Isaac - 1992 MK2 Golf GTI 8v...

October 07, 2021, 05:26:52 PM

When I said doing the brake lines was a pleasure, I take it back... running those to the rear, and in particular the shorties from the beam to calipers was two days work and much eff'ing and blinding. The fronts were the original VW pipes, but from engine bay to rear had been replaced at some point so not great templates to work from, had to just do it from scratch instead

Hopefully now done and upside is it's allowed me to finally get the rear brakes fitted properly.

Plan is to get him/her back on it's own four feet so as to get the interior back in.

Those are the plastic bungs at the end, last two images - still think someones missing a trick not 3D'ing them

 

October 08, 2021, 09:09:10 PM

Rear and middle sections of the exhaust turned up today.

Felt like I was really pushing my luck using Autodoc yet again, up to now they've been more or less faultless over 7 or 8 orders (save for a serious long wait for the first few, but I was in no hurry) so I was due a hic-cup.

Glad to say though that all arrived as ordered and in perfect nick. Used them because I couldn't get Bosal anywhere in the UK, shame they didn't have the front section as well, but watch this space!

Waited until they'd 40% off and pounced. You may already know it but in the app., if you go to 'My Autodoc' there's a 'My Coupons' tab, (don't think it's on the regular website) and you'll have a few 1% coupons that you can copy to the final bill and get even more money off on top of everything else.

Anyhow, upshot was it's beginnings of the makings of a good OE system (even it's not stainless) for an affordable price... and better still, it's the look I want!

 

October 13, 2021, 11:53:51 AM

Finally back down on its own feet and can move onto jobs that involve getting into the car.

Probably be going up in the air again at some point though... few loose ends such as the new fuel feed pipe along with the accumulator / pump to button down and front piece of the exhaust to be fitted.

Had bought a larger trolley jack a quite a while back and to make use of it's full reach went for the extended legs of 6-tonne stands over standard 2 tonne ones. Found a site selling them for £6.00 each with free P+P if you went over £30. When they turned up had to help the driver get the boxes off the van they were so heavy. Turns out they were Amazon returns, never used.

I've no idea now how I got the car up so high in the first place, must be 6 months ago it was done. Bringing it back down involved an awful lot of puckering.

Last shots from under the car hopefully -

 

October 23, 2021, 11:23:45 AM

Took a week or so away from the car, spending too much time on it lately... supposed to be a hobby, not a chore!

Yes, doubled up on the clips - have a surplus and was crawling around beneath, doing a final check before lowering it and spur of the moment thing.

The heat shields are the originals, all but one being aluminium meant they were in great nick, just a tidy up and back on.

Been dodging the bullet of the heater matrix for a while now.

Mainly been put off by the horror stories you read about what's involved, but equally common sense was nagging at me saying now is the time to do it plus being the original (not even with a by-pass valve) I was just storing up trouble.

Ordered foam etc. over a week ago and it's just turned up today, so wish me well!

 

October 23, 2021, 03:00:58 PM

Had it all apart already in anticipation and it wasn't too bad a job, even the original Valeo matrix was in good shape.

It was the foam that'd given up the go... have totally removed every piece that hadn't already crumbled onto the floor from behind the dash to be replaced with new.







Generic 2mm closed cell, self adhesive foam. Previously bought a large sheet when doing the 205 and it was so invaluable used it all up, so ordered some more for the MK2.

New matrix came with it's own and the bulkhead / scuttle intake gasket's have yet to arrive.






Initially did the extra piece half way across as per the original but can't think why VW did it like that, wound up extending it the whole way.

 

October 23, 2021, 04:41:02 PM

That's it for today -








... and washed my socks as well.

 

October 26, 2021, 07:21:05 PM

Loose fitting the monkey puzzle tree that is the heater pipes before getting ready to put the dash back on.

For the benfit of Dene and others thinking of removing theirs that's the 2 x holes / nuts that hold the dash from the engine bay side, way up under the scuttle... hopefully save you some head scratching.

