MK1 Jetta 2.1 8v - ongoing project

mrrawle wrote:thats is one fucking stunning mk1 ! it's mint !

Cheers, glad u like

Ha...where did you get those rear mounts from????!! I'm after a set nd cant find them! Any chance of letting me know how much they were? Cheers.

Do they alter the ride much?

Erm, I've had them ages - I think they are Autocavan ones, bought from a local shop many moons ago. Not a clue what they cost me. I'm sure you can still get them, probably not Autocavan ones though.

I've not driven the car yet but it should get rid of a bit of the sloppyness at the rear and tighten it up a little by removing movement at the top of the rear struts - thats the idea anyway!

I'll report back how it goes when the weather clears up and i decide to take the car out! Its currently thundering, lightening, hailstoning and blowing a gale outside, so the cars staying put in the shelter!

Thats why i'm on the computer and not outside swapping the front inserts over............

Nice one cheers mate. Will have to continue the search! Keep up the good work.

loving the rims if they are the ones i think they are there only 5 sets made??

samthejettaman wrote:loving the rims if they are the ones i think they are there only 5 sets made??

Possibly, I know of only one other set. They came off a road rally early Audi 80.

This is what I got up to last night after work. One leaking shock:

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Remove, together with other side:

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Note knackered bump stop. Remove strut top cap:

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Et voila - one insert, sitting slightly high...more in a bit:

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Remove insert:

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Compare old with new:

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This lug has to be chopped off the bottom:

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Like so:

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Otherwise it sits too high in the strut, like so:

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This makes it sit lower inside the strut. However, it sits slightly lower than the top of the strut, so you have to fit this ring to the top of the shock:

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And then stick it in the strut, together with some antifreeze, WD40 etc:

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Fit cap back on, and your done:

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Rebuild struts with new bumpstops:

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And then refit. Job done.

Got my black vinyl trims for between the windows on the Caravelle yesterday, together with a couple of stickers:

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Some nice pics taken at the end of last year to follow.

were did you get those stickers from dude i want sum!!!!

From an internet site called volkswagen stickers i think.

Some pics from late last year, that my mate took:

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looks sweet! i so wanna get a scene tax sticker!

Nothing more done apart from passing the MoT on Monday. New screen rubber on its way from GPC which i'm hoping will cure the leak. As soon as thats done i'll give it a good run to see if the brake problems have been cured. Fingers crossed.

Its also booked onto the Club GTi track day at Cadwell on 9th Feb - better get the suspension geometry done then!

cadwell. you that close?

Dan this jetta is gorgeous are you comin to the meet in Telford on the 8th march?

Cadwell is about 150 miles away from mine - booked into the Travelodge near Lincoln for the friday night with a mate who's also going on track - there's gonna be a lot of CGTi peeps there too, so should be fun.

I was planning on going to Ultimate Dubs on the 9th March - is that the meet ur on about?

We have got a presance at the show but im refering to [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

I think i'm gonna struggle with doing that day too (family), but more than happy to meet up and park with other Jetta's on the sunday at UD's. Outside Jetta display?

Will there be facilities to join at the show and get stickers etc?

yeah itll all be there on the stand buddy

Best laid plans and all that. Drove 15 miles to the Parcel Force depot on friday evening to collect my parcel so I could crack on with the car this weekend. This morning, removed the windscreen and cleaned all the sealant off:

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Only to find they've sent me the wrong seal - its for a screen with the chrome trim, and i specifically asked for a plain one with no trim:

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So thats gonna have to be sent back and it'll probably be next weekend if i'm lucky when i get the proper one. Not happy with GPC.

So, sorted out the dash vents that had become detached (dash has gone soft on the drivers side due to the water ingress) so they now blow air, then did a few bits on the engine.

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Got some service bits to sort next week.

Plugs, dizzy, rotor arm, oil and rocker cover gasket bought from GSF, and a BMC CDA kit ordered from Venom. Had a chat with GPC and a new screen rubber is on its way together with a replacement for the washer bottle that i got as that was also wrong. At least they got the black plastic handle inserts and the sump plug washers right....... Had to pay for the new seal and will get a refund on the original one when they get it back, together with postage costs. Bit of a hassle, but the quickest way.

