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ILikeMud
04-19-2008, 09:29 PM
Well the price of gas and my 50km (one way, soon to be longer with my move) I've been thinking of getting a beater.
I was thinking maybe an old diesel VW, MK2. I know diesel is more expensive but I'll get more miles out of a tank then a gasser. Plus I'll run the facker on anything I can (ATF, used oil, WVO, etc).

Opinions/info on these cars?

ahanna
04-19-2008, 10:42 PM
I looked for a long time and bought an 85 vw jetta turbo diesel for $400.00 bucks not running. I learned a lot from that P.O.S.!! The number one thing is the timing belt, if anything happens to it, slips, breaks, or anything, you will need a new engine. If you find one also make sure the injection pump is not leaking. Other problem areas are the head gaskets. One way to know if the head gasket is bad on the vw's is to see if the coolant recovery tank has excessive pressure. A good site for info is vwdieselparts.com, which has a link to a forum. I got my jetta started, but then learned about a thing called "run away", which is what I did after the engine started and hit extreme rpm's and would not turn off. Good luck searching for one, they get milage that makes you think the fuel gauge is broken.

ILikeMud
04-19-2008, 11:03 PM
I'd like to get even an Mk3, with the 1.9L. These through a SVO kit into the thing and I'm laughing. I even know of a place to get WVO from.

CurtP
04-19-2008, 11:58 PM
My family has have diesel VWs since 1979. Decent vehicles but can be expensive to work on. If you get one, do yourself a favor and pick up the Bentley manual for it. Chilton's and Haynes manuals suck balls - they especially suck when it comes to VWs.