Build Thread: Victoria, my 1990 Jetta GLI

[VDub2625]

You might do better with a round headlight rad support, becuase the support post won't be right behind the inner lights.

[Volkswageneer1990]

You might do better with a round headlight rad support, becuase the support post won't be right behind the inner lights.

Well I already started, so might as well finish.


I'm going to get to the Passat B2 Headlights in a second, but first, my radio fuse blew out again!



I'm getting tired of this (it melting, and me having to put an entirely new wire) so I decided to take the initiative to start the relay process of my headlights. And then inside the relay box, just put a removable fuse (like the ones on the fusebox) for the radio to simplify things.

Here is an idea for a spot that I have for it. Q: Comments? Suggestions on other places?





Okay, as promised, now on to the Passat B2 Headlight Progress. So I feel that I have made quite a bit of progress in the planning stages. Not so much the actual doing, but the planning for sure.

I cut out the 2nd Fog Light circle:




And here is the first:




Now notice that I hammered out and flattened what I cut in the last post. (the 90* posts). That will become instrumental in making the new plates for a bucket support.

Here are the pieces:




Now here is where my planning starts to take shape:

(Before)


(During)


(After) The Yellow highlighted areas are the places that the core support will need additions and reinforcements for the buckets.


(Tab Locations)



Here is where I need some input! I found that the second and 5th tabs on the bottom are interfering with the buckets and they will most likely not be able to mount correctly.

I have come up with two relatively simple solutions.



Using this picture and the (Tab Locations) one above, Which location would you find better suited?. I am more inclinded with moving it closer to the center as I would not have to worry about messing with the bucket or anything else.


And then I got to work on planning for the grille:





And then today I actually got to the grille:





On top of that, I made the outlines that my sheet metal will need to be made out of for the new bucket reinforcement locations:




And for my little understanding and self fulfillment, I decided to draw an exploded view of my new front end





That's all for now, I would love to hear any comments or suggestions about anything so far.

Enjoy

[NTUNED]

great job man, keep it up

I might need to come out and see your car in person, check what's missing from mine haha

and the fuse box from the saab looks awesome

[steveo27]

Neat ****. Its nice seeing someone doing some DIY stuff.

[Krutonvw]

You're very talented kid. Keep up the good work . I enjoyed this thread.

[GreenWagen]

You're very talented kid. Keep up the good work . I enjoyed this thread.

This. Great job man. This car is cleaner than half of the cars on this site.

By the way I didn't have time to go through the whole thread but the way your paint looks on the first few pages can be brought out to look like new. Not sure if you did anything with it or not, but there is an awesome write up in the body section about bringing the paint back to life.

[Volkswageneer1990]

great job man, keep it up

I might need to come out and see your car in person, check what's missing from mine haha

and the fuse box from the saab looks awesome

Thanks, and yeah whenever you want, I am around the corner for you to come check it out! Thanks, I found that at the junkyards that I told you about.

Neat ****. Its nice seeing someone doing some DIY stuff.

Thanks a bunch!

You're very talented kid. Keep up the good work . I enjoyed this thread.

Thanks a lot, I really appreciate it. I'm just trying to build a car that I will enjoy every second I'm with it

This. Great job man. This car is cleaner than half of the cars on this site.

By the way I didn't have time to go through the whole thread but the way your paint looks on the first few pages can be brought out to look like new. Not sure if you did anything with it or not, but there is an awesome write up in the body section about bringing the paint back to life.

Thanks a bunch, this just made me smile. And yeah I have seen that thread, I think it was called "Restoring T-Red Paint" or something. I was going to do that early on when I got the car, but I decided that I would repaint the car and call it a day with that.


So I got some updates for everyone!

I got a BRAND NEW OEM 9A 16v Engine Head in the mail today. It cost me a fraction of what it would have cost me if I bought it from the dealer some 5-10 years ago.







And I kept going with the Rad Support for the Passat headlights. I made the support brackets out of 16 gauge sheet metal. It was hard to cut and grind down, but me and my dad got it down.







That's all for now, the GLI failed emissions in the state inspection, so it is currently at the Doc getting a check up to see what can be done



It's at a VW Dealership out near DFW Airport that knows VW's these old and has all the necessary equipment for the fuel injection, carbs, etc... So I'm hoping it's gunna be in good hands.

Enjoy!

[1985Jetta]

Great build.

[Volkswageneer1990]

Great build.

Thanks a bunch!

[jimothy cricket]

looking good!

[jaxgti95]

Are you running a little too rich? I think that can cause you to fail emissions. Otherwise, nice updates! Coming along great!

[VDub2625]

Why would you spend money at a dealership? You don't have carbs, and you don't need any special tools to tune CIS-Motronic...

[Volkswageneer1990]

looking good!

Thanks!

Are you running a little too rich? I think that can cause you to fail emissions. Otherwise, nice updates! Coming along great!

I don't really know... lol thanks though!

Why would you spend money at a dealership? You don't have carbs, and you don't need any special tools to tune CIS-Motronic...