 

October 27, 2021, 11:31:30 AM

Again... my memory for the useless has kicked in and I recall watching / reading something about cheap v's expensive cars.

They took a Citroen AX along with a then current Lexus apart and one of the 'highlights' was that Citroen painted their seat frames while Lexus left them bare metal. Thinking was even they start to show rust, who'll see it.

Seeing the metal work behind the MK2 dash must've triggered some of the synapses I have left.

 

October 30, 2021, 11:12:47 AM

Push is on to get more and more back on... weathers already on the turn and want to get the car as near complete (less engine) as possible before it gets too much colder.

Dash was a learning curve, though having done it once (hopefully never to have to do it again) it would be much easier for a second time knowing what I do now.

Re-foamed the looms... while the original stuff was a crumbly, sticky mess it was also there for a reason and might help with keeping the rattles down.

Whoever may be having to do it all over again in another 30+ years might not agree though!

There's probably a few tips to pass on if like me it's your first removal and refit - main one I'd say, because it ate up more time than proportionate for their small size was the fitting screws and sorting out what went where.

VW in their wisdon seem to have used a whole collection of similar looking, but slightly different screws. Some'll fit in the wrong place, others won't, but get one wrong and that means another one elsewhere'll be wrong too.

Do that and by the time you get to the end of the job you'll have some fittings that you'll struggle with and being brittle plastic / weak compressed card there's the risk of damaging something needlessly - a pain, but mark your fittings as you remove them, so much easier than having to sift through them later!

Wrongly assumed the spare dash bulbs I already have would fit the MK2, not so but for the sake of waiting a day or two until the correct ones arrive, fitting the binnacle is on hold.

The routeing for my own sub-loom (the VDO's etc.) was also tided up now that access was available and it went back in a treat.

My patented bulkhead grommet is available at all good motorfactors.

Another tip which has occurred to me while writing are the air vents either side / closest to the doors. Didn't take a photo, would've explained it straight away, but imagine the plastic tubes that feed them.

They have 3 x prongs with little fold overs at their ends, the idea is that they extend out into the apperture and as the vent is slid in they're captured between it and the dash itself. Should hold them in place and avoid the pipework parting company from the vent piece and flapping about, blowing air around inside the dash.

The center twin vent simply pushes into the corresponding pipework, it's further inside, no prongs etc.

Seats have been gathering dust waiting to go in (and getting in everyones way), hopefully when the dash is finished that'll happen, ditto the door cards and thenl be the interior almost 100% done - famous last words.

 

October 30, 2021, 04:53:53 PM

VW's original double sided tape for the door membranes had dried up, making it very easy to take them off without damage.

New stuff may make that more difficult to do again but unavoidable, hence the precaution of a template for future use if needed.

The additional 'Waxoyl' that was sprayed in and around the door cavity a while back has now turned semi solid, not pretty but you can never have too much protection.

More evidence of production dates - 8th July (or 7th August if you're being Continental?) 1991.

Door locks / handles were very dry and clunky from a decade of being in a box with no use - satisfying 30 minute job to fix and along with the new pins now closes like a Merc. plus resurrected the 'Armor' plates.

 

November 01, 2021, 10:37:37 AM

With it being sooooo long ago I've had to pinch myself to believe the car's at the stage it is (if you ignore the small issue of a lack of engine).

Even went into the loft last night to hunt down bits I'd bought a decade and more ago for it.

Something I've had even longer is this, bought new from Isaac Agnews VW parts store in Mallusk, Co. Antrim when it was still just a single tiny box office down the side of the old showroom.

It's been with me and on a few MK2's (plus a monza blue Jetta 16v) right through from the start of the 1990's... like meeting an old friend again.





Took a while but finally tracked down a German outfit that'd post the front part of the Bosal system to the UK...

