happens. I've fixed my chassis flex completely and it's just as stiff as it was with bumpers.. And I don't run a sway bar because my header is too big lol. 

Bottom line, it's your car so do as you please


----------



## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Nah, converting anything to electric or diesel these days is considered the cool thing to do...:laugh:


----------



## GSDKSD (Dec 24, 2012)

PAK65 said:


> I'm also going to redo the entire car. Took off the bumpers and clipper kit. I am thinking about going without them. I like that look and it will lighten it up.







Wow! What surprisingly hostile responses. I guess I stumbled into an ongoing feud that I didn't know about. Of course the opinion about looks is just that, an opinion. I think they look alright without. I was more concerned about weight and the big bumpers from the later models are heavy. I considered roll and was going to add a sway bar. I do appreciate your concern, even though you delivered it in such an obnoxious way. I have since decided to go with the euro bumper anyhow. 

If I was going to get flamed for anything I figured it would be for converting to electric....[/QUOTE]

The converting to electric part is totally awesome! I always wondered how you shift once you go electric with no clutch anymore?


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

All you got to do when you shift an electric is let off the throttle....

As for the bumper thing, personally I think any of the bumperless cars(no matter how decent they look) would still look better with one.... 
And I get a kick out of guys gutting the cars for "weight".. I'd be willing to bet the car wouldn't track measuably different with or without the bumpers. Sure as heck wont make a difference on a street car that never sees the track.

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## PAK65 (Feb 12, 2008)

BoostedOne said:


> All you got to do when you shift an electric is let off the throttle....
> 
> As for the bumper thing, personally I think any of the bumperless cars(no matter how decent they look) would still look better with one....
> And I get a kick out of guys gutting the cars for "weight".. I'd be willing to bet the car wouldn't track measuably different with or without the bumpers. Sure as heck wont make a difference on a street car that never sees the track.
> ...


That is right about the shift. The electric motor has so much torque that I start out in second gear. I really don't need to shift below about 35 mph because that electric motor is fine up to 5000rpm. At about 35 I take the foot off the accelerator shift to neutral wait a few beats that then shift into 3rd, slips right in. If I ever do use first gear the wait to shift to 2nd is very long because 1st gear is so tall compared to second.

The weight does make a difference for electric. I am trying to extend the range. I got about 40 miles on a charge when I had the lead batteries. That was 1000 lbs of lead, so I was really pushing max weight at about 3000 lbs. With lithium that won't be a problem. I'll probably be below stock weight. Hoping for an 80 mole range with lithium, although I usually only drive 20 miles round trip on a normal commute.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

backinthegame said:


> Boy, what an original idea. You do realize the structural significance the bumper serves other than just front end collision don't you? Hope you like chassis flex in your soon to be hipster sheep mobile.


Have you seen the size of the beam and the welds on the lower valance beam that the radiator sits on? FMA Flex My Arse. 

Now the Bumper is on a pivot mount to the bracket on the clipper... so it would still flex...

Everyone please Lighten up the flaming.....


----------



## vwutahman (Jun 30, 2006)

Did you use a kit for the conversion?


----------



## PAK65 (Feb 12, 2008)

vwutahman said:


> Did you use a kit for the conversion?


I got the instructions for the "Voltsrabbit" kit and also found an old front battery box from that kit, but otherwise I put it together just by cobbling together information and parts from the web. The kit was too expensive. I made my own for about half the cost.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Started retuning the carbs... I need bigger jets lol


----------



## PAK65 (Feb 12, 2008)

dougkehl said:


> Both of these are excellent points and I do agree with both the chassis flex and saftey!
> 
> But as far as looks go you can make an cabby or any mk1 look good without a bumper. My car has no bumpers and I've gotten diehard mk1 bumper fans admiring how my car looks. I'm not saying it's the best looking car in the world, but people seem to dig it. I will say though a number of bumperless cabbies are made into rather shanty and beat up looking cars for no good reason: it's sad really..
> 
> ...


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Its a BBS air dam. On the harder side to find anymore but they're still around in the classified forums. Mine came on the car from the original owner. So I would check the mk1 classifieds to start. Also, I've seen people use 83 & 84 gti air dams but they don't look as nice to me.


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Replaced this mess:









...which is a frankenstein that's been living under my hood posing as the brake booster check valve and hose. As it turns out, that thing's been a sieve since who knows when. 

I snagged a new check valve from some thread here at the vortex, and got a new hose cut from O-O-O-Oreillys. This fixing of the vacuum leak caused my idle settings to go all out of whack, so I did it all again from the ground up (not timing, just vacuum check, dwell settings, idle air) and she's running better now. The idle boost valve doesn't even stay on all the time, it comes on when it's supposed to. How's THAT for a thought?

Oh, and I should add: My brakes feel a bit better. If I had to give it a number, they feel... 25% better/more responsive/powerful.


----------



## 92JETTGL (Jun 17, 2005)

Here we go,
the tires are 205-50-15s Dunlope Direza and the wheels are the famous RML snow 15x8!

http://s105.photobucket.com/user/fofu6269/media/Mobile Uploads/20140906_093535_zpsf6i0gxit.jpg.html

http://s105.photobucket.com/user/fofu6269/media/Mobile Uploads/20140906_094143_zpsv51hgsuc.jpg.html

http://s105.photobucket.com/user/fofu6269/media/Mobile Uploads/20140906_094149_zpstmwtb8im.jpg.html


----------



## GSDKSD (Dec 24, 2012)

Bundled it up for a week while I am out of town in Detroit. I need more space and a car with better fuel mileage. Taking my Saturn SL2 to Detroit and leaving this to sit and chill while I am gone.



Nifty car cover that was included with the car. Actually is 100% custom made to this car. It fits the car like a glove.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Blew the rings out of the bottom end again :facepalm: So time for a rebuild completely.. Not just a re-ring because that didn't end well.. So, crank is getting done, new bearings, bore the block to 82mm, JE 11.5:1 82mm pistons, and maybe bigger cams than my current 268* cams, as my head was just rebuilt in like march with TT HD valve springs so it could handle more if I want. Now it's really time to go fast and see what this 16v can do


----------



## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

dougkehl said:


> Blew the rings out of the bottom end again :facepalm: So time for a rebuild completely.. Not just a re-ring because that didn't end well.. So, crank is getting done, new bearings, bore the block to 82mm, JE 11.5:1 82mm pistons, and maybe bigger cams than my current 268* cams, as my head was just rebuilt in like march with TT HD valve springs so it could handle more if I want. Now it's really time to go fast and see what this 16v can do


How'd you do that this time? haha

Get it done quick and then drive to indiana for a test drive so that I can see your car in person :laugh:


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

First time was because I was told the engine was running when I bought it and I compression tested it multiple times and it seemed ok everything was right.. Drove it for a week and blew the rings out because there was actually light surface rust built up on the cylinder walls so it chewed right through the rings.. I discovered this on the very bottom of the cylinders while I was rebuilding it. 

This time was because of me deciding to be cheap and live dangerously lol.. When I rebuilt the engine I honed the cylinders and when I checked the end gap of the rings I had .007" before the rings would not hold compression.. I should have bored out the cylinders and put new pistons in it.. So about 3 weeks ago things started seeming iffy.. I checked compression and did a leak down test and 1,2,3 &4 had around 140 compression and had around 60% blow by at TDC on each cylinder. 

So yeah don't be cheap and live dangerously kids lol


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

flying_oliver said:


> How'd you do that this time? haha
> 
> Get it done quick and then drive to indiana for a test drive so that I can see your car in person :laugh:


And ok I'll be sure to get on that :laugh: 

I actually would be down for a road trip with this thing minus the loud factor haha but I sucks because I need a daily driver and I've been trying to get one now for way too long. I just keep spending the money for that on my car lol so now I have to save money for that and actually get a good DD. Then I can rebuild it haha 

I will say its quite the struggle though. I want so badly to just pull the engine now and get started


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Been starting on 3cylinders lately then evening out after a min. Figured i would start with cheap fixes. Started at plugs. Lol. Cheap and easy









One of them i dropped on the block so it got a little crud on it


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Notice my top cracked a separated all the way across the top of the rear window. I guess that will be one of the nex purchases. Maybe the motivator for a paint job since rhe top will be off 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*FV-QR*

Finally got around to putting a salvaged AUG (from mike_7482) from a MkIII to replace my blown 9A.

Have to say that heavy transmission gear oil is the worst smell burning on the exhaust and the hardest to get rid of too.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

I'm with Briano on the bumper/chassis flex thing. Biggest change on my '82 was adding a lower chassis brace (like a Scirocco K-bar) with the stock bumpers. Swapped to plastic Euro bumpers and didn't notice any difference in the handling, though after weighing everything, it was over 50lbs of weight off the extreme ends of the car which should absolutely help chassis balance on a car this light/small. Now, OTH, I am not a big fan of bumperless. With that said, the wife's new toy came without bumpers, so I'm thinking of building a custom set for it. Stay tuned for that and the rest of the de-hipsterization....yes, it's pretty bad, all the typical hipster as f#*k mods....cut springs and blown struts, chalkboard paint, no bumpers, etc. But, it's an '87 with 190K on it and there is ZERO RUST in the unibody!! Even the rear apron is clean! So far I've set the ignition timing, fixed a few vacuum leaks, and cleaned the fuel dizzy. Today's plans are to replace the leaky coolant flange and heater hose and try to get the shift linkage sorted. I don't know WTF someone did to the linkage in teh this car, but reverse, first, and thrid are all but on top of each other. Thinking something was installed wrong when the tall ratio gearbox was installed.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

So I went a little further than just the coolant leak today...here are my findings:

-Linkage is just worn out and needs rebuilt.

-Fixed and lubed sliders for driver's seat.

-Repaired connections @ negative battery terminal.

-Removed upshift light vacuum switch and sub harness. Car has a trans with a 2 pin reverse switch that has been properly wired so I yanked the whole big plug harness and vacuum switch.

-Removed an extra rubber bushing in the clutch cable and properly adjusted the clutch for a much better feel.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Today I replaced the hood release cable and rebuilt most of the shift linkage. Still need to order the relay rod bushing and replace the shifter base.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

WASHED IT.... 1st time since I drove 4602 km accross Canada.... Gotta do the shifter bushings next... Have em, just lazy I guess


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Replaced several vacuum lines, finally found and modified to fit a decent clip/fix for my cruise control throttle-puller-thingie. 

AAAAALLLLMOST took off my Aux Air Regulator, I think that's my cold start thorn-in-side.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

flipty said:


> Replaced several vacuum lines, finally found and modified to fit a decent clip/fix for my cruise control throttle-puller-thingie.
> 
> AAAAALLLLMOST took off my Aux Air Regulator, I think that's my cold start thorn-in-side.


Thinking the aux air regulator is wonky on the wife's new toy, too. Seems to idle up higher the more it runs. And I sent all of my old accumulated extras to a fellow Vortexer a couple of years ago thinking I'd never have anothe CIS car. D'oh!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

It took me over two years to get around to buying the missing linkz shift kit weighted one. And i also bought the complete delrin bushings kit too. WHY DID I WAIT!?!? Lol buy it all nits amazing. For the first time ever my shifter is tight and my gears are where they are supposed to be. Every year i replace those silly rubber bushings. Last year i did the delrin relay ball and noticed a huge difference. Nothing compared to after today. I also replace the shifter base a couple months ago. 

My top recently ripped all the way across the back of the rear window. So it i gorilla taped it and will buy a top this winter to toss on in the spring. 




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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I also bought it a nice step sister. 
83 gti. Replaced fuel pump and hot it running. I think the throttle flap is sticking and it needs brake work 









Also visited and made an offer on this. Waiting to hear back after they guy pondered on my offer 










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## MK3Paulie (Sep 21, 2014)

What I did was drop my exhaust today


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## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

Finally found the proper v-bet for the a/c to water pump. put everything back together and took it for a test spin. Now I'm sourcing parts for my winter stage of repairs.

I'd really like to fix the steering column problem though.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

My oil cooler showed up, along with a shift lever extender... Other than that I got the parts picked out for my dual Wilwood master cylinder set up and picked out the rest of my engine rebuild parts.. Oh and I looked at her and wanted to cry lol because I can't drive her until the engine is rebuilt


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## cagedcbr (Feb 25, 2008)

Started chipping away the rust and old filler in preparation for paint over the winter.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Changed out the OG clutch cable..... Wow what a difference..... Lubed and saved the old one, just in case


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## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

bought some shaved fenders and reupholstered seats from a buddy and lined up a deal for a full manual steering swap and a full size quarter panel cut from his parted out Rabbit. once i find a pair of decent doors i think i'll start tackling the body work more seriously.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Used the simple green that came in the trunk and cleaned the top on the wife's new toy.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


>


That is why I hate white tops, and I have a pair of them.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> That is why I hate white tops, and I have a pair of them.


I never wanted one, my tan one is bad enough. The wife had to have it, so now I have to fix it. Lol! Her Cabby inspires me to get back to work on mine, though.


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

YJSAABMAN said:


> I never wanted one, my tan one is bad enough. The wife had to have it, so now I have to fix it. Lol! Her Cabby inspires me to get back to work on mine, though.


I hated cleaning mine too, but I think they look really nice when clean.


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## Jeff_OGTI (May 13, 2011)

*Guts and headroom*

Today, I completely gutted the interior of the car. I've removed the top from the body and chopped it into a bikini top. Planned out the custom rear interior and ordered more parts.


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Yeah my last two white ones drove me crazy too. When I replaced this one, I went with black and man what a difference. And it looks way sportier too.:thumbup:


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

New clutch etc.... only cost $400 installed by My brother in law's transmission shop


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## Golf_1 BG (Jan 16, 2008)

Washed it before store it away/work on it in the winter :wave:


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Got this


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## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

spent an hour trying to remove all the seam sealer from my passenger side fender. VW really really didn't want those fenders to come off...ever.


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## jefrey (Mar 21, 2013)

A mechanic in my neighborhood helped me set the timing and the idle (which included finally getting the correct idle adjustment screw put in). Now my cabby runs like a dream!


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## finky (Mar 19, 2010)

I put the top down tonight at the grocery store at 47 degrees f and drove home. It was easier to load and unload grocery bags into and out of the back seat.:snowcool:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Got bored of the old JH and single webber set up.



Pulled the motor, cleaned and paint the bay



Bought an ABA, stripped cleaned and paint it.. added the turbo and cbr bike carbs





Picked up some plenum parts from ross macing racing, looking to build that in the next little while


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Got bored of the old JH and single webber set up.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


you sir are my hero! that is totally radical.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> you sir are my hero! that is totally radical.


Oh, thanks! Wasn't sure whether to post it in here not, its pretty quiet round the Cabriolet forum umpkin:


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Oh, thanks! Wasn't sure whether to post it in here not, its pretty quiet round the Cabriolet forum umpkin:


Trust me I know! I really appreciate seeing it because there aren't many cars on here with something like that hiding in their engine bay.. Either that or the people that have them don't post them up lol

But it's funny you posted this because I just blew up my 16v on dual webers and I need to rebuild it completely and doing exactly this popped into my head even though I'm planning to do a crazy na build haha


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> Trust me I know! I really appreciate seeing it because there aren't many cars on here with something like that hiding in their engine bay.. Either that or the people that have them don't post them up lol
> 
> But it's funny you posted this because I just blew up my 16v on dual webers and I need to rebuild it completely and doing exactly this popped into my head even though I'm planning to do a crazy na build haha


Sweet, well I'm glad i did. I think I'm gonna collate all my pics and make a build thread over in the mk1 section. Keep me motivated over winter. 

16v was my second option over the ABA, I really wanted to do a vr6 but lots of people had negative things to say about the way it drives in a mk1.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Sweet, well I'm glad i did. I think I'm gonna collate all my pics and make a build thread over in the mk1 section. Keep me motivated over winter.
> 
> 16v was my second option over the ABA, I really wanted to do a vr6 but lots of people had negative things to say about the way it drives in a mk1.


Yeah that would be sweet! I'd be interested in seeing more!

And a vr6 in a mk1... Yeah I've never driven a mk1 with a vr6 in it but I feel like it would just suck. The vr6 is quite a large block in a very small, light car. But goddamn mk1s with vr6s in them are fast! But what you have will be damn fast and will still handle perfectly!


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Im building a 20v Turbo cabby and got no responses to a thread I started in both sections of the forum lol... I think its not "pure" enough for the cabby forums and, in the mk1 forum "eh... its a cabby".. lol..

I was the same way as a mk1/mk2 guy giving the cabby no love.. until I drove one.

Anyhow you both got some cool stuff. I dont say much because carbs arent my thing especially with a turbo but both of yall are doing some sick looking work. Myself once I started messing with efi for performance in the mid 90s I think I immediately forgot everything I knew about carbs.. I'm so lost on carbs that when the mower crapped out due to a fueling issue I pondered a standalone lol...

Regarding the VR... if you are a SERIOUS track racer, you might not like it. But for the street car guy who likes to cut corners here and there they are fine. The MK2 guys used to always talk crap about how heavy the vr is... how it will be so nose heavy the car will flip over onto the roof as soon as you hit the brakes etc... its all crap. A VR is what, an extra 75lbs? That's the difference of a tank of gas. Move the battery to the hatch and you offset the weight balance and you are back to the bias of a 4 cyl with the battery in the front. Powerwise between a na 4cyl and a vr, no comparison. The vr will paddle any na 4cyl up and down the street...

In a mk1 I dont like the vr just because of fitment. Since it leans forward there's just no frontal space... the radiator fitment is a challenge.

And now that it's 2014 I'm just not that impressed with the VR.. in 2002 the VR was the hot ticket for swaps because the mk4 motors were almost new and therefore expensive. Now you can get a mk4 1.8T for cheap. Almost the same power out the box of the VR and can cheaply get to 250 to 300..

I picked up this running 1.8T with a "bad" automatic trans for 500$. After selling a few hundred in parts off it, I changed the tranny fluid tonight and it works fine but I digress lol..









With the right combo these motors make 250 to 400hp to the tires for not much money. Got a Revo 550cc ecu for 175$ shipped, the matching injectors for 100$.. the required mk4 vr maf from the junkyard for 20$.. Intercooler I had laying around for 10 years but I paid about 50 for that. 
So myself I'm a 1.8T guy all the way.. but I definitely can appreciate anyone who does hardcore work even if its not what I would do. Maybe if more of us non purists posted up our builds here instead of in the mk1 forum, we might find theres more of us than we thought, and get more support since the mk1 rabbit and jetta guys seem to just snub the cabby lol...

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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

I personally am more of a purist. That being said, a good build is a good build. If someone does a nice job swapping and cleaning up a cabby I really appreciate the work and the build. However, if someone takes a nice cabby and rat rods the living daylights out of it...:screwy:

The 92 I drove I swapped over to diesel which was a great swap. Then some stupid woman couldn't stay in her lane and that was the end of it...


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

> *I'm so lost on carbs that when the mower crapped out due to a fueling issue I pondered a standalone lol...


I know what you mean.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

BoostedOne said:


> Im building a 20v Turbo cabby and got no responses to a thread I started in both sections of the forum lol...  I think its not "pure" enough for the cabby forums and, in the mk1 forum "eh... its a cabby".. lol..
> 
> I was the same way as a mk1/mk2 guy giving the cabby no love.. until I drove one.
> 
> ...


Some good points there. Cabby's don't get much love lol, most of my ''friends'' laugh at mine because its ''girlie'' what ever, I like it. Id be interested in seeing your 20vt for sure!


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Big things in the works. Hope yo have this built in the next few weeks.. But today I finished the design for my dual Wilwood master cylinder bias box 100%. I don't have power brakes now so I figure why not take it to the next level and have really good non power brakes


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

flying_oliver said:


> I personally am more of a purist. That being said, a good build is a good build. (SNIP)However, if someone takes a nice cabby and rat rods the living daylights out of it...:screwy:


I hear ya on that. I like stockers don't get me wrong (would never own one though ), but really appreciate the thought that alot of guys put into mods. 

The rat rod thing though... ugh... well they say if you can't say something nice don't say it at all. The most I will say is I can't understand putting effort into making something look like hell. I understand having limited funds but some guys spend funds to make their car look like a heap. :screwy:



> 92 I drove I swapped over to diesel which was a great swap. Then some stupid woman couldn't stay in her lane and that was the end of it...


Yeah. I saw you mention that. sucks. But if you dieseled a cabby I think you have to turn in your "purist card" 



tangerine_coupe said:


> Some good points there. Cabby's don't get much love lol, most of my ''friends'' laugh at mine because its ''girlie'' what ever, I like it. Id be interested in seeing your 20vt for sure!


Yeah. The cabbys unfortunately have a certain stigma associated with them. Lol, after I got my parents car built I hung on to it for a month to make sure it didn't have any funky issues due to the mk4 engine swap. One day I was driving it to work on an unusually nice January morning with the top down. Because of how nice it was most other people had their windows down. 
I come to a big intersection, and had the radio turned up. Elton John's Rocket Man was playing. For a second I put 3 and 3 together and wondered what everyone around me was thinking.. A male driving, no female in the car. Cabriolet. Elton John. Then I just laughed. Im comfortable and love my woman, its a f****ng [email protected]$$ looking car, and the man can friggin sing lol.

As for my 20v, I worked alot on it this Spring and early summer. Then it got put on hold while I made good on a promise to paint my girlfriend's car. And while laying the paint on her car I decided that's it. No more paint jobs til I get a paint booth. 

I painted my caddy in fall 2012 here and it came out like crap because the evening sun was coming in the shop and blinding me. Lesson learned do it in the morning. So I painted my niece's car in winter 2012 and it actually came out pretty good. Im spring 2013 I did a friend's jeep wrangler and the bugs were brutal. Did some various jobs in summer 2013 and fought bugs. In winter 2013 when I painted my parents cabriolet I broke down and spent a day making a makeshift booth by making plastic curtains with inlet filters on one end and an exhaust fan on the other.. but even though I tried to anchor the plastic curtains to the floor, once I turned on the fan it lifted the curtains off the floor and actually sucked the bugs in. I had to repaint parts of that car multiple times to sand out bugs and stuff to where I could finally get where the clearcoat dried without bugs and stuff. The hatch took 4 times. With paint costing 500$/gallon and clearcoat being 200$/gallon that was expensive...
So at this point I was getting frustrated. When I did my girlfriend's car this summer it made it official. Between the poor lighting in the shop I tried to make better with various creative solutions, the critters and what not I said eff it... I'm not painting anything else til I get a paint booth.
So at this point my 20v cabby is just about ready for color. But first I need to build another building with a paint booth in it. I've been saving the past few months and doing side jobs to fund. Hopefully by December I have a 40x40 building up, and a few months later a paint booth in it. Then the cabby will start getting paint, and then the rest of the build will happen like engine and all that. 



dougkehl said:


> Big things in the works. Hope yo have this built in the next few weeks.. But today I finished the design for my dual Wilwood master cylinder bias box 100%. I don't have power brakes now so I figure why not take it to the next level and have really good non power brakes


That Autocad?

With all the wicked stuff you are doing, and with the fact you have no power brakes have you considered just doing a hideaway setup with the master in the cabin? hideaway setup a complete setup that will relocate the master behind the dash for a clean firewall.

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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

BoostedOne..

I feel ya, from the little paint work I've done on mine.. those tiny things make a huge impact on paint. Still looking forward to seeing it done. Id like to get mine fully painted at some point in the future, I'm kinda holding on to the oem paint.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

BoostedOne said:


> That Autocad?
> 
> With all the wicked stuff you are doing, and with the fact you have no power brakes have you considered just doing a hideaway setup with the master in the cabin? hideaway setup a complete setup that will relocate the master behind the dash for a clean firewall.
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


Yeah, haha I use it at work. I'm a draftsman, so when work is slow it's time to make/design car parts :laugh: But I have considered the under the dash set up, however, I like to have everything easily accessible for replacement of parts ect. Not that I'll have to be replacing many master cylinders (hopefully) once I do this haha. 

And about the purist thing, I have to agree with that. I like seeing a good clean cabby, however I can appreciate some of the rat rod type cars. Some people I think pull it off really, really well, and it adds variety to the cabby scene, but not everyone's rat rodded cabby is for me. Just like my car might not be for everyone. I just don't like when people buy them when they're only a little rough and think, "Oh f**k it, it's easily savable, it just needs some paint and a top, but I don't want to put forth the effort to do that so yolo b*****s time to rat this thang out." But to each their own


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

tangerine_coupe said:


> I'm kinda holding on to the oem paint.


If you still have decent OEM paint thats awesome. Down here in the South is usually beat pretty bad by the sun on most Mk1s halfway through the 90s.



dougkehl said:


> Yeah, haha I use it at work. I'm a draftsman, so when work is slow it's time to make/design car parts :laugh: But I have considered the under the dash set up, however, I like to have everything easily accessible for replacement of parts ect. Not that I'll have to be replacing many master cylinders (hopefully) once I do this haha.


LOL cool. I had flashbacks when I saw that screen shot. I'm an engineer, not a draftsman so i don't have to create drawings but I do have to model parts. I learned on AutoCAD R10 or R11, but when people at work saw me using it a few years ago they looked at me like I had two heads. I was ridiculed into trying ProE and finally succumbed to peer pressure. Wow I am glad I put in the time to figure that out. I miss being able to create things by typing in X,Y,Z coordinates, but thats about all. 

I like the look of doing a hideaway master. Not being able to get to it easy wouldn't bother me(since a master is usually good for 15-20 years), but I don't think they fit with the air box in the car, so thats a no go for me. 



> "Oh f**k it, it's easily savable, it just needs some paint and a top, but I don't want to put forth the effort to do that so yolo b*****s time to rat this thang out."


:laugh::laugh::laugh: YOLO b*****s! :laugh::laugh:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

New master replaced rear deck with black one. Replaced broken center vents. 


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Didn't do this today but I did it the other day. I got some new seats


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Grabbed a junk yard carpet. I changed my interior color to black and still have a ratty old blue carpet. Found a nlack ine and took the pressure washer and laundry soap to it





































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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Prepping it for a 4600 + km drive across Canada... Toronto to Vancouver,,,, Time to go home


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Prepping it for a 4600 + km drive across Canada... Toronto to Vancouver,,,, Time to go home


Will the drive this time include 5th? :laugh::laugh:


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## Dumpedcabby (Apr 28, 2014)

I havent checked in for a while, but I have got a lot of work done on my cabby. so here it is shortly after I got it (right after coilovers were installed) and how it looks as of today

THEN:


NOW:


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

flying_oliver said:


> Will the drive this time include 5th? :laugh::laugh:





I really hope so.... LOL


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

A friend is making the manifold for my carbs..





And I picked up MSD


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> A friend is making the manifold for my carbs..
> 
> 
> 
> ...


That looks sweet! What carbs are you using? R1?


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> that looks sweet! What carbs are you using? R1?


cbr 900 :d


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> cbr 900 :d


Nice, I thought they looked different from R1 carbs.

I want to build another 16v on a set of Mikuni RS40mm Flatslide carbs like this


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> Nice, I thought they looked different from R1 carbs.
> 
> I want to build another 16v on a set of Mikuni RS40mm Flatslide carbs like this


I think my buddy is running those on his aba rabbit.


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## Vee Dubb (Jan 3, 2002)

*Dipstick Funnels*

Got one to break on initial install, one to install correctly without breaking, and one to keep as a spare so the correctly installed one never breaks.








Wouldn't you know, got the first one on correctly the first time, with no breakage, so now I have two spares.
@ $2 each, I'm not crying about it. Lubed the dipstick rubber with some dielectric so it slides in/out nice without pulling the funnel off the steel tube.
I may be nuts, but I think it improved my idle by helping seal the crankcase to atmosphere, via the dipstick tube.


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## ElBebo (Apr 20, 2004)

*Aired it Out #ROIWAT*

 Sun Tanned in Miami 11-2014


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Bought a 16v clutch kit from tectonics, hopefully it will hold up with my aba-t


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Opened packages of goodies for the wife's yesterday. ECS shorted her a front bumper light, should be on its way Monday first thing. Also painted the brackets on the new, rear euro bumper black. Attempted to order bumper clips and trim clips from MK1 Autohaus this morning, but their website was having issues with the wife's CC. Will try again later. Other package was new front side marker lights from GAP. I almost have my BMW parts car stripped enough to free up some jackstands so I can finish the shifter work on the Cabby. New front Raceland coils to match the rears are also on their way. Just need to source a front Euro bumper, now. Trying to find it without absurd shipping costs isn't easy and I think my local source is now out of stock.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

This happened 



Pretty stoked


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Oil change


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## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

Stuffed in a trailer so it doesn't have to endure a winter in ma 











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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Wrapped the "scoop"


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> This happened
> 
> 
> 
> Pretty stoked


YUS!

Got my Recaro bases for my trophies today! Hopefully I'll get some pictures of them in the car before I decided to take them back out to reuholster them. Also, got a price quote from JE on custom 11.5:1 CR pistons with 6mm deep valve relief cuts to accommodate my CATCAMS 283/279 camshafts.. Very stoked


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> YUS!
> 
> Got my Recaro bases for my trophies today! Hopefully I'll get some pictures of them in the car before I decided to take them back out to reuholster them. Also, got a price quote from JE on custom 11.5:1 CR pistons with 6mm deep valve relief cuts to accommodate my CATCAMS 283/279 camshafts.. Very stoked


I love my trophies, i think thats been the best purchase to date. I was thinking of re timing mine in the oem plaid.. what you gonna do with yours?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> I love my trophies, i think thats been the best purchase to date. I was thinking of re timing mine in the oem plaid.. what you gonna do with yours?


I have to agree. Definitely one of my better purchases. But that would be sweet with the plaid! I'm just going to leave the centers grey because they are perfect but I'm going to redo the black vinyl as its a little messed up from someone trying to do a home repair haha


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> I have to agree. Definitely one of my better purchases. But that would be sweet with the plaid! I'm just going to leave the centers grey because they are perfect but I'm going to redo the black vinyl as its a little messed up from someone trying to do a home repair haha


Yeah I have a white mk5 gti with the plaid seats.. would be cool to have a matching white mk1. 

Post up pics when you get it done


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Yeah I have a white mk5 gti with the plaid seats.. would be cool to have a matching white mk1.
> 
> Post up pics when you get it done


That would be sick! Haha

And I will have some pictures up once they're done, but that probably won't be until like spring time lol. Gotta get the engine done first!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Actually last weekend, but I finally got mine from looking like this:










To looking like this:










:happydance:


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Driving it across Canada.... Again.... The coldest weather and so much snow.... Oh Ya... And no ****ing heat.... was -35 in side the car... only in Regina still almost 20hrs to go


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Driving it across Canada.... Again.... The coldest weather and so much snow.... Oh Ya... And no ****ing heat.... was -35 in side the car... only in Regina still almost 20hrs to go


Good luck!

And why does it not have heat?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

RECAROS IN 

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/15928098721" title="IMG_20141201_184938_228 by dougkehl1, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8635/15928098721_506376460f_b.jpg" width="1024" height="576" alt="IMG_20141201_184938_228"></a>


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Did a ton of little stuff the other day. 
-Fixed drivers side blinker
-replaced side "fresh air vents" with aftermarket ones that dont leak air and whistle
-fixed hood so it opens smoothly (hood popped open on me once after working on it a while back)
-winter wheels swapped back on
-put some 10w30 in to thin up the 20w50 i normally run in the warmer months










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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Oh and two days ago i put a hole in the top cleaning the snow off it. Then promptly fixed it with a patch kit 


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## p4bbox (Dec 1, 2014)

Travelling in Canada, eh?










I added a Canoe


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

p4bbox said:


> Travelling in Canada, eh?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


haha awesome, where about in Canada :beer:


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

tangerine_coupe said:


> haha awesome, where about in Canada :beer:


\

ha ha ha drove mine Topless at 85mph today, and in 30 minutes when I get off.
That is what I like about the south.


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Yep, had mine topless the last 3 days...awesome weather this week in the ATL!


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## p4bbox (Dec 1, 2014)

That particular trip I was going from Gogama to Ottawa.

Now it's parked in a snowbank in Chibougamau. At least the brakes aren't stuck anymore! Big thanks to Briano1234 and VeeDub! 

It'll be heading back past Winterpeg in a couple weeks.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Went to the u pull it and scored a washer bottle w/pump and nozzle, rear interior side panels, a hatch strut, and a super nice set of b-pillar seals. All for the wife's '87. Interior panels cleaned up nicely.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Test fitted these bady larrys






























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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> Test fitted these bady larrys


They look perfect  I wish i could afford to widen mine!


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## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

found a replacement shell for mine a few years older. In the spring I'll be swapping all the good parts from mine onto the new body.

current 1989 Cabriolet 1.8








New 1984 Rabbit Cabriolet 1.6









I'm swapping the Black top and the tail lights to the new car then parting out my 89 for parts and (remaining) good panels.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

flying_oliver said:


> Good luck!
> 
> And why does it not have heat?



Turns out the 2 springs holding the brushes for the blower motor decided to break.... fixed them with "pen springs" so the motor now works.... The core must be clogged as there was still next to nothing for heat... Made it though even when it was - 40.... Had to make sure to start it every hr or so as the 20-50 would get thick like molasses..


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Wawa Ontario.... -35


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Turns out the 2 springs holding the brushes for the blower motor decided to break.... fixed them with "pen springs" so the motor now works.... The core must be clogged as there was still next to nothing for heat... Made it though even when it was - 40.... Had to make sure to start it every hr or so as the 20-50 would get thick like molasses..


Went through the brush spring issue with my '82. 

Have you confirmed your control cable and heater control valve are functioning properly? The Porsche 944 uses the same valve (and front control arms, and a lot more!) and I had to manually open the one on a buddy's because the cable was jacked up.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Wawa Ontario.... -35


I suppose you don't want to know that I was driving around with the top down and 52 degrees today


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## Compeast (Dec 12, 2014)

Hey briano1234, I see you're on these forums too!










Lil' Christmas vibe


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## p4bbox (Dec 1, 2014)

Nice to see a fellow Cabby-Canuck skating around the winter roads of Canada!
Is that the Tim Hortons drive through, just before the airport and Big Goose?



Mrpapageorgio said:


> Wawa Ontario.... -35


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## 65comet (Oct 7, 2013)

Had the upper radiator hose blow Sunday morning and soak everything under the hood in anti-freeze. It was a "new" hose from Rockauto that was a clear out from somewhere last Fall. I should have paid more attention to it when it put it on. I sure could tell now that it was very old and had a bit of dry rot in it. Probably sat on a shelf for 35 years. Had to go with a flex hose for now. At least it made me put in one more engine detail before the end of the year.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Yup.... Good staff... Let Me chill till the worst of the snow passed....


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Today I gave it a little breathing room by cleaning up the garage some. Hopefully getting back to working on it again soon.


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## blkmk3518 (Feb 8, 2013)

I gave my 90 a good cleaning as I'm waiting on a few parts. Found some goodies from the p.o. Including a remanufactured ecu, a few extra light switches, the old plates, and a few new spark plugs. The p.o. Hadn't cleaned it in the 2 yrs it sat so I also found a rodent best and a few dead mice. I'm going to remove the seats tomorrow morning and steam clean them all. As well as the carpets. Hopefully getting a used motor to rebuild on Monday so I can learn these 1.8's inside and out. I'm an Aba guy so this is going to be a fun experience for me. I haven't had a motor to rebuild in a few years so I'm very excited.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Bought a scirocco lower "K" bar.... need it to stop raining now


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

If you know the aba well, a 1.8 is going to be pretty similar. Theres a couple of differences (most of them will make you wish you were working on an ABA lol) but largly the same. Its funny how much is the same even on a mk4 2.0.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

I been spending the past couple of weeks offloading the parts from a failed mk2 project










And the last few days cleaning out the workshop....I filled the mk2 to capacity with junk before hauling it to the recycler, then hauled an 8 foot bed loaded to the top of the camper to the dump today and will do the same again tomorrow.

But with more space on the floor I managed to get my cabby project out from under the lift, and lower the parts cabby down to floor level (parts car is on the lift)...










Im trying to figure out if I want to focus on the cabby build, or the freshening of my mk2 thats in my sig. I quit driving it about 4 years ago because of some issues, and its sat in the back corner ever since. I finally drug it out last week when the jetta left.
It isnt pretty under a huge layer of dirt and cobwebs..










What it used to look like...









But it looks alot better now that it alteast got a bath...









And its going to be cabby-ish


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Today (on the wife's) I relocated the P/S reservoir, cleaned the lower portion of the back seat and cleaned under it a bit, installed the replacement rear side panels, and replaced the rear hatch strut. After Christmas there's a bunch to get done!


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Installed the K Bar... and a new headlight.... on the hunt for some tires


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## VWFOX407 (May 10, 2007)

I am upgrading the control arms bushings - 100 407 0073/HD. PAT1501 is helping me...👍


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

got the stuff I need to re-polish the wheels on the cabby.... The trip back across RUINED them... Pics to follow


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## m1a1mg (Dec 4, 2014)

Installed new seat guides. That is so much nicer.

Tried to track down a mystery vacuum hose and finally found what right looked like from a Jetta picture. 

Spent some time seeing how the shift linkage works so I can put the new bushings in when they come. 

Oh yes, and I walked on the beach. All those pics of snow have me happy I moved to Florida.


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## VWFOX407 (May 10, 2007)

*...*

You gotta love it:laugh:!


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## jetta trek (Nov 11, 2007)

Wiring cleanup, new fuel lines, new twin slim fans for the radiator, and so on. 

Can't wait for spring!!!!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Today (on the wife's) I installed the rear euro bumper, replaced door handle on pass side, installed new door handle gaskets, and installed side trim with all new clips. Pardon the side marker pigtails, have them zip-tied to keep them from falling back in before I finish the LED marker lights.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

jetta trek said:


> Wiring cleanup, new fuel lines, new twin slim fans for the radiator, and so on.
> 
> Can't wait for spring!!!!


 !


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## blkmk3518 (Feb 8, 2013)

Drove it to work... It died on the way home. I'm thinking about giving up on driving it and just doing a full tear down now instead of waiting until summer. I only have a week before I can pick up my new to me b5 anyways.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

jetta trek said:


> Wiring cleanup, new fuel lines, new twin slim fans for the radiator, and so on.
> 
> Can't wait for spring!!!!


Oh ****!!! Looking forward to seeing this!! :beer: I kinda wish I went vr.

I took a trip to metal supermarket, picked up some aluminum pipe to finish my plenum. Ordered up some charge pipes.

Got a new 16v clutch also.. along with a cheap'o oil feed/drain line from ebay.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

My $40 winters and steelies...


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## jetta trek (Nov 11, 2007)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Oh ****!!! Looking forward to seeing this!! :beer: I kinda wish I went vr.



Check it out here!!!! Ill never go back. http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?6112144-Vr6-into-86-cabrio :beer:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

jetta trek said:


> Check it out here!!!! Ill never go back. http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?6112144-Vr6-into-86-cabrio :beer:


Real nice build, good read for sure! 

I think my next build will be a vr.. Gotta finish this cabby first.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Tightened my timing belt thd other day. Driving it daily  


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## PzwoTDI (Apr 6, 2000)

My Cabby and I wished it was warmer out.. Sadly to no avail.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Final drive oil seal.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

*Cleaned the beast up a little bit.*

Cleaned out my trunk (it was pretty grimy, sadly but gladly I don't have before pics) and re-attatched the donut and replaced the jack and tire iron into the kit plastic (which surprisingly was still there and intact!)

Figured out my options codes and birthday also while I was in there. Vacuumed the interior a bit as well, but since the carpet is trashed it doesn't look any different. Probably gonna rip up the carpet and just run bare floor till I can get replacement carpet. Next step is to try and give the engine bay a bath, and replacing my front seats. (Sports buckets have the metal frame wore through on the door side of both seats)  



















Obviously I didn't go super OCD and toothbrush out the textured parts.... (yet) 



















I also plan on trying to flatten out the carpet since the previous owner had the donut smashed down on top of it instead of under it, and adding a piece of plywood underneath for added support. 

Found an extra (in better condition) Badge, and two other plastic (what i think are) covers while I was cleaning as well. 

I know it's not much, but I'm just trying to get some simple stuff done on er till she gets to the shop for a good once-(or five times) over. 
I did at least semi-confirm I have no vacuum leaks. I really want to clean and re-attatch all the grounds soon too.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Installed the K Bar...




What a difference... No more shakes and rattles .. Just PLANTED

Started driving it again... I love this little car


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## Vee Dubb (Jan 3, 2002)

Explained to my wife what "luck" looks like:









You might not think that's luck, to spectacularly blow out your clutch cable like so. No, friend, the luck is in the fact that I was AT my friends shop when I did it, my wife was only a few blocks away and swing through on her way home to pick me up, and NAPA delivered the new $17 cable to said shop that next morning.


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## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

Vee Dubb said:


> Explained to my wife what "luck" looks like:
> 
> 
> 
> ...




that is luck, i had luck like that before one of my valve cover studs broke on my old cabby after a how thing about my buddy getting the wrong gasket (with metal rings that wouldn't fit over the stud shoulder) and tried to crank it tight when it snapped so i drove it like that pissin oil to an advanced auto and shot in the dark they had a new valve cover gasket and i found an old but still good valve cover stud in the car lol that was a lucky night


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Picked this up for $50... brand new in the box.... a suede Nardi wheel


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Picked this up for $50... brand new in the box.... a suede Nardi wheel


Sick find!


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## Blkdubs (Jan 7, 2015)

Started to remove the old motor last night. Going to be torquing the valve cover on the new motor tonight and getting together the wiring situation.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Picked this up for $50... brand new in the box.... a suede Nardi wheel


Thats super sweet


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

the -9 temps the other day completely killed my battery... so the old girl got a new battery. 

In other news i picked up a 94 GLX vr6 that i havent decided if it will be a flip or a strip.. my 82 caddy would be quite awesome with a vr6 swap


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> the -9 temps the other day completely killed my battery... so the old girl got a new battery.
> 
> In other news i picked up a 94 GLX vr6 that i havent decided if it will be a flip or a strip.. my 82 caddy would be quite awesome with a vr6 swap


It's a mk3, it all depends how rusty it is!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

YJSAABMAN said:


> It's a mk3, it all depends how rusty it is!


just the rockers.. gas door is mint lol


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Finished up the mounting plates for the LED side markers for the wife's today. Just need some electrical connectors and some stainless hardware and I can get these installed!


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)




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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Beer tap shifter.....:laugh:


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## Blkdubs (Jan 7, 2015)

A mouse chewed through my electrical lines for the main pump last week so I grabbed the whole ordeal from a pick and pull and ran it this morning. Also am trying to figure out how to install my beer tap shifter. It's a Guinness handle and doesn't have a tapped hole, just a hole for a bolt through the side because Guinness just has to make things complicated.







e pic for referance.


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## grizz13 (Jan 14, 2015)

I bought a 1989 Cabriolet for $1,000 a few months ago and didn't touch it until last week here is what I did:
1. I put in a new fuel filter, seems like it was never changed.
2. Replaced the emissions (vacuum) line to the throttle body, the silicon degraded at the connectors and were leaking, which was causing a cold start issue.
3. Replaced the valve cover gasket, one that was not replaced correctly they didn't clean the old silicon off so it was bleeding oil when they put the cork and bolts in.
4. Degreased and sprayed off the engine the best I could.
5. Replaced the air filter that probably wasn't changed since the 90's... Caked with dust and an oily substance, how it ran I have no idea... I think the oily substance is from the bad heater core.
6. Had to Gorilla tape the entire top due to gouges in it. Once I get the extra bit of cash to buy a new top I will, just had to get it where we can drive it in rainy/snowy weather.

Next steps:
Replace the line for the washer fluid tank to the sprayers.
Checking the brakes
Replace driver and passenger seats
Replacing the heater core
Fix/replace the blower motor, only the defrost is working?
Replace in-tank fuel pump, my in-line seems to be new... The tank pump is not operating period...
Replace parking break line
Hopefully by the time I get this done it'll pass inspection and can drive!!!

Later down the road I should have some pictures to go with my updates!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

grizz13 said:


> I bought a 1989 Cabriolet for $1,000 a few months ago and didn't touch it until last week here is what I did:
> 1. I put in a new fuel filter, seems like it was never changed.
> 2. Replaced the emissions (vacuum) line to the throttle body, the silicon degraded at the connectors and were leaking, which was causing a cold start issue.
> 3. Replaced the valve cover gasket, one that was not replaced correctly they didn't clean the old silicon off so it was bleeding oil when they put the cork and bolts in.
> ...


For the "only blowing on defrost" start here: http://www.cabby-info.com/hvac.htm

Lots of good, basic tech and info @ cabby-info.com. Welcome!


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## grizz13 (Jan 14, 2015)

YJSAABMAN said:


> For the "only blowing on defrost" start here: http://www.cabby-info.com/hvac.htm
> 
> Lots of good, basic tech and info @ cabby-info.com. Welcome!


Thank you! That now has to be put on the back burner, I was driving the car back from college and the transmission decided it wasn't going to shift out of first or second. Luckily I was only 100ft from my house. I think one of the cables broke, but I'll have to see what it really is later this week. Also found the odometer doesn't work either... The list keeps growing!!!

Also one thing I forgot to mention, when I turned the knob up to 4 and 5, smoke was rising out of the defrost vents???


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Linkage, not cables on these cars, and cheap and easy to rebuild.


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## grizz13 (Jan 14, 2015)

Fixed the shifting problem, the linkage higher up fell apart, I just added 2 rubber washers and a regular washer and put the cotter pin in and works great! Even the shifting is a lot tighter... On the downside, I found the CV axle has to be replaced also. The axle is flopping around when I hit a bump, no issues while driving though. I am keeping the driving distance limited to about 10 miles just in case anything happens.


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## grizz13 (Jan 14, 2015)

Simple things today, I replaced the vacuum hose for the washer fluid motor to the sprayers and I also replaced the heater hose that was hanging off the engine. I know the engines don't need them, but why have a hole for water to get into it???


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Did the head gasket/studs... removed the non functioning cruise crap


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

grizz13 said:


> Thank you! That now has to be put on the back burner, I was driving the car back from college and the transmission decided it wasn't going to shift out of first or second. Luckily I was only 100ft from my house. I think one of the cables broke, but I'll have to see what it really is later this week. Also found the odometer doesn't work either... The list keeps growing!!!
> 
> Also one thing I forgot to mention, when I turned the knob up to 4 and 5, smoke was rising out of the defrost vents???


No cables in the shifting on the 89 except the clutch cable, the shifters are all mechanical.
It may be that you need to get a shifter linkage kit.

5 speeds on a blower motor? only thought they went to 4.
Smoke out the defroster vents? seen that happen 3 or 5 different ways. 
1. Did it smell like exhaust? then look for the manifold leaking or the connection between the manifold and or the exhaust down pipe leaking.
2. Did it smell like burning oil? then that would be the valve cover leaking on to the Exhaust.
3. Was it frosty cold, as that can be a frozen a/c evaporator as with it being in defrost the a/c kicks in, and you may have a plugged drain.
Passenger side heater box low behind plastic cover held in by a single #2 Phillips screw. Get a bowl handy and un hook the drain line use bowl to catch over flow. If it is green then that is a heater core that is leaking.
4. If the smoke smells sweet and the window condenses (gets dewy) then you have a bad heater core. So tell us more and we can point you in the right direction.
5. if it is acrid and electrical then that sounds like you have a heater motor issue. This is about all that I can say unless the wiper motor is going out and the smoke is entering from the fresh air intake on the heater.

So tell us as much as you an as to color of smoke, hot or cold, sweet or acrid.

Odometer is the little red gear internally that is either broken or slipping on the shaft.


Slipping on shaft drop of super glue. Broken replacement gear is between 25, and 40 bucks depending on where you buy it.


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## Blkdubs (Jan 7, 2015)

Stopped by my storage unit to grab my snow brush as I never did before the storm. Man I love this car. I'm going to enjoy my summer this year for sure.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Blkdubs said:


> Stopped by my storage unit to grab my snow brush as I never did before the storm. Man I love this car. I'm going to enjoy my summer this year for sure.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone 6+ using Tapatalk


My wife bought an '87 back in August, and it's almost road-worthy. Lol! 










It has lit a fire under my ass to get my mk2 done so I can sell it to fund my '82.










Garage (and hood) have been cleaned up since that pics.


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## grizz13 (Jan 14, 2015)

briano1234 said:


> No cables in the shifting on the 89 except the clutch cable, the shifters are all mechanical.
> It may be that you need to get a shifter linkage kit.
> 
> 5 speeds on a blower motor? only thought they went to 4.
> ...


I haven't been able to get into the dash yet, the main issue was the rear brakes and bearings. I learned a huge amount in the 5 hours it took to figure the brakes out (no joke) both sides were put together incorrectly and I don't know how the hell they worked with bad wheel cylinders!!!

Before I can diagnose the defrost issue, I have to get the exhaust fixed, someone put that flexible pipe about half way after the catalytic converter and it is leaking exhaust so I can't tell you anything about the smoke though it was white. The A/C was ripped out of it some time past so that narrows it down by one. I also think the selector was an after market change, I am going to look into it. I do know the heater core is bad since I have the anti-freeze blowing onto the windshield and I do have a new one on hand. I saw the forum on how to cut part of the plastic out near the foot on the lower part of the dash to get to it. 
Once I get into getting the heater core in I will look at the odometer (next week.) The big thing tomorrow working on the front brakes, CV drive shaft, bleeding the brakes and putting in the new fuel pump. I am also probably going to reopen the right rear brake and replace the parking cable since it's corroded and not working. I know it's not too important, since the left one works no problem holding at a 15-20% incline.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

I bought mine home for the first time about an hour ago  new to the forum too


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Not today.. but last week, finally got my plenum welded together. Fit my new clutch and put the engine in... thank the lord for chinooks in Calgary because now its back to munis stupid degrees outside. 

I would up date my build thread.. but that seems to be a waste of time lol

Just before it went in..



old crappy clutch off, new 16v clutch and pressure plate! 





in she goes



and there she is..





Now waiting for some other bits and pieces and the next thaw to hit Calgary.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> not today.. But last week, finally got my plenum welded together. Fit my new clutch and put the engine in... Thank the lord for chinooks in calgary because now its back to munis stupid degrees outside.
> 
> I would up date my build thread.. But that seems to be a waste of time lol
> 
> ...


so much win 👍👍👍👍


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## grizz13 (Jan 14, 2015)

Looks beautiful man!!!


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Nice!
Sorry if I missed the discussion but why the turbo/ carb setup?


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

BoostedOne said:


> Nice!
> Sorry if I missed the discussion but why the turbo/ carb setup?


It was running webber carbs previous to this engine.. I loved everything about it except the power! It wouldn't really keep up with much. 

Im a huge fan of old muscle turbo cars and air cooled beetles running turbos so i thought id give it a go in mine. Try something different.


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Update your build thread, keeps it all together and people love reading them..at least I do.

Looks amazing btw. That clean engine bay is :heart:
You ought to have more pics than that, throw em up!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Friends don't let Friends use Fram filters......................................


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

briano1234 said:


> Friends don't let Friends use Fram filters......................................


Yes, yes. It came with the engine. I haven't changed the filter, plugs or oil yet. One thing at a time


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

tangerine_coupe said:


> It was running webber carbs previous to this engine.. I loved everything about it except the power! It wouldn't really keep up with much.
> 
> Im a huge fan of old muscle turbo cars and air cooled beetles running turbos so i thought id give it a go in mine. Try something different.


Ah I gotcha Looking at my login name you can probably figure I have a thing for turbos. But for me when I got into turbos 20 years ago is the same exact time I developed a love for fuel injection and it wasn't a coincidence. To this date I never tried a carbed turbo build. 

So the nonturbo webers weren't all that spectacular eh? Hmm. Aside from my 1.8t cabby my next Mk1 build is a 79 with a 10:1 compression, cammed 1.8 with dual weber 45's. Hopefully it will at least sound cool lol...

Hey what are you doing for the distributor? That's something I been meaning to look up. Are you just locking the timing or you have an advance curve? For the 79 I have been weighing the options but have been leaning towards a knock sensor distributor and some kind of programmable system to do an advance curve.


briano1234 said:


> Friends don't let Friends use Fram filters......................................


Definitely... get a Mann or VW filter on that!


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## grizz13 (Jan 14, 2015)

Finally got the rear end put back together and tested the brakes, found that I do need to put the parking cable on the left side. I got the new fuel pump in and relay (found both were bad) the car runs much, much smoother and not fighting for fuel one bit! :laugh: Went to pull off the brakes on the right side and the previous back-yard mechanic stripped the bottom caliper hex bolt head so I can't get it off right now, got the top one off but had to use my 250lbs standing on the wrench to get it off. So I figure that I may just have to replace the entire thing if I can't get that bolt pulled out... RAWR!!! I hate back-yard-slap-it-together-with-no-concern-mechanics!!!


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

BoostedOne said:


> Ah I gotcha Looking at my login name you can probably figure I have a thing for turbos. But for me when I got into turbos 20 years ago is the same exact time I developed a love for fuel injection and it wasn't a coincidence. To this date I never tried a carbed turbo build.
> 
> So the nonturbo webers weren't all that spectacular eh? Hmm. Aside from my 1.8t cabby my next Mk1 build is a 79 with a 10:1 compression, cammed 1.8 with dual weber 45's. Hopefully it will at least sound cool lol...
> 
> ...


With the webers they don't really add power, they give better throttle response and they sound amazing! I ditched mine and went with cbr bike carbs for a blow through set up rather then draw through.

For the distributer, I'm going with a similar set up that works with an aba/jh hybrid swap. Using both distributors to make a single unit. There's more info on that somewhere on here. 

For ignition, I'm going with msd and a timing control unit. I'd like to go with mega jolt but I'm really trying to keep my build on a budget. Saying that, I will be taking of the Walmart-special oil filter. I'm waiting for a care package from home in the UK, which will include all that fun oem stuff plus some bigger main jets for the carbs.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

BoostedOne said:


> So the nonturbo webers weren't all that spectacular eh? Hmm. Aside from my 1.8t cabby my next Mk1 build is a 79 with a 10:1 compression, cammed 1.8 with dual weber 45's. Hopefully it will at least sound cool lol...


What engine are you planning to pair the webers to? just a 8v?


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Yep. Just an 8v. I have a 2H in a cabby parts car, neuspeed cam and gear, header, etc.

At first I was thinking maybe the 45's were big but guys put dual 44's on 1835 aircooleds all the time so I dunno.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

I mean everyone runs 40's on 8vs but there's nothing wrong with a little more air! haha but I mean with the webers you'll squeeze a little more power out of that engine. I know they made a difference on how my 16v performs, but obviously it's no comparison to a turbocharger.

It'll sound really mean though haha.


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Yeah I figure I will get it up to about 120hp and getting about 12mpg, LOL 

Man that video was cool. Dude was beating the hell out of that thing.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Yeah, that's a pretty reasonable number. And you'll actually get pretty decent mileage haha it wont be as bad as you think. I was getting on average 26-28 mpg on the highway from my 16v on DCOE 45's with TT268 cams which isn't all too bad considering a 16v on CIS-E gets about that :thumbup:

But with the 16v that's being built for my car now, there's no way I'll be getting anywhere near that :laugh:


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

You were getting in the 20's mpg wise??? I thought webers were supposed to make the eyes water of everyone behind them like the stereotypical Joe Dirt Camaro with cragars, shackle lift and glass packs.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

BoostedOne said:


> You were getting in the 20's mpg wise??? I thought webers were supposed to make the eyes water of everyone behind them like the stereotypical Joe Dirt Camaro with cragars, shackle lift and glass packs.


All day long. The car isn't even my daily but I drove that thing every day 50 miles unless it was raining over the summer. Its all in the jetting, selection of the trumpets and timing.. I experimented a lot and to me I feel as though a lot of people tend to set them rich at least for the 16vs.

The only time my mileage lowered was obviously when I was beating on it. Because the pump jets are just shooting a solid stream of gas down in the combustion chamber lol


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> Yeah, that's a pretty reasonable number. And you'll actually get pretty decent mileage haha it wont be as bad as you think. I was getting on average 26-28 mpg on the highway from my 16v on DCOE 45's with TT268 cams which isn't all too bad considering a 16v on CIS-E gets about that
> 
> But with the 16v that's being built for my car now, there's no way I'll be getting anywhere near that


I'm sorry but I have to disagree with the stock 16V mileage, try 32-34 mpg on the highway. With no vacuum leaks and a fresh tune up it is perfectly feasible, I've seen it in 2.0L mk2 GLI. This is travelling at reasonable speeds, 65-70 mph, not 80+.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Oh yeah I don't doubt that at all! But what I'm saying is that 26-28 on not totally stock 16v with weber 45s isn't far off stock 16v milage. And I usually drive 70-80 on the highways so thats pretty good milage. So that's really pretty good haha


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> Oh yeah I don't doubt that at all! But what I'm saying is that 26-28 on not totally stock 16v with weber 45s isn't far off stock 16v milage. And I usually drive 70-80 on the highways so thats pretty good milage. So that's really pretty good haha


Agreed!  Hoping to see that from my aba/R1 carbs when they're dialed in!


