My 2dr Jetta Coup build....updated May 2009

Now that Gary has 'outed' my car, I thought I would do a proper build thread, please bear with me here, I've owned the car for about 4.5 years at this point, and the build has gone down several dead ends....

Just to wet your interest, here's what the car currently looks like (pics courtesy of Gary(GVK), many thanks for these fella), linked from here






So here's where the story of the (very) long project that my 2dr Jetta Coup starts, timeline is about mid Jan 2004.....


This first started out many years ago when I realised that VW had produced a MK2 Jetta, but with only two doors (in fact they had also produced this type of model based on the MK1 Jetta shell as well), making it a Coup as the Americans liked to call it. VWVortex has a massive forum which Im sure that many of you are aware, and this is where I first discovered this model, and immediately I knew that I wanted one. I am a person that likes something different, this definitely being that in the VW world although subtle enough for it not to be noticed by someone that didnt know what it was ideal. I also liked the idea of it being the best MK2 shell that I could get handling wise the Jetta is considered to be a better handling car than the Golf by some as it has a bigger area to the rear of the axle to help with weight distribution and with not having a hatch was also meant to be stiffer than the Golf (Jettas also have a non removable bulkhead panel immediately behind the rear seats making it even stiffer). After a bit of research I found that they were available in mainland Europe as well as North America, but it was never made in RHD form and was never introduced in the UK in LHD either.
After doing a fair bit of research I found that there were a handful of 2dr Jettas in the UK, and I seemed to miss out on finding a couple that had come up for sale. One had even been converted to a 16v so I was told. Over in mainland Europe there seems to be a varied array of engine types available from the factory in this model, but I have yet to see evidence of either a 16v or a syncro 2dr, but I am informed that they do exist..myth or fact? Who knows?
I also came across a 2dr Jetta that was a UK car this was originally a UK 8v GTi, but it was made as a 4dr saloon. The panels were bought to change this to a 2dr, and it was featured in one of the VW magazines in the late 1990s (since writing this a long time ago, I have found out that this car was scrapped)
After missing out on the ones that appeared to be available over here in the UK, I decided that the only way I was going to get one myself would be to import one from Europe, and this meant either Germany or Holland as there seemed to be a fair few of them available in these countries. With a bit of help I found a website in Germany (www.mobile.de) that is essentially the German equivalent of the UK Autotrader website.
Over the next 12-18 months I made several enquires via this website to sellers with not one reply. I was looking for a straight shell in almost any colour, but it had to be a 90 spec car. One that I did see was a 91 1.3 cl in Atlas Grey. I made contact with the car dealer via the website, but this time I got a reply. He told me that the Jetta was indeed still for sale, and he would be willing to help me sort out the necessary bits so that I could purchase it from him and bring it back to the UK.



It was at this point that I realised where exactly in Germany this car was and the logistics in getting the car backit was located in Dresden, which apart from being famous for the British bombings in WWII, it was almost the furthest point in Germany away from the UK. No wonder the seller wanted to know what was so special about this car that a mad Englishman wanted to come all the way to buy what he thought to be an ordinary VW.
The logistics to get to Dresden quickly and cheaply proved to be a little complicated.I live not too far from Heathrow airport, and with Dresden being a reasonably large place it was bound to have an airport, which it does the problem in getting there from Heathrow being that it was going to be via Berlin, several hours delay in the connection to Dresden and a lot of money to do it. After a bit more time searching for alternatives I got something else sorted, a Ryanair flight from Stanstead to Leipzeg, and then a short 1.5hr drive east to Dresden via a hire car. So, after a train journey to stay at a friends place 30 minutes away from Stanstead the night before, I got up at 0530 on a cold Monday morning to start my journey. The flight out was fine, and with no luggage to take with me (this was intended to be a day trip) nice and easy at the other end. Leipzeg airport being an ex WWII airforce base, complete with old hangers, and the appearance of not much change since then remember that this is the old East Germany. So it was off the plane at 1100 local time, a short walk across the concrete and into the small building that covered departure and arrivals. The Hertz desk was just outside Arrivals and within 15 minutes I was off in a hired Citren Berlingo. The main roads linking Leipzeg to Dresden were easy to Navigate, but as I wasnt sure where the car sales place was I had arranged to drop off the hire car at Dresden airport and then get a taxi.as it happened I had almost driven past it, and there was a Hertz place just around the corner, never mind, the lack of stress in trying to find the place was worth it.
Previously to flying out to Germany I had arranged with the seller that he would sort out the export papers for me and also the plates for the car. If you ever see a used car forecourt in Germany the cars will very rarely have number plates on them, this is because the plate system works differently in Germany. The plate stays with the seller, but with the added complication that it is only for use within a certain area, normally linked to the nearest town or city, so if you were to move from Dresden to Berlin then the plates would change. Also in Germany, it is possible to buy export plates for 1 or 3 months, and also the equivalent of UK Trade plates. These also insure the car for the period on the plate and look different to normal German plates as you can see in the photos. As the Jetta had been dealt with in Dresden, the plates bear the DD representing the city these plates are also the trade plate type, and not the export plates that it should be wearing. I could have got into trouble with these if the police had stopped me and found out that the car was being exported. I have heard before now of cars being impounded for this reason!
Previously to me flying out to Germany I had received several pictures of the car, most of them covered in snow! But they appeared to show that the car was honest and straight.







