My matt black Mk2 - Vid from trackday at Llandow

Cool, can't wait to drive it now. I'll have a look into alternatives to the airbox, I might wait until it's on a rolling road and see what it's actually doing. Do you reckon locating the air filter lower down in the grill will help?

 

Well the Mk2 has been back on the road for the last two weeks now, only just getting used to driving it again, it's a very different animal compared the Rado.

To give a bit of an update of what's been happening, well around the end of May 2009 I took it off the road with the plan to give it a major overhaul, the main bit being fitting a G60 turbo engine. Things were then put on hold when I bought my first place, I even had to sell a few of parts I'd collected. The car was being kept at my folks and after a while I managed to start collecting bits again. Then my folks done something completely selfish and sold their house and bought one with no garage, so I had to move my car around various places until my brother and I were able to find a workshop to keep our cars in. I then decided to move from Cornwall to Wales but kept the Golf in the workshop in Cornwall, still collecting parts with the plan still to completely overhaul it, and I was literally ready to start stripping the car down to a bare shell to build it up, when my brother and I found out the workshop we had to move out of our workshop Luckily, it happened before I done anything with the car, but it meant I had no where to keep it, so it was decided to MOT it and I'd bring it up to Wales with me. So in almost 3 years of taking it off the road to completely overhaul it, I had done precisely nothing So, the new plan (which going by recent times will almost certainly change) is to enjoy the car for the next year, do a few trackdays, all the while trying to find a garage/workshop to keep Rado and Golf in so that I can eventually fit the new engine and box to the Golf, and fit a cage, the fibreglass body panels (group buy going on now, see the VAG Motorsport section ) and all the other bits I want to do to it.

So here are a few photos of the Golf and Rado together for the first time since owning both!






As you may be able to see, the Golf's a bit dirty from me getting used to driving it again It's so much fun to drive, just as loud and as uncomfortable as I remember, which I love about it. Considering it had been sat for so long it didn't need much to get it back on the road, have to say a massive thanks to my bro (Dan W) doing all the work on it and getting it back on the road for me. I'm hoping to do a trackday a Llandow on March 10 and basically just enjoy using it again.

 

Little update, recently done a trackday at Llandow circuit in South Wales. The day went really well considering the car had only just got back on the road after nearly 3 years off the road. That's not to say the day went smoothly, there were a few issues that cropped up, the gear linkages have been needing replacing since before it came off the road and it was a bit of a problem around the bus stop section of the track, I had to short shift to third otherwise it would jump out of gear on acceleration. There was also an issue with the oil breather system, in that on the carb engine it ventilates into the airbox, so when the oil pressure got too high, it sprayed oil into the airbox, covering the carb and leaking onto the hot manifold meaning I was doing a good impression of 007's DB5 with the smoke screen! And I was riding the curbs a bit too much I think as I well and truly knackered the top mounts.



I recorded a little vid on my iPhone, not the best quality and typically it started raining, but I still managed to go pretty well in the old girl.

[YOUTUBE]PbeyNw5F-po[/YOUTUBE]

I've got a few things to sort out now after the trackday, obviously the top mounts need replacing, and there's a slight running issue, no doubt due to the crappy oil breather system, but other than that it's still been ultra reliable.

 

Lol, the camera being a bit wobbley is kinda confusing in a "OMg he's not turning in!... oh wait, he hasOMG he's lost the back end... oh wait, no..."

She sounds healthy though, shame about the top mounts, although it just goes to prove the old saying. VW's never die, they just get lower.

 

Hopefully fixed the video, youtube had to option to fix the shakeyness, which actually means ruin the video So I've reverted back to the original copy of the video.

It's such a good engine, pulls all the way to 6750 rpm which ain't bad for an 8v! Managed to keep up with cars I shouldn't have really been able to which was most pleasing. Still couldn't keep in touch with the Civic Type Rs though

 

Sounding awesome and going well by the looks of it. Good job reeling in the Elise. How much did that 205 roll! I think dad was pretty impressed from what he was saying the other day.

 

There was another Elise in the session before that was holding me up, and that was in the dry. The annoying thing on a trackday with a low powered car is the higher powered cars pull away in the straights and then hold you up in the corners.

That 205 (which was a 1.9) had just had all new suspension fitted (either Koni's or Bilsteins), he wasn't too impressed with them!

I need to call you actually about the running problem, I think the carb needs setting up again but I wouldn't know where to look first.

 

6750rpm's not high for an 8v . Your not wrong about faster cars getting in the way in the corners and then staying out in front on the straights though. The drift boys are a problem at llandow trackdays

I can't see the vid on this computer as it's old now and doesn't like videos but I can guess! You do have to use the curbs a bit there don't you. On the sprints I straight line the chicane at the end of the back straight and the car lands side ways and you just hang on and hope, the forces always amaze me through the rear axle, I sit there thinking about the rear stub axle bolts! Your top mounts tell the story though

I'm racing at llandow next weekend but my Golfs not ready [:^(] so I'm double driving my Brothers GP4 Escort MK2 . That said I haven't driven a RWD car for about 20 years, and I put that one on it's roof!!

Llandow is my favorite track as you can really push on without to much fear and I think I'm looking forward to it. Bottled out of Llys Y Fran the following day though in a RWD car.

 

It is for a 1.8 driver engine with standard original internals and well over 100k on the clock

 

I was just worried the 16v boys would sense some weakness and start circling

 

To be fair no 8v will rev like yours looking at your thread! But as Dan says, for a lightly modified Driver engine it's not too bad.

Those curbs at the chicane were the main culprit, think I was straight lining them a bit too much, but the car felt nice and stable over them, don't think it would be a problem with better top mounts fitted.

I really liked the track, quite physically demanding but loads of fun. Plus it's only 12 miles from home and well priced which is always a bonus!

 

More new parts

Managed to get hold of a load of lightweight fibreglass panels, in total I got a bonnet, tailgate, front bumper, front lower panel, front wings with Berg Cup style extended arches and rear quarter panels again with Berg Cup extended arches.



Will look to fit the bonnet, bumper and lower panel soon, the rest will wait until it has a cage fitted to add some strength back into the shell. Will want the final suspension/wheel setup sorted as well as the plan is to trim the arches back to fit flush with the wheels and use GTI plastic arches to finish them off.

 

Those look nice. I'll have to keep an eye on this

 

The bonnet is see through! How much does it all weigh combined?

 

Thanks mate

All the panels look a little see through when you hold them up to the light, they feel quite strong though, although the bonnet will need stiffening before it's fitted. According to the weights on the site the whole lot is about 16-17kg! The amount of metal it'll be replaced will be a fair bit more. Took another photo in the front room with the front end set up, kind of wanted to keep it there as an "art piece" lol

 

Loving those panels Luke

Where did you get those from ? It will be uber light once fitted

 

He's been organising a group buy from a company in Poland iirc. Pesch or something similar is the name

 

Just thought I'd update this a bit. No new pictures or parts fitted, but I have made a big decision with the engine swap. The opportunity to get hold of an extremely well spec'd ABF has meant I'm selling all the G60 and turbo parts to fund the new engine. While I still love the idea of a G60 turbo, it still needed a number of parts to get it to a running stage and the ABF will much more suited to the nature of the car. I'm hoping to have it sorted by the end of this month, and would really like to make at least one trackday this year, ideally the last trackday of the Club GTI trackday tour.