1983 Volkswagen Rabbit

Rabbit GTI Hatchback

1.8L 1780CC l4 GAS SOHC Naturally Aspirated

Manual

1VWDC0179DV052009

Clear

Gasoline

169680 original miles 4 original owners in 32 years! Original Paint, No accidents. Dry California car. No perforating rust. Negligible surface rust. Looks amazing from underneath (shown). Autocheck report available, please email. Passed SMOG with very low emissions (report available by email) – tight cylinder seals and good compression, no smoke ever Smooth engine, idles at 800rpm when warm, pulls like freight train, starts every time Shift smoothly, recent transmission service, new bushings I have recent receipts. Great candidate for restoration or daily drive as is, needs nothing! I am a 40-year old driver respectful of older vehicles. Never tracked. The GOOD: - new springs H&R Sport- new front shocks Bilstein- Aftermarket front and rear sway-bars- recent alignment- new exhaust system Tectonics with Magnaflow Muffler- Original 14” Snowflake rims- 70% tread depth on tires- recent tune-up, recent timing belt, new oil- new motor mounts- new transmission bushings- upgrade to disk brakes at rear, drilled rotors in front improve brake cooling- Stage 2 clutch for durability- new battery cables and electrical connection to starter- Seats in great condition, no cracks in dash The BAD: - Cold start valve – prior owner bypassed radiator where temp sensor is located, so need to hold key about 5 secs to start cold. Starts every time.- 5th gear does not work- parking brake non-op due to disk brakes at rear, but I have the cable- cracked windshield- small dent in passenger fender (shown in pics)- probably could use headliner Reason for selling: awkward to drive my kids in it as it is a 2-door Keywords: MK1 MKI GTi MK2 neuspeed euro classic VW water cooled 1983 1984 GolfOn May-27-15 at 16:57:13 PDT, seller added the following information: Here's some further description of this vehicle. It has been a California car from the start, and has resided in Riverside, CA (Inland Empire) which is very dry and warm throughout the year. The car is very dry. Some of the rubber is drying out but the car was stored in the shade for parts of its life. The dash is uncracked and pristine but is not original. The seats as well are uncracked but are also not original. There is no shifter boot. The only rust is a small amount of surface rust, including at the minor fender dent which is easily sanded off for a respray. Engine bay and underneath are very original, with no rust and no bends. The engine is dusty and may be cleaned but I have left it original. The paint is original and worn in places (patina), and you can see that there is no body filler and no accidents on the vehicle. The panels and frame and nice and straight. A great candidate for a full restoration. The shift linkage is nice and tight due to recent replacement bushings. 5th gear does not work, it just grinds. I have not looked into it but all other gears are strong. The clutch is especially strong, being a newer stage 2 clutch installed by the previous owner. It is tight and engages quickly. There is no slippage. The engine is original to the car and takes a moment to start cold, as the cold start valve has been bypassed (can be remedied with a heater core), but once running, the engine runs smoothly and steadily, and emits no smoke. The exhaust is a brand-new Tectonics Magnaflow exhaust and CA-certified catalytic converter. It recently passed emissions and had some of the lowest readings of a gasoline vehicle. I can email the emissions to anyone interested. The brakes are strong with lots of pad left, no slop in the lines. The rear is a disk conversion, which helps stopping for these mk1 Rabbits. The front rotors are drilled. The suspension has been redone, including new HR Sport springs, Bilstein shocks in the front, and a front-end alignment. There are front and rear sway bars and shock tower supports. The tires are relatively new generic all-seasons, with about 70% tread life remaining. The snowflake wheels are original to the car and in good shape. The car drives smoothly at high speed, there are no vibrations. When driving, there is no drone (common in these vehicles) and there are no rattles (also common problem). The motor mounts are new. The electrical connections in the engine have been professionally redone with new wiring. The interior is nice and solid on the vehicle, even though it it not totally original. The HVAC is not working currently, and the heater core bypassed, as mentioned above. The car has a period-correct Blaupunkt head unit but the speakers were removed by PO. All lights work. Please let me know if I can provide further details. On May-28-15 at 16:43:52 PDT, seller added the following information: I also wanted to add comments about the engine. It was checked over by PURE Motorsport in San Diego (VW specialists, and I have receipts). It received top grades for an original engine. A relay on the EFI system was replaced. The spark plugs were replaced and new oil/filter put in. As mentioned, some electrical is new. Once warm, the engine idles steadily at 800. The engine lets out a soft burble on deceleration, and pulls strongly on acceleration. I have not driven it hard and as far as I know it has never been tracked.