Packaged my plug leads up too ready to be returned - maybe they'll get it right 4th time.......

Unfortunately also killed the Vento going through some flood water, so need to sort that out as carless at the mo which isn't good. Hope its just the starter motor that won't work. Hate being towed by my dad as he's still getting me back for towing him back from Bolton in a 16v Jetta with no heater or wipers in the rain.

Pics when things get fitted.

Vento fixed. Phew.

After removing, testing and refitting the starter motor which was working fine, i removed the plugs to find the cylinders full of water and petrol - it'd sucked water through the air filter, AFM and TB! Removed the plugs, disconnected the coil, removed the fuel pump relay and turned it over a few times. Oily, petrol-filled water everywhere, but once the cylinders were reasonably empty and the spark plugs had been dried a few times, it fired and has been running fine. New air filter and it back to normal again.

Top tip - never drive through flood water in a lowered car!

Right, back to the Jetta......................

New plug leads being sent back to have new dizzy ends fitted:

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Decided to relocate the fuel filter to make more room for the BMC. Decided to put it on the other side of the scuttle which involved redoing the fuel lines:

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Rocker cover gasket, plugs n dizzy cap n rotar fitted. Head looks in good condition, with the only wear evident on number 1 lobe:

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As I had the drill out, I fitted the extinguisher I had waiting:

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Also stuck a few stickers on. Pics soon.

thats awsome, i love it! ! !

Windscreen seal arrived this morning together with the correct washer bottle. Might be watertight by the weekend! Here's a pic of yesterdays Blue Peter moment:

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And these also arrived at last:

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Sexual, like a lady

Rear suspension should be nice and hard:

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And there's the possibility of going quite low (remember, the Eibach/Koni setup is 40mm lower than standard:

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Unfortunately I couldn't fit them as the bore of the original sleeve that sits on top of the spring cap is bigger than the new shocks, so there would be too much play at the top:

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Gaz are gonna make me some new ones with the correct bore for the piston and correct outer diameter for the top mounts/bushes. They're also gonna make me some inserts so I can fit my TAS top mounts as I need four and the two that i've got have a bore that is too small:

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Suspension should go on then........thats once i've sorted the N/S rear bottom shock mount. The bolt for the shocker was stuck solid and after an hours worth of messing it refused to budge, so dad cut the bolt so I could get the shock out, unfortunately he also cut the bottom mount slightly, and its a bit on the bent side now so that needs sorting too......

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We also tried, and failed, to fit the windscreen so gave up and that should be fitted properly by someone used to doing it everyday on monday.

Can you see a pattern appearing.....

Whilst messing under the car i took a closer look at the rear arches....which were starting to rust already. This wasn't helped by the way in which the plastic arches had been trimmed and bonded on creating some lovely dirt and water traps, so took and angle grinder to them both and cut them right back, removed loads of sealer, wire brushed the rust back and rust proofed it ready for painting again properly:

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And as it stands now:

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I've ordered a pair of MK3 calipers from GSF as that will be everything replaced and theoretically the brakes should be fine and not need any more attention....famous last words.

I'm going back to work next week, ill and vomiting or not, as this week has been more stressful messing with bloody cars than if i'd been at work!

Right, i'm losing the will to live.

Spent 3 hours led under the bloody thing welding up the rear bottom shock mount after umming and ahhing if i should just swap the whole axle over. Its pretty solid now but i might still weld a washer onto it to make sure its 100%. I had planned on fitting the new rear brakes, but that didn't happen as it was 9.30 by the time i'd finished and cleaned up. Also removed the stub axles and brake backing plates which won't be replaced.

Damaged mount:

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Dad making it look hard:

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After i'd had a go for the first time:

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And after a little grind with the angle grinder and file:

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On the plus side I used the Arc welder for the first time as the Mig had run out of gas, and after watching dad make it look hard it's surprisingly easy to use.

At least the screen was refitted yesterday:

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And the bits i'm waiting for from Gaz:

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Proper fed up as all i seem to be doing is going backwards.

holy cow thats guna be one low ride!
love it : :