25 years ago.

[cody227]

Well I found a pesky little problem. The other day I took a drive to Woodland Park which is about a ~2 hour drive round trip. I haven't been driving a lot lately and was really looking forward to the drive, the views and those glorious mountain turns. 3/4 of the way to Woodland Park I downshifted into 4 for the in-town 40 mph speed limits and when I pressed back on the gas, it fell to the floor leaving me desperately trying to find somewhere to park. It wasn't stuck on thankfully so I was able to get off the road at least. We ended up sitting in my car for 5 hours over night in the mountains in winter time waiting for help when I got my brain back and tried to see if I could figure out what was wrong and see if I could get it going again. Within 10 seconds of searching I found the pedal linkage not linked where its supposed to be. I put it back on and it worked. No problem. On the way home though it came off again, which was no problem but it means it will keep coming out unless I fix it completely. I'm assuming its an easy fix, my guess is the bushing on the pedal is bad and needs to be replaced. There might be more wrong but ill have to compare mine with another car to see the differences since I'm not certain how it is supposed to be. I might start with my brothers MK3 GTI since that is the only accessible vehicle atm which might have something similar.

I guess it will be a lesson for me. Me and my brother, who happened to be there on the brakedown to Breckenridge, sat in my car for 5 hours when the whole time it was something very simple that was easily fixed. I dont know why I didnt look right away. I just popped the hood and everything looked good so I said f**k it. It also made me very thankful that I didn't buy some Recaro Trophys yet...the Monty GTI seats that I have aren't the best but they weren't too bad.

The car is still driveable though but I will be alittle more careful with it, at least until I can fix it.

[cody227]

Well I thought I would list everything that I have done but didn't mention along with all the completed list of mods/repairs.

The only thing done to the car was some heavy duty, all weather floor mats which I still use because they do work great. An Alpine CD which doesn't play CDs anymore which is attached to an Alpine mini amp well hidden behind the center console.

So, starting with a stock 86' Jetta...

Heres all that has been completed...

*. Fixed the glove box light and trunk light.

*. Fixed the front lip - it was hanging down on the passenger side.

*. New windshield wipers

*. Painted the stock wheels black

*. Replaced the stock suspension with an H&R cup kit. Springs and Struts

*. New strut mounts

*. Bled the brakes

*. New plugs

*. New fuel filter

*. New air filter

*. Put a Wolfsburg emblem on the ashtray and grill.

*. Painted the VW grill emblem black

*. Put 2 Wolfsburg mudflaps on the front

*. Relocated the front license plate

*. Replaced the stock front seats with MK2 GTI Monty seats

*. Replaced the trunk carpet

*. Put the shift boot on

*. New Battery

*. New Alternator

*. New valve cover gasket

*. New oil pan gasket

*. Oil Change

*. New oil filter

*. Replaced some vacuum lines

*. Replaced the stock wheels with BMW E30 Bottlecaps

*. Fixed the hanging side trim

*. Fixed the hanging windshield seal.

*. Brand new Falken 512s 185/60 R14 on the bottlecaps

*. Snowboard rack

*. Replaced the VAG service system cubby under the steering wheel with a black one

*. Rear disk swap from stock drums to MK3 discs, and MK2 GLI calipers

*. 22mm master cylinder

*. Brake fluid flush

*. Painted the door handles black

*. Replaced the brake light switch

*. Repainted the factory sunroof fairing

*. Fixed the CV joint

Everything I want to do or need to do...

*. New timing belt

*. Spruce up trim, bumpers and flares

*. Either MK3 euro Recaros or Trophys

*. Roof rack fairing

*. Permanently fix the gas pedal

*. 10.1" Vented rotors in the front

*. New Exhaust

*. New steering wheel

*. Mk4 rear calipers

*. Alignment

*. Windage trey

*. Rear mudflaps

*. New windshield

*. Fix/replace all door handles

*. Replace window seals

*. Find the bad ground and fix that

*. A different Alpine CD player

*. I have also contemplated getting a quad round headlight setup just for something different. I will keep my stock setup as well and will swap them whenever I get bored of the current setup.

*. I have also contemplated getting some new wheels for summer, and make the bottlecaps my winter wheels. I haven't come up with anything I really want. I may think about doing a 5 lug conversion which gives me more option but I wont get to keep my bottlecaps. I do not want anything really fancy, I really like Passat B4 bottlecaps haha.

Other things I did not mention was that this car came with the Partnership book and everything in it including the original sales receipt and service manual. This car was originally sold from Colorado Springs dealer in 1986 so after all this time, it hasn't gone very far. I don't know if I mentioned this either but it is a GL. From what I can tell, it was well taken care of by whoever has owned it and will continue to be well taken care of by me.

