How can you talk about 1980s Volkswagens and not mention the Scirocco? Karmann’s lift of the Giugiaro Asso di Picche, Asso di Quadri and Asso di Fiori designs was plainly evident, but that they were borrowed really should come as a surprise. After all, the reception to the master Italian designer’s other pens – the Golf, first generation Scirocco, Audi 80 (4000) and Coupe GT firmly established both companies in the public limelight. In the case of Volkswagen, it defined a company emerging from the shadow of the air-cooled generation; for Audi, it modernized designs and capitalized on the success of the 100 lineup in the 1970s. But Karmann had been integral in the production of the first two as well, making an easy transition from ItalDesign to Volkswagen’s go-to special production for the second generation Scirocco.
But while the design was all grown up and modern for the 1980s, the underpinnings were the same; little changed dynamically between the 1981 and 1982 model year, and though upgrades came over the next few years with higher-spec trim and a bit more power, it wasn’t until 1986 that VW coupe fans finally got to rejoice as the addition of the PL 1.8 liter dual-cam inline-4 finally joined the lineup. Now with 123 high-revving horsepower, the Scirocco went a bit more like the wind it was named after. The wide-ratio, economy-minded gearbox of yore was gone too, replaced by a close-ratio gearbox. Like the GTI and GLI, 14? ‘Teardrop’ wheels and a new bodykit heightened the boy-racer appearance, and the 16V models got all matchy-matchy before the Golf and Jetta, too, with body-colored painted bumpers.
Perhaps this was a shot across the bow of the other Giugiaro-designed, sporty 2-door coupe on the market – the Isuzu Impulse Turbo. Because as much of a VW nut as I am, let’s be honest – the Impulse was cooler. It had much better integrated bumpers, for example, and looked even MORE modern than the Scirocco. And it had cooler wheels. And it had a turbo, and as neat as having dual cams was, having a turbo got you into pants in the 1980s. While it only had one cam, the intercooled 4ZCI was good for 140 horsepower in 1985. That power was channeled through the back wheels, too, with near perfect weight distribution. To top all of that off, in 1987 you could get the “RS” model which was painted all white – yes, even the wheels. That was as radical as it got that year – people actually paid a lot of money to tuners to achieve that look, yet a few models like the 300ZX, Audi Coupe GT and Impulse RS gave it to you from the factory. They came fully loaded with electronic gizmos, and mostly unlike the VW, they worked. Then, as if that wasn’t enough, GM links created the “Lotus Tuned Suspension” package for the 1988 model year. If one of these rolled up to the party you and your Scirocco were at, you were going home lonely (and, more slowly).
But this isn’t “low-production Japanese cars for sale blog”, so we’ll look at the Scirocco.
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1988 Volkswagen Scirocco 16V on eBay
Year: 1988
Model: Scirocco 16V
VIN: WVWCB0531JK003909
Engine: 1.8 liter inline-4
Transmission: 5-speed manual
Mileage: 149,831 mi
Price: $7,000 Buy It Now
RARE FIND MORE PHOTOS COMING SOON.
Yeah, that’s all the info you get. Thankfully there are a few more shots of the car in the listing, but seriously guys – how long does it take to put together a description of the car? Even if you just cut and paste the entire Wikipedia entry, like most dealers, you’ll be out a total of one minute at most – but it would still be marginally better than zero information. What’s shown is a Tornado Red ’88 that appears mostly original outside of the glass moonroof and Alpine headset. It does appear to sport some Neuspeed bits, but it’s not been trashed. The paintwork looks suspiciously fresh in places, but a look at the roof suggests that it might not be a respray. Mileage isn’t particularly low at 150,000, but then these were cars which weren’t collector-grade to begin with and that odometer reading only equates to less than 5,000 miles per a year.
Despite the lack of information, to me the asking price here doesn’t seem all that outrageous. Sure, a few years ago it would have seemed steep, but it’s not a few years ago anymore. Before plunking down the not-inconsiderable sum I’d certainly want to know a bit more about the history, health and underside of this one – the recent brace of Tornado Red GTIs were much better presented and more original, for example.
However, they were also more expensive – so if you’re in the market for a clean, period VW that doesn’t break the bank this one ticks a lot of the right boxes.
-Carter
When the Audi V8s debuted, my dad took me to Reno Audi to see them; Reno and Sacramento both were Audi hotbeds. Under the porte-cochère were 964s (could one be an awd specimen???) and one of these last Sciroccos, which amazed me by its painted mirrors and bits — tellement de luxe.
it’s silver under the hood. I googoed the VIN and found a less than clean under hood shot 🙁
A couple lazy things i noticed- missing the window crank cover on passenger side and the turn signal stalk.
Also this car has been repainted-you can tell because of the gloss on the mirror caps.
Would have loved to see more pics and details.