Converting to the fast side!

[Matt GTi 0]

Hi guys, as you can see I'm a newbie here. I currently own a MKII Golf GTI 8v, but want something quicker, so I am looking at getting a C VR6. I got the details for this forum from the Club GTI website, so thanks to whoever pointed me in this direction.

Onto my point, I'm looking at a VR, and can afford about £5000, is that gonna be enough to get me a good one? I'm obviously not expecting perfection here, but good perhaps? I have seen a few that look really nice, but they are upwards of 100k miles. What problems would I expect to encounter on a VR of that mileage, anything serious? I'm not to worried about small problems that I could do myself, but big things that should of been done maybe that haven't?

Anyway, thanks for reading, and I look forward to the replies.

 

Cheers

[pringles 0]

i was in the same boat this time last month :)

 

people on here helped me out loads, i'll try and find some links :)

[Matt GTi 0]

Cheers pringles, much appreciated.

[VR6 0]

Think that might have been me, Matt. :)

 

The forum has grown greatly in the 10 months we've been running - use the search function is the best advice I can give, although I'm sure people will let you know things to look for.

 

Welcome to the forum.

[pringles 0]

here is something that helped me when i was looking.

 

VR6STORM typed it, i copied and pasted it :twisted:

 

as for things to look out for(in no order btw)

1)make sure that the oil level is at/near the max and is relatively clean.......much lower points to careless ownership

2)it might sound a tiny bit tappetty(could be down to too thin an oil being used) and also have a very slight uneven idle this is normal,though through the rev-range it should be silky smooth and refined

3)make sure the spoiler rises at either 40/45mph(early cars) or 56mph(later cars)and that it can also be raised manually

4)make sure all the other electrics work too

5)check that there is no oil mixing with the water in the expansion tank....if it is it could be either the oil/water heat exchanger(£40ish part + fitting)or worse the h/gasket(£200++) also check the oil-filler cap...though don't automatically think that if there is a slight mayo on it that the h/gasket's failed as it could just as easily be condensation

6)all vr6's have abs fitted.....make sure that the abs light goes off within seconds of starting the car...if there is no abs light fitted or it doesn't go off then this points to either an expensive fault or that the abs has been removed

7)make sure the s/roof opens and closes without twisting as this can be quite expensive to fix

8)make sure that the tyres are wearing evenly if not this points to the steering geometry being out and could also be an expensive suspension problem

9)door handles are prone to breaking and can be expensive to fix....one of the signs is a stiff handle when opening the door

thats all from the top of my head

it might be an idea getting a vw-dealer or specialist to inspect it is so that they can also check the dtc's(aka fault codes) with the vag-com software............as these can be expensive to fix and can cause all sorts of future problems

hth

[Matt GTi 0]

The car looks familiar VR6, so I think that it was yourself. Thanks again.

 

Thats excellent pringles, cheers for that.

 

Is mileage a problem though, thats the biggie fro me, as I do a fair few miles, about 18000 a year, so is one with 100000 + gonna give me major problems? How strong are the engines?

 

Thanks again guys.

[Jim 1]

To be honest, for £5000 you should be able to find a very good condition lowish mileage car.

 

The VR6 engine itself is very good, and if serviced and well looked after should give you no trouble. But the Corrado is renowned for being a bit of a sod with some things, and if you are looking for a car to do a lot of miles in (18,000 is a fair few) I wouldn't think the VR6 is the best choice.

 

I mean I can't really say as I have never owned a VR, but from what I have read over recent weeks I wouldn't particularly want to put my trust in one as a steady reliable motorway muncher.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

I must admit, my VR6 has never broken down or ever felt like it would. It'll happily drive to Lands End and back. Overall it is a very reliable engine...BUT...some of it's electronics fail quite often, meaning you have an engine that isn't 100% right.

 

The MAF (Mass Air Flow) sensor and cam position sensor are two very common ones to fail, but the first is £150-£200 and the second is £20!