I'm sure there is something I missed but this list will be updated whenever possible.



Updated 1/1/12

[cody227]

Its been while since I posted pics and I finally have some pics of the interior.

Ive only done 3 things to the interior so far, Wolfsburg emblem on the ashtray, replaced stock seats with MK2 GTI Monty seats. and fixed the broken VAG service system cubby under the steering wheel with a black one.

The emblem was easy, just some poxy and stuck it on.



The stock GL seats were in bad shape, the springs were stabbing my back and the drivers bolster was torn up.



So I found these, not in the best of shape and need to be cleaned again, and they don't match but I like the pattern and the way they go with the car.



and using my stock seatbelts I put them in and...



My dash and carpet before fixing the cubby and cleaning it. Carpet wasn't to bad after a quick vaccuming. Also a pic of the black replacement cubby faceplate.







Im thinking about a car wash soon haha. Its getting pretty bad. I miss how it was when it was clean.



Heres its current territory...out in the wild







Hes also got a buddy to hang with all day. They're both a little dirty.

[thumper82]

nice lil thread lil brother, . need to get some more stuff done on the yetta. got some good stuff to give you here soon. i'll pm you later

[cody227]

nice lil thread lil brother, . need to get some more stuff done on the yetta. got some good stuff to give you here soon. i'll pm you later

Yeah I still need to rotate my tires and ghetto rig the gas pedal before I make the drive but itd be well worth it. I know my car misses normal roads. But yeah, its needin some more lovin.

[cody227]

Been awhile since Ive updated but not much has changed.
I got a brown 3 spoke Wolfsburg steering wheel, tray for under the vents in the hood, sunvisor clips, door lock clips, driver side door pull, seat pull handles, replaced the thing the dipstick goes into, and replaced the CV bolts. The steering wheel is the coolest update and Ill post pics up soon.

[tinworm]

we have the same car, although mine is a POS, and a diesel. Otherwise identical, same color same year.

Because of this thread, ill be looking for those BMW rims, which I think look great on that car.

Im planning to remove all the fender flares, which were hiding rust.

Nice car! and nice pics!

[A2jettafreak]

Great mk2!! defenitely like seeing the old cis cars kept in close to stock condition.

:-) shoe dye or peanut butter will work wondes on those bumpers or trim. also if not the bumper paint works aswell.

ive always liked the bmw bottlecaps.. the offset is a bit different then the stock wheels maybe its a 35 et as oppose to 38et stock, but it wont bother you much unless you go low.

[cody227]

Thanks guys. I feel pretty good about the car and couldnt ask for more. Diesels are bada$$...well for the gas mileage anyways. Would love to swap a diesel 5th gear into my car eventually.
I love the bottlecaps as well. I wanted a set before i even thought about buying the car. And yeah they are et35 and the volkswagen bottlecaps are et38 like snowflakes and teardrops. I kinda like the lower offset, even though it doesnt make much difference. And its easy to find a full size spare since I see bottlecaps everywhere in the junkyard.
The suspension makes a big difference on looks as well. H&R sport cup kit is a good kit and gave me the exact look I wanted along with a great ride and performance. I think its a 2.0" drop in the front and 1.7" in the rear.
I noticed my flares have never been taken off. They are still factory installed so I dont want to take them off which is gonna make it fun but it will get done this summer.
I love cis, and being able to say my car was made in Germany. I love having an older MK2, funny since my friend has an mk1 cabrio thats an 89 which is newer but still and MK1.
Thanks for the compliments and more pics will be up soon.

[tinworm]

better steel yourself for what might be behind there.

Though your car looks in very good shape, so I doubt it could be as bad

[cody227]

better steel yourself for what might be behind there.

Though your car looks in very good shape, so I doubt it could be as bad

Ouch, yeah i would hate to find that hiding under there. Chances are there shouldnt be much if any rust under there. Its been in Colorado since 1986 and we dont use salt on the roads so rust aint much worry and whoever the po was seemed to take good care of it. I like those teardrops. Almost thought about trading my bottlecaps for some but decided against it. Got a pic of your whole car?

[tinworm]

Ouch, yeah i would hate to find that hiding under there. Chances are there shouldnt be much if any rust under there. Its been in Colorado since 1986 and we dont use salt on the roads so rust aint much worry and whoever the po was seemed to take good care of it. I like those teardrops. Almost thought about trading my bottlecaps for some but decided against it. Got a pic of your whole car?

here she is, the diesel rusty twin to yours.



