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The 1986 Volkswagen Cabriolet (Rabbit Convertible) Page |
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5-7-2005 log: Significant things have happened since the last update. Right now I'm laid up in the hospital in Maryland. Apparently I have Kidney Disease and now have to be on Dialysis. What this means about the car is that I'm likely to stay in Maryland now, and since the car is still in Florida I am surely going to sell it. I uploaded the accident scene photos today, those can be found in the pictures link. I won't be doing too many updates, although I am going to try to finish the gas chart and spec page. That's about it. If I ever pick up another VW I'll comeback and update the pages more. I'll update the log once the car is sold.....or on a remote chance I bring it up here. 4-20-2005 log: I'm without the VW for about two weeks....but that's because I'm going to Maryland for a little bit. I'm actually writing this log from the seat on the Amtrak train I'm taking from Miami to DC. The car is continuing to do well mechanically. The front suspension was fixed and it somewhat made a difference. The car is a little off timed, as sometimes revs high. That will be adjusted for later. It also has been a little incooperative starting some mornings or evenings when it's chilly (under 65F degrees). The car continues to get great gas mileage. I have not done a gas mileage chart, but I suspect I'm getting 30 to 35 miles per gallon average (city&hwy). It's about the best convertible gas option you got, since they don't make a hybrid convertible. The only bad news to mention as of late is the damage that occuried after a Taxi made an illegal turn from the middle lane, into my right/driver side door and rear fender. It's not bad, I could fix it, but likely won't. The worst part is the impact bent the rear axle of the car, and now the car drives badly. I've got use to the pitches and rolls from the toed in right rear wheel, but it's near impossible to drive in the rain. This accident has pretty much concluded for me that I will not be keeping this car for long. Just until I'm able to pay for something better...like a truck or crossover wagon. I will have pictures of the damage up a little later. 4-4-2005 log: I've made two decisions regarding the car. First, tomorrow I'm droping the car off to spend about $325 to fix the front suspension. That should solve a lot of the driving charactistics and also finish the repair items to make this vehicle very dependable. The second decision is I've decided to attempt sale at the full retail price. Considering the repairs and other items I've put into it, it is a fair price. I'm putting it up at $2000. For the first two weeks I will take nothing less than $1800. The price drops $50 every week after that. The minimum I'll sell for is $1500. At that price, it's more than worth it. Kelly values the car at $1900 and NADA is $1815, so I'm not that high. That's the national price and considering Florida doesn't have any inspection, it's easy to get this own the road. I'll welcome anyone who want to have the car inspected, but they will have to pay for such. The only reason I'm selling is because I could use the cash, and I can get another POS* car for $1000 and have the extra $1000 in my pocket for upcoming rent or something. 3-29-2005 log: The suspension is starting to really wear thin. I'm expecting a failure somewhere at anytime. If I'm lucky, which really hasn't been the case of late, I'll be able to get some income, and get the repairs done before something breaks. I have made a few minor changes to the car. First, I removed the black pin stripping. That may have been cool in the 80s, but not now. I removed them, then using rubbing compound, cleaned the clue left over from the vinyl pinstrip. The second alteration is the repainting of the high-side body molding. I painted them with a glossy black. It makes the car look a whole lot better. If I ever get a paint job on the car, I'll remove that molding all-together, but the clips would require filling the body. Last, but not least, I removed the Alpine radio since I sold it on Ebay. I sold the radio for cash since I still really don't want to sell the car. Future alterations include painting or replacing the front grill, replacing the interior door panels....maybe with diamond plate simular to the background image here. I also need to get seat covers and steering wheel cover until full replacements can be purchased. Gas mileage has been great, should have the gas log ready soon. I'll also post new pictures soon. 3-15-2005 log: Car is still running great...but I need to get that suspension done to be as tight as it should be. Still don't know if I'll have to sell it it or not, but in any case I've just taken a few pictures, and uploaded them to the website. I have not altered the car at all since my purchase (visually anyway....as mention, extensive mechanicals have been done). I'll also have very soon the beginning of the gas mileage log. I've put about 500 to 600 miles on the car, and the gas mileage is great. 3-9-2005 log: This is the first log of the new edition to my automotive fleet. I purchased the 1986 VW just a week ago as a cheap run-about. However, before I could even get it home the clutch went bad. Actually I'm sure it was going bad for awhile, and then it was just bad timing. But at $500 for the original car, I didn't expect to not have something major. I was just hoping I would have a few weeks first. I got the car towed to Ken's VW in Cutler Ridge (south of Miami), and after $1,023 of cash I really didn't have, I got a full mechanical work over of the engine. New clutch, (transaxle perfectly fine), new water pump, new timing belt, new spark plugs and wires, oil change (Synthetic), a full tune-up that changed all the fluids, flushed the radiator, checked and adjusted the timing. Plus, just a good thorough inspection of everything. The Works! It was well worth it. I've just put 300 miles on it since (in just three days). The car drives great. Never owned a German car before. I understand the fascination with these little monsters. The especially cool part is that it is a convertible. Now I have to spend the attention to fix-up the interior a little, get new suspension, and maybe a paint job. Although I also may have to sell the car if I don't find some supplemental income ASAP. The repair money (plus the tow charge) was money I was suppose to use to get a new place up in Okeechobee. But, the more I drive the car, the more I want to keep it. We'll have to see in the next few weeks what happens. Pictures of the car will be forthcoming. If I get my video camera charged up I'll do some video grabs, since I forgot my standard lense for the SLR camera. | |||||||||
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