Because I was reffered to them by a friend who has the same car as me. And he used to work at Metro VW. They know old cars like these, and I have been having a hard time finding a VW specific guy that will work on my car...

[VDub2625]

Because I was reffered to them by a friend who has the same car as me. And he used to work at Metro VW. They know old cars like these, and I have been having a hard time finding a VW specific guy that will work on my car...

Turn off the screen and look at the reflection

[ejijah]

holy **** you have alot of money to put into your car! i have an mk2 golf im restoring from basicly being trashed haha. but seriously you have done such an amazing diy/build thread keep it up! excited to see the finished headlight swap!

[Volkswageneer1990]

Turn off the screen and look at the reflection

Thanks a lot man, I really appreciate that.
But there are somthings that I just can't do ...........YET!

holy **** you have alot of money to put into your car! i have an mk2 golf im restoring from basicly being trashed haha. but seriously you have done such an amazing diy/build thread keep it up! excited to see the finished headlight swap!

Actually, this car is on a very tight budget. I don't really have that much money to spend so I make sure that I can afford every purchase. But thanks a lot man! I am just hoping that the headlight setup comes out okay


Okay, so I made some progress on the headlight setup. And even more progress besides this but I have yet to take pictures so that update is next time.

I went to my school and in the shop class, they have a spot welder, so I hooked it up with them and got the reinforced plate welded on. It worked out okay, but it's going to take some fine tuning.

Here are some pictures.




















.

I hit a bit of a wall today when I screwed on the headlight bracket, and I'll post pictures of that, but I need my car back to test fit and make any adjustments.

And just for the record, that is not me in the pictures. I was the one taking the pictures.

Enjoy!

[VDub2625]

I don't understand what's stopping you but if you don't think you can do it then of course you can't.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

[black gti]

WOW!!!

the headlights will look great, nice progress!

your sketches are really nice too, I love the exploded view of the grille - hot damn!!

[jaxgti95]

MOAR!!!!

[ejijah]

you have some real artistic tallent and good ideas! im in a weld/metal fab shop for school so ive been able to put in a little work on my car haha

[Volkswageneer1990]

I don't understand what's stopping you but if you don't think you can do it then of course you can't.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

No, I know I can do it, and I know that it's possible, its just I don't have all the tools just yet to be able to do everything. With money and time I will get everything I need to be able to make the car how I want.

WOW!!!

the headlights will look great, nice progress!

your sketches are really nice too, I love the exploded view of the grille - hot damn!!

Thanks! And thanks! I figured I might as well have some kind of reference drawing about what the new headlight setup will be like.

you have some real artistic tallent and good ideas! im in a weld/metal fab shop for school so ive been able to put in a little work on my car haha

Thanks! Yeah it's pretty convinient to have the welding equipment here at school. Makes it easier and better to meet people you didn't even know were in the same building as you

MOAR!!!!

HERE!!!!

I put on the buckets and the headlights today, and test fitted the grille. This is going to be a lot harder than I thought.....







As you can see the headlights and bracket sit too far inside the grille. So I'm going to have to move them to the outsides which is going to be hard since I already welded the pieces in....

But I have until August 26th to finish the car so I'm good

[VDub2625]

Looks good! Remember, measure twice, weld once

I know when I started working on my car the number 1 thing I needed was encouragement. Time anx time again I'd do something I'd never done before (suspension, exhaust, transmission, etc) and I'd say to myself at the end, "that wasn't as hard as I thought it'd be", sometimes followed by, "I'm never doing that again"

Fuelling a motronic takes no real special tools, except for the long 3mm allen which I found in the specialty section at the local hardware store.

[Volkswageneer1990]

Looks good! Remember, measure twice, weld once

I know when I started working on my car the number 1 thing I needed was encouragement. Time anx time again I'd do something I'd never done before (suspension, exhaust, transmission, etc) and I'd say to myself at the end, "that wasn't as hard as I thought it'd be", sometimes followed by, "I'm never doing that again"

Fuelling a motronic takes no real special tools, except for the long 3mm allen which I found in the specialty section at the local hardware store.

Yeah I definitely should have measured a little more. I took apart one side's reinforcing metal. Complete pain in the ass to take off metal that's been spot welded.

Now I'm planning to make another reinforcing piece, but instead of welding, riveting it on.

Haha when I get the car back from the dealership its ON! I am not taking it back only to not have it for another week and a half...

Yeah, the allen for the manifold correct? I bought a huge set of allens, and other bits at Home Depot. The Dewalt kit was only like $15

[ejijah]

Yeah I definitely should have measured a little more. I took apart one side's reinforcing metal. Complete pain in the ass to take off metal that's been spot welded.

Now I'm planning to make another reinforcing piece, but instead of welding, riveting it on.

Haha when I get the car back from the dealership its ON! I am not taking it back only to not have it for another week and a half...

Yeah, the allen for the manifold correct? I bought a huge set of allens, and other bits at Home Depot. The Dewalt kit was only like $15

ya riveting it in is a good idea then you can just drill them out lol, i was thinking if you used the round rad support it would work better but then idk if the grill would match up right. i have a aero support if you mess that one up i can give you for cheap.

