Got it, now what do I do with it?

[sports racer]

Still kicking myself for getting rid of that book when I sold my golf 20 years ago.

[alex g]

Great to see you reversing the evolutional trend,just in time for winter too.

Hope the mk2 went to a good home??

[sports racer]

The MK2 went to a forum member in Brisbane who will probably look after it a lot better than I did. He's already washed it and I didn't do that in a year of ownership!

I've started pulling things off the Polo in preparation for upgrading the Golf. Seat belts went straight in after cutting the "trumpet" on the bottom of the Polo seat belt tensioner. What is that 25cm extension for?

[sports racer]

Took the Golf through rego yesterday and got knocked back. The little things I can fix easy - too loud, non standard air filter, engine oil leaks. The big killer is all the rust they found under the car. The passenger side floor was so bad someone years ago covered it in fiberglass mat and painted it black. Rego guy wasn't impressed. There's also a lot of rust in the front valence, all around the engine mount. Add to that all the paint blisters at the bottom of the windscreen, lower edges of both front guards, A pillar and around the rear right window.

Looks like I'm off the road for a few weeks while I do some cutting and welding.

What's the best way to remove the windscreen without breaking it?

[alex g]

It really pays to have someone in the know doesn't it. Have you thought about taking it to Pete at cvwc for a try.

Re windscreen I have had no luck getting a screen out without cutting the seal a little. I start in a top corner in side the car and cut a 50mm flap so I can get an initial flex to start a lead ,then work your way across the top and a little down the side push out as you fold the inner lip of the seal outside the car , further you get easier it is . A gasket scraper and hose removal tool help if not a small flatblade.

[twin eng, twin turbs]

To remove the windscreen, i use around twenty paddle pop sticks! Sounds silly i know but you start in the corner at the top and stick them in one after the other along the top and down the sides, i havn't broken a window yet and if the seals not perished you dont damage it.

[dubmc]

if the windscreen seal is perished then you can cut the old seal out and save the windscreen. if you want to keep the seal it becomes a little more difficult and is a balancing act between levering/pushing it out without putting to much pressure on the screen from my experience.

[sports racer]

The seal is in good condition so I'll save it. Love the paddle pop method, so simple but effective.

When we used to scrap cars years ago we would just push the screens out with 2 feet planted firmly against the inside of the screen. One big push and out they would come but 1 in 5 would break - don't like those odds. Now I just have to go out and buy 20 paddle pops.

[Preen59]

You can buy paddle pop sticks from craft stores. Saves getting sticky fingers.

[sports racer]

Yeah but my way is more fun.

[dubmc]

The seal is in good condition so I'll save it. Love the paddle pop method, so simple but effective.

When we used to scrap cars years ago we would just push the screens out with 2 feet planted firmly against the inside of the screen. One big push and out they would come but 1 in 5 would break - don't like those odds. Now I just have to go out and buy 20 paddle pops.

ahah 1 in 5? my record to date is 1 break from 1 attempt. dismal lol had to buy a new screen at the time which was a b*tch

[Jarred]

I always used my feet, with good success. No brakeages yet!

[sports racer]

Time to start on the rust.

Here's what someone did to hide the rust under the passenger side. The sheet of metal was fibreglassed directly over the rust. There were blobs of fibreglass dripping into the rust holes so no attempt to fix the previous rust, just plate over it. I hope the people responsible get to read this.



The rest of the floor isn't too bad. That's only surface rust on the rear passenger side.





All the fibreglassed ground off and you can see how much rust there is.





Drivers side is pretty good. Will only need a clean up.



Compared to the passenger side which will need this much replaced. Luckily the structural piece is in good condition so all I need to do is weld in the gaps.





This is a small amount of the crap I scraped off the floor. By the time I was finished this pile was nearly twice as big (including all the fibreglass taken off the underside of the floor).



Now I need to borrow a mig or tig welder and fill in the gaps. Shouldn't be too difficult and at least the worst of the rust is fixed. This isn't going to be a rebuild, it's work as fast as possible to get the car back on the road. One day when I get a 2nd car and can afford the time I'll strip the body and do a full rebuild.

Cheers

Paul

[Jarred]

getting on to it quick smart!

good work Paul.

[Preen59]

Geebus. That's some serious cancer. Good luck with it mate. Good to see you're getting stuck into it.

Are you going to tear all the sound deadening up? I would if I was you.