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Agreed!  Hoping to see that from my aba/R1 carbs when they're dialed in!


  You should definitely expect pretty good results with those carbs! Both performance from a fun stand point and from a mpg stand point. Webers are great but bike carbs are much more efficient. I feel like webers either want to be idling or just opened up.. Where as bike carbs have much better progression but offer great performance across the board. There are times I really wish I went with bike carbs.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*This is what I did today*

Took this out...
































































...and put this in




























And now to do this (weather permitting)





































This starter should be fun to install  (gotta love my sarcasm)


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

If you can replace that ignition holder the starter will be a cake walk.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> If you can replace that ignition holder the starter will be a cake walk.


Yeah, that took me less than 30 minutes to remove the old one and install the new one. All I need now are some cheap MFA gauges, and I'm good to go...


----------



## grizz13 (Jan 14, 2015)

I beat the hell out of my car because of the last idiot that worked on my car...


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Replaced the starter today, was a breeze (except all the cussing involved, lol)*



grizz13 said:


> I beat the hell out of my car because of the last idiot that worked on my car...


Yeah, that's why I do my own work.
And now for what I did today:

Old starter (I believe solenoid is gone):




























New starter installed (Sounds perfect, now for the new battery):




























Now all I need to complete the current project is the MFA gauges and the battery, and we can get this "White Rabbit" on the road!!!


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Bought another piece for completion today (only 1 piece remains)*

Scored this for $30 today (not the one I wanted, but what can you do when it's the last one at the yard?) and will install tomorrow (weather-permitting):










Now to wait a whole f***ing week for a battery... I want to drive my car NOW


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Got a small fitting for my T3 that allows the oil feed line to work with the metric thread. Small but important. 

Also picked up some other fittings for the plenum vacuum lines.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Cluster install complete.*

Cluster is finally installed:





































I get the battery on Monday. Then I can finally drive it


----------



## Twebber10 (Feb 16, 2013)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Cluster is finally installed:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


How hard was that cluster to install? Mine is hit and miss and I was looking at doing the same thing.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Twebber10 said:


> How hard was that cluster to install? Mine is hit and miss and I was looking at doing the same thing.


Man, it took me less than five minutes to install this cluster. All I had to do was drop it in and plug it up. This isn't the one I wanted though, I wanted the Mk2 MFA cluster. I don't like the tachometer on this one simply because it's measured in hundreds and not thousands, but hey, what can you do when it's the last one locally available for $30, right?


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Finally finished up the wiring in my bay. I can actually say that it's %100 done now and ready for the engine  

But I also did some photography stuff and found some black and white pictures I took of it a long way back that I forgot I took. I'll have to scan them into my computer so they actually look nice haha but here's what I found from my old film rolls


----------



## Twebber10 (Feb 16, 2013)

Replaced the o ring on back of the throttle body! Runs smooth!


----------



## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Twebber10 said:


> How hard was that cluster to install? Mine is hit and miss and I was looking at doing the same thing.


What's wrong with it? These clusters are easy to fix :thumbup:

People have even taken the mylar (blue plastic with the integrated wires) off and run individual wires to each gauge and LED.


----------



## Twebber10 (Feb 16, 2013)

flying_oliver said:


> What's wrong with it? These clusters are easy to fix
> 
> People have even taken the mylar (blue plastic with the integrated wires) off and run individual wires to each gauge and LED.


Speedo works great but everything else is hit and miss. Rpm gas temp and lights. Its weird. Time works too


----------



## Vee Dubb (Jan 3, 2002)

Twebber10 said:


> Speedo works great but everything else is hit and miss. Rpm gas temp and lights. Its weird. Time works too


Sounds like a grounding issue.... Paging Dr. Briano... :laugh:


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Twebber10 said:


> Speedo works great but everything else is hit and miss. Rpm gas temp and lights. Its weird. Time works too





Vee Dubb said:


> Sounds like a grounding issue.... Paging Dr. Briano... :laugh:


Sounds as if it is a possible ground, flaky 10V stabilizer as well as a iffy connection on pins 14, and 2 which are the Positive and Ground in to the cluster. Brown pin2 Ground and black pin 14 12V.

You can plump the connector up, add a new ground, and or test your 10V stabilizer.


See my how to fix a flaky water temp gauge in the FAQ's page 3 thread 75

*For the 10V stabilizer and running new wires if after plumping your connector don't fix it.*


*Testing your flaky water gauge... *

Testing your 10V Stabilizer.



*They are cheaper at mouser.com so order 5 they charge the same shipping, and yes you will have to bend the legs.*


*NEXT time open a thread, as this is a what did you do to your cabby today thread, and not a I wanted to fix this other stuff thread....and wait to see what briano kammy or tolsunia say....* 



Vee Dubb said:


> Sounds like a grounding issue.... Paging Dr. Briano... :laugh:


You know what I would say so link the docs...... FAQ's page 3 thread 75... www.cabby-info.com .... NeoBentley+


----------



## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

Boxed up parts for the move to my new place and garage Stall(s). I also went live with my Project website where I'll be hosting my build threads from this point on.


----------



## Karisu (Oct 20, 2014)

Waiting on an alternator and battery charger to ship... Then some mold damage control... Poor things been neglected lately, but Seattle is starting to dry out after winter


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Finally got the battery, started her up for the first time D). Also bought a new shift boot and exhaust tips. I think it's a fuel problem, because she ran for a good minute, then died when I stopped revving the engine. I would say fuel filter, but being new to actually owning this car, I'd guess the fuel filter was that little silver canister toward the driver side fender(?)


----------



## xrayjr900 (Jan 16, 2015)

jsmyle1%... said:


> Installed a Reiger front lip...


Where did you get bumper from I've been looking for body kits for my 87 cabby but can't find any


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

xrayjr900 said:


> Where did you get bumper from I've been looking for body kits for my 87 cabby but can't find any


It is called a Clipper Kit. See www.cabby-info.com for details.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove it Topless like I stole it, getting foul weather supplies since they are predicting Snow-Ice_freezing-rain, mix, ...... So Toilet paper, Paper Towels, more Toilet paper 32 dozen Eggs, 4 Gallons of milk, and more Toilet paper.... Never know when you will run out... lololololol They tend to sell out of most everything the day before that is why I am stocking up now........ Shoot and it will probably last but a day.....

But I drove Topless.........In Feb,,,,,, not much of a battle in Georgia.


----------



## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Flushed the cooling system, and installed my new, totally trick, aluminum RADiator.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

matty kirk said:


> Flushed the cooling system, and installed my new, totally trick, aluminum RADiator.


Increase the coolant efficiency and get a top radiator card on there.......


----------



## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

briano1234 said:


> Increase the coolant efficiency and get a top radiator card on there.......


Working on it. I recently bought some from a place in the UK. They looked good, but when I put the top card in, it almost immediately got all warped out and stupid. I'm using it and the side card as templates to cut some out of sheet aluminum.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Finally got the battery, started her up for the first time D). Also bought a new shift boot and exhaust tips. I think it's a fuel problem, because she ran for a good minute, then died when I stopped revving the engine. I would say fuel filter, but being new to actually owning this car, I'd guess the fuel filter was that little silver canister toward the driver side fender(?)


Sounds like some bad vacuum leaks, the bane of any CIS injected VW. At 30 years of age it's good practice to replace every rubber bit under the hood you can. Vacuum hoses, idle screw o-ring, and injector o-rings are a great place to start. Been battling the wife's '87 as of late, and have it going pretty well, at this point.


----------



## grizz13 (Jan 14, 2015)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Finally got the battery, started her up for the first time D). Also bought a new shift boot and exhaust tips. I think it's a fuel problem, because she ran for a good minute, then died when I stopped revving the engine. I would say fuel filter, but being new to actually owning this car, I'd guess the fuel filter was that little silver canister toward the driver side fender(?)


You are correct, its right behind the battery, it's probably the easiest thing I have done on my car other than the battery. Make sure your fuel pumps are working, turn your ignition to the on position and listen for the hum of the fuel pumps (2 of them) one is underneath on the right side and the other is in the fuel tank. If you don't hear a 1-2 second mechanical hum, you need to replace your fuel pump relay. You should also check your emissions/vacuum lines they can cause idle and cold start issues.

I found that I had 1 broken vacuum line, bad fuel filter, bad in-tank fuel pump and a bad fuel pump relay all at once, not sure how the car even ran...


----------



## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Installed the DigiFAST 2 chip and also an upper and lower strut bar.



















Disregard the plastic box and paper towels in the passenger side...that's the temporary location of the relay box for the headlights...


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

grizz13 said:


> You are correct, its right behind the battery, it's probably the easiest thing I have done on my car other than the battery. Make sure your fuel pumps are working, turn your ignition to the on position and listen for the hum of the fuel pumps (2 of them) one is underneath on the right side and the other is in the fuel tank. If you don't hear a 1-2 second mechanical hum, you need to replace your fuel pump relay. You should also check your emissions/vacuum lines they can cause idle and cold start issues.
> 
> I found that I had 1 broken vacuum line, bad fuel filter, bad in-tank fuel pump and a bad fuel pump relay all at once, not sure how the car even ran...


Found out on Saturday the radiator is shot. Bought a whole jug of antifreeze, leaked out within 2 hours. Don't even have a coolant reservoir attached. Also, the gaskets need replaced. Water/oil mix (small leak). That's what I'm the most concerned about. This is gonna be a bigger project than I thought...:banghead:




























Also had a hard time with the oil filter. I tried so hard to get the oil filter off, but it was a no-go. This cold weather and snow put an even bigger damper on my work, but, what can you do, right?










Hopefully I can diagnose this problem and get back to work soon


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Sounds like some bad vacuum leaks, the bane of any CIS injected VW. At 30 years of age it's good practice to replace every rubber bit under the hood you can. Vacuum hoses, idle screw o-ring, and injector o-rings are a great place to start. Been battling the wife's '87 as of late, and have it going pretty well, at this point.


Yeah, a lot more things are shot than I thought. I didn't realise it was gonna be this much work in front of me.


----------



## jmaggrahpics (Apr 4, 2013)

xrayjr900: Its called a Clipper Kit. Came on the later models. You can generally find them on a local classifieds.. Thats where I found mine..

Kits include side skirts, bumpers front and back and wheel flairs


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

Today I scraped the snow off of my covered Cabby.

Came to the realization that I need to fix the unibody before I put new dampers in.
Now this is the second time the nut untacked inside the unibody of the driver side front swing arm mount point... it's looking a bit sloppy... :banghead:

Can a clip fom another car clean this up?? 
I must consult with some body gurus... anyone?


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

teknikALLEN said:


> Today I scraped the snow off of my covered Cabby.
> 
> Came to the realization that I need to fix the unibody before I put new dampers in.
> Now this is the second time the nut untacked inside the unibody of the driver side front swing arm mount point... it's looking a bit sloppy... :banghead:
> ...


Mk1 Autohaus I'm pretty sure carries complete, new front lower sections to be welded in, as the factory would have. Labor intensive and not cheap, $400+ for the part, IIRC, but thought it was cool to see they had them available.


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Couldn't you make your own nut plate? A piece of 1/4 steel a bit larger than the clamp with two nuts securely welded to it. Cut a rectangle out of the unibody to match. Make the cutout intentionally a little small then gradually enlarge it slowly with a small grinder until the new nut plate fits in with a minimal gap. Then weld.

If that is the only problem with that section of the car its way overkill to buy the whole piece. That part is geared towards people with chassis rot.


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

BoostedOne said:


> Couldn't you make your own nut plate? A piece of 1/4 steel a bit larger than the clamp with two nuts securely welded to it. Cut a rectangle out of the unibody to match. Make the cutout intentionally a little small then gradually enlarge it slowly with a small grinder until the new nut plate fits in with a minimal gap. Then weld.
> 
> If that is the only problem with that section of the car its way overkill to buy the whole piece.


That was the first solution, sort of ... 
I am not a welder and the fabricator sort of botched the job. :facepalm:

Buying the whole piece may be the way to go. I also took a good hit getting a bit off the track that set that side slightly back, out of spec. It couldn't be bent back without a 4 point stabilizer bar to hold it in place. 

Thanks YJSAABMAN, didn't think Moogie had those. :thumbup:


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Ordered this on Friday:



















It's an AH-compatible Mk1/Mk2/Mk3 flip key from the newer Mk4's. The remote is just for show (until I figure something out, lol). Found it on eBay, instead of dropping $60 on this particular one, I found a complete HAA remote flip key, and an AH key blade, and paid less than $40. Next plan on the agenda: a 16v head and the radiator.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Goodies*

Got some goodies today.










Key blade and GTI badge. This is gonna look good on my car, I can see it already. Now for the radiator.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Finally got the key blade cut (for free!) and here it is:










Awesome part is, IT WORKS!!!!! Now to wait on the remote. Hopefully it gets here tomorrow.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Mk1 Flip Key*

After slight modifications, here is the official "Mk1 Flip Key":














































Now for the radiator.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

drove it, like i do every day, cringing as it collects more and more salt on it. 


I am immortalizing my cabby in t-shirt form  

Shirts are Ready to order!!! http://teespring.com/make-it-your-own i'll be doing a caddy design next month  


i cant wait for spring.. we've had over 100" of snow so far in NH and its certainly keeping me from working on my cabby.


here is the shirt i have in the shop


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Coolant leak results*

Pulled radiator today, no damage to radiator. Lower coolant hose was the issue. Also tried to replace the oil filter again today, since I just bought a new STP Air Filter, Mobil 1 Oil Filter, and five quarts of Mobil 1 10W/30 Pure Synthetic Oil about a week ago. Car currently has an STP Oil Filter installed, and it's so hard to remove, I ended up puncturing the oil filter with the oil filter wrench (yeah, I know, it was screwed on very tightly). So now the messy task of popping a screwdriver through the filter, something I honestly wanted to avoid doing. So I went to get an oil filter socket. It seems like the oil filter installed did not want me to remove it in the following ways: 1) I ended up in an accident today on my way back from exchanging the wrench for a socket in my husband's D21 Hardbody because his steering axle motor literally snapped in half while I was driving through town, leaving me no choice but to sideswipe a newer Acura MDX that was parked in front of a restaurant, in second gear, at 20mph, no less (glad no injuries occurred, just cosmetic damage to the Acura, and mechanical failure to my husband's Nissan), now his truck is down, and 2) when the D21 was towed home, I still could not remove the oil filter in the Cabriolet even with the matching oil filter socket. Oh, and at least I replaced the starter cable.

Antifreeze leak from last Saturday (snow/ice melted the majority of coolant spill):









Radiator and lower hose removal

Radiator and fan









Lower Hose (someone please explain why the entire hell a spring was removed from inside the coolant hose also)









Lower Hose Intake


















Top View









New Starter Cable (black insulated wire running from positive battery terminal)


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Went to fit my drain line onto the turbo today.. The fitting is to big... Lame, took the turbo and manifold off. Bought a threaded brass extension.. filed down the mani a little and it fits, fingers crossed it works! Next job to weld a bung on to the oil pan


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Went to fit my drain line onto the turbo today.. The fitting is to big... Lame, took the turbo and manifold off. Bought a threaded brass extension.. filed down the mani a little and it fits, fingers crossed it works! Next job to weld a bung on to the oil pan


Did you put the appropriate flare on the brass extension for the AN fitting to seal to? If not I suspect you will have a leak.

Yesterday while shoveling snow the wife's Cabby started puking fuel out the filler neck/cap from the barometer changing. Discovered the cap seal is totally effed. Disconnected one of the evap lines under the hood to vent the tank properly and the level dropped back down. Thinking g it might be a little over full, too.

Today I ordered a front Euro bumper for it because ECS finally has reasonable shipping on them.


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Did you put the appropriate flare on the brass extension for the AN fitting to seal to? If not I suspect you will have a leak.
> 
> Yesterday while shoveling snow the wife's Cabby started puking fuel out the filler neck/cap from the barometer changing. Discovered the cap seal is totally effed. Disconnected one of the evap lines under the hood to vent the tank properly and the level dropped back down. Thinking g it might be a little over full, too.
> 
> Today I ordered a front Euro bumper for it because ECS finally has reasonable shipping on them.


It seals tight! so hopefully it doesn't leak.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Okay, managed to put everything back together, and now (I think for the most part) it should be good. Here are the pics:


----------



## Karisu (Oct 20, 2014)

Finally replaced the alternator and battery  And took care of the mold.... Then a test drive. Not bad for a Wednesday afternoon


----------



## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Bought one 

1999 Cabrio, 209k on the clock. Needs some work, but all in all, not in too bad of shape. Pictures / intro thread for myself coming later (once we have daylight).


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Finally got a front Euro bumper for the wife's. ECS finally got the shipping down to something reasonable! Now I just need some stainless hardware for the custom LED marker lights and I'll have all the parts I need to get it inspectable.


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Got my care package from home. 

I couldn't find big jets for my carbs for a reasonable price. Eventually found a bike store near my parents place in the uk that carry a wide selection of jets. Got my dad to send those over along with an OEM oil filter, so the haters can get off my nuts lol.. Some spark plugs and a dip stick funnel which was broke. Small but useful stuff!


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Installed the new, correct fuel cap on the wife's, yesterday.


----------



## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Stock piled more stuff for when the weather gets nicer.

Oil + filter
Cabin Air Filter
Air Filter
Jack
Breaker bar
Windshield wipers
Fuel Injector Cleaner

And, an o2 sensor socket.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Oh, remember those God-awful racing seats that's in my Cabby? I took those out. (Yes, they're available). I need stock seats, those seats were gonna kill me the way those things were mounted in:


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Oh, remember those God-awful racing seats that's in my Cabby? I took those out. (Yes, they're available). I need stock seats, those seats were gonna kill me the way those things were mounted in:


Too bad you're not closer. I have a super nice set of stock seats that need to go to a good home lol. But that's awful :facepalm: How the heck was that seat actually held in? I'm curious :laugh:


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Had son go and replace the dead 5 year old battery.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

dougkehl said:


> Too bad you're not closer. I have a super nice set of stock seats that need to go to a good home lol. But that's awful :facepalm: How the heck was that seat actually held in? I'm curious :laugh:


Observe the two pictures very closely. You will see two long bolts on either corner (have to really study passenger side picture to see bolt) cheaply installed in the floorpan. Note the outermost stock slider points as well. There were only two bolts holding each chair, one drilled into the top of the outermost stock slider and one drilled into the actual seat mount:

Driver side










Passenger side










Driver side close up, front









Rear location (driver side)


I know, the interior needs a serious cleaning, possibly replacement. But I'm getting it there. Stock seats just fit the bill for me. I wish I could get some though, places around here barely even have Mk3 parts, Mk1's (and even Mk2's, for that matter) are virtually nonexistent in WNC, even for parts. The only other Mk1 I've even seen around here was a brown Caddy when I got into that wreck last week (I was too shook up to take pics). It saddens me that these Mk1's aren't loved like they used to be. I love these cars, especially the Cabriolet.
And yes, I do believe that is custom wiring in the fourth picture. If so, I may be screwed :banghead:


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Next question: How do I get this old oil filter off? I've tried literally EVERYTHING in the book and it still won't budge. I'm starting to get real mad with this thing...


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Hammer. Cold chisel. Hammer straight into the old filter flange to make a groove then start hammering in a counter clockwise direction. Should be off in a few minutes


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> Hammer. Cold chisel. Hammer straight into the old filter flange to make a groove then start hammering in a counter clockwise direction. Should be off in a few minutes


Thank you. I need this old filter off like three weeks ago


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

No problem. What I mentioned above is similar to whack in the lid loose on a pickle jar with a butter knife


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> No problem. What I mentioned above is similar to whack in the lid loose on a pickle jar with a butter knife


Kinda figured as much. It's screwed on so tight, I'm suprised the O-ring hasn't melted on.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Thank you. I need this old filter off like three weeks ago


Wow, I have never seen one that bad! Remember to lube the filter o-ring before install and only tighten 3/4 to 1 full turn past contact. Shoot, I don't think I need to tell you, the previous owner seems to need that info!


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Wow, I have never seen one that bad! Remember to lube the filter o-ring before install and only tighten 3/4 to 1 full turn past contact. Shoot, I don't think I need to tell you, the previous owner seems to need that info!


Apparently so. I'm so mad at the PO, I could punch him in the face right now... He left me with all this crap just to get my baby running  I can handle it though, even if it means trying to track down a 1.8 16v engine to drop in her (which, in my case, I honestly want one but can neither find nor afford one even if I tried)


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Funny thing is your previous owner may be a member here lol. I know I picked up a few bastard case deals that turned out to be real examples of why some people shouldn't work on cars. Only to poke around and see the person who did the shoddy work talking about their 'build' on here after the car switched hands a few times. I tell ya.. it about took all I had to not revive those threads with a call out on the work.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> Funny thing is your previous owner may be a member here lol. I know I picked up a few bastard case deals that turned out to be real examples of why some people shouldn't work on cars. Only to poke around and see the person who did the shoddy work talking about their 'build' on here after the car switched hands a few times. I tell ya.. it about took all I had to not revive those threads with a call out on the work.


Tell me about it. I would guess so, too many Cabbies in Greenville, SC but not even a single parts Mk1 (or even Mk2) for me an hour and a half away though. Sad, if you ask me.


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Purchased all my silicone hoses for the turbo charge pipes, plenum to carbs etc... Also purchased a b.o.v. 

Trying to keep my build within a reasonable budget (for me). Doesn't seem to be working. I don't see how people build turbo projects for cheap.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Purchased all my silicone hoses for the turbo charge pipes, plenum to carbs etc... Also purchased a b.o.v.
> 
> Trying to keep my build within a reasonable budget (for me). Doesn't seem to be working. I don't see how people build turbo projects for cheap.


The only way I can see is by finding all the components at blow out pricing. My mk2 was supposed to be a "budget" VR (already swapped) turbo build that started with an eBay turbo kit with a Garrett turbo swapped in place of the eBay unit. I traded my Wrangler for it 85%-ish complete. After proper silicone and clamps, proper software, wideband, all the builder parts for the turbo back, etc, I don't see a way to do it right on a budget. Guess that's the magic word, "right". Oh, and the head spacer, ARP rod bolts, new rod bearings, oil pump, 5 lug swap to get it to stop...lol! I traded the Jeep because it was going to be too expensive to build, 2.5 years later, and probably $2,000, the mk2 is now 93%-ish done, and still hasn't run with the turbo setup. Oh, well, the Jeep needed around $8k to be what I wanted it to be. Lol!

Oh, and for the cabby related part, the vrt was deemed easier to sell for more $$ to finish my '82 Rabbit 'Vert.


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

YJSAABMAN said:


> The only way I can see is by finding all the components at blow out pricing. My mk2 was supposed to be a "budget" VR (already swapped) turbo build that started with an eBay turbo kit with a Garrett turbo swapped in place of the eBay unit. I traded my Wrangler for it 85%-ish complete. After proper silicone and clamps, proper software, wideband, all the builder parts for the turbo back, etc, I don't see a way to do it right on a budget. Guess that's the magic word, "right". Oh, and the head spacer, ARP rod bolts, new rod bearings, oil pump, 5 lug swap to get it to stop...lol! I traded the Jeep because it was going to be too expensive to build, 2.5 years later, and probably $2,000, the mk2 is now 93%-ish done, and still hasn't run with the turbo setup. Oh, well, the Jeep needed around $8k to be what I wanted it to be. Lol!
> 
> Oh, and for the cabby related part, the vrt was deemed easier to sell for more $$ to finish my '82 Rabbit 'Vert.


Yeah its adding up fast.. its all those little things that i didn't think about. I thought id be good with a budget of $1500.. Im already over that  oh well.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Yeah its adding up fast.. its all those little things that i didn't think about. I thought id be good with a budget of $1500.. Im already over that  oh well.


It's impossible dude, but you have a super rad and unique car to show! I forgot as well how much the little things add up as well. I had a budget of $2000.. I passed that just in machine work, pistons and rods because it went from doing a pretty decent build to deciding to just doing exactly what I wanted.. Once I saw how much my pistons cost, I knew the rest of my build was going to hurt my wallet :facepalm: :laugh:


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Well, tried again with the oil filter, with no luck. I've literally tried every method possible, filter wrench, strap, chain, screwdriver, tried chiseling the top off, putting screws in the top for more leverage, even channel locks won't get this POS off...  
Oh well, might as well start looking for a 16v KR... This is my worst nightmare revisited :banghead::banghead::banghead: Now here she is, down for even longer because PO was a shadetree with limited knowledge about VW's... It's literally taking me everything in my power to not give up, but I guess it is what it is... :thumbdown:  :facepalm:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Well, tried again with the oil filter, with no luck. I've literally tried every method possible, filter wrench, strap, chain, screwdriver, tried chiseling the top off, putting screws in the top for more leverage, even channel locks won't get this POS off...
> Oh well, might as well start looking for a 16v KR... This is my worst nightmare revisited :banghead::banghead::banghead: Now here she is, down for even longer because PO was a shadetree with limited knowledge about VW's... It's literally taking me everything in my power to not give up, but I guess it is what it is... :thumbdown:  :facepalm:


Take that screwdriver and punch a hole directly through the middle of that oil filter.. If it's real stuck breach the other side also.. That will give you enough leverage with both hands to twist it off. It's messy but it works


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## vwutahman (Jun 30, 2006)

If you've got a dremel, I would try cutting a line through all six of the inner holes of the filter. Then the outside gasket part should fall off, and you'll have something to grab onto to spin the filter threads the rest of the way off.

Careful not to hit the oil cooler, but if you do they're easy to replace


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Take that screwdriver and punch a hole directly through the middle of that oil filter.. If it's real stuck breach the other side also.. That will give you enough leverage with both hands to twist it off. It's messy but it works


 Did that already, left with the gasket covering


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

vwutahman said:


> If you've got a dremel, I would try cutting a line through all six of the inner holes of the filter. Then the outside gasket part should fall off, and you'll have something to grab onto to spin the filter threads the rest of the way off.
> 
> Careful not to hit the oil cooler, but if you do they're easy to replace


The one thing I don't have, now I need. This is going to be even more difficult than I thought :facepalm: :banghead:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

If it makes you feel any better... **** like that happens to me every time. A five minute job turns into two days of head bashing :banghead:


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

tangerine_coupe said:


> If it makes you feel any better... **** like that happens to me every time. A five minute job turns into two days of head bashing :banghead:


Ah, gotcha, and $#!+ done by the PO (who obviously has no idea what the hell he's doing) that takes one minor fix results in me having to try and figure out if I should: 1)keep working on this ****ed to all holy hell 8v engine, 2)drop a more desired 16v KR in it (if I can find one around here), or 3) just get rid of the Cabby altogether (which I seriously doubt that will happen). Makes perfect sense


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Ah, gotcha, and $#!+ done by the PO (who obviously has no idea what the hell he's doing) that takes one minor fix results in me having to try and figure out if I should: 1)keep working on this ****ed to all holy hell 8v engine, 2)drop a more desired 16v KR in it (if I can find one around here), or 3) just get rid of the Cabby altogether (which I seriously doubt that will happen). Makes perfect sense


If the 8v runs get that filter off. A dremel or small grinder of sorts will help for sure if that's what it comes down to. I would try taking the whole oil filter flange off if you can get it and then you can work easily. The new gasket for the flange is cheap also.. BUT if you decide to swap a 16v in there finding a KR 16v will be quite hard as that was the Euro version, however a PL or 9A 16v will be a much easier find if you decide to go that way! and if you can find a Scirocco II with a PL 16v on CIS-E the swap is super duper straight forward :thumbup: 

I hope for your sake you can get that oil filter off though.. I've never seen that happen or had that happen. I always tighten them and remove them with just my hands.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

dougkehl said:


> If the 8v runs get that filter off. A dremel or small grinder of sorts will help for sure if that's what it comes down to. I would try taking the whole oil filter flange off if you can get it and then you can work easily. The new gasket for the flange is cheap also.. BUT if you decide to swap a 16v in there finding a KR 16v will be quite hard as that was the Euro version, however a PL or 9A 16v will be a much easier find if you decide to go that way! and if you can find a Scirocco II with a PL 16v on CIS-E the swap is super duper straight forward :thumbup:
> 
> I hope for your sake you can get that oil filter off though.. I've never seen that happen or had that happen. I always tighten them and remove them with just my hands.


Oh, the 8v runs. It's just now I have to buy even more tools now, since my husband can't even manage to buy tools we need, like a Dremel (this is why I hate he's an electrician). Oil cooler (flange) in itself is impossibly accessible because this is the location of the two bottom bolts circled in red:











And excuse the mistake, 9A sounds more appropriate here. I was watching YouTube videos earlier and the KR code was stuck in my head (lmao)


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Oh, the 8v runs. It's just now I have to buy even more tools now, since my husband can't even manage to buy tools we need, like a Dremel (this is why I hate he's an electrician). Oil cooler (flange) in itself is impossibly accessible because this is the location of the two bottom bolts circled in red:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


That's what I was thinking would be the problem with removing the flange. It's been so long since I've removed mine that I could not remember if you could get it off without taking the cooler off first.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

dougkehl said:


> That's what I was thinking would be the problem with removing the flange. It's been so long since I've removed mine that I could not remember if you could get it off without taking the cooler off first.


Hell, the cooler won't even come off 
I don't know what's going on with this situation


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

There is a nut under the filter that holds the cooler.. The whole shaft that the filter threads onto threads out actually. If you can get that to spin you could removed the shaft and oil filter in one shot. But to me it doesn't look like you have enough of the shaft exposed to grab onto it to turn it.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

dougkehl said:


> There is a nut under the filter that holds the cooler.. The whole shaft that the filter threads onto threads out actually. If you can get that to spin you could removed the shaft and oil filter in one shot. But to me it doesn't look like you have enough of the shaft exposed to grab onto it to turn it.


I don't. And I might as well take it to someone, I can't get this thing off. Cheers to the most difficult and expensive oil change ever :beer:


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

What you could do is find a big easy out and tap that sucker in there and turn it out almost as if you were removing a broken stud..


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## Karisu (Oct 20, 2014)

Got a flat tire replaced... Sanded the wheels and painted them black... Polished the trim rings and hub caps... Makes for a great classic look :thumbup:


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

dougkehl said:


> What you could do is find a big easy out and tap that sucker in there and turn it out almost as if you were removing a broken stud..


Yeah, problem is finding one though. I doubt if it'll move with all the other torture I've endured trying to get that SOB off... lol


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## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

paid off the 84, got the 89 running, ordered a pile of parts for the 84 from ecstuning, mk1autohaus and burnallthemk1's and started looking for a caddy. I have a problem


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## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Mk1 Autohaus I'm pretty sure carries complete, new front lower sections to be welded in, as the factory would have. Labor intensive and not cheap, $400+ for the part, IIRC, but thought it was cool to see they had them available.


$265, local pick up only, for NOS Front Lower Cross Member Complete @ Mk1 Autohaus. Local to Philly?... 


Thinking I need three for all the projects I have. :facepalm:


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## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

Koni Sport yellow inserts arrived today.. 

Now to figure what new springs for the 28yo OEM...

Suggestions?

Has anyone put Mk1 (rabbit) H&R OE sport springs on a Cabriolet?


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## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*Tore linkage from doner throttle body*

Tore linkage from doner throttle body :what:



That pile of springs and pieces, especially the threaded rod will be used for this Audi 5000 TB on my JH. :thumbup:
Once cleaned up....


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## twinscrewcaddy (Mar 27, 2008)

looked at it and waived fist at mother nature for not letting go of winter so I can road test my build!!
:banghead::beer::banghead::beer::banghead::beer:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Everything about that car is a WIN, id be waving my fist too..


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

twinscrewcaddy said:


> looked at it and waived fist at mother nature for not letting go of winter so I can road test my build!!
> :banghead::banghead::banghead:


Looks awesome.
what size is that cooler? I bought two eBay coolers this week one for me and one for another guy. They are 9 tall, 2.5 thick and like 26 long. I think they will work fine but someone else said no. What did you do to rotate the battery?


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## twinscrewcaddy (Mar 27, 2008)

BoostedOne said:


> Looks awesome.
> what size is that cooler? I bought two eBay coolers this week one for me and one for another guy. They are 9 tall, 2.5 thick and like 26 long. I think they will work fine but someone else said no. What did you do to rotate the battery?



thanks!
my intercooler is 28" x 7" x 2.5".
for width, i woould have to measure how much room i have under mine to the core support. I'm pretty sure yours will fit. i suspended mine from the top of the core support and have space under it. but a larger IC won't get exposure thru the grill... so this is the size i got. bigger may help with displacing heat though even if it is blocked.
28" long is about max. at 26" you will be golden. just set it where you can get around the radiator properly.

for the battery, i was initially going to use a Honda size battery and/or set it sidways... but the one i got was too tall. so i am using a regular size battery for the car now. so i cut the hold down flange out, re-positioned it using the battery for reference, and welded is in. it's now along side the fender well lengthwise. right now i have cheesy universal threaded rod/bungy hold down. i need weld a nut underneath the front so i can reuse the factory hold down clamp.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

NEW SHOES!

And, sweet car, dude.


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## backinthegame (Dec 14, 2004)

WOW. That's all I can say. That is one impressive bunny. Do you have a build thread?


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Well mine came in.










I think I can make them work. One is going into my caddy with a round light conversion and the other into a rabbit that still has the squares. 
For the westy rabbit even though the rabbit radiators attach totally differently to the crossmember and have a different overall shape worst case I switch that car to a cabby radiator. I am thinking I will make a new plate that goes under the radiator and intercooler bolting at least the intercooler to the plate then bolting that into the car.

Did you have to move your radiator back slightly? Looks like I would need to move it back about 1/4" even after I ground the 4 screw lugs off the front of the tank.

I love the rotated battery. I think I will just fab up a clean looking plate that covers the existing tray and performs the purpose of rotating the battery. I will try to incorporate the factory style hold down instead of the straps. 

The rabbit is getting a TDI and one of the restrictions is minimal to no body mods. So I can't cut holes and remove things.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Update: Oil filter*

Well, my uncle-in-law came over yesterday and tried to remove the oil filter unsuccessfully, so looks like I'm going to have the fun task of parting the 8v engine to prepare for the 16v swap. See more info in the Cabriolet classifieds for complete info on engine part out.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

For those of you in the GWN and - wind chills, then I will not tell you, that I drove Topless @60 degrees.
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

briano1234 said:


> For those of you in the GWN and - wind chills, then I will not tell you, that I drove Topless @60 degrees.
> AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.


I so envy you right now for posting this. :laugh:

It's okay though, because "White Rabbit" will soon be hopping again in this fresh springtime NC Appalachian Mountain weather, and when she does, there will be plenty Blue Ridge Parkway pictures a-coming!!!!!


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## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*Temperture is above freezing*

Wow the temp was above freezing, provided you were in the sun...

Started the 1985 Wolfy up first try with a warm battery. Purred away and let the cooling fan cycle twice...
.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Pulled my intake boot and found this:








Unmetered air, nicht gut!

Soooo, I applied Brian's handy fix.

Also, got the top card for the radiator cut and installed.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

matty kirk said:


> Soooo, I applied Brian's handy fix.
> 
> Also, got the top card for the radiator cut and installed.


Glad my fixed worked, that is one pricey piece of RUBBER.

Flip the radiator card, the "notched end goes towards the battery, but either way you will be glad you installed it. Cooler temps, and correct flow of air.


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## twinscrewcaddy (Mar 27, 2008)

backinthegame said:


> WOW. That's all I can say. That is one impressive bunny. Do you have a build thread?


i have this one on another local site. 
http://www.cepavw.org/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=23324

this i guess is considered part2 of the project. i did the paint/bodywork years ago. it was my first real attempt at painting a car and completing bodywork. it's just a hobby. i have part1 documented on here but it's old and some pic links are gone:
http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?3899532-latest-project-89-Cabby-for-the-wife

then there's my caddy:
http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?4624933-putting-the-screws-to-it-it-s-done

and i have a few other rides around...


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

briano1234 said:


> Glad my fixed worked, that is one pricey piece of RUBBER.
> 
> Flip the radiator card, the "notched end goes towards the battery, but either way you will be glad you installed it. Cooler temps, and correct flow of air.


YEP! Now that I repaired the intake boot, my idle no longer "hunts" when the engine is cold. Who knew? :laugh::screwy:

Why for on the rad card? Just curious.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Rolled the car out of the garage, it's +15 in Calgary.. so stoked! 

Swapped out the small fuel pump that I was using for my weber, swapped in a efi pump (from the guys over turbo-gemini in aus) this bad boy should be good for at least 400hp on a carb set up


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## SourKrout (Oct 17, 2008)

Put new to me wheels on it 

15x8 Enkei Apache IIs +25 with 195/50 S.Drives and some mild flare/inner fender massaging.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Mounted my boost sensitive FPR :thumbup:


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Mounted my boost sensitive FPR :thumbup:





tangerine_coupe said:


> Rolled the car out of the garage, it's +15 in Calgary.. so stoked!
> 
> Swapped out the small fuel pump that I was using for my weber, swapped in a efi pump (from the guys over turbo-gemini in aus) this bad boy should be good for at least 400hp on a carb set up  ......


Boost sensitive FPR on a carb set up?? How's that work?
Carbs need only enough flow to keep the float bowls full, pressure must be low enough to not overcome the float needle/seat assembly.
Use any pump with excess capability along with an FPR that sends excess back to the tank. To me, boost seems irrelevant to carb fuel pressure, suck or blow. Am I missing something here?



.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

tolusina said:


> Boost sensitive FPR on a carb set up?? How's that work?
> Carbs need only enough flow to keep the float bowls full, pressure must be low enough to not overcome the float needle/seat assembly.
> Use any pump with excess capability along with an FPR that sends excess back to the tank. To me, boost seems irrelevant to carb fuel pressure, suck or blow. Am I missing something here?
> 
> ...


Yup.

Im running a bike carb with a turbo.

The small barbed fitting allows connection of boost pressure. The fuel pressure will be increased by approximately 1psi for every 1psi of boost pressure. This gives a 1:1 rate rise in fuel pressure vs. boost pressure. For example, if you set your base fuel pressure at 5psi and you want to run 10psi of boost, this regulator will deliver 5psi fuel pressure off boost, and approx 15psi of fuel pressure when on 10psi of boost. Keep in mind you need a fuel pump capable of delivering at least 15psi of fuel pressure, at enough flow to keep your engine fed with fuel at full boost.


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

See attached photo  

Im waiting on my silicone hoses to plumb in the boost pipes and bov.


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Yup.
> 
> Im running a bike carb with a turbo.
> 
> The small barbed fitting allows connection of boost pressure. The fuel pressure will be increased by approximately 1psi for every 1psi of boost pressure. This gives a 1:1 rate rise in fuel pressure vs. boost pressure. For example, if you set your base fuel pressure at 5psi and you want to run 10psi of boost, this regulator will deliver 5psi fuel pressure off boost, and approx 15psi of fuel pressure when on 10psi of boost. Keep in mind you need a fuel pump capable of delivering at least 15psi of fuel pressure, at enough flow to keep your engine fed with fuel at full boost.


You've lost me.
What you've written makes perfect sense for FI, makes no sense _to me_ in respect to carbs.

With carbs, as long as there's enough fuel flow from the pump to keep the float bowl(s) full, that's all that's needed. Once the float rises enough to close the float needle/seat, no more fuel flows into the carb.
Liquid fuel pressure from the pump(s) is completely unrelated to fuel vacuum drawn through the jets, vacuum caused by pressure drop of the air flow as it expands passing through the venturi(s) (venturii sp?).

The carbs you are using, were they originally designed and intended for a blow through application as you are using? If not, you are in for big surprises and disappointments, do keep a fire extinguisher handy. 
I'm trying to recall what needs to be done with float bowl vents in a blow through application, I'm drawing blank. Are they vented to atmosphere, turbo outlet pressure (can't imagine that can work), maybe sealed? Help me out here. If you don't have the answer, I suggest you hold on the project until you get the answer. If you've got it, I'd love to learn it. 

Project looks awesome, gorgeous handiwork! :thumbup:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

tolusina said:


> You've lost me.
> What you've written makes perfect sense for FI, makes no sense _to me_ in respect to carbs.
> 
> With carbs, as long as there's enough fuel flow from the pump to keep the float bowl(s) full, that's all that's needed. Once the float rises enough to close the float needle/seat, no more fuel flows into the carb.
> ...



The carbs get pressurized via a small pilot pipe for the diaphragm vents, this runs directly from the charge pipe. 

Ive had a bunch of help from another vortex member that ran a bike carb/turbo. He ran the same set up but with a 16v.. His only problem was he wasn't running the fpr that i have so his carbs were way to rich on idle.

Heres a photo of his set up. And a quick clip.








[/u

http://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=Zxx4kHqULcM


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Oil filter Update Pt. 2*

My husband told me earlier this week he knew of one of his co-workers had a Dremel, so he borrowed it this morning. So, I just took to trying to cut the oil filter off, and got *this far...*



















... because *this* happened to the Dremel.










I am officially *done* with this oil filter. If a Dremel with a diamond wheel won't even penetrate this thing, I don't know what will. I have spent the last *five weeks* trying to get this situation resolved, and nothing is working, at all. I can't even get this oil filter cut off. I'm out of options here. I was desperately trying to save the engine, because I did *not* want to go through the engine swap until the summertime, but that was seriously my last option. I might as well pull and part the engine and do an engine swap now. And I know someone is going to come down on me and say that "it's not worth the swap, you can't even get the oil filter off, try this, try that, you shouldn't have bought this car, why waste your time on this car if you're gonna swap the engine, you should have let this car get scrapped, why did you even buy it in the first place" and all other kinds of criticism, but let me stop you right there before it even starts.
I bought this car for three reasons:
1) I have *always* wanted a Mk1 Rabbit/Golf/Cabriolet. Bottom line. It runs in my bloodline, no questions asked.
2) I made the decision to save this car, spend the time and money to get it fixed up, and work on it continuously so I could be satisfied with my hard work and dedication.
3) I wanted a car that I would enjoy in all aspects, whether its sitting in my driveway not even able to move or flying down the highway at 80+mph. 
I'm not open to any more suggestions about getting this oil filter off. Period. I am so done with it and this engine. If anyone needs engine parts, I will be willing to provide/ship them at buyer's expense. Meanwhile, I'll be busy trying to locate myself another engine. She's gonna be sitting for a good while before I have her hopping again.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

This isn't a suggestion, so don't worry. I just have a question.

Have you tried pulling the flange off the block, with the cooler and filter remnant still on it? Probably be easier to work on in a vice. Or, you could just replace the flange.

Also, I haven't read every single post on this filter situation, so if this has been covered, apologies.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

matty kirk said:


> This isn't a suggestion, so don't worry. I just have a question.
> 
> Have you tried pulling the flange off the block, with the cooler and filter remnant still on it? Probably be easier to work on in a vice. Or, you could just replace the flange.
> 
> Also, I haven't read every single post on this filter situation, so if this has been covered, apologies.


Cooler has to be removed in order to get to retaining bolts for flange. That option was already explored.


----------



## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Cooler has to be removed in order to get to retaining bolts for flange. That option was already explored.


Oh, OK.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

matty kirk said:


> Oh, OK.


Yeah, I tried that two weeks ago and got my answer lol


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

Swapped the snow tires off.

Ordered cables, window seal, glue, ss staples, pry tool, 3m trim adhesive, window scrapers & other car parts ... 

new vinyl top and headliner will be ordered tomorrow....

Need to think about all the other seals and drip seals for the top... checked Kam's page for top seal part number references.

Does anyone know where to get some of the flat seals for the frame channels?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Had these show up 

IMG_20150312_163427_059 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

Then I got so excited to finish the darn engine I just went in my garage and drank some beer while I looked at the car :laugh::beer:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> Had these show up
> 
> IMG_20150312_163427_059 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
> 
> Then I got so excited to finish the darn engine I just went in my garage and drank some beer while I looked at the car :laugh::beer:


Im excited to see it run


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## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

My '92 is carb'd. It had been running well but about a week ago developed a rough idle and would stall and die. I thought for sure it was rust from the tank clogging up the carb or the fuel filter or pump. My friend said vacuum leak but I didn't think so. Took apart the fuel filter, fuel pump, and carb and there was a small amount of rust but nothing serious. Put it back together and sprayed carb cleaner around where the carb spacers mate to the intake manifold and the RPMs picked up and it smoothed out. Vacuum leak. Replaced that gasket with straight black RTV and now she runs like a champ again. Next job: pull the carpet and sew new edging around the sides.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

teknikALLEN said:


> Swapped the snow tires off.
> 
> Ordered cables, window seal, glue, ss staples, pry tool, 3m trim adhesive, window scrapers & other car parts ...
> 
> ...


Check out mk1autohaus.com, they have tons of seals, clips, and other hard to find tidbits.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Check out mk1autohaus.com, they have tons of seals, clips, and other hard to find tidbits.


Flat seals? If you are talking about under the Window seal trays, closed cell foam from a home improvement store works well, need the stuff that is about a inch wide, and 1/4 inch tall.
The "A" pillar seal is a toughy, but you may be able to find it a VWheritage.com or Vintagerubber.com as well as Rabbitparts.com.

If you are talking about the window scrapers at the bottom of the door then all three above as well as mk1 Autohaus on ebay is a good stop, be warned that the 4 seals for the outer door are pricey.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Did you ever hear the theme from "The MONKEE'S" playing in your head? "GET the funniest looks from..."

The other day I had to run to the BORG Big Orange Retail Giant. No Van, wifie is in Mobile Al-a-bama for a few weeks, Son has Pissan Nathfinder at work. So tooling off in the Cabby was the only way to go. As I was tying 2 sheets of Plywood and other odds and ends on the car People gave me the funniest looks. All I would say is "They don't call it a convertible for nothing, one day car, one day truck."

I love the transport ties on the car, makes tying it down a pleasant chore....


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> Flat seals? If you are talking about under the Window seal trays, closed cell foam from a home improvement store works well, need the stuff that is about a inch wide, and 1/4 inch tall.
> The "A" pillar seal is a toughy, but you may be able to find it a VWheritage.com or Vintagerubber.com as well as Rabbitparts.com.
> 
> If you are talking about the window scrapers at the bottom of the door then all three above as well as mk1 Autohaus on ebay is a good stop, be warned that the 4 seals for the outer door are pricey.


I believe (s)he's talking about the seals that seal the top frame to the tops of the windows...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Worked on the wife's shifter, yesterday. Had plans for more, but a buddy called and was available to help with another project, so the Cabby got left partially assembled. Lol. Replaced the relay rod bushing and the shifter base, this go-round.










Shifter base went great, just had some issue getting it installed in the proper orientation. That's part of the partial-ness, it's currently 180* from where it needs to be.

Relay rod bushing replacement went fine, as well. Cleaned part...










Put in vice and drilled rivets...










Reassembled with new bushing and nuts/bolts with some blue thread locker. 










Crawled back under the car and the new bushing is almost as sloppy as the old one. WTF?! Did GAP send the wrong kit? Is because I cheaped out and got the Uro brand? I figured "how could they screw up a bushing?" I guess I'll wait and see how it shifts.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Todays adventure was spent wrestling with silicone hoses.. these things have very little give. Finally got them onto my plenum.. 




Took them out to the garage for a quick test fit.

I need to trim the silicone closer to the ends, about half inch, there is very little clearance right now. I might also need to trim/angle the intake a little.. if i bolted it down properly i doubt id be able to run a hood. 





Tomorrow, ill I'm gonna take apart the carbs.. give them a good clean and re-jet them with my bigger jets


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Im excited to see it run


Me either dude! Hopefully two weeks and the block will be back! I'm hoping to have it running by May, but deadlines almost never work out as planned :laugh:



tangerine_coupe said:


> Todays adventure was spent wrestling with silicone hoses.. these things have very little give. Finally got them onto my plenum..
> 
> 
> 
> ...


And this is totally awesome. I'm ready to see yours run because you're one of like two people I've ever seen do this on vortex :thumbup: It's going to be EPIC.


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## Vee Dubb (Jan 3, 2002)

Took a beach-side red light to red light romp, and finished off with oil in my coolant bottle. No more excuses, it's diesel cabby time.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Took the carbs apart, cleaned them.. took the old 116 main jets out, bumped them up too 185.

Cut down the silicone hoses.. re attached them and fit it all back on the car. I haven't been this productive in a while.. i guess spring is coming!!!


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Update on White Rabbit*

Ok, now that I've gotten out of my slump, it's warming up outside, and I had to eventually come to terms with the fact that I have to re-build the entire car from the ground up (minus engine and frame, of course), this is my progress so far:

Hadn't been too in the mood to do anything much to her lately, but I did manage to pull the fenders today:





































And noticed that the fenders were aftermarket "Euro-Style" Early Westy fenders (right sticker shown, left is peeled somewhat):










Also noticed there was a very poor welding job done on the right hand core support:










So now there are two questions:
1) WTF do I do with these fenders now, since I no longer want them on my car, and they don't fit flush with the body of my car?!
2) Since there is an easier chance of me finding a Westy grille than a pre '88 Quad grille, should I go that route, or fabricate a custom design?

Thoughts?
Please feel free to share.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> And noticed that the fenders were aftermarket "Euro-Style" Early Westy fenders (right sticker shown, left is peeled somewhat):


I have to apologise for my grave mistake, that's obviously what I get for listening to the wrong individuals.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Ok, now that I've gotten out of my slump, it's warming up outside, and I had to eventually come to terms with the fact that I have to re-build the entire car from the ground up (minus engine and frame, of course), this is my progress so far:


Heh. I always assume that on any sub $3k Mk1...




> So now there are two questions:
> 1) WTF do I do with these fenders now, since I no longer want them on my car, and they don't fit flush with the body of my car?!


Id put them back on after stripping all the stickers. 
The early westy fenders are virtually the same as the later ones as far as I know. I think the only difference may be the trim holes and flare hole locations?




> 2) Since there is an easier chance of me finding a Westy grille than a pre '88 Quad grille, should I go that route,


Personally I think a grille is the least of your worries but... due to the somewhat rarity of a 4 light early setup you would go to a 2 light early westy setup instead of the somewhat common early 2 round light grille? WHY?? That would look horrible in my humble opinion....

Assuming that's the route you go what are you going to do with the cutouts on the bodywork below the grille for the round lights??



> or fabricate a custom design?


Please no..


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> Heh. I always assume that on any sub $3k Mk1...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


For one, there is too much fender gap between the body and fender itself. I wish there was a 4-light round setup like the Mk1 Scirocco, with even-sized lights, to be honest. That's what I meant by custom. And those cutouts? Each one is filled. I want to get rid of the core riveted turn signals though...


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Can I make a request by the way? Either post in this thread OR your build thread. Posting in one and cut n pasting the whole post into the other just breaks up the conversation and replies. 



WhtRabbit85 said:


> For one, there is too much fender gap between the body and fender itself. I wish there was a 4-light round setup like the Mk1 Scirocco, with even-sized lights, to be honest. That's what I meant by custom. And those cutouts? Each one is filled. I want to get rid of the core riveted turn signals though...




Fender gap could be the result of a few things. One the car could be bent ( wouldn't be surprised). Or the aftermarket fenders you have could just fit like crap.
I bought a couple REALLY cheap fenders a few years ago and they were so bad they wouldn't even go on the car. No amount of massaging would make them work. They went in the trash. But I wouldn't scrap yours just yet. I would check the frame rails and so forth for signs of damage first. The best OEM fenders won't fit a bent car. Some tweaking to the area below the bumper in the middle will make a fender not fit right.

On the cutouts, you have them. Saw them in your thread. Under the main headlights..










Those areas will have to be filled in for any flat bottom grille like a Rocco 1 or early westy. Unless you are going to have that area filled in by a welded in piece of sheet metal forget your custom ideas.


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## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

Out of the winter storage, and finally under the knife, threw in a new alternator today and got the idle worked out on the megasquirt, now to get all the lights and dash working so I can get a sticker and road tune











Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> Can I make a request by the way? Either post in this thread OR your build thread. Posting in one and cut n pasting the whole post into the other just breaks up the conversation and replies.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Most likely they would be filled in. I don't like the idea of having any loose gaps anywhere. Most likely it's due to the fact that those fenders fit very poorly, frame rails are intact and fender gap is on both sides of the car. I mean, they look alright and all, but I'd prefer the OEM fenders. Hopefully I won't have to travel too far to get them.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> Can I make a request by the way? Either post in this thread OR your build thread. Posting in one and cut n pasting the whole post into the other just breaks up the conversation and replies.


Sorry to copy/paste. I might as well not even have a build thread, I do this because the link to my thread is also shown on my Facebook account.


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

Was cleaning out old toolboxes, found my collection of CIS mixture screw anti-tamper plugs.

Hopefully this photo will explain a bit about these things for anyone who's car still has one in place.


Left row shows bottom view, the crimped in place, steel, floating, spinner disc.

When drilled from the top down, as the drill hits the disc, the disc spins preventing the drill from going any farther while keeping drill chips out of the sensor plate area below.


2[SUP]nd[/SUP] left shows the early version flat tops that need a center punch to prevent drill wander.

3[SUP]rd[/SUP] row shows the later version dimpled tops, no center punch needed.

4[SUP]th[/SUP] row shows some that have been drilled.

Bottom pile I didn't bother sorting or posing, figured the randomness would show various angles.

Best I recall we used a 1/8” drill bit. 

A sheet metal or drywall screw with the tip ground off was then screwed in, pliers pulled the plug out.

We pulled a lot of these as the photo indicates, our tip ground screws were mounted in small slide hammers.

The reason to grind the tip was to allow the screw threads a deeper bite that was not possible with the tip bottoming on the spinner disc.

Sorry, I don't recall the screw size.

Inconsistency of drill centering is also apparent, close enough was good enough. Miss much more than these and the top of the sensor plate housing gets drilled, plug stays in place. Those are the ones to punch out bottom up.

Such an apparently simple thing is actually more complex that it 1[SUP]st[/SUP] appears. 
I think they spent some engineering and manufacturing Deutschmarks on this little thing, too bad they didn't apply similar energy on ignition switches, fuel pump relays, relays for headlights and starter solenoids, Digi I/Motronic ignition coils, strut mount/bearings.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

tangerine_coupe said:


>


Confused. 

What is the purpose of wrapping the intakes??


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

*Please head to my build thread, this is going to shock you as much as it shocked me...*

I have some very shocking pictures that will make you wonder how a such thing even happens to a car like this. I honestly cannot take what my eyes are seeing right now. Please tell me this isn't real.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

matty kirk said:


> Confused.
> 
> What is the purpose of wrapping the intakes??


I dunno, my friend made the mani for me. Maybe he wanted to keep the heat away from the carbs.. Maybe he just did it for fun. Don't really care. I like it


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## srgtlord (Jun 4, 2010)

What did I do to my Cabby today? I watched it sit on jackstands waiting for winter to end so I can put the darn thing back together and give it to my sister before something else breaks.


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

tangerine_coupe said:


> I dunno, my friend made the mani for me. Maybe he wanted to keep the heat away from the carbs.. Maybe he just did it for fun. Don't really care. I like it


More likely he wanted to get heat to the carbs.
Actually, carbs need some heat to prevent icing, yes, even in summer heat.

The way carbs work (partially and somewhat simply put) is air passing through the venturi(i) suddenly expands as it passes the narrowest part of the venturi. That expansion creates a pressure drop (relative vacuum) at that point which sucks fuel in through jetted passages. That pressure drop also creates a temperature drop the greater the pressure drop AND the higher the velocity of the air flow, the greater the temperature drop.
This engine WILL have high velocity through those carbs, especially under boost conditions. Ambient and intercooled air temperatures are mostly irrelevant, rules of physics dominate.

How much heat is needed to prevent icing? Answer varies according to many variables. 
Does this set up need insulation? Good question I sure have no answer for but maybe the guy who made the manifolds knows a whole lot more than you thought, he may well have had more than fabricator's fun or style in mind!


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

tolusina said:


> More likely he wanted to get heat to the carbs.
> Actually, carbs need some heat to prevent icing, yes, even in summer heat.
> 
> The way carbs work (partially and somewhat simply put) is air passing through the venturi(i) suddenly expands as it passes the narrowest part of the venturi. That expansion creates a pressure drop (relative vacuum) at that point which sucks fuel in through jetted passages. That pressure drop also creates a temperature drop the greater the pressure drop AND the higher the velocity of the air flow, the greater the temperature drop.
> ...


Wow! Learn something new everyday, this is why I never pretend I know what I'm talking about haha, im learning all the time.

Anyways, today I cut my boost pipes to size.. Threw in my bov. Stood back and got stoked, that this is the first build I did most of the work myself.. It's far from show car quality but I'm damn happy!!

Next up.. I gotta drill a smal hole in the pipe closer to the plenuim and add in a small reference pipe, this will presurize the float bowls.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

tangerine_coupe said:


>


Soo, no intercooler then?