Teardrops were supposed to be stock color, but this is my damage control solution. Guy powdercoated them black instead of silver.

[cody227]

here she is, the diesel rusty twin to yours.



Teardrops were supposed to be stock color, but this is my damage control solution. Guy powdercoated them black instead of silver.

From the pic that doesnt look to bad. Whenever I see an mk2 out int he wild they dont look that good. Most of them are missing trim pieces and have some cheap stupid wheels. Also has single rounds and a badgless grill. It does look like mine though, enough to where if you lowered it about 2" I could see what some black teardrops would look on my car How many miles does it have?

[db3ck]

you've got a good thread goin man keep it up

im glad to see that the car is treating you right and your treating it right

[tinworm]

From the pic that doesnt look to bad. Whenever I see an mk2 out int he wild they dont look that good. Most of them are missing trim pieces and have some cheap stupid wheels. Also has single rounds and a badgless grill. It does look like mine though, enough to where if you lowered it about 2" I could see what some black teardrops would look on my car How many miles does it have?

I put the badgeless grill and rounds on recently, but im going back to the stock setup soon I think, the rounds grill is pretty messed up, has no tabs left.

Body has about 230K on it, and engine is a replacement with about 150K on it. Looks worse now that I pulled off all fender arch trim.

[cody227]

Thanks db3ck, I appreciate it. It definitely is treating me right. I hear from alot of people not to daily an mk2 but I drive it alot and have no problems. Defintely trust it to get me where i need to go so I try to give it the most possible care I can. Its still suprising to me how good the car runs for having over 269k miles.

Tinworm, Yeah im not much of a badgless grill person, just seems odd someone wouldnt want a VW emblem on the front of their car but to each their own. They do look good, especialy with single rounds. Im kinda biased so I would say go back to stock setup. I also like the dual rounds with a badged grill on our cars but thats just me. Whats your plan for that rust? are you going to do the bodywork or just replace the quarter panel?
150k still got alot of life left. I have to find a way to check whats been done to my car in the last 25 years. 269k+ miles and running great, mustve been rebuilt at least once.

[Scott Waldeck]

Not necessarily. I had a 8v CIS with 310K miles before I sold it and who knows how long after that.

The next time you're on a road trip near the garden of the gods, stop and take some pics, love that place.

[cody227]

Not necessarily. I had a 8v CIS with 310K miles before I sold it and who knows how long after that.

The next time you're on a road trip near the garden of the gods, stop and take some pics, love that place.

8 valves are beasts. Couldn't be happier. Yeah will do for sure. Haven't taken the Jetta there yet but were planning on it this summer, along with some other cool places throughout the mountains. Ive already found some cool spots at Garden of the Gods ive been wanting to get some pics at.

[cody227]

Well my rear drivers side caliper was leaking so I decided to replace the Girling 36s with some alluminized mk3 vr6 38s. Not much of an upgrade but it is an upgrade. As far as rear brakes go, I am not messing with them for awhile now.
Next on the list of immediate things to do,
alignment
tierod ends
new steering rack
control arm bushings
10.1" vented front rotors which will include, rotors, carrier, caliper, ball joints and the spindle if i am correct.
those first 4 things are really needing to get done. It makes my car feel so much worse not having that stuff replaced. I cant wait until its done.

[cody227]

Well I bought some 15" Mini Cooper Holies and put some tires on them hoping to put them on the Jetta. I need spacers for them and lug nuts but I think tomorrow I am going to put new tires on the bottlecaps and keep them. They've grown on me. I've been driving around on mismatched cheap wheels since the bottlecaps have no tires. Getting the same tires again, loved them. Falken ZEIX ZE 512tr 186/60 r14. Getting the syphed or whatever it is that cuts into the tread for grip. Also bought some e-brake cables, replaced a coolant hose, bought some brand new mk3 calipers and ordered some brembo 10.1" vented front rotors which will be here wednesday. I am back in the city now and ready to get stuff done.

[db3ck]

The bottle caps look good on the jetta ive been looking for a set for my jetta but there hard to come by then it should be, are u doing a brake upgrade??

[21v00]

Man I LOVE your car! My father has a rare base jetta in polar silver metallic (only offered in Canada). The car used to be a straight diesel but he swapped a turbo diesel from a '87 jetta in 1994. The car almost NEVER had rust even thought it always lived in Canada. Sadly, it was involved in 3 different accidents, the last one happened this June, but me and my father brought it back from the dead and now it's like new ... so ***k you DEER.

