2003 Volkswagen GTI 1.8T

Will anyone pine over the Mk.4 GTI? I think there’s actually a chance the answer is yes. Yes, the Mk.4 GTI ushered in a more bloated body, subdued styling, increased safety, and a lot more weight. But, it also brought with it a lot more choice. While the VR6 continued over into early models largely unchanged, though a more potent 24-valve version emerged later. But the big news was the entrance of the turbocharged 1.8T into the lineup for me. More in keeping with the character of the original model, the peaky and punchy 1.8Ts grew in power over the production run, and they also offered the basis for a few special models; the European-market 25th Anniversary model, the 2002 337 Edition, and the 2003 20th Anniversary Edition.

Today’s car isn’t any of those special models, but it does have low mileage and appears to be pretty much as it left the factory. Collector status?

2003 Volkswagen GTI 1.8T on eBay:

From the seller:

Available for sale is a clean title 2003 VW GTI 1.8 turbo with 5-speed transmission and only 63,958 original miles. Red exterior over black and red accented interior. Features most options of the time, including power windows and door locks, power steering, power sunroof, alarm, front and side airbags, monsoon sound system, including tape and CD and more. Recent service includes new clutch, new water pump, new timing belt, new thermostat, and new battery. All service invoices will be included with sale. This is an original, accident and rust free GTI with 1 previous owner prior to myself. The radio knobs, shifter boot and antenna have been replaced.

No mechanical issues. Cosmetic issues, which are sun related, are the following.
1) Oxidation of front hood2) Driver side door panel fabric will need to be reattached (glue has partially separated). 

Gosh are the pictures horrible. But what we seem to have is a stock ’03 with cloth upholstery. I think it has the Luxury Package, which added the Monsoon sound and the sunroof. The 17″ Long Beach wheels were a $400 option. Unfortunately it has some clearcoat failure and it’s hard to completely judge the condition. Still, it seems good.

I didn’t realize taking pictures was so hard. Anywho, is the car worth $8,500? I guess that depends on how much you want a stock GTI. You can get a newer, nicer Mk.5 or Mk.6 for that amount, but not with super low miles. The Mk.4 has pretty good build quality overall and if you can keep them from rust they can pile on a serious amount of miles. For a fun, capable, and economical commuter car, you could probably do worse.

-Carter