Buying A Golf Mkiii

[BOOKEMDANO]

Hello,

Guys, I was considering about buying a run around for both me and the tgf with a budget of around 200,000 baht. I have been looking on one2car.com just for an average price and the choice for this budget seems to get me eother a Honda Civic, Lancer, or Golf.

The only worry really is buying spares for the Golf when it goes wrong.

Would genuine parts cost a fortune or would I be better buying them in Europe and having them shipped over?

Or, should I just forget about it and stick with a Jap motor?

Advice needed

Bookem'

[Somnambulist]

I didn't know Civics were that cheap. I had the same exact budget a year and a half ago and it came down to a Soluna or a City. An acquaintance of mine sold me his 13/14 year old City with 1,343cc engine for 180,000. The engine's great, albeit gutless. Got about 13 to 14 kilos per liter despite driving with a heavy foot. Now it's the wife's car. She used to have an old Soluna, which had a much lighter/cheaper body and therefore was great for fuel consumption but bad for stability when passing a big truck or in high winds and for that reason much prefers the City. That's about all I know.

[WarpSpeed]

It's worth it if it has been taken care of and not bastardized into something other then it was engineered for.

First of all where are you located? If in Bangkok or surrounding area there is plenty of support and available parts more then I thought initially and now that I'm back into VW's from years back, I have sourced many of those just recently so could help if you needed some references and there are others here who can also help.

One good thing to consider about buying VW it is kind of dichotomy in that the VW people around are specialists/enthusiasts and it is much less a possibility of getting one of the multitude of so called Honda or Toyota "specialists" which is about every other shop that fixes cars here...

You can conceivably throw away a ton of time and masses of cash on crap technicians who are "specialists" so it all evens out in the end but with less aggravation IMO.

[BOOKEMDANO]

One good thing to consider about buying VW it is kind of dichotomy in that the VW people around are specialists/enthusiasts and it is much less a possibility of getting one of the multitude of so called Honda or Toyota "specialists" which is about every other shop that fixes cars here...

Thanks for the info WarpSpeed,

The same applies to you other guys too. I really am considering this from all possible angles. I understand and also appreciate a comment that was made on here with regards to "buying a local motor" = peace of mind. I know it is the logical choice, but I really want to buy VW Golf and turn this into a mini-project. The only concern was Parts, which Warp has provided a possible avenue for me to enquire. FYI, I am based in Chiang Mai but travelling is not a problem - gets me away from the woman and a good excuse for a few beers in town - however, are the parts more expensive than what they might go for back in the UK for instance?

http://secure.gsfcarparts.com/shop/next.asp

This is a great site, one of the best in fact, for car spares in the UK that will gladly deliver abroad; you can see they list many makes and models' and provide a price which can be a comparable option to what is sold in Bangers, factoring the cost of shipping in of course.

Like I say, it's mainly the parts that are my primary concern as I have also found out that Jap parts cannot be fitted on to Vw's although I have seen a few Golf's with a Nissan lump in it but this not really an option for me as I want to keep it as original as possible.

My budget is tight and for 200k as somebody mentioned I could look at a Honda City or even a Lancer but, they dont have as much appeal as a VW.

Look forward to talking with your WarpSpeed with regards to those VW dealers in Bkk.

Bookem'

[WarpSpeed]

Good for you Dano I'm back peddling myself too on restoring as much as possible on my Vento to make it as original as possible and un-engineering the local engineering but at least I started with a good foundation for the most part. My experience with the parts so far which is quite extensive is, that they are not that much higher then elsewhere and in some cases probably cheaper.. I just priced a Sachs replacement sport clutch and unlike the States where I can buy the pressure plate and clutch disk separately here they are only sold as sets for about 6400b which is still comparable but in my case I didn't need a new pressure plate as it was still in good condition so I had to settle for an English branded piece of junk clutch with substandard rivets etc. but for 2300b, still better then Chinese I guess. when I rebuild my other tranny and install it I'll invest in the Sachs at that time..

Honestly I don't want to put anymore stress on this used tranny anyway such as the Sachs would do..

Did brakes both front and rear, this used tranny which included replacing nearly all of the seals for preventative maintenance purposes and the shop I went to has had almost everything so far and know their parts inventory really well, small mom and pop shop but well organized and stocked, found them accidentally trying to the find the shop I was recommended to 1 block over and they are cheaper and more accommodating (took a wrong turn ha!) .. I just relocated, re-engineered and cleaned up a poorly installed LP system and I do all the work myself, don't trust the way shops do things as they would not have cleaned up or inspected anything prior to installing like I did..

[BOOKEMDANO]

Did brakes both front and rear, this used tranny which included replacing nearly all of the seals for preventative maintenance purposes and the shop I went to has had almost everything so far and know their parts inventory really well, small mom and pop shop but well organized and stocked, found them accidentally trying to the find the shop I was recommended to 1 block over and they are cheaper and more accommodating (took a wrong turn ha!) .. I just relocated, re-engineered and cleaned up a poorly installed LP system and I do all the work myself, don't trust the way shops do things as they would not have cleaned up or inspected anything prior to installing like I did..

Any chance you could provide us with a contact number for this excellent find of yours and a location? Good, well stocked European car part distributors in Thailand deserve recognition for those considering buying a German manufactured car.

I have decided to, like yourself, do as much as i possibly can on this car (when I buy it). The girlfriend's brother is a mechanic and they will go into Bangkok and take a day or two searching for a few VWs and hopefully find one it decent condition which I can then bring over any major service parts myself when I return.