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

tolusina said:


> More likely he wanted to get heat to the carbs.



And ironically what the wrap will do is keep the heat inside the manifold. 

When wrapping headers partly the exhaust and partly the engine temperature. Wrapping the headers keeps most of the heat inside the headers so that the surrounding area is not as hot. Its quite beneficial depending on the proximity of the header(s) to the intake or sensitive stuff like wiring or other electronic parts.

But when you wrap an intake, it gets hot from the cylinder head heat due to conduction and the under hood heat via convection. Especially on a cross flow engine the under hood heat is not going to be very much near the intake and the under hood temps likely cool the intake slightly(since what is heating the space is the engine itself, and due to losses the under hood air temps will never be as high as the engine temp unless you are close to non heat shielded exhaust components).
So therefore when you wrap an intake you are likely making it even hotter because you still have the very effective heat couple between the head and manifold, but you insulate it from the under hood air. What will be cooling the intake is your air-fuel mix going thru the intake(assuming your intercooler setup is not exiting 180 deg plus air). As your cooler air fuel mix goes thru the manifold it picks up the heat from the manifold cooling the manifold and increasing the air charge temp. 
If you wanted to keep the coolest intake charge temp the only way to do it with insulation would be to apply it to the inner surface of the tube, which is not happening. But that would keep that conducted and convected heat from the air charge.


Its actually a somewhat poor design. The good thing is that its effects are likely small. I doubt it was to help ensure the carbs get hot since very few performance applications try to get heat to the carbs, and also keep in mind his carbs are attached to the manifold with rubber hoses/boots that insulate them fairly effectively from the manifold heat.

I would assume the reason for the wrap is either looks(since the manifold seems to be made from bare mild steel). Or its intent was for a cooler intake bit was designed by one without an engineering background to know that wrapping an intake to keep it cool is counterproductive.


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

BoostedOne said:


> And ironically what the wrap will do is keep the heat inside the manifold.
> 
> When wrapping headers partly the exhaust and partly the engine temperature. Wrapping the headers keeps most of the heat inside the headers so that the surrounding area is not as hot. Its quite beneficial depending on the proximity of the header(s) to the intake or sensitive stuff like wiring or other electronic parts.
> 
> ...


Ever seen, experienced or heard of carburetor icing?
https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#safe=off&q=carburetor icing


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

tolusina said:


> Ever seen, experienced or heard of carburetor icing?
> https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#safe=off&q=carburetor icing


Carb icing? Heard of it, never experienced it. But with the industry I am in, I hear more about inlet icing on turbine engines, which is somewhat common.

Why you asking me though? I just stated my opinion on why I bet the intake was wrapped. If I had to bet $500 on the reason, I would be more willing to bet it had to do something with trying to keep things cool or to cover up the appearance of the mild steel intake; than it did with trying to keep the carbs(that are insulated from the steel manifold with sections of rubber hose) warm. Typically in these installations the metal carb body is not in contact with the metal intake manifold for a few different reasons.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Interesting stuff! 

No intercooler at the moment, going to run low boost.. Enjoy it for a bit, then add a intercooler, head spacer and apr studs. Then I'll turn it up!


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Installed new (to me) side moldings. I used all new clips, however, there were/are a few areas where I just COULD NOT get the molding to fully engage the clip. Nothing obviously wrong with clip, channel in molding, or car body in these areas. What am I doing wrong??


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Sometimes they are just a pain to engage. Try swaping around a couple of clips that engage fine with ones that dont. Then you will know if the problem is the clip or not.

Hopefully if you swap the clips around and the problem follows the clips, getting a few more clips is easy.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

BoostedOne said:


> Sometimes they are just a pain to engage. Try swaping around a couple of clips that engage fine with ones that dont. Then you will know if the problem is the clip or not.
> 
> Hopefully if you swap the clips around and the problem follows the clips, getting a few more clips is easy.


Thanks.

My experience with the clips is that are a one time use deal. I did have a few extras which I swapped in the effected areas, to no avail. Pretty sure it's something that is keeping the molding from fully engaging the clip, but no idea what. I am pushing in these areas as hard as I possibly can, just won't get there. It's funny though that there are areas where the body panel is a bit out of wack, and in those places the molding went right on.:screwy: Meanwhile, every spot where a clip won't engage is on a pretty much perfect panel.

I've seen these cars before where the people obviously said, "to hell with it!" and screwed the molding on. Kinda defeats the aesthetic purpose though, IMHO.


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## Schempp (Mar 20, 2013)




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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Schempp said:


>


Ahhh, yes. Problem solved.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Finally found a set of seats and fenders, seats are unofficially confirmed to be the rare Euro GTI/Scirocco S seats:



















Will show pictures of installation in the Cabby and the replacement front fenders on Monday. I just love these seats! Also scoping out a set of 14x6 Enkei Snowflakes for sale:










Should I go with these wheels or no? I mean, they're not as huge as what was previously on the car, and they have a better stock 4x100 bolt pattern. I would keep the Tarantulas, but the tyres are starting to dry-rot and 13" tyres in any form are virtually nonexistent here. Thoughts on these wheels?


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## SteveLVw (Oct 13, 2014)

Dug through the wreckers. Found two cabriolets to my surprise and grabbed a ton of stuff for $50. Will be going back for more hopefully. Have to double check what seals I need. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

SteveLVw said:


> Dug through the wreckers. Found two cabriolets to my surprise and grabbed a ton of stuff for $50. Will be going back for more hopefully. Have to double check what seals I need.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



Any chance I could persuade you to grab a windsheild seal and the insterts, my aftermarket one cracked and is leaking after 2 years -.-


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> ....
> 
> Should I go with these wheels or no? I mean, they're not as huge as what was previously on the car, and they have a better stock 4x100 bolt pattern. I would keep the Tarantulas, but the tyres are starting to dry-rot and 13" tyres in any form are virtually nonexistent here. Thoughts on these wheels?


Are you sure? I know I can still get a set of cheap 13s from the local tire outlet and I would assume that isn't a regional thing. I know the PO of my car put on some new 13s for cheap. They aren't anything special, but really aren't bad considering what he paid for them.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

flying_oliver said:


> Are you sure? I know I can still get a set of cheap 13s from the local tire outlet and I would assume that isn't a regional thing. I know the PO of my car put on some new 13s for cheap. They aren't anything special, but really aren't bad considering what he paid for them.


And, there's always Tirerack.com


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Should I go with these wheels or no? I mean, they're not as huge as what was previously on the car, and they have a better stock 4x100 bolt pattern. I would keep the Tarantulas, but the tyres are starting to dry-rot and 13" tyres in any form are virtually nonexistent here. Thoughts on these wheels?





flying_oliver said:


> Are you sure? I know I can still get a set of cheap 13s from the local tire outlet and I would assume that isn't a regional thing. I know the PO of my car put on some new 13s for cheap. They aren't anything special, but really aren't bad considering what he paid for them.


Cabbies came with 14" rims originally. The early Rabbits were 13", so are you sure your rims are 13?


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

SteveLVw said:


> Dug through the wreckers. Found two cabriolets to my surprise and grabbed a ton of stuff for $50. Will be going back for more hopefully. Have to double check what seals I need.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


If its cheap get anything you can find that wears and is remotely hard to get. I pull every good B pillar seal or header seal I come across regardless of how bad I need it. Granted you hardly ever see the cars in the yard anymore so its not like I have a mountain of them. I don't feel bad about not leaving it "for the next guy" because I usually feel like the only Mk1 guy going to the yard and the parts will likely go to the crusher. 

If your yard is like mine where they only leave the cars out for 6 to 8 weeks then crush them or is frequented by morons who break everything you're doing a better service in my opinion by pulling all the good bits then selling them on the classifieds here to people that need them.


briano1234 said:


> Cabbies came with 14" rims originally. The early Rabbits were 13", so are you sure your rims are 13?


Tarantulas are definitely 13's. But the tires aren't that hard to get. I get them from Discount Tire


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

This week I finally got back to ol' Gertie after a winter off.

I replaced the plugs and wires with NGK goodies, and FINALLY replaced a couple coolant hoses (both of the hoses that attach to the coolant overflow tank) with Mk1 silicone lifetime hoses. That, of course, because I finally replaced the nasty yellow reservoir with a nice shiny new one.

Next up is o2 sensor followed by Fuel Accumulator.


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## SteveLVw (Oct 13, 2014)

Went back to the wreckers and pulled all the seals I could from the top, header, doors and b pillar. Breaking the bank at a total of $10. I need the outer door window scraper as mine has seen better days. All the wrecker cars were in same condition. Fuel filler neck I'm still searching for though...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

flying_oliver said:


> Are you sure? I know I can still get a set of cheap 13s from the local tire outlet and I would assume that isn't a regional thing. I know the PO of my car put on some new 13s for cheap. They aren't anything special, but really aren't bad considering what he paid for them.


Yes, I have called every tyre place in my area and they only sell 14"s or higher.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

briano1234 said:


> Cabbies came with 14" rims originally. The early Rabbits were 13", so are you sure your rims are 13?


Yes, they are the 13" Tarantulas. Tyre size is 185/70-13.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Got my oil pan back from my friend. He welded on the bung for the oil return line.. gonna throw that back on tonight and plumb the return.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

SteveLVw said:


> Went back to the wreckers and pulled all the seals I could from the top, header, doors and b pillar. Breaking the bank at a total of $10. I need the outer door window scraper as mine has seen better days. All the wrecker cars were in same condition. Fuel filler neck I'm still searching for though...
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Mk1autohaus has new scraper sets.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Yes, they are the 13" Tarantulas. Tyre size is 185/70-13.


Time to head to the interwebs. Original equipment size for the Rabbit was 175/70r13, yields many more options.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireS...true&minSpeedRating=S&minLoadRating=S&tab=All


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Stripped entire interior, removed insulation, cleaned and replaced stock carpet, and reconditioned dash and center console, reconditioning kneebar tomorrow and reinstalling dash.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Time to head to the interwebs. Original equipment size for the Rabbit was 175/70r13, yields many more options.
> 
> http://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireS...true&minSpeedRating=S&minLoadRating=S&tab=All


Yeah, I want those 14x6 Gold Enkeis on a 205/50 series tyre, they are a much better look and they won't make the car look cheap and slapped together. I mean, where else can you find a set of wheels that look like that for $100?


----------



## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Put these on today:











Also replaced my busted window regulator.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Cleaned kneebar, replaced cleaned dash and centre console, now patiently waiting on front fenders and seats.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Finished up the shifter refresh on the wife's today. Figured out a way to add a sleeve on the relay rod to take up the slop in the bushing, shifts much better, now.

Also got the front coils installed, it feels so much more balanced, now. The blown struts and cut springs made you afraid to take any kind of uneven road at speed.










Still need to hang the front euro bumper and install the LED side markers.


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Yeah, I want those 14x6 Gold Enkeis on a 205/50 series tyre, they are a much better look and they won't make the car look cheap and slapped together. I mean, where else can you find a set of wheels that look like that for $100?


Curious as to what you find for a tire in a 205/50/*14* in the US and what they run. I have 14x8 and 14x9's for my caddy and seems like any sub 60 series tire for a 14 is non existent in the US. I run 195/45 on the 8's and 225/40 on the 9's. I gave up and had tires imported from Germany. 

On the other hand these would look fine on tarantulas.

http://www.tires-easy.com/cgi-bin/r...yre_for=&rsmFahrzeugart=ALL&suchen=View+Tires


SteveLVw said:


> Went back to the wreckers and pulled all the seals I could from the top, header, doors and b pillar. Breaking the bank at a total of $10. I need the outer door window scraper as mine has seen better days. All the wrecker cars were in same condition. Fuel filler neck I'm still searching for though...
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Wow. With good condition header seals being worth $100+ and b pillar seals being worth $75+ each sounds like you scored mega!!


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> Curious as to what you find for a tire in a 205/50/*14* in the US and what they run.




There I go typing too fast again. I meant 60 series tyres, instead of 50. I keep thinking of my old car, which had 205/50-16 instead of this car, lol


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Well on a 6 inch wide rim 205 60 will look like a balloon. 185-60 would be the stock size for a 14. 

But myself I wouldn't drop the 100 on the enkei's plus the money for tires. I think those enkeis came stock on Toyota Tercels or something. Just makes it look like you took some scrap yard wheels from one car and put them on yours. 

If your tires are dangerously about to blow, until you can figure out where the car is going your discount tire in ashville probably has 155/80/13's at like 30 bucks each you could put on for now to have solid rubber to roll on. They won't look sexy but wheels and tires and so forth are the easy things you are up against.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> Well on a 6 inch wide rim 205 60 will look like a balloon. 185-60 would be the stock size for a 14.
> 
> But myself I wouldn't drop the 100 on the enkei's plus the money for tires. I think those enkeis came stock on Toyota Tercels or something. Just makes it look like you took some scrap yard wheels from one car and put them on yours.
> 
> If your tires are dangerously about to blow, until you can figure out where the car is going your discount tire in ashville probably has 155/80/13's at like 30 bucks each you could put on for now to have solid rubber to roll on. They won't look sexy but wheels and tires and so forth are the easy things you are up against.


They would look funny, but I aws also planning on raising the suspension to allow clearance for the tyres as well. And yes, the wheels came stock on the Toyota Corolla's, per the owner. I wanted to change the overall style of the car, but that apparently won't matter now. I'd probably just have to go with the Discount Tire option for now. But I'm still eventually going to end up buying those wheels/tyres down the road lol


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Yeah. I hear ya. Back when my 14's went bald, i couldnt find them in the USA for less than 900$. I'm not paying 900$ for 14" tires but I needed something since for the most part I do daily my Mk1.
I wasn't crazy about rolling on 13" steels but they were 27$ each, then during a holiday weekend discount tire had a 50$ instant rebate of you buy 4 tires. With mounting balancing etc I was out the door for like 85$ for 4 brand new tires lol Hahahaha










But thankfully about 6 months later I managed to get a set of 14's imported for a reasonable price.


Man those tires looked horrible. But the fuel milage was AWESOME. On my 13x7/13x8 combo I get about 40 mpg.. on my 14's I seem to get about 42.. I currently have 15x8's on there with 195/45 and I get 45mpg. I was breaking 50mpg on the skinny 155/80/13's

The important thing was they were safe and allowed me for very little money to be patient. Your car isn't at the point where wheels are the breaking point on the build so if it was me I would use the money for the wheels and more expensive tires to go into getting the car squared away.

Don't give up. Focus on the hard stuff and get that squared away before you buy the high dollar fun stuff. Guys like me love people who focus on all the high $$$ accessories and engine stuff but don't take the time on the wiring or getting the body right. Because they usually get frustrated, throw in the towel, and no one will buy it. I bought several cars that had literally THOUSANDS of dollars in engine swaps and accessories(in addition to the price they paid for the car), for 5 to 600$ after being on the market for months for that very reason.


----------



## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

Completely stripped down my 89 cabriolet and prepared the shell for the crusher.
Also started pulling the 1.6 out of the 82 to prepare for the temporary 1.8L swao


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

Got some of the wiring cleaned up that I've been meaning to take care of since I got the megasquirt running right, also removed the third leaky oil psi sensor I've put on this pig and replaced it with the new south one for the gauge I picked up, got to get plugs for the other two sensors on the oil filter housing
Also fixed a small coolant leak at the no longer used port on the radiator need to upgrade to an all aluminum unit and weld that port shut 












Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Purchased my slim honda civic radiator, it will fit nicely in the right corner. Looking forward to fitting it


----------



## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Replaced the nearly 30-year-old rear suspension... finally.

















^Spring seats almost non-existant. :what:

How-to guide was made of the process: http://www.cabby-info.com/Files/RearShocks.pdf .

Took her for a short drive. 



briano1234 said:


> Cabbies came with 14" rims originally. The early Rabbits were 13", so are you sure your rims are 13?


Stock Cabriolet wheel sizes:

5J x 13 ET45 (1979-1983)

5½J x 13 ET38 (1983 WE; 1984-1987)

6J x 14 ET38 (1988+)

6J x 15 ET38 (Europe; '90s)

The '85 in question began life as a triple-white Best Seller, which came with 13" Tarantulas, albeit white (the originals were painted black :facepalm: ).



WhtRabbit85 said:


> Yes, I have called every tyre place in my area and they only sell 14"s or higher.


Discount/America's Tire has three 13" listed.



WhtRabbit85 said:


> Also scoping out a set of 14x6 Enkei Snowflakes for sale:
> 
> [pic]
> 
> Should I go with these wheels or no? I mean, they're not as huge as what was previously on the car, and they have a better stock 4x100 bolt pattern...Thoughts on these wheels?


They're just BBS RZ knock-offs, the RZ being a common VW/BMW wheel (while not gold, RZ's are on my car). Find out what the offset of them is before committing. (And I, too, wouldn't go that high with the tire size.)


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## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

Drove the 89 for the last time, It went into the new garage to begin it's last tear down. gutted most of the vacuum lines and began carefully removing the wiring harness.


----------



## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Installed my new more fancier chip, and knock sensor bushing.

















Put it back together, drove down to the gas station and put some premium in. Still running at 6BTDC, although TT recommended 10. Wanted to see how it would be with stock timing. Seems to run better but that might psychosomatic, or whatever. I'll put it to 10 tomorrow.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Front euro bumper installed, custom LED side markers installed, front coils adjusted, and 8mm spacers installed up front to keep the tires off the bottom of the coils. I love how this car has come together!


----------



## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Are those the euro bumpers from GAP.com??


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

matty kirk said:


> Are those the euro bumpers from GAP.com??


Plastic Euro bumpers from ECS Tuning.


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

The bumpers look great! nice one


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Yeah the plastic bumpers look great on that car.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

They're the least expensive way to get decent looking bumpers. I have a set on my '82 'Vert and weighed them at 25 lbs/ea lighter than the stock US spec versions. 5 mph impact be damned!! This car was purchased with none, and PA inspection likes to see a bumper. But I wasn't giving the wife my bumpers! Lol! Picked up the end clips from mk1 Autohaus, so they won't get the sag.

Today I installed a battery hold down in the '87.


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Had my 6al sitting on a shelf for a while, just received my msd timing computer in the mail.. picked it up for $40 NOS  

Gonna wire those up soon, get this thing running!



Found that home hardware has vw keys, so gonna get a spare cut!


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Got my head back together  minus the cams and water outlets anyway lol

IMG_20150331_175330_588 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

IMG_20150331_175220_078 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

IMG_20150331_175248_061 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

dougkehl said:


> Got my head back together  minus the cams and water outlets anyway lol


Looks amazing! The quality is spot on!

Today I ordered a vdo boost gauge and manual boost controller.. Also a new speedo cable because like the rookie that I am.. I forgot to pull it from my dash when I pulled my trans.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Looks amazing! The quality is spot on!
> 
> Today I ordered a vdo boost gauge and manual boost controller.. Also a new speedo cable because like the rookie that I am.. I forgot to pull it from my dash when I pulled my trans.


Thanks man!  and about the speedo cable..... I've done that every single time I've pulled my engine so far.. we're going on 3 times now and I still haven't learned :laugh::laugh:


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove 30 miles out of the way topless like I stole it going to work.... yeah baby.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Pulled the heater box and interior wiring harness and found exactly what I said I was going to find :banghead::banghead::banghead::banghead::banghead:


----------



## Derekxj (Jul 3, 2013)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> Pulled the heater box and interior wiring harness and found exactly what I said I was going to find :banghead::banghead::banghead::banghead::banghead:


What'd you find? little micey's?!


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Derekxj said:


> What'd you find? little micey's?!


No, Derek. Try a fried interior wiring harness:










Now *THIS* is going to be a major PITA to replace.


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## Derekxj (Jul 3, 2013)

Ohhhhhhh my fun fun heading your way!! :banghead:

I wonder how the heck that happened. I guess there was a short at some point and it just cooked. That could probably account
for a whole bunch of things huh?


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Derekxj said:


> Ohhhhhhh my fun fun heading your way!! :banghead:
> 
> I wonder how the heck that happened. I guess there was a short at some point and it just cooked. That could probably account
> for a whole bunch of things huh?


That, and the fact that the PO had a custom wiring setup for a sound system in the trunk  Now the fun part is finding another interior wiring harness to go back inside :banghead:


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> That, and the fact that the PO had a custom wiring setup for a sound system in the trunk  Now the fun part is finding another interior wiring harness to go back inside :banghead:


It doesn't look too hacked..as in it seems to still be in a salvageable state. With the bentley, a soldering iron, solder, and wire you should be able to fix it up nicely. I rebuilt the aktiv system sound harness a few years ago as mine was broken in every place possible. Wasn't bad at all, just a little time consuming.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

flying_oliver said:


> It doesn't look too hacked..as in it seems to still be in a salvageable state. With the bentley, a soldering iron, solder, and wire you should be able to fix it up nicely. I rebuilt the aktiv system sound harness a few years ago as mine was broken in every place possible. Wasn't bad at all, just a little time consuming.


Yeah, if you were to see the pictures from my thread, you'd be singing a different tune. I wanted my husband (the electrician) to salvage it, he took one good look at them and told me the wires were no good. I believe his word because he pointed out to me that the majority of the wires had gotten wet inside and rusted internally; and the fact that the custom wiring setup fried some of those wires as well. With the harness being like it was, it even got residue in the fusebox connection ports where the wiring harness attached.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Now sitting back waiting for the new interior harness to come through :beer:


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## SourKrout (Oct 17, 2008)

I made the interior funky fresh. They don't match anything but oh well


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

SourKrout said:


> I made the interior funky fresh. They don't match anything but oh well


Nice. Can't wait to get my seats. I'm about to get a pair just like them :thumbup:


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

*sigh* I found a rabbit convertable about 2 hours from my house that has that interior in it in really good shape, but I can't afford the price tag :banghead:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

SourKrout said:


> I made the interior funky fresh. They don't match anything but oh well


It's a white car, it's fine!


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Went to napa... bought oil, coolant, small civic battery.. enough wire to relocate it into the back, intake gasket. 

Also wanted to buy some decent hose clamps that will hold good boost, but at $15-50 a clamp, ill look else where.


----------



## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Went to napa... bought oil, coolant, small civic battery.. enough wire to relocate it into the back, intake gasket.
> 
> Also wanted to buy some decent hose clamps that will hold good boost, but at $15-50 a clamp, ill look else where.


Fluids and battery!
Does this mean it's getting close to first start?


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Also wanted to buy some decent hose clamps that will hold good boost, but at $15-50 a clamp, ill look elsewhere.


I ended up with combination of 2 ebay intercooler kits for my vrt mk2. One supplied the core and most of the bends. The second supplied 4 ply silicone couplers and t-bolt clamps, along with a couple of extra hard bends. Had them welded and beads rolled by a local fabricator.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Pulled the wife's driver's seat today and started scrubbing. They're a little rough overall, but will clean up to be pretty decent. Used Simple Green and a scrub brush today. Next step is a mild bleach somution. Thankfully it's a white interior!

Before:










After:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

tolusina said:


> Fluids and battery!
> Does this mean it's getting close to first start?


Yeah, its pretty close now. Just waiting on the last few bits in the mail. Aiming to get it back on the road early May!



YJSAABMAN; said:


> I ended up with combination of 2 ebay intercooler kits for my vrt mk2. One supplied the core and most of the bends. The second supplied 4 ply silicone couplers and t-bolt clamps, along with a couple of extra hard bends. Had them welded and beads rolled by a local fabricator.


Just bought some t-bolt ones online  $2.50 each perfect :thumbup:


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Added some old skool Riken (raised spoke) wheels


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Added some old skool Riken (raised spoke) wheels


Looks good!!

I got my rad in the mail, just popped it in for now. Fits nice!



Some other stuff showed up too.. the joy of being broke all the time!



My speedo cable came quick.. now to get the gear out of trans with out dropping it in 

And i picked up a VDO boost gauge too!


----------



## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Looks good!!
> 
> I got my rad in the mail, just popped it in for now. Fits nice!
> 
> ...



what kind of rad is that


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

TravisTheD said:


> what kind of rad is that


It's an aftermarket Honda Civic rad with slim fan :thumbup:


----------



## Wwwwwig (Mar 28, 2015)

Starting small: new dip stick and funnel. Next week new ST coil overs, rear discs and front 10.1's


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

"Customized" the ass of the cabby
Trimmed the factory plate hanger


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> "Customized" the ass of the cabby
> Trimmed the factory plate hanger


Did that to mine too. I like the clean look.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Wwwwwig said:


> Starting small: new dip stick and funnel. Next week new ST coil overs, rear discs and front 10.1's












From a dipstick to dropping it and doing a brake mod :laugh: 

I'm hoping you're not just gonna make it look "good" while it runs terribly. (IMO lowering any classic car is a sin and dumb, function over fashion. If it looks good and doesn't work then it's not good, but like I said, that's just IMO) I'm no mechanic, and I'm just starting out with my first VW, but you'll find out that most of the guys on here (myself included) will tell you to give it a good tune up and replace parts that need it FIRST before you go onto cosmetics. 

My apologies if it already got the tune up and all parts are functional, but if you had to replace those two things, I'd assume they're not the only things.


----------



## Wwwwwig (Mar 28, 2015)

I'm with you on cosmetics before function. The engine and transmission are awesome: just passed Arizona emissions with flying colors and no real oil leaks. At some point I'll pull them out and really clean them up and paint them but I want to take care of the big stuff first: the shocks and struts are really eaten up as dad pulled a small trailer with it ( anyone want a MK1 hitch?). I tried pricing out individual springs and struts but in the end the coil-overs were actually a little cheaper. I understand it will sit a little lower than stock on their highest setting but it will still be high than it is now with the saggy old springs. The brakes were also horrible (probably never touched in 20 years) someone had put solid rotors on the front and the drums were scored pretty good so I figured I might as well give it a Scirocco system while I was replacing everything. I'd love to post pictures but I still haven't figured that out yet


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Wwwwwig said:


> I'm with you on cosmetics before function. The engine and transmission are awesome: just passed Arizona emissions with flying colors and no real oil leaks. At some point I'll pull them out and really clean them up and paint them but I want to take care of the big stuff first: the shocks and struts are really eaten up as dad pulled a small trailer with it ( anyone want a MK1 hitch?). I tried pricing out individual springs and struts but in the end the coil-overs were actually a little cheaper. I understand it will sit a little lower than stock on their highest setting but it will still be high than it is now with the saggy old springs. The brakes were also horrible (probably never touched in 20 years) someone had put solid rotors on the front and the drums were scored pretty good so I figured I might as well give it a Scirocco system while I was replacing everything. I'd love to post pictures but I still haven't figured that out yet


I found all 4 struts, mounts, and bushings (no springs, however) on ebay for $240, I had thought about doing coilovers if I could find some that keep it stock height or higher, just for the added support. IMO I think the rear discs are a bit overkill for this little car, but if it's just as cheap and easy for you to do it then go for it! (Replacment shoes $30 for both, replacement drums $60 for both) 

Apologies for blowing up... 

I wish my car ran fine... haha but hey, it's just more experience for me. If you ever check out my revamp thread you'll see I keep finding things that were never ever loved in the last 30 years. (She just turned 30 last month)


----------



## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Today a jogger yelled at me for having the top up around lunch time. 

I put the top down a bit later. Also new axles arrived in the mail. YES.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Man, I love Facebook groups. Got offered a *FREE* 9A block and 2k transmission, and got a sweet deal on a 80k mile head. I'll end up having these parts at my house over the course of the upcoming month, so stay tuned to my build thread. Here is a sneak peek at the new heart of the Cabby:

9A Complete Block:










2k Tranny:










1.8 Head:










Most likely the head will be cleaned before it gets dropped. I'll have to travel upstate for the block and transmission, but it's worth every single mile. I know it's crazy to even think about having this engine in my Cabby, but I know it will pay off in the end. Besides, who can honestly turn down a *FREE ENGINE BLOCK AND TRANSMISSION* at this point?! I know damn well I cant turn that offer down at all :laugh:


----------



## mouser98 (Apr 30, 2012)

Maddie got new bumpers.



















She was a clipper but I am slowly transforming her into an earlier look. Next up is chrome trim.


----------



## txgraeme (Mar 22, 2015)

*Just getting started*

Hey there, I'm starting into some work on my '95 cab and have found this forum so helpful. I got the car for $1100, been trying to patch up all the little things. Previous owner was living in a dry climate, so literally never used the top. It only had 130k miles and mechanically very clean, but the interior was rough.

So far have done the following: replaced dash lights, new top installed (shop labor ~$350), tune-up, mk3.5 steering wheel, cruise module repair, steering wheel shroud, window regulator, glove box, trunk switch, central door lock switch, keyless entry module, replaced grille emblem, and coming up to shift linkage kit and seat covers soon. 

I wanted to thank everyone who contributed to the forum, it's been great. Car is running well and can't wait to get next round of work done just in time for summer cruising.


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Over the last week, I fitted my boost gauge and speedo cable.. Plumbed the rad and the water pump. Fitted a block off to the flange on the head, no more heat in the cabin lol. Wired up my lower vdo guages. 

Waiting on a vdo t-piece so I can run my oil pressure gauge. Then it's time to add oil, fill the rad. Wire the msd and timing computer. Fit my modified distributor and fire this thing up!!


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Does Driving it count? Drove it topless in Light Rain...


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Made an inspection and alignment appointment for the wife's.


----------



## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Picked it up from the PO and brought it home.


----------



## jefrey (Mar 21, 2013)

I finally installed a working interior light! 

(And now I'm asking myself, why did I wait eight months to do this $6 project?! )


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

jefrey said:


> I finally installed a working interior light!
> 
> (And now I'm asking myself, why did I wait eight months to do this $6 project?! )


Just took the bulb out of the wife's because the light is fubar and would turn on when it wanted to and drained the battery.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

While (finally) removing my engine/transmission last night, I made a shocking discovery: My transmission was a Mk2 8v transmission, according to this code...










Now this is random for me to see, a Mk2 transmission in a Mk1 Cabriolet. Was this supposed to be here, or am I drunk?


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

WhtRabbit85 said:


> While (finally) removing my engine/transmission last night, I made a shocking discovery: My transmission was a Mk2 8v transmission, according to this code...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


As many issues as these transmissions are known for, when abused, it's not at all surprising it's been replaced previously in your car's 30 years of existence.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

YJSAABMAN said:


> As many issues as these transmissions are known for, when abused, it's not at all surprising it's been replaced previously in your car's 30 years of existence.


True, and I wouldn't put it past the PO's, as bad off as this car was.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

*its been a while since i've posted an update*

i've been doing a bunch to the cabby as of late.. 

brand new custom stitched Top









I made my own Euro style bumpers from strut material and hardware
here is the mock up










installed









then bought the endcaps









I still need to bring it closer to the car.. but the over all look is solid... without endcaps i was $20 into the bumpers lol.. with endcaps about $80



I replaced the old worn hood with a new hood. I had plans to wrap the car like the kamei rabbit but decided after doing just the hood that i didnt want to go any further.. so now it just looks like a belgium flag. lol but whatever i like it


Replaced the Duckbill 


Put the summer wheels back on

etc


----------



## beertestr (Jun 11, 2002)

Test fitted my VR6...


----------



## joenuke (Aug 30, 2011)

Commuted to work for the first time this year.


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

I received my mandrel bends and cv boot repair kit. 

Gonna fix my cv next day off and weld a downpipes sometime next week!


----------



## txgraeme (Mar 22, 2015)

*rear seat latch*

I replaced my rear seat latch with a used piece. Came off easily, 2 bolts with allen wrench and then carefully swap the hook at end of cable to the new piece. Over before you know it, really.


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Was tired of my old deck and crappy speakers sitting on top of the rear lid. It was a custom cut lid from another car so i put the speakers in it. Grabbed a new deck with hands free stuff since nh has that dumb law in a couple months











Also started sorting through a ton of mk1 parts i have and decided to swap in my karman houndstooth cards in the front


















Grabbed a nice little kicker amp too for the sub. My old amp cooked the other day. 


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Washed, Clay bar, and waxed.... Even pulled off all the trim before I started.... Not been this clean since new


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Tidied up some wiring and replaced the alternator after discovering it was charging, yesterday.


----------



## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Figured out what was hiding behind those popriveted rear fender flares... A bad hackjob and rust formation. Now I know why I stripped my Cabby to the frame... :banghead::banghead::banghead:


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Gave her a solid cleaning 


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Replaced my shifter guard, took the seats out, trimmed more carpet off, shop-vacced the junk off the floor in the shift conosle and all over the inside and inside the roof. 


Prepping for cleaning/painting the floor then getting tan rhino liner for it. Also pulled the seats out and sealed the fact that I need 2 new seats. :facepalm:




































Keep in mind.. This car only has 110k on it, and was supposedly garaged most of it's life. 

Definitely was never washed in it's life...

But it's my mess to deal with now and that I shall do!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Front end alignment and state inspection...fingers crossed, they got behind and it wasn't done, yet, when I got off work.


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## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Brake job from hell is finally done.

All 4 of the carrier bracket bolts were seized in place. Had to cut them off at the tops, grind down until I could push everything free. Took me 3 different sets of bolts to FINALLY get the right size :banghead::banghead:
New wheel bearings in for the rear
New tires mounted all around
New battery waiting for install
Glovebox waiting for install


Almost ready, finally, to get the damn thing on the road again.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Passed! Said they couldn't quite get the alignment set due to ride height. Lol! The wife said she wants it at that height, so that's where it sits! Reverse light switch took a ****, replaced with the new one from my project. Now it needs a good bath!












YJSAABMAN said:


> Front end alignment and state inspection...fingers crossed, they got behind and it wasn't done, yet, when I got off work.


Passed! Said they couldn't quite get the alignment set due to ride height. Lol! The wife said she wants it at that height, so that's where it sits! Reverse light switch took a ****, replaced with the new one from my project.


----------



## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

Started chopping up the 89, there was a hell of a lot more bondo than i was expecting.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Had a little ambition last night. Wrapped the rear to match the hood. And wrapped my emblems to contrast the part of the stripe they are in

Originally was going to wrap the whole car like the kamei car. Minus the white and orange. Already did the hood and realiZed i should have just wrapped ot black/red/yellow like the german flag instead of working my way from yellow to red. But oh well i like it


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## Golf Cabrio 3.5 (Jan 19, 2012)

tinygiant said:


> Was tired of my old deck and crappy speakers sitting on top of the rear lid. It was a custom cut lid from another car so i put the speakers in it. Grabbed a new deck with hands free stuff since nh has that dumb law in a couple months


When you lower the top does the speakers sound ok?Is the top or glass damaged by them in any way?


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Speakers have grills on them. So the top wont hurt them. Nor them the top. I havent been top down yet since i installed them. Ill report back 


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## txgraeme (Mar 22, 2015)

*replaced shift knob*

Exchanged my 95 oem shift knob for a used mk3.5 knob. Seems better, this one doesn't make me feel like I'm thumb wrestling.

And yes, I just threw it on and spun it until it seated. Sits a bit high, but really not so important until I get the shift linkage fixed.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

made a new sticker for my top when its down. 

if anyone is interested i'll sell them for $24 shipped.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Golf Cabrio 3.5 said:


> When you lower the top does the speakers sound ok?Is the top or glass damaged by them in any way?




okay so top down definitely doesnt hurt anything, but i can barely hear the back speakers when the top is down... which is fine.


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## txgraeme (Mar 22, 2015)

*replaced trunk lift struts*

Also replaced the trunk lift struts. It doesn't so as pop open now as not fall down instead. Definitely improvement. Photo below shows ball-type end that these have. My new package had instructions, so I followed and it was a quick job.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

tinygiant said:


> okay so top down definitely doesnt hurt anything, but i can barely hear the back speakers when the top is down... which is fine.


I actually wondered how well speakers in the cargo cover would work. Thought about doing that myself before I realized the top covered it and my cargo cover looks like it's been warped from the po never fixing the leak in the rear windshield.... Buuut anyhow, do you have an amp or are they just wired in with your rear speakers?


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Tisser said:


> I actually wondered how well speakers in the cargo cover would work. Thought about doing that myself before I realized the top covered it and my cargo cover looks like it's been warped from the po never fixing the leak in the rear windshield.... Buuut anyhow, do you have an amp or are they just wired in with your rear speakers?




i dont have rear speakers in my door cards. car didnt have them when i got them.. So i just extended the wires from there to the rear deck to install theses. 

works great. 

I have 250 mono kicker with a 10" sub in a sealed box in the rear glovebox  have it bypassed to 63hz so it hits nice and low and i use the on deck crossover to push what i want into the new speakers.. system hits hard, and is super crisp


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Right on.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

tinygiant said:


> i dont have rear speakers in my door cards. car didnt have them when i got them.. So i just extended the wires from there to the rear deck to install theses.
> 
> works great.
> 
> I have 250 mono kicker with a 10" sub in a sealed box in the rear glovebox  have it bypassed to 63hz so it hits nice and low and i use the on deck crossover to push what i want into the new speakers.. system hits hard, and is super crisp


Whats a "rear glovebox"?? Do You mean the trunk??


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Yeah that sad excuse for a trunk lol


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## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Temp tagged (bad o2 sensor, waiting for it to get to a shop), insured, and legal(ish) to drive! :beer::beer:

Should be in next week for o2 sensor issues. Damn thing is stuck, broke the body of it trying to remove it myself. Getting new bungs cut and welded.


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## Golf Cabrio 3.5 (Jan 19, 2012)

@ tinygiant thanks for reporting back :thumbup:


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Good lord.

Did (on both sides): axles, ball joints, tie rod ends, steering rack boots, control arm bushings.

My arms don't work, I have no idea how I'm typing this.

HUGE thanks to a fellow cabby vortexer here, hyperlightboards48, who has become a friend and valued second set of hands/brains. We split the duties on this one at his place. We started at about 7pm and got done at 12:15am. Would have gone faster, but the passenger side axle was quite a pain to get some of those bolts started...wasted probably an hour fooling with those things before deciding to brute-force the stubborn ones with the air ratchet and an ungodly amount of 3/8" extensions.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> Yeah that sad excuse for a trunk lol
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Look at a first Gen Miata, then come back to your Cabby and be thankful! I don't know that you can fit a full case of beer in the case in the trunk of a Miata, you can fit at least 2, if not 3 in a Cabby!

Today I drove the wife's to check out a few things. Main thing I did today was rework att the grounds at the negative battery cable. Progress in the right direction! I still need to run a better ground into the dash rebar, of re-ground the console gauges, or both. Weather strip I put on the top across the front edge filled the gap at the windshield nicely and cut out a lot interior wind noise with the top closed.


----------



## Corrado_VR6 (Jan 16, 2002)

Pulled it out of storage, can't wait to give her a nice bath


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Finished wiring my MSD and timing computer, tucked all the wiring away under the carpet. Tried to keep it as nice as possible. 

Working on the last bits this weekend and hopefully getting the car on the road sunday eve  fingers crossed everything goes smooth.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Oil change and filter.... found out 20w50 oil is getting scarce around here


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## jaities (May 8, 2015)

Removed broken exhaust front pipe.


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Spliced in some new wires (under the hood) to replace the ones that the mice got to, replaced the spark plug cables (also chewed up by the mice). Still wont start, so I pushed it onto the lift so I can replace the fuel pump and filter. Anyone have a "write-up" on the in tank pump removal and reinstallation?


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## jaities (May 8, 2015)

77kafer, I found these at cabby-info. Perhaps they would help? http://www.cabby-info.com/Files/ReplacingIn-tankPump.pdf http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?3961934

Things I did to my car today:
Cleaned Fuel Distributor, added new O-ring and reassembled. 
Continued cleaning out the interior of the car. Started scraping passenger side floorboard down to metal so I can install a new sound barrier material.


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

jaities said:


> 77kafer, I found these at cabby-info. Perhaps they would help?.


Thanx jaities, exactly what I was looking for. I found it about a week ago, but didn't save the link. Then I couldn't find it again.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Today was a long day, with a huge help from a friend. 

Got my frankenstein dizzy (part mk2/part mk3) slotted in.. Engine timed.. everything hooked up. Got ready to fire, nothing. Double checked everything, still nothing. Narrowed it down to my MSD box.. doesn't seem to send a pulse. WTF :banghead:

Re-wired the original ignition and it fired right up. Sounds awesome, really happy.. but bummed at the same time that the damn msd didn't work. Gonna borrow my friends unit and go from there.

Got half way through making the down pipe before it got late. More to come in the next few weeks.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Pulled intake and exhaust manifolds. Pulled sway bar. Pulled downpipe and cat. (pipe cracked right behind cat.) Then on to the main fun, pulled P/S rack. OH. MY. GOD.
Managed to get the new (reman.) rack in and semi hooked up, before I couldn't take anymore. Assembled parts list, maybe finish tomorrow. Sure hope the "new" rack isn't junk.


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## jaities (May 8, 2015)

Put newly welded front pipe back on exhaust.
Drove it around the block.
Decided I should fix the brakes before driving it more as stopping with no brakes takes too much work.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Pulled the left front wheel off the wife's last night, to see why it had dialed itself back to massive amounts of negative camber within about 230 miles of an alignment. The nut of the camber bolt was stripped so it wouldn't get tight. Took it apart, located a new nut, cleaned up the threads, and dialed in as much positive camber as I could. Perfect! Angle finder matched side to side, both at about 0 degrees. (I had the car sitting level, of course.)


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Replaced some shifter bushings.... Oh baby, what a difference


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Invited. Grant to stop by


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## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Replaced some shifter bushings.... Oh baby, what a difference


Need to do this with mine. Probably ordering them soon. Just so weird with how loose the shifting is on this, compared to my Chevy.

Also looking into a short shifter for it as well, reduce the throw some. Feels like I am shifting into the next county going into 1-3-5.


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## STKn80s (Sep 13, 2012)

*89 Cabriolet*

2 months ago I had a Pacesetter exhaust manifold installed along with Techtonics Tuning exhaust and Magnaflow muffler (cat completely removed). Today I had a larger throttle body, 16V Scirocco bottom airbox, and larger injectors installed as well as having advanced my timing. Can't wait to get it back. should hopefully put a little pep in her step!


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## STKn80s (Sep 13, 2012)

*Pictures of my Cabriolet*

https://plus.google.com/photos/10171...43477759394017 

This was a rescue car (attachment to pictures above). It was in bad shape when I got it 3 years ago. I had one as a teenager and this has been fun fixing her up. This is the car in reference to the above post about the new throttle body, airbox, injectors, etc. 

Hope you like it, I do!


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## jaities (May 8, 2015)

Replaced spark plugs with new NGK's.


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## txgraeme (Mar 22, 2015)

Wet Okole seat covers. Good fit, really pleased.


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Finally figured out a game plan for the Cabby, and the direction I want to take with it... but then it wouldn't be a Cabby anymore after this.
But I love it. And I think I want to keep my Cabby now.










Thoughts on this idea?


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## Wwwwwig (Mar 28, 2015)

removed the trailer hitch and welded up the bolt holes:


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## WhtRabbit85 (Jan 29, 2015)

Check out my thread, and you'll like what you see... Man, I love getting stuff for $FREE.99:laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh::laugh:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Replaced my driveshaft. Bought an accelerator (bike) cable for the carbs. Got my friend's msd unit.. gonna wire that up and send mine off to be fixed. 

All i have left to get back on the road is... finish the downpipe. Make an alternator bracket and sort out my crappy front drivers side brake. Then its time to hit the road, make boost and tune!!!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

The wife and I drove hers around top down all weekend. And we let my family draw all over it!


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## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

Going through the deteriorated wiring harness before dropping the new engine into the car. The wiring people do themselves is terrifying. 
I've already ran across Quick splices, crimps, solder (really bad), electrical tape, MASKING TAPE, wire nuts and best of all, this gem right here.


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Replaced some shifter bushings.... Oh baby, what a difference


Doing this next! Parts in hand!!


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## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

Went from this




to this





and this..





to this


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Got this in the mail today!!!!!



















To go on THIS!










Unfortunately my cabby its all going in looks like this still, so its going to be a while til I get the smiles


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Master cylinder replaced again. I guess i got a defective one. So weird having real brakes for the first time


Havent been doing too much my attention has been on my 81 diesel pickup. Just finished getting all the lights to work tomorrow she will inspect!


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Made a deal to pick this up this weekend for $250. 


























Motor's bad not sure about the trans. Has 80-90k on it, so either the white cabby will donate it's motor or the red one will donate lots of other parts. I'd rather go with the 5-speed if it's solid. Progress I suppose though!


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Tisser said:


> Made a deal to pick this up this weekend for $250.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Holy smokes!!!!!!!


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

I know right? I'm gonna have a better look at it but im buying it for sure


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## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*Clapped out front strut mounts*

So last night I finally removed the clapped out front strut mounts and removed the throttle body to change the linkage...
Pictures to follow...

YJSAABMAN, love the blackboard Cabby!! :thumbup:

If I ever get to my 1984 GTi, I will likely go matte black instead of gloss.


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

77kafer said:


>



Got it running for the first time since Oct 2010. Replaced plugs and plug wires, air filter, fuel filter, in tank fuel pump and main fuel pump.
The guy I got it from didn't give me the owner manual yet, anyone know what the idiot light is on the lower left in the cluster? Also. the coolant light in the dash guage blinks.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

teknikALLEN said:


> YJSAABMAN, love the blackboard Cabby!!
> 
> If I ever get to my 1984 GTi, I will likely go matte black instead of gloss.


Thanks! The wife actually bought it already chalk board, but it's been a lot of fun!


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## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Attempted to fix my locks, found more issues. 

But, the alarm / immo isn't set anymore, so it does start and drive. Found out why the CEL is still on (secondary air pump), debating now on either replacing the pump which looks easy, or going ahead and ordering a chip from TT instead to take care of that. 

Anyone here know how hard it is to put the chip on myself?


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Added a Kamei Grill Spoiler to go with My Kamei Hood Scoop


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## Wwwwwig (Mar 28, 2015)

Those busted springs are unbelievable! How did you manage to do that? Mine had pulled a trailer for thousands of miles and while they sagged a lot, they never got that bad.... Nice work


----------



## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

Wwwwwig said:


> Those busted springs are unbelievable! How did you manage to do that? Mine had pulled a trailer for thousands of miles and while they sagged a lot, they never got that bad.... Nice work


LOL Right!?

Every single corner was broken. The front driver's side was down half a coil, the pass front broke a complete coil off.. The driver's rear was in three pieces, the pass rear (pictured) was in four pieces! And of course all the shocks/struts were blown. Im surprised that the springs rusted and broke the way they did considering how low a mileage it had when I bought her (only about 100K miles), and how little rust there is on the car/undercarriage..


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## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Replaced my secondary air pump (cheap part locally, WILL be getting chipped if/when I do cams). Cleared the codes, now just to drive it around and make sure the damn code doesn't return.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Learned more about the Fuel Gauge and sending unit than I ever really wanted to know, but my grief leads to another DIY for you.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> Learned more about the Fuel Gauge and sending unit than I ever really wanted to know, but my grief leads to another DIY for you.


Woot woot! Briano tech write-ups are awesome!


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

briano1234 said:


> Learned more about the Fuel Gauge and sending unit than I ever really wanted to know, but my grief leads to another DIY for you.


We salute you for your sacrifices! Your 'over'knowledge will become our overknowledge and we will turn into the best mechanics there are! Well you guys might I'm probably forever gonna be the guy that goes," well that looks right, but it doesn't work. Wtf." hahaha


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Started pulling parts out of the 88 to get ready for the engine swap yesterday, so far just pulled hoses and reservoirs. And of course it's raining today so no work before work  Gonna hopefully have some decent salvageable spare parts. 

On another note gotta look into what I would have to do extra to get the 85's motor in the 88 because I know there are a few differences. (and I'd like to keep the "updated" changes that fixed certain issues while stripping the ones that aren't needed)


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

New center muffler, and rear muffler. Added some ATF to the power steering and trans. Quieted everything down. Keep in mind, the last time this thing was driven was in for state inspection back in October 2010.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Relayed the headlights


----------



## NimreyDX (Jul 20, 2012)

Started replacing vacuum lines. I'm thinking my hvac air distributor may be not be working. Seems to leak vacuum when on defrost, and never closes the air recirculation flap. More work for the morning.


----------



## Sean A (Sep 8, 2011)

Drove it for the first time in months...been trying to sell it but no one wants it for some reason...


----------



## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Sean A said:


> Drove it for the first time in months...been trying to sell it but no one wants it for some reason...


I can't wait to actually start driving mine.. And btw, I've actually scoped your ad looking through CL (I always scan it, never know what you'll find) she's a nice one for sure! Good luck man!


----------



## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

*flabby cabby*

Not my cabby, yet... It's an abandoned cabby at a friend's shop that has been stored for 3 years. I might lien sale it.

I had to ziptie the huge hole in the top where a thief broke in, then cats decided to reside inside...
I checked a few days later, and cats did not get back in!!!!
I inspected thief damage (instrument bezel broken, dash and wiring ok).
I removed front seats to find kittens underneath. I relocated them to another car that had a window down, with water and food for mother.
Cat feces was removed, but carpet has not been cleaned (only lightly vacuumed). 
Interior was wiped down to inspect cat damage (other than carpet, interior is quite nice).
Passenger side of car was quickly waxed to determine condition of paint (rear bumber is horrible and paint is dead/cracked, hood has some clearcoat flake, front end has some pitting from desert driving 286k miles!) but overall quite nice. Headlights are so sandblasted they look like faded/oxidized plastic, but are actually glass!
I wanted to see how much work there was, or if it was worth it as I do professional detail work... I can get it VERY nice!
There is no battery, but jumped with friend's truck to check if it starts. I put in 2 gallons, but it won't start due to gummed up fuel system. Fuel smelled like varnish.  had spark, no fuel. So jumped it while spraying carb cleaner, and it ran great. Revved nicely. I will have to go through fueling system to check pumps, lines, filter, fuel meter, and injectors. 
I have a feeling every inch of the system is going to be tested and cracked open to be cleaned!

I will post pictures IF I buy the car. 

Next time I go back to shop...
I am going to try to check the fuel pumps and what not... Dump lots of cleaner in the tank... Lots of seafoam in the crank case and tank... Just a boatload of it.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Been busy the last few weeks with my car, had to re-do my down pipe as it made contact with my sway bar. Put a new oil pan gasket on and my car still leaks like a siv, I have a feeling the pan is bent. I need a new one :-/ fml I hate oil leaks!

Took my msd out as it ran like a potato with it in, pretty bummed I couldn't get it to run how I wanted.. But summer is short here in Canada and I'm impatient. (Thanks to Dougkehl for his help).

After removing the msd the car ran 100 times better with the stock ignition, it's making around 15psi and pulls hard in every gear. I couldn't be happier with the carb-turbo set up. Especially as people said it couldn't be done for various reasons. The sound of the carbs and turbo whistle is amazing as it picks up steam. I'll try to get some driving vids up the week.

Today I put on a strut bar my friend gave me, is kinda scrappy looking but ties in nice with the rest of the bay, looking forward to feeling the difference it makes on my next carb tuning adventure!


----------



## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Waiting on getting my ECU back from C2 at the moment, so very little.

New small 200w amp and 8" Kicker sub installed and tested. Sounds decent for being something that small and compact, which is exactly what I was looking for.

Hoping to get more progress on it soon though. Looking at new motor mounts now for it (old ones are just shot), and shifter bushings as well (also shot).


----------



## krittens (Apr 30, 2015)

Found it a friend in a parking lot 

^.^










My friend spotted the red Wolfsburg while we were out and about, had to take a picture.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Made the wife's top more white and less grey...again...


----------



## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Tangerine! That carbed turbo.... Nice man. 

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Also replaced the combination switch so she has windshield washers, now. Then I shined the tires and took for a spin. Snapped a pic of it with her daily when I got back. My wife's VAG duo:


----------



## TheHolyToledo (Jun 17, 2015)

*I mean I'm trying*

I just got a 92' triple white I'm doing an over haul to and I found a neat spot for my powersteering resiviour


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Tisser said:


> Tangerine! That carbed turbo.... Nice man.
> 
> Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk


Thanks dude eace:


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Thanks dude eace:


How hard is it to "time" the turbo with that carb?? Or what kind of adjusting do you need with that setup? Can't be easy.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Tisser said:


> How hard is it to "time" the turbo with that carb?? Or what kind of adjusting do you need with that setup? Can't be easy.


It's fairly straight forward, it's just like running regular bike carbs but you need more fuel as the turbo makes boost  a rising rate fuel pressure regulator, pump that will support the flow and big main jets!


----------



## morimori (Jul 19, 2003)

tangerine_coupe said:


>


:thumbup:


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Fixed the heater control mech.... was missing the vent selector stuff... took over a yr to find a replacement (air con)


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Fixed the heater control mech.... was missing the vent selector stuff... took over a yr to find a replacement (air con)


I stripped all the AC stuff out of mine, baffled the heater box to blow heat from the center vents, and am in the process of adapting the blend doors to cable actuation using a Fox non-AC control head. As crappy as the vacuum actuators are at 20+ years old...


----------



## Mopmo (Jun 19, 2015)

Today, I drove my Cabby for the first time legally! Got her registered this morning and drove it to work  

This car vibrates a ton! haha


----------



## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Receive some items from the PO along with the replacement title.


----------



## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

77kafer said:


> Receive some items from the PO along with the replacement title.


That's awesome! I'm hoping my title comes soon too! But I won't be getting all that super sweet original stuff though


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Bought it go fast fluid :laugh:

IMG_20150629_140109_170 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Finally got mine inspected, and able to pass inspection.

Now the real fun beings, modding it!

Ordering soon:
BFI Stealth mounts
New shifter bushings
Coilovers
Either new control arm bushings, or for the ease of it, replacing the whole control arm


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> Bought it go fast fluid
> 
> IMG_20150629_140109_170 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


Not C16? Lol! How much is 5 gal of C12 these days? And you do know it's NOT unleaded?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Not C16? Lol! How much is 5 gal of C12 these days? And you do know it's NOT unleaded?


I could get C16 but C12 will do me good lol! And 5 gallons of C12 runs $77!! But I do know its not unleaded


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

I used to work at a speed shop that sold VP fuels, still about the same cost as it was about 7 years ago.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Yeah I work down the street from a speed shop and that's where I can readily get it.. They have a trailer full. It's awesome lol but that's actually kinda surprising the cost hasn't really gone up.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> Yeah I work down the street from a speed shop and that's where I can readily get it.. They have a trailer full. It's awesome lol but that's actually kinda surprising the cost hasn't really gone up.


What setup are you running, now? I remember you posting in the bike carb thread, but seem to recall you ditched that setup and went a different route?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

I was thinking about bike carbs a while back but I've been on webers now for 2 years. I'm currently running a 1.9L 16v Weber DCOE 45s, custom JE 11.5:1 pistons with 3mm deeper valve relief cuts, mildly ported head, CATCAMS 283/279 camshafts, scat rods, everything on the bottom end balanced, and megajolt crank triggered ignition. I have a thread that actually covers most of it haha


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

dougkehl said:


> I was thinking about bike carbs a while back but I've been on webers now for 2 years. I'm currently running a 1.9L 16v Weber DCOE 45s, custom JE 11.5:1 pistons with 3mm deeper valve relief cuts, mildly ported head, CATCAMS 283/279 camshafts, scat rods, everything on the bottom end balanced, and megajolt crank triggered ignition. I have a thread that actually covers most of it haha


:wave: I can change the oil in my cabby all on my own! :facepalm: 

(In other words I understood "I have a thread that actually covers most of it" and nothing else, and that made me feel about as smart as a lug nut)

:thumbup: But from what I gather that is a smoothly running powerhouse and you should do nothing BUT brag about it :laugh:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> I was thinking about bike carbs a while back but I've been on webers now for 2 years. I'm currently running a 1.9L 16v Weber DCOE 45s, custom JE 11.5:1 pistons with 3mm deeper valve relief cuts, mildly ported head, CATCAMS 283/279 camshafts, scat rods, everything on the bottom end balanced, and megajolt crank triggered ignition. I have a thread that actually covers most of it haha


If you're running a wideband O2 for tuning purposes, and plan on sticking with the leaded fuel, get it tuned in and then remove the O2 and plug the bung. The fuel will, over time, leave lead deposits on the O2 causing it to read improperly and eventually fail. 

And I bet that thing screams!


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> If you're running a wideband O2 for tuning purposes, and plan on sticking with the leaded fuel, get it tuned in and then remove the O2 and plug the bung. The fuel will, over time, leave lead deposits on the O2 causing it to read improperly and eventually fail.
> 
> And I bet that thing screams!


Yeah, I knew what I was getting into with the leaded fuel. I was like, well it's a good thing I don't have a cat, but I guess I'll be replacing the O2 sensors a bit :laugh::laugh:. I have a few spare brand new sensors, so I plan to keep it hooked up. I don't really mind only getting 3 months or so out of a wideband sensor because that's about all the car sees a year lol.