Whilst I was worried about the weather when going out there (the previous 2 weeks had been very cold and snowy) I was more concerned that what I was buying was what I wanted. I had already signed and faxed back a copy of the agreement to the seller to show my interest was serious. He was pleased to see me, and we had a long conversation about why I was buying the car. Once I had explained that I was a VW enthusiast and they never sold the 2dr Jetta in the UK he understood why I wanted to buy the car, and it certainly helped me that he was used to arranging exports from Germany, but more normally to neighbouring Russia!
Prior to going out to Germany I had planned a route back to Calais to catch the ferry back to Dover, and this was booked for midnight of the same day. According to the Europe route planners that I had tried, it was going to be a 9hr journey from Dresden to Calais, so with some trepidation that the Jetta was sound enough to make the journey (although there was nothing to suggest any foundation for this) I set off 2pm. I was quickly on my way out of the city, my plan being to keep to the main trunk roads between the cities and whilst I had a map, it was going to be easier to follow the signs going from city to city. The only other worry that I had was driving a LHD for the first time.those of you who have done this will know all too well the traumas of hitting the door reaching for the gearlever that isnt there!
The actual journey wasnt so bad, the worst bit being in the old East Germany where the roads were crap to say the least, the rain and lack of road lighting making it a horrible hour or two until I reached the outskirts of the next city. I also had the misfortune of a petrol station attendant laughing at me when I went to get back into the passenger side of the car to try and drive it! When I reached the western side of Germany the traffic had died down as it was after rush hour and I was able to make good progress, the little 1.3 (this was an injected lump, the same as found in a Polo GT) singing its heart out. With about 3h hours to go until midnight and my supposed crossing I got the feeling that I wouldnt make it, but as I have rarely caught the ferry that I was meant to in my previous crossings I didnt think that this would be a problem especially as the crossing was bound to be emptyish at that time of night and in January. Crossing the border from Belgium to France and the Jetta flat out at an indicated 150kph, the manifold to downpipe blowing very nicely (it had been fine when I left Dresden, oops) I was pushing as hard as I dared. I knew that the longer it took me in Europe, the later I would be arriving in Dover and my home. I made Calais at about 12.30, and had time for a rest before the next sailing at 1am. By the time that I docked in Dover and got through customs it was gone 2.30am, and I knew the journey up the M20 and round the M25 would be boring and I would have trouble staying awake. I made it home just before 4am, absolutely tired out, but happy that the Jetta and I had made it home in one piece.





I already had plans in my head for what I wanted to do to the Coup, now it was time to put them into action

(I'll be adding to this post bit by bit, so look back for more if you are interested)

 

oooh, im very interested in it.

i saw a 2dr jetta for the firsat time a few weeks ago and was wanting one, it was RHD too which is even more odd!

i'll keep an eye out for pt2.....

 

very interested in this car

they did do a uk rhd car was only available pre 88 and only engine option was a 1300 it
was volkswagon poverty model jetta

 

have sent some current pics of the car to the German seller?

 

very interesting read

 

cracking read, and fair play to you for making such a long trip!!