 

If you're planning on 18K a year, a 16V is probably a wiser choice financially, but if you really want extra power and more refinement over your GTI, then the VR6 is the one to go for. Perhaps going for a £4000 VR6 and leaving the extra grand in the bank for an 'Emergency' fund might be a good idea :lol:

 

Kev

[Matt GTi 0]

Thanks for the input guys, very informative. I have to say, I was looking for a C before I got my Golf, and i drove a couple of 2.0 + 1.8, and I wasn't overally impressed. I'm not saying I didn't like them, very nice cars, but for me to own a C is to have a VR or G60. As insurance wasn't "permitting" shall we say, I went for a MKII instead

The question I really need answering is will a VR with over 100000 miles give me major problems? My golf for example, had no history when I bought it, but it drove really well, and I took a chance on it. I did all the servicing work on it myself, and it's knocking on the door of 150000 miles now, and the engine is still incredibely good, (and the fastest 8v I have driven to date.) Is it likely that a well maintained VR will go on to these sorts of miles?

 

Cheers again for the help guys, you've been extremely welcoming!

 

PS, I found the insurance to be very reasonable on a VR, 4 yrs no claims, no cons, kept on driveway, cat 2 immobiliser, Fully comp £640 ish, and TPFT £550 ish!

[Chris VR6nos 0]

Kev, how much shorter are your fingers now from when you joined?

You're going to get RSI in your joints with 1200 posts, you need to get out more! ;-)

 

I bought my VR6 for £3400 and it now has 152,000miles on the clock.

I was seeing a girl that lives in Leeds for a year and a half, the problem was that I live in Sunderland which is 100miles away. I saw her nearly every weekend!

So she made me add around 15,000miles I think, mostly motorway and I occasionally hit 160mph on the way there and my engine never missed a beat or had a sensor fail or any other component that I can remember, so I'd say they are a most reliable car for motorway mile crunching or urban commuting not to mention racing the rice boys!

 

 

 

 

Chris

[Henny 0]

I've got a G60 and she's got 225K miles+ on her! Admittedly she's now getting a full engine rebuild and upgrade to a 2litre, but I threw 19K miles at her last year with very few problems! :shock: 8)

 

For 5K you'll quite easily get a nice low milage 'rado which will easily see your 18K a year and then some! 8) :D

 

You're in the right place to learn about what to get too! Welcome, and good luck in your search... 8)

[Chris VR6nos 0]

Kev, how much shorter are your fingers now from when you joined?

You're going to get RSI in your joints with 1200 posts, you need to get out more! ;-)

 

I bought my for £3400 and it now has 152,000miles on the clock.

I was seeing a girl that lives in Leeds for a year and a half, the problem was that I live in Sunderland which is 100miles away. I saw her nearly every weekend!

So she made me add around 15,000miles I think, mostly motorway and I ocassionally hit 160mph on the way there and my engine never missed a beat or had a sensor fail or any other componant that I can remember, so I'd say they are a most reliable car for motorway mile crumching or urban commuting not to mention racing the rice boys!

 

 

 

 

Chris

[VR6 0]

Chris - how the HELL did you manage a double post over TWO hours after the first one???????!!

 

 

:lol: :lol: :lol:

 

I'm leaving it there cos it's funny!

[Matt GTi 0]

Fantastic, that what I wanted to hear. Now to decide wether to spend 5g's on a good one with lowish mileage, ore 3.5 on a good one with high mileage + 1500 on mods?

[VR6 0]

I'd say that if you can find a good VR for £3.5k you'd be doing well, but you would almost certainly be spending most of the remaining £1.5k just to get it into good order.

 

There's plenty of decent C's available for around £5k though so you just have to see as many as possible and get a feel for what to look for.

[Matt GTi 0]

I think I'll have to have a look at whats around, and go from there. The only prob I have now is selling mk MKII! The trade in price if I but from a garage will probably be shocking!

[anorak 0]

Don't know if you'd be interested or not but mines for sale at the moment, see http://corrado.atx-hosting.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=4444

 

Let me know if you are - we might be able to come to some arrangement.

 

Cheers,

Mark

[Matt GTi 0]

That is a lovely motor you have there anorak, but unfortunately I'm after a dark coloured one, as everyone I know including my missus, who have owned a red coloured car has had it written off, or nicked. With a car like that I can see thieving little scum bags sniffing around alot, and with the power it is kicking out I can see me going a bit crazy once to often.

Saying that though, what do you mean by arrangement?