But I actually just broke that engine in two days ago. Scared the crap out of me with the carbs jetted rich, a poor, baseline ignition map just to get me going and 93!! It's silly fast compared to before and should rev to about 7800 rpm, maybe 8k if I'm lucky (valve float with hydro lifters).. Which I haven't hit yet and almost still can't imagine hitting. I'm going to post some videos up soon of it doing more than idling lol


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## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Drove mine today, P1582 code popped up. Looks like tomorrow's task is cleaning the TB out.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

New window cranks. Ordered s pair for the rear and new lock pulls too


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Mopmo (Jun 19, 2015)

tinygiant said:


> New window cranks. Ordered s pair for the rear and new lock pulls too
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


 where did those door cards come from!? They are amazing!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Karman edition cabby supposedly. 

1988-1989

I got them randomly as a bonus when i bought my caddy


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Mopmo (Jun 19, 2015)

tinygiant said:


> Karman edition cabby supposedly.
> 
> 1988-1989
> 
> ...


I am so very jealous


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

There are a couple for sale on evay right now for $40 a card 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

*gas station?*

Topped off the fuel at a gas station. This is the first time the car as been to the pumps since sometime in 2010.

Don't really know why the po left it sitting for so long.

Still a lot of work to do, mostly cosmetic.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Just been enjoying driving the wife's 87 for the last 2 days. Gives me motivation to get back on my '82.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Been super anxious to drive my 88. Working too much to get any time in to work on either one... Bought a pair of 3 ton steel ratcheting jack stands today for $27 that'll make some of the work a ton easier than just using a hydraulic jack.. Found out that the 15" Civic wheels I traded my stock 13's for are just a smidge too small on the innner hub. Need to get the dremel or router out and take off like 1/8" or less just so I have something on the 85 for mobility. 










They're not bad wheels, and if I decide to keep em and refinish em they'll be nice. 15" 4x100, and I'm gonna fix the center bore as well. Hell, may even paint em up black. Won't be using them on the 88 however, I have the 14's on it and they're nice ones. And 14's are cheaper to buy tires for haha.


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

You can put vw wheels on a honda, but not the other way around for that exact reason. But a little bit of dremel action should fix that :thumbup:


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Too bad they aren't similar to the ones that are on the 88, I could run hot-rod style, 14's up front and 15's in the back :laugh: I don't think that's safe or a good idea however.  

The plans for my project at this point are 
drop the motor/tranny from the 85, separate them, get the engine cleaned up, painted etc. 

drop the engine/tranny from the 88 and start scrubbing and cleaning up the engine bay.

repaint the engine bay after treating any rust with converter (barely any surface rust from what I can see) 

splice wires that need repaired, replace temp senders and misc. parts on the engine, and prep the bay for it. (New motor mounts, tranny mount, hopefully vacuum lines and ground wires) 

Clean and paint the tranny (checking the clutch while it's out) 

Mount the 85's engine with the 88's manual transmission after both have been painted and dried for a few days (block/transmission and valve cover are going red and timing cover is going black to match the bay) I'm keeping everything that's blue, so it'll be red, blue, and black in the engine bay. 

Re-time, retune and check all connections on the engine and peripherals, and try to figure out why all the electrical stuff was pulled all out in the first place. 

Get it inspected and plated.

Hopefully at this point I can drive it finally!

I won't put a time restraint on the above steps because I was planning on driving a cabby in may, and now I have two that are both all torn apart, I'm a little behind where I started at this point. :laugh: But at the same time 5 steps ahead because of the interior, tires, struts, etc that are all in great shape. 

I did not expect to actually be in this deep (dropping/swapping motors etc) but it's all a learning experience, and I have the support of you guys! 
Well, except you, guy. You know who you are, lurking in the shadows secretly hoping I fail. I'm on to you buddy.  

:facepalm:

Allons-Y!


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

77kafer said:


> Still a lot of work to do, mostly cosmetic.


Washed and scrubbed it in the rain. Then bladed it. Then washed it again. 

Removing 10 plus years of tree sap etc. isn't easy. Still much more work to do.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Replaced the flex plate (drive plate) from a spoke to a solid, so now it matches the Wrong starter that was installed in Maryland PepBoys. Oh the bad wrong starter died and it was replaced with the wrong style of starter as well.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

briano1234 said:


> Replaced the flex plate (drive plate) from a spoke to a solid, so now it matches the Wrong starter that was installed in Maryland PepBoys. Oh the bad wrong starter died and it was replaced with the wrong style of starter as well.


I have an automatic starter on my parts car I'm not gonna need, I'm pretty sure it's stock. Just a heads up.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Tisser said:


> I have an automatic starter on my parts car I'm not gonna need, I'm pretty sure it's stock. Just a heads up.


Chances are it is for a Solid Flywheel.... 
I took the new (remanned Starter) off the car in the yard so I have a spare as well for it..... thanks for the offer.
I have but a Drivers side Wheel Bearing, (Which was mismarked in the AutoZone Catalog 7.99) and the rears to do to make it road worthy again.

The Front Wheel bearing was one of the first one I ever replaced in my car, so I am sure that the pre-load wasn't fully set correctly....
No rocking in the hub, but you can hear the grind going down the road. Piece of Cake... figure about an hour...


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Got some new to me shoes


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Got some new to me shoes


 I WANT THOSE guhhhh they're dope af dude!


And Briano, I wish I just had to do bearings to get my car on the road :laugh:


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Still working on it, but it is officially added to "the fleet":


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Blue car crapped both axles, had to remove the grease, the axles were still under warranty.. 
both wheel bearings front, both ball joints and Tie-rods. Passenger side bearing was a mofo, the spring clip was frozen in the groove, Tri-Flow, smacking with a chisel, then using cold chisel to make the ears wiggle... 20 minutes later it was out. The Channel-lock 927 snap ring pliers made quick work of them clips.
Pulled the Old Bearing out, when I never have replaced, and SOB it was pressed in Backwards to boot.
4 new tires, and alignment and the Car is really nice handling....


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

briano1234 said:


> Blue car crapped both axles, had to remove the grease, the axles were still under warranty..
> both wheel bearings front, both ball joints and Tie-rods. Passenger side bearing was a mofo, the spring clip was frozen in the groove, Tri-Flow, smacking with a chisel, then using cold chisel to make the ears wiggle... 20 minutes later it was out. The Channel-lock 927 snap ring pliers made quick work of them clips.
> Pulled the Old Bearing out, when I never have replaced, and SOB it was pressed in Backwards to boot.
> 4 new tires, and alignment and the Car is really nice handling....


Innit funny how smooth they drive with the bearings in the right way? I've had the same woe before my friend.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

*flabby cabby*

Went to visit the project car that I am trying to get. 1988 cabby abandoned at a shop.
I only had time to spend 2 hours or less on it.

My goal that day was to try to get it to run. It ran off carb spray a few weeks earlier, but had no fuel. It sat for 3 years.
It ran when parked where it is now, but has not been touched since.

When I turned on the ignition, I could hear the relay "prime" the pump. Yet no noise from either pump.
Relay looked brand new, not factory. Fuse was new and good. Both are a bad sign, as pump is old, and one fuse connection looked a little melted (but worked, and was ok, wire was not damaged). 
I had loosened the transfer pump to inspect it, and it had crystalized/varnished fuel all over it. That was a bad sign.
I got power at the connector, good sign. I then dump a bunch of seafoam in the tank (also in old oil). I had placed some 91 octane chevron in there a few weeks earlier. The tank was empty (dried out) after sitting for 3 years untouched. Old gas smelled horrible.
I hit the transfer pump with a hammer, and tried to start car. Nothing.

So, I sat and turned ignition on and off to keep priming the pumps (I was hoping the transfer pump was just quiet, or would unstick). I didn't feel like getting into fuse panel again to jump relay. Cats lived in car and carpet smells.
After a few minutes, I tried to start the car.
I got maybe a couple little fires, but didn't start.
I hoped it was maybe the pump trying to work, or maybe it broke through a blockage just a tiny bit. Yet there was NO pump noise. How weird. 

I had my friend come over and help me. He sat and kept priming the pump while I smacked the main fuel pump housing with a hammer. After a few hits, I could hear the pump unlock. It must have been glued shut by old varnished fuel. So, I kept hitting, and it slowly started to change how it sounded. It slowly built to a typical old, worn out mk1 pump whine, but still worked. So, I kept hitting until it sounded a bit louder.

I turned the key, and it fired IMMEDIATELY. Idled nicely for a few seconds, then stopped.
I primed it a few more times.
The second time, it idled and kept running. I was shocked how it started so fast, and idled. 

I walked around to front of car, barely even touched the throttle cable and it died. 
I knew what that was. Stick fuel meter. Have dealt with that before.
I removed upper airbox so I could manually manipulate the plate up and down for a bit. It felt nice and smooth. 
I put it back together and started car.
As it idled, I tried to pull the accelerator cable, and it stumbled, so I let go of cable (but it didn't die).
The second pull and the car revved ok. I let it sit a few seconds and idle, then revved it again. No major problem.

As it idled, I noticed one of the accessories was making noise (alt, ac, pow steer, tensioner). I was not there to diagnose it, so didn't look into it. Shut off car immediately as I didn't trust old oil. 

I have been waiting for months to try to start it. Only reason I didn't drive it, is that it has no battery and it was running off jumper cables to my friend's truck. Not to mention that I didn't want to spend money on even oil or filter as the car is not for sure mine, yet. I am just having fun diagnosing it. So, have to borrow a jumper box or battery next time.

The adventure continues!


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

fast84gti said:


> The adventure continues!



Sounds promising, mine in the photo above sat from sometime before 2010, (it was taken for state inspection in Oct 10, and then parked again) The po can't remember when the last time it was actually driven, but I know I saw it sit in the same spot on the mulch bed for at least 10 years.
I needed to replace both fuel pumps, and several (mice chewn) wires under the hood. Luckily there was no evidence of chewing under the dashboard.
Car flopped the numbers (on the odometer) 34,500 on the way to the gas station last Thursday.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

*Finally pulled the engine and tranny!*

With the help of my dad and my other buddy, good bit a beer and some busted knuckles, we got the motor and tranny pulled out of the 85 today, and then got a few more parts pulled and separated the two from each other as well. *Phew* Glad it's at least ready to be worked on. Replacing a few seals, new coolant hoses I hope, new temp senders, thermostat, oil pan gasket/windage tray, valve cover gasket, de gunk/degrease and then paint the block and timing cover a nice cherry red to match the car, and get the valve cover cleaned up and jetted flat black.  PROGRESS!!!! 

And if you're wondering, we pulled both out, together, from the top. 

































Auto starter is for sale if anyone's interested.


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## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Took mine to a local get together yesterday, but on the way home, fairly certain the head gasket may have taken a dump.

Got a nice sweet burning smell, and white smoke from under the hood. Can't see evidence of leaks, but checking today on the coolant, and seeing what that looks like. If its bad, headed to a friends shop for a spare motor. 



Typical too, since I was JUST about to order a decent set of coilovers for it. And this happens instead.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Tisser said:


> With the help of my dad and my other buddy, good bit a beer and some busted knuckles, we got the motor and tranny pulled out of the 85 today, and then got a few more parts pulled and separated the two from each other as well. *Phew* Glad it's at least ready to be worked on. Replacing a few seals, new coolant hoses I hope, new temp senders, thermostat, oil pan gasket/windage tray, valve cover gasket, de gunk/degrease and then paint the block and timing cover a nice cherry red to match the car, and get the valve cover cleaned up and jetted flat black.  PROGRESS!!!!
> 
> And if you're wondering, we pulled both out, together, from the top.
> 
> ...


Nice progress! I do recommend dropping it out/putting it up from the bottom. It really is a lot easier, just need a pair of tall jack stands.

Today I cleaned and cleaned on the wife's '87. Passenger seat, back seat backrest, door cards, vacuumed, scrubbed the heel/wear pads and pedals, etc.





































Post vacuum, pre scrub...










Post scrub...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Some overall shots...























































Not too bad for 191,500 miles.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Nice progress! I do recommend dropping it out/putting it up from the bottom. It really is a lot easier, just need a pair of tall jack stands.
> 
> Today I cleaned and cleaned on the wife's '87. Passenger seat, back seat backrest, door cards, vacuumed, scrubbed the heel/wear pads and pedals, etc.
> 
> ...


That's what I was to understand. But we weren't trying to undo the front swaybar and deal with the headpipe being in the way, so we used a big motor hoist and it came out pretty easily from the top, shoulda removed my oil filter first though haha


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

I painted the fender hold down strips black, breaks up the whiteness of my bay and gives it some contrast.



Painted the rear licence plate tub, it was looking tatty!



I used vht on the side markers and front bumper lights, not 100% sold on it yet.. I hate these stupid lights, I need to weld them up eventually!



Old Suspension came out, putting in some new race land coilovers, I wish I could afford something better, but after the whole fiasco with terry from osvw taking my air ride money... That will never happen. It will be nice to bring the car down an inch and lose some wheel gap.


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Old Suspension came out, putting in some new race land coilovers, I wish I could afford something better, but after the whole fiasco with terry from osvw taking my air ride money... That will never happen. It will be nice to bring the car down an inch and lose some wheel gap.


I like the black fender strips. 
Didn't you have this car running just a little bit ago? I see your carbs and stuff are off now.

And that SUCKS about osvw. Damn, I'm glad I didn't get caught in his burglary. Did you end up ever getting a refund somehow? I feel like your post indicates not..


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

flying_oliver said:


> I like the black fender strips.
> Didn't you have this car running just a little bit ago? I see your carbs and stuff are off now.
> 
> And that SUCKS about osvw. Damn, I'm glad I didn't get caught in his burglary. Did you end up ever getting a refund somehow? I feel like your post indicates not..


I did yea, however the intake mani wasn't strong enough to hold the carbs and the plenum, so i ditched that one and my friend just finished making me a new one that is slightly thicker and stronger, it also has a support bracket underneath so when the engine moves my carbs stay still and don't crack the welds.

As for the air ride from OSVW i never got my money back from him, he just ignored all my messages in the end. I did manager to get my money back from visa nearly a year after he 1st took my lump some payment. So i was out of pocket for along time. I just don't think i could save up another $2500+ for someone to just steal it again lol. 

I may however in the future look at bag over coil set up.. something i can piece together slowly, my build is pretty much a pay cheque to pay cheque kinda build.. super low budget lol.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Got a wave from an air cooled in the wife's the other day. Woot!


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## redcabrio (Jul 16, 2015)

Put the top down, filled with gas, drove to the Oregon coast & back. Great day !!


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## tgilb2007 (Aug 7, 2007)

Ordered my JOM Blue Line coils today, as well as new installation hardware for them as well. Hoping I have everything by next weekend to install them. 

They are coming from ECS, and UPS ground, so who knows.


Also getting the coolant flushed, and pressure checked to take care of this leak that I've been having.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Believe it or not, put 4 grown adults in it and took a quick drive!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Believe it or not, put 4 grown adults in it and took a quick drive!


LIAR!....  Just kidding...


Changed the oil in Blue Cabby...., cleaned and polished the Battery connections as well as added Acid to the battery...


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Believe it or not, put 4 grown adults in it and took a quick drive!


 
I believe it! Every time my parents come up to visit and bring their cabby, we take it out to dinner. 

Although with the 15x8 wheels and the H&R springs we do have to strategically place people to keep the rubbing to a minimum haha.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

BoostedOne said:


> I believe it! Every time my parents come up to visit and bring their cabby, we take it out to dinner.
> 
> Although with the 15x8 wheels and the H&R springs we do have to strategically place people to keep the rubbing to a minimum haha.
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


14x6 snowflakes with 185/60 rubber helps prevent rubbing, and the extra weight helps make the Racelands ride a bit better. Lol!


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## daden61 (Jul 20, 2015)

I'm trying to get Jessica to run right. idles at 3500rpm, thinking mass air flow, fiddle with flapper the idle drops but returns when I let it go! want to post a couple of pics but can't cause I'm newbie!


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## redcabrio (Jul 16, 2015)

Took a nice little 400 mile ride up to Ocean Shores, Wa.
I seem to like this car better every day !


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

:facepalm: These were gross.


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Tisser, looks like 30 years worth of gross


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

77kafer said:


> Tisser, looks like 30 years worth of gross


Drivers side seatbelt was rusted to the frame. And the pass side has rust holes in the mount. Smh... Thankfully the 88 has a MUCH nicer interior.

Fabric and rear doorcards are going to make someone elses cabby look good again, since as you can see I would have had to start from scratch regardless. haha there was no "repairing" these seats.

After taking these apart, I don't know if I want to try to do it again, and then backwards and attempt to fix the small tear on the 88s drivers seat. Those damn 'tension' bars are a PITA. I will say I'd just use small zip ties to replace those hog rings if I DID do it. 

They should have used METAL reinforcement for the sports bolsters instead of that plastic they used, I realized that's what caused the bar to wear through the foam, it broke the plastic guard and just started working it's way through the foam by pulling it farther than it stretches, over and over again. 

Maybe some day I'll pull the seat apart and see what I can come up with, sew the small hole closed and add some extra foam in there to reinforce it.


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## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

*Mostly this ABA with Eurospec solid lifter head*


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

1987FrankenCabby said:


>



ABA or 3A?


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## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

tolusina said:


> ABA or 3A?


ABA


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## rbwdriven (May 5, 2015)

Offered to trade my cabby for a Newer Jetta wagon.

The guy was selling it for the same price I picked up my cabby for.

My son and I are the only ones that will ride in it right now due to it is friggin hot in Atlanta just sitting at the traffic light.

when we move it is ok cause of wind currents.


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## xxStuartxx (Apr 13, 2015)

rbwdriven said:


> Offered to trade my cabby for a Newer Jetta wagon.
> 
> The guy was selling it for the same price I picked up my cabby for.
> 
> ...


A Jetta for a Cabriolet?
Not something I'd commit to, but..............everyone has different preferences.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

rbwdriven said:


> Offered to trade my cabby for a Newer Jetta wagon.
> 
> The guy was selling it for the same price I picked up my cabby for.
> 
> ...


Know that feeling... 130 degrees hot on the asphalt stuck in I285 traffic..... can be a killer.... That is why I am soooooo glad my a/c works...
But I can remember 4 hour back up on 285 in a diesel rabbit with no air. H O P T it was.... I got home and jumped in the pool clothes and all. AHHHHHHH


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

1987FrankenCabby said:


> ABA


You sure about that?
Looks like a CIS Control Pressure Regulator mounting plate on the front of the block to the right of the oil filter flange mount as an Audi 3A 2.0 'short' or 'bubble' block would have.
ABA has a crankcase breather port in that same area, a completely different configuration.

3A and ABA have identical bore and stroke, the major difference is the connecting rod length.
3A rods are the same length as 1.5 (2nd version, no info on the 1st), 1.6, 1.7 and 1.8 engines, ABA rods are 14mm or 15mm longer and the block is correspondingly taller.

That the major difference is the connecting rod length is major indeed. Not so much the length per se, but the effect that the longer ABA rods have on the rod length to stroke ratio.
Google rod length to stroke ratio
If that is indeed an ABA you just might want to know how that ratio effects performance, helpful to know if considering a cam change or even cam timing.

Also, 3A or ABA, have you worked out what and how to deal with the ignition distributor and ignition advance controls? Knock sensing electronic control is highly recommended for 10.0:1 compression ratio engines, vacuum/centrifugal controls are fine at 8.5:1. 






.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

tolusina said:


> You sure about that?
> Looks like a CIS Control Pressure Regulator mounting plate on the front of the block to the right of the oil filter flange mount as an Audi 3A 2.0 'short' or 'bubble' block would have.
> ABA has a crankcase breather port in that same area, a completely different configuration.


It looks like his WUR plate is bolted to another block off plate.. see the two bolt heads above it.


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## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

tolusina said:


> You sure about that?
> Looks like a CIS Control Pressure Regulator mounting plate on the front of the block to the right of the oil filter flange mount as an Audi 3A 2.0 'short' or 'bubble' block would have.
> ABA has a crankcase breather port in that same area, a completely different configuration.
> 
> ...



It looks like a warm up regulator mounting plate because I installed it there for my warm up regulator. I am running cis. It is an ABA that I pulled out of a 95 Golf.


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## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

tolusina said:


> You sure about that?
> Looks like a CIS Control Pressure Regulator mounting plate on the front of the block to the right of the oil filter flange mount as an Audi 3A 2.0 'short' or 'bubble' block would have.
> ABA has a crankcase breather port in that same area, a completely different configuration.
> 
> ...












It's actually installed, been running for 5,000 miles now. I just run premium all the time.


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## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

BoostedOne said:


> It looks like his WUR plate is bolted to another block off plate.. see the two bolt heads above it.


Yes, that is my own custom cut breather block off. Why pay for a pretty one from TT when I can cut and paint? No issues yet. 5,000 miles in.


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## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

Water in the fuse panel??? I found the leak.










Car cancer removed...; new lip for windshield seal welded into place. Yes, by myself.










Fiberglass cast installed... waterproof and strong!!!










It worked!!!!


----------



## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

tolusina said:


> You sure about that?
> Looks like a CIS Control Pressure Regulator mounting plate on the front of the block to the right of the oil filter flange mount as an Audi 3A 2.0 'short' or 'bubble' block would have.
> ABA has a crankcase breather port in that same area, a completely different configuration.
> 
> ...


 On the note of knock sensing ignition.... I am interested. I would love to get the setup up from a mk1 GTI or a scirocco, but they seem to be either ridiculously expensive or ridiculously nonexistent. Maybe one day, after I get at least 25K on the ABA I will look into something more sophisticated.... like an AWP. Just need to find that perfect wrecked one.


----------



## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Pressure washed under the hood, and washed her again. 10 years of tree sap almost gone.


----------



## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

New front bearings, hubs, rotors, and pads.
Used Tolusina's write up for the bearings. Pretty straight forward, except that I did not notice the radiused edge on the new bearings (I did look, and HARD), which was obvious on the one's coming out. Also, when I did the PS the inner snap ring was interfering with the outer CV, which caused some confustications. I ended up using the old snap ring on that side inner as it was observed to be obviously thinner than the new one, which solved the problem. Now time will tell.

Also, clarified for someone yelling to me in traffic that car was not, in fact, for sale. Ok, that was last week but who's counting.


----------



## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

matty kirk said:


> .......Tolusina's write up for the bearings.......


Conceptually very similar to pulling valve guides, huh? Considerably different in scale.

Did you use a manufactured press or cobble something up from hardware store pipe bits or maybe something else?

I tried and failed valiantly once to cobble a pipe parts press. Standard hardware store pipe sizes I found inadequate.
I did find an in-between standard size pipe used in commercial fire suppression systems, never could find the proper pieces to use in smallish town Santa Cruz. Sorry, I forget the size.


----------



## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

tolusina said:


> Conceptually very similar to pulling valve guides, huh? Considerably different in scale.
> 
> Did you use a manufactured press or cobble something up from hardware store pipe bits or maybe something else?
> 
> ...


I used the kit sold by Harbor Fright. The M12x1.5 bolts for pulling the hub were not included, had to order those from McMaster Carr. Longest all thread they had were 60mm long. Worked fine.


----------



## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

More cosmetic work done, passenger side is before the pressure washing and brushing the steelees, and driver side is after. What a difference.


----------



## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

77kafer said:


> More cosmetic work done, passenger side is before the pressure washing and brushing the steelees, and driver side is after. What a difference.


It's insane the difference a little cleaning cam make!


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

matty kirk said:


> I used the kit sold by Harbor Fright. The M12x1.5 bolts for pulling the hub were not included, had to order those from McMaster Carr. Longest all thread they had were 60mm long. Worked fine.


Gee I t took a Lug bolt to the Hardware store, matched it to a Nut, the Nut to a piece of all thread that was 2 foot long.
Cut the all thread in half then welded a nut to one end, ran 2 nuts up the thread, then ground the other to a point and removed the nuts to chase the threads..... Works really good....


----------



## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Tisser said:


> It's insane the difference a little cleaning can make!


I was going to clean up the plastic wheel covers and paint them, I like this much better.

I have to figure out the best way to clean up the stone guard material.


----------



## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

The plastic lining in the wheel wells? I'd take a brillo (or green scratchy) to it, get it all cleaned up and evened out, and then hit it with a heat gun to smooth it all back out again.


----------



## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

No, the "decal" on the rear flare of the clipper kit.


----------



## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

77kafer said:


> No, the "decal" on the rear flare of the clipper kit.


Ohh That.. Hell you're probably better off scrubbing it with totally awesome and then repainting it either white to match or black to offset.


----------



## ianwilson (Dec 10, 2009)

i dripped a sole tear on mine because ive come to the realization that i will never find a set of updated speaker pods out of the post 90s cabs here in canada


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Well Ebay, the classifieds here and thesamba are a good place to start.


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Took a bunch mk1 to 3 parts to the landfill. 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


----------



## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Managed to get it up on the rack at work for a new drive flange oil seal. And then, because I was at work I used their tire shine to make the rubbers look purdy.


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

Washed it today while on jack stands in my driveway...
Last fall it looked like this...


Struts are off and rebuilds are in the works with new parts; springs dampers mounts and other stuff.


Clapped out mounts, blown dampers, crusty spring seats and springs....

...and what the heck is "spring packing"??



Snapped the ring off of one of the gland nuts...


Some new stuff...


These springs appear to be the correct, cabby specific Eibach Pro... but are they authentic?


----------



## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Man those struts are krusty!! You going to hit everything with a wire brush, especially those gland nut threads? 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

This weekend I finally fixed the giant crack in my original washer fluid reservoir, so I took out the '93 Ford Taurus tank/pump and replaced it with the original. 

Also Window-Weld filled the strut bearing click-clack-clank-ding BELL. 

Briefly went to Eurowerks 15, and was bored to death by all the sports cars (and melted to death by the 95 degree heat)


----------



## dave93cab (Jun 26, 2012)

Passed state inspection without failing emissions on first attempt. Strangely had to replace my ignition coil yesterday due to loss of spark. Drove around aimlessly in the evening remembering why I love the hell out of this car


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

BoostedOne said:


> Man those struts are krusty!! You going to hit everything with a wire brush, especially those gland nut threads?
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


HA!

You mean this gland nut threads? 


Much better looking on the outside.


One good nut, one good strut housing. Both rather crusty... 
I need another strut housing though.


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

Had a front caliper lock up on the way home, had wrenches in the car bleed the pressure off and drove home on the parking brake, fun times haha


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Got the 88 up on the jack stands, wheels off, and pulled the alt out. Wire brushed the AC-Compressor (Sanden) and the Alternator (Bosch) out of the 85. The 88 had an AC Delco Alt in it. So I'm assuming the 85 had the original equiptment in it. Regardless, I know they both work so they're being donated to the 88. If the ones from the 88 happen to be okay also, I'll just clean em up and have spares. Possibly pulling the engine from the 88 tomorrow depending on the weather. 









Before








After









































Gonna hit em with a wire wheel and attempt to polish a bit, but I got most of the corrosion and grease off with my wire brushes, and got both pulleys to spin so easily if you just touch em they spin at least 3 times around. :thumbup:

Was told I won't be able to get this on the road by winter. I have 3 months left till I gotta worry about winter. I WILL HAVE IT DONE.


----------



## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

riotbeast said:


> Had a front caliper lock up on the way home, had wrenches in the car bleed the pressure off and drove home on the parking brake, fun times haha
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


BAD LUCK!! But good way to improvise.


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

1987FrankenCabby said:


> BAD LUCK!! But good way to improvise.


If there is a way to drive the car home I always limp it haha


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Man.. the brake failure stories I have....

Probably the worst though was when I was drove my diesel dually(7800lbs) and trailer(2500lbs) to my ex girl friends parents house to pick up a gasser dually (~6000lbs). 50 mile trip each way.
On the way back, we stopped about half way for lunch. When we got out I saw the smoke rolling off the trailer brakes and thought "hmm.. glad the truck has brakes", figuring there was just a fluke in the trailer brakes..

Apparently not. Apparently the trailer brakes were baked because they were working overtime because the brakes on the truck failed. Because about 10 miles from home I went to slow down and got no response... I casually down shifted the automatic trans to engine brake as best I could, combined with popping it in neutral at the last second so she wouldn't notice to coast to a stop for the intersection. 
From there out you want to talk about nervous! I barely went the speed limit because I was "being careful". To this day still not sure how I made it home in one piece since all the roads have a 45 to 55mph speed limit and people expect you to do that and then some!


Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Finally got enough good weather warrant the effort, so I had some tasteful fun with the wife's chalk board paint. Took about 2 hrs total, I used a brake rotor to outline the VW logo, and piece of cardboard and a wheel center cap to help with some of the other corners and straight lines. The lettering, the Fast and the rabbit are all free drawn.




























And I gave it a fresh oil change.


----------



## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

still chasing where engine wiring is suppose to go after the heater/a/c delete. Also trying to find out the best way to plump my coolant lines now that there isn' anything between the pump and the side of the engine (besides the reservoir)


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Coil-overs....


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Picked up a catch can and some AN fittings. Bolted it down.


----------



## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Insurance, Plates and Inspection.

1st time back on the road since 2010.


----------



## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

Got my car looked at by a local guru...some of you know him as Oran, or moljinar.

To say the least, it is now idling well and the duty cycle has been perfectly set.

It was getting dark when we took the picture so it's a little blurry (I'm on the right).


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Drove it to work


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

We've been having some idle issues with the wife's 87, so I opened up the Bentley to find a vacuum diagram and check everything out. What do I find? The section on the idle stabilization valves, which have been removed. Well, they are not just for A/C. Fortunately there was this little laundry basket of goodies in the trunk when she bought the car, and those goodies included the ISVs and bracket, hardware, and the Y shaped inlet hose. Scrounged up a piece of 5/16 hose for the outlet, hooked it all up, and enjoyed an auto adjusting idle speed when we went Rita's. 

I also installed the Hella e-code 7" H4 headlights. Next step is a relayed harness!


----------



## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

YJSAABMAN said:


> We've been having some idle issues with the wife's 87, so I opened up the Bentley to find a vacuum diagram and check everything out. What do I find? The section on the idle stabilization valves, which have been removed. Well, they are not just for A/C. Fortunately there was this little laundry basket of goodies in the trunk when she bought the car, and those goodies included the ISVs and bracket, hardware, and the Y shaped inlet hose. Scrounged up a piece of 5/16 hose for the outlet, hooked it all up, and enjoyed an auto adjusting idle speed when we went Rita's.
> 
> I also installed the Hella e-code 7" H4 headlights. Next step is a relayed harness!


NICE! The relays are well worth the two hours it takes to wire it up. I literally gained 1.7V at the headlight, thus about 50% more brightness. Not a hard or expensive mod either.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

1987FrankenCabby said:


> NICE! The relays are well worth the two hours it takes to wire it up. I literally gained 1.7V at the headlight, thus about 50% more brightness. Not a hard or expensive mod either.


Yeah, I have a relayed setup in my 82 and it's a huge difference. These still look a little dim/yellowish.


----------



## brutalredrabbit (May 18, 2014)

finally replaced the water pump. it was squealing and whining. Knew it would be a long day, but was worth it. took out alot of the noise.

Not as painful as replacing the engine mounts.


----------



## beeme (Jul 31, 2015)

*Found in Junk Yard*

A couple weeks ago I needed a ECU for my 91 Jetta. Local search was coming up empty. Last resort I went to a local junk yard. I had the old ECU with me. They said they had just got in a 1990 Cabrio. It had not been checked in yet so the yard man got a jump pack and hooked it up to the battery. Bam it fired up. he removed the ECU and 30 bucks later its mine. I ask at the counter if the whole car can be bought. He says yes but it would be 500. I leave and think a couple days. In the mean time I find another ECU online and buy it just in case I get the car. I go back and give up the 500. They tow it home for me. I take the ECU out of the jetta and get some soap+ water. It has set for 4 yrs. It is now Registered and on the road. No other repairs done yet. Runs and drives nice.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Nice Find.


----------



## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

briano1234 said:


> Nice Find.


Indeed!
:thumbup:


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

For those that complain about the vert tops on the cabbies, let me tell you there is only one layer of staples that you have to contend with for the rear window, and that is held in to a frame that is bolted and only one strap You have a couple of more rows for the padding WAHHHHHHHH. total is never exceeding 300.

My Current Project.



All the Scraper and Door seals. Removal is easy 3 screws for the outer scraper and 10 rivets for the outside scraper. 3 for the rear plus 7 rivets.
All the windows have to be dropped to the bottom of the doors or quarters, then you have to fight the inner scraper and re-rivet the outer scraper. 
2 days as I had never done it, and the how tooooo's on line tell you to remove all the glass (ok I bit on the first door, bet decided there has to be a easier way.

The the top pad and headliner... BIG PAIN IN THE ASS. The Cable is a rear pain to get to,,,,, you have to take apart the rear interior trim in the behind the seat boot area.
the Read window is held in place by the headliner that has to be stapled and glued, there are side pads that are stapled to the window frame, as well as the outer cover.

The rear bow has a strap that is 2 parts and stapled to the bow as well as the headliner, and the interior pad and pad cover. I think I removed over 500 staples.

On the good side I finally broke down and bought a new Pneumatic Stapler.

Gimme a Cabby any day.


----------



## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

briano1234 said:


> ......My Current Project........
> 
> On the good side I finally broke down and bought a new Pneumatic Stapler.......


Looks like you're off to a good start on your post retirement career.


----------



## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

*Cosmetic work is done.*

Some AlpineWhite touch-up, 2 coats of wax and trim replaced:


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

77kafer said:


> Some AlpineWhite touch-up, 2 coats of wax and trim replaced:


:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Drove the hell out of it! :-D


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

beeme said:


> A couple weeks ago I needed a ECU for my 91 Jetta. Local search was coming up empty. Last resort I went to a local junk yard. I had the old ECU with me. They said they had just got in a 1990 Cabrio. It had not been checked in yet so the yard man got a jump pack and hooked it up to the battery. Bam it fired up. he removed the ECU and 30 bucks later its mine. I ask at the counter if the whole car can be bought. He says yes but it would be 500. I leave and think a couple days. In the mean time I find another ECU online and buy it just in case I get the car. I go back and give up the 500. They tow it home for me. I take the ECU out of the jetta and get some soap+ water. It has set for 4 yrs. It is now Registered and on the road. No other repairs done yet. Runs and drives nice.




Dammm... I'm lovin that red interior...... thinkin of finding one for mine


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Lubed and adjusted the throttle cable and gave the stereo a proper switched ignition signal. Also ran a secondary ground to the dash ground cluster from the firewall. The console Gauges still all drop when I turn the headlights on. Thinking the headlight relay harness is going to do the most for this.

Oh, and had a random stranger (woman in her 50s or 60s) compliment me on having a "cool car!"


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Lubed and adjusted the throttle cable and gave the stereo a proper switched ignition signal. Also ran a secondary ground to the dash ground cluster from the firewall. The console Gauges still all drop when I turn the headlights on. Thinking the headlight relay harness is going to do the most for this.
> 
> Oh, and had a random stranger (woman in her 50s or 60s) compliment me on having a "cool car!"


Oh another useless Ground thread, , Relaying the headlights is cool and will take the load off of your light switch.
I got bit by the Stereo on with the Key off, and a dead battery later caused me to switch to a switched power.

It is so Nice to have your car complimented.


I drove mine a bit that week. Getting ready for the Great Catalytic Converter swap and emissions this week.

On a side note, the Cabriolet Tops are easier to replace than the VW super Beetles. The only instructions I have seen were written in the 60's with little to no grainy b/w pictures, and was updated to the 70's with verbage as in "The 73 Beetles and super beetles you may have steel rods being used at the front and rear, we won't discuss them but be aware." WTF is that....... It says Convertible top and padding installation guide.....

The online ones are for the Older type with wood bows front and back, and the videos are all for the older ones, the newer ones are short takes with no dialog or helpful pictures....

Gimme a Cabby any day of the week.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Yeah, even down to the bare frame the Cabby tops are pretty simple. I fixed an error or two in this one, and still have a few more tweaks to make it totally right.

If I don't get to go work on mk2 today I'll make a relay harness for the headlights.


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Put in a new fuse box. Later found that when I turn the headlights on, the brake warning light comes on. When I turn on the high beams, it shuts off. Haven't looked into it yet but any ideas?


----------



## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Also got a top cover a while back.










Anyone have a picture of what is supposed to be here?


----------



## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

MOBOZO said:


> Also got a top cover a while back.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Should be a plastic corner piece like this.


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

1987FrankenCabby said:


> Should be a plastic corner piece like this.


So, a plastic corner so the frame doesn't wear throuh the vinyl?


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## RW (Mar 21, 2008)

Almost complete built 16V on mega squirt.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove it to get my Free U.S.C.G. Veteran License Plate.........


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## 1987FrankenCabby (Jul 21, 2015)

MOBOZO said:


> So, a plastic corner so the frame doesn't wear throuh the vinyl?


Exactly.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

MOBOZO said:


> So, a plastic corner so the frame doesn't wear throuh the vinyl?


I don't think the wife's has those, which is why we tend to not use it. That and I like to throw the top up when I park it to keep the sun and bird poop out.


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

Started mounting my snail on the vr










Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

riotbeast said:


> Started mounting my snail on the vr
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Isn't it nice how they give us that perfect little bump in the firewall to clear it? Lol!


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Fixed a coolant leak. The 28 year old bypass hose decided it had had enough. Fortunately AutoZone had the hose in stock!


----------



## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Pulled the second motor and tranny today. Also vacuumed the carpet and cleaned the seat vinyl. Big step towards driving it. Next is finishing up the donor engine, cleaning and painting the engine bay (just gonna tape the important stuff off and paint everything else) then hoping all the wiring is there.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Got the drivers seat cleaned up today (it's on the top in the above picture) Found a DIY cleaning solution (1-1-1 Dawn original, white vinegar, seltzer water) online and gave it a shot. Used the rug doctor to rinse them and suck out as much as I could but other than that solution I made and a scrub brush I didn't use anything else. Worked great. I'll tackle the passenger and rear seats tomorrow. And if I have time left over work on the carpet and floor also. 

And btw, if anyone happens to have an outer bolster in excellent shape they'd be willing to sell/give me so that I can fix the outer drivers bolster on my seat, that'd be really awesome too :laugh: :thumbup:










This is the 2400'th post on this thread too haha nice.


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

These showed up today and they will be going in tomorrow


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

*Some more dirt and grime sent away to a far away land.*

Passenger seat finished, and rear carpet finished. I'll get at the remaining carpet and rear seats tomorrow. And hopefully I'll have enough time to finish cleaning up my floors a bit. 

Someone poked a damn hole in my floor! I'm assuming it was punched in to drain a whole lotta water out of the floor, so that means theres probably one on the other side too. I haven't torn all that stuff up yet. (only other cause I could think of is someone shot a damn bullet through the floor) It's not a weak spot, or a rust hole (it is a rusty hole, but not a hole made by rust) and it's pushed down, the area around it is lower than the rest of the pan. Saves me from drilling one at least :thumbup: 









Mid-cleaning








Clean :thumbup: 









Bullet hole









Does this mean I need to move my door latch pin in towards the interior a little bit or what? (This is my passenger door looking from the drivers door, see the light coming in under the door?)


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Tisser said:


> Bullet hole
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Depends on the condition of the seal on the bottom, but you need a better picture of the Door in the frame in Daylight for me to tell. 
I would suspect that you need move the latch to the inside of the car, but if you have any door sag, you really have to take care of that issue first.


For the Rust hole, well I would make it equally round, clean the rust, rust convert primer or self etching, use a pipe plug, similar to the hood or a bicycle handle bar from the top, or bottom, and coat with "Under Coat" on the bottom. That would seal it effectively, and make it re-usable if the leak re-occurs. 

Tops, rain drains, and a/c drains on the heater box that are disconnected all can cause leakage issues as well as rust around the window.


----------



## srgtlord (Jun 4, 2010)

I sold my Cabby today


----------



## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

Tisser said:


> .....
> 
> 
> Bullet hole


----------



## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

briano1234 said:


> Depends on the condition of the seal on the bottom, but you need a better picture of the Door in the frame in Daylight for me to tell.
> I would suspect that you need move the latch to the inside of the car, but if you have any door sag, you really have to take care of that issue first.
> 
> 
> ...


I was gonna use Rustoleum Rust Reformer on it after I straightened it out, and yes, painted from the top and undercoat it from the bottom. I have a grommet set that would probably have the right sized plug for it, that way I have rubber to put the ACTUAL PLUG into, and there won't be any wear on the hole itself. Just struck me as really odd. haha. 

Passenger door DOES have sag that I need to fix, but that was fully shut, the seals look okay on the doors, abeit having a little bit of paint on them from the new paint job. I also need to adjust the windows on both sides, I know how to do it, just haven't gotten that far yet. The passenger window when it's fully up rests on the OUTSIDE of the top seal, so I know that one needs to move down a little bit. All in time though. 

Haven't yet pulled the front carpet out (doing that in a little bit) so I'll see what that floor looks like up there (fingers crossed)
My plan with the floor is to clean off as much of the tarproofing as I can and clean the floor really well, and hit any rust with reformer, and fresh paint to seal it all back up. Even gonna try to get the insides of my seat tracks since they seem to be the one thing I've noticed ends up super rusty all the time.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

tolusina said:


>


As much as I dig that look, I'm going for a more "clean cut" look for my cabby :laugh:


----------



## [email protected] (Apr 18, 2006)

Tisser said:


>


Amazing results! I thought you had re-upholstered it at first, nice work!


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

[email protected]g-Hartmann said:


> Amazing results! I thought you had re-upholstered it at first, nice work!


Thank you!!! Still the original seats! I know! I was kinda impressed myself!


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

srgtlord said:


> I sold my Cabby today


Sort of like a boat owner. Happiest 2 days of ownership, bringing it home and watching it depart after sell.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove my officially tagged Veteran Plated Car to the Airport to pick up traveling Daughter. Parked in the Arrival section for about 4 minutes when Policeman Started to pull out his Ticket book. Walking towards the rear where he saw the Plate, I jumped out of the car and said "Officer I had to put the top up as the Sun was Kiilling me." He saw I was in my "Official Veteran Cap and Shirt" and said you need to move the car, To which I couldn't as traffic wouldn't allow it. He Actually Stopped traffic to allow me to escape.... Gotta love those Veteran Tagged Cars and the Drivers that served..


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Drove it all around top down, including to the car wash to pressure wash the black carpet for the wife's mk3. Who says these trunks are worthless?


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Where did you put the wet carpet on the way home?


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

77kafer said:


> Where did you put the wet carpet on the way home?


Right back in there, it's wet enough in there already! Lol!


----------



## Barbernick (Sep 6, 2015)

Sprayed my close to final layer of primer!

From this 
 

To this


Bondo, sand, and repeat. Aiming for paint by the end of the month, driving to a Volkswagen show! umpkin:


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Finished mounting my Ground Control camber/caster plates 

IMG_20150902_214509_128 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

IMG_20150905_220141_787 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Finally doing the 2.0 16v swap on digi 2..... should be much better than the smoking 1.8 8v on cis


----------



## SK VeeDubR (Apr 18, 2008)

Removed this..






And installed this.. Sorry for the crappy photos.. Will have to get better ones.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

SK VeeDubR said:


> Removed this..
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Wait, no wait..... You removed your VW wheel, then installed a Porsche wheel, then removed that and installed another Porsche wheel?
I would of just installed the Porsche wheel the first time.  (hey you got a mess up of the pic's...)  I like the look.


----------



## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Got the first front card done yesterday, and also ended up getting the front carpet pulled, and scrubbed!!


My DIY GTI doorcard  









Before: (Wasn't actually too bad)









After:









Also got our acre and a half mowed. Oops I was productive.


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## Jighigmayor (Oct 2, 2015)

Getting mine painted. Can't wait until it's done!


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Guess who finally cleaned up enough shelf space to store all my parts in the shed!? This guy! Hopefully this cuts down on the cobwebs and spiders I have crawling over my stuff. :laugh:


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Tisser said:


> Guess who finally cleaned up enough shelf space to store all my parts in the shed!? This guy! Hopefully this cuts down on the cobwebs and spiders I have crawling over my stuff.


Boy those Folgers canisters do come in handy don't they? I have a good few of those kicking about!


Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

BoostedOne said:


> Boy those Folgers canisters do come in handy don't they? I have a good few of those kicking about!
> 
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


I use chock full o' nuts cans myself to hold my screws and things that I sweep up... Thought I was going to say nut's didn't you...


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Drove it for the first time since Spring... with the top down. :heart: Beautiful Fall 'verting day in Phoenix. :thumbup:


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Woot! Still driving top town (with the heat all the way up and the fan up to 4) in Minnesota almost halfway through October


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

BoostedOne said:


> Boy those Folgers canisters do come in handy don't they? I have a good few of those kicking about!
> 
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


Between my parents hoarding them (mainly my mom haha) and the auctions our family's been to or goes to, we end up with A TON of those around.. And I'll be tickled if they don't always end up getting filled right up... haha they sure are handy to have around though. I don't think any of the ones in this picture actually has any of MY parts in it though, those are all random screws, nails etc. Or parts from one of our riding mowers or other yard riders. 

I've been bagging all of my nuts bolts and smaller parts up in various sized jewelry bags (I have a lot of those around because they're awesome for everything) and labelling them for the time being until I actually learn what everything is and where it goes. That's all stuck inside a shoe box :laugh: I TRY to be an organized person, but as you see from the shelves, it's chaotic. But *I* know where everything is. Same as my bedroom. Stuff all over the place, but I know where I have that one thing that I happen to need for this situation, because I put it there for the day I'd need it! (99% of the stuff doesn't get used and just sits as clutter anyhow lol )


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Finished my doorcards and put the remainder of my parts that were laying about up on the shelf. Yay organization!


























They didn't turn out perfect, but I wasn't expecting them to. :laugh: accidentally got a few fingerprints of black on some of the red and grey spots from peeling the tape, but hey, I can only do so much. I did, however fix the fisheyes in the red on the second front card.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Steering wheel swap today. Went against the contrary and went from a leather-wrapped to the foam 4-button out of my 85. Honestly would like a leather wrapped 4-button or wolfsburg 3-spoke metal scirocco wheel :laugh:


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)




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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Mrpapageorgio said:


>


Nice :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

I got mine ready for Show n go this weekend

IMG_20151014_172612_651 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Ya still need to make an upper radiator card....


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Dang nab it, had to replace the drivers side water outlet flange o-ring.....Thing only lasted about 10 years, I am just glad it wasn't a shuttle o-ring...
Thankfully my HF assortment still has a few of them left...


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Todays project..... Sub was lookin a little rough.... Had an old seat cover ..... 1 hr later


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Todays project..... Sub was lookin a little rough.... Had an old seat cover ..... 1 hr later


But you still need an upper Radiator card. 

While it is nice to see that you are BOOM BOOM BOOMIN, your radiator need COOL COOL COOLING that only the upper radiator card can provide.


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Go Kam, gotta love the fall weather in the South and Southwest. Best time for drop tops.


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

rix337 said:


> Go Kam, gotta love the fall weather in the South and Southwest. Best time for drop tops.


Absolutely. :thumbup: Unless, of course, storms blow through. Thanks to that, I've been doing some detailing. And the new BOSS head unit arrived today so I can dump the annoying Kenwood. Took the dash apart to start installing it and figured, while the cluster is out, time to finally do this:









(Console lights now look absolutely dreadful... :facepalm: They're on the to-do list.)

Obviously, didn't bother with the clock and left it green.

I hope to have the car at the KOOL-FM car show on the 24th.


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## M333ch02 (Oct 14, 2015)

77kafer said:


> Pressure washed under the hood, and washed her again. 10 years of tree sap almost gone.


Rubbing alcohol also helps remove tree sap


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

kamzcab86 said:


> Absolutely. :thumbup: Unless, of course, storms blow through. Thanks to that, I've been doing some detailing. And the new BOSS head unit arrived today so I can dump the annoying Kenwood. Took the dash apart to start installing it and figured, while the cluster is out, time to finally do this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


That's on my to-do list as well. I wanna install LED's for all the gauges and cluster too. I was eyeballing the cluster I have out of the car to see how difficult it would be. Thankfully my bulbs are removable from the cluster gauges, so they'll be pretty simple to swap out I think.


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

M333ch02 said:


> Rubbing alcohol also helps remove tree sap


Soft Scrub did a great job.


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Replaced all the lights (except headlights) with LEDs


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## M333ch02 (Oct 14, 2015)

Just a few photos of my 88 I got for $800.. Yup I'm a noob! 

Already added new bushing kit as it only had gears 3,4,5,R.
New head gasket.

She still leaking a little oil, now not running, thinkin maybe fuel pumps but not sure as of now, time to get my hands dirty!


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Finally back together and new BOSS head unit is *so* much better than the Kenwood. :thumbup:










Put the black/yellow defrost switch wire back into its spot and, instead, tapped into the fuse panel for switched power.

Those incandescent console lights have definitely got to go! :facepalm:


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

kamzcab86 said:


> Finally back together and new BOSS head unit is *so* much better than the Kenwood. :thumbup:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Ahh I love it! Looks so clean... Can't wait to get around to doing mine! But I kinda need to get a battery (read:replace the engine and battery) before I can even worry about that kind of stuff. No way to test it yet. :laugh: Cluster lights aren't very difficult to do from my understanding, whatcha waiting for Kam?!


----------



## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Tisser said:


> Cluster lights aren't very difficult to do from my understanding, whatcha waiting for Kam?!


Time and money... mostly time.  The car is, hopefully, going to a car show Saturday, so I don't want to rip the console out just yet (still need to finish detailing her and my van too). Plus, I'm going the more costly plug-and-play route for the gauges (jeez, misspoke earlier... console, not cluster!) and still need to buy the parts... next month's project. umpkin:


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

kamzcab86 said:


> Time and money... mostly time.  The car is, hopefully, going to a car show Saturday, so I don't want to rip the console out just yet (still need to finish detailing her and my van too). Plus, I'm going the more costly plug-and-play route for the gauges (jeez, misspoke earlier... console, not cluster!) and still need to buy the parts... next month's project. umpkin:



One day maybe I'll have my cabby at a show and might get to meet you! haha but I wouldn't be too upset if a PM showed up that has the LED #s you ordered for your car so when I go to do it i have less guessing to do  just sayin haha


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

I used some PnP LEDs from ebay.... simple easy peasy


http://www.ebay.ca/itm/10X-Blue-T5-...ash=item35e01b5b09:g:cCcAAOSw0vBUaNRT&vxp=mtr


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Tisser said:


> One day maybe I'll have my cabby at a show and might get to meet you! haha but I wouldn't be too upset if a PM showed up that has the LED #s you ordered for your car so when I go to do it i have less guessing to do  just sayin haha


Freshly updated: http://cabby-info.com/Files/InstallingLEDs.pdf :wave:

This may be handy too: http://www.cabby-info.com/Files/BulbCrossReference.pdf .

:beer:


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

kamzcab86 said:


> Freshly updated: http://cabby-info.com/Files/InstallingLEDs.pdf :wave:
> 
> This may be handy too: http://www.cabby-info.com/Files/BulbCrossReference.pdf .


Thanks!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Drove the wife's on a good 60+ mile drive. The poor thing really only gets run on short trips around town, anymore. It was good to get it out and stretch its legs.


----------



## riotbeast (Mar 17, 2008)

Took the last picture before putting her in the trailer for the winter  least I'll have time to get the caddy looking nice now 











Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Yesterday I swapped a properly functioning turn signal stalk into the car and confirmed I had fixed the washer switch by cleaning the terminals. Then I broke the connectors on the washer lines trying to reroute them in the cold.

Next I pulled the blower fan to diagnose it only working on speed 3 (4spd AC fan). 



















In the end the blower resistor tested good on all circuits, but it was good to clean all the crap out of the blower housing. I then replaced the switch and had all 4 speeds, again.



















I was also having trouble with the blend doors and found the pin that holds the arms to the control head had gone missing letting the arm flop loose. I pulled the whole thing out and got it rigged up with a bolt, some loctite, and a double nut.










I ran out of daylight to finish putting it back together, though.


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Finished up the wife's heat and washers on Tuesday. Damn are these control heads starting get brittle with age! Between the mounting tabs and the temperature cable retainer, I was able to piece together something reasonably functional out of the two that I had.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Finished up the wife's heat and washers on Tuesday. Damn are these control heads starting get brittle with age! Between the mounting tabs and the temperature cable retainer, I was able to piece together something reasonably functional out of the two that I had.


Been there done that, as to why there are how do I do thats, that I created.

*Heater Control mounting repair*. (Yep broke mine because I failed to unscrew it from the dash while wiggling my arm to disconnect the speedo.)


*Heater Slider Pivot break repair.*

*A/C slider bar pops off the control arm fix.*


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

briano1234 said:


> Been there done that, as to why there are how do I do thats, that I created.
> 
> *Heater Control mounting repair*. (Yep broke mine because I failed to unscrew it from the dash while wiggling my arm to disconnect the speedo.)
> 
> ...


You act like you have big arms or something :laugh:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> Been there done that, as to why there are how do I do thats, that I created.
> 
> *Heater Control mounting repair*. (Yep broke mine because I failed to unscrew it from the dash while wiggling my arm to disconnect the speedo.)
> 
> ...


The pivot repair was no issue, nor were the mounting tabs, really. But figuring out how to hold the cable sheath without it being too tight or loose is the suck! I ended up with something other than the ziptie pictured above, as after 2 or 3 cycles the cable would pop out. I found a NOS non-AC control head for my 82 and will be converting the AC heater box to cable controls.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

The new K&N filter cover


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> The new K&N filter cover


Don't cut yourself.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Replaced the wife's upper rad hose with an OE hose I had on hand, today. The cheapo aftermarket hose that was on the car blew a hole in it. The sad thing is the OE hose I put on her 87 came off my 82 and was in much better shape and better constructed than whatever POS was on it before. 2 hoses down so far this year, makes me want to replace the rest of them after 28 years and 192,4xx miles. Only time it's let either of us sit since she bought it, though, and it was fixed and home again in less than 3 hours, including eating lunch, digging for parts, and changing a poopy diaper on my 4 month old. Lol!


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

*carb'd turbo update*

I guess I've been fairly busy with my car over the last few months. Ill post an update here as there is a lack of interest in my build thread :-/

SEAT Valve cover


VR6 Lip


Bigger t3/t4 turbo





2'' lips in the rear and 1.5'' in the front 


Tan roof


Water to air inter cooler, pump, icebox and heat exchange going in over the next couple of weeks.


Next up, rear roll bar. Re-Trimming my recaros. New msd timing computer. More boost.


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Nardi wheel and knob


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Nice... been looking for them Myself


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Ordered a bunch of parts....


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## flying_oliver (Apr 29, 2013)

tangerine_coupe said:


> I guess I've been fairly busy with my car over the last few months. Ill post an update here as there is a lack of interest in my build thread :-/


Honestly, I doubt there has been lack of interest. I find that I personally even read a lot more threads than ever respond to. I bet multiple people have been reading your thread, just not responding. 
A perfect example is juicedz4's build thread. That guy has an insane project going and I check it everytime he updates, but I rarely post. 

I guess I should post more often so that people know I'm reading, but so it is.

But, great work. And update that build thread! 

eace:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

flying_oliver said:


> Honestly, I doubt there has been lack of interest. I find that I personally even read a lot more threads than ever respond to. I bet multiple people have been reading your thread, just not responding.
> A perfect example is juicedz4's build thread. That guy has an insane project going and I check it everytime he updates, but I rarely post.
> 
> I guess I should post more often so that people know I'm reading, but so it is.
> ...


Good feedback! I will try and update it tonight


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Out of the blue I had a low pressure warning light come on after the oil got to 110 Degrees, the bar was showing less than 1 to .5 there were no engine noises.
The high end was ok at cold 3.5-40... then dropping.

So I changed out the sensor with a spare and got the same issue.
Ordered a cheap Sender, had the same issue but worse...... 
The quick 2K 1.5 bar test always passed......I was thinking that the pressure relief was possibly wonky....
Mechanical test were correct, but I was erring on the side of caution.
I decided to replace the oil pump with a 2.0 and order the oem Sensor....
Well what do you know, the oil pan wouldn't go on with the 2.0 oil pump. I had to swap my oil pick up over.
buttoned it all up with the new sender and What do you know I have 5.0Bar cold and 1.12 @ 110 degrees....
I suspect it was the Sender, as there were no filings in the filter or the pan.....

So warning..... If you are upgrading from a 1.8 pump 30mm gears to the 36mm Gear 2.0 pump, test fit the pan, as you may have to swap the pick up tube out.... After I test fitted the pan, I re-remembered that I had to swap the pick up tube on the Green one when I did that years ago...... 

Tomorrow, the passenger side control arm on the Green car.......


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

i put it up on craigslist.. 

make an offer if you are interested.. also have a 1981 diesel pickup for sale too 

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?7507074-1989-vw-cabriolet-Tooooooooons-of-love-put-into-it


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Started with simple maintenance, installed a new hood prop clip and replaced all 8 injector o-rings. Next I went to the rear to look at fixing the exhaust outlet where it's been rattling against the rear apron, as I have a fancy tip to put on it anyways. Well, I figured out why it's been sounding louder and more buzzy...










