Long overdue update

The respray was completed and the Golf came home but was not running at all well. We decided that the fuel distribution box was at fault and tried a couple of other units in the car but there wasn't much success.

It took some investigation to locate someone with the right skills and tools to diagnose the problems correctly. I ended up taking the car to Richards Bros. in Redruth as they still have the Bosch diagnostics equipment available. In the end the whole fuel system from the fuel tank (full of rubbish and a non-functioning low pressure pump) through pipes that needed replacing in sections to the fuel distributor that had to be sent for reconditioning and new injectors was reviewed and rebuilt. Once that was done problems were found with the cold-start and warm-start sensors so they were replaced too.

The car was running superbly from late 2015.

With a driving holiday in France planned there was some frantic scheduling of the new roof being fitted and getting a stereo in place and working. We covered 1000 miles in the week and had a wonderful time with the roof down most days. The car was faultless until the last day when a misfire appeared and we were down on power. We limped home under our own power but I think a trip back to Richards Bros is in the future to diagnose what has happened.

Still remaining on the list to do:

• Refurbish wheels - I now have 8 so need to pick the best 4 and send them off to be soda blasted and then fully renovated
• Repair and renovate interior. Front seats need re-padding, rears just need a good clean
• Suspension
• Engine - still a nagging oil leak here and there so new gaskets needed
• Dash - the mfa seems to have gone AWOL.
• Seats - the runners are not sliding quite right.

Stripped, welded and smoothed

Here we are, stripped of all contents and trim, all rust removed and welded. Sprayed with epoxy and more sanding taking place.

It's time for me to arrange for the wheels to be removed for refurbishing.

Still some parts to buy, we need a new radiator and exhaust will be needed soon after that, certainly if we are to get an MOT.

So far we have had 2 new front wings, 2 rear arches, 2 new doors, 1 new boot lid, arch kit and an aerial.

Catching up

The Golf is in for it's rebuild. I sent it to VolksWeld for the much needed TLC that I have had planned ever since I bought it. They have had it a month or so now and work seems to be progressing well. Check out the updates the VolksWeld team are posting on Facebook here. I looking for parts - bumpers, wheel arch trims, an aerial and other bits and pieces. I need to get the wheels refurbished - hoping to get a local company to do this too.

To Brighton and back

Well, it was a glorious trip we took to Brighton for a work conference. It was a little intimidating driving the motorway part but apart from that it was great. The Golf drove wonderfully and we had a great time with the roof down all the time.

We did not return unscathed however. When we filled up at the petrol station I found a pool of petrol under the car. It appears that the fuel filler pipe has rusted through. This means we have to be very careful when filling the car with fuel. A new part has been ordered but with all the Bank Holidays happening at the minute it's not yet been delivered. I am hoping it will arrive this week so that I can spend the day of the Royal Wedding under the car fixing it and avoid having  to watch any of it on TV!

Driving it home last night however has introduced a new problem - the exhaust is blowing. Badly. Now this is a different situation. The fuel filler pipe is £40, the exhaust, potentially is a whole lot more. I haven't had chance to look underneath yet but I am expecting the worst. I knew it wasn't going to last long but the timing for it to go when then Tax is due is unfortunate, I think it may have to come off the road for a month or two while I get the funds together to cover all of these costs.

I'm hoping for a rainy May.

Sunday, Lovely Sunday

One Sunday earlier this month we had a drive out to Exeter. It was fiercely cold and the heater motor is still not working so there was little warmth to be had. Regardless, we had the  roof down.

What a fantastic experience it was. We chose the old road to Exeter rather that blasting along the boring dual-carriageway so we had very little traffic around us and sweeping corners and impressive views over Dartmoor and Mid Devon on either side. One thing we didn't have to worry about was the engine overheating, thanks to the weather. Last time the car was out it was getting hot if it worked hard or if it was moving under about 50. It is possible that the radiator needs flushing so that's one thing more for the list.