[VDub2625]

Yeah, the allen for the manifold correct? I bought a huge set of allens, and other bits at Home Depot. The Dewalt kit was only like $15

Wha? No. You don't take the manifold off to do the fuel. And 3mm is a lot less than the 6mm intake bolts

[Volkswageneer1990]

ya riveting it in is a good idea then you can just drill them out lol, i was thinking if you used the round rad support it would work better but then idk if the grill would match up right. i have a aero support if you mess that one up i can give you for cheap.

Yeah my original idea was because of the fact that the Aero support was made for rectangular headlights it would mtch up pretty well. And it did. But yeah if I do end up making this a complete mess I will take you up on that offer.

Wha? No. You don't take the manifold off to do the fuel. And 3mm is a lot less than the 6mm intake bolts

Haha I don't even know what size the manifold bolts are, I just know they are allen
What is the 3mm allen used for?


Meanwhile, I still do not have my car... Its getting annoying now

But I made progress on the headlight relay and radio fuse setup. Here are some pics. Idk what else I can add without the car.

[steveo27]

Neat fuse holder

[Volkswageneer1990]

Neat fuse holder

Thanks, I found it off of a Saab at the junkyard. If you have seen the USA series Royal Pains, it's that car.

[Jimmys2.5]

Thanks, I found it off of a Saab at the junkyard. If you have seen the USA series Royal Pains, it's that car.

Not to thread jack but what model Saab was it from??

Your cars looks awesome by the way

[jaxgti95]

Saab 9000 http://www.ebay.com/itm/1992-92-SAAB...#ht_500wt_1156

[VDub2625]

The 3mm allen adjusts the fuel plate, while you measure the fuel rate with a multimeter.

[Dutchsider]

Really cool work going down in here. Looking forward to seeing that Passat front end finished.

[Mean 'n Green86]

The headlights look amazing. Your doing it right

[Volkswageneer1990]

Not to thread jack but what model Saab was it from??

Your cars looks awesome by the way

No worries man, you're not thread jacking at all. Any quesitons will be greeted with the best answer possible. At least in my thread. But yeah it's the Saab 900. If you have seen the show Royal Pains on USA it's his car.



And thanks

The 3mm allen adjusts the fuel plate, while you measure the fuel rate with a multimeter.

Ahh. Gotcha. I will probably be doing that soon...

Really cool work going down in here. Looking forward to seeing that Passat front end finished.

Thanks! And me too! I want to test fit it already!

The headlights look amazing. Your doing it right

Thanks a bunch man, all the support really helps



So here are some updates from the past couple of days.

After waiting a week and a half because of the dealership taking their time and the $555 bill they gave me, the real problem of the emissions failure was the catalyctic converter. Which only cost be $100 and 15 min of my time

Here are some pics of the cat install.






And with that saw he managed to cut through this floor board protectant cover I'm guessing? Idk what it is...








And here's the old one. When he removed it dust came out...


And all in all, it passed! The inspection guy also told me that the car will only need one more year of inspection (not including this sticker) because after that, the car is considered a classic




Substantial progress has been made concerning the headlight retrofit. I will take some more pictures of how exactly I got it lined up with the grille, but the jist of it is I grinded down a lot of metal, and made holes in the headlight bracket to secure it down.

Here is how the right side ended up after I took off the sheet metal and grinded a lot.


Here is how the left side ended up after a lot of grinding. I learned from my mistake on the right side and decided to avoid the hassle of taking off welded metal, so I just grinded it down to make room for the foglight to move toward the outside.


And here is how it sits as of now...





I need to aim and adjust how the headlight and foglight sit though. And on top of that, I need to figure out what to with this lower outside tab that sticks out on both sides...



I am also going to be working on making the grille look flush and OEM with the headlights. I will be using the pieces that I had already cut and simply just plastic welding them back on with a slight curve as per the foglight contour lines.

Like so...



In other news...

I am still looking for the other side of this wire. I remember being told that it was for the fan, but I can't find the other side of it anywhere near the fan wiring, or a loose wire coming from the fan wiring.



It's located with this cluster of grounds that ground to the head or manifold (I can't remember off the top of my head.)



And along with all that, I started with the location of the Saab relay box. I went against making a hole in the strut tower, so I just put some zip ties together and threaded them through the holes in the mounting bracket like so...


But before I got into the nitty gritty of the headlight relaying, I worked on the radio fuse first and now (**drum roll please**) my radio works!!! It is the 10A fuse that is for the radio. I replaced the crappy twist fuse cap glass vacuum tube whatever thingy that we had put originally. I was tired of that melting (see first picture of this page).


And here is how everything looks as of now.


The quick disconnects you see are for the radio wires. I have yet to wire anything up for the headlight relays.

That's all for today. I will probably be doing the headlight relay tomorrow, so stay tuned for that

Enjoy!

[revolution_Jd3]

hey man... great thread... really like some of the creative oem stuff you re doing.