D'oh! Would love to know how that happened! So welding on a new tip turned into a muffler replacement. So since all my jackstands are under other projects (two loaned to a buddy and the other 4 under my mk2) and both my sawzalls are at work, I just ran into work so I could use my lift. Stopped at Advance Auto Parts along the way and grab a Thrush welded muffler for $43.

So, out with the old...










And in with the new! Only problem was the new one was offset in/center out, opposite of the old muffler! Good thing I keep some bits and pieces around!


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Bought a bunch of AN fittings, man those things arnt cheap. Some new msd shiz and an icebox.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Finished painting my wheels, lacquered them with 2k. Polished 60 bbs bolts in one go, which was not fun. Put two wheels together and test fitted them. I think I need to space out the front and back by 2-5mm, meh I dunno.. There's always something:-/


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Green one 2 tires, lower control arm, outer tie-rod.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Ordered brackets for my new Corrado Girling 54 calipers, StopTech slotted 11" rotors AND an Autopower half cage  

Also took some measurements on a stock 16v intake valve for Ferrea as I may be going with custom 33mm intake valves in my big valve 16v head. Haven't totally decided if it's worth it yet. I'll have to do some math to determine how much more flow can really be achieved with this valve versus an oversize off the shelf 32.5mm intake valve. Cost will be another determining factor, I haven't even gotten a quote yet and I'm estimating about $50 a valve.. and then I'll need new seats on top of that. It could add up very, very quickly


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Doug, looking forward to seeing the cage!! I think I'm gonna make mine, my buddy just picked up a decent pipe bender. I'm surprised you arnt going for a full cage, any reason why you arnt? With the small amount of street driving you do, I would have thought you would have gone all out 😳😳. Also, did you pick up tires yet?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Doug, looking forward to seeing the cage!! I think I'm gonna make mine, my buddy just picked up a decent pipe bender. I'm surprised you arnt going for a full cage, any reason why you arnt? With the small amount of street driving you do, I would have thought you would have gone all out 😳😳. Also, did you pick up tires yet?


Main reasoning for not going with a full cage is because I don't like the way Autopower full cages fit. And I would just go buy a pipe bender and make my own, but I am lacking space to put it and funds to buy it lol. I was going to have a full cage professionally made by my friend Bill Petrow of Broken Motorsports here in NJ, but once again, no funds for that because of the big valve head I'm building and I decided to go with custom intake valves which is going to cost me haha. So for now an Autopower racing roll bar/half cage will do the job. Plus it already meets SCCA specs which isn't hard necessarily to do, but is nice because I can just throw it in and show up to a track and know I'm good to go.

Also, no word on tires yet. I decided to go with the Toyos because at this point I don't really care about a tire with a 100 wear rating (toyo) vs a 200 wear rating (Bridgestone). So once I get some more money I'm planning to go pick up a set of the R888's :thumbup:

EDIT: @tangerine_coupe, I just cancelled my order for the autopower cage lol I got to thinking after reading your post and got to looking around and realized I don't really like they way the autopower cage fits in the car. Even though it fits fine and meets SCCA regulations, a proper cage should be much closer to the inside edges of the car.. I should have known better than to have jumped right on it haha. I'm going to have my friend Billy bend all the tubes for me and I'll weld it at my house in the car. That way I'll get an exact fit and realistically it will be a better product... So I guess I'm ordering some tires instead


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> Main reasoning for not going with a full cage is because I don't like the way Autopower full cages fit. And I would just go buy a pipe bender and make my own, but I am lacking space to put it and funds to buy it lol. I was going to have a full cage professionally made by my friend Bill Petrow of Broken Motorsports here in NJ, but once again, no funds for that because of the big valve head I'm building and I decided to go with custom intake valves which is going to cost me haha. So for now an Autopower racing roll bar/half cage will do the job. Plus it already meets SCCA specs which isn't hard necessarily to do, but is nice because I can just throw it in and show up to a track and know I'm good to go.
> 
> Also, no word on tires yet. I decided to go with the Toyos because at this point I don't really care about a tire with a 100 wear rating (toyo) vs a 200 wear rating (Bridgestone). So once I get some more money I'm planning to go pick up a set of the R888's
> 
> EDIT: @tangerine_coupe, I just cancelled my order for the autopower cage lol I got to thinking after reading your post and got to looking around and realized I don't really like they way the autopower cage fits in the car. Even though it fits fine and meets SCCA regulations, a proper cage should be much closer to the inside edges of the car.. I should have known better than to have jumped right on it haha. I'm going to have my friend Billy bend all the tubes for me and I'll weld it at my house in the car. That way I'll get an exact fit and realistically it will be a better product... So I guess I'm ordering some tires instead


Check out S&W Racecars. Last I talked to them they offered you weld it SCCA legal 6 point roll bar and 10 point cage kits available in ESW (electric seam welded), DOM, and Cromoly. I'm pretty sure they had availability for the Cabriolet, and know they have them for Rabbits. The ESW kits are super cheap, but the DOM is a much better material. Cromoly while the lightest, is also the most expensive and needs to be TIG welded to meet both SCCA and NHRA tech requirements. 

I was going to go with a full cage in mine, but think I'm going to scale back to just a 6 point rollbar for cost and simplicity. I also don't know that I'm going to keep it much more than a year after I'm done with it, now. No back seat means I can't take my daughter with me to shows! I'll take the proceeds from selling the cabby and buy a supercharger and some track wheels and rubber to make my daily e46 wagon an unexpected dual pupose vehicle. 

Oh, and my wife wants to keep her 87, now, so the baby girl can go top down driving in that!


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove the Green one to Home Depot.
Since it's a convertible, I converted it to be a truck today......


----------



## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Check out S&W Racecars. Last I talked to them they offered you weld it SCCA legal 6 point roll bar and 10 point cage kits available in ESW (electric seam welded), DOM, and Cromoly. I'm pretty sure they had availability for the Cabriolet, and know they have them for Rabbits. The ESW kits are super cheap, but the DOM is a much better material. Cromoly while the lightest, is also the most expensive and needs to be TIG welded to meet both SCCA and NHRA tech requirements.
> 
> I was going to go with a full cage in mine, but think I'm going to scale back to just a 6 point rollbar for cost and simplicity. I also don't know that I'm going to keep it much more than a year after I'm done with it, now. No back seat means I can't take my daughter with me to shows! I'll take the proceeds from selling the cabby and buy a supercharger and some track wheels and rubber to make my daily e46 wagon an unexpected dual pupose vehicle.
> 
> Oh, and my wife wants to keep her 87, now, so the baby girl can go top down driving in that!


Will do man! thank you for the recommendation. I'm really aiming to get the car onto the track this year so if I can make it happen I'm definitely going to do whatever it takes. I'll have no trouble welding it in so it really might be a good alternative to the autopower or having my friend make it at his shop with his roll cage builder.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Spoke with Supertech today. They're making me custom intake valves for my big valve 16v head


----------



## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Haha sorry Doug, I didn't mean to throw a spanner in the works. I think a full cage will be perfect for your build!


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Haha sorry Doug, I didn't mean to throw a spanner in the works. I think a full cage will be perfect for your build!


No spanner thrown in the works. Only preventing me from spending $600 to be disappointed lol At this point it's looking like it might be a full cage. I might just hold off for a while, get the head done and enjoy the car for most of the summer until I have a good chunk of change to throw at having a nice cage built. Although the S&W ones look pretty nice for just a few hundred bucks.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Since the wife's mk3 Jetta got creamed on the passenger side this morning (both doors, b-pillar damaged, and the quarter panel, it's done for) I pulled the snow tires off it. Then I sat out in the beginnings of the snow storm and cranked the coils up 2" and put the slightly too big 185/65r14 snows on the wife's 87 Cabby.


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Indtalled the christmas present from my wife.

http://vr6parts.com/onlinestore/index.php/12vr6oilhousing.html


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

MOBOZO said:


> Indtalled the christmas present from my wife.
> 
> http://vr6parts.com/onlinestore/index.php/12vr6oilhousing.html


That is pretty, but it makes the OE crack pipe really look out of place!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> That is pretty, but it makes the OE crack pipe really look out of place!












Yeppers that is really nifty, and pricey too.... 
All I had to do was to repair my window switch, as it would go up but not down, happened in the middle of the Snowpocalypse in ATL yesterday.
Ok the Rain prior to the 1/4 inch dusting.

Then My heater Switch seemed to Fail, and the Windows fogged up really nicely.... Found that the Scotch Guarded Jacket I was wearing became a Sponge.... So it was a Chilly ride for a wee bit... Both switches were Dirty, and got repaired...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

The snow here in central PA has just about swallowed the wife's Cabby, at this point. And we aren't even close to finished yet. Out to do a first round of clean up!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Here is last nights snowpocalyspe..


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## Claykeller (Jan 19, 2016)

Got my valve cover off for new gasket


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

These cars are awesome. Drove itself out of the massive snow drift it was in like nothing. Cleaned it off after the fact.

Before. All I did was clean out what was behind it.










Out.










You still see the inprint of the grille and headlight in the snow.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

YJSAABMAN said:


> The snow here in central PA has just about swallowed the wife's Cabby, at this point. And we aren't even close to finished yet. Out to do a first round of clean up!


I wished I would have snapped a pic of my parts car before I cleaned it off. We got about 2' here in Huntingdon, whereas 20 minutes away in State college they only got 5"! I was a little worried the snow was going to be too heavy for the roof, but it didn't even look like it noticed there was snow on top of it :laugh: I guess there's a SECOND major storm heading our way soon too.... :snowcool:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Tisser said:


> I wished I would have snapped a pic of my parts car before I cleaned it off. We got about 2' here in Huntingdon, whereas 20 minutes away in State college they only got 5"! I was a little worried the snow was going to be too heavy for the roof, but it didn't even look like it noticed there was snow on top of it  I guess there's a SECOND major storm heading our way soon too.... :snowcool:


Yeah, this was a weird one. My wife's sister lives just outside state college and hardly got anything. Usually they get a bunch and we get a dusting. We got close to 30" in the Harrisburg area.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Test fitted these with the new 205/50r15 tires 

IMG_20160122_184050_775 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> Test fitted these with the new 205/50r15 tires
> 
> IMG_20160122_184050_775 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


Hmm...makes me rethink 195/50s for mine. How wide are the wheels?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Hmm...makes me rethink 195/50s for mine. How wide are the wheels?


They're 7" wide. I was torn for a long time between 195/50, 205/50 or 225/45. But I figured 225/45 is a little too wide for a 7. The 205's fit perfectly though. I think much better than a 195.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> They're 7" wide. I was torn for a long time between 195/50, 205/50 or 225/45. But I figured 225/45 is a little too wide for a 7. The 205's fit perfectly though. I think much better than a 195.


Ok, thanks. My wheels are only 6.5", so I'll prob stick with the 195s. Had some on them on my mk3 before, and they fit nicely.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Ok, thanks. My wheels are only 6.5", so I'll prob stick with the 195s. Had some on them on my mk3 before, and they fit nicely.


Yeah I'd probably go with 195s on the 6.5" wheel. A 205 on a 6.5 would probably comparable to a 225 on a 7. Just a little too much width resulting in more sidewall flex than wanted.


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Not at all Cabby specific, but I thought this piece of German propaganda might be appropriate anyway in light of recent events.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mAbGaqSJZrE


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Not at all Cabby specific, but I thought this piece of German propaganda might be appropriate anyway in light of recent events.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mAbGaqSJZrE


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Picked up a new windshield, pass. fender and trim from MK1 Autohaus. 

Going in for a full color switch in a couple of weeks!


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## teknikALLEN (Jul 14, 2010)

*FV-QR*

Lifted the cover, opened the door and looked at the pile of parts that fill the car.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Last Saturday I pulled the timing cover and checked the belt and all the marks, everything looked good. I noticed the distributor cap and rotor contacts were looking a little rough, so I ordered them up and they arrived today.

I also looked at the AAR issue more closely and a good 2" of the power signal from ECS missing, so I repaired that and got the warm idle back down around 1000 rpm.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Placed my order for my custom intake valves with Supertech Performance for my big valve head :thumbup::beer:


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

teknikALLEN said:


> Lifted the cover, opened the door and looked at the pile of parts that fill the car.


Hahaha... I heard that!


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## goneeuro (May 18, 2004)

Took it to the beach. 










Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Drove the wife's, god do Racelands suck. It's the bounciest POS I ever recall driving. Seriously considering a cup kit ASAP.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Drove the wife's, god do Racelands suck. It's the bounciest POS I ever recall driving. Seriously considering a cup kit ASAP.


Yep. The reason they were only on for a few test drives of the car I built for my parents. Koni yellows and H&R springs for the win..


Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


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## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

upgraded my coil made a custom mount for a msd ssblaster

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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

BoostedOne said:


> Yep. The reason they were only on for a few test drives of the car I built for my parents. Koni yellows and H&R springs for the win..
> 
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


I have Koni yellows and Ground Control coils for mine. It's currently sitting on some Nuespeed springs, so I'm thinking just order a set of the Koni orange struts from ECS tuning, toss the Nuespeed springs on those, and my project can sit on the Racelands for a while.


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## bbd91cabby (Jan 31, 2016)

This was a busy weekend for my new cabby. New valve cover gasket set. Cam shaft gasket. Alternator, radiator. Top hose for radiator. Rotor, cap, cables and plugs. Fixed the timing. Water pump belt. Oil pan gasket. Fixed three different CEL faults. Fixed a vacuum leak. Replaced the dip stick holder thingy majig. Front engine mount. Repainted the fan shroud. Cleaned out the intake and throttle body. Tightened whatever I could find that was loose. And then stared at my shocks, struts and drive shafts. Waiting on tie rod ends, ball joints, strut bushings, a arms, and shock bushings to show up this week so I can put all that in next weekend.

sent from my telegraph


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Making slow progress on my top.

Following the how to guides online, if it wasn't for those.. I don't think I could do it.


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## bbd91cabby (Jan 31, 2016)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Making slow progress on my top.
> 
> Following the how to guides online, if it wasn't for those.. I don't think I could do it.


I've seen some low pros before but this game is getting ridiculous

sent from my telegraph


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Making slow progress on my top.
> 
> Following the how to guides online, if it wasn't for those.. I don't think I could do it.


I've done a couple, now. I found a step or two or helpful hint missing here and there and used bits from three different DIYs. Was able to do it in a weekend, start to finish, took about 12-13 hours. The satisfaction at the end is great!

I need to tweak a few things that were done lazily on the wife's once the weather gets a little warmer.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

I don't think it's something I'd want to do again, it's stressing me out! I'm gonna take my time, I find when I rush, I always make a stupid mistakes. I ordered the side and rear cables last night. I'll go over Briano's how to guide a bunch more times before then!


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## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

Tops are easy.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

POPOTROPOPIC3 said:


> Tops are easy.
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk


Thanks for the support 😂


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## POPOTROPOPIC3 (Apr 3, 2013)

I mean, if you needed a confidence boost... there it is...

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## GrayBush (Feb 11, 2016)

*Today I got to drive my very first cabby.*

I bought my very first cabby yesterday. It is a blister. I have a 2000 GTI, but this 87 cabby scared the $h!7 out of me and my son. From a rolling start it burn through 1st,2nd Cerp 3rd. The whole time the turbo was burning oil..... leaky oil seal. I asked the son how bad was the smoke out of the back. He said about the same that was coming out of the front. I bought the car off this Chick on Craigslist. It is a 1987 Cabriolet with a 1999 passat 1.8T. I have no clue who did the conversion,but for $1000 bucks. I will be adding pics to my profile... I would like to thank VW. It takes me back to my dad and grandfather.


http://s19.postimg.org/d1k0v15xv/Cabby1.jpg


http://s19.postimg.org/z20dbnolv/Cabby2.jpg


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Nice, but I would re-direct that air intake away from the battery, and the hot exhaust gases.
Get a upper Radiator Card to increase the cooling Capacity.

1000 can't really go wrong. 
Welcome to the Tex.


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## GrayBush (Feb 11, 2016)

*Thank you for the info*



briano1234 said:


> Nice, but I would re-direct that air intake away from the battery, and the hot exhaust gases.
> Get a upper Radiator Card to increase the cooling Capacity.
> 
> 1000 can't really go wrong.
> Welcome to the Tex.



I will be doing a relocate of the cold air intake. I'm thinking about doing a bumper delete. If you look at the side view pic you can see the front bumper sagging. I'm missing the clips for each side of the bumper. I have no clue what they are called. If I can't find them I'll do the delete.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

GrayBush said:


> I will be doing a relocate of the cold air intake. I'm thinking about doing a bumper delete. If you look at the side view pic you can see the front bumper sagging. I'm missing the clips for each side of the bumper. I have no clue what they are called. If I can't find them I'll do the delete.


http://www.mk1autohaus.com/Euro-Bumper-Clip-Front_p_6736.html

Unfortunately they are out of stock right now. That's where I got the ones for the wife's. There are ones for the rear, too.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

What did I do to my Cabby today?....... Drove it, and yesterday and the day before....... 
I did check the oil and water on the Green one, and it was driven today, and yesterday and the day before........ 

2 Cabbies, both driving.... AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Apparently some kid was fawning over the wife's today. I asked her if she asked if he wanted to buy it!


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## GrayBush (Feb 11, 2016)

*thank you for the info*

It will help me hunt for them now.....


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Today I did s few things to the wife's '87. New distributor cap and rotor. Also pulled the timing cover and valve cover to clean up and paint and installed new studs and a new rubber gasket in place of the leaking cork gasket.

Before:










Pretty clean for almost 194,000 miles!










All painted up and back in. Looks much better!










I also pulled off the rear Riceland coils and removed the helper springs to reduce preload and try to improve the ride at least a little bit. I can't tell if it helped at all, the roads were too drifted to get over 35 mph on the way home. There was just so little resistance from the struts when I had them apart I think it was probably a waste of time.

Edit: The wife ran some errands in it this evening and thinks it rides a bit better. Monday when she runs down the highway will be the true test.


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## GrayBush (Feb 11, 2016)

*Ride like a tank.*

I know I will get flamed, but is there a way to make my 87 not ride like a tank? I scrubbed the H377 out of the top today, but the top has spots guess I will need to buy a new top.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

GrayBush said:


> I know I will get flamed, but is there a way to make my 87 not ride like a tank? I scrubbed the H377 out of the top today, but the top has spots guess I will need to buy a new top.


What suspension is on it? Cheap coils ride like crap. (Like the Riceland...I mean Racelands on my wife's 87.) A quality cup kit will fix that. Or like my 82, which has Koni yellows (adjustable) and Ground Control coils, which can be ordered with custom spring rates.


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## bbd91cabby (Jan 31, 2016)

So yesterday I replaced the shocks and struts. And the tie rod ends. Today I'm going to replace a arms, ball joints and drive shafts. Then try to get the driver side tranny mount. Passenger side will wait for when I do the water pump in the next couple weeks.

sent from my telegraph


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


>


Get thee an upper radiator Card


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> Get thee an upper radiator Card


It actually needs them all!


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## bbd91cabby (Jan 31, 2016)

Grey line: what is that hose and where is it supposed to go on a digifant 1? Mine isn't going anywhere.

Blue circle: what is that and is a digifant 1 supposed to have it?

sent from my telegraph


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

bbd91cabby said:


> Grey line: what is that hose and where is it supposed to go on a digifant 1? Mine isn't going anywhere.
> 
> Blue circle: what is that and is a digifant 1 supposed to have it?
> 
> sent from my telegraph


Those are the idle stabilization solenoids/valves. I honestly don't know if the digifant should have them, but I'm leaning towards no.


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## bbd91cabby (Jan 31, 2016)

Top of my engine for reference

sent from my telegraph


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## GrayBush (Feb 11, 2016)

*Both are stock*



YJSAABMAN said:


> What suspension is on it? Cheap coils ride like crap. (Like the Riceland...I mean Racelands on my wife's 87.) A quality cup kit will fix that. Or like my 82, which has Koni yellows (adjustable) and Ground Control coils, which can be ordered with custom spring rates.


It is all stock my 2000 GTI and my 87\99 cabby is also stock. I will look into the Companies that you spoke of....TY


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

bbd91cabby said:


> Top of my engine for reference
> 
> sent from my telegraph


Yeah, the digi manifold and inlet hoses are completely different from the CIS stuff. They're simpler when it comes to vacuum routing as the management became more advanced.


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

That's how mine looks too, but we are digi 2. I don't know if digi 1 is different.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

rix337 said:


> That's how mine looks too, but we are digi 2. I don't know if digi 1 is different.


If his is Digi 1 it was originally a California car. Had to check Cabby-info on that, but if it is it should have a CEL. 5th VIN digit for Digi 1 is "C", for Digi 2 is "B".


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

Those are Idle Boost Valves on a CIS engine.
The engine shown is clearly CIS, CIS injector lines are distinctly visible.





bbd91cabby said:


> Grey line: what is that hose and where is it supposed to go on a digifant 1? Mine isn't going anywhere.
> 
> Blue circle: what is that and is a digifant 1 supposed to have it?
> 
> sent from my telegraph


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Few days ago... drove it topless in this fabulous Spring weather to get a pizza and was complimented twice: "Awesome car!" while parking, "nice car!" while leaving. :heart:

Down side to that drive: Pretty sure the front wheel bearings are going bad. :facepalm: 



bbd91cabby said:


> [pic]
> 
> Top of my engine for reference


CIS uses an Idle Boost Valve (2 if A/C is installed). Digifant utilizes an Idle Stabilizer Valve (ISV for short). It's the cylinder with an electrical connection smack dab in the center of your photo.


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

rix337 said:


> That's how mine looks too, but we are digi 2. I don't know if digi 1 is different.





 DigiFant I
 DigiFant II
 California
 49 States
 CEL, can set DTCs for blink code retrieval, OBD I
 No CEL
 5 wires in injector loom
 2 wires in injector loom
 Blocky, transformer looking ignition coil with integral power stage
 Old school, cylindrical ignition coil with separate power stage/Ignition Control Module
 A single throttle position SENSOR, a variable resistance potentiometer
 Two separate throttle position SWITCHES, on/off devices, wired in parallel
 38 pin connection to the ECU
 25 pin connection to the ECU


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Digi 1 Square block coil.
Digi 2 Old Timey Round Cylindrical Coil.

Vin WVWC(X)
Where (X) is the 5th number over: "A" for CIS, "B" Digifant II, "C" Digifant 1 (usually California).


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Messed around with the placement of my airtank, I don't really know where I'm going with that lol. 

Finished pulling all the last staples from the rear frame, grinded down rouge broken ones, started sanding the rear frame too, get ready to paint it. Waiting for my cables, then it's party time!


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tangerine_coupe said:


> Messed around with the placement of my airtank, I don't really know where I'm going with that lol.
> 
> Finished pulling all the last staples from the rear frame, grinded down rouge broken ones, started sanding the rear frame too, get ready to paint it. Waiting for my cables, then it's party time!


I like this :thumbup: Mostly because you could still put stuff in the trunk. Not that you can use a cabriolet trunk for that much anyway haha.

I worked on my new custom 6 point, pre-loadable strut brace a little bit. Mostly just opened up hardware lol. 10 heim joints (5 right-hand thread, 5 left-hand), 10 weld-in tube nuts (5 right-hand thread, 5 left-hand), 3' of 1" O.D. .065" wall 4130 chromoly steel and 6' of 3/4" O.D. .065" wall 4130 chromoly steel. Here are some pics of the parts being made. I have a few more brackets to make and then I need to make the connecting bars which I'll be welding with an oxygen-acetylene torch and ER80-D2 filler rod. Oldschool style :laugh: who needs a fancy tig machine. 

My dad gave me a hand with some of this. Here he is hand bending a strap that will surround the entire strut tower on each side to ensure extra rigidity. 
IMG_20160215_160705_037 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

Here it is, finished with the bracket for the biggest crossmember
IMG_20160215_190018_855 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

In the car on the strut tower. 
IMG_20160215_174156_323 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

And here's one of the lower brackets the tie the chassis to the upper crossmember to reduce and virtually eliminate any strut tower flex. There will be one on each side that will create basically a truss with the upper crossmember. 
IMG_20160215_161810_276 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_20160215_183452_068 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_20160215_164950_901 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

More pics to come as I get further along with it.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

The battery, air compressor and icebox live in trunk, not much space left 😂 doesn't need to functional I guess


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Man Doug, you're getting down! You welding the plates to the strut towers?

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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Love it, Doug! Was planning on running bars through the firewall from the knee bar on the cage to the strut towers on mine. Now that I'm not sure I'm doing a full cage, though...


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

BoostedOne said:


> Man Doug, you're getting down! You welding the plates to the strut towers?
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk





YJSAABMAN said:


> Love it, Doug! Was planning on running bars through the firewall from the knee bar on the cage to the strut towers on mine. Now that I'm not sure I'm doing a full cage, though...


Thanks guys! I was planning on welding the big wrap-around sections to the tower, but I'm torn because I want everything to be removable. I may bolt it down first to get the piece to take form to the tower 100% and then lay down stitch welds around it except on the lower rear. I could always cut it out if need be. Either way it will be very, very strong and will give the towers quite a lot of rigidity whether bolted or welded. 

Hopefully this weekend I can finish 90% of it. I got put on a job where I'm working nights this week so it put a huge damper on my ability to finish this up :thumbdown:


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

kamzcab86 said:


> .....Pretty sure the front wheel bearings are going bad........


Are you planning on doing them yourself?
Perhaps with an AutoZone loaner tool set?
FWIW, my '79's fronts started growling in Nebraska, much louder by the time I got back to Santa Cruz, still no play nor hub damage though.






.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Got some nice weather today so I made some adjustments to the wife's top fitment. (On her Cabby! ￼ ) The front edge and corners have been turned up and not pulled tight since we bought the car, so I pulled all the front retainers and pulled things a little tighter today.

When I started:



















After. This not only helps the appearance, but should help the wind noise, too:



















I also trimmed off the rediculous amount of excess material the installer left along the front edge:










No pic, but also to help wind noise I pulled the passenger's front window run channel out of my project in the garage and put it in her car to replace the missing one. 

And the next top adjustment/finishing project:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Noticed I could really feel the drivetrain flopping around and even the wife commented on feeling the shifter move around, especially in 3rd gear. So up on the lift it went, today after work. Oh my! the rear trans mount is literally gone! Well, the bulk of the rubber for it, anyways.










While not an expensive part, it's also not readily available, and the wife drives this car daily, right now. Wait a minute...I knew I saved that hockey puck for a reason! LOL! A few minor mods to the two bracket halves and to the hockey puck and we have success!



















And finally all installed:










That should make the car and the shifter feel a lot better!

I also lubed the door latches today, and made a better bracket for the washer bottle.


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## rabbitnothopper (Oct 19, 2009)

ermagerhd! that hockey puck tho!

yes its a shame we can only order some parts online
but atleast we can still get them!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Well it certainly keeps things in place! No movement, crisp shifts, and crisp throttle response, but it is stiff! It transfers a good amount of vibration. Oh, well, it works until I can order one in. Too stiff is better than flopping around! (That's what she said!)


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

These came today. My modified Honda b18 33mm intake valves for my 16v big valve head. 










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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Got some more brackets made for the new 6 point strut brace. Not only will the brace eliminate side to side motion, but it will eliminate front to back motion under hard accelerations. Here is one of the lower front connection points.

IMG_20160301_162111_893 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Dropped her off at the bodyshop for a massive amount of work. The body seems straight enough, so hopefully it won't be too intensive. However, we're shaving some things and doing a complete color change.

Also, ordered some chrome small-bumpers, mirrors, door handles and side trim.

After all that, installing air-ride.

Hope to have all of this done by show season, hahaha. Riiiiiiiight. 

IMG_5382 by Loys Jasone, on Flickr


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Test fitted the new carb manifold. It's amazing how much better the entry angles are on this manifold compared to the redline manifold.









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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Poked my head in the 87 today during the rain to try and locate where it's been leaking on the pass side. Not the window/top/door, as I thought. Looks like it's the fresh air inlet in the raintray. Thought I sealed that up well when I had it out last fall, but maybe not. Or maybe the drain just needs opened up. At least I know where to direct my attention, now!


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Found a tow bar for 48 bucks brand new in box. Same as Harbor Freight crap, but at a much lower price. 
Now to decide whether or not to drill into bumper, or remove clipper kit front bumper and make custom bumper brackets for bar...


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Made some more progress on the front bracing.

Got 3 of the 5 bars in place as well as all the brackets in the picture welded in. This was a test fit just prior to welding.
IMG_20160312_213811_483 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_20160312_213845_193 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_20160312_213826_164 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_20160312_213907_228 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_20160313_131939_738 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

dougkehl said:


> Made some more progress .....


Doug,

Beautiful work as always!

But;
Have you ever considered that with your skill set plus the time and effort you've invested in this car, you might have built a http://www.kitplanes.com/ ?







.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

tolusina said:


> Doug,
> 
> Beautiful work as always!
> 
> ...


You know, with my skill set, time, effort and money put into this car I probably should have built a plane instead :laugh::laugh:


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## pembroke36 (Nov 25, 2004)

I put on new wheels but i'm not sure if I like them or not.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Changed a leaking water pump, and I am reminded why you should take it out as an assembly.
You can do it from the top of the car, no need to get under the car.

I needed a bolt... so I tried to take one off my spare housing using a 10mm 1/4 drive socket.







Which leads me to my best friend Never-Seize all bolts.

On the housing that I had on my car, I had Never-seized all the bolts and they all came out with a 6pt 10mm 1/4 drive and no, snapped or stripped bolts, and no impact needed.....


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I took rubbing compound to the 14" mkIII steel wheels I had in storage.
I want to re-use the tires that are on the cabby just for towing, but they may be too dry rotted. 
If the stock cabby 14" aluminum wheels are lighter, I will clean them up and paint them black.
A couple are missing caps, and would rather just slap some black paint on them for daily driving...
Can run the steelies until wheels are clean (if I decide to keep the factory aluminum).
I had considered polishing the factory wheels and caps, but I hate wheels with caps, and the wheels don't look 
very good without the caps.

Of course, I have no money and found a set of 5 snowflakes on craigslist. :banghead:


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## bstephensbhs (Feb 19, 2016)

new tires some what bumping the front fenders


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Been doing small bits to mine here and there. Juggling what seems to be a million jobs. Getting my tires installed tomorrow finally.


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Shavin' & pullin'...


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

While replacing my water pump, I noticed that the alternator main power connection was corroded like a mofo.
After cleaning the bejeezers out of it, while doing the post install run and leak check I noticed that I had gained 1v at the console gauge.
So,,,,, Grounds and connections should be checked regularly...


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> While replacing my water pump, I noticed that the alternator main power connection was corroded like a mofo.
> After cleaning the bejeezers out of it, while doing the post install run and leak check I noticed that I had gained 1v at the console gauge.
> So,,,,, Grounds and connections should be checked regularly...


Yeah, this is something I need to go through on the wife's. I went through all the grounds when I replaced the alt a year or so ago, but it still shows a low charge. And it gets lower on the gauge when you turn the headlights on.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Finished all of the bracing and got all brackets welded in. It's time for paint 

IMG_20160319_122225_060 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

IMG_20160319_184017_116 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

IMG_20160319_184041_495 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

IMG_20160319_184107_085 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Tires are mounted and balanced! Put them on the car and put her back on the floor. I need to make a small adjustment in the rear.. Bring it down slightly. Happy with the front


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Someone is blowing out their inventory of Suspension Techniques springs. I bought a set new for 60 bucks. They have to be better than stock springs, especially with 260k miles and I hate to cut to go lower... And the price is right to get me started...  Funny enough, I looked on ebay and no-name brand springs cost double that. 

I bought a Neuspeed lower tie bar from a local guy. I hate to drive a mk1 without one. 
Funny how I had to buy one, when I had so many laying around in the past. I had several upper and lower. 
This one is temporary until I can get a nice four point lower. 
Let the parts hording begin!!!

I am pissed, as I forgot to ask a shop about an ABA block they had laying around when I was in town.
Oh well. next time...


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Jeremy_Bentham said:


>



:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::heart::heart::heart:


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

Well, I just bought mine from Northern Virginia, towed it back to Michigan, and parked it in my heated garage!






This is my friend's Cabriolet, parked next to mine. He was so excited for me and he was the one who checked the car out before I purchased it!


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Raek said:


> :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::heart::heart::heart:



Thanks dude


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

stephatron said:


> Well, I just bought mine from Northern Virginia, towed it back to Michigan, and parked it in my heated garage!
> http://i679.photobucket.com/albums/vv159/justplayxtragic/Mobile%20Uploads/image.jpeg[/IMG][/URL]


Damn, heated garage ! Dude, all I have is one with a lift.


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

77kafer said:


> Damn, heated garage ! Dude, all I have is one with a lift.


It's Michigan, we need a heated garage! We also have a 73 Corvette convertible sleeping in the third garage. I had to kick my boyfriend's 73 Nova out of this garage so we could park my Cabriolet (I sent it to his shop, don't worry). I just realized we're car hoarders.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

stephatron said:


> It's Michigan, we need a heated garage! We also have a 73 Corvette convertible sleeping in the third garage. I had to kick my boyfriend's 73 Nova out of this garage so we could park my Cabriolet (I sent it to his shop, don't worry). I just realized we're car hoarders.


While my garage is heated, I'm jealous of all these garages that hold more than 1 car! Especially since my wife and I have 6 total between the 2 of us. Lol!


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> While my garage is heated, I'm jealous of all these garages that hold more than 1 car! Especially since my wife and I have 6 total between the 2 of us. Lol!


We have 5 between us, working on 6.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

77kafer said:


> We have 5 between us, working on 6.


More VW content than our current fleet. 82 Rabbit vert, 87 Cabriolet, 92 Jetta VRT, 94 Jeep Grand Cherokee, 01 BMW 325i wagon (my daily), 08 GTI (her daily)


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

YJSAABMAN said:


> While my garage is heated, I'm jealous of all these garages that hold more than 1 car! Especially since my wife and I have 6 total between the 2 of us. Lol!


:laugh:  I wish I even had a little bit of plastic on the outside of my carport so I could at least ATTEMPT to heat it. Or just a garage period.


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## cts (Sep 7, 2010)

Man, Garages, Carports... I dont even have a legit driveway and we have 5 cars. :laugh:


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

cts said:


> Man, Garages, Carports... I dont even have a legit driveway and we have 5 cars. :laugh:


This is literally what my driveway is like hahaha. I only have the garage for my cabby because I decided that I had too much money in the thing to let it be outside all the time so I cleaned everything out of it, but other than that there are cars occupying various areas of my front and back yard as well as my half pavement half dirt driveway haha.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

cts said:


> Man, Garages, Carports... I dont even have a legit driveway and we have 5 cars. :laugh:


:laugh:

I suppose the gras is always greener, right? Damn my house is starting to look like that, I've had to try real hard to keep myself from buying more cars when I have the money.. Some decent deals keep popping up and I'm just like "I NEED IT" but I don't need it.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I cleaned, scrubbed, degreased the Neuspeed lower stress bar I just bought. Sprayed some dry ptfe (teflon) lube on the fittings.
Needs a good paint. Not sure if I am going to powder coat, or just spray bomb it.
I thought it would be kind of cool to get a Neuspeed sticker made and make it look like new.
Not like anybody is going to see it, anyways.


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

YJSAABMAN said:


> While my garage is heated, I'm jealous of all these garages that hold more than 1 car! Especially since my wife and I have 6 total between the 2 of us. Lol!


Well, we actually only have a 3 car garage. Lucky for us, my other half owns his own shop so extra cars go there!


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## baja67414 (Apr 12, 2008)

been busy with this. its all righty tighty from here on out. unless i mess something up.... and that will most likely happen. 1.late to 2.slow. almost show season its crunch time!!


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

baja67414 said:


> been busy with this. its all righty tighty from here on out. unless i mess something up.... and that will most likely happen. 1.late to 2.slow. almost show season its crunch time!!


Is.... Is that a hard-convertible top? Or am I just seeing things weirdly?

Edit: Never mind.. haha I guess I didn't look well enough, I see it's the hood on top of the roof rack now.. :laugh: I'm pretty tired maybe I should go to bed haha :facepalm:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Just removed the fabric from my driver seat Recaro and the rear bench. Wow removing fabric from the bench sucks.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Just removed the fabric from my driver seat Recaro and the rear bench. Wow removing fabric from the bench sucks.


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## Mookdog (Jul 30, 2014)

Got it all ready to trailer to NH to trade for a 74 bug. Then the other guy never responded to calls or texts... I hate craigslist flakers.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

After scrubbing burnt oil and dirt off the bar and the spherical bearings, I scrubbed the bar with a wire wheel.
I put some teflon spray on the spherical bearings to clean up the inner race and to let them move freely.
After I wire wheeled all the oxidization, flaking paint and what was left of the neuspeed sticker from the bar, I started the polishing process.
Due to light surface damage from years of road use, I decided NOT to try to get a high shine. Just a really good shine with possibility of protecting it with clear powder coat.
I got the nuts loose, but had no way to hold the bar tightly so I could remove the spherical bearings. I will just have to tape off the ends when I clear coat it.
If I can't find a decent price on the clear coat, I may just paint it with spray paint.
But, it looks so incredibly good right now. Too bad it goes under the car.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Finished rolling my fenders and drove it for the first time in about 5 months. Felt pretty good.

IMG_20160403_182303_428 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

IMG_20160403_182354_966 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Love it! Though the wheels and tires look huge! Lol! Better than too small tires, though. Nice to see a full wheel arch.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Love it! Though the wheels and tires look huge! Lol! Better than too small tires, though. Nice to see a full wheel arch.


Thanks! And yeah, in the pictures they look really big, but in person they appear a lot more proportionate to the car haha. But the 205/50r15 bridgstone re-71rs really fill out the wheel well. it's nice.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Yesterday, Well, hung the Cat, and welded a pipe..Then I heard a shhh shhh sound, that if I pulled the e-brake, went away, so since I had the car jacked....

Rear wheel Cylinder bad. Shoes gone, but hey, I had a spare wheel cylinder and a set of shoes.....
Bad was that as the new one was going in, I hit it and it shot apart, dribbling Brake Fluid all over.... ok, clean it all up again fix the wheel cylinder. Re-pack the bearings and then bleed all 4, but my bleeder jar wouldn't hold a vacuum, and I had to fix that, then oh I pulled all the fluid out of the res, I didn't realize it had drained that much...... ok, re-bleed.... all is well, cept I have to do the other side tomorrow... Created Brake Spring reference pictures and uploaded to the FAQ's.....

Today
ARRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG>>>>>

Finished the brakes Got to test drive it, and it was really nice.
Put it back in the Carport, Pull up the e-brake, and BANG.... The passenger side cable snapped.....
I have a spare on the wall of my garage, and thought about replacing it... well It is getting replaced now....
DANG NABIT...... Couldn't of Broke when I was tighten the wheel back on.... nooooo...it waits...until I am all cleaned up, and all the tools put away....

Well got the cable installed, routed and positioned, as the Dog over Cam on the E-Brake handle spun, as I went to position it, the button broke.
2 dollar part on 217 models of VW, Porsche, Audi, and there are 4 in the country 15 dollars to ship, won't be in for 5-7 days.... I am hoping the JB-Weld works.....
Double DANG NABIT......

So see yall, crap happens occasionally to old timers as well.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

A year or so ago I went with a friend to a shop that had a Ford 302 oil pan he needed amongst a pile of old car parts. While we were moving junk around, I noticed an ABA long block sitting there (no upper intake, no exhaust manifold, no alt or most pulleys etc)... I didn't need it at the time, so just put it in my memory bank for a while. 

Last summer a friend thought his 3a 2L block might be going bad, so I almost got the engine for him. Luckily, his block was fine. He didn't need it. Whew!

Well, now that the Cabby lien sale is almost done, I thought I would take a risk and buy the long block (Sale could fall through, even though it should be done next week). I was in the area and asked how much. 100 bucks. Well, still cheaper than pick a part, and they loaded it. It is of unknown mileage and unknown condition. It was missing the crank pulley and had no timing belt (at least it had valve cover, crank breather and lower intake manifold). I am pretty sure it's an OBDI because it has a german head. I am not going to take the head off until I am ready to clean and use the block. Keeps the block cleaner internally that way. I was hoping it was obdI based on the german marking on head, but I was considering pulling oil pan to look for oil squirters. Heck, I am going to keep the head in case I get a wild hair and consider ABA turbo. Or full ABA with m45 (yeah, I got one for free...  ).

I am considering being a super junk yard bastid and slapping it on the cabby. No new clutch, no new seals. Just ghetto fab it!
We'll see... I can't imagine it's much worse than the bone stock 1.8 with 268k miles, and was run super low on coolant on oil for god knows how long...
But I lOVE me some OBDI blocks and may try to save up to have it rebuilt right.
It is missing the alternator and tensioner pulley. But I am glad it has the bracket and bolts. I don't have to go to junkyard to get that now. I think I saw it has a knock sensor still attached, not sure if it has the vr sensor, still. I need that in case I go MS. 

Woo hoo!!! Crossing my fingers it's ok. 
This cheap-slash-free-slash-junkyard project is coming along quicker and cheaper than I thought!


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Progress at the body shop!

Can't wait to trailer it home and start reassembling!


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

finished my top, installed the glass. Made a bracket for my water pump. Been working on my seats pretty much everyday.. all the templates are cut for the fronts and I'm just finishing the rears. My friend has been working on a rear cage for me.. hopefully test that out on Monday. The seats should be sewn by then too!

I pushed the car outside as i was fed up of seeing it from the same angle everyday :heart:


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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Put new tabs on both of them and washed the mk1. It was completely coated in pollen and gave me a chance on trying out the new Griots Garage Convertible top cleaner, worked it awesome.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove mine, both of them.....


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Mr.Nobody said:


> Put new tabs on both of them and washed the mk1. It was completely coated in pollen and gave me a chance on trying out the new Griots Garage Convertible top cleaner, worked it awesome.



Pollen? Did you mention pollen?
Well here is a shot of the cabby after being out side for 5 hours.










Here is my van after 4 days under a carport










Here sums up my feelings on the subject:


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Carpet had been vacuumed a while ago, but not scrubbed. Cats peed/pood/breed all over it. 
I am scrubbing it this weekend.









A/C removal. Alternator and timing belt cover are obviously staying, but rest is junk.









Sound deadening crap removed because it smelled like cat schnizzle. And it's heavy.  Less smell, less weight.









Nasty cat pee/poo smelling carpet removed so I can scrub it outside. Much easier to clean out of car!









Quick engine cleaning after ac removal so I can inspect stuff. (286k miles)









Sleeping in the yard. A couple lame cars, rest are awesome... 









Car sits higher in the front now from the ac removal. 

I removed that stupid ass cassette holder and threw it angrily to the ground. There was coffee goo under it in center console. So gross.

I scrubbed the seats a little, but didn't waste a picture on them. Will take pic of complete interior when I get to it.

I removed the broken dash bezel.

I was going over the wiring, and noticed the idle air bypass valve has a broken wire. That explains the reason why it started and ran like crap (ok, one reason, I am sure there are many more reason I will find when I can work on it again). 

I buffed a couple test spots on the car to see how paint is.
Left fender and hood seem to be painted with clearcoat and paint is reasonably close. I have found no obvious body damage repair, though. Looks ok, nothing horrible.

I looked under car to see what exhaust it had. Incredibly, it seemed to be untouched, bone stock. No crappy weld fixes or anything. I was super happy to see the stock cat was there, and had flanges intact. I might be able to use them and make a nice bypass pipe.


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

*SOON*


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Swapped out the brake master and booster with new ones....Bench bled master... Bled the calipers and wheel cylinders... Still can't lock the brakes up.. New pads, rotors and rear shoes.... I dunno... Does stop hard though


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I spent the whole day scrubbing the carpet.
First I sprayed it with a hose to let the water soak into stains.
Then I scrubbed with a brush and vinegar and a tiny bit of dish soap.
After scrubbing, I sprayed the loose gunk off and sprayed the vinegar again so it can soak.
I scrubbed the last remaining little trouble areas.
I then rubbed it all down with vinegar and a towel, then rinsed.
I let it hang dry for a while to get as much water off as possible.

I let the carpet sit a couple hours drip drying.
After setting carpet on driveway, I sprinkled a whole bunch of baking powder all over it.
Hydrogen peroxide was then sprayed all over the carpet to wet the baking powder.
After letting it soak in for a little while I then rubbed it in with a wet/clean towel.
I had to make sure to rinse the towel often so it was always clean.
When the carpet was all scrubbed, I let it sit an hour or so to air dry.
I pulled out the wet dry vac with brush attachment and scrubbed the carpet again to remove loose sand and cat hair.
The carpet was hung on the fence once again and rinsed with the hose. I could not believe how much brown water came out of the carpet, and it had been scrubbed/rinsed countless times already! 

I will see how it smells and looks once it's dry this weekend. I didn't use much if any soap with any scent, so I can clean it lightly one more time with tuff stuff so it can leave behind a nice fresh scent.
I know I could have cleaned it faster with a pressure washer, but I don't have one, and carpet sucks to drag around when it's wet so no going to DIY car wash. A steam cleaner would have been awesome.


I removed the center console gauges to find cats had peed on all three of them! One was not bad. But two of them have rusty trim rings and have the stench of cat pee. I wiped them all down and the smell is not as bad. The console was scrubbed as well.
I polished the plastic lenses on the gauges so they look crystal clear. Too bad the trim rings are pressed on and not easy to remove. I want to paint them, and have to open them up to get rid of stupid cat smell. Might as well buy new ones. But will use them for now.

The shift boot was ripped and whatnot like many old cars, but it was stiff and crusty from cat pee. It was so gross!
I took it into the bathtub and ran scalding hot water over and in it. I scrubbed it with a towel and some dish soap with a strong citrus scent. The hot water loosened up the vinyl nicely, and the hot water and soap seemed to get rid of the smell. It is usable for now. I am going to keep the trim ring so I can have a custom boot made of real leather.

I may go to where the car is tomorrow. Have stuff to do.


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## Larkylark (Mar 18, 2016)

Towed to one to a friend's house to replace clutch while I strip down the other one for work on....everything. Pulled seats and carpet and smelled something funny. Lifted insulation/sound deadening and it smelled like septic tank. Left it in what's left of the sun to dry out a bit so I don't make the garage reek. Got in it and drove it into the garage...literally. Clutch and brakes are both shot. Did more damage to wall than car, so that's nice I guess. Picked up ANOTHER set of BMW bottlecaps with pretty decent BFGoodrich 195s for $100. Right now I'm prepping floor for black paint because $8 for rustoleum is cheaper than new carpet and a new top. Has anyone shaved the floors so it doesn't have the rain channels?


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

Raek said:


> Progress at the body shop!
> 
> Can't wait to trailer it home and start reassembling!


OMG I was talking to you over IG! I feel like a stalker!!


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

I put insurance on my two days ago. I ordered a license plate yesterday. And today, scrubbed the crap off the top. It's be perfect yet, but it's way better than what it was. 

Before and after:


It's not perfect and it still has mold on it but I'm happy!


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I stopped by the mechanic's shop to drop off the 200 bucks for the car and picked up paperwork.
I went to DMV to find they would not waive the late fees/fines even though I only want title and am taking it out of state (before abandoning it at the repair shop, previous owner drove it illegally unregistered with stolen tags for two years!).
But, I found out they only charge late fees up to the day the car was brought to shop. Once the car is in "inventory" they no longer accrue fees. So, I had to pay for 2010 to 2012 more or less. This came out to 150 and included registration through September 2016 (they would NOT allow me to non op it). I am not happy about the 150, but since the car was so cheap I can't truly complain. I was going to buy the car last summer when I thought it had the full 650 back fees. So I guess even though times have gotten tougher since last summer when I almost bought car the first time, a reduction of 500 dollars in back fees is pretty good. 
It will come out to about 423 dollars total with title transfer, tax and sell price all together.
Still not bad for a complete (rough) running car. Other than the slice in the top, I have seen much worse looking car with crappy interiors sell for at least 1500 bucks...
I don't have to smog it here in cali since I am towing it out of state, but I could as the registration would be good until September (I will be gone by then). But, I might consider smogging it... It has 265k miles, so it probably won't pass.  I don't want to spend a lot of money right now to get it "running". And I refuse to look for (wink, wink) "smog help".

I scrubbed under the rear seats with water and a little bleach and got the paint all nice and shiny white. I sprayed the floor pan as well but didn't have time to scrub or wipe it up. Will do that next time. I wiped some other areas a little. But didn't have much time. 

The owner of the shop took the owner of the building out to look at the car. The building owner and his son rebuild old german cars. I told them to open the door of the cabriolet and take a wiff. They were shocked the cat smell was gone. The car still has some smell, but not the cat poo stench. Just old, dirty, leaky convertible smell. They were shocked. I was happy they noticed my hard work.  The back lot just stinks of cat poo. They took over the lot. I gave the shop owner a trap to catch the cats. 

I went to the junkyard closest to the shop and there were NO cabbies.  I need to get some parts. Dash bezel, headlight switch bezel, heater controls (damn thieves broke mounting tabs) and the heater control panel. I can tell it's been years since I really did some junkyard runs because there always use to be cabbies in the junkyard. Now mostly mkIII and IV's! Damn I am old. :/ 

I scrubbed the trunk carpet and top cover in the driveway. The top cover is pretty bad. But might be usable. 
It sucks having this car almost 50 miles away. But there is progress...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

stephatron said:


> I put insurance on my two days ago. I ordered a license plate yesterday. And today, scrubbed the crap off the top. It's be perfect yet, but it's way better than what it was.
> 
> Before and after:
> 
> ...


Yeah, biggest problem with a white top. I'm constantly scrubbing the wife's and it never gets clean.


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

stephatron said:


> OMG I was talking to you over IG! I feel like a stalker!!


Hey, it's you!

Also, what's going on with that Mini in your pic? Need moar!


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Yeah, biggest problem with a white top. I'm constantly scrubbing the wife's and it never gets clean.


It's actually a grey top!! I do think my next one will be white. White and blue look nice together.


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

Raek said:


> Hey, it's you!
> 
> Also, what's going on with that Mini in your pic? Need moar!


:wave: ... Which one lol? So my boyfriend owns a MINI performance shop called Detroit Tuned in Detroit (go figure!), the electric blue with the 4 lights is his track car. The blue one near my Cabby is a customer's car that just got a CVT replaced. The red MKIV belongs to his tech, who also has a MINI and a Ruckus.


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## Tisser (Dec 25, 2014)

Ordered my biggest parts list last night, getting most of the stuff I need to get moving on my project since the weather is warming up! 

Met a fellow vortexer the other day when he stopped down to pick up the bumpers and kneebar outta the 85, great to meet new VW'ers!


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## Larkylark (Mar 18, 2016)

Took the knee bar apart and cleaned the vinyl. Probably the first time it's been white in 10 years. When I separated the kneebar from the metal beam, there was a black piece of foam on the drivers side. No piece on the passenger side. Is it supposed to be like that? If not, where can I find one?

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk


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## rix337 (Feb 11, 2003)

Back from Bugapaluza 18 in East Ridge, Tn with trophies in tow, yay. Cabby won best in class for mk 1-2 golf/jetta/cabriolet, and best water-cooled interior and the corrado won best in class for scirocco/corrado, andbest water-colled paint. I now need a trophy case, haha!!


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## M333ch02 (Oct 14, 2015)

stephatron said:


> I put insurance on my two days ago. I ordered a license plate yesterday. And today, scrubbed the crap off the top. It's be perfect yet, but it's way better than what it was.
> 
> Before and after:
> 
> ...


What did u end up using for cleaning the vinyl top? 

It turned out GREAT!!


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

M333ch02 said:


> What did u end up using for cleaning the vinyl top?
> 
> It turned out GREAT!!


Thank you. It still needs some work because it has some mildew. However, I used Simple Green and a plastic bristle brush. I scrubbed the top three times. Then I used a Magic Eraser. I'm going to try to tackle the mildew spots later on this week with vinegar and water. People on the MIVE Facebook group and Michigan Vintage VW group gave some suggestions like 303, Westley's Bleach White, and a boat cleaner. If vinegar doesn't work, I'll try the suggested chemicals!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

stephatron said:


> Thank you. It still needs some work because it has some mildew. However, I used Simple Green and a plastic bristle brush. I scrubbed the top three times. Then I used a Magic Eraser. I'm going to try to tackle the mildew spots later on this week with vinegar and water. People on the MIVE Facebook group and Michigan Vintage VW group gave some suggestions like 303, Westley's Bleach White, and a boat cleaner. If vinegar doesn't work, I'll try the suggested chemicals!


Simple Green is what I us on the wife's top, as well. Does the best initial grime removal, imo.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I have gone to dmv numerous times trying to finalize the cabby purchase. Man, what a head ache. The clerks are not so knowledgeable about dmv laws. California attaches late fees to title, not owner. Also, they attach the smog certification to title, even if you are taking it out of state. Took the clerk forever to figure out what to do. She was nice enough. But holy crap is CA f'd up! Can't wait to move out... And at least the car is mine now. It's safe to take home, and move out of state.  weeeeeeeee


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Restored some of badges. Practiced the liquid mask technique.. My hand isn't that steady.


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Jeremy_Bentham said:


> Restored some of badges. Practiced the liquid mask technique.. My hand isn't that steady.


I like 'em!

Got my small bumpers secured and directionals wired correctly. Shed some blood in the process.

New trim and emblem for the grill, new tail lights, OEM door handles, small chrome trim...all in the past week. Haha. I've been sitting on a stock pile of parts.

Headlights, pop-out windows and securing the top is all thats left before I can start cleaning and reassembling the interior.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

It's looking amazing! Are you ditching the old wheels? I think some bbs/epsilon/mesh wheels would be spot on 😎


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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Picked up this in the swap meet of the show I was showing my Jetta at today. Original hanging dealer advertisement.










Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Larkylark (Mar 18, 2016)

Today I decided the car is going to cost more to repair than I want to spend. Rear beam is bent, bad struts, engine needs a lot of work, clutch assembly is broken. Made ads for a part out. With that said, anyone in Portland/Vancouver area that needs parts PM me. Most of the car is there and I want it all gone.

On a brighter note, my nice cabby is just about done with the clutch replacement. Ordering trim clips and painting BMW bottle caps a gunmetal gray before getting some new tires. It should be ready he just in time for summer    

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk


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## Larkylark (Mar 18, 2016)

Today I decided the car is going to cost more to repair than I want to spend. Rear beam is bent, bad struts, engine needs a lot of work, clutch assembly is broken. Made ads for a part out. With that said, anyone in Portland/Vancouver area that needs parts PM me. Most of the car is there and I want it all gone.

On a brighter note, my nice cabby is just about done with the clutch replacement. Ordering trim clips and painting BMW bottle caps a gunmetal gray before getting some new tires. It should be ready he just in time for summer

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Jeremy_Bentham said:


> It's looking amazing! Are you ditching the old wheels? I think some bbs/epsilon/mesh wheels would be spot on 😎


Yessir! I have these waiting to go on as well:



:thumbup:


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Raek said:


> Yessir! I have these waiting to go on as well:
> 
> 
> 
> :thumbup:


thank the lord


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## imahassle (Jan 20, 2016)

Mr.Nobody said:


> Picked up this in the swap meet of the show I was showing my Jetta at today. Original hanging dealer advertisement.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Nice snag! You were at the PNW Springmeet, weren't you? I looked for any Cabriolets, and none were to be found. Figures for Seattle. Didn't bring mine because I'm currently replacing the carpet in it, and right now it would be more of an eyesore than anything, haha.


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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

imahassle said:


> Nice snag! You were at the PNW Springmeet, weren't you? I looked for any Cabriolets, and none were to be found. Figures for Seattle. Didn't bring mine because I'm currently replacing the carpet in it, and right now it would be more of an eyesore than anything, haha.


Yes, I was at Springmeet, I was showing my Jetta.


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Test fit the BBS today. Need a bit of negative camber up front, I think.

Got all my lighting working proper all around! Front is tidied up, rear is good and all interiors are spot on.

Installing air-ride sometime this weekend or the following week!


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

So out of the box, my waste gate would hit the fire wall. As this turbo has an internal one. My only real option was to move the waste gate to the front of the turbo, where there is more room. I drilled some new holes, bent and re-welded it in its new position. Perfect, it works.



Photo for reference.



I sanded and filled all the small holes in my front bumper. Ready to paint it up soon!



Sick of looking at the front.. It needs to warm up, so I can continue.



Re did my door cards a second time. 1st time I did it with the indents.. But I didn't like it. Removed the oem foam and put in a new panel.