Jump forward another weekend and I have replaced the indicator relay - I asked for one in Halfords in Exeter and got a very blank look from the young boy at the counter. I walked out without one! I went to the local motor factors in the week and got one with no bother. My son actually replaced it, having had to take out 2 or 3 others until he found the one that was for the indicators. The handbook lists the fuses and their circuits but not the relays. We also replaced the lamp in the boot but that is refusing to light so I need to check there is power in that circuit. Next we had a look at the heater fan. Rather misleadingly I had been told it came out from inside, behind the dash. After taking the centre console out and seeing that it wasn't there for the removing I resigned myself to having to take it to a garage. I moved on to taking a look at the full-beam headlight alignment. They've been out of whack, pointing to a piece of road about 20 feet in front of the car, and its just a case of twiddling a couple of screw in the from of the grille for each light and hey presto. Screws twiddled, now I need it to go dark and try out my newly aligned spotlights.

Grin Factor 60

Well, it's finally happened. The car is MOT'd, taxed, insured and the tank is full of petrol.

It's a right squeeze in the garage as I haven't really put the effort into clearing it out since the car left it months ago. Things are just piled higher all around it.

So we took it out, just a small hop along the road towards Moretonhamstead. It was dark, rainy, very windy and cold. My daughter insisted on keeping the roof up as she had just got ready to go out and didn't want to ruin her hair!

The car ran well with a few points that need attention:

• The passenger seat isn't wholly fixed in place by the adjusting lever.
• The blower for the heater doesn't work.
• The radio is missing.
• When the radio is back in place the heater control that is missing will have to be replaced too otherwise you wont be able to reach inside the dashboard to move the levers.
• The dashboard lights need checking, its very dark on the left.

I may get a chance to review some of these over the weekend.

Let's hope so. If the passenger seat gets sorted (and I hope its only a case of judiciously applying some 3in1) then we will certainly go out for a drive.

On the road (briefly)

So this week has seen the MOT passed for the Golf. It now needs a new immobiliser fitted, to be insured and then finally taxed so that we are road legal.

In order to get it from the garage to the immobiliser fitting firm I had to drive it just under 5 miles in to town. It was a real surprise how the clutch was much heavier that my current car. The steering is not power-assisted so that was hard work until the car got moving. I had also forgotten how different a petrol engine is from a diesel, the power curve and rev limit are so different! Really looking forward to getting the car on the road by the end of the month. The immobiliser should be fitted in the next 10 days so then its just paperwork (and writing cheques!) to do.

A few more parts

So, we purchased some suspension parts a while back and had to discover what the brake disc sizes were before we could get the new ones. Turns out they are 239mm. They are kept on the shelf in Launceston branch of Kevin Cooper so I have a pair of discs and a new set of pads to take over to the garage in the next day or two.

Still no real  idea of when the car might be ready for its MOT or back on the road but its still possible that we might get some miles done this Summer, hopefully!

Shopping list continues to grow

I have today ordered a pair of front coil springs, a pair of front shock absorbers, a pair of front brake discs and pads. With a following wind the suspension parts will be in by the end of tomorrow and I can get them to the garage to be fitted.

The brakes are however going to take a little longer to organise as there seems to be an option on the diameter of the discs. I got offered 9 1/2" or 10" discs, we need to measure whats on there and then get the replacement parts ordered so that will happen when the suspension is done.

Looking forward to the refurbishment part of the project I have been recommended to a company in Wadebridge, Cornwall for reconditioning the wheels, apparently  www.thepolishedwheelcompany.com are very good. Once we are on the road I'll be making a trip to Wadebridge to get them to take a look and tell me what can be done for me.

Another week, another problem

Well, its to be expected. The car has its dashboard back in now and it appears that the suspension is in dire need of attention, one of the coil springs is making noises that would mean its cracked or there is a problem with the mounting. Still should be up on the ramp in the next few days so we will be able to tell then.