 

This will be a very long story.....

 

good stuff bud - keep it coming -Ewan McGregor and Charley Borman eat your heart out....

 

very interested in this story

lovely looking motor too

 

Ahh the mythical beasty - it lives !



Did it make the track ?

Subscribed )

 

just as well he`s cut it short already

 

Good story so far. I was waiting for a story of getting pulled over! Phew!

 

Excellent read Chris, keep it coming! Great to see the car on the road, looks brilliant

 

Apologies for going off on a tangent here (and a trip down memory lane…) some pics, going back to 2002/03/04 here

Feb 02 at Donny – who is that ‘hiding’ in the background of the 1st incarnation of the banana



And some other board regulars…


And the ‘state’ of the grey shell in 2004 when I bought the Coup


So, the car above was my first MK2 Golf, and it got me into the modifying malarkey that ended up with my building the Jetta – this car was taken off the road, and started to be turned into my track car, ABF 2L 16v on OE management, running an O2M 6 speed box – the engine got as far as being rested in place, the box mount being the obstacle. I also changed the underpinnings to those from a MK3 VR6, widetrack 5 stud front and back.

I promise I’ll get back on course in a second….my current daily was a another MK2 Golf, a rare oak green 8v bought from Drew on cgti, and was converted to run an ABF on OE management back in 2003 I think. The plan was for the Jetta to replace this, and rebuild it with a VR lump and convert it to RHD along the way. Unfortunately, not long after starting on the Jetta, I had a bit of bad luck – the oaky I had put up for sale, daily transport duties taken on by another 8v GTI in the fleet. I had sold the steels fitted with snow tyres from the Jetta, and had borrowed the wheels from the oaky to move it to a mates workshop, leaving the oaky on spacesavers and axle stands. The wheels were due to come back, but before this was done, had off with the car on the back of a lorry (this was around the time that scrap metal rose a fair amount, and was a becoming commonplace according the conversation I had with the police at the time). Unfortunately for me, I had transferred my insurance to the J plate 8v GTi so I didn’t even have the comfort of getting any insurance money







After this blow it wasn’t long before the Jetta was stripped of everything that wasn’t needed. I had already decided to turn it into a nice luxury spec type of car, and as it was a poverty spec cl, this meant standard VW items of central locking and electric window, and in addition to that I wanted a nice Corrado leather interior. The only downside to me was the lack of sunroof (this being the poverty cl, they didn’t come with one as standard). The plan was always to convert it to RHD, so when the engine came out, the whole car got gutted; plastics, dashboard, carpets, seats, the whole nine yards. The mechanical underpinnings were also removed as the Jetta was to run a widetrack (more on this later) 5 stud setup. The rear beam was a total nightmare – the MK3 VR beam mounting plates, that I was trying to fit to the Jetta wouldn’t bolt up to the shell properly – the mounting plates appeared to be just that little bit too far apart after the bushes had been replaced with Powerflex poly items. It took all day one Sunday to get this mounted up correctly, eventually I got it sorted. The LHD to RHD part wasn’t that difficult in the end – the four holes that allow the servo to push through the bulkhead and attach to the pedal box were already there, but the hole for the steering knuckle to pass through wasn’t. The servo and pedal box were mounted in place and this allowed the right place for the hole to be made. A bit of fine adjustment for the boot to fit neatly and all was good. After this the subframe along with the wishbones and hubs were fitted up. I also utilised the Corrado VR crossmember so that the engine would sit in the bay correctly with no modifications. The 288mm late VR6 brakes were fitted and I knew from having these fitted on a MK2 Golf before that these would be more than adequate, the MK2 being lighter than the MK3 VR that they would have originally been fitted to.
The other major complication to overcome was my decision on what dash to run. The dash and heater box was all going to have to change because it was LHD, and the same for all the looms. The engine loom and the front lighting loom didn’t have holes to pass through the bulkhead as per a RHD car, but I had planned to run them through the chassis rails anyway so this wasn’t a problem. The rear loom presented a bit of a problem, as the Jetta GTI loom is different to a Golf loom. Finding a breaker wasn’t easy, but at least all I had to do was plug it in as the car was originally a digifant 1.3, the fuelling side of things was already in place. As for the dash loom, well, that was going to be from the same car as the dash, and this meant a MK3 golf dash and loom. One of my pet hates on VR converted MK2’s is the clocks don’t fit in the original dash correctly as they are a different shape to the originals. So I decided to move to a MK3 dash that would make sure that the clocks were perfect. This decision proved a bit more of a headache than originally thought, even using after a 35 page thread on VWVortex that I had printed out giving some good fitment instructions.