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

It's 48, windy, and looking like it's going to rain pretty soon here in the Detroit area. I just want to drive my Cabby and I can't with impending rain. My MINI has also been down for the count since Saturday, so I'm not very happy with cars right now. :banghead::banghead:


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

I was just sent this photo from last week, when a friend of mine went in for service. My boyfriend drove the Cabby to his shop. He changed the oil, changed the three belts, and really inspected the car to figure out what it ultimately needs. Since he owns a MINI shop, there are not several MINI bolts on the Cabby since they were missing!




We also found out that the brakes are in rough shape. :banghead: ... The front caliper is seized, I was told not to use the parking brake until further notice, and the drums are pretty bad. So, we need to do a full brake job soon. 




And, we also found out where the Cabby is rubbing. When I bought the car, the seller warned that it was a bad rub, he wasn't kidding. So, at least I know what we need to fix.


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## Larkylark (Mar 18, 2016)

Got a flat repair repair and new lugs for my bottlecaps at Les Schwab. Waiting for alignment before I swap them on. 

I got to finally drive it to school. Got the best parking spot in the parking lot...miss driving my old truck, but dang this is nice!













Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Took this the other day before ripping into a bunch of stuck bolts and rust.


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## Dovetail (May 3, 2016)

You all have stunning cars! 
Today's agenda is to use the carpet cleaner and get the ants and mice out of the inside of CAR and to work on why the car clunks when shifting into reverse. Hopefully it's fixable with some minor service. 
One of these days I'll be throwing on some rims and paint. I can't wait.
Pictures to follow later this afternoon


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Removed the over flow bracket. I need to clean up a few things around that area. 





Painted the front bumper.. just gotta do the rear now.


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## neohic (Nov 21, 2010)

Started turning MOBOZO's '87 into a tow rig.










He decided that the parts car was just about done being picked over and cut it in half. What better way to haul some racing slicks, jack, and all your other track day gear?


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

neohic said:


> Started turning MOBOZO's '87 into a tow rig.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Love it! Has been on my "some day" list for a while, but need to get my cabby running first! Your hitch setup looks pretty much like what I was planning. Mine would use the bumper attachment to the unibody, but would sandwich between the bumper brackets and the body since I'm running the plastic euro bumpers. Can't wait to see it finished!


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## NiX_86 (Jul 17, 2014)

I put the engine in the bay. Still alot of work to do.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I cleaned up the old neuspeed lower stress bar. Primed it, lightly sanded it and then painted it.
First couple of days while it was drying it looked perfect and beautiful. After several days, it looked weird.
Has a weird orange peel kind of look. Like little ball bearings hit it all over. But I am not going to redo it or sand/buff it.
I figure the texture is from so many coats. I think I did like 8 or more. It's going under the car, so I guess as long as the paint is sticking I will leave it as is... I can always redo it in the future. For now, it's just to keep it from rusting.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Drove it. Put 5 gallons of leaded 112 fuel in it. Drove it some more. Burned through a good portion of that 5 gallons pretty damn quick. Put new steering wheel in. Repeatedly touched new steering wheel because it feels nice :laugh:

IMG_20160516_181841_962 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

And I took this sweet picture Saturday morning so it's a bit late, but the lighting made for a sick shot, even on the phone. It's too good not to share.

IMG_20160514_090348_223 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Didn't do much. Pulled all the seats.
Shampooed the Carpet.
Painted the Center console, re-coverd the rear drivers side quarter panel card, recovered the Rear Seat Bottom. Working on the back but decided to call it a day.
Pictures when I am finished.


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## SCARLET (Dec 21, 2005)

Last night I pulled the power steering pump off along with the starter, axels, and tierods in preparation of dropping out the Auto tranny and installing a Manual.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I drained the four year old oil. Smelled horrible and was very dark. At least it wasn't empty. Filled with cheap oil and installed cheap filter until I can burn through old fuel and make sure lines are clean. Once I have run it a bit I will get better oil and quality filter. I will be running sea foam in oil, intake, fuel etc so I have to change filter once I get everything clean. 

I installed new Cap and rotor. The rotor was nasty and carbonized. Cap had carbon marks like spark was jumping. It ran and idled before, so should run even better now. I got new spark plugs, but am waiting to install until I can run engine and also check compression. Car has no battery and didn't feel like jumping car. 

I loosened the alternator pulley so I can adjust it. 

I cleaned underside of rear seat to help get rid of some of the cat smell. When I opened the car door this time, it had more of an old German car smell and little to no cat smell.  I am not done cleaning, so there is hope yet. I have not even deodorized it, yet.

I buffed a small area of paint. Didn't have energy to do much. 

I had the front end jacked up to do oil, so I checked bearings, tie rods and ball joints. Bearings seem ok, passenger side all ok, driver side ball joint is bad. 

Front motor mount bushing is almost completely gone. Ball is sitting on cup. Motor mounts are all trashed. 

I cut off the one wire still attached on idle air bypass solenoid connector so I could remove it and fix it. One write was broken completely, and the other had wire sheath. Should start fine next time. Had trouble starting for first time in 4 years due to gummed lines and no idle air bypass control. But I got it to run and it stayed running and idled once it warmed up. 

I adjusted the hood latch as it would not shut unless I moved the latch by hand. Now it shuts properly.



That about sums up today.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Finished the Seat Back. Placed but not mounted in the car.



Found the easiest way to clean my Carpets. (Yes I have a Carpet Cleaner but it is a PITA as you have to empty and refill.
Vacuumed the hell out of it first.

Dampened the Carpet with hot water and a spray bottle about a quart per side
Sprayed it liberally with "Totally Awesome". Shoot I sprinkled it all over.
Scrubbed it with a brush.
Poured Hot water about a half gallon on the carpet scrubbed it again, to loosen all the crud, sucked it all out with my wet-r-dry shop vac.
Repeated the cleaner, water ,scrub and brush and vac until all the mud was gone, carpet is soft and fuzzy like new.
Actually worked better than my carpet cleaner and was faster and easier.
Nice to have clean supple carpet.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Cleaned my jets.. Started her up after 6 months


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

My tires came today!!!!! They go on tomorrow, as well as an alignment. We decided to go with 195/45-15. I'm hoping they stop the rubbing issues I have. If they don't, then I get to figure it out some more.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Painted the needles... I like it


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## ForgottenCabrio (May 14, 2016)

Fresh discs and pads, plus lots of push starting.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Lit up.... Liking the contrast


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## derakicksyou (Apr 29, 2010)

put in some yellow inners


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## RW (Mar 21, 2008)

*Installed my white face gauges...*


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Threw it's first set of wax on last weekend, polished all the shiny stuff...then, basically drove it right to the upholstery shop where it's still sitting 

Need to get it back soon!


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Raek said:


> Threw it's first set of wax on last weekend, polished all the shiny stuff...then, basically drove it right to the upholstery shop where it's still sitting
> 
> Need to get it back soon!



Looks so good dude!!

Went back to black on my carb caps.. The white just wasn't doing it.

Ive been trying to sort out a choke for it.. can't seem to get it right, i don't know if its the cable or what


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Ready to haul...


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Purchased a 4.13 final drive ring and pinion to go into my AGB close ratio gearbox which has a Peloquin LSD waiting to go in it. This will be nice because my 16v is very high strung only producing good usable power between 4000-8100 rpm so this will be a fun gearbox to have on tight, twisty roads near my house.


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## imahassle (Jan 20, 2016)

Replaced the parcel shelf in my Cabby. It was old and warped, and I didn't like the look of the old carpet back there. So I made a new one.



















Fits snug and looks great! The rest of the carpet back there has a limited lifespan...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Not quite mine, but my latest project at work has been bring this 01 Cabrio back to life from a 6 year slumber.



















A new fuel pump and filter along with a fresh battery got it fired up. Have also replaced all 4 corners of brakes, including the rear calipers, timing belt, accessory belts, waterpump and t-stat, coolant outlet (was leaking badly), plugs/wires/cap/rotor, valve cover gasket, and a few more of the typical odds and ends on aging ABA. Only 102,000 miles on it. I think it's going to take brake master to get the pedal back, and it's kicked a few codes. There's also a pretty serious vibration, though I'm not sure it just isn't the tires.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

It was hot out and I didn't feel like taking pictures. 

I took some non-ac pulleys off a donor engine.
Removed the pulleys from the cabby.
When I test fit the pulleys, I found there was bolt on the power steering pump adjustment bracket that was hitting the pulley.
So I ground part of the bolt head down a bit. Didn't seem to effect the pump at all. There were plenty of other bolts.
My friend happened to have a new 10mm belt long enough (Non ac usually uses 950, I used a 930 and it was fine) and sold it to me for a couple bucks. The original 13mm belt would not fit on the non ac waterpump pulley. It was hitting another bolt.
The old engine I got pulleys from used a 10mm, so I figured it's good enough.
I was going to just use the stock ac system pulleys and have the alternator misaligned a tiny bit, but after seeing the engines laying around figured I would make use of them. 
I also noticed the crank pulley I found was smaller in diameter! Well, I don't have AC anymore, so I hope the underdrive effect won't hurt anything.  The pulley was from a 1.8 engine so it should be ok. Worse thing that will happen, is that the engine will seem a little more "rev happy" with NO ac and underdrive pulley.  

I had to put a oversized nut on the adjuster mounting bracket bolt so it was even with alternator. The with ac alternators have more metal in the casing for the different offset. I didn't want to grab the old alternator off the other non ac engine, because it's been outside a long, long time. Looked bad. Mine is known good. Even with the nut, it looks much better. Once I tightened the tensioner , it looked like the alternator is not perfectly straight. BUT it's a tiny amount, and looks way better than using the stock ac system pulleys which would not have been lined up so well. I am happy with it. Just a temporary fix until I swap to serpentine belt, anyways...

I removed the bumper cover so I can install the tow bar. 

Saw some uneven edges on the windows where tint was loose, so pulled it all off. Rear window needs to soak in ammonia, so only got the backing off.  There is haze in window from adhesive, but I bet it's going to look so nice once I scrub the windows clean. That purple tint was so nasty...

Sprayed Pblaster on some nuts and bolts so they won't be so bad when I start doing more work on the engine.

Capped some open vacuum lines. Have some crap to remove to simplify vacuum lines.


Bought lower control arm bushings, ball joints and strut bearings. More to come.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Finishing up our 01 Cabrio project at work. Recon got it all cleaned up. Replaced the master cylinder and flushed the brake system, pedal feels great. Waiting on 2 new tires to arrive, the front ones were badly out of round. Monday I'll bring in a few interior tidbits leftover from the wife's wrecked Jetta, and it should be done.


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Lit up.... Liking the contrast


That is GORGEOUS. Was this easy to do? I need to brighten up my dashboard and love the blue!


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

imahassle said:


> Replaced the parcel shelf in my Cabby. It was old and warped, and I didn't like the look of the old carpet back there. So I made a new one.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Wow. My jaw dropped. This is absolutely gorgeous and I actually want to copy you. My parcel shelf has seen better days and I was just telling my boyfriend I want a steering wheel in this color and even a wood grain dashboard. I didn't even think parcel shelf!!! Was this hard to do?


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## imahassle (Jan 20, 2016)

stephatron said:


> Wow. My jaw dropped. This is absolutely gorgeous and I actually want to copy you. My parcel shelf has seen better days and I was just telling my boyfriend I want a steering wheel in this color and even a wood grain dashboard. I didn't even think parcel shelf!!! Was this hard to do?


Glad you like it! I've already gotten several compliments on it.

It wasn't terribly hard to do. Took some time, but I did it over a weekend. I more or less followed Briano's tutorial on redoing a parcel shelf.

http://volkswagenownersclub.com/vw/showthread.php/33293-Remaking-your-Cabriolet-Parcel-Shelf

But instead of reusing the carpet, I used another piece of wood I sanded, stained, and glossed myself. I couldn't be bothered to try and reuse the little black clips that hold the bars on the back (if you used panel board it should be fine, but it's difficult to make the holes for them in wood), so instead I used copper plumber's tape to hold them down. I could post a picture of the final look on the bottom if you're curious, but unfortunately I don't have any progress pictures.

I used two pieces of birch veneer, the top one was stained with one coat of traditional cherry stain. Wanted to use oak first, but I like the marbling (or whatever it's called) on the birch more. I also made the top piece a half inch wider on each side to cover some space the carpet fuzz would normally hide.

I have some extra wood left over that' I'm planning on using for some wood accents on my door cards in the near future, after I locate some panel board and vinyl. I'll probably do a post covering that, since I haven't seen anyone else do something like it.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

imahassle said:


> Glad you like it! I've already gotten several compliments on it.
> 
> It wasn't terribly hard to do. Took some time, but I did it over a weekend. I more or less followed Briano's tutorial on redoing a parcel shelf.
> 
> ...


This has been my plan for my 82 all along. I did a wood veneer parcel shelf when I was still driving it around 8 years ago. Even added some pieces of polished aluminum extrusion for the rear window to slide on. Lord knows if I can dig up any pics. Always wanted to do some wood on the door cards to tie it all in. Now the whole car has been sitting dormant for a good 5 or 6 years. One of these years I'll get back to it. Lol! My new goal is to have it done by the time my daughter starts driving. She's crrently 10 months old, so I hope I think that's a reasonable goal!


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I mounted the tow bar bracket and re-installed the front bumper (without bumper cover).
I ran the trailer wire harness and attached the female and male spade ends so I could remove factory tail light wires and attach to factory tail lights. I have magnetic trailer lights, but pain in but to use on a cabriolet.

I tried to get the engine to start, but just wouldn't. Even with the old, nasty, black goo covered spark plugs, the engine would start with starting fluid. I know the fuel tank, lines, filter etc are nasty even after putting in fresh gas with stuff to keep gas stable and to clean the system. It started several months ago. But wouldn't this time.  I will have to play with it next time.
I cleaned the battery cable connectors, but didn't have time to clean the grounds or starter connections. It did seem to start a little better with the clean connectors.

I removed the spark plugs and did a compression check. Three cylinders were the same, and good. One is really low. Not good. I have no intention of driving this car anyways, so not a big deal. But was surprised it was so bad. 166-160-105-160
I installed new plugs.

I was more interested in getting car prepped to flat tow it home, so was not really interested in taking fuel system apart.
I will mess with the fuel system when I get it home. It ran before, so I know it car run...

I thought the throttle cable came disconnected, but found the stupid pedal broke. 
The flimsy little weld broke. Will have to remove it and have it welded (I have to go to fab shop to make my short shift, anyways). I MIGHT even take the pedal cluster out to have the clutch cable holder re-enforced since that is a common issue on rusty cars (this car is not rusty, but was not taken care of and has 265k miles).

Have to drive down and tow the car home, then come down mountain and pick up a trailer and then bring that home.
Will try to get some pics when I get the car home...


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## stephatron (May 18, 2013)

imahassle said:


> Glad you like it! I've already gotten several compliments on it.
> 
> It wasn't terribly hard to do. Took some time, but I did it over a weekend. I more or less followed Briano's tutorial on redoing a parcel shelf.
> 
> ...


This is so awesome. Thank you so so so much. My parcel shelf has definitely seen better days.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I am also working a bit on the house and trailer, so I am surprised I am getting anything done on the car.

Last couple of days since the car was brought home I have been hand buffing the car with the gnarliest, heaviest cut rubbing compound I can get. My buffer just burns the paste, so I am doing it by hand. By hand takes longer, but leaves nothing behind. So far, the single stage paint is looking shiny and like new. I am surprised how good it looks. I have to take lots of breaks because my neck and shoulders get sore after buffing all day. Add in the polishing of diamond plate panel on the trailer, and we are talking about waking up and not being able to move my neck. 
But it is worth it!!! I will take picture when I am done. Car has front bumper removed for tow bar, so it looks "taken apart".
But at least the paint is salvageable.
I can't wait to buff it with my pro buffer and wax. 
The hood was repainted and the clear coat is coming off. I think the fenders were painted as well, but the look good.
So, the hood won't look so good. But at least it's not bent or rusty!
Rear bumper is just horrible. I will have to repaint it with cheap white paint. Anything, even mis-matched paint will look better than the burned, crusty, cracked paint that is on there. You can see the black plastic underneath.

I am going to the store later to buy some white duct tape. Stupid zip ties look horrible. I need to keep water out of top.
The zip ties were to keep cats and animals out. But now I need it to have a better seal.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Pretty sure I have the wife's hard cold start problem figured out. After sitting for a week I cycled the key 4 times to give the fuel system a good prime and it fired right off. So it would appear the check valve in the fuel system (have to do some research, I think it's in the accumulator) is not holding for extended times. Once it's started it starts fine for the rest of the day.


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## tolusina (Oct 19, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Pretty sure I have the wife's hard cold start problem figured out. After sitting for a week I cycled the key 4 times to give the fuel system a good prime and it fired right off. So it would appear the check valve in the fuel system (have to do some research, I think it's in the accumulator) is not holding for extended times. Once it's started it starts fine for the rest of the day.


There are two check valves, neither is in the accumulator.

One is in the pump integral with the outlet fitting;










http://www.germanautoparts.com/Volkswagen/Rabbit/Fuel/379/1

The other is integral with the fuel pressure regulator;









I think parts are still available for the FPR but I don't know where.

Caution, WARNING, You really don't want to mess with system pressures. Servicing this FPR is best done with a fuel pressure gauge set connected, before and after pressures measured and compared with specs.

---
The accumulator is naught but a chamber with a spring loaded diaphragm intended to dampen out pulses from the fuel pump allowing smooth, consistent and Continuous (CIS) flow and pressure to the injectors.




.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Thanks, Ron! Your experience and knowledge is always top notch!


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## xxGLIxx (Jun 16, 2004)

*Bath Time*

Bath Time
































Love this little car. Need new glass headlight lenses, 16' wheels and tires and shes complete!


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

We are in a drought, and as soon as I start digging into the car (it's parked outside) it's starts F-ing raining. 
It did this to me yesterday, too.. UG!!! Go figure.

I have been working on the car every day, even in light rain. 

I scrubbed the boot cover again. Test fit it to find the straps on the top came undone and it would not fold right when down.
I did not tie the straps, and just hand folded the top. Sits perfect now. The top has not been down in at last 4 years.
The boot cover looks like crap even after deep cleaning twice, but at least I have one. Better than nothing. With the top being in the condition it is, I would prefer to have the top down whenever possible. 

I used white duct tape to cover the giant hole in top to keep animals and some rain out. Much better than the zipties that were on it. I will still have to cover car when i move as where I am moving gets a bit of rain and snow. I doubt it will be left out in the elements in the winter.

Scrubbed the top and it looks so much better now. Too bad it's cut and shot. 

I removed the door handle on passenger side to see why it was hard to open, and also removed the door latch mechanism.
The mechanism was completely gooey and the grease was dried up. No good. I cleaned/degreased in the sink.
After cleaning I saw the cracks in the door handle mechanism and realized i have to buy new door handle. 
I might buy two new ones, one being from a 4 door with no lock. I like those.
I dried the parts and then sprayed the heck out of them with dry teflon spray. The door opens better than new.
Even with the cracked/broken door handle, it still opens! And with little effort.
I am assuming that someone was squeezing super hard on the door latch to open the door. Could have been me, I don't know. Door was hard to open from the inside as well. 

All the door clips pulled out and damage the board material. I am pissed, but not surprised. I can fix it, no problem.
My door panel puller tool disappeared and I guess i will have to use it on other door so as not to cause so much damage next time. I hate mk1 door panels. So damn cheap.

After hand buffing the whole car with rubbing compound, I test waxed a few areas with buffer. Looks incredible for the most part. To bad I am missing a piece of side molding. 
I test cleaned a couple wheels. I am missing one color matched wheel cap, so am seeing how they look with no caps.
It's a lot of work cleaning those stupid zandvoort wheels, and I don't even like them. I have to get new tires before I tow the car and am not sure if I will use new 13" tires, or use the nice black 14" mkIII steelies instead. Decisions, decisions.


*update

The rain was a hassle, but didn't stop me much. I got even more done and I didn't stop working until sun went down.
I removed the door cards so I could scrub them. They were pretty bad. Rear panels were removed and cleaned as well.

I went back and tied down the top to the top frame so it folds properly when lowered. Much nicer.
Of course, I sprayed every hinge point on top frame with teflon spray. Seemed to move a lot smoother.
Top is not super heavy or really difficult to move, so not sure if the top struts are ok or not. I am sure I will replace them in the future, anyways. 

I removed the gas pedal because it was broken (cheap ass weld!!!!!).
I also removed some shifting parts so I can weld and fabricate a short shifter with weighted shift rod. 
Hopefully I can do that tomorrow. I need to clean the floor pan so I can start putting the car back together ASAP.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I finally got off my butt and took some pics of what I am working on.

I went to a fab shop I use to hang out at so I could weld/fab a few things (I usually do my own work).
This time, one of the guys was cool and did the work for me. He is way faster and an awesome welder.
The parts were tig welded. Cost? Free.










The stupid gas pedal broke at the shaft. It had a very small and cold weld. Didn't even have any rust. Perfectly clean.
Just needed some nice welds.

I fabricated a short shifter with free scrap metal. I also added a weight to the selector rod. 
The holes on the shift lever might be too far apart. I won't know if I went too far out until I install it.
I eyeballed the last one I made, and it worked fine. The holes are much better aligned and centered this time. 
That might help. 

I am not going to paint the parts right now. I will take them out later when I have time and paint them.

I wanted to add welds to the clutch cable bracket on pedal bracket, but it looks like a pain to remove, and I didn't want to spend too much time taking things apart. I am moving soon and want the car to be as complete as possible when I move.

I am happy with the progress so far.


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Today I did my ignition switch. A few weeks ago I installed my Window Weld'd strut bearings. So far MUCH more quiet. Coming soon, fuel hose replacement (all around) and a new Accumulator and new plastic filter thingie (can't remember what that one's called)


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Grinded the welds on the modified shift lever. Made it look nice.
Cleaned all the parts and primed them. Going to dry them over night and them paint them tomorrow.
I wasn't going to paint the parts, but the bushings and stuff I need can't be ordered until after the holiday.
So, I figured I might as well paint them. They will have plenty of time to dry.


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## cabbymiami (Apr 21, 2014)

messed around n did this.. cai 2" using the warm air inlet..


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

cabbymiami said:


> messed around n did this.. cai 2" using the warm air inlet..


Just watch out for puddles! The anti-snorkel...


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I hand buffed the whole hood with rubbing compound, then I machined buffed it with wax.
About as good as I can get it. Looks much nicer even with peeling clear coat.
The buffing also reduced the appearance of the road rash on front of hood. Less rusty looking, but still there.

I pulled out the hair drier and a scraper with fresh blade to remove the nasty, old, purple tint on rear window.
It was nerve racking trying not to scrape the defroster lines. But I was able to not ruin any.  Window looks so much better.

I removed the carpet from side shelves in the rear. They smelled and had tons of cat hair. Not sure I am going to keep them. 
Might make some new ones, and new rear cover too.

I bought some spade connector splitters so I could add on magnetic trailer lights, even though I have trailer wiring connected to cabby lights already. Twice the lights now.  With the tint gone, the lights are nice and bright in rear window. Great for when I flat tow it at night. I am building mounts for the tow lights to lift them up higher to make them fully visible. They sit too low as is.

I cleaned the rear black license plate panel. I used "back to black". Looks great.
I installed the license plate light bulbs, and the nicely cleaned/polished lenses.

I had to remove part of the door panel because I forgot to install inner door handle the other day. 
Cleaned door handle and speaker pod.

I painted the parts I was working on the other day. Can't wait to install them! 

I finished scraping the foam/paper sound absorbing crap from floor pan so I can finish cleaning and put carpet back in.
The stuff smelled really strongly of mildew. Once it is fully cleaned the smell should all be gone.
I dropped the top completely (Probably first time in over 4 years) and let it sit open for a few days. The interior needs some fresh air.

I tried to clean the wheels on the passenger side, and they just were not worth finishing. Clear coat is crap, brake dust really cooked into the hard to reach areas. It's sad, because the driver side wheels actually cleaned up nicely. But I hate the factory 13" wheels, so don't really plan on keeping them, anyways... 

I wiped down some of the rubber seals on the car to make them look a little better. Not a final clean, just wiping things down when I am bored.


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## Tahroo (Jun 2, 2016)

I changed my turn signal bulb. Holy ****! That's the most difficult setup I have ever dealt with.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Today I finished cleaning the floor pan.
I reinstalled the carpet and fabreez'd the hell out of it. 
The carpet is loose where the kick panels meet the door frame as the cloth that holds it is missing. 
Other wise it's hard to tell what cats had done to it for 4 years.  Looks good enough.

Plugged in the gauges and installed the center console.
I taped up the shift boot on the inside so it wasn't so bad and installed it.

I installed the rear seats and seat belts.

I installed the front seats and scrubbed all the seats.

I scrubbed the glass and all the rubber on the car.

I am actually surprised how decent it looks.
I was really worried because it was neglected so bad and cats lived in it for years.
The rear seat bottom cushion has a little bit of cat odor still. On the bottom, underneath.
I sprayed lots of water with soap and bleach, but it still has some smell (If you put your nose up to it) and I spent all day cleaning it and letting it sit in the sun. It's going to have to be good enough for now.
I let the seat cushion dry and I don't smell anything right now. So I am hoping it's just a weak smell.

My Dad checked out the car, and said he couldn't smell anything. I didn't smell anything, either, until I fabreez'd it.
I said to the car, "You been fabreez'd beotch!".

Normally, the engine bay is the cleanest part of my cars. But I have not gotten to that, yet.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

I wish the white interior on my wife's looked that good!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Not "to" my cabby, but for my cabby, this weekend I built a shed kit to get all of my lawn and garden stuff out of the garage so I have room to work on it.


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Today I spent a few hours on my back and sides and backside changing out my fuel accumulator and the hoses that come to and out of it. Could have been worse, but could have gone better. Covered in gasoline, all the while fireworks going off all around my neighborhood...that was a little frightening. 

Anyone need an 88 original CIS fuel accumulator? As far as I can tell nothing's wrong with it, I just had a new one and wanted to smack it in there. It's rusty as all getout but I got both hoses off and the connections seem fine.

The only thing I didn't do was replace the fuel expansion chamber/filter which I have, but man I am not gonna do that until I can get this girl on a lift. My arms are already jelly from half a day on the ground. Mercifully, the clip that holds my expansion tank has disintegrated so it's just levitating there by the tension of all the hoses hooked up to it. 

Another day.

Also this weekend I changed out my fuel filter to one of the smaller ones, put a hand-twist on/off on my negative post (taking the battery cable off is the most annoying part of prepping to do work on Gertie IMO)


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Bought a new roof (frame and all) Installed it... looks a million x's better


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I made a base out of some 40 year old, left over trailer wood for the "magnetic trailer lights".
I couldn't just set them on the rear deck lid as they were not high enough.
It was pretty ugly, so I painted it flat black. I have trailer wiring hooked up the factory cabby tail lights, 
but I thought it would be fun to have an extra set of lights. 

For those of you not in the know, you can't hook up the third brake light or the separate turn signal on a car/trailer with a trailer 4 wire harnesses connected to another vehicle (flat tow). You have to buy a special box to do that, or build a "diode" or relay system. Not worth it for me. I just wanted to use stuff I had laying around and have some fun.

The freshly welded and painted gas pedal was installed. I like to replace wear items, but the plastic bushings looked ok to use.
I greased all moving parts. I have to order the stupid throttle cable bushing as the original one is worthless.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Began prepping it for Mk1Madness. This year prep simply includes a wash, a fresh coat of wax and approximately 20 gallons of leaded 102 octane fuel. No down to the wire shenanigans this year like there was last year.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> Began prepping it for Mk1Madness. This year prep simply includes a wash, a fresh coat of wax and approximately 20 gallons of leaded 102 octane fuel. No down to the wire shenanigans this year like there was last year.


I don't think I'm even going to be able to attend this year, sadly. About to dive into a kitchen remodel...love getting things done with the house, but have no time to work on the cars.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I was bored, so I jacked up the car and put it on stands. I sprayed degreaser under the engine and started scrubbing.
It is really horrible. I don't think I have ever seen such a mess. I can't move the car to a car wash, and don't want to clean in driveway with hose. Too much grease. So, I put a piece of plastic on the ground and started scrubbing with a metal brush.
It's going to take a while, but I just want to get the worst of it right now. 
I hope to take engine out next winter, or next spring. I can really clean the engine bay then.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Finally finished the mods on my car, it is no longer OEM as per the stickers.

From:



to:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Very OEM+, Brian.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

YJSAABMAN said:


> I don't think I'm even going to be able to attend this year, sadly. About to dive into a kitchen remodel...love getting things done with the house, but have no time to work on the cars.


Looks like I will be able to attend! Just as a spectator, though. Just going to be glad to get out and do something with my little one!


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Bought a new roof (frame and all) Installed it... looks a million x's better



Pics....


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Well, scratch that for mk1 Madness. No schedule posted anywhere and apparently the show was today for a whopping 3 hours. A little disppointed in the amount of info available for this year.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Didn't do anything but drive my "New" cabby. 

On a side note I updated the top install guide to reflect what I have learned since the last update 6-7 years.
Canvas does install differently.
The way that you install canvas makes doing vinyl easier so I have changed the installation order.
Along with my "trick" on installing the Shims for the newer style cables (hint Super Glue Gel.).
Includes the 2 different Side Tension cable lengths.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Got a bunch more little stuff tidied up on the wife's today.

Started with a new Hella door handle on the passenger side to replace the second broken one. Lubed the latch a while ago, but not soon enough to save the second used handle. Noticed they made the pull trigger a bit longer...



















Also made some more small adjustments to fix some installation errors on the top. This time at the bottom corners of the rear windows where the top runs under the seal trays. Passenger side went smoothly, came out much nicer.










Driver's side before pic for comparison:










Figured out the main issue on the driver's side, a missing screw. Then discovered the little plastic insert the screw goes into is missing. Got it the best I could for now.










Also removed a bunch of excess sealing goo that's been oozing out along the top of the windshield frame seal. Forgot to take a before pic, so even an after is a bit moot.

Tomorrow I'll be replacing the fuel line fitting with the check valve underneath the car to hopefully fix the long crank on cold starts. 4 or 5 primes of the pump work for now.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I wish I had remembered how fragile those stupid handles are when the lube gets dry and old. 
Mine broke when trying to open passenger door the first time (could have been broken before, not sure). I forget I have man hands sometimes. 
I think it's because passenger door gets opened less, and lube dries and gets hard/crusty.
I could barely even move/squeeze the outter handle when the car was in back of the shop. I just stopped using outter handle all together. Opened it up from the inside.

It's almost miraculous how smoothly those doors open when you take all the mechanisms out clean them and lube them.
Even the broken handle works like new (it just barely releases, though).
Once you take the door panel off, the door stuff is not too bad to deal with.













Yeah, I filled my motor mounts and strut bearings with urethane. 
So what? Want to fight about it?

I won't be installing this stuff any time soon, so they have plenty of time to cure.
I also worked on the trailer, and am losing interest in the degreasing of engine bay. I hate this mess. Taking forever
without pressure sprayer.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> G
> Figured out the main issue on the driver's side, a missing screw. Then discovered the little plastic insert the screw goes into is missing. Got it the best I could for now.


AuVeC0 Products, part number 9829 (380382) GM Headlight Bezel is a direct replacement, I got a box of 50 for 6 bucks, at my hardware store.

https://www.auveco.com/

http://216.38.6.33/product2527.html


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Once again, thanks for beating me to the research!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Well today I attempted to replace the fuel check valve at the pump outlet. No issues with the disassembly, or anything like that. Nope, the new fitting didn't fit the pump. WTF. Everywhere I look lists one check valve for these, how does this one not fit my pump? Oh, because it's mine! The pump has been replaced at some point, it looks awfully new, could it really have a different thread on the inlet? It's a smaller diameter and finer thread pitch. Grrrr. It sucks to get all covered in gas and not even accomplish what you wanted to.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Drove it and placed my order with CAE Shifting Technologies. So in hopefully about a month the new CAE cable shifter will arrive at my door.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Flat towed the cabby from CA to KS.


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## morimori (Jul 19, 2003)

cabbymiami said:


> messed around n did this.. cai 2" using the warm air inlet..


:thumbup:


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Someone offered to let me park my non running car at their house.
They have a car in the garage getting a transmission job done at the moment.
I offered to help them on it.
I towed the car to a car wash place so I could degrease the engine a bit and then I towed it over there and we pushed it into driveway.
Should be safe there for a while.


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

dougkehl said:


> Drove it and placed my order with CAE Shifting Technologies. So in hopefully about a month the new CAE cable shifter will arrive at my door.


Nice!!!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


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## jgold723 (Jul 23, 2010)

Changed the crush washer on my oil pan drain plug so she's no longer leaking oil on my garage floor, driveway, parking lot... Woo-hoo! Now if I can just figure out where the Power Steering is leaking...


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Enjoyed it!

There's tons of stuff for the future to-do list, but as of this summer...it drives well, handles well, all the lights work and it looks great. All the little things have all the time in the world to get done.


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## cts (Sep 7, 2010)

^^^ THAT COLOR:heart::heart::heart:

I ordered my suspension this weekend, Ran the new parking brake cables and redid the rear drums.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I went to where my car is parked so I could dump the coolant.
I disconnected all vacuum lines, all electrical and fuel lines to engine.
I removed the radiator. 
Found the white electrical tape so I could fill the hole that started enlarging in top when driving it here.
Should keep animals and most of the rain out for now.

It was incredibly hot and humid, and sun came out of clouds not long after I started, so was not able to undo ex manifold or axles.


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## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

Raek said:


> Enjoyed it!
> 
> There's tons of stuff for the future to-do list, but as of this summer...it drives well, handles well, all the lights work and it looks great. All the little things have all the time in the world to get done.


what is that color and what size are those wheels


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Tonight I removed a few wires/grounds, the intake heater hose connector on exhaust manifold, the manifold clamps, the cat shield and removed the downpipe and cat. I had to remove the sway bar to make it easier to remove stuff, so I took that off as well. Doubt I will re-install it. All that is left now is the ground wire on the trans mount, and the axles. I am hoping I can do those next time AND drop engine/trans. I really want to get started cleaning the engine bay! I need something to do. 

Only reason I have not been working on it every day, is that it is just too hot and humid out in the sun. 
The car is close enough to where I live that getting to it is no big deal, either.


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## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

TravisTheD said:


> what is that color and what size are those wheels


Color is a custom color that my auto-body guy came up with after my wife and I described what we wanted. Went through a couple of different test strips to get it.

Wheels are 15x8 all the way around. Not sure of the offset.


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## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

Raek said:


> Color is a custom color that my auto-body guy came up with after my wife and I described what we wanted. Went through a couple of different test strips to get it.
> 
> Wheels are 15x8 all the way around. Not sure of the offset.


i love every thing about this cabby


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## flipty (Mar 5, 2012)

Had a professional with the proper tools put my exhaust spring clamps on so that my new downpipe gasket would work properly, he also welded my muffler to the support as it should be, and repaired a leak in a pipe that comes off the back of the manifold for emissions checks, which was leaking.

It was quiet-ish before, but my beautiful 88 Cabby is now as quiet as a brand new car... WOW!


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I was able to get to the car today. Not too horribly hot and humid in early evening, either. I got just about everything done before the sun went down and it got dark.

Removed lines from power steering pump, axles from trans. ground from trans, speedo cable, trans mount, engine mount on core support, clutch cable, lower air box and piping, reverse switch and I drained oil from engine.

Engine is barely hanging there from two bolts, so will be easy to drop when I have the room to take engine out. 
I am so close to dropping this thing, I am so excited!  

Some little kids were standing around asking me questions. No, a cabriolet is NOT all wheel drive. 
Yeah, I could have had some fun making up stuff. But I figured I would be honest.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Crappy picture, but I opened the box that this was in for my Cabby. Holy s*** is this thing insane. 

0802161511 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## KJH0013 (Jul 13, 2012)

Replaced valve cover gasket and some hoses, fixed vacuum leaks and freshened up (painted) a few parts.
It's amazing how most smoother she runs once vac leaks are fixed.
I hope to change out the coolant hoses and all belts next weekend.
I'm still trying to muster up the courage to adjust the valves. I've never dealt with the discs before.



Sent from my XT1080 using Tapatalk


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Went to storage to get some tools, and I picked up some boxes of parts that were in trunk of cabby.
I am starting the process of porting and gasket matching the euro 4-2 exhaust manifold I have. 
I won't be able to port the intake just yet, as I don't have any good aluminum carbide burs and I have to build a new manometer. I don't have a work area set up, yet. My manometer was made from free wood scraps, a 5 dollar hose and some power steering fluid. So, I threw my old one out when I moved.  Just have to make a new one.
I am going to gasket match first, then worry about porting later. No point in going larger than stock on ex manifold if I can't port the head just yet. I can port the intake manifold as the stock ports are small even if you gasket match. I don't have to port the head to see gains. So I can redo the ports later...

I just found a JH engine on craigslist. It should be low miles, as it was in storage for 20 years.
My current engine is not so good with one cylinder showing questionable compression, was abused and has 265k miles.
I am trying really hard to sell some stuff out of my storage so I can buy it. It is a solid lifter head, and I need it.
Hopefully the market for old 1.8's is non existent in this area and the guy keeps it for a while... I need some time...


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

dougkehl said:


> Crappy picture, but I opened the box that this was in for my Cabby. Holy s*** is this thing insane.
> 
> 0802161511 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


Yeah, those shifter towers make me tingly. So incredible.


I need to see how your install goes, and how it works...
I may need one in the future if I go 02a/j or whatever...
Pricey, but worth it...
Install that bish and tell us how it feels!
What tranny do you have?


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

fast84gti said:


> Yeah, those shifter towers make me tingly. So incredible.
> 
> 
> I need to see how your install goes, and how it works...
> ...


Yeah! Pricey indeed, but well worth it! Gotta get the garage cleaned out this weekend so I have more room to work. I'm rebuilding the trans completely as well as installing a new big valve head on the 16v and installing this shifter . But I'll be taking lots of pictures of the shifter install along the way. 

But I've got an AGB 020 with Peloquin LSD and a 4.13 final drive ring and pinion gear set.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Why are you going cable shift on an 020? I prefer the feel of linkage, BUT I would love the extra room under the car for a custom exhaust... Less bends in it. Will be watching.

Where did you source the parts for the 020 rebuild?
I have seen some places sell them online.
I worked at a trans shop for a bit to learn some things, but we worked on automatics.
I am curious what experience you have and what tools...
I drive my cars hard and need to learn how to rebuild a tranny. Or at least install the diff kit... 
And of course, changing gears to make custom ratios would be nice...


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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

Hey Doug :wave:
Got a question for ya.
How long are your stacks on your carbs, and what did you have to do to get the clearance with the radiator?

I have a 78 that I am going to do a 16v on 45 webers. In doing some of the prep work I mocked up the carbs on an old block and head and I want to say the measurement from the block to the tips of the filters was like 10.5" or so(this was done like 2 weeks ago, can't remember the exact number). Whatever that number was, I measured forward from the front of the stock block in the car, and it looks like my filters/stacks wants to occupy the same space as the radiator.
Did you stick your radiator up further forward towards the grille, and/or do you have stub stacks? It's been a while since I seen a pic of your setup and searching on tapatalk is a pain. Here's a pic of the stuff I have, maybe you can tell if it looks much different than yours. 











Also did you do have to do anything special on the upper water neck? With a stock aluminium neck it seems like the upper hose will be resting on the bottom of the right side carb and heating it up.

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## BoostedOne (Mar 30, 2003)

fast84gti said:


> I won't be able to port the intake just yet, as I don't have any good aluminum carbide burs


Since I just went through this, figured I would pass along the best deal I was able to quickly find on these, like 17 bucks each for normal length carbide aluma cuts and 22 for the longs:










Here's what to search for on Amazon. 











> I just found a JH engine on craigslist. It should be low miles, as it was in storage for 20 years.
> <SNIP>
> Hopefully the market for old 1.8's is non existent in this area and the guy keeps it for a while... I need some time...


If the market in your area is anything like here, or most any other places, you can hardly give away a JH. I wish you were closer, I have a JH from a 87 that hasn't been driven since 98 due to a blown automatic trans but had good compression when pulled 2 yrs ago. I'd give it to you for 2 cases of beer if you came and picked it up lol.





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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

fast84gti said:


> Why are you going cable shift on an 020? I prefer the feel of linkage, BUT I would love the extra room under the car for a custom exhaust... Less bends in it. Will be watching.
> 
> Where did you source the parts for the 020 rebuild?
> I have seen some places sell them online.
> ...


Going cable shift on the 020 only because at the time I didn't have the money to justify going 02A/J between needing a different clutch, a diff, ect.. But I don't think this is going to feel like the normal cable shift trans. It's going to be interesting! 

And I got all my parts from Brian at BrokeVW. Super friendly and a super helpful dude!

I've taken this trans apart once before, and most of the tools I have for my 020 are all homemade based upon what the bentley manual showed lol. So far they have all served me well. But trans work is scary!! I don't care what anyone says, I can build an engine with my eyes shut, but I move so slow with any transmission work out of fear of messing something up haha.



BoostedOne said:


> Hey Doug :wave:
> Got a question for ya.
> How long are your stacks on your carbs, and what did you have to do to get the clearance with the radiator?
> 
> ...


My stacks are 57mm long. And to combat the radiator clearance problem I chose to run a civic radiator. Full Race makes the only Civic radiator that can just drop right in with minimal work. Drill one hole in the core support and it will drop in! I'm actually going to a longer manifold on the new head. It's maybe a hair more than twice the length of the one you have now! 

Here's my set up!
IMG_20160415_075004_175 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_20160207_130955_833 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_20150608_194932_513 by dougkehl1, on Flickr

And yes I modified my stock one. You could also run an ABF water neck or better yet if you contact Pierce Manifolds and ask to purchase a VW 16v water neck that clears the carbs, and they'll sell you one and it's ALUMINUM!!! Not plastic like the ABF

The Pierce water neck looks like this.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Got, the last emissions test for my 92 EVER.... and it Passed.. Time to take the cat off and get straight piped... 

YEAH YEAH YEAH BABY.......


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

briano1234 said:


> Got, the last emissions test for my 92 EVER.... and it Passed.. Time to take the cat off and get straight piped...
> 
> YEAH YEAH YEAH BABY.......


THIS is one of the (many) reasons I left CA. Way too over zealous on the smog laws. I can't even do stand alone if it runs CLEANER than stock.  so stupid...

When MN got rid of the smog laws years ago, I was jumping for joy. Of course, it was only a few years before my car hit the 20 year mark and didn't have to be smogged, anyways. 

I just moved out of CA to a non smog state, and that totally makes up for any suffering I endure due to social or economic climate change. 

Yesterday I started porting the exhaust manifold. I had forgotten how poorly cast they are. Also, the corrosion made it pretty rough on the inside. It's mostly smoothed out now, too. Should flow rather well. At the rate I am going, not a single part in the intake, engine, exhaust tract won't be touched and checked over!  Should be one smooth puppy. I am even planning on balancing motor. Blueprinted as far as my wallet and tools will let me. 

My ferrous carbide bur is worn out from years of abuse, so have to run to grainger and other places to see if they have any in stock. I don't want to order anything online right now. Today is errand day...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Yesterday saw an oil change and changing out the longer front lug bolts since the spacers are off. Also pulled the oil cooler to change the o-ring forgetting I'd already replaced it. The one I found on the work bench was the extra one I accidentally ordered.

While the For Sale sign is in the window, there are still one or two little odds and ends to take care of before it's totally ready. The biggest is resealing the fresh air inlet in the rain tray so the passenger floor stays dry when it rains.


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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Couple weekends ago I finally figured out why the horn wasn't working after the airbag delete, I missed the step of adding a wire between the wiper switch and fuse box. So yesterday I added the wire and I am all set to let people know they are retarded again.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Went to replace my front struts, @ 8:30am and I was smoking, a half an hour and I was removing the Cartridge, and grabbing the ones out of the box, DAM. They were flat, as in no gas....I could pull them out and they would stay but very little pressure was needed to move them. Go to take them back and dam there are no more at the store, and the replacements that were ordered won't arrive till after 7m, on a project that I was figuring to be done with by 11 at the latest. I suspect that is 11PM.... Oh, it was AutoZone...... 
I do have the parts all cleaned and the wheel wells cleaned and polished.... just waiting for 7......


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## imahassle (Jan 20, 2016)

YJSAABMAN said:


> While the For Sale sign is in the window, there are still one or two little odds and ends to take care of before it's totally ready. The biggest is resealing the fresh air inlet in the rain tray so the passenger floor stays dry when it rains.


Can you post how you reseal the fresh air inlet? I've been struggling with the same issue but I'm not really sure how to tackle removing and resealing it. If there's already a post like that, then I guess I've missed it.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

I'll try to remember to take some pics. It is a bit of a pain to get off as most of the screws come up through the rain tray from under the dash. Still deciding if I'm going to use adheisive backed weather stripping or butyl caulk (also called dumdum) to seal it down. The butyl will stick all around, so I think I'll probably use that.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

imahassle said:


> Can you post how you reseal the fresh air inlet? I've been struggling with the same issue but I'm not really sure how to tackle removing and resealing it. If there's already a post like that, then I guess I've missed it.
> 
> Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk


keeping your rain drains clear is the first step.

A/c or not?

a/c there are 2 screws holding it inplace, they are under the kneebar.

For the whole thing there are one more bolt passenger side of the air inlet.
The screw out the top
and there is one more screw under the drivers side kneebar, a 18inch #2 Phillips comes in handy for that one.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Rain tray drains are Uber clear and have been checked many times. Was AC, only bits that remain are in the heater box. I've had it off before to clean all the crap out of the blower housing and check the blower brushes and the resistor pack. I thought it had a good seal, but apparently not. I checked it during a good rain and it was dripping off the bottom of the knee bar, towards the outside, not from the corner of the top. That's what points me in the direction of the fresh air inlet.


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## imahassle (Jan 20, 2016)

Mine's A/C. Thanks for the diagram, Brian! Should help lots with finding the leak.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk


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## Mishto (Aug 9, 2016)

I replaced my Passenger taillight bulb.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Well, I have been working indirectly on the cabriolet by working on a P.O.S. Honda for a family member so I can get that car out of the garage and put my car in. BUT after starting to install the trans, I find out the casing is bad. Bracket studs were stripped and the front mount casting was cracked. No good. They are going to try to fix it in car. I hope so, as I don't want to take it out. Ug. I thought they checked the trans before hand. I should have. I learned my lesson.

I have to go back tomorrow and tarp the car. It's leaking so bad there is a huge puddle in car. Even after duct taping everything. Wet my Bentley, too. 
Every time I go work on the Honda, I open the top, doors and whatnot to try to dry it out. But the humidity is 87 percent or so, so that is not working. Damn I forgot how much I hate the humidity in the midwest.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Took the cover off, looked at it, looked at my garage, looked back at it, put the cover back on, then got depressed because I want to drive it, but remembered I need to clean my garage so I can do the trans rebuild, install the CAE shifter and install my big valve head.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

dougkehl said:


> Took the cover off, looked at it, looked at my garage, looked back at it, put the cover back on, then got depressed because I want to drive it, but remembered I need to clean my garage so I can do the trans rebuild, install the CAE shifter and install my big valve head.


I feel you, and fast84gti. While my cabby is in the garage, it has so much crap piled on and around it it would take me a day to dig it out. Besides all the other work I have to do like rebuild the trans and replace the heater core in my Jeep, finish the rear suspension overhaul on the e46, and work on my Mk2. So the Cabby is and will continue to be on the back burner. 

The good news is I'm almost done with my kitchen rennovation, so my shed is becoming devoid of all the cabinets and appliances making room for all of the crap that's accumulated around my cabby in the garage. Baby steps...


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Took my Cabby on a twisty-turny road at speed, on the new suspension.... fun......fun....fun.....


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## efinkg4 (Jul 5, 2016)

*I cleaned up some wires and tubes*

Before









After 









and a day after i did this the cooling fan switch stopped working, haha


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## efinkg4 (Jul 5, 2016)

I replaced a few grounds today










Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Took the Cabby to it's first judged show

Scored 1st place Cabriolets.... very unexpected


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## Avolow (Mar 31, 2005)

Actually got quite a bit done to mine this weekend.

Oil Change, Spark Plugs, Cap, Rotor, rear brakes and drums, new e-brake cables.

Did the vacuum lines inside and dash and engine bay last weekend but still had the charcoal canister to do yesterday.

Perma mounted my GPS and hid the wires inside the dash and up the window frame inside the windshield seal to right above the mirror, also ran the wires for my new auto dimming mirror with compass/temp (thank you bone yard  ). Still have to get the temp sensor from the bone yard (forgot it) and get that installed. Also perma mounted my cigarette lighter power strip / phone charger. Getting the power from the plug that I am pretty sure went to the tape deck holder that I removed a while back. I thought that the wire was for a light that may have been in it, but turns out when I tested it with the multi meter that it was switched power. Couldn't find the tape deck thing I pulled out to see what that plug would have fed originally.

Replaced all my dash and gauge lights with blue LED lights and removed the green film inside the cluster and clock. 

Reinstalled my cruise control box after pulling it to see if the solder needed re-flowed on any part of the board. Still having intermittent cruise working issues. That's something for another day and maybe a complete system swap for something after market. Done dinking with that.

Replaced my seat track plastic. Got my lower steering column bearing back in place and stuck the hose clamp back on it. The clamp has fallen down before though, and it will fall again. Just hope it stays there till the 1 1/8th inch split shaft collar I ordered arrives. Still have to see what is up with the horn. Seems like when the bearing was out if I wobbled the wheel up the horn would work, but if I moved it down it wouldn't. Was kind of hoping putting the bearing back would fix it. 

Tried my hand at seeing what is up with my airbag system. Both lights are on and I'm getting 3230 from the system when I pull codes. Still have some looking into that one before I try posting about it or just decide to gut the system. That "must be replaced every ten years" thing just doesn't seem like its going to happen.

Busy last couple days. :laugh:

Avolow.


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## 16VSerenity (Jul 26, 2006)

^Wow, well done. :thumbup:


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## finky (Mar 19, 2010)

I ran out in the pouring rain to put the top up. 0% chance of rain... yeah right. 
Luckily, I had an extra set of clothes at work.


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## Avolow (Mar 31, 2005)

finky said:


> I ran out in the pouring rain to put the top up. 0% chance of rain... yeah right.
> Luckily, I had an extra set of clothes at work.


I hear ya! :laugh: My town got hammered yesterday with rain and hail and I spent a good 4 hours yesterday driving around soaked to the bone.... on the left side. :banghead: Hail + old dried out top = swiss cheese. Everything just collected in the headliner and poured all over me every time I turned a corner. Time for a fancy white tarp from Home Depot and a can of spray adhesive until I can save enough for my new top. 

Avolow.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

My white duct tape is not holding up to downpours.
So, I went to where my car is parked and pulled out the boxes that were in it so the stuff in them doesn't get moldy.
I opened the doors, trunk lid and top so it could air out a bit. I will go tomorrow to open the car again.
I have to remove carpet until I can get it ready for winter. It has to be perfectly dry when I park it finally for the winter.
It might be in a garage, but is still outside, so i just bought a car cover.
Someone put a tarp on another car without asking and they screwed up the paint in a few spots.
I hate tarps. But over a car cover should not hurt.

I am looking at a house to rent, so may have a garage soon... I hope...


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## Avolow (Mar 31, 2005)

fast84gti said:


> Someone put a tarp on another car without asking and they screwed up the paint in a few spots.
> I hate tarps. But over a car cover should not hurt.


The tarp I'm getting isn't to cover the car while its parked. It is going to be my new ghetto convertible top. :laugh: I was going to spray the adhesive all over the top I do still have and then put the new white tarp on that, fold the front of it in between the window frame, and the top frame make sure its glued down good and solid, then trim the sides up. Might even look ok from 50 feet, but it will keep the rain off me while I'm driving at least. Hoping to have enough money saved in the next couple months to get a real top for the car.  Till then, winter is coming and I'll have to drive it one way or the other.

Avolow.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Today I scrubbed the wife's white top, again. A white top sucks when you're parking on the street and not in a garage. I am not going to miss this aspect of this car. Yes, that for sale sign is current. Seeing as this isn't the calssifieds, pm me if you want more details.










Finished product:










I also stopped being lazy and took the 3 minutes to replace the trunk lock gasket, today.










And took advantage of the chalkboard paint job for some advertising.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Avolow said:


> The tarp I'm getting isn't to cover the car while its parked. It is going to be my new ghetto convertible top. :laugh: I was going to spray the adhesive all over the top I do still have and then put the new white tarp on that, fold the front of it in between the window frame, and the top frame make sure its glued down good and solid, then trim the sides up. Might even look ok from 50 feet, but it will keep the rain off me while I'm driving at least. Hoping to have enough money saved in the next couple months to get a real top for the car.  Till then, winter is coming and I'll have to drive it one way or the other.
> 
> Avolow.


Yeah, I was going to find something to glue onto the big, cut open hole on side of top. Front is messed up, too.
I am not driving it, so have not resorted to that (yet). If I were driving it, i am sure I would get tired of getting wet real quick.


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## millerg8jr (Sep 7, 2016)

My sone bought a used 01 Cabrio. Ther person he bought it from was a con artist. His Wipers didn't work right and his hron didn't work. I took a look at it and it is missing most of the relays. Luckily the car came with a 97 spare car and I was able to scavange the relays and now wipers work properly as does the horn. Also relplaced some other relay that said Ford on it with the proper Hella Brand VW one. Next up, door locks.


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## Avolow (Mar 31, 2005)

Oh yeah. 


Only one side is done so far, but the other wont take that long. All I have to do for the other sidxe is run the wire through the frame and into the door and mount the servo. 

Avolow.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Avolow said:


> Oh yeah.
> 
> Avolow.


My god, man, clean your seats!


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## Avolow (Mar 31, 2005)

Yeah, its a work in progress.  The drivers seat is stained, the passenger seat is pretty chewed up, and the back seat has some sort of branding it in from something so new seats are on the wish list anyway. Top is shreds and the headliner isn't much better. Rust around the windshield frame and paint is fugly. One step at a time.

Avolow.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Was enjoying a topless drive going to parts store, grocery store, tunes are up, then I was stopped for a light and a full stanky,stinky Garbage truck pulled up next and a little front of me in the other turn lane...... Talk about a warm Georgia afternoon, and a RIPE truck.....

But at least I was driving my ride.


----------



## staticliner (Apr 14, 2012)

Installed LEDs in my lower console gauges...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Prepped for transmission removal. Hopefully I can get it rebuilt before the cold weather sets in.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Working on a repaint


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## Thriver (Sep 17, 2016)

Found the source of a rather loud knocking noise, alternator pivot bolt missing.
Evidently the guy I got it from didn't remember to reinstall it when he changed the alternator.
So, Ordered a correct pivot bolt as well as a spare just because.
Found a small oil drip, ordered a new valve cover gasket as well.

Next up, find a few minor electrical gremlins and replace front wheel bearings.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Wash, wax, vacuum the beastie, then drove it Like I stole it........ YEEEEEEE Haw.


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## StephanieGA (May 10, 2011)

It's been a busy couple of weeks. The better question would be what HAVEN'T we done? 

But so far, the best upgrade has been the short shift kit from US Rally Team. Thumper shifts like a new car! It wasn't a piece of cake to install but definitely worth it.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Bought a bottle of Totally Awesome from the dollar store. Washed my backseat that has been in the car for a couple of decades plus. The stuff really is totally awesome. I feel the pic doesn't do it justice. This was after a quick pass. I have yet to really work it in and wet vac it off. The water I was squeezing out was still brown.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

CabbyMagoo said:


> Bought a bottle of Totally Awesome from the dollar store. Washed my backseat that has been in the car for a couple of decades plus. The stuff really is totally awesome. I feel the pic doesn't do it justice. This was after a quick pass. I have yet to really work it in and wet vac it off. The water I was squeezing out was still brown.



Told you that was the best cleaner I have ever found, now for a treat, take that and mix it 50/50 with simple green in the new foam sprayer....
It turns Simple Green in to simple yellow, takes about a day... But the foam head on the Simple green is the neat thing.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

I am actually in the process of removing the covers so I can thoroughly wash them without soaking the foam cushion (which is still in excellent shape) and dry them and then put them back on.

I'm not clear on the Simple Green 50/50 thing. You mean it makes a lot of foam or what?


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## Mass Polluter (Sep 26, 2016)

*I took my 1992 in for a smog test today. Fail.*

IDLE:
HC 136 (max 120)
CO 9.86 (max 1.0)

2500RPM:
HC 377 (max 140)
CO 10.70 (max 1.0)

Runs excellent, just had the oil changed 20/50, 143k miles, automatic. Karmin Wolfsberg, now I cannot even sell it in California as a result, unless something simple that I'm missing. 

Kinda bummed out and hoping someone else experienced this and has a suggestion or two to try for a DIYer. 

Thank you.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Where in CA are you?


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Mass Polluter said:


> IDLE:
> HC 136 (max 120)
> CO 9.86 (max 1.0)
> 
> ...