Looking forward to the idea of 'not' buying a Jap car now very much. Not that there is anything wrong with them, its just that I LOVE VW'S...

Bookem'

[BOOKEMDANO]

Good for you Dano I'm back peddling myself too on restoring as much as possible on my Vento to make it as original as possible and un-engineering the local engineering but at least I started with a good foundation for the most part.

Found a lovely looking Vento here:

http://forum.avtoindex.com/foto/data/media...to_91-98_30.jpg

[WarpSpeed]

The name is Chaiprasit Yont and the telephone number is 02-279-5117 or 02-279-5933 I can't tell you the name of anyone there specifically but the son does speak some English.

I also see they have BMW and Mercedes badges on their receipt header but it is certain that they specialize in watercooled VW's as that is what I primarily see in parts there.

There is another shop 1 block away also I go there to look for things the first shop is lacking and so far they haven't had much the first shop didn't have, except separate CV joint grease and their attitude is not very friendly nor helpful, but in a pinch good to know about..I was really ticked at myself as I had 2 clutch centering tools back home and didn't bring even one and now it seems to be a rare thing to locate, both the current clutches I removed showed why one is necessary as they showed serious rubbing on the flywheel bolts from being off center. Now I'll locate one for future purposes but that's really the only thing I've hand any real problems locating so far and fortunately I'm pretty good at roughing it and managed to get the clutch spot on center without it using a screw driver blade for measuring the gap..

They are both located on underneath Saphan Kwai BTS station, I don't recall the street name below but it's a main road, same one that the DLT is on only farther past it on the opposite side.. To get into the one I'm referring you have to drive past it and drive in where the second shop is located as the street is one way, the other shop is located across from a 7-11.. wish I had time I'd help you shop your new car.. I just did that myself not so long ago...

Edited April 14, 2010 by WarpSpeed

[WarpSpeed]

Good for you Dano I'm back peddling myself too on restoring as much as possible on my Vento to make it as original as possible and un-engineering the local engineering but at least I started with a good foundation for the most part.

Found a lovely looking Vento here:

http://forum.avtoindex.com/foto/data/media...to_91-98_30.jpg

Yes, is that for sale here? Or just for display photos??

[BOOKEMDANO]

Good for you Dano I'm back peddling myself too on restoring as much as possible on my Vento to make it as original as possible and un-engineering the local engineering but at least I started with a good foundation for the most part.

Found a lovely looking Vento here:

http://forum.avtoindex.com/foto/data/media...to_91-98_30.jpg

Yes, is that for sale here? Or just for display photos??

Unfortunately no. This one is just a display photo but a great looking car. Maybe you could post a few pictures on here once you have finished your project? It will be a few months yet until I will be able to buy a Golf, or rather the girlfriend, but your offer of helping to find one is a kind offer. Thank you for the information on this garage I will save this for future reference. In the mean time here are a few more display pics to enjoy.

http://www.dub-nation.com/show/show_window...95+VW+Jetta+2.0

http://www.dub-nation.com/show/show_window...1995+VW+GTI+2.0

http://www.dub-nation.com/show/show_window...94+VW+Jetta+2.0

http://www.dub-nation.com/show/show_window...94+VW+Jetta+2.0

http://www.dub-nation.com/show/show_window...1998+VW+GTI+VR6

After looking at some of these pictures I am tempted to ship over a vr6 lump..ummm, wonder how much that would cost.

[enginerevision]

Most VR6 engines are trashed ! Would buy one only if I knew history is good. With VW the diesel engines run for ever, but the gas engines, about 250,000 km on average.

[WarpSpeed]

Good for you Dano I'm back peddling myself too on restoring as much as possible on my Vento to make it as original as possible and un-engineering the local engineering but at least I started with a good foundation for the most part.

Found a lovely looking Vento here:

http://forum.avtoindex.com/foto/data/media...to_91-98_30.jpg

Yes, is that for sale here? Or just for display photos??

Unfortunately no. This one is just a display photo but a great looking car. Maybe you could post a few pictures on here once you have finished your project? It will be a few months yet until I will be able to buy a Golf, or rather the girlfriend, but your offer of helping to find one is a kind offer. Thank you for the information on this garage I will save this for future reference. In the mean time here are a few more display pics to enjoy.

After looking at some of these pictures I am tempted to ship over a vr6 lump..ummm, wonder how much that would cost.

My car is not really a "project", it just seems that way. I am hoping to have a project in the near future though and then I might post few pictures. Just so you know the shop I mentioned is not a garage, only a parts supplier, as for shipping a 6 banger don't waste your money! Since 2.0L 4 are available here you can pump one of those up without too much difficulty and get everything out of it you could a 6 banger since you have limitations on front wheel traction anyways and it is much lighter and better weight distribution with a smaller engine..

When I do build a project car (and probably not a Vento due to weight maybe a MarkIII Golf so I have options with the front end being a subframe) I plan to make it into a left drive as I'm right handed and that's worth a couple of seconds per lap on the track where speed shifting is concerned, as well the Germans have engineered the cars that way providing better balance with the engine on the right side and transmission on the left so the handling is also much better, the 6 banger throws all of that out of balance, in the end you just use more fuel without gaining a lot more performance, top end or otherwise..

[WarpSpeed]

What I would like to locate is a 3 door Golf MkII or MkIII, has anyone seen or even heard of such a thing in Thailand? They are as common as "D cupped" women back home I guess they are as rare as that is here too?