1990 Volkswagen Jetta

1.6L 1588CC 97Cu. In. l4 DIESEL SOHC Naturally Asp

Manual

WVWRG21G8LW268113

You are bidding on a Jetta Diesel UTILITY CAR. This is about low investment, low operating cost transportation. If you want a “nice” 90 Jetta, go to vwvortex.com classifieds. I have used this car to commute up to 60 miles per day off and on since late 2007. It gets about 40mpg. I have owned 3 of these “type-2” Jetta diesels including one I bought new. This one “pulls” the best of all of them but doesn't quite get the mileage some do. I ran this car on up to 90% bio-diesel for about 8 months in 2011 and it did fine on it although I got a batch that had gelling issues so I quit running it in Oct2011. I have taken the car on a number of long-distance trips, the latest was in May, a day-trip of about 400 miles. I am selling because I am retiring in the fall and won't need it anymore. Below is an honest description of the condition of the car. Miles 300,000-????Who knows? No more, for sure. Had 226,000 in 2007. I got the bright idea to put a Canadian instrument cluster in it because Km/hr was “cool”. The odometer lasted about a month before developing “The Dread Odometer Gear Cracking”. I have the old instrument cluster which goes with the car. Will re-install if you want. That odometer worked fine when removed. Front Suspension New Struts, strut bearings in 2007. Rides & drives great. Mechanical Issues Sucking down water. Just started (last week) sucking the reservoir down in about 30 miles, stop&go, 10-12 miles at highway speed. No water visible on the motor, on the ground, or in the oil. ASSUME IT NEEDS A HEAD GASKET. Out the tailpipe is the only place the water could be going, even though I don't see any white smoke in the mirror. Random starting issue after setting a while. May happen tomorrow or in 2 weeks. Pump reservoir drains down but the pump is not leaking. You just have to crank until it pulls fuel up from the tank and it starts. Talked to several Bosch pump guys and nobody has an explanation. May be lingering effect of gelled bio. Whatever, it certainly doesn't need a new pump. This one was looked over and resealed in 2007 and has been fine. Starts immediately most of the time so you know the motor has good compression. (also, doesn't use oil) Diff seals on the transaxle leak. I just watch it and add fluid about every 6 months. If you can't do that, you will have to reseal it because if you let it get too low, it will kill the transaxle. L-outter CV joint has a cracked boot and is “crackling” in full-lock turn. I have a new joint that goes with the car. Body Damage: LF fender has a serious dent. See pictures. I do have a used fender that goes with the car if you want it. Paint- doesn't look bad from about 20 feet but typical “old car” issues. Dings and dents: you will have to back up a lot further. Noticeable dings in L-frt of hood, R-rear of roof, and a dent on the L-rear door at the “C-pillar” (Who knows how that one got there?) Windshield is cracked. Body is tight with no leaks. Interior: needs a good cleaning but in generally good shape for the age. Carpets are worn. Dash has a crack but not a gaping one. Summary: It is a UTILITY CAR and needs work as well but you can run forever on very little fuel if you can fix a few of the issues and live with the others. I would fix myself but, as I said, I don't need the car any longer.On Jun-25-12 at 04:12:30 PDT, seller added the following information:More disclosure, -questions that have come up. A/C is not working. I have never tried to get it working. At 55hp, you don't want to run the air much anyway. Radio and/or antenna is bad: lots of static and alternator noise but it will play. I have a Blaupunkt radio you can have if you want it. The car had cruise. This is real unusual for a non-turbo diesel. It wasn't working when I got the car and, again, at 55hp, cruise is not real desirable.