£500 Mk5 Golf GTI rescued from the crusher
Discussion
I bought this unseen as a Xmas present to myself last year, on the 22nd of December, after a few beers too many the sellers description of it being a complete write off and totally f£&@ed didn’t seem to matter.
How has it got into this condition? The previous owner ran out of talent and spun it into a field, taking a fence out in the process.
The initial plan was to break it, remove the good bits and scrap the rest. The seller had described the car as a complete wreck many times but assured me it started and drove, for loading purposes only as it had an oil pressure light on. s
t, maybe this wasn’t a good idea.
Upon seeing the car, which was parked in a garden littered with dog st, it wasn’t as bad as I feared.I had visions of wheels pointing in opposite directions, panels completely caved in and wrecked. Thankfully, in my opinion sill aside the damage was relatively minor.
I loaded it on a borrowed trailer and found the “oil pressure fault” to be nothing more than the level sensor in the sump being unplugged by the grass as it pirouetted across the field. This was a huge bonus.
In for a penny, in for a pound. The car as I picked it up and abandoned it on the drive on Xmas Eve
When looking it over I figured it wasn’t nearly as bad as described by the seller, rust is almost non existent and it drives straight as an arrow without fault. It deserved another chance. I know it’s probably a silly idea fixing it, but the way I see it is I’ll have a totally mint car at the end of it all.
It’s also HPI clear as the accident was never claimed for.
So far I have washed it, fitted a door, curtain airbag and gathered some bits for it. Initially I intended to use as it sat but I was only trying to fool myself I’d be happy using a bashed up Golf as a daily. I wouldn’t I’m too vain.
Unfortunately the drivers seat airbag had gone off, and initially I wanted to fit a replacement cloth seat but trying to source one that wasn’t a mess or burst was proving difficult. I spied a leather interior not far from where I was headed in the truck and bought that instead.
The wings were completely rust free when I removed them and much to my surprise original, I could hardly believe it.
I have gathered all the parts to repair the car, and it’s been in a state of partially stripped since January. Last week I decided I’d had enough as it’s not been touched by my body man since dropping it off on 1st February so I’d advertised it for sale but I’ve since sorted things out at the bodyshop and I want to see the project through.
That’s it as it sits just now, hopefully I can update the thread as I make progress with the car.
How has it got into this condition? The previous owner ran out of talent and spun it into a field, taking a fence out in the process.
The initial plan was to break it, remove the good bits and scrap the rest. The seller had described the car as a complete wreck many times but assured me it started and drove, for loading purposes only as it had an oil pressure light on. s
t, maybe this wasn’t a good idea. Upon seeing the car, which was parked in a garden littered with dog s
t, it wasn’t as bad as I feared.I had visions of wheels pointing in opposite directions, panels completely caved in and wrecked. Thankfully, in my opinion sill aside the damage was relatively minor. I loaded it on a borrowed trailer and found the “oil pressure fault” to be nothing more than the level sensor in the sump being unplugged by the grass as it pirouetted across the field. This was a huge bonus.
In for a penny, in for a pound. The car as I picked it up and abandoned it on the drive on Xmas Eve
When looking it over I figured it wasn’t nearly as bad as described by the seller, rust is almost non existent and it drives straight as an arrow without fault. It deserved another chance. I know it’s probably a silly idea fixing it, but the way I see it is I’ll have a totally mint car at the end of it all.
It’s also HPI clear as the accident was never claimed for.
So far I have washed it, fitted a door, curtain airbag and gathered some bits for it. Initially I intended to use as it sat but I was only trying to fool myself I’d be happy using a bashed up Golf as a daily. I wouldn’t I’m too vain.
Unfortunately the drivers seat airbag had gone off, and initially I wanted to fit a replacement cloth seat but trying to source one that wasn’t a mess or burst was proving difficult. I spied a leather interior not far from where I was headed in the truck and bought that instead.
The wings were completely rust free when I removed them and much to my surprise original, I could hardly believe it.
I have gathered all the parts to repair the car, and it’s been in a state of partially stripped since January. Last week I decided I’d had enough as it’s not been touched by my body man since dropping it off on 1st February so I’d advertised it for sale but I’ve since sorted things out at the bodyshop and I want to see the project through.
That’s it as it sits just now, hopefully I can update the thread as I make progress with the car.
swampy442 said:
Looks like an easy fix and a bargain! Is not recorded as crashed then?
I know myself better in that it wont be the bargain it should be. I always find stupid things/faults that no one else would notice that need rectified or improved on and usually spend silly amounts of money doing so. No its HPI clear as it has never been claimed against. This was a massive factor in going through with a thorough repair rather than just leaving as it was with the door fitted or breaking it.
Gandoolie said:
These kind of threads are bloody great!
Thank you. I hope it doesn’t disappoint. Bright Halo said:
Great purchase.
It’s also refreshing to hear of a seller who is totally honest about the condition and if anything has over egged the damage.
Following with interest.
It’s also refreshing to hear of a seller who is totally honest about the condition and if anything has over egged the damage.
Following with interest.
Thank you, I hope it will be.
The seller was an “interesting” chap let’s say, rather eccentric and there was a huge air of animosity between him and his father it appeared.
The father owned a garage and had told him it was f
ked, a complete write off due to the airbags and he had no interest in even contemplating a repair either. I “think” I was insured by the garage also hence no claim being made for the damage Edited by martin mrt on Saturday 24th April 09:04
aka_kerrly said:
Looks like you got lucky and are making good progress!!!
I’m hoping I have, progress should have been far better than it is but due to restrictions etc it’s slowed things at the bodyshop somewhat. With a bit of luck we are back on track now HughG said:
Following this with interest.
What’s your plan for the sill?
What’s your plan for the sill?
The only real solution is to replace it, so that’s what’s being done. Anything else would just be a bit of a shortcut and involve too much filler for my liking. I have a brand new OEM skirt and clips to fit too.
thebraketester said:
clap
Not in the spirit of the thread but you would probably more than quadruple your money If you broke it for parts
Plus breaking cars is a pain, it brings out a whole level of moronic buyers when trying to sell parts. Arsed.
Court_S said:
Looks like an interesting project and it was rude not to for the cash you paid for it, especially as the damage doesn’t look too bad.
Hopefully it will be, it will end up costing around the same as a relatively tidy example but this one should be perfect. The damage bar the sill is superficial thankfully
Cant beat a Mk 5 GTI in Tornado red. Took one from 36k to 96k and one of the most reliable cars I've owned.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=13...
Good luck with the project.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=13...
Good luck with the project.
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