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Tag: Volkswagen

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1995 Volkswagen Golf GTI 16V

Whatever the reason might be, Volkswagen enthusiasts never seemed to hold the third generation GTI in as high regard as some other iterations of this hot hatchback. While the Mk2 GTI 16V seemed to hit the nail on the head in terms of what boy racers desired, the Mk3 fell just a bit short of that mark, in four-cylinder form. No one was complaining about the superb new VR6 engine available, however, US customers were left with a modest 2.0 liter 8V four-cylinder that produced only 115 horsepower. It was a torquey unit, but performance at the top end was less than stellar. Regardless, I enjoyed my time with my final year 1998 GTI 2.0. I miss that car to this day, even if my 2006 MINI Cooper S blows the doors off it performance wise. Like the Audi A8L 6.0 W12 we saw yesterday, this 1995 GTI 16V was a model not offered in the US. Looking great with just over 100,000 miles on the clock, you don’t see Mk3s this nice hanging about anymore.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1995 Volkswagen Golf GTI 16V at PCH Automotive

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Motorsports Monday: 2007 Volkswagen GTi

There are some (quite a large number, in fact) who claim you can’t have fun on a race track in a front wheel drive car. I know quite a few of them. And in the wrong front driver, they’re likely right. Take a 1976 Cadillac Eldorado with its 8.2 liter V8 channeled through one front tire at any time and enough body roll to mimic a rowboat during Katrina and the recipe might be humorous, but doubtfully fun. However, 1976 also saw the introduction of a revolution in front drive platforms – the very first Golf GTi. Consider, for a moment, that GM’s replacement in 1977 for the thirsty 8.2 V8 was a every-so-slightly less thirsty 7.0 liter V8 (it was, after all, fuel crisis time….). That cast iron monster produced a heady 180 horsepower. Volkswagen engineers took a inline-4 with only 1.6 liters and twisted 110 horsepower out of it in a car that weighed about the same as the motor in the Cadillac. That was the magic of the GTi and it’s why it started the trend of hot front wheel drive cars that still is running arguably stronger than ever today. With clever transmissions, electronics and differentials, perceived weaknesses in the design have been nearly eliminated and most of the really trick nose FWD cars are as quick – if not quicker in some cases – than their rear-drive counterparts around a track. Therefore racing FWD cars is still a popular past time as today’s quite successful GTi is a testament to:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2007 Volkswagen GTi on Racer Connect

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1959 Volkswagen Type 2 Single Cab

Pickups come in all shapes and sizes, from heavy duty brawler to car-based cruiser. The Volkswagen Type 2 falls somewhere in between, a definite workhorse but geared more towards light duty. While Volkswagen still sells plenty of commercial vehicles, we haven’t been privy to any in the US market since the early 1970s, thanks to your friendly government and a little thing called trade wars. This restored 1959 Type 2 Single Cab for sale in California comes from a time well before that legislation and looks absolutely amazing in metallic green sitting on mag wheels. Rarely do these VW trucks catch my attention, but this one has.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1959 Volkswagen Type 2 Single Cab on eBay

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Deja Blue: 2002 Volkswagen Passat 1.8T GLS Variant

Oh boy. It’s a Passat, it’s a B5/5.5 generation, and it’s a wagon so automatically you know I’m interested. And, above and beyond that, it’s a whole lot like my car – a 2002 GLS in Ink Blue Pearl, 1.8T and with a 5-speed drivetrain. So, out come the production numbers! For the U.S., Ink Blue is a pretty rare color – in total, 1022 Passats were sold here in that color. 695 of those were sold in 2002. 485 of those were GLS trim, and now we start getting into the rare part. Only 131 were wagons, and only 49 of those were manuals. 38 of those were 1.8T, in 3 different color interior options and 2 different fabrics. The most common was gray cloth, with 14 sold. I have one of the 6 gray leather cars. There were 9 sold with black cloth and a further 5 with black leather. But I was pretty surprised to see the beige option numbers – only 3 sold with cloth and 1 with leather. This, then, is a 1 of 1 car – the sole 2002 Passat 1.8T GLS Variant with Beige leather sold that year:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2002 Volkswagen Passat 1.8T GLS Variant on eBay

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The Seinfeld Collection – Amelia Island 2016

As the final of my dream car posts we’ll settle in to the Amelia Island auctions for a group of exquisite Porsches and some of the most expensive available. Rather than stunning and rare color combinations these Porsches attract our notice through their historical relevance and, for many of them, their longevity. By now most are aware of Jerry Seinfeld’s love of Porsches; it’s been a long documented affair ever since the comedian became known across the world. He has decided to sell quite a few of them – 18 cars in all, 16 of those being Porsches – at Gooding & Company’s Amelia Island Auctions on March 11. None of the cars are inexpensive – the lowest priced likely being his 1960 Volkswagen Beetle – and many of them will stretch well into seven figures. For fans of Porsches it’s a very interesting time as many of Seinfeld’s cars are near impossible to find in this condition, with some of them near impossible to find at all. I have chosen a few examples to show here that particularly caught my eye. I won’t go through the details of each car since those details are extensive and well chronicled on the auction listing for each. Click through to read about each car’s history and also to view the rest of the Seinfeld lineup at Amelia Island:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1958 Porsche 356 A 1500 GS/GT Carrera Speedster

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