Dash in – notice the windscreen has disappeared – it kind of got smashed from the inside, with a hammer, totally accidental, honest!




One Corrado 2.9VR installed, and then, err, I took it out again





The rationale here was that I was in this deep, so really I should be changing the chains and guides whilst I was at it, and it was at this point that things got a bit serious…

The atlas grey shell from before, it got stripped, the bits I didn’t want any more got sold off, and the bare shell went off to a new home, for another track car reshell – the same 5 stud underpinnings that started on this car had been put on the Jetta, this started off as 288mm VR6 stud, then changed to



305mm brembo’s from an Ibiza Cupra, but converted to 5 stud again as I had bought some 15” Comp MO’s previously – this allowed the use of larger outer CV’s, but did require some mixing and matching from the VW parts catalogue…..take a pair of passat or MK3 4 stud wishbones, a pair of MK2 16v hubs, MK3 VR 5 stud flanges, and a pair of new wheel bearings, and hey presto - of little interest, but the first time I crossed paths with Chris Eyre was to buy the Khumo semi slicks on the Comp's pictured below, rejects from a Reeves sideline project if I recall correctly



There is one other change needed when moving between 4 and 5 stud wishbones, and that is the anti-roll bar. I had bought a pair of Neuspeed, 25mm front and 28mm rear, there is many a theory on suspension setups, but what I wanted was a car that was supple enough for the road, yet stiff enough for the track – hopefully achievable going down this route as I didn’t want massive spring rates.




So, with an early (dizzy) 2.9 Corrado VR engine, what else would take its place, but a modified one…….initially this was only to be a change in the cylinder head as I had acquired one that had been modified with Schrick big valves and Schrick 268 cams. Then things started to get out of hand and before I knew it I had ordered a featherweight flywheel, Peloquin ATB for the box and a Turn2USA alloy crank pulley from the states (I’m blaming a certain P Horrocks for this!) I’d also got hold of an enlarged TB and Carbon air intake system for it, and purchased a new Jetex 2.5” exhaust system.






Finally I went in with the group buy at Stealth Racing for the Schrick Inlet manifolds making a bit of a saving over the normal price. After this the bottom end got sold with my original head as I now had my hands on another 2.9 block that had been rebuilt less than 15K before, and with a flowed head sat atop it been producing 211bhp. My thoughts were now firmly on as much BHP as I could reasonably get from the engine, thoughts were between 230-240bhp.
In terms of the gearbox, the original Corrado VR box had been kept throughout all the changes. These were meant to be different to the Golf VR box in the final drive ratio, but upon someone else’s research this turned out not to be true. When a friend gathered the bits for a VR conversion for his own car, he was mistakenly given a box that appeared to be a VR one. It had the 6 cylinder type of bellhousing, but small things were different. A bit of research showed that this box, whilst having the same individual ratios, the final drive was a 3.94 ratio, not the VR 3.3 ratio. This would really bring the gearing down and make it more of sprint box rather than a cruiser. Upon this information I sold my box and bought myself one with the shorter FD. This was then taken apart for the diff unit to be replaced with the Peloquin unit bought for it. I also changed the 5th gear ratio for a longer one to make slightly better cruising (it was now geared to 170mph rather than the standard 120ish, VR+e box?)

More soon......

 

Reading in and enjoying the write up.

Double mention of the green one being nicked?

 

That flywheel is in my car now

 

A friend? A FRIEND?

And what, prey tell is this friends name? Hmm? How rude.



Good Write up Norm, Just one thing.....Get your Roll cage pics out for the lads

 

Thanks for that, my proof reading last night wasn't up to scratch that late...

 

Unorthodox racing one if I remember rightly?

My car reminds me of triggers broom with the amount of engines etc that its had fitted

 

you wanted me to name you and Russ for not checking what you had bought from a scrappy? lol Was a good find, even though it wasn't planned