So I thought I would share my latest project which is going to be a slow build. It will be handy to keep a record of dates in this thread! I have bought this as we still have so many Mk3 bits in stock and I was fancying a change from my current Megane R26 track car. I had been down to see it the weekend before but arrived with a trailer on the 10th November to pick it up. It is a 1.6L which has had a few mods done to it over the years. A short list are the colour coded bumpers / rubbing strips and the questionable wheels fitted along with VR6 interior, rear lights and rear spoiler. The main attraction was the fact the shell was pretty fresh as it had been garaged since 2012 and it only has 49k on the clock. The powerhouse: We got it home and unloaded in to the garage. Removed the parts which have since been sold: Then got cracking with stripping it down to a bare shell ready for a T45 weld in cage: Grommet holes in the floor are the best I have seen in a Mk3 I have owned. There is plenty of sound deadening and underseal to be removed before it goes for the cage in January. There are naturally a few bits of rust to be sorted but I am happy with how it is going so far. I also need to get the engine out to make the front turret triangulation easier for the cage builder. The plan with this one is to make an updated version of the VR6 Challenge race cars from the 90's, except mine will have a lightweight Golf front end and a few other mods. It is intended to be used for the SLS championship in Scotland but it will also be road legal so I can do some European track days in it. I will try and keep this updated as progress is made. Thanks, Martin
Clean looking Vento rear seat doesn't look like sedan...Rear part part of jetta/vento seat is different
So I got some time last night to strip a bit more off the front end to allow the engine to be removed. IMG_20181125_165018 IMG_20181125_174234 I also wanted to take the wings off to inspect the condition of the inner wings and trial fit the wider fibreglass wings I had made years ago. IMG_20181125_174248 The next step will be to undo exhaust and driveshafts and continue disconnecting the engine so it can be taken out in one go. I know my way around a Mk3 Golf quite well and they really are a joy to work on compared with my previous French track toy. There is not much to them for a start and things come apart in a logical manner!
It can call all it wants Mike haha. So this week saw the engine being removed. IMG_20181204_193915 I have decided to park the project until the new year so I can finish breaking the megane. Once that is done there is plenty of sound deadening and underseal still to be removed from the Vento.
I was looking at R36’s the other day 300bhp as standard. With some work could be pushing 350 NA. No one has done it yet!
Sorry for the lack of updates. I am still prepping the shell for roll cage install, but now the megane has gone I am trying to free up some space in the garage and get back on to this. I also have bought a car as a donor for the engine. I may MOT this and use it for a few track days, see what happens 2004 Audi A3 3.2 quattro. It is a reasonably spec'd thing with the dealer fitted skirts and lower spoilers, 18" s line alloys, bose and xenons. It is also manual!! IMG_20190329_180833 IMG_20190329_180822 IMG_20190329_180808 I got to work giving it a service with fresh plugs, filters and oil IMG_20190331_104053 IMG_20190331_104129 IMG_20190403_195752 The tyres on the 18's were shot so I borrowed a set of Golf R wheels from my Dad IMG-20190408-WA0014 IMG-20190410-WA0017 There are a few wee jobs to do before it goes for the MOT and I think I will get the timing chains done for piece of mind. I started stripping the front end off to get at the engine 2019-04-11_02-30-53
So I decided to do the timing chains on the engine before it went near a track. It also gave me a chance to check everything over. Inlet manifold removed and I started labeling everything up IMG-20190426-WA0043 Engine out IMG-20190427-WA0000 A bay in need of some cleaning IMG_20190427_182455 Rocker cover off. I will give this a quick paint as it was reasonably manky looking IMG-20190428-WA0010 A quick buff over and ready for a chemical clean prior to painting IMG-20190430-WA0016 I also removed the breather element to give it a clean IMG-20190430-WA0018 This gunk was lurking underneath received_2368587050097442 Engine bay looking a bit cleaner and ready for the engine IMG-20190430-WA0028 So the next stage is to get the gearbox and end covers off the engine and start replacing the chains.
Short term plan for the engine is to sort the chains, replace various gaskets and get it back in the car. I will map the car as well so should be around 265bhp. I am hoping to run the A3 this year whilst the vento shell prep is progressed and then swap the engine over. I would like to fit cams & ITBs eventually but that is just pipe dreams at the moment. So we got the box split from the engine. Unfortunately it looks like the casing on the dual mass flywheel had spilt so all the grease came out of it. We were a bit confused as the where the grease had came from on the inside of the gearbox casing. Thankfully it is all cleaned up now and another clutch / flywheel is on the way. IMG-20190505-WA0035 IMG-20190503-WA0018 Most of the parts removed have been cleaned up and are ready to go back on. My resonator delete pipe and engine mount inserts have arrived as well. IMG-20190505-WA0032 That is us up to date.