Mechanically sound

Well, to my relief the garage are saying that the engine is in good order, they have started it and on the whole all went well. We are however building a shopping list of things we need. So far a new battery, new cam belt, new immobiliser, fuel and oil filter are required.

The requirement for a new immobiliser is a pain, the old one seems to have given up after all the time in storage. This means I need to locate a supplier/fitter and get that sorted before I can get the car insured.

The new cam belt has been installed and the car is starting with no problem now, this week it will be up on the ramp so that the underneath can be assessed for work required to pass an MOT. We are hoping that work can be done, or at least started, next week.

It's gone!

Yup, The garage came this evening and took the car away. The plan is they will be assessing the engine and all parts required to get it on the road with an MOT. Providing that's not a huge job then it's all systems go to get it on the road ASAP.

The move from the barn to the garage

So, we get the weather for a few days that means the ground outside the barn starts to dry out so we head up there with the truck, a strong rope and a bunch of bailer twine.

The plan is, drag the Golf out of the barn (backwards) and then ... well, that was pretty much the extent of the plan. I had no idea whether it would tow that far let alone what we would do next. We only had the truck and some rope so pushing was not an option - I could only pull.

We started by putting a loop of twine through the tow loop on the Golf so that we could get the rope through it, tied the other end of the rope to the truck tow hitch and drove off. The rope snapped after maybe 10'. The Golf had reached a pile of hay and rather than go up and over it stopped. We rolled the car forwards and clear some of the hay away. I tied the ends of the rope together and we set off again. Another car length and the rope snapped again. This time it was as the front wheels met the pile of hay. With some stearing lock applied as well as the rise in height was too much for the rope. This time we didnt clear any hay as that wasnt an option so we rolled forwards and took a run up at the pile. We rolled up and over quite neatly.

We now had to get around the tree outside the barn. This was causing me to have to tow from a slight angle and I was also having to steer to avoid other obstacles and try to find grip through some 6" of mud. After a few yards it became too close to keep going and we had to stop towing. It was now a case of manually pushing the car forwards to that we could get the steering lock on enough to avoid the tree. We managed maybe 2'-3' at best. The car was bogging down and we were slipping badly in the mud. I towed it forwards the 2'-3' and we 'reversed' it again. This time we got it clear enough to tow past the tree but it was still going over some of the roots and we managed to snap the rope, again. After this was retied we got all the way past the tree and were venturing into uncharted territory.

It was now necessary to get the truck on the other end of the Golf to head back towards the road, and the 1:8 hill that we had to descend. This was mostly a concrete section so was pretty easy going. I drove the truck and my wife was in charge of steering the Golf. Simples.

Going down the hill was the next hurdle, we had no idea if the brakes would work so I tied the tow–rope to the back of the Golf again and lowered it down the hill with the truck behind it. Piece of cake as it turned out – we didn't meet any traffic and coasted gently to the foot of the hill where I swapped the truck back to the front to tow it to the house and then into the garage.

-- NOTE-- This happened in March 2009 and I have only now (June 2010) re-started the project and found this update un-posted. Oops, must try harder.

parked again.

 
Well, we got it out of the barn and its now in the garage. It took a while and a significant range of swear words but it's there now. More details on the move in due course ...

V11

Well today the post finally got through after all the snow started to clear and the postman delivered the V11 for the golf. A V11 is the form that reminds you that you need to purchase the Tax Disc for the forth coming year.

As the Golf is not using the roads I have to declare it as being off-road. This is known as SORN (Statutory Off Road Notice). This means I dont have to pay the tax until I use the car. Hopefully this will be te penultimate SORN declaration I will make as this time next year I would hope that the rebuild will be starting and in the early summer (April/May) I will be getting a tax disc and getting the car on the road.

Here's hoping

What?