[cody227]

thanks guys for the comments. Yeah I was about ready to sell the bimmer wheels but thought agianst it thankfully. Yep, this wednesday finally doing the front brakes. Back brakes dont need anymore attention for now but im taking off the 9.4" non-vented and doing the mk3 10.1" venteds. Got brand new pads, rotors, and calipers. Also getting a new steering rack and tie rods so i can do a proper alignment. Brakes are going to be so nice. Also just bought a new water pump, and within the next month or so im getting a new windhseild, and a GTI big valve head. That will be a nice upgrade as well. Love the Polar Silver, coulndt imagine any other coloer. Although it needs resprayed. Sad story, but at least its back and living agin. Always good to bring a car back to life.

[cody227]

Got the 10.1" vented front rotor swap done. Bought brand new calipers, rotors from brembo, carriers, new pads, and stainless lines for them. All bolted up to mk2 spindles. Also put brand new pads on the rear and turned the rotors. They do the job, better than 9.4 solids and rear drums for sure. Havent had them in the mountains yet which is when the real test comes. Definetley happy with the result after adjusting the prop valve.
Havent had an ebrake since the rear disk swap so thats fixed.
New tierod, and bought all new control arm bushings but only the rear drivers side was the one that really needed replaced so the others are waiting to go in.
And ran some seafoam and 44k fuel treatment through the motor and its running great now.
Still have timing belt/tensioner, serpentine belt, head gasket, and waterpump/thermostat waiting to go in. Dont need these things in yet but it will releave some worry on long drives.
Car is running great after the seafoam and 44k though. Almost feels like a new car.

[cody227]

Heres them 10.1" vented front rotors with all new pads, rotors from Brembo, SS lines, mk3 spindles, carriers, and calipers.



Interior with the new steering wheel. Brown Scirocco Wolfsburg 3 spoke. Its a funky pic, angle make the wheel look weird. Dont pay any attention to the Porsche emblem glove box lock cover, found it in a brown 944 and figured what the hell. They fit nice and looks cool, but i'd rather not have Porsche visible in my interior. Also got the trim piece around that alpine so it looks alot better now too.



And a pic of the car for the hell of it. Its not a very good quality pic but its new and its been awhile since a new pics been up. All 4 mudflaps are on now and kinda in this pic though.

[cody227]

Heres all that has been completed...

*. Fixed the glove box light and trunk light.

*. Fixed the front lip - it was hanging down on the passenger side.

*. New windshield wipers

*. Painted the stock wheels black

*. Replaced the stock suspension with an H&R cup kit. Springs and Struts

*. New strut mounts

*. Bled the brakes

*. New plugs

*. New fuel filter

*. New air filter

*. Put a Wolfsburg emblem on the ashtray and grill.

*. Painted the VW grill emblem black

*. Put 2 Wolfsburg mudflaps on the front

*. Relocated the front license plate

*. Replaced the stock front seats with MK2 GTI Monty seats

*. Replaced the trunk carpet

*. Put the shift boot on

*. New Battery

*. New Alternator

*. New valve cover gasket

*. New oil pan gasket

*. Oil Change

*. New oil filter

*. Replaced some vacuum lines

*. Replaced the stock wheels with BMW E30 Bottlecaps

*. Fixed the hanging side trim

*. Fixed the hanging windshield seal.

*. Brand new Falken 512s 185/60 R14 on the bottlecaps

*. Snowboard rack

*. Replaced the VAG service system cubby under the steering wheel with a black one

*. Rear disk swap from stock drums to MK3 discs, and MK2 GLI calipers

*. Brake fluid flush

*. Painted the door handles black

*. Replaced the brake light switch

*. Repainted the factory sunroof fairing

*. Fixed the CV joint

*. Full MK3 front brake swap. Calipers & Rotors

*. Brown Scirocco Wolfsburg steering wheel

*. Hella smoked interior dome light

*. replaced interior door pulls

*. repacked rear wheel bearings

*. turned rear rotors

*. New pads all around

*. Seafoam treatment

*. 44k fuel treatment.

*. new coolant hose

*. Brand new 22 mm master cylinder

*. SS brake lines

*. MK3 front spindles (obvously for 10.1s)

*. New control arm bushings (one installed)

*. replaced driver side sunvisor

*. Mobile 1 full synthetic oil change

*. New Bosche oil filter (blue one)

*. headliner clips

*. new passenger side tie rod

*. alignment

*. Another set of new Falken 512 185/60s siped all around

*. adjusted prop valve for brakes--worked wonders.

