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Hi all, I thought I should document my build as a reference for myself if no one else J First some history: I brought the car several months ago intending to use it as my daily car. I’ve always liked the 205 GTI and looking around I found this online: This is my little 205 gti bought it about 5 years ago has not had much use with me as its just been a toy I got the front seats reupholstered and they are very tidy (half leather type) I changed the motor bout 4 years ago for the130bhp motor and did the head gasket,timing belt tensioners and water pump back then it was done around 194 500kms. It has Spax adjustable suspension all round and is certified for this. Its just collecting dust in my garage would prefer it went to an enthusiast no timewasters as im very busy with work. nice tidy classic hatch Of course buying a car online – sight unseen – is a bad idea, but the price was right and having certified suspension was a plus. The pictures looked ok, so ….. I won the auction! I flew down to the South Island to pick it up (I live in Auckland, New Zealand), and was happy to see that the owner was a mechanic who owned a garage. On a test drive the car rattled, the clutch grabbed and I couldn’t fit in without the sunroof interior cover back – but …. it was my scruffy 205 GTI J I knew it needed work and thought I’ll drive it around for a few months while it figure out what was needed. First I needed to drive it the 15 hours or so back home, so I started off slowly and carefully listening to each creak and groan, but completely deserted winding roads (the South Island has spectacular roads!) led me to drive the car in a ‘spirited fashion’ late into the night. What a car! Suddenly I heard a weird noise, watch the oil pressure collapse and then the back stepped out alarmingly. I quickly pulled over to the side of the road and saw a big puddle of oil. Oh dear. I was in the middle of nowhere. In the morning I reassessed the problem and was just about to start hitching when I local farmer came along and was gracious enough to give a hand: My new car was literally being held up by #8 wire which he had cut out of the nearby fence! After examination the oil cooler feeder hose from the block to the cooler/filter was split, so we tried to MacGyver a new hose out of some old bulldozer hydraulic hose and jubilee clips – we also crossed threaded the bracket as it is made out of a metallic alloy of cheese – but the pressure was too much…. Very luckily I had ticked the mechanical breakdown option when I had brought insurance the day before, and the kind lady said that it was policy to return the car home! So after a couple of weeks faffing around the car was trucked up to Auckland and fixed (several times they suggested I scrap it, as it would be the same price. They also said they would fix the hose (and spoiler: the #8 wire caused damage), but would not start the car, or guarantee the engine. After picking it up I drove it about 300 meters and then it overheated. At this point many bad words were used……many, many bad words. Especially when I realized the *kind* mechanics had removed the bottle of brand new oil from the front seat and placed it in the boot, rather than the engine where I had thought it was. The engine was billowing smoke out the exhaust and some in the engine bay itself. After a couple of days calm down I realized that it was just an opportunity to move the rebuild earlier than anticipated. CESM Build Parameters: The car is a 1989 graphite 1.9 8V non-cat (Phase 1.5?) – which is the most desirable to me. This is a road car, so I want to keep it fairly stock – certainly looks wise – and keep the 8V engine. It will be my daily driver, so I am looking to create a reliable, well sorted car that drives great and keeps the spirit of the original. I would also like to keep the keep the BE1 gearbox, although the synchros are suspect. I have access to a well stocked garage over the university holidays, so I began to strip the car a couple of week ago. I have worked on bike engines before, but this is a significant step up and I have limited time – so I am hoping for some advice as I move forward: Current known issues: 1/ The complete exhaust is rusted through. 2/ The radiator is decrepit ‹3/ All the coolent passages are covered in rust and perhaps some weird algae (!!?!?) 4/ The cylinder liners are pretty rusted and have a decent notch at the top. 5/ The conrod and big end bearings are very worn 6/ The head may be cracked and is certainly very pitted. 7/ The driver’s side universal joint disintegrated whilst removing the engine block. 8/ I’m pretty sure that the BE1 synchros are toast. 9/ etc, etc, etc..... Tally ho! Ben