 

November 02, 2021, 05:31:39 PM

Getting weary... interior is all in (I think!) so going to call it a day for while then assess the engine side of things.

Fading light stopped play again and didn't help the image quality either.

 

November 03, 2021, 08:57:17 AM

Don't think I've ever owned a MK2 that I didn't change the wheel on, the original for this car is worn smooth in places and has developed an ever so slightly tacky feel around the rim... just not nice to use

This age of Italvolanti has a really satisfying chunky rim, even it was as ugly as sin it'd be going on for that reason alone, but regardless I personally think it's perfect and have never seen something I'd swap it for.

 

November 03, 2021, 01:20:48 PM

One of the loft finds... do remember buying this a very long time ago for pennies on eBay for no other reason than it was the same one as in the catalogue.

It's just the handset part, the main gubbins would've been hidden out of sight some where.

No holes etc., made up an aluminium paddle (protected with more of the indispensable adhesive foam!) held between a gap in the center consoles side and to which the phones own holder now attaches, all easily removed.

Apologies for the dodgy image's, just can't seem to get a decent piccie these days because of the low autum sun... life's hard.

 

November 04, 2021, 11:58:56 AM

Socks went in the wash with the normal laundry, weren't too dirty to start with other than dust.

Bellino fuel can intended to fit within the spare wheel itself.

The vast majority of these seem to have been made for Mercedes, then BMW and occassionally you'll see the odd Volvo / other obsure one and most will have the corresponding makers emblem pressed into the metal.

VW seem to have done it on the cheap and added their logo in sticker form to a plain can.

Unfortunately for me, being a later car with the space saver the can's too tall to fit under the flat boot mat, if you'd a full size spare and humped mat it'd be perfect.

They come in different capacities (I think 7 and 9 litres) and the larger version is for greater diameter wheels... 7 litre fits a 15" wheel exactly.

The cans separate threaded rod / washer screws down onto the existing floor mounted upright to secure it.

Also leaves you with the issue of what to do with the jack etc.

 

November 10, 2021, 07:08:58 PM

Made the decision to get as much back onto the car as possible, partly because I'm tired of tip toeing around stuff and need the garage space back. Until you see it, no one would believe you just how far out a car can spread when it's in bits.

Also the increasingly cold days we're having has reminded me just how punishing it was doing the 205 over the winter months, no intention of ever doing that again.

I realise most of it will have to come off again, but nothings being tightened down and it has the advantage of testing everything fits / nothings missing etc.

The bonnet and drivers door are away for paint... the bonnet because it'd had a mediocre blow over at some point and the door because of a slight swelling along the bottom seal. As it turned out that was so minor it could very easily have been sorted while on the car, but we weren't to know.

Overall the car's paint is in good nick, save for one noticible parking ding and some rubbing in places such as where the boot light plinth meets the tail gate.

In an ideal world I'd have liked to have sorted it now, but the cars obviously immobile and it's been touched in, so can wait until after an MOT and able to go to someone under its own steam.

All being well, front bumper and grille probably tomorrow.

 

November 14, 2021, 08:55:44 PM

Loft diving...

 

November 15, 2021, 09:08:50 PM

I don't just up-cycling foam you know... kudos if you can say what this textured board was originally part of?



Not sure it'll work when the car's in use... hopefully waterproofed it with a few coats of lacquer, but only time will tell.



Needs something there, just doesn't look right without.

 

April 24, 2022, 09:50:07 PM

Son passed his test just over a month ago... been occupied sorting him out with a car (read that as also getting it 100% reliable / serviced / safe), plus the 205 has just been given a thorough going over for it's MOT next week.

MK2 has now finally come back to the fore... it's MOT is less than 7 weeks away - really going to have to get the finger out if it's going to make it in time. Not convinced it will, just too much needs doing and most of it's things way beyond my skill set / will likely need farming out and involve all the obligatory delays that seems to entail these days.

 

... and back to the present, what a fe+kin marathon that was!