vanamans mk3.5 cabrio build

[vanaman]

I bought this car last fall from a buy here/pay here place. They said the car kept getting repoed and need work so they were selling it as-is. At the the time the top was coming apart, struts were totally shot and the auto trans slipped. I bought it and towed it back to my buddys place and it sat there till now.




Then back in the end of march i found these on craigslist and bought them. It got really dreaming about fixing the car. They are bbs rx 17" wheels and the PO had them painted gun metal.



About a month ago jim (DaddyOfPayton) Help me pull a good top at the junk yard. Then i bought all the maintenance parts from Napa where i work. Ive got the t-belt, waterpump, t-stat, strut mounts, new axel, clutch cable, battery and a 3m headlight restoration kit.

Then a couple weeks ago, brent (OnelowcabriO) had a set of coilovers for sale. So i snatched those up as well.


Last summer my Bro wreck his 96 gti 2.0 into a ditch, So I bought it off him to part out. I pulled the engine, trans and subframe as an assembly. It was alot faster and simpler. Plus the skid loader helped. Im using the whole 5 speed swap from that car.





So thats whereim starting this project.

[nap83]

[PKstrategy]

good luck
looks like a clean pickup and i'm sure with a lil love it will be proper.
dual rounds in it's future?

[vanaman]

Today i pulled it into the shop and started working on it.

Got the wheels test fit. They seem to be a cone seat lug instead of the ball seat lugs like factory. so ill have to buy new lugs.



after the test fit





My buddy went to town on the headlights for me. We used the #m headlight restoration kit. It worked great.

before


after



also started taking apart the rear interior to swap the top. but didnt take any pics of it.

steve

[vanaman]

good luck
looks like a clean pickup and i'm sure with a lil love it will be proper.
dual rounds in it's future?

nobody makes good duals for the mk4 front end. although hella does have the triple round ones. but i havent ever seen a cheap set of them.

steve

[dankvwguy]

nice. glad to see it didnt go to waste. as much as i hate mk4s there is one out at a friends house just sitting in his field. 2004.5 jetta 24v VR6. automatic but it has every single option VW offered that year. they are willing to sell it super cheap but im just afraid i wont be able to turn it around quick enough. the motor is pretty much toast though. apparently the girl never changed the oil and it seized up one day. im sure plenty of parts are still sellable though

or if the engine was good just drop the 24v in my car and turbo it. done deal

[vanaman]

nice. glad to see it didnt go to waste. as much as i hate mk4s there is one out at a friends house just sitting in his field. 2004.5 jetta 24v VR6. automatic but it has every single option VW offered that year. they are willing to sell it super cheap but im just afraid i wont be able to turn it around quick enough. the motor is pretty much toast though. apparently the girl never changed the oil and it seized up one day. im sure plenty of parts are still sellable though

or if the engine was good just drop the 24v in my car and turbo it. done deal

remember scrap value for a car is about $400 the wheels are prolly worth the same if they are in good shape. and the trans is prolly worth another $400. and thats without getting into selling all the POS parts.

[vanaman]

oh and as an FYI mk3.5 rear leather seats dont like water. The "leather" get crunchy and crumbles.

So i need a new rear seat or im going to swap in my black mk3.5 interior.

[thewhitsnpt]

No 1.8t in this one?

[vanaman]

nope this one is staying a 2.0.
im done with major motor swaps.

this one might get a cam or super charger down the road though.

[thewhitsnpt]

I almost did the Stage 3 BBM instead of the swap. Still want a ride in one.

If you end up getting rid of your swap let me know. May be interested in spare parts. Or get it here and see if we can't get it running.

[DaddyOfPayton]

Today, it got a better driver side mirror, and a set of Hella Clear/Red Tails

[vanaman]

not much pictures today.

heres the tails that are ont he car now.


and heres jim helping install them.



I also got the front end pulled off. there are too many different fasteners on a mk3.5


im going to start pulling the trans tommorow.

[DaddyOfPayton]

not much pictures today.

there are too many different fasteners on a mk3.5


im going to start pulling the trans tommorow.

AND...we found out how to access the fasteners for the rear bumper on a Mk3.5.

[candela]

oh this is gonna be great.....staying tuned

[vanaman]

kinda just started drinking and riding my quad today.

The only thing i did was figure out my friends sub enclosure wil fit in my hatch.

[Fyler1]

Cabrios

[adolfitoVR6]

[vanaman]

Started pulling the trans today. its got 2-3 bolts left holding it in.




also decided to pull the fender liners out. They were full of dirt. and the drivers side has some rust hiding back in there.





also got my linkage rebuild parts from mjm autohaus.




also got a quote for paint on the car. Looks like im gonna get the whole car resprayed.

[vanaman]

my buddy took this pic the other day.

[AJmustDIE]

[B-Tower]

This build thread seems like it's actually going somewhere, and it's looking good. I'm in

[95jetta17]

this will get good

[BHCgreene]

Looks like a good start

Im a sucker for cars that have been saved

[vanaman]

Well today i got the trans pulled and tossed out back. those auto trans are heavy.

also figured out that the PO had the exhaust "rigged" The flange is cut off the downpipe and there is a pipe running all the way back to the suitcase muffler.

So i need a new exhaust and either a new downpipe or a header.

[DaddyOfPayton]

also figured out that the PO had the exhaust "rigged" The flange is cut off the downpipe and there is a pipe running all the way back to the suitcase muffler.

So i need a new exhaust and either a new downpipe or a header.

That sucks. Do you need help pulling the downpipe off the other motor?

I bet Mad Hatter could do the rest of the exhaust pretty cheap

[Kabinotar]

Nice work saving this. Looks like it's coming together nicely.

[Roketdriver]

Always cool to see what the mods are up to

[mk4golf22]

is that a 3m headlight restoration kit u used? which one? thanks

[vanaman]

it was the 3m 39008.
http://www.amazon.com/3M-Headlight-L.../dp/B001AIZ5HY

[911_fan]

I would go with an OBX header, personally. Very inexpensive, good build quality, and can easily be wrapped for heat retention. Just need to plug the SAI ports adjacent to the exhaust ports. (easy)

If you need/want any motor modding advice, hit me up dude.

[FRESH WHITE TEE]

good stuff. looking forward to more updates

[.yuk.]

Looking good dude. I just bought a 95 Golf from Paul Harley that has a header with a nice exhaust leak.

Only thing I worry is that it will never be able to be fixed. (for cheap at least)

I have a tan mk3 rear seat but I think its a different color than the 3.5

[vanaman]

mk3.5 tan is all its own color. i have the flint seats in my 1.,8t cabrio, they are totally different.

The car might just get a black interior swap. but id need to find some front black leathers in good shape.

[jbigs268]

Im diggin this