You should really start a fresh post for this with more information, like what year the car is and if it was originally a CA emissions car.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Today I cut part of my windshield gasket away to fix the rust beneath it. Once done I'm getting a new windshield this Tuesday at Safelite.


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## Avolow (Mar 31, 2005)

CabbyMagoo said:


> Today I cut part of my windshield gasket away to fix the rust beneath it. Once done I'm getting a new windshield this Tuesday at Safelite.


You got a thread for this? How are ou taking care of yours? I have the same rust and need to also get it taken care of and get a new windshield.

Avolow.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

I haven't done a thread. I'm just removing the outer lip of the gasket all the way around and the entire thing in two places where I need access to the metal underneath. Once repaired I'll let the Safelite guy take the old windshield and gasket out and put the new one in. I wouldn't drive around with the window like that but for a few days it's okay. The glass feels solidly in place. I might post a few pictures of what I've done.


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

CabbyMagoo said:


> Once repaired I'll let the Safelite guy take the old windshield and gasket out and put the new one in.


Do they have a new gasket ready for you?


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Good question! Checking now.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Fixed rust around windshield. Got new windshield. Windshield broke during installation.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

CabbyMagoo said:


> Fixed rust around windshield. Got new windshield. Windshield broke during installation.


I'm getting ready to install a new windshield in my Quantum Syncro after it's painted. I'm terrified of this to say the least.. 

Anyway, I started the car and let it run for a bit today.. I'll take it out later for a nice cruise, I just need to pick up more 112 octane fuel down by where I work so I can drive it and have it be happy lol.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

dougkehl said:


> I'm getting ready to install a new windshield in my Quantum Syncro after it's painted. I'm terrified of this to say the least.


You're terrified of the windshield breaking? I was on my iPad which sucks to post with so the full story is that the guys installing it at Safelite felt terrible and are going to fix it.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Took out center console, passenger seat, and redid part of the windshield repair I did earlier since I'm waiting for a new windshield. And I dropped my phone.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Single round grill


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

What does that mean? You put one in?


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

CabbyMagoo said:


> What does that mean? You put one in?



Yup... was quads


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

Drove it to work then trailered it home after it ejected all of it's oil.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

MOBOZO said:


> Drove it to work then trailered it home after it ejected all of it's oil.


Oil cooler o-ring? First thing I would check.


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## M333ch02 (Oct 14, 2015)

Drove it into work


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## Thriver (Sep 17, 2016)

I have been working on cleaning all the crap out of my garage, for the first time in 8 years I actually drove my cabby into the garage.  Let the games begin!


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

scoured it, wet sanded it, wiped it clean, did light body work (filling scratches and holes with putty), sanded it again, wiped it clean, taped everything off I couldn't remove, and pooped out. I'll spray tomorrow.

CM


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## MOBOZO (Dec 14, 2009)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Oil cooler o-ring? First thing I would check.


http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?8241009-AAA-super-high-oil-pressure


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## Sukisteeltoes (Aug 25, 2016)

2000 VW Cabrio...Bessy Beep Beep Vader, soon to be triple black, like my soul...lol
I replaced the water pump timing belt, tensioner, fuel pump, replaced beige interior pieces with black ones, consoles, glove box etc...New rim, not bent ( which in incredibly helpful)


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove mine Topless Matching the flow of Traffic, @ 80mph.... only later did I have a couple of issues....Sun Burn on my knees, and a flapping top boot strap.
I will have a how to on that in a bit.


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## treerat (Mar 11, 2004)

im done with body work. waiting for molding clips to be sent. 7 weeks it took.

Before


















After


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## benzguy350 (Sep 28, 2016)

*2000 cabrio work done*

so in the last week I put in a new heater core, AC expansion valve since I was in there. New speed sensor, full timing belt job with new water pump, thermostat, new belts etc...
also new BF Goodrich tires.

Next I have to put in new ABS sensors on the wheels and a new ABS pump to get that light out. Also need to put in a new AC compressor and dryer then recharge. Then all the mechanical issues are done. The front end suspension and axles were done 10000 miles ago. 

car still runs like a champ and does the 183 mile round trip daily commute with out a hitch.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

My car went from getting beat up by the SoCal sun, to getting rained on a lot in widwest as of mid July. 
Floor got wet and I was not able to dry it out for a few months due to being parked outside. Luckily, I had already removed the rubber/wool sound deadening stuff. I tried a car cover, but it just disintegrated in the sun and wind. Worthless. Got my money back.

I found a new place to live, and it has a large garage. Door is only 1 car big, but I could probably cram three rabbits or cabbies in there. 
I moved the cabby to the garage and promptly removed the carpet and cleaned the floor pan. No rust at all, thankfully.
Engine is only held in with 2 bolts as i unplugged the electrical and fuel system. Ready to drop. I hope to have that done soon before winter hits. Garage has newer, dry roof, but NO insulation and old siding you can see light through. Very cold.

The new place i moved into was really nasty. Rent was so cheap, it was hard to pass up. BUT with one caveat. 
Cockroaches... Took me weeks to kill them, clean up the mess and try to fix the damage. Kitchen needs to be nuked. It still smells gross. They were living iin the walls and being a rental, we can't tear the walls down... 
They live in the grass and outside. I also found signs of them living in the siding and damaging the insulation.
Also being a rental and owner is tired of spending money (long story, don't ask) we don't want to spend much at all...
So, I tore apart the heating system and cleaned the complete ventilation system as best I could. 
Chihuahuas were peeing down the intake vent and I had to scrub that. Bastards.
The intake vent going from floor to basement was lined with about 1/2" to 1" of fur and dirt (house has HUGE vent in floor where there use to be a heat riser converted to a box that is now an intake vent). 
I have a 10 foot hose that I put on my vacuum with brush attachment, and I push it into the output vents.
I could not believe how many roaches I sucked up. So f'ing gross. The flexible tube vents are 40 bucks each and there are 8 or 9 of them... So, the owner doesn't want to replace them. They are full of dirt, still. I can't get that out. So gross.
I MIGHT take the vents out in spring and spray the insides with water. It might clean them... But that will have to wait as winter is too close and there are more important winterizing projects still to do.

I also put tape on all the seams on the heating system and the vent outputs. Some of them were poorly attached and let the heat out into the basement, and made it easier for insects to get in...
I also had to use compressed air to clean the fan. It barely pushed air out. I am surprised it didn't catch fire with all that dog hair in there. EW!!!!!!

First time I turned the heat on to test it, it made the house smell like BBQ'd cockroaches, I kid you not...
The smell went away after a few hours. I opened all the windows and doors on a cool night and ran it for hours.

I also got permission from the owner to refinish the wood floors. I rented a floor sander and pulled an all nighter so I could get the floors fully sanded in the 24 hour rental period.
I didn't screen them due to lack of funds (remember, owner is cheap bastard).
I screwed up and didn't have the right applicator so I did two coats of varnish with a 2.5" brush. Took me 12 hours. That sucked.
But floors look incredible and I get nonstop compliments. 

Why am I telling you about all this? Because it's taking time from my car and I am pissed!!!!
We have been paying rent for over a month, and still have not lived in the F'ing house!
Well, we did get our security deposit back.  For all our "hard work". pfffft Whatever

Do you know how many frickin' beautiful fall days we have had here? I dare say prettier than some of the weather in California (where I live now has lower crime, no real smog, light traffic and NO drought).  
So nice I WISH I had my cabby to drive. 
So, this will be a long winter trying to muster up the funds to fix the bi tch basket. 

My cabby does not run. But at least I have a garage to put it in now, right? 

I will try to update with pictures when I can. Been so busy with this F'ing house and the move... Ug.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

fast84gti said:


> My car went from getting beat up by the SoCal sun, to getting rained on a lot in widwest as of mid July.
> Floor got wet and I was not able to dry it out for a few months due to being parked outside. Luckily, I had already removed the rubber/wool sound deadening stuff. I tried a car cover, but it just disintegrated in the sun and wind. Worthless. Got my money back.
> 
> I found a new place to live, and it has a large garage. Door is only 1 car big, but I could probably cram three rabbits or cabbies in there.
> ...


Between other car projects, buying a house, and starting a family my cabby has just been in limbo for the last 6 or 7 years. Fortunately I don't have to move it around, anymore. I just have clean all the crap off of it once I'm ready to work on it, again.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Pushed it forwards, then pushed it back to where it was originally sitting in the garage lol.. Patiently waiting on the very last of the go fast parts.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I finally found some time to sneak out to garage and drop the engine. Glad I already had the engine ready to drop before moving. Only two bolts holding it in. Adios, pinche motor!


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Bought a ton of parts 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Got my bumpers on. Repainted the grille and emblem (opinions) and repainted the badges because I need stinkin' badges.


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

CabbyMagoo said:


> Got my bumpers on. Repainted the grille and emblem (opinions) and repainted the badges because I need stinkin' badges.


badges look good, I think you need a stinkin' top.

By the way, I think the grille and emblem look good.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

I have a stinking top but am hesitating to put it on.


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## Thriver (Sep 17, 2016)

Spent part of yesterday removing alot of good parts from my parts car.
Today I dove into what could have been clutch issues, the pedal needed to be buried in the carpet to put it in gear and then would grab quick as soon as you let any pressure off it.
A bit of investigation and I found a extremely messed up clutch cable. Grabbed the one from my parts car, it looks new, put it in and bingo!! The clutch works and feels awesome.
This cabby looks as though it has never been waxed so I spent a bit of time polishing. 
Keep in mind this is nothing more than one time over with some mild compound.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Daughter borrowed car, while I worked on her Yaris.
"Loved taking the top off on the drive home, oh, BTW the Drivers window doesn't work." thanks dad.

Had to repair the Broken wire in the door jamb. Fixed both wires, not only the one that was broke, but the other looked iffy.
Cut about 10 inches of new wire in both places, and then pulled the repaired brakes well in to the Cabin and the door.

Window works well now.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Started cleaning up engine bay with degreaser. I removed the cis fueling, grille and other bits.


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## beertestr (Jun 11, 2002)

Oh... Just got the VR6 hanging in the engine bay on custom mounts. Long way to go still. 










Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

*Black Stripe and Front Plate*


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Still in process of settling in after cross country move.
Fortunately, weather is ok enough and I have found time to separate transmission from jh engine. I removed the head. I have two stripped intake bolts I need to cut off. And two stripped bolts on tb. Tb is junk, so can cut bolts with no worries of hurting it.
Garage is still a mess. Need to organize parts and bolts.

This afternoon i stripped the aba long block i bought for 100 bucks. I removed the head to do visual inspection. I removed the oil pan to verify the block is in fact obd1. Head is obd1, too. Cylinder 2 has some visible damage (oxidization from coolant and sitting in shop with upper intake off), but looks to be fixable. I need to see if head is warped because there are signs head gasket blew, and oil smelled burnt. If it is not warped, might use head. Not sure, as i want to stay counterflow. But aba turbo is option (can use in future projects).
I will try to check head tonight.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Had to cut and hack two stripped bolts on intake so i could finish stripping the jh head. Then i realized i no longer have my vw valve spring compressor tool.  So, went to hf and purchased an 8" clamp that worked like a charm with ox sensor (probably faster, too).  I still had the little magnet tool, fortunately. 
I kept all the parts for each port in individual bags in case i want to use original stuff when i reassemble.


----------



## Thriver (Sep 17, 2016)

Installed some coil-overs, lowered and aligned it.
Next up do something with the wheels.....paint....powdercoat...something


----------



## Thane.of.my.existence (Nov 1, 2016)

Thriver said:


> Installed some coil-overs, lowered and aligned it.
> Next up do something with the wheels.....paint....powdercoat...something


Perfect height, looks great and still functional. I want to get mine somewhere close to that, would love to go a little lower but living in Alaska it would make the car undrivable for like half the year.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Thriver (Sep 17, 2016)

Thane.of.my.existence said:


> Perfect height, looks great and still functional. I want to get mine somewhere close to that, would love to go a little lower but living in Alaska it would make the car undrivable for like half the year.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


I had it lower but ran into 2 issues, it would not allow the hoist arms to fit under it and it got high centered when attempting to pull it on the alignment rack.
The height it is now allows the hoist arms to fit under it with about 1/8" clearance and it clears the alignment rack about the same. Perfect!! :thumbup:


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## Swordie100 (Jun 29, 2016)

Vacuumed the hell out of my Mk3 cabby. Including trunk and floormats. It looks even more amazing now. 










This turbo is from an VW AHU engine (VW Golf 3 TDI, 90 bhp), would it even be possible to put this on my Mk3 with a reasonable, safe boost?


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

*First Bath of the new Year......*


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


>


What? No top down?!  Was top down weather for January in PA, today, over 60. Car looks great, Brian!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> What? No top down?!  Was top down weather for January in PA, today, over 60. Car looks great, Brian!


Sure was topless weather, but as I took it to the quarter car wash, I had to leave the top up as it is Canvas, and needed to dry.

here is a snap of the first topless drive this year, Jan 1.


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## Bobby_cabrio (Jan 19, 2017)

Nice. Where did you get this? 

Sent from my SM-G935P using Tapatalk


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## brye2792 (Jan 23, 2017)

Just bought a 2000 Cabby with a VR6 swap (from a 98 Jetta GLX) as my first car so I'm excited  Thinking of ideas right now that i plan on bringing to life in the Spring .. 

Seller threw in new headers, front suspension (rear already installed), and a steel plate to protect the oil pan since its dropped a little (still debating adding on that weight) 

Need a new clutch ASAP but still researching whats the best option for me. I don't want to go too light on the flywheel. Open to suggestions !

OH AND HORRIBLE lifter noise at cold start; will be looking at it soon.. I added some fuel stabilizer, did't help that much .. Looking into SeaFoam before I crack it open to take a look at them. 

(i'd add pics but i don't know how to)


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## M333ch02 (Oct 14, 2015)

brye2792 said:


> Just bought a 2000 Cabby with a VR6 swap (from a 98 Jetta GLX) as my first car so I'm excited  Thinking of ideas right now that i plan on bringing to life in the Spring ..
> 
> Seller threw in new headers, front suspension (rear already installed), and a steel plate to protect the oil pan since its dropped a little (still debating adding on that weight)
> 
> ...


Picture must be uploaded to another image hosting site (I.e. Photobucket then you can copy the link and paste it here)


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

brye2792 said:


> Seller threw in new headers, front suspension (rear already installed), and a *steel plate to protect the oil pan since its dropped a little (still debating adding on that weight) *


A good speed bump at the right speed will end the debate of a plate protecting the oil pan IMHO, 10-20lbs, or new engine (Left hand is moving opposite of right hand judging weight, and risk.).


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Are you sure it's lifter noise and not timing chain noise?


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

brye2792 said:


> (i'd add pics but i don't know how to)


From the great thread: *First Time Posters should read this.

*

Post Pictures of your car, or issue area. 
How do I post a picture: open a photobucket account, then upload the pic to
there. Once there click on the picture or the share links. Find the image link and copy and paste that in your post.
P-bucket is click on the img line and it will copy it to your clipboard on your Mac or PC then opposite mouse button (some like me have a left handed mouse.) to paste it in to your text.
Or Mac Command KEY-V. 



We won't get in to the part that you should add your cars information to your profile, as that is covered in the above link.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

brye2792 said:


> Just bought a 2000 Cabby with a VR6 swap (from a 98 Jetta GLX) as my first car so I'm excited  Thinking of ideas right now that i plan on bringing to life in the Spring ..
> 
> Seller threw in new headers, front suspension (rear already installed), and a steel plate to protect the oil pan since its dropped a little (still debating adding on that weight)
> 
> ...


*You can lead a user to a link, but you can't make them click.
*


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## brye2792 (Jan 23, 2017)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Are you sure it's lifter noise and not timing chain noise?


not 100% sure but from what I spoke to the previous owner, he says its the lifters. Going to the shop tomorrow morning to confirm.


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## brye2792 (Jan 23, 2017)

briano1234 said:


> A good speed bump at the right speed will end the debate of a plate protecting the oil pan IMHO, 10-20lbs, or new engine (Left hand is moving opposite of right hand judging weight, and risk.).


well when you put it that way ...
& thanks for the link(s)


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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Fixed the exhaust rattle.....










Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## brye2792 (Jan 23, 2017)

Does anyone know where I can find a roof rack for my cabrio ?


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

I bet that thing runs like a top now. My car had a cat that was only a couple years old and removing it made such a difference I can't imagine one that looked like that being fun to drive lol.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Blade3562 said:


> I bet that thing runs like a top now. My car had a cat that was only a couple years old and removing it made such a difference I can't imagine one that looked like that being fun to drive lol.


I have one that is off the emissions list, and removing the cat was fun, but then again, I remove it after every emissions test so I am used to the thing sans cat. What makes it funner is the 4-2 manifold and the Dual down pipe by tt tuning.




I know when I put the Header on my 90, I gained 35 HP from the Seat-of-my-pants-o-meter.


Does it count if I drove both of them yesterday?


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Looked at it....


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Looked at it....


We've had a super mild winter, so far. I blame it on my new snow blower! Lol!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Looked at it....


That much snow sends shivers down my back...... I really think I am beginning to Hate Snow/Sleet/Ice more and may move to Frost Free Florida.

But on a side note, I did Drive mine Topless today again.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

briano1234 said:


> That much snow sends shivers down my back...... I really think I am beginning to Hate Snow/Sleet/Ice more and may move to Frost Free Florida.
> 
> But on a side note, I did Drive mine Topless today again.


That was only 2 hrs of snow.... I cleaned it off and came out to that.... calling for even more snow here today in BC.... Total weather fluke


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

It's ALIVE!!!!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMfpXGrOdDI&feature=youtu.be


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> It's ALIVE!!!!
> 
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMfpXGrOdDI&feature=youtu.be


Congradulations. I drove mine again today, had to pull over to put the top up because I wasn't going to have my ride called on account of rain.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> Congradulations. I drove mine again today, had to pull over to put the top up because I wasn't going to have my ride called on account of rain.


Could have driven top down in central PA, this afternoon. Cabby was at home, though. Had to pull and charge the battery last week (had been sitting for probably 2 months), and haven't gotten it reinstalled, yet. Plus I had the kiddo to haul.


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

Decided I want to light it on fire. Replaced plug wires, distributor cap, distributor rotor, plugs and coil. My random start issue is now a no start issue. Now I'm thinking ICM or wiring to the ICM. :banghead:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Blade3562 said:


> Decided I want to light it on fire. Replaced plug wires, distributor cap, distributor rotor, plugs and coil. My random start issue is now a no start issue. Now I'm thinking ICM or wiring to the ICM. :banghead:


Did you make sure got the ground wire from the back of the valve cover to the coil bracket reinstalled?


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Did you make sure got the ground wire from the back of the valve cover to the coil bracket reinstalled?


Didn't have one. It appeared to be grounded via the rain tray.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Install that ground wire!!


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Machine shop inspected marks on ABA cylinder wall and said i should hone it myself to see if there is pitting.

I bought a hone and engine stand.

I removed steering rack so i can clean more of firewall and begin to disassemble the rack and convert to manual.

I saw a jettaIII glx for sale locally for under a grand, running. Damn tempted to buy it for parts car.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

After getting ABA block onto stand, I decided to hand turn the crank. It was a bit stiff, but after i started turning it more, it loosened up and moved nicely.
To my surprise, the rings cleaned the cylinder wall of the corrosion lines (as seen in pic, engine blew head gasket and oil burned, too). They look and feel great now!

Front main cap had some wear, one of the middle caps had lines but crank surface looked ok. I really just want to hone, put in new bearings and rings. I was going to go build it for high performance, but decided to try to get car running sooner.
I am thinking of just a cheap, simple overhaul.

It's my first full teardown of a block. Should be a good learning experience.

Going to work later to look up part numbers for gaskets and stuff.


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## yoippari (Aug 14, 2003)

Last two days I drove with the top down for the first time. Today I replaced the washer fluid hose and brake vacuum check valve with hose. Was a decent couple of days.


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Picked this up for it today. It's been a long work in progress, but is completely worth it considering the CFM it flows.

Here are the specs:
- 1.8L head ported, with corrected exhaust short side radius.
- A custom set of Supertech Honda B18 33mm intake valves with 5.5mm stems narrowed to 5mm to optimize flow.
- Custom seats to match valves
- 28.5mm Supertech exhaust valves 
- Tapered, high flow intake and exhaust valves 
- Mildly deshrouded exhaust valves, it's impossible to make them as good as other 16v heads.
- Supertech HD springs
- Supertech titanium retainers
- Flowing approx 233 CFM on the intake and approx 178 CFM on the exhaust.
*Edit*
- Filled injector posts to maximize flow with my twin Weber DCOE 45s

IMG_8369 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_8372 by dougkehl1, on Flickr
IMG_8370 by dougkehl1, on Flickr


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Holy crap that is nice, Doug!

I was able to bring my rack to work and borrow tools to remove the stupid pretensioner lock nut. I should be able to remove internals on next day off.

A customer said he knew someone that had a lathe, so I gave him my intermediate shaft and he had the crappy cast shaft machined down for me. Better balanced and slightly lighter. For free! Super awesome guy! 

I am finally getting stuff done on the car, and a bunch of people quit at work. So I will be working more hours and need more training. Going to dig into car time. 
But, maybe I can get car driveable by summer? (If i dont go crazy with the motor)


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

What happened to #4 intake seats? Those pits are huge! I'm surprised the machine shop did not fix that.

Maybe I'm not seeing things right too.


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## Swordie100 (Jun 29, 2016)

Stripped almost the whole interior except for the dashboard.

I live in the Netherlands, if someone wants some parts we probably can discuss something.
Brown skyleahther seats, black cloth floor, black leather/cloth door panels, seatbelts.

Is there a market for the engine bay stuff? I will keep some stuff for myself but almost everything has to go since I got a Mk3 now and no garage or storage whatsoever. :")


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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Butcher said:


> What happened to #4 intake seats? Those pits are huge! I'm surprised the machine shop did not fix that.
> 
> Maybe I'm not seeing things right too.


It's mostly dirty. In that area there is a lot of dye is still on the head that was never cleaned, but there is pitting in the head. I'm surprised they didn't either and I pointed it out. It happened when the new seats were installed because the oem seats were too small. I can't recall that being there prior to the seats being removed. It's not that deep compared to how deep the seat goes and everything on the seat itself is flawless. I was concerned at first, but I'm not too worried about it now.. My only real concern is that it could maybe cause an issue in creating a hot spot. We shall see when I put it on and run the car.


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

Tried to get it to start. I'm going to replace the starter. It may just be that shot. It drew so much current it melted the grips on my jumper cables. It also wouldn't shut off, just kept spinning and spinng very slowly. So that's not right. Going to check the main ground again. Frustrated with this car lol.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Blade3562 said:


> Tried to get it to start. I'm going to replace the starter. It may just be that shot. It drew so much current it melted the grips on my jumper cables. It also wouldn't shut off, just kept spinning and spinng very slowly. So that's not right. Going to check the main ground again. Frustrated with this car lol.


Remember that the ground is a one piece cable that goes from the battery to the Frame, Ties to the Frame and over to the engine/tranny.
Power to it is also from the Battery to the Big LUG on the Starter, with the Solenoid being worked with 12V from the Ignition Switch and 8 feet of wire between them.

If'n it was me. I would replace the Battery to Frame and Frame to engine/tranny ground.
I would look up the installation of the HEAT SOAK relay, (Manual or Auto it gives POWER to the solenoid off the Battery).

It sounds as if your Starters Solenoid is burned out or not getting the Starter to start and spin.
A new Starter may be needed, but you can remove it and have it tested, which isn't a bad thing.

Putting new grounds on your car will only help, and the 7-12 dollar Heat Soak Relay is a VAST improvement and shorten the length of wire to the Starter solenoid and take the Hi-Current load off your Ignition Switch.....


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

briano1234 said:


> Remember that the ground is a one piece cable that goes from the battery to the Frame, Ties to the Frame and over to the engine/tranny.
> Power to it is also from the Battery to the Big LUG on the Starter, with the Solenoid being worked with 12V from the Ignition Switch and 8 feet of wire between them.
> 
> If'n it was me. I would replace the Battery to Frame and Frame to engine/tranny ground.
> ...


Starter was bad. Also grounds were replaced recently and check out fine. Running a cable to the block makes no difference.

Still won't start. New starter cranks faster and there is no system draw down. However it just won't start. maybe it's not getting fuel. All I smell when cranking is fuel and the fuel pump runs. Maybe clogged filter? Swapped the old coil cap rotor and wires back for less variables and still nothing. Swapped the coil from my other car that runs and it made no difference.

Back of the fuse panel looks good. Only 2 loose/cut wires are for the brake light switch and cruise control. (The brake line switch wire is the piggyback for cruise.)

Could the ICM be bad? Also could the connectors within the rubber to the dizzy be bad? Like cracked where I can't see them. I ran the ground from the ICM straight to the negative on the battery, the main ground point and to the chassis itself. None made a change.

There is a bad wire or connection or something electrical somewhere. I just for the life of me cannot find it.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Blade3562 said:


> Starter was bad. Also grounds were replaced recently and check out fine. Running a cable to the block makes no difference.
> 
> Still won't start. New starter cranks faster and there is no system draw down. However it just won't start. maybe it's not getting fuel. All I smell when cranking is fuel and the fuel pump runs. Maybe clogged filter? Swapped the old coil cap rotor and wires back for less variables and still nothing. Swapped the coil from my other car that runs and it made no difference.
> 
> ...


If you're smelling fuel you likely aren't getting spark. You need to pull the #1 spark plug, insert it in the plug wire, ground the plug threads, and then crank and watch for a strong, blueish spark. It may require a second person to help. If you swapped the coil, that is likely not the problem. It may be the ICM or it may be the hall effect in the distributor. 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

GF brought me a Rieger front spoiler?splitter back from germany… got it drilled primed and mounted…. need to sort paint


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Sun Shining 70 Degree day, top down tunes up driving it like I stole it. 
I got about 75 Smiles per Gallon.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> Sun Shining 70 Degree day, top down tunes up driving it like I stole it.
> I got about 75 Smiles per Gallon.


Yeah, I should have driven the wife's today. My e46 was in having some vinyl and tint work done. But, no, I drove the Chevy Crapalier. The cheap coils really kill my desire to drive the cabby any distance.

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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I made good progress on the rack. Got all the little parts clean, greased everything, and assembled. Pre-load thingy seems good. Rack turns nicely. 
Just have to prep for paint.
I am also degreasing firewall and areas where rack is so I can put it back in. The engine bay is so bad, I don't want to wait until it's completely clean to put rack back in.


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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Going to have one happy Cabriolet! Ordered a bunch of tune parts yesterday and new wheels and tires today!


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

WellI got it running. Of all the things for it to be it was fouled/bad contacts on the cap/rotor. In other news everything else mechanically has been gone through so it should run forever lol. Another new cap/rotor ordered.


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

Progress. Waiting for the rear cable to get here. Love this car.









Also swapped the clock lcd over from my daily. It was a 24 hour clock in the '85 but is only a 12 hour in the '88 ? Do I need to swap the circuit board to maintain the 24hr?









Cleaned up the '85 to sell it. Bittersweet but I'll be moving and can't take it with me.

























I found another '88 Best Seller Edition locally I wish I wasn't moving so I could snag it for parts for mine! Seats look nice and it even has the original grey top!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove my 93 to the Store Topless, and at a light a guy pulled up in a new GTI, and said Nice Ride....to which I said thank you.


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## nuget102 (Mar 6, 2017)

What I did to mine today is... I bought one!


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Wind finally died down so i can paint steering rack outside.
Car is not covered and dont want overspray all over garage.
I am trying to get rack done asap so i can install it and push out of garage to do final cleaning of empty engine bay.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I got the engine bay clean enough to start using rubbing compound to bring out the shine.
I ordered a single round badgeless grille and ps rack u-joint boot.
Once that gets here I can put rack back in.

I removed the brake master cylinder and booster.
The mc was so rusty that one of the fittings stripped. I soaked it in penetrating oil, too. Had to cut it off. 
Will have to bend the line and flare new fitting on it. 

Deciding on what color to paint booster.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Took the Fan shroud off to Paint the Fan motor as it was UUUUGly looking, and remembered that I should of used Never-Seize on the Shaft,,,, 20 minutes of Pb-Blaster and a Couple of smacks.... it was off. So while it was out,, "cutting the shroud makes it a 5 minutes job to get out see my how to's" I decided to Clean and wax my fan shroud... It looks so pretty now..... then I decided to clean my Maf....as well, then since I had the wax out, I waxed the insides of the fenders on top, and the Front Valance..... I had to wait for a child to call as I really needed to replace the air filter before buttoning it all back up....


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

While working on the Blue one, my Sander Crapped out so I had to stop and get a new one.....
But I did get to drive my Green Car to Home Depot and Back, Fist time out on the street since about October.....

Got the effing Parking lot Ding out of the door on my Blue one, 2 coats of primer 1000 grit between, and 2 coats of color... Tomorrow the clear and it is back on the road finally.

Don't you hate folks who smack your car, and then drive off or park in another spot..... 
Puckered it right above the door sill.


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Spent more money... 

Frequency valve hose is severely cracked and, of course, it's now NLA. :banghead: Got the other two fuel distributor molded hoses from Mk1 Autohaus, however, while the getting is still good. :thumbup:


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Picked the wife's up from the glass man Monday before the snow hit. Hopefully the windshield seal doesn't leak, now. 

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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

kamzcab86 said:


> Spent more money...
> 
> NLA


It's a Classic VW, that is a rolling moldy oldie.....what else should you expect?


NLA..... No Laughing Ashhole.....  (Basically: Try finding this sucker) TFTS


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

briano1234 said:


> It's a Classic VW, that is a rolling moldy oldie.....what else should you expect?
> 
> 
> NLA..... No Laughing Ashhole.....  (Basically: Try finding this sucker) TFTS


Yeah, I'm actually not surprised in the least.  Just kicking myself that I didn't follow through with ponying up the dinero for the FV years ago to keep in storage. :facepalm:


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

On the bright side, the frequency valve rubber is just a hose that can be replaced, been there done that. Of course, which clamp you use can be a topic of another thread.


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## kamzcab86 (Feb 14, 2002)

Butcher said:


> On the bright side, the frequency valve rubber is just a hose that can be replaced, been there done that. Of course, which clamp you use can be a topic of another thread.


Yes, that is the route I'll obviously be taking (duh, what other option is there aside from driving around with a fuel leak? :screwy: ), but the original is also a hose that is nicely molded into a U-shape.

As for the clamps... already have them in stock from another fuel line replacement project so it *won't* be a topic of another thread. eace:


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Due to high winds, there were some dust and dirt chunks in the fresh paint on the brake booster I painted the other day.
So i scuffed it with a scotchbrite pad and did a couple light coats.
Much better this time. Looks great.

I painted the steering rack air line (goes from boot to boot) to match rack.

Decided to test fit the single round badgeless grille. It was cheap and one mounting tab broke in transit. Fit was a p.i.a.(no surprise!), but it looks great.
I painted the light trim rings a gloss black to match, and it looks great as well. Going to order lights soon.


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

fast84gti said:


> I painted the steering rack air line (goes from boot to boot) to match rack.


That's hard core, I just resealed my rack and I want to say it's just about impossible to see that tube [that I almost forgot to install.].


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Butcher said:


> That's hard core, I just resealed my rack and I want to say it's just about impossible to see that tube [that I almost forgot to install.].


Real easy to tell when you miss it, as when you turn your car, the steering wheel farts.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Who says you can't re-use OLD Christmas wrapping paper.....


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

New front bearings - total game changer!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

why I had to paint? I dropped alcohol on the Valance, when I wiped it off, I took the clear coat, the Paint and the primer to base metal,,,, Crappy Paint job.... So I had to have it pretty.


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

briano1234 said:


> why I had to paint? I dropped alcohol on the Valance, when I wiped it off, I took the clear coat, the Paint and the primer to base metal


WOW! I told you to take the pain killers before you start working on the VW, but I think that type of alcohol should be left to after you finish. Some type of special Moonshine? Everclear? Please share.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Butcher said:


> WOW! I told you to take the pain killers before you start working on the VW, but I think that type of alcohol should be left to after you finish. Some type of special Moonshine? Everclear? Please share.


I don't share Drugs, and it was store bought Denatured 100 proof Alcohol that you can buy at the Borg...
I thought it was toulene as it took the paint right off,,, and it wasn't a hard rub... I went WTF?.....

But no it twere alcohol....

I mean I have sprayed Brake-kleen on that sucker and nada..... but Alcohol, best stripper around..... 
But it is alll good now......

2 coats color, and 2 clear......


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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Installed new tail lights and smoked side markers today.










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## Thane.of.my.existence (Nov 1, 2016)

Mr.Nobody said:


> Installed new tail lights and smoked side markers today.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I've been wondering how those side markers would look, my cabbys black with the clipper kit too and this just sealed the deal, I know what my next mod is. Do you just put colored bulbs behind them?


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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Thane.of.my.existence said:


> I've been wondering how those side markers would look, my cabbys black with the clipper kit too and this just sealed the deal, I know what my next mod is. Do you just put colored bulbs behind them?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Yes, led bulbs. B9AS bulbs. Got a set of 4 on eBay for $77 shipped.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Thane.of.my.existence (Nov 1, 2016)

Mr.Nobody said:


> Yes, led bulbs. B9AS bulbs. Got a set of 4 on eBay for $77 shipped.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Awesome, I'm definitely gonna look into that


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

I definitely like that look on the black. They are still too large, IMO. (I know, safety and visibility...) I made some backing plates and used some LED marker lights from Grote on the wife's 87. I used some stainless hardware to bolt them on, then.



















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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Drove My "Dirty Girl" with her top down


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

I went with clears on mine. BA9S LEDs from SuperBirghtLEDs with a 120 degree beam angle I believe. Only $25 for very LED on the car(I bought dash and plate lights at the same time) Really want to find a badgeless quad round setup. The company I bought the clears from offered a smoked as well. They were from/for a g wagon $90 for all 4, but you'd swear they were an OEM part!

Then:









Now: I'll take pics with the lights on, I can't find them now. I had Fifft clear tails but wasn't a fan will be buying some Fifft smokes.









I scored a pair of clipper bumpers for my green one, does anyone have pics of a car with just clipper kit bumpers and what it took to mount/modify them. I don't want to run the side skirts and flares. That way when I paint there's less to paint and worry about mismatching lol.









Alternator quit charging 100% time for a new one. What is the autozone part number for the one with only the 2 mounting bolt locations not the third. I can take a pic of what I mean. I also need the one with studs rather than the plug.


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

Top installs suck. Let's just leave it at that. Need to re stretch the leading edge. The glue didn't quite tack up enough so it lifted in the center. The rear edge is offcenter by a couple mm. Think that happened tightening down. Just have to glue the rear window side seals and the little cover plates then it's done. I'm pleased. First and last time I ever do a top lol. It's just a pita.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Blade3562 said:


> Top installs suck. Let's just leave it at that. First and last time I ever do a top lol. It's just a pita.


Now Now,,,, Cabriolets are more funner than '69 Super Beetles Vert's". Wait till you own it long enough, you'll do it over and over and over....

In my how do I do that.... I do think I say let the Glue tack... and make sure your rear is centered, but it don't look bad for a first timer.....

Be Thankful that there are pictorial out there, as the original Forrest King doc, left a lot of things out, and no hints or tricks.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Finally got the underside of the hood cleaned.


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

briano1234 said:


> Now Now,,,, Cabriolets are more funner than '69 Super Beetles Vert's". Wait till you own it long enough, you'll do it over and over and over....
> 
> In my how do I do that.... I do think I say let the Glue tack... and make sure your rear is centered, but it don't look bad for a first timer.....
> 
> Be Thankful that there are pictorial out there, as the original Forrest King doc, left a lot of things out, and no hints or tricks.


I don't think we looked for the top guide anywhere during the install other than if we should trim the excess fabric on the rear! It actually went on pretty easily after carefully extracting the older top. Just kind of did it in reverse! My friends' dad was helping and he was a former body shop guy so he had a couple tips/tricks. I think what happened with the leading edge was when we did a test for before we installed the plates, only the glue in place, and it shifted. It's not bad, but I bet it's a noisemaker! (It's better than the one on my '85 lol.) The glue dried overnight we'll see how it looks in a bit! I think the fact that it was a clotchctop not vinyl helped us out immensely. Also not having to do a rear window.









I used the MGMT side and top cables. Two snags I ran into. The side cable holes hard a sharp edge and tore the sheath. So we put some vaccum tubing in the hole, seemed to solve that.

The rear cable didn't want to work with us at first so that's what I think forced the top to be off center. We had two guys adjusting and 2 tightening. A racheting wrench is a must or you're hosed!


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Everything I almost know about vert tops are here.
http://www.toplessrabbit.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=41&sid=5a9ded7f694ca03a6b7bb043cdb904ea

If you would of asked prior, or googled... MY HOW-TOS are usually at the top 2 or 3 of a search... one is at VWOC, the other is Cabby-info...:0

Wait... www.cabby-info.com..... 

There is the hardway, the harder way, or step by step...

http://www.toplessrabbit.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=2224 Started in 2008, last udate was 2016.... 

Or page 3 of the faq's here, post 75.....


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Blade3562 said:


> The rear cable didn't want to work with us at first so that's what I think forced the top to be off center. We had two guys adjusting and 2 tightening. A racheting wrench is a must or you're hosed!


An articulating Ratchet combo wrench, 10 or 11 mm nuts vary....

I can do a top in about 4-5 hours if it is just the outer skin on a top that I have replaced, and made all the adjustments prior.
I do the rear by myself, only takes about 30 minutes my way  but then I have done a few of them....

Vinyls are easier than cloth.... 
because vinyls stretch easier, but 2 must have tools, Speed wrenches, and a heated space @ 80 degrees is really good.

I even tell you how to make your side cables and have improved them so they don't break.


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

briano1234 said:


> An articulating Ratchet combo wrench, 10 or 11 mm nuts vary....
> 
> I can do a top in about 4-5 hours if it is just the outer skin on a top that I have replaced, and made all the adjustments prior.
> I do the rear by myself, only takes about 30 minutes my way  but then I have done a few of them....
> ...


Ok I lied I used your guide for the sidecables. Used the 2x4 method. Must have remembered that from when I read through several guides back in June/July or when I messaged you about side cables haha. The issue wasn't the cable breaking but rather the frame where the cable snakes through. The old cable must have cut/ground the hole during use at some point. That sharp ridge caught the sheath tore it.

All in all it took about 10-12 hours remove and install. Adjusted the front edge. Couple things need sorted (right front corner doesn't pease me with how it lays) and the rear "c pillar" section has a fold/sag on both sides. Not sure why/how. Maybe heat will stretch and eliminate that? Not really happy with how the little cover pieces fit, but they never fit right for some reason lol I wish rock auto sold a vinyl with sewn in plastic window I'd replace the one on my green car. It's totally worth the hassle.


















I'll probably have to restretch the sides after a few weeks they are kind of curling back once the top is locked in place.


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

It lives! Just needs the exhaust fixed but I'm ready for water by the bridge!


----------



## nuget102 (Mar 6, 2017)

Well today is my birthday.
For my birthday...

I got her running! Heck yea! She has a mean sounding racing exhaust.


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## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

bought another one and im so happy i did


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

TravisTheD said:


> bought another one and im so happy i did


Your sick, Sick, *Sick, SICK*.... wait I own 2 myself.... Make room in the Psycho Ward were Dub crazy....

Well I just finished 3 days of waxing mine. 3000 wet/dry to remove the old wax. 6000 wet/dry to clean the clear coat, then polish the clear, wax it with a cleaner/wax, and finally a Carnuba.......... so all that is left is to clean the undercarriage, the Carpets, and Polish the Wheels...... Spring cleaning isn't just for houses.... Finished the Wax in time for Pollen Season in the South.....

Drove it topless for a bit, CCW on the RADIO blaring.... a good ending to a 3 day wax.


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## TravisTheD (Apr 15, 2011)

briano1234 said:


> Your sick, Sick, *Sick, SICK*.... wait I own 2 myself.... Make room in the Psycho Ward were Dub crazy....
> 
> Well I just finished 3 days of waxing mine. 3000 wet/dry to remove the old wax. 6000 wet/dry to clean the clear coat, then polish the clear, wax it with a cleaner/wax, and finally a Carnuba.......... so all that is left is to clean the undercarriage, the Carpets, and Polish the Wheels...... Spring cleaning isn't just for houses.... Finished the Wax in time for Pollen Season in the South.....
> 
> Drove it topless for a bit, CCW on the RADIO blaring.... a good ending to a 3 day wax.


lol u remember my old one it was a 92 and my username was mk3jetta-kid me and u talked alot many moons ago when i had that one "did you check or replace your grounds" i learned a good amount from the convos we had i think there still in my inbox lol


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Nothing wrong with multiple cabbies! I have an 82 Rabbit 'vert languishing in the garage in project limbo. The wife has an 87 cabby that runs and drives, but still needs some love. We've thinned the fleet as I sold my mk2 last fall, and got out of my mk3 daily about 3 years ago, but my wife still drives a mk5 GTI daily. It's in the blood! 

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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I finally received the power steering ujoint boot after waiting almost a month. Hard to find little bugger!
I installed my de-powered and cleaned up rack.
I struggled to push the boot high enough to tap the ujoint onto steering rack. But once it was on, it looked awesome (dont have time to upload at moment).

I attached the fitting and flared the brakeline. What a pia!
I bought a piece of line to practice on. I fought with the bent line to straighten it, but it seemed to have worked. Won't know for sure until i work on brakes in future. 
After line was ready, i installed the proportioning valves, then the lines.
After all the brackets were installed, then the booster. No major issues. Rattle can paint actually looks great. I am happy. 
Cleanest vw i have ever owned, so far.


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## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Ripped the roof off!

Four new "good" tires - what a difference in the ride!


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

fast84gti said:


> I finally received the power steering ujoint boot after waiting almost a month. Hard to find little bugger!


I ordered mine and got it in a few weeks. My recently resealed rack was already installed, so I just removed the u-joint at the steering column and slid the boot on that way [from the inside]. It went on extremely easy. It as harder to put the u-joint back on the steering column than the entire job. I also lubricated the inside of the boot with silicone grease since the boot was worn thru by the rubbing joint. Hopefully it will not rub through for another 30 years.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I got off my lazy butt and uploaded a pic.
I cleaned the ujoint with mineral sprits, then sprayed it down with ptfe dry lube. I might use grease on it as you did. The original boot didn't look to be worn through. It looked like it cracked from being old (a reman'd rack had been installed in recent past).
Where did you order yours? I could only find one on ebay from greece.


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

Where all the old VW parts are, Greece.

Before you do what I did, remember there is always a possiblity that grit will get in the grease and therefore cause more wear. I debated it before I did that. I also checked the clearence when it was installed and noticed that the joint was not hitting the rubber, so it's possible that it is a waste of time. I was pleasantly surprised that the joint no longer rubbed and it took so little time to install it.

Originally, the u-joint wore a hole in it, but after I got done screwing with the rack, it was in 3 pieces. The rubber was just worn out.


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## Swordie100 (Jun 29, 2016)

Not to my own, but to a Golf 3 Convertible on the junkyard. Got the convertible top out and paid 150 euro's. Took me a good four hours but what am I happy.
My top has started to shrink and crack around the edges, so I figured if a good deal came up I'd jump it. I also got the gas struts so if they ever decide to go bad I also have those.


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## .:baker (Jun 10, 2004)

I photo shopped wheels on it..









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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Top down... Finally


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## Thane.of.my.existence (Nov 1, 2016)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Top down... Finally


I need to get a rieger lip, they're not available new right?


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove it on a mountain trek yesterday, then cleaned my trunk, organized the Junk.. Is it over the top to tire shine the donut spare?
Then clean and polish and rework the Jack, and things?


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Thane.of.my.existence said:


> I need to get a rieger lip, they're not available new right?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



GF bought it for me on vacation in germany ... brand spankin new

2 parts... cheaper than wat i paid


http://www.pacificie-tuning.com/Aer...r-Golf-I-convertible-VW-Golf-1-2::125686.html

http://www.pacificie-tuning.com/Aer...t-lip-spoiler-Golf-I-VW-Golf-1-2::125687.html


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## Thane.of.my.existence (Nov 1, 2016)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> GF bought it for me on vacation in germany ... brand spankin new
> 
> 2 parts... cheaper than wat i paid
> 
> ...


Oh man, thanks! I'll definitely get this


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I played some stripper music and ripped my top off.

I removed the rear window with some help.
That horsehair padding was gross.
Staples, staples, staples. I hate staples.
After removing the horse hair padding, i ripped out the nasty headliner.

The top was a USA built "Robbins" dated 1994.

Now the cleaning, de-stapling and final disassembly of seals/vynil on frame.


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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> GF bought it for me on vacation in germany ... brand spankin new
> 
> 2 parts... cheaper than wat i paid
> 
> ...


Didn't know these could be had new, found something else to spend money on :laugh:


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## imahassle (Jan 20, 2016)

Permanently fixed the dreaded clunky steering. What a PITA! Plus I get to see how my new steering wheel looks.

Now to clean up and go for a drive


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## jgold723 (Jul 23, 2010)

*Changed the valve cover gasket*

And took her for the first drive of the season! Thanks Brian for the advice.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

jgold723 said:


> And took her for the first drive of the season! Thanks Brian for the advice.


Your welcome, and I drove mine Friday and Yesterday to Fetch parts for my Van......... which is better than driving the van to fetch parts for my Cabby


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Left rear wheel bearing today. Heard this odd metal on metal squealing from the rear at certain road speeds the last 2 times I drove it. Jacked up the rear and spun the wheels, left did not want to spin and had ridiculous bearing play. Pulled it apart and found the outer completely wasted. Yikes! Hopped on Advance auto parts' website, found everything in stick at my local store, applied the online ordering 25% off code that popped up, and $16 and about an hour later had new bearings, races, and seal installed and back on the road! Wouldn't have gotten this bad if the damned exhaust wasn't so loud.










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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Wouldn't have gotten this bad if the damned exhaust wasn't so loud.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


sniff sniff, I just love those happy endings.....


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

I've told the wife numerous times I can add a resonator. She doesn't want to spend the $$ since it's actively for sale.

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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> I've told the wife numerous times I can add a resonator. She doesn't want to spend the $$ since it's actively for sale.


I know how that goes, getting one ready for sale, the rear wheel cylinder started to leak, repaired that changed the shoes repack the bearings, and snap went the parking brake cable.
The Spark Plug wires decided to totally disintegrate the Rubber Boots on the metal sleeves and the wires looked like they had arc'ed to each other on the just totally crapped out, they were BWD brand LLW so I got a new set free but these are Champion brand. Then the Seat sliders decided to break.... The oil temp sender decided it was time to go. To top that the last ones that looked at it said I will give you 500 less but only if you change the wheels off of one to another... I said for a 1000 more I will. GO AWAY... then they called me about 2 times a week for a month.....

But I drove my Blue one Topless, and cruised for parts for the Green one, and Paint for homers.... Now I have another project a 50yr old cedar chest that needs re-finished....


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

briano1234 said:


> I know how that goes, getting one ready for sale, the rear wheel cylinder started to leak, repaired that changed the shoes repack the bearings, and snap went the parking brake cable.
> The Spark Plug wires decided to totally disintegrate the Rubber Boots on the metal sleeves and the wires looked like they had arc'ed to each other on the just totally crapped out, they were BWD brand LLW so I got a new set free but these are Champion brand. Then the Seat sliders decided to break.... The oil temp sender decided it was time to go. To top that the last ones that looked at it said I will give you 500 less but only if you change the wheels off of one to another... I said for a 1000 more I will. GO AWAY... then they called me about 2 times a week for a month.....


Lol! Yup, pretty much how it goes! Spent over two hours cleaning the interior this evening. Front seats out, lubed the slider lock pins, fought the slider guides, all the usual stuff. Taking it to the first local show tomorrow to park it with a sign on it. It's a decent car, but needs more love than we have time to give it since having our daughter.

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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> It's a decent car, but needs more love than we have time to give it since having our daughter.


Children have that effect...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

We have gotten down to 5 cars, trying to get down to 4. My goal is to have my 82 Cabby done by the time she turns 16. That gives me a reasonable 14 years!

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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> We have gotten down to 5 cars, trying to get down to 4. My goal is to have my 82 Cabby done by the time she turns 16. That gives me a reasonable 14 years!


You may get it done by then.....but I don't know that is cutting it close.....


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Well today I got the bad leak sorted out in the 87. Water would literally run out of the heater box when it was parked nose uphill and you washed it or it rained. Figured out the hvac housings in the cowl weren't fastened down right enough or properly, in some instances. Got it all tightened down and sprayed the hose, hooray! Dry carpet!

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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Removed top frame.
Removed side rear glass to see how difficult it is. Not bad. Reinstallation looks tricky, though...

Started degreasing the transmission. Its really bad. Using metal toothbrushes and lots of degreaser.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Getting ready to replace the starter this morning.

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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Getting ready to replace the starter this morning.


Getting ready to Drive mine... 

Just remember to jack the engine slightly to ease iron bind on the bolts.
While you have the front mount out, remove the cup and place two large fender washers between the cup and the frame to hold it tighter to the engine, and to prevent torque loss on High Speed Jack Rabbit Starts. 

but you already know that.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

But it's good to share with the rest of the Cabby community. Think I'm going pass on the starter today. It's raining and crappy out, I'll fix it tomorrow.

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## Blade3562 (Aug 17, 2012)

Ran a new ground wire from battery to trans. Now I need to make a short one from trans to frame rail. I think there was an internal break causing the wire to heat up and as a result the system wasn't charging properly.

I ran 4 gauge to the trans. Will 4 gauge work to the frame rail?


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Blade3562 said:


> Ran a new ground wire from battery to trans. Now I need to make a short one from trans to frame rail. I think there was an internal break causing the wire to heat up and as a result the system wasn't charging properly.
> 
> I ran 4 gauge to the trans. Will 4 gauge work to the frame rail?


Should, but I just use an Autoparts store off the Shelf Jumper, that is a dual flat ended shielded wire.

Charging issue can be cables, as well as the "Exciter" circuit.

But changing grounds out on a 20+ year old car is a good thing.....a really good thing.


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## M333ch02 (Oct 14, 2015)

Scrubbed it down, needed some cleanin'


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Spent the day organizing garage. I scrubbed a whole bunch of engine parts to remove the 265k miles of dirt/sludge. I needed to organize and box them. Sort of an inventory check, too.


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## M333ch02 (Oct 14, 2015)

fast84gti said:


> Spent the day organizing garage. I scrubbed a whole bunch of engine parts to remove the 265k miles of dirt/sludge. I needed to organize and box them. Sort of an inventory check, too.


This is something I would like to do, go through and clean my engine bay, drop the motor and go through and replace all seals and gaskets then clean the dirt and grime from everything.

One day, hopefully sooner than later


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## wilsonography (Dec 15, 2010)

Replaced both calipers, installed new rear speakers (rotted originals!), fixed part of the PO's on stereo wiring job, and scrubbed the crap out of the interior!

Next up: tune up and coolant flush 


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## Bobby_cabrio (Jan 19, 2017)

Getting the ol engine mounts raplaced at renners









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## beertestr (Jun 11, 2002)

Fit the shifter and made the lower trans mount for my VR6 swap.









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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Drove mine last night to a Picture Show.... Then I got to try out the 3 relay Headlight change I did on my Hi-Beams. 
One Word,,,,,,, Fantastic, Awesome increase in High-Beam driving.... ok, 7 words, or 6 if hyphenated counts as one word.
*But what do i know I shop at O'Reilly's....
*


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

ABA block on stand. 20v head picked up from junk yard...
Let the games begin!
Well, if it was anything like my last vw project... it may be a while. 
200hp is all I need. Nothing crazy.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

fast84gti said:


> ABA block on stand. 20v head picked up from junk yard...
> Let the games begin!
> Well, if it was anything like my last vw project... it may be a while.
> 200hp is all I need. Nothing crazy.


Lol! I'm shooting for around 150. WHP would be nice, but I'm thinking crank is more attainable. ABA, R1 carbs, 276 cam, head work, cam gear, and probably bigger valves. Still working on getting it going on a stock ABA with the carbs. Then build a head.

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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Gave it a quick bath between storms.










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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Lol! I'm shooting for around 150. WHP would be nice, but I'm thinking crank is more attainable. ABA, R1 carbs, 276 cam, head work, cam gear, and probably bigger valves. Still working on getting it going on a stock ABA with the carbs. Then build a head.
> 
> /QUOTE]
> 
> ...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

fast84gti said:


> YJSAABMAN said:
> 
> 
> > Lol! I'm shooting for around 150. WHP would be nice, but I'm thinking crank is more attainable. ABA, R1 carbs, 276 cam, head work, cam gear, and probably bigger valves. Still working on getting it going on a stock ABA with the carbs. Then build a head.
> ...


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## TeamPeña (Nov 18, 2014)

stephatron said:


> Well, I just bought mine from Northern Virginia, towed it back to Michigan, and parked it in my heated garage!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Is that just a clipper kit?


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

TeamPeña said:


> Is that just a clipper kit?


Yes, that is just a clipper kit. 

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## wilsonography (Dec 15, 2010)

TeamPeña said:


> Is that just a clipper kit?


Gorgeous cabby! Hello from Ann Arbor 


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## wilsonography (Dec 15, 2010)

Replaced the Fuel Pressure Regulator....it's like I just got a new car. Runs like a dream, starts like a champ, brake pedal feel is improved, power steering is lighter and more consistent, HVAC controls seem smoother. Alternator is making more juice...and best of all no more smelling gas and stumbling from running rich. :beer::beer::beer::beer:

Unclogged the rain tray drain...hoping that keeps my passenger side floor dry for a minute while I fix the rear window leak. :thumbup:


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

wilsonography said:


> Replaced the Fuel Pressure Regulator....it's like I just got a new car. Runs like a dream, starts like a champ, brake pedal feel is improved, power steering is lighter and more consistent, HVAC controls seem smoother. Alternator is making more juice...and best of all no more smelling gas and stumbling from running rich. :beer::beer::beer::beer:
> 
> Unclogged the rain tray drain...hoping that keeps my passenger side floor dry for a minute while I fix the rear window leak. :thumbup:



WAKE UP it's only a dream.


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## 92yellowdroptop (Jan 1, 2017)

replaced coolant hose

filled with new coolant

gave her a fresh oil change

she is purring now. 

next on the list is the fuel leak which is sporadic....i think its a venting problem. 

I also have an oil leak. I think its coming from the intermediate shaft seal. 

I love this little car. Its amazing how happy this little car makes me!


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Washed it and drove it for the 1st time in over a month.... love My Cabby


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I bought a used AHU diesel crank. Hoping to make a stroker aba block...


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## Swordie100 (Jun 29, 2016)

Seat, not even cleaned.
https://ibb.co/jJkc8F

Left shoulder bolster.
https://ibb.co/nioKNa

Left bolster with filler, you can see the major cracks are filled. 
https://ibb.co/hie4oF

First coat.
https://ibb.co/m85zNa

Third coat. I put multiple thin coats on it so it would stay "wet" and wouldn't harden for too long, because I was running low on paint. Should arrive tomorrow. 









Looks more stunning on pic than IRL, probably 2 nice coats more.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

spent a few hrs cleaning under the hood....


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## wilsonography (Dec 15, 2010)

Cleaning day! Vacuumed and simple green'd the interior, and gave her a bath 



























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## dougkehl (Nov 30, 2011)

Drove it to work yesterday and today and filled it with my own special mix of 102 octane leaded fuel. It's happy


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## morimori (Jul 19, 2003)

Mr.Nobody said:


> Gave it a quick bath between storms.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


:thumbup:


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Went back to quads for a change up


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## wilsonography (Dec 15, 2010)

Chipped it with the Digifast2, injector cleaner and premium on an empty tank. Runs so well now I can't even believe it. 

Also found that my drivers side door does line up properly and I hear a clunk in the back. Bring it on.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Listed the wife's for sale here and on CL. She's ready to let it go, maybe this will motivate me to get back to work on my 82. I did start digging it out of the pile it's buried under in the garage last weekend.










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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Between the dealer and junkyard I sourced all the clips/screws etc for both the quad and single light grills. No more rattles or hardware store hardware


----------



## inlovewithavdubengine (Sep 1, 2011)

Swapped my broken 020.. AUG to DFQ. :thumbup:


----------



## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Detailed the outside today










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## vwluger22 (Jan 25, 2005)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Went back to quads for a change up


Question for you? What is involved in going from quad setup to double. I understand all the hard parts new lights and grill will fit fine. But what do you do about the wiring? I'm having a hard time finding anything about it online.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

vwluger22 said:


> Question for you? What is involved in going from quad setup to double. I understand all the hard parts new lights and grill will fit fine. But what do you do about the wiring? I'm having a hard time finding anything about it online.


