Looking for a decent vw rabbit pick up, south west/west coast Options

[orange914]

The electrical problems are VERY real, and are almost invariably the result of rust through on the windshield frame/cowl. Water drips, or even pours, onto the fusebox, which sits just under the left side of the cowl. The secondary issue is the fuel pump relay melting the fuse box. There's a remote setup for the relay, and one would guess they've nearly all been done.

The Cap'n

Thats good to know, the only place I've seen any rust (minimal surface) is at the drivers widsheild cowl. No electrical issues whatsoever. What do I look for on the remote f.p. relay setup conversion?

[orange914]

Got most of the bugs out. New timing belt& idler, water pump/thermo, injector timed, full front & rear brakes. polished and installed the rear bumper (looking for, at least, the front euro bumper). Picked up a pre-formed new carpet and nice wood grain LX dash bezel. Still need to put these in, install a stereo and redo the sagging headliner. I'm really pleased with the interior. Sea foamed the new oil change and added it to the gas diesel also. need to give it some miles and get the injectors and rings cleaned out. This thing rides surprisingly smooth and tight.

Cap'n what do I look for on this remote fuel pump relay? Factory fix? Home wired relay @ the fuse block? 'nother question... I understand the final gear on both the 4 and the 5 speed are .71 or in some cases a taller .75. Is this accurate? Fuel economy.gov does rate the 4 speed with better m.p.g than the 5 speed. My RWD transmission mind is stuck thinking 4th gear is always 1:1... not o.d geared.

picked up some ultra light weight 13x5.5 honda 7 spoke VX rims. They still need the center bore of the rims machined out to fit . sure is ugly with the stock rims

[racerbvd]

I have a set of 6X14 MOMOs that I can trade



I also have a set of 7X15 TSW



I may still have this big brake kit too..


Old pix..

[kafermeister]

Congrats on the truck. It sounds like you have found a solid example to use. Most of those around here are rusted beyond use.

As for wheels, that truck really needs some RML Snowflakes.

[nsr-jamie]

Man, I love those old rabbit trucks. I remember my old friend had one and he customized it like an old rabbit GTI and changed the front fenders and bumbers and lights to the round ones and that was very cool. I also remember he had a gas engine in it with some mods and it went pretty good and I used it many times in the past to transport some of my mini motorcycles for racing way back than.

[orange914]

thanks
I think I'll give up alittle cool factor on the wheels to attempt max. MPG. the VX honda rims are supposedly 6.5 lbs., I still have to weigh them. I really love the look of those BBS rims

would those brakes fit in the 13" rims?... hmmm....

yeah we're spoiled here in the west/south west when it comes to rust.

[racerbvd]

thanks
I think I'll give up alittle cool factor on the wheels to attempt max. MPG. the VX honda rims are supposedly 6.5 lbs., I still have to weigh them. I really love the look of those BBS rims

would those brakes fit in the 13" rims?... hmmm....

yeah we're spoiled here in the west/south west when it comes to rust.

Not sure if the brakes will fit over 13" and if you are going for MPG, I would think you would want a taller rim verse smaller which will be turning higher RPMs onn your engine. Smaller wheels are like running lower gears..


I ran 13s in tight Auto-X courses, 14s for longer ones.