So, Haynes dont have a specific manual dedicated to the Golf that can help me but I found and contacted another auto repair manual pubisher asking if they did. I cant believe the response I got from them. Actually, in all honesty, I cant understand it:

Hello,
We used to do similar manuals but that has changed over 10 years ago.
If you look at the 2nd page of this news letter this are the manuals we do which will have info
about your vehicle as well but not only.
Make cover is from a-z so from audis to volvos and as you can see they cover particular subject
for egz. Technical Data.
Same with our cd's they cover a group of subject on all european and uk cars
for egz. CD Basic covers technical data for petrol and diesel, timing belts, chains and gears which is
£99+Vat per year.

Looks like I'll be better off without theirs anyway!

Haynes are still being very helpful and seem to think they will have a manual that will cover the engine at least.

What a farce

Well, we left work early so that I could get a look at the wheels. I got away from the house late, and in a hurry, got to the barn and realised I had left the jack behind. I had also forgotten the car keys and the socket set to loosen the wheel nuts.

Anyway, after 3 return trips to the house I got everything with me and set about the rear wheel first. I had to use two bottle jacks to lift the car - one to lift it onto the 2nd which had the reach to lift the wheels off the ground but was too tall to get under the car.

This is what I was dealing with:



After hitting the brake drum for long enough (until my ears were ringing) I put the wheel back on and we got a little movement, twisting clockwise and then anti-clockwise eventually got it spinning freely again. The front wheels were a case of putting a pair of grips from the brake shoes to the callipers and easing the pads off the disc.

Next moves - clear the barn of hay and straw so the car can be towed out.

Thats for next week.

Could I have it in writing please?

Apart from not being able to get a donor steel wheel for the car I am now not able to locate a DIY manual for its maintenance either.

I contacted Haynes with the vehicle details and as it is a 1986 Golf Convertible it doesnt fall into their categories for any manual. This is because Volkswagen didnt make a convertible with a mkII body shell - they used mkI bodies and nailed those onto the mkII everything-else-underneath.

Tonight I am going to attempt to remove the brakes (2xfront, 1xback) with nothing more than guesswork and the memory of changing discs and pads on my T reg Fiesta (thats 1978 T as in ERF420T - I wonder where that car is now!?).

Hopefully pics and update later/tomorrow.

no wheels (that work) on my (volks)wagon

Had a suggestion from a neighbour that we could weld a length (2m ish) of tube to a steel wheel rim, bolt that on and use it to free the wheels. Great idea. In practice however, it seems that steel rims to fit a 1986 Golf are hard to obtain. I would willingly swap my collection of rocking horse dung and hen's teeth for them ...

May be dragging the poor car from its abode with a tractor. Eek

Day one (ish)

Yesterday I spent the whole day clearing out the garage. It had been the default place to dump anything that didnt have a proper home for pretty much the last 18 months. It took all day and I had to be brutal about throwing stuff out. Why? Because today it was going to have a car put in it. As it happens it didnt but that gives me the chance to give you some of the back story and the reason for this blog.

I bought the car back in (ages ago, I cant remember when but probably 2003 or 2004). Its a Volkswagen Golf GTi Cabriolet - anyone from the US will know it as a VW Rabbit. We ran it for a year but it was getting vandalised and we decided to take it of the road. Luckily some friends of ours had a barn we could use to store it. well the time came to use the barn for barn like activities and we had to get the car moved. This coincided with us move house too so the car took up residence in another barn, just behind our horses stables. The car was not drivable at this point due to the battery going flat and the immobiliser , um , ... immobilising it. The brakes on one wheel had become seized too but that was sorted with a few swift swipes of a mallet.

this morning I went to the barn with the aim of towing it out with the pickup and then towing it into my newly empty (ish) garage. I got nowhere. 3 brakes are now seized so I am a bit stuck. I am going to look for advice from some local mechanics, the Haynes manual people and the Golf owners club. The barn isnt really big enough to renew the brakes where it is and I dont have all the tools to hand either.

I will try to post photos and keep things up to date here as I work on renovating the car and getting it back to the way it should be.