Looking for a bit of advice before I buy back my 1990 GTi that I sold 4 years ago.
The car was sold when I went to university and regretted getting rid ever since. It had been in the family since new and only covered 49,000 miles.
The lady that bought it is now selling it and I think I may buy it to restore to original condition.
The mileage is now on 58,000 so has hardly been used. The wheel arches and sills have been replaced and there is very little rust on the car at all (less than when I sold it!!!) and has got 4 new tyres for the MoT last week.
The only problem is when I was looking over it, I checked the engine and there is a tiny bit of mayonnaise under the oil filler cap and the water expansion bottle was very low. I know it may be the headgasket but the short 1 mile journies that she does to work may have caused condensation in the engine.
Would it pass emmissions on the MOT if the headgasket had gone.
The cambelts are due to be replaced so dont mind tackling the headgasket, just need to know how much to offer for it (she is looking about £500 but open to offers).
Does anyone have any ideas as to whether its HGF and what should I sensibly offer her??
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Mayonnaise is probably just due to short runs - cold engine. You are looking at less than 3k per year over the last four years and that probably done at very gentle speeds. Top up coolant and take for Italian Tune up and make up your mind then. On price I have no idea but its rare to find a Gta that has not been hammered into the ground and you have the advantage of knowing the history of this motor.
Happy Motoring Phil I .
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Unfortunaty due to the fact its either 8 valve/16 valve K series.I would not buy it back..previous post made a good point. only prob I have with that. Low water level says its not been checked/looked after.. Its serious when water level is well below limit. water channels being as they are very small.may be cause for head crack/HG failure. biggest prob here is if not done properly.Problem will re`ocurr. seen it so often..If you have money to throw away..??
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Steve
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I'd have it back, at the right price - these cars (esp the 16v) were little pocket rockets - great fun.
Be prepared for the dreaded HGF, more so if it has been hanging around. Has the cambelt been replaced? If not, it isn't a very difficult job to replace it.
......You could replace both at the same time (HG & Cambelt) you know ;)
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groups.msn.com/honestjohn - Pictures say a thousand words.....
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totalcar.index.hu/images/crash/autok/rover_100.jpg
Says it all. A GTi version just means you get more squished. On the other hand, a Rover 100 was my first car (diesel, too) and I loved it. It was a 1.5 non-turbocharged diesel but was darned nippy.
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115D nippy? All I can say is you must have driven some very slow cars beforehand to call this car nippy!
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groups.msn.com/honestjohn - Pictures say a thousand words.....
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I'm sorry but Metros had abysmal - I repeat abysmal - crash ratings.
Death trap on wheels... and after a few years rust:-(
As for a GTI - a fast death trap.
Nice to drive in its day: but today a coffin.
madf
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The car will hardly be driven as I intend to keep it dry stored for a very long time and keep it 100% original, you never know one day it may be worth something!!!!
The bodywork and underneath it pretty much rust free so dont really have any concerns over it rotting away just yet.
Have no idea what it is worth tho, sold it 4 yrs ago for £1500, which I was pleased with even then...
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Believe it or not, it could get quite a move on at town speeds. Definitely had the edge over any 1.2 engined car of the same era. Only trouble was at 70MPH it sounded like the engine was about to explode...
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Pretty much decided to buy the car.
Rang and asked the lady selling it to have the head gasket checked as i dont want to overheat on the 150 mile trip home in it, but she didnt seem to understand what I meant...
As it has just passed its MOT, would the emmissions test have picked up HGF or not??
Dont want to have to pay for a trailer and tow it back as I want some fun on my maiden voyage!!!
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No. Just check all levels before leaving.And run for a while to make sure rad fan kicks in..Just in case you get stuck in traffic..Happy motoring
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Steve
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