Nothing... just unplug the center lights and swap grills... outside highs still work
Need a few different clips from grill to grill... thats it


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## vwluger22 (Jan 25, 2005)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Nothing... just unplug the center lights and swap grills... outside highs still work
> Need a few different clips from grill to grill... thats it


Thanks had no idea the outers where high beams also. 👍


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Mr.Nobody said:


> Detailed the outside today
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Damm... that looks FINE.... wanna do mine??.. lol


----------



## Rusty Spokes (May 24, 2012)

1990 VW Cabriolet..no rust on the car and brought it with an engine with worn/knocking rod bearings and a slipping automatic transmission. Sat in a fellows basement for years with 190K on the odometer. New top and headliner (Thanks Braino)..re-built 2H engine and automatic transmission (with some better internal goodies and a valve body from a Porsche 944 automatic) and new badges and grill insert. Fresh paint (just an okay job) tires and brakes. New flexible brake lines front and rear. A/C works. H-4 Hella headlamps with relays too. New side marker lamps. New window scrapers and door handle rubbers. Runs sweet.

Gave the car to my oldest daughter who just graduated from the USAF basic training and is now stationed at Eglin AFB. It is a daily driver.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Wife got home with it around lunch, we were closing the top due to pop up showers in the area, and "SNAP!" the right top latch handle breaks off. Looks like one side had been broken for a while. SOB! So I eat a quick lunch and go rob a latch from '82 project in the garage. (Add it to the list of items I've robbed for her car.) Then I took a drive out to MK1 Madness to enjoy the greatness of the mk1, and to advertise the car for sale. Found out on the way home you can drive through a decent rain shower at 70-75mph with the top down and not get wet.  

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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Hung a cat and replaced the rear wheel cylinders/ brakes on the Blue one, and drove it for it's last emissions test ever... It passed now I can hang the Cat Delete Header.... muahahahahahahah....
The Green one got a wash and wax, then I had the seat cover repaired, it is all clean and shiney.....now it is going for a last spin, then the For Sale signs will go on it. 

Just a BTW, O'Reillys Brake hardware kit comes with the Brake adjuster wedges...all for 8 bucks.


----------



## bostonmacosx2 (Jun 29, 2017)

I got it running....top that!


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

bostonmacosx2 said:


> I got it running....top that!


I have 2 that are always running unless I park them, and better yet Leak Proof.


----------



## wilsonography (Dec 15, 2010)

Continued work on the new top install, going well so far!


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## Charllow (May 18, 2017)

Did the front left hub and wheel bearing today.

Got a ****ty press from HF, but I'll be damned it worked out really well.










Old hub and bearing pressed out










New hub and wheel bearing looking all pretty in their new home










HOWEVER, I can't do one repair without a casualty. Poor stabilizer bar bracket met it's end today. That's what I get for using a half inch ratchet and not my impact. I had to order one from the UK to keep my repairs rolling.


----------



## vwluger22 (Jan 25, 2005)

Parked it next to a co-worker that I have yet to meet. Mines the graphite grey.


----------



## Tahroo (Jun 2, 2016)

Locked myself out after redoing the radio wire harness and tightening the roof J hooks. :banghead: Thankfully the trunk was still unlocked. Bit undignified but all 250lb and 69" of me crawled through there after cleaning it out. 

Upside is found a 10mm wrench, my fuse box cover, a starter motor and a slew of probably non-functional relays! eace:


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Charllow said:


> HOWEVER, I can't do one repair without a casualty. Poor stabilizer bar bracket met it's end today. That's what I get for using a half inch ratchet and not my impact. I had to order one from the UK to keep my repairs rolling.


When it happened to me:
http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?7551537-Broken-Sway-bar-Strap-(cabriolets)-fix


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## Tahroo (Jun 2, 2016)

New fuel pumps, fuel accumulator, fuel filter and vacuum lines! \o/ Feels like a whole new car. 

They've seen better days.. the in-tank pump got chucked out of frustration but it looked as spiffy as the accumulator.


----------



## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

Someone backed into it at the grocery store today.










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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Mr.Nobody said:


> Someone backed into it at the grocery store today.


Damn, did they leave? Or did you or someone see it happen?


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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

77kafer said:


> Damn, did they leave? Or did you or someone see it happen?


I was in the car, backed out of my spot, was putting it in drive and crunch.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Front end alignment on the wife's before it goes bye-bye on Friday.









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## Tahroo (Jun 2, 2016)

Another weekend of repairs for my little cabby. Catalytic converter, exhaust gaskets, water pump assembly, spare gasket just in case, new hoses, thermostat, thermostat housing, valve cover, front pads, rotors and rattle clips.  Hopefully it'll get done in two days. :laugh:































Fingers crossed this is the last of the mechanical gremlins and I can get working on things like the little drips from the roof, the burnt dashlight wire, and the always on defrost that briano sold me the part to fix.


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## Tahroo (Jun 2, 2016)

Well, better late than never? :what:


----------



## hankventure (Aug 8, 2017)

Today I replaced all the ground cables and the power cable to the starter. Got three cables from the auto parts store for less than $30. Cut, cleaned, and re-crimped / soldered larger eye endings on the various leads to the battery for the new clamps. Removed, cleaned, and/or replaced other various grounds and all the wires and terminals to the alternator. 

Best thing I've done to my 87, other than making it not overheat with a new radiator and water pump. 


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## binder49 (Mar 3, 2017)

*Getting the Cabrio ready for paint*

Getting real close to giving the Cabrio a fresh coat of red


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## binder49 (Mar 3, 2017)

*Freshly Painted*

Here she is with a fresh coat of paint


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Replaced broken antenna, noticed that the boot on the CV crapped out.... ain't that the way it goes.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Found a 98 Cabrio for $500 on OfferUp. The wife was initially excited, but then said she didn't really want a "project."  If it wasn't coming up on winter with my lack of garage space I'd prob be going to look at it anyways.

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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Tahroo said:


> Another weekend of repairs for my little cabby
> 
> Fingers crossed this is the last of the mechanical gremlins and I can get working on things like the little drips from the roof, the burnt dashlight wire, and the always on defrost that briano sold me the part to fix.


Dang that was a while back I was wondering ifn ya got that.

Cat, you need a CAT in Indiana?


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## vwluger22 (Jan 25, 2005)

Earlier this week put the cabriolet away for the winter.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Scored some old skool MOMO IDEA wheels.... Diggin the look


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## 77kafer (Jul 29, 2004)

Mrpapageorgio said:


> Diggin the look


Damn they look good on there.. and I think the color of the car really sets it off.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Picked up a hitch hicker, who told me a sad story about living in a cardboard box having to eat spoilt vegetables from the back of the store.
So I took him home.



His name is Chris Moose.


----------



## binder49 (Mar 3, 2017)

Finally got the body work and paint done. Now on to the interior.


----------



## gereonb (Mar 2, 2017)

*what I did today*

Checked the steering Tie Rods and Suspension as my steering wheel moved off center after some spirited driving the other day. Looks all good, I am assuming it has something to do with the Power Steering gear slipping or something.

Checked the intake between fuel distributor and intake plenum for leaks, cleaned up the air metering disc which was grubby.

Tried to mount steering shaft lower bearing keeper (http://tech53.com) but found it has non-metric bolts so will have to buy a set of SAE hex keys.

Tightened my lug bolts once I lowered the car back down !!! (the one thing EVERYBODY wrenching on cars needs to be super diligent about)


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

*Checked the steering Tie Rods and Suspension as my steering wheel moved off center after some spirited driving the other day. Looks all good, I am assuming it has something to do with the Power Steering gear slipping or something.
*

Power Steering is a hydraulic assisted rack and pinion....no gearing no slipping that I have ever seen.
Check the air in your tires.
Take it in for an alignment





*Tightened my lug bolts once I lowered the car back down !!! (the one thing EVERYBODY wrenching on cars needs to be super diligent about)[/QUOTE]
*

Always a good thing to do


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Early winter wash.... Still cleans up pretty good for a 30yr old 365 daily


----------



## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

I decided to forget the 20v 2L build.
Bought a 16v head. Parts are way easier to find. So might get this running sooner! Already have 16v carb intake. Plus no one makes a header for tall block 20v. 16v stuff is super easy to find, comparatively (other than the head being more rare)... This is looking more fun already. Pocketbook will thank me.


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## Swordie100 (Jun 29, 2016)

Removed the shifter box finally after cutting through my exhaust clamps. 

Is it okay to post Mk3 cabriolet stuff in here? Or is this one designated for Mk1 cabby's?  Posted the build thread in the Mk3 anyway.


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## fast84gti (Mar 2, 2003)

Ordered 2.5" exhaust, no resonator with borla muffler. Oh, man this is going to be loud. Didnt work directly on car. Have other car in garage blocking it. Will pull the other car out on Fri... Spring is here!


----------



## tdubs329 (Apr 21, 2013)

Replaced my heater core today :banghead:

I've been dreading this for months. I got everything apart, new heater core in, everything in the engine bay reconnected, and the support rebar back in place. Gonna have to save the rest for next weekend. For now, it's time for beer


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Not a dang thing save for checking the fluids and Driving it like I stole it for a few minutes.


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## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

TT chipped the 16v in the cabby


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Shuffled the things on top of it in the garage. :shrug: 

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## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

Need to finish re-wiring the engine bay after the test startup fire i had, replace the brake lines and tune to ABA swap, warm weather is just around the corner


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Got my new Rain Tray from MK1 Engineering ( the Green Cabby had disintegrated Ok broke in 3 places) 
was @ 75 shipped.





























So the blue got the new and the Green got my old blue.

Quick shipping, ordered it Saturday got here today. But then again they are in Northern Ga...ok almost Tenn.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Jump Started a dead battery Dodge Diesel.....










with my wittle bitty wabbit.

LOLOL

OBTW his issue was a bad Frame to Engine Ground.......


----------



## jgold723 (Jul 23, 2010)

Ha -- love it. I wish we had a picture of the two vehicles hooked up!


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Who knew grounds were that important? 

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## KJH0013 (Jul 13, 2012)

On Sunday I pulled Lil' Cabby out of bed, gave her a bath, fed her some fresh fuel and took her to VW Nationals @ PNW Raceway in Kent, WA. Just as a spectator though. There are still plenty of VWs in the parking "forest" to ogle over.









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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

KJH0013 said:


> On Sunday I pulled Lil' Cabby out of bed, gave her a bath, fed her some fresh fuel and took her to VW Nationals @ PNW Raceway in Kent, WA. Just as a spectator though. There are still plenty of VWs in the parking "forest" to ogle over.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


how much tree sap did you get from them tree's.....
Me, pads, rotors on the green one new injector seals Turn signal arm.....


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## KJH0013 (Jul 13, 2012)

briano1234 said:


> how much tree sap did you get from them tree's.....
> Me, pads, rotors on the green one new injector seals Turn signal arm.....


Hey, it's the PNW "Sap Happens"!
Honestly, wasn't there long enough that a couple of drops of GoofOff didn't take care of.

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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

KJH0013 said:


> Hey, it's the PNW "Sap Happens"!
> Honestly, wasn't there long enough that a couple of drops of GoofOff didn't take care of.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


Down here, the sap flows freely @95 degrees..... don't take long to get goo-bered.


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## AbsoluteYeti (Jul 30, 2014)

finished putting the front body panels back on after scraping off about 8 lbs of fender liner and respraying (poorly) the fenderwell. Still need to finish painting the steering rack and rebuilding it before reinstalling the rack. Then Engine and Trans goes back in.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Not today, but a few weeks ago, I finally got this setup. I'm sure the neighbors love it! LOL! It was a rusty turd of a car, so no worries on anything of quality being cut up. Still trying to decide what to plant in it. (Its a nice compliment to the exhaust tubing flamingos to the right of it, and the camshaft bird feeder post, amongst other things.)










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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Not today, but a few weeks ago, I finally got this setup. I'm sure the neighbors love it! LOL! It was a rusty turd of a car, so no worries on anything of quality being cut up. Still trying to decide what to plant in it. (Its a nice compliment to the exhaust tubing flamingos to the right of it, and the camshaft bird feeder post, amongst other things.)
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Should of kept the windscreen and you need a grille and the valance bits. Then you could use the Photo LED lights for the headlights and turns. 
I like it. 



Awesome.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

We've talked about getting a grille and doing some lights on it. It didn't come with one.

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## Charllow (May 18, 2017)

Hung out with a couple big boys on Saturday :laugh:


----------



## CabbyMagoo (Sep 5, 2016)

Installed a new strut on my top frame.


----------



## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Since the Cabby is a Convertible, I decided that I needed to convert it to a truck yesterday...










The ratcheting straps were affixed to the shipping eyes below the bumper, and on the roll bar at the top.  . I didn't want the Driver behind me to get a surprise.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

My wife transported a sandbox for our daughter in a similar fashion a few years ago.

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## Mr.Nobody (Dec 17, 2008)

I used mine in that fashion many times until I bought a truck 


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## bmwvwguy (Mar 20, 2019)

looked at it then moved it out of the garage. it seems i fixed my top leak but now i am just waiting on parts for teh heater. next is suspension and tires then its on the road.


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## Jeremy_Bentham (Jul 10, 2012)

Spent some time in the evening sanding the hard to reach areas.










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## bmwvwguy (Mar 20, 2019)

heater controls are in. dash is being reassembled but i figure now is a good time to run new wires for the stereo. but i may wait on that. gotta resupply my connector stock. and now to yank studs out of my winter setup so i can drive this thing. no more money for tires.


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Finally got around to polishing My Porsche 944 handles...



















Scored a Momo Team 280 steering wheel... It's tiny











And a new badge for the ass


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

The White Bunny has her white leather interior... not perfect but better than the raggedy old cloth that was there


----------



## bmwvwguy (Mar 20, 2019)

broke it. not today but last sunday. ran like a champ but the Master failed. sucks going down hill and have your pedal go to the floor.


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Scored some RA's cheep... really dig the look


----------



## cabby420 (Feb 20, 2003)

put new wheels on and started installing coilovers


----------



## Thane.of.my.existence (Nov 1, 2016)

I stopped by Techtonics to see where all the really expensive packages I keep ordering are coming from. 


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Thane.of.my.existence said:


> I stopped by Techtonics to see where all the really expensive packages I keep ordering are coming from.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Nice! I stopped by Bavarian Autosport with my e46 on my honeymoon before the ECS monstrosity gobbled them up. 

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## bmwvwguy (Mar 20, 2019)

working on fixing some vacuum leaks. and found NOTHING was run properly. HOPEFULLY i can get some mileage on this thing. 1\4 tank from home to work (25 miles or so) really sucks.


----------



## bmwvwguy (Mar 20, 2019)

reran ALL the vac lines and it ran ok. but i still have an idle issue\starting issues. it idles about 1000 rpm and if i adjust the timing to where its supposed to be it runs like total dog ass. no power and if i adjust it to get some power it overheats. im about to burn this bucket. man i miss my Diesel mk4. soon enough though that will be back in its new body.


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## bmwvwguy (Mar 20, 2019)

rewired my 02 sensor after checking the diagram to make sure i had the right wire. also cleaned the connections for the computer, cleaned and checked wiring for the ISV, 02, Temp sensors, and the like. now hopefully itll actually work right. now to go put some fuel in it so i can make it home. yay!!!


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## bmwvwguy (Mar 20, 2019)

dizzy failed. back to old reliable. my 99 mk4 jetta diesel. not happy but itll have to do.


----------



## Raek (Aug 1, 2003)

Well, about 7 months ago I pulled the 1.8l and bought a donor car.

Now, I'm finally ready to swap everything in. Also, doing some electric power steering and big brakes up front


----------



## w0ody (Oct 27, 2016)

installed a new seat!


----------



## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

w0ody said:


> installed a new seat!


Congrats!! 

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## alexd1983 (Jul 19, 2019)

yesterday i replaced a wobbling crank pulley ($12 at junkyard ) and rear wheel bearing on my 2001. also put a new air filter and oil change 

now just need rear brake pads, a caliper, and new pcv hose lol


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## jgold723 (Jul 23, 2010)

Congratulations!

A little side story... when I bought my 87 10 years ago, I was looking at a variety of older convertibles, 2 and 4 seaters. I picked the Cabby in part because the previous owner showed it to me with a car seat in back and I immediately envisioned my grandchildren back there. It's worked out beautifully.


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## bmwvwguy (Mar 20, 2019)

bought my motor\trans swap today. 99 cabrio. its beat to hell but runs great and has less miles than my 91. so i got that going for me at least.


----------



## Danalavonne13 (Jul 17, 2019)

I just bought my parts car yaaaaaah no more can’t find me parts story coming from this gal!! These two beauties will soon become one!!


----------



## vwrabbit (Nov 21, 2000)

Just picked this 84 up yesterday. This is what I did today.









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## vwrabbit (Nov 21, 2000)

Welded, ground and primed. Need to fill and sand.









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## h8Tr_ (Jul 24, 2008)

Finally got around to working on the Cabby again, started sorting out the brakes and the rears looked like hell!









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## gereonb (Mar 2, 2017)

Replaced axle.










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## cabriosnap (Apr 24, 2009)

Worked on some wiring, threatened to light it on fire...

You know, the usual :banghead:


----------



## jgold723 (Jul 23, 2010)

cabriosnap said:


> Worked on some wiring, threatened to light it on fire...
> 
> You know, the usual :banghead:


Usually it does that all on its own...


----------



## cabbymiami (Apr 21, 2014)

gereonb said:


> Replaced axle.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Ive got these sitting here. Pulled off gettin to flywheel. Wanted to ask when re assembling what grease are you using? The stuff that was in there looked like tar/almost asphalt. Any lubrication seemed broken down. Will be putting mine back together soon. Im not replacing mine just cleaning up and putting back. The gasket that is in your pic, i dont see on mine when i pulled these off. 

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## cabbymiami (Apr 21, 2014)

Pic









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## gereonb (Mar 2, 2017)

MolyB Axle Grease, came with the new axles.
The gasket is on the trans side, might still be stuck to your output shaft.
Spin/Angle the old CV joint and see if there is any wear in the CV joint on the surfaces.
Keep/Rebuild your OG axles, the new cheapo autozone/advanced/oreillys replacements are nowhere near as good.


----------



## cabbymiami (Apr 21, 2014)

gereonb said:


> MolyB Axle Grease, came with the new axles.
> The gasket is on the trans side, might still be stuck to your output shaft.
> Spin/Angle the old CV joint and see if there is any wear in the CV joint on the surfaces.
> Keep/Rebuild your OG axles, the new cheapo autozone/advanced/oreillys replacements are nowhere near as good.


Cool thx!

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## kutza (May 26, 2004)

w0ody said:


> installed a new seat!


Recaro?


----------



## w0ody (Oct 27, 2016)

kutza said:


> Recaro?


https://www.amazon.com/Britax-Grow-...oster-Seat/dp/B07VHX6YT3/ref=dp_ob_title_baby


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Adjusted my coils as i think the springs have finally settled. Installed a missing sleeve on the right strut. 
Cut out and replaced a section of the exhaust. 
Ordered a new c-clip for the exhaust toilet bowl. 



pics from a few days ago


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Removed a jangly bolt from heatshield

Replaced and tested voltage stabilizer 

Washed the car


photo uploader


----------



## Mrpapageorgio (Mar 16, 2014)

Every bulb on the Dirty Girl is LED


----------



## w0ody (Oct 27, 2016)

Took it out for a isolated drive.


----------



## bubas (Mar 19, 2016)

Freshened up the grill









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## Kpjames98 (Aug 9, 2016)

Bought it!










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## SoFlaTurbo (May 6, 2002)

I collapsed the steering column shaft installing a new bearing. Any tips on getting it un-collapsed?? I can't get it to budge!

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## Kpjames98 (Aug 9, 2016)

Fixed the glove box, changed some bulbs, tightened the top











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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

SoFlaTurbo said:


> I collapsed the steering column shaft installing a new bearing. Any tips on getting it un-collapsed?? I can't get it to budge!


Push it, push it real good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCadcBR95oU


----------



## BMAN (Jun 9, 1999)

Installed strut mount caps. Only problem is I robbed them from my 84 GTI and now I need to find another set


----------



## vietrado (Nov 4, 2004)

*!!*

This thread makes me want to pick up a MK3 Cabrio that I see on my local CL so bad...


----------



## xplodee (Jan 27, 2002)

BMAN said:


> Installed strut mount caps. Only problem is I robbed them from my 84 GTI and now I need to find another set


Did you custom fabricate the dam below the windshield? Do you have a thread where you describe or other pictures? It looks so clean this way, nice work.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

xplodee said:


> Did you custom fabricate the dam below the windshield? Do you have a thread where you describe or other pictures? It looks so clean this way, nice work.


Looks like a standard mk3 raintray/cowl trim, just super clean.

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## BMAN (Jun 9, 1999)

xplodee said:


> Did you custom fabricate the dam below the windshield? Do you have a thread where you describe or other pictures? It looks so clean this way, nice work.


Just the rubber part https://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?9390379-Windshield-Cowl-Seal


----------



## w0ody (Oct 27, 2016)

Parked it in the shade.


----------



## t_chomes (Aug 3, 2020)

*Absolutely nothing*

I dont have one


----------



## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Waiting for replacement borbet center caps to arrive. 

Buffed and waxed my hood (was bored at work)

Tightened up top on passenger side rear pillar to get rid of the annoying wavy seam. 

Installed a new headunit and speakers. 

Next replacingbthe heatshield on my starter that broke off.


----------



## k2trek (Jun 16, 2003)

vietrado said:


> This thread makes me want to pick up a MK3 Cabrio that I see on my local CL so bad...


Same here in GA....I need a daily driver & now a MK3.5 has appeared. Is it a sign? lol


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## BMAN (Jun 9, 1999)

Drove it to C&C this morning. The other cars were on the other side of the lot. Sorry no pictures of those.


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## SoFlaTurbo (May 6, 2002)

With the help of my 15 year old daughter we got the brake transplant squared away on the 92 1.8t Cabby swap. Corrado master cylinder, MK4 rear calipers, MK2 rear spindle and ddiscs, 16v scirocco parking brake cables (not exactly a perfect fit), 256mm front 16v scirocco carriers and discs. The rear crush washers took a little more torque that I was expecting to seal them down, but after a small leak on the rear passenger side we got out some nasty looking unfiltered tea from the lines and now they feel and look great! 

Back to the wiring nightmare.....

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Dug it out from under the pile of crap that had accumulated on top of it over the years.

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk


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## gordinho (Feb 15, 2005)

Looked at it in the garage sitting on jack stands.... waiting for new rubber...


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Ordered new horns, LED to finally permanently fix the VDO illuminations. 

Next week my cabby will be getting a completely custom SS exhaust. Custom header to 2-1/4 with ss flex pipe,tubing to a borla muffler and then out the back. Iam getting tired of the leaky toilet bowl, endless clamps and smelling fumes..


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

That parcel shelf is pretty awesome.. I just redid all the carpets in my cabby, but That certainly has me thinking... I like the idea mentioned about matching color to a custom steering wheel too...oh my


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## GuySmiley223 (Dec 13, 2020)

tinygiant said:


> That parcel shelf is pretty awesome.. I just redid all the carpets in my cabby, but That certainly has me thinking... I like the idea mentioned about matching color to a custom steering wheel too...oh my


Does anyone know good company for replacement top? I cannot find gray anywhere! I have stock dark blue and gray Mk1 Cab


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

GuySmiley223 said:


> Does anyone know good company for replacement top? I cannot find gray anywhere! I have stock dark blue and gray Mk1 Cab


Cabby-info.com has several top vendors listed.

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## Northernwabbit (Jun 23, 2014)

GuySmiley223 said:


> Does anyone know good company for replacement top? I cannot find gray anywhere! I have stock dark blue and gray Mk1 Cab


I got my top from M&T manufacturing. www.mtmfg.com Just google it.


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

Want a good top, Gahh is the only place.









Volkswagen Golf/Rabbit 1980-1993 Replacement Convertible Soft Top, No Window


Soft Top for 1980-1993 Volkswagen Golf Cabriolet, Rabbit Cabrio Factory Original Material: Cabrio, German Classic Factory Original Colors: Black, Blue Reuse existingt glass window Top has stitch lines heat sealed into it Hand Made in the USA




gahh.com


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## tbramich (Nov 10, 2006)

touched knock sensor wire now it dont run...lol


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## tbramich (Nov 10, 2006)

tbramich said:


> touched knock sensor wire now it dont run...lol


fixed a ground wire now it runs!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Horns installed.. The cabby has a voice! Also ordered a fancy new steering wheel. Exhaust should be in tomorrow.

I ordered a box of wire loom today too. I figured I would try to clean up some of the wires around the bay.

I am looking to sell/trade my tiguan soon. So I will probably transfer my subwoofer setup into the cabby. I wish that there was room for a double din head unit as I have a nice in dash that will need a new home


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Tomorrow I am supposed to be having my exhaust put on. I guess there has been an issue sourcing a fully SS flex pipe to add to the system as the company the installer uses has discontinued shipping them because of issues with sourcing from china due to covid... LAME


anywho, I decided to be a bit empathetic to the future installer and spray the exhaust studs/nuts with some knocker loose for a couple days and discovered that my exhaust manifold is missing 4 of the studs/nuts and one stud is missing a nut and another stud/nut I can hand turn.. I dont have a mirror or scope to look behind the intake, but either this is going to be the easiest exhaust manifold removal ever, Or someone already went down this road before and snapped studs and left it as it was... I am really hoping that they just rattled out over time. Less hours means less dollars 



Today, I brought the car into the back of the store I work at. Conviently have a ramp with bay doors  things were slow and I spent a couple hours cleaning and vacuuming


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## Mk4cabrio54449 (Dec 17, 2020)

Bama420 said:


> Looked quickly and didn't see one of these here like in the mk3 and 2 forums. I figured I should bring one to us cabriolet owners. Let's post as many pics as possible since that's all Vortex members are interested in.
> 
> I'll start with:
> Today my '90 Triple White got front pads and resurfaced rotors in the front and new shoes, hardware, cylinders, grease seals, and resurfaced drums in the rear. Did a front camber adjustment and a much needed brake fluid flush and bleed. Pics to come tomorrow.
> ...


Lol...gives someone a reason to show off...loaded question that's for sure...clean very though


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Looked at it out the window


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## w0ody (Oct 27, 2016)

took the roof off


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## Shorty_CZ (Nov 27, 2017)

Meeting with some other classic cars


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I recently bought two cabbies. I am parting the white one out now









I am enjoying finding little things to fix small annoying issues on my cabby. Today I swapped the Speedo because my odo was broken. Turned out the new speedo actually was right around the same miles as my broken one 

the white one I am parting first. I am enjoying completely dismantling the car. This week I will cut out the front radiator support and get the engine and tranny out. Only 115k on the white auto cabby. Previous owner had a bad fuel pump, then the top started leaking and he gave up.

the yellow cabby is a 5spd. And as much as I really like my auto, I keep flirting with the idea of putting the 5spd in my car. A couple months ago I had a full stainless exhaust custom built with a borla muffler and put on a stainless header to match. I miss the quick shifts of the 5spd and the addicting burble of downshifts that I had in my last 5spd cabby


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

reassembled part of it after painting. Replaced that rear seat latch pull knob thing because it was broken.

tomorrow I paint doors and bumpers and fender flares and toss it all back together.

Later this week I need to clean up my white interior set and swap it in. The dark blue looks goofy with the new paint


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Seems there are a lot of poor neglected cabbys out there now…. This thread used to be very active


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Life has a way. Mine is still tucked away in the garage, I'm now down to 10 years until my daughter is old enough to drive. Maybe I'll get it done in time, that's my goal. My wife has never ridden in it, it's been off the road longer than we've been together.

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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I hear that. I also know most of the online communication has shifted to other social media outlets. I took about a 4 year hiatus myself and now just tinker when i get the free time.


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## TC Mooch (Apr 18, 2021)

Paid $1,900 to get the brakes all serviced. Then got home and wanted to drive it around town and enjoy it but after running it a bit and turning it off now it seems it takes about 10 seconds of just cranking the engine to get it started once the engine is warm 

Think it's about time I put the For Sale sign in the window. Car is costing me way more money than I ever expected. I'm about double the price in repairs and parts than I even paid for it.


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## Charllow (May 18, 2017)

TC Mooch said:


> Paid $1,900 to get the brakes all serviced. Then got home and wanted to drive it around town and enjoy it but after running it a bit and turning it off now it seems it takes about 10 seconds of just cranking the engine to get it started once the engine is warm
> 
> Think it's about time I put the For Sale sign in the window. Car is costing me way more money than I ever expected. I'm about double the price in repairs and parts than I even paid for it.


$1900 for brakes?????? Even if you replaced every part in the system, that's absurd. Sorry to hear, man!!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Old cars can be frustrating. I get pretty flustered at times and step away for a couple days and look at it with fresh perspective. Its worse if you arent able to do the work yourself.

my first cabby i paid $1000 andhad close to $6000 into it before i sold it for $2800 years later.

this new one $500 and nearing 7k in now about 2 years. But ive been going a bit over board with this one

I tend to replace things a little before they need it but these cars never cease to offer up suprises


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Agreed that it's a labor of love, and old cars are appreciative of love. It's just better if you can furnish that love with your own two hands to help offset the cost. I paid $800 for mine, and I have no idea how much I've spent at this point and I'm not done. I've got at least $5k in upgraded drivetrain almost ready to go in my e46 wagon, but I don't ever plan on selling it. It's all for enjoyment. Same with my house. I've invested far more than I could get back short term, but I did it to enjoy it. If you spent the $1900 on the brakes because you love the car, continue to love the car. 

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## TC Mooch (Apr 18, 2021)

Charllow said:


> $1900 for brakes?????? Even if you replaced every part in the system, that's absurd. Sorry to hear, man!!


labor was a bit higher than I wanted to pay an hour but I like the guys. They did complete brake job in the back as well as replace brake booster (that had to be sent in to be refurbished) plus they did some other minor things to find a free car gremlins.

i was expecting it to be that high…just bummed because car is now having ignition issues. Might just say screw it and start parting it out to try and get my money back best I can


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Your cabby looks so clean. They have been selling as whole cars in running condition for 4-9k on ebay. Sell that baby before you part it


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## TC Mooch (Apr 18, 2021)

tinygiant said:


> Your cabby looks so clean. They have been selling as whole cars in running condition for 4-9k on ebay. Sell that baby before you part it


Yeah, I washed it up and waxed it. I ****ing love it. I hate that I do but I love it. Still having some acceleration issues even with the peddle to the metal but I found manually shifting the gears from 1-2 and then into Drive to get it past 2,500 rpm will finally get it some power to the engine.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

The old slushboxes are definitely not the quickest lol. I eventually will do a 5spd swap


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## TC Mooch (Apr 18, 2021)

I think mine goes beyond just terrible power. It can't even really climb hills very well. So slow it's dangerous if that makes sense.


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

The automatics are just terrible in too many ways. Not enough gears, the wrong ratios, and not enough engine power. The only sure fire way to make that automatic better is to change the final drive to the ratio found in the TJ transmissions, change the gearset to the ones found in the Audi/Porsche, and to up the engine power with a small turbo/early boost set up. That way, you have enough power to get going and a lower RPM on the freeway.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

When i bought my first cabb, which was a 5spd, it wouldnt go over 55. There were so many vac leaks an small issues that it wouls always seem to be struggling. After doi g rhe valve cover gasket and orings ans seats on the injectors and that idle bypass screw it started finally breathing and processing fuel as it should. Before i knew it i was able to max it our at about 100mph 

my current cabby with the 3spd auto actually feels great at 90mph. Rpms are a little high at that speed but i really enjoy it. Putting a header and custom 2-1/4 exhaust to a borla seemed to help give it some more oomph too


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Agreed that the autos shouldn't be unsafe. My 82 had the 71HP (maybe 76HP?) 1.7L with the 3 sod auto and it was fine to drive in traffic and on the highway. Like tinygiant said, the revs were high, but it had no problem cruising along at or reaching those speeds. It's not the quickest version, but it should still be safe and fun. You need to figure out what your issue(s) is (are) and get the car running properly. Timing (belt and ignition), vacuum leaks, fuel system, etc should all be checked and repaired if necessary. That long crank makes me think major vacuum leak. With all the brake work (including a new booster) check and make sure the booster vacuum hose is properly connected. There are several small lines that come off of the booster line, as well.

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## TC Mooch (Apr 18, 2021)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Agreed that the autos shouldn't be unsafe. My 82 had the 71HP (maybe 76HP?) 1.7L with the 3 sod auto and it was fine to drive in traffic and on the highway. Like tinygiant said, the revs were high, but it had no problem cruising along at or reaching those speeds. It's not the quickest version, but it should still be safe and fun. You need to figure out what your issue(s) is (are) and get the car running properly. Timing (belt and ignition), vacuum leaks, fuel system, etc should all be checked and repaired if necessary. That long crank makes me think major vacuum leak. With all the brake work (including a new booster) check and make sure the booster vacuum hose is properly connected. There are several small lines that come off of the booster line, as well.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk


Hey thanks! I have replaced the timing belt but I will add to my list to check on ignition issues, vacuum leaks and fuel system issues. It's weird because when I bought the car it was fine but then it sat for around a year and now all these issues are coming up. I think I learned my lesson to not have it sit anymore--even in the winter I plan on starting it and at least driving it back and forth in my garage (even if it is just 5 feet at a time).


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

Dragged mine home, started gutting it. Guess I should get a project thread going now….


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Very nice! Lmk if you need any parts. I have a plethora


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

tinygiant said:


> Very nice! Lmk if you need any parts. I have a plethora


I will for sure. I may end up looking for a more solid starting point, the more I dig the worse it gets….but that’s the fun of it I guess!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

natepo said:


> I will for sure. I may end up looking for a more solid starting point, the more I dig the worse it gets….but that’s the fun of it I guess!


Where are you located?


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

tinygiant said:


> Where are you located?


Brunswick Maine.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Im originally from NH just moved to NC. I miss new england. However ive found 4 cabbies in amazing shape in peoples backyards so far since ive been here . The land of no salt


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

tinygiant said:


> Im originally from NH just moved to NC. I miss new england. However ive found 4 cabbies in amazing shape in peoples backyards so far since ive been here . The land of no salt


Ha! I’m from up here but we moved to NC for a while and came home 4 yrs ago. We were in the Wilson area, about 45 mins from Raleigh…..And you are never going to stop finding awesome cars down there. They are everywhere and not rotted in half. Cheap $$ too.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

My inlaws moved to rocky mount and go to church in wilson. I know the area  we are in elkin. But may relocate towards civilization a little and split the difference between work and the inlaws near Elon


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

tinygiant said:


> My inlaws moved to rocky mount and go to church in wilson. I know the area  we are in elkin. But may relocate towards civilization a little and split the difference between work and the inlaws near Elon


Oh sweet. I know those places well. I managed an Oreilly Auto Parts store down there…..well, I may need to send you on VW search missions now that you’re there! Hahaha!


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

. I currently have one full parts car, a shed full from parting out two others and one really nicw complete triple white that just needs some fuel attention from sitting


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Tinkered with my cabby and made some radiator cards from an old heat shield from my wife's previous toyota


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## 71StyleWagon (Mar 18, 2010)

Its been a long time since I have posted in this thread, Unfortunately, I sold my mk3.5 Cabrio a few years back and could not live without my vert so it was replaced with a 08 EOS... do us EOS guys get to post here too? I had Bentley wheels on my Passat wagon, Porsche Turbo wheels on my MK3.5 so I was challenged for a set of wheels for the EOS _BAM_ Maserati Ghibli wheels fit nicely and look OEM+


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## Mikeman84 (Sep 23, 2021)

Ordered some parts for a 89 I picked up last week


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Installed a different alternator arm










After











also replaced part of my spare tub

sprayed it with a a rubberized coating in and out.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Started on my trunk setup


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Nothing really, just mapping out and collecting parts to plumb the airlines


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

I looked at it for a minute trying to decide if I wanted to light it on fire or continue tearing it apart….. I have an ABA, ITBs, a micro squirt and a new tranny to mess with for the winter. I have a feeling the cabby will go back to being a chipmunk piss infested hotel until spring…..unless it gets pushed into the fire at my wife’s Halloween party.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Sold one of them


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> Sold one of them
> View attachment 121861


Generates funds to work on another one!

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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

That is true. I paid off what i owed on my airlift management and tucked the rest in savings.
I have one more to part out still.

next i will be ordering my bags  very excited to bagging a mk1 cabby. Ive wanted to do this for a long time


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> That is true. I paid off what i owed on my airlift management and tucked the rest in savings.
> I have one more to part out still.
> 
> next i will be ordering my bags  very excited to bagging a mk1 cabby. Ive wanted to do this for a long time


Are you notching the front rails?

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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Thats beyond my personal abilities. I will do the install and see how low i want to go. If i feel i will need to go that low i will have a shop do it


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

ordered my ckw2 bags.... now I impatiently await their arrival. 

Started on airline plumbing last night. Will try and have the wiring and plumbing done before they get here


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

Quietly pondering how a Safari Cabby would improve my life….


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

there was a cabby on a jeep frame for sale in Nh last year on craigslist. I was intrigued and upset.

i do like the idea of dropping the drivetrain from a geo tracker into a cabby with a vw diesel enginw


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> there was a cabby on a jeep frame for sale in Nh last year on craigslist. I was intrigued and upset.
> 
> i do like the idea of dropping the drivetrain from a geo tracker into a cabby with a vw diesel enginw


Samurai frame, tdi engine. 

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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Did most of the air line plumbing today. Just need to drill holes and setup bulkheads for the bags when they arrive and run the harness and install sensors









I spent a couple hours bending aluminum tubing and after finally getting a couple pieces to fit properly i decided i would rather have the black tubing.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> Did most of the air line plumbing today. Just need to drill holes and setup bulkheads for the bags when they arrive and run the harness and install sensors
> View attachment 122581
> 
> 
> I spent a couple hours bending aluminum tubing and after finally getting a couple pieces to fit properly i decided i would rather have the black tubing.


Very steampunk, I dig it. Not your standard install.

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## Chdmlr (Oct 1, 2020)

Replaced the seat slide bushings finally. The seats actually feel like they’re connected to the car now.

















Also put a new drivers side top latch on since the top began to pop loose on the highway…


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Its amazing the difference those little clips make with the seats


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Pulled apart the parts cabby a bit more and discovered what i thought was a 4spd was a 5spd  i may keep what i have try to find a pedal cluster (shouldnt have sold it)




















Question for rhose who may know. This racknis a manual. How much difference is there running the manual vs power rack? Do you think i would be find running a manual rack running air ride? Not sure if turning easier would be better being very low.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> Pulled apart the parts cabby a bit more and discovered what i thought was a 4spd was a 5spd  i may keep what i have try to find a pedal cluster (shouldnt have sold it)
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I have a pedal cluster I can part with.

It's been a long time since I've driven mine, but it has manual steering. As long as your tires aren't too wide It's not too bad, as I recall. Better to be rolling at least a little bit vs trying to turn when stopped, though.

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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

My original cabby years ago kept tossing the Ps belt and i got fed up and ran it without the belt for about a year. Im guessing it would bw about the same feel.


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

I like PS so much I converted my Rabbit pickup. The ratio alone is worth it. The assist is perfect, not too light or stiff.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Loosened my alternator belt a smidge. I noticed last time i drove it after swapping in the cogged adjuster that i wasnt running as high voltage as i normally do while driving. I figured maybe i over tightened a little. We shall see this weekend when i drive it again


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

An alternator with a belt that is too tight should not cause a low voltage problem. Might just want to do a voltage drop test to see if the alternator case is properly grounded.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Could adding the bosch starter relay impact the voltage?


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

Anything is possible, but I doubt it. I suspect that the relay you are talking about is for circuit 50 and since the only time the relay is consuming power [which could show a lower voltage] is when it's being used. Just dead weight while driving.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Drove it 40ft and took some pictures now that its all back together until i decided to do my swap or my bags arrive


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## gottaBdope (Jun 28, 2012)

Bought it! Now I'm trying to find some parts...


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

gottaBdope said:


> Bought it! Now I'm trying to find some parts...
> View attachment 126006


Nice M Coupe! Enjoy the Cabby!

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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

gottaBdope said:


> Bought it! Now I'm trying to find some parts...
> View attachment 126006


Lmk what you need for parts. I have ooodles of them


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## Nickboule (Aug 25, 2021)

Changed the oil on the ol girl today


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

@tinygiant. Get that hood adjusted. Seems to be a bit low on the LF side. It distracts from a really good job.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Butcher said:


> @tinygiant. Get that hood adjusted. Seems to be a bit low on the LF side. It distracts from a really good job.


And here I was being nice and not mentioning the slight droop to the bumper on the left side!

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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I think i need to adjust the fender a little. Ill check the hood too. And move that sode of the bumper up


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> I think i need to adjust the fender a little. Ill check the hood too. And move that sode of the bumper up


Nothing but  brother! Enjoy that pedal set when you get around to it! At least yours is together and driving mine hasn't in over a decade. 

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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

YJSAABMAN said:


> Nice M Coupe! Enjoy the Cabby!
> 
> Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk


 Thanks. Cant wait to get it al swapped in


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Adjusted the hood bumpers so its even height wise. I gotta figure out how to shift the hood left or the left fender right


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

The hood looks too low.

I went to Hot August Nights on the first road test of the 91 Cabriolet. I was looking at a distance at a car and I told my wife that paint job looks good but the door was repainted. She says, 'How can you tell?' I said, the shade is off. She told me I should shut up and not ruin it for her. I guess that is what I'm used to.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

Butcher said:


> The hood looks too low.
> 
> I went to Hot August Nights on the first road test of the 91 Cabriolet. I was looking at a distance at a car and I told my wife that paint job looks good but the door was repainted. She says, 'How can you tell?' I said, the shade is off. She told me I should shut up and not ruin it for her. I guess that is what I'm used to.


I do that kind of stuff all the time. One of the worst was a home buff job on a black car through polarized sunglasses. Holy swirls, Batman! Just kicked a car during a CPO checkout at work because there was so much poor quality paint work on it. 

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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Ordered the 4crawler shift linkage kit with delrin relay bushings, already ordered and received the delrin shaft bushing. I also ordered an inner/outer tie rod, bellows and clutch install kit and tool.. 

I think at this point I have completely collected/purchased the parts for the 5spd swap. 

The only part I am not entirely sure about is if the steering knuckle from my manual rack will attach to the existing column in my currently auto car. mine is an 85 donor is an 82


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> Ordered the 4crawler shift linkage kit with delrin relay bushings, already ordered and received the delrin shaft bushing. I also ordered an inner/outer tie rod, bellows and clutch install kit and tool..
> 
> I think at this point I have completely collected/purchased the parts for the 5spd swap.
> 
> The only part I am not entirely sure about is if the steering knuckle from my manual rack will attach to the existing column in my currently auto car. mine is an 85 donor is an 82


I honestly don't remember what my manual trans rack came out of, it's been too many years. I did not change from power to non-power steering, though. Never had PS.

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## Karl_1340 (Sep 1, 2017)

Finished the install of the mk3 manifold/TT downpipe and got most of the TT 2" exhaust run.
Just waiting on a cat.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Got about halfway on my 5spd swap. Worked from about 8am to 3pm

Got the auto out, clutch in, linkage setup mostly, manual rack in.

still need to get the auto pedal cluster swapped out, put the 5spd in. Then all alignments, timings and wirings.


kind of wishing i hired someone to do this job. I feel a little over my head, but learning as i go.
I have been taking a ton of pictures to hopefully help illustrate the cabby info swap details 




question for anyone following:
any tricks for the three bolts behind rhe booster to get the cluster out? I got the top bolt okay









Snags i hit:
My custom exhaust was fabbed but when it was an auto and i didnt know it but the shop used the shift rod cradle for a support point for the exhaust. So i had to unbolt the exhaust at the flange at the end of the header. One of the bolts galled and bent and I had to cut it. So now i have a stainless broken bolt in the header flange. Oh joy.

the instructions on cabby info said you could keep the axels on when removing the auto. Definitely cant. I wrestled for a long while before just removing them and the tranny slid right off 

other than those couple things its been going fairly smooth


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

If you have a welder, it would not be a bad idea to reinforce the clutch conduit tube. They can break and it's a pain to remove it again to fix/replace it.


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Using a articulating Speed Wrench help me on the booster bolts, they are a tough nut, but it was still easier with the proper tool.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Finally got the other two nuts off. I ended up using a 13mm socket, a 1/4 to 1/4 hex adapter and a ratcheting 1/4 box wrench. The combo gave me the ability to slide on the box and keep the setup very shallow but ratchet.
Tomorrow night we are looking at a new house so i wonr be able to loosen the column to get the auto pedals out and the new cluster in.

im getting there. Slowly but surely


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## Renoir (May 21, 2020)

Took it to the RADwood show at the Greenwich Concours


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Got the pedal cluster in. Got the steering rack hooked up to the steering column. 

Got the accelerator cable hooked up. Got the brake hooked up. Having a terrible time getting the transmission back in. 



I feel like i am getting close though. I am going to see if i can find someone locally who has experience to help me get the transmission back on


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> Got the pedal cluster in. Got the steering rack hooked up to the steering column.
> 
> Got the accelerator cable hooked up. Got the brake hooked up. Having a terrible time getting the transmission back in.
> 
> ...


You have to kinda roll it up in. Final drive goes up in first, then the rest follows as the final drive moves back into place. In the mk2/mk3 sometimes it helps to shift that end 9f the engine forward a bit, too. The jack that comes with the car works great for that. You position it between the subframe and the block and crank it to create a little more gap for the passenger axle flange to find its way in.

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Thanks. I will give it another shot tonight and see if i can get it in there. With the car on havk stands in the front i could definitely ser the engine leaning back a bit and needing a nudge forward. Fingers crossed i can get it back in tonight


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I have the axels off the tranny so, the axel clearance isnt giving me issue the cap side is getting inrerference with the frame rail. M probably not using enough rolling technique


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## SnyderCreations (Jul 9, 2012)

Not today but last weekend, I bought mine! 99 2.0 auto car. Needs some work but the price was right at $200


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Used my lathe and made a shift knob to complete my auto to 5spd swap


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## Charllow (May 18, 2017)

tinygiant said:


> Used my lathe and made a shift knob to complete my auto to 5spd swap
> 
> View attachment 133373
> 
> View attachment 133374


Noice


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## JPF (Oct 2, 2007)

Renoir said:


> Took it to the RADwood show at the Greenwich Concours
> View attachment 128065


I saw that car that day. I never thought I could submit my '92 for this show, but now I would like to. Did you just show up, or did you have to register?


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Made a better knob for my cabby. Its in the shop getting the rear main seal done and my bags installed


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Grab some popcorn and take a seat. 

Picked up my car today after it was at a shop for three weeks. One of the techs from the shop around the corner from my work started his own shop recently. So I contacted him figuring I would give him some business. My cabby needed the rear main seal and the air ride put in (run lines and put bags in) he quoted me $800 for the job. When i dropped the car off i needed a bolt on the exhaust flange that broke taken off and replaced (supplied the bolts) and asked him to do that too while it was on the lift. 


I get a text yesterday that everything is done other than putting the fittings in the fender wells but that i am at $1100 “so far”

So i asked are the bags in yet? Does that $1100 include finishing the bag install? He replies that it does not. And went on to say when he did my rear main seal he tidied up some wires and when he did my exhaust he rerouted the o2 sensor wire. 

At this point i asked him what he had into the car for time and that I would like the job completed that he quoted. And understand adding the exhaust bolt could add a little but i don't see how doing the rear main and Those little things could cost so much. 


So he got a bit annoyed and texted me telling me his time is worth something. Which i agreed and i asked what he put into the car so far….

He replied the rear main seal part $70 and 4 hours labor so far and he would give me a deal at $50/hr. 

So I said, great so thats $270. What am i paying another $800 for???


At this point i think he realized that he exposed his trickery and got flustered and told me that he didn't the time to finish it and its best if i just come get it. And pay $400 and call it even. 

I agreed to that. When i picked the car up the alignment on the shifter was so far off 5th was at first. And he pushed the car out of the bay. 

I was able to shift to where reverse should be and down to catch 2nd gear to leave and will have the align that myself in a couple days. 


Lesson learned to be a little less trusting, get things in writing and maybe get some some client feedback. I’ll have to give the car a good look over to make sure things are as they should be. 



Such an ordeal.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> Grab some popcorn and take a seat.
> 
> Picked up my car today after it was at a shop for three weeks. One of the techs from the shop around the corner from my work started his own shop recently. So I contacted him figuring I would give him some business. My cabby needed the rear main seal and the air ride put in (run lines and put bags in) he quoted me $800 for the job. When i dropped the car off i needed a bolt on the exhaust flange that broke taken off and replaced (supplied the bolts) and asked him to do that too while it was on the lift.
> 
> ...


That sucks. Not to be an @SS, but why didn't you do the rear main seal when you just did the 5 speed swap?

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Well the rear main was fine when i did the swap. 

My auto tranny had a pan leak and after doing the swap I decided to check all the oil pan bolts. I discovered one bolt wouldn't tighten and foolishly thought… hmm maybe a bolt a couple threads longer would catch better if it were stripped out. So i put a little longer bolt in. Turns out it was right in line with the rear main shroud and cracked it


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

or at least this is the picture he sent. Makes sense. Stupid decision on my part


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)

tinygiant said:


> View attachment 142384
> 
> View attachment 142385
> 
> ...


D'oh! Gotcha!

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk


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## briano1234 (Feb 20, 2004)

Yep, see that stripped seal carrier. Those bolts are best started by hand then tightened to the specific torque, as I figured that the 2 front bolts and 2 rears only should be tightened to 87 in/lbs. Oh, and I use a wobble extension on my 1/4 drive ratchet.

Going onward with a stripped Carrier, I have successfully used a Washer Headed Sheet metal Screw to replace the stripped one, and it lasted for about 5 years before I replaced the carrier and seal during a transmission swap.


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

That guy will not make it in his new shop. Once you let people know it's all about you [My time is worth something], then it's down hill. 

When you work with the public, you must understand they can go anywhere. You need to appreciate that they picked you. That should mean a lot to you and therefore do the best job you can. You gave an estimate and you should honor that even if you take a bit longer. There are exceptions, but many times, you take it as a learning curve and let the next client know what may happen. If you need more parts, then the client needs to step up and buy them.

What is worst is that the job was not done properly. A faulty shifter adjustment is not acceptable. 

When it comes to butchery on the professional level, I always know that someone else may see my work and the last thing I want is to prove that some butcher was working on their car. If I saw some sheet metal screw in a machine threaded hole, I would certainly inform the client that the past person who worked on it should not be turning wrenches. Yes, sometimes the person I told that too was the person that put in that sheet metal screw. I have not been hit yet.

They do make an updated cover that works well with that engine. It comes with both seals built in so you do not have to worry about a warped cover. 068 103 171F


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

I agree. He got defensive right away. I never said nor thought his time wasn't valuable. But if you are going to value your time it should align with the price you said you were owed... Luckily most people who are dishonest are also not always all that smart. Its pretty easy to find the truth with a couple pointed questions. 

I will say, he didn't really have much to say about the transmission swap. One bolt in the rear mount had come a little loose.. but not never doing a swap before, fairly happy with the project. 

Next time I do a tune up maybe I will grab that other pan. I'd like to get a lower profile or at least one with the windage in it


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

It goes without saying, everyone's time is worth something. To think yours is worth more is a terrible way to start.

What is also bad is that his attitude does further damage to my industry. That guy needs a good mentor and a very low overhead. Having both will shorten the learning curve and allow him to make real money.

Your reputation is worth more than your time. I learned a lot when I started my own business. When something went wrong, I looked at what I could do to better. Most times, I did find fault with my decision. There have been a few times where I fired the client. It was the only answer to prevent further problems. If you find that you need to fire a lot of clients, you are looking at it all wrong.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Painted my door cards with the duplicolor vinyl paint

















After:


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Installed airride, put interior back in and took it ip the road for a picture and test drive. Definitely will need the frame notched for even air out. It rides pretty good but I have to get an alignment asap after doing the tranny and suspension swap


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## matty kirk (Jul 2, 2007)

Heat shield for 02J shifter and exhaust transfer pipe fabricated.


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## Karl_1340 (Sep 1, 2017)

tinygiant said:


> View attachment 159892


Those mini wheels are so nice on a Cabby. They almost looks like 90s period correct wheels.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Karl_1340 said:


> Those mini wheels are so nice on a Cabby. They almost looks like 90s period correct wheels.


Thanks. They caught my interest on my last cabby(my first vw ever) because they looked like phone dials i could run without adapters


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Been a while since I have posted in here.

added a kill switch for my air system just incase the relays try to slowly drain my battery









added led lights to under each side of the car wired to the blinkers









Retrofitted kia soul seats to the car 

























also added new headlights

























Sometime this week. Installing new tails. I am just waiting for all new leds for them to arrive


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## Chdmlr (Oct 1, 2020)

I’ve spent many hours in those same Kia Soul seats, definitely comfy for longer drives. 

I dropped my car off today to get all of the rot cut out of the windshield cowl and have the car wet sanded and buffed (didn’t trust myself to not burn through it). Hyped to not have water dripping onto the fuse panel every time the car gets wet.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Some updates posted in mk1 thread. But here are some. Snippets

Washed it 









tails installed. all LEDs in exterior lights installed









new plate frame











Added lower trim

















also cant go much lower. Once its aired out im pretty much as low as the car should ever sit









Also have these in route 









Which means i will be selling my kia seats…. After all that work. Oh well


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## apelado (Jul 7, 2006)

I finally got around to refinishing the Centre five stars on my Cabby. 
A few other recent cosmetic mods

color matched front and rear lower bumpers
mounted side skirts and lip spoiler
custom tortoise badge... cuz the 2.0 definitely is not a rabbit 😂


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

getting caught up on updates for this thread

Installed the flaps

















Installed recaros









Installed new reverse light switch. The leds i got for the reverse lights are killer bright. They light up the entire 80ft long driveway. 









Installed new leds in cluster, new egr counter, and a new clock. 









installed handsfree mic in lighting bezel.











Also have this seat in route. I olan to fabric paint it black and just have a black rear seat instead of matching the rears to the trophies for now. Much cheaper option that will look legit.


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

Bought the Cabby a donor heart, tranny, hubs, master cylinder (non ABS), calipers, OEM tape deck/6 disc changer, and seats today. Stuffed it all in my wife’s bay.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Been a while since updating.

-painted the rear seats,
-Found and installed real recaro badges into the rear seats
-put a piece of shrink tubing on my shifter to make it look a bit more sleek
-installed power bases and made a diy harness for my recaros
-painted my visors to cover up that ugly white
-made a custom wood pull for my rear seat latch


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Image uploader is being wonky


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

More pics


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

its funny how much my car looks like a toy in a parkinglot


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

tinygiant said:


> View attachment 224121
> 
> 
> its funny how much my car looks like a toy in a parkinglot


I was thinking the same thing when I stuffed mine in the garage sideways so I could start ripping and tearing in the Jetta. Also, that color with the black interior is killer.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

natepo said:


> I was thinking the same thing when I stuffed mine in the garage sideways so I could start ripping and tearing in the Jetta. Also, that color with the black interior is killer.


Thanks 

its fun driving go carts in society


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

It is amazing how manufacturers start with a model and as the years go by, the new and improved models that replace the original get bigger and bigger. I remember when a MINI was a mini.


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

Butcher said:


> It is amazing how manufacturers start with a model and as the years go by, the new and improved models that replace the original get bigger and bigger. I remember when a MINI was a mini.


Yep. It’s nuts. My cabby would fit inside my MK7.5 GTI. Look at an old 911 and say a 991 911 and the size difference is astonishing.


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## Karl_1340 (Sep 1, 2017)

natepo said:


> Yep. It’s nuts. My cabby would fit inside my MK7.5 GTI. Look at an old 911 and say a 991 911 and the size difference is astonishing.











What is even more astonishing is the car on the left could be had with up to 1100hp


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

Karl_1340 said:


> View attachment 224223
> 
> What is even more astonishing is the car on the left could be had with up to 1100hp
> View attachment 224226


Tire/wheel sizes on the 911 crack me up too.


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## YJSAABMAN (Jun 28, 2006)




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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

Mr Bean could fit a lot of Teddys in the new Mini.


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

Moved it and donor Jetta back outside. Now the two ****tiest cars I own have the best car covers I’ve ever owned.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

May be worth getting some sort of rodent repellent to sprinkle around them


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

tinygiant said:


> May be worth getting some sort of rodent repellent to sprinkle around them


Yup. Done. Interior is out of both as well so we should be good. The Jetta will get dragged back in so I can pull the drivetrain and drop the tank. The Cabbie may actually live inside, just needed it out to clean the disaster of a garage.


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Scooped up an oem black vinyl cabby seat on ebay a couple days ago. Quick shipper. But im an even quicker installer lol


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## tinygiant (Mar 17, 2012)

Also messed with my new cnc laser 
Working on some realistic shift knob patterns


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## natepo (Jul 19, 2015)

Blahahahah!!!


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