1998 Seat Ibiza Cupra 16V Restoration and Build

[littlegldgti]

Hi all,
I guess this thread has been a long time coming.
Back in May 2018 I purchased Waterboy's black magic Seat Ibiza Cupra, build date Dec '98 - Under the promise that it wouldn't be wrecked. I like to think that I am (at least sometimes) a man of my word, and this beautiful machine is no exception. Aside from that, I believe I owe it to this beautiful and rare car to be restored to it's former glory with some fun stuff along the way.

In anticipation for this sale, I hurriedly jumped onto the MKIV Australia facebook page and advertised my Candy White V5 Bora (which had teething coolant issues) without rego for $500. Luckily a fellow snapped it up pretty quickly.
Following this, I set about getting my new house' garage ready for a project. I built two work benches and collected together all of my tools, bought new axle stands and some essential Ibiza spare parts from Tooleys in Sydney.
The next few weeks leading up to May included messaging Waterboy nearly every day in a general spout of excitement trying to find out when he'd be back in the country. hehe

EVENTUALLY, I got my hands on the Cupra, delivered by Waterboy to my house in Western Melbourne. And so started the journey! Hope you enjoy the posts to come.............

[littlegldgti]

Waterboy gave me a whole pile of bits and pieces that he'd collected over the years. Of those bits was another bonnet and front bumper with better paint. So I fitted them along with the fog lights.

[littlegldgti]

Aside from getting the car looking nice, one of my first and most important jobs was getting the car roadworthy for a VIC RWC. Here's a couple of photos of the car in the supercheap carpark whilst having a look at the bulbs.



Needing attention for RWC would be: (all done now)
Front struts and top mounts (OEM)
Sump gasket
Oil cooler housing O-ring
Lower and front control arm bushes
Tie-rod ends
Split inner CV boot - Right side
Brake light switch
Front fog lights not working (not fixed yet)
Brakes needed bleeding due to contamination
Missing interior panels on the dash and surrounds (in woody's spare parts)

As easily written down on paper - Juggling the lot with work and band commitments at the time ended up being quite the struggle. But we got there in the end.



Other issues needing attention:
Hot start issue (idle position sensor/switch) done!
ABS intermittent issue (front left sensor - not yet fixed)
Paint condition all over the car - Needs a full respray
Minor surface rust on the front mud guards and boot lid (under spoiler)
Clutch needs replacing
Throttle cable stretched (have a spare)
Front and rear brake refresh

COOL STUFF I WILL ALSO BE DOING
Koni STR.Ts front and rear with Eibach springs
Get my hands on original Ronal alloys (done - need refinishing)

[littlegldgti]

Whilst getting the car ready for RWC, I had to remedy an oil leak that seemed to be coming from the sump gasket and the oil cooler housing.





Considering the whole coolant system needs to be drained for this job - May as well replace the hose clamps!


...And maybe some new plugs...


You can see the 'wetness' of the gasket in this pic.
Something also tells me a new main seal might be in order when the clutch is done.



All back together!

[littlegldgti]

Dark day... A certain member of the house hold in a rush to go to work did something a little inconvenient...




With a 'cash' quote given in excess of $1200 to repair, I figured I'd take things into my own hands...





I rigged up a dent pulling system with my jack. That's just a $15 craftright G clamp with the thread cut off it and a piece of timber screwed onto the pulling side so it doesn't scar the metal/panel.







The clear needs a good wet sand and polish - Which will definitely be a good learning experience for me. All in all I think the repair has turned out quite well, although I think in the long run a full respray of the car (considering the condition of the paint on the roof and hatch) may be in order.

[littlegldgti]

Good News! Exciting things to put onto the car.


A bolt on muffler from woody (I stripped it completely and repainted it in high temp enamel gloss black)




AND

Ronals!!!!!!! OEM for the win!

[Bora Sport]

Nice. I had a black one as my daily drive car for years. I had a set of KW V2 coilovers on it and it was like it was on rails with a comfortable ride as well. Everything else was pretty standard except for a K&N air filter and a $40 EBay ecu chip which made a small but noticeable difference.

I still have quite a few spares lying around from it from when I had to wreck it after my son had a run in with the scenery after being hit by a P plater with one weeks driving experience.

I then bought a white one which I had for a few years as well.

[sports racer]

Looks good in black but sits too high at the front. Time to cut a coil off the springs.

[karmen]

WHEN YOU ARE IN THE CAR IT COMES DOWN HOW FAR??? LOL oops not shouting! need any more parts?

[jasonO]

Nice. I had a black one as my daily drive car for years. I had a set of KW V2 coilovers on it and it was like it was on rails with a comfortable ride as well. Everything else was pretty standard except for a K&N air filter and a $40 EBay ecu chip which made a small but noticeable difference.

I still have quite a few spares lying around from it from when I had to wreck it after my son had a run in with the scenery after being hit by a P plater with one weeks driving experience.

I then bought a white one which I had for a few years as well.

Did you still have the kw’s mate are they something I could persuade you to part with I’m busting to take the jom coilovers off mine they are prettty awful for comfort

[jasonO]

Please pm me Im after a few things but can’t work out how to message within the forum. Thabks

[Bora Sport]

No sorry mate. I sold them with the white Cupra when I sold it and I believe the purchaser fitted them to the car. I should put a list together of all the bits that I have. I have two gearboxes IIRC and some headlights and other bits of trim including at least one side skirt.