*. aluminized rear calipers from mk3 gti vr6

*. ebrake cables

*. ABD adjustable shift linkage with ABD weighted rod set at medium

*. rear wolfsburg mudlaps to match the front

Everything I want to do or need to do...

*. New timing belt (already have the part)

*. New serpentine belt (already have the part)

*. Spruce up trim, bumpers and flares

*. Permanently fix the gas pedal

*. fixed rest of door handles

*. New Exhaust (already got dual outlet manifold, 16v dual downpipe)

*. Windage trey

*. New windshield

*. Fix/replace all door handles

*. Replace window seals

*. Find the bad ground and fix that

*. A different Alpine CD player

*. Techtonics cat back

*. Good high flow cat

*. I have also contemplated getting a quad round headlight setup just for something different. I will keep my stock setup as well and will swap them whenever I get bored of the current setup.

Other things I did not mention was that this car came with the Partnership book and everything in it including the original sales receipt and service manual. This car was originally sold from Colorado Springs dealer in 1986 so after all this time, it hasn't gone very far. I don't know if I mentioned this either but it is a GL. From what I can tell, it was well taken care of by whoever has owned it and will continue to be well taken care of by me.

I'm sure there is something I missed but this list will be updated whenever possible.


Updated 9/7/12

[cody227]

Slight update.

Car is driving absolutely fantastic right now. Its been putting a big smile on my face lately and i couldnt be happier. Such a good car to drive, feels close to being new again. I still havent tested the 10.1s in the mountains yet but I will once the belts and head gasket get done. It seems to be pretty happy right now. Its starting to get cold though, Colorado winter is coming fast. My car hates starting in the cold. Once it starts and warms up though, its like its on steroids, absolutely adores the cold once awoken.

Well heres the latest pics, took these since the last update...enjoy









Thanks for stopping by

[cody227]

Can anyone give me any insight as to why my car takes a few trys to start in the cold? Im sure its worse than it should be. If its around 45* or so and off for even a few hours it will give me trouble. It will always start...eventually. I just dont want to destroy my starter. It idles rough for a little bit as well but thats pretty normal.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

[5drmk2]

great mk2 ,mine has also came along way from how i got itn

[cody227]

Thanks. Its good to take time and make a car your own

[cody227]

Well a few days ago we started to take everything apart for the headgasket and belts job. Once everything was dissasembled a thorough cleaning came to mind. Quite a bit of gunk was built up in the head intake inlets and intake manifild but for the most part the injectors, valves and cam were clean. Pistons, cylinder walls, cam lobes, and overall head are in great shape, doesnt show its miles one bit. Happy about that. Put in a brand new waterpump with housing and thermostat, put the head gasket on with new head bolts on a well cleaned suface, all three belts along with timing belt tensioner, mk3 rubber valve cover gasket with mk3 studs, g60 valve cover, mk3 lower timing belt cover, new o2 sensor, dual outlet manifold, 16 valve downpipe with hollow cat and new o2 sensor. Everything is put back together now, its all clean on the inside and out, fesh mobile one and anitfreeze and guess what....it wont hold an idle. It will only start after resting and pumping the gas and i only get one try amd everytime i let off the gas it dies without even trying. Pretty frustrating but i know once its good to go again it willbe good to go for awhile. Just have to find a cat back exhaust.

Any help on this current problem is greatly appreciated.

[cody227]

Figured out the timing cover, and the o2 sensor kept throwing things off. So we went back to original exhaust and no timing cover. I really want a lower timing cover soon though. Dont like that being exposed. And an injector seal is bad and causing a vacuum leak which is making the car idle funny but other than that, running great so far.

[cody227]

Heres an updated pic of the bay.

[cody227]

Well I have a chance to do a westy front headlight and grill setup on my car. I found a 85 diesel in the junk yard with dash, brown tweed full interior and the center console with the ashtray. I dont know about getting the interior...maybe to sell but i wouldnt like shipping. It still has the grill and headlights though and was thinking about getting them. I would still keep my stock grill/headlights though.

Any opinions?

[Hombre3000]

Well I have a chance to do a westy front headlight and grill setup on my car. I found a 85 diesel in the junk yard with dash, brown tweed full interior and the center console with the ashtray. I dont know about getting the interior...maybe to sell but i wouldnt like shipping. It still has the grill and headlights though and was thinking about getting them. I would still keep my stock grill/headlights though.

Any opinions?

I picked up a Westy setup at the yard a few months ago and thought I was just going to sell it for a quick buck after cleaning it up and painting it. Long story short - it's still on the car and I love it.

However, the light is really poor and I'm thinking of putting my Aeros back on for that reason.