A few weeks ago I took a look at a low-profile GTI; it looked pretty nice, mostly original, and wasn’t too unreasonably priced overall. It’s no surprise, then, that it didn’t last that long:
Today’s car is also a 1983 GTI, but it’s there that the similarities end. This one was worked over by Mike and Ant of Wheeler Dealers. It’s less original, but also catches attention with its clean presentation. Is it the right price to make it a deal, though?
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1983 Volkswagen GTI on eBay
Year: 1983
Model: GTI
VIN: 1VWDC0172DV007767
Engine: 1.8 liter inline-4
Transmission: 5-speed manual
Mileage: 114,500 mi
Location: Miami, Florida
Price: $18,500 Buy It Now
1983 VW Golf GTI. This car was featured, worked on and refurbished by Ant and Mike on the Wheeler Dealers show on TV. Season 19 episode 7. It is in fantastic condition and runs and drives as it should No leaks, no smells, no funny noises no issues. These are rare to find in this condition and this one obviously has the added benefit of prominence and TV documented refurbishment.
Cant get any more transparency than that. It can only go up in value.
Buy with absolute confidence.
Descriptions, viewpoints and opinions vary between people.Please look at the photos and do your own evaluation.
DO NOT bid, make offers or press buttons if you’re not absolutely sure you’re buying it.
Your purchase is not subject to ANYTHING!!after you buy.
ANY questions,inspections,viewing,test drives etc are welcome BEFORE PURCHASE ONLY!!!!
No warranties are implied or made. Sale as is.
Immediate PayPal deposit required. non refundable.
I haven’t watched the episode and it doesn’t appear to me to be easily available to do so, so perhaps someone who did can comment on the history? What I see is a European-style front end conversion that probably meant Cabriolet bits grafted on, with ‘Golf’ badging added along with a badgeless grille. The car looks lower than stock, and the tinted windows and pronounced chin spoiler give a more aggressive appearance. It’s nice that the car has retained the original Avus ‘snowflake’ alloys. Inside, it’s sporting a Pioneer stereo system and recovered seats; both of which are pretty understandable given the age. Are either the most desirable outcome? To me, no. At first glance I really like the Tartan pattern, and given the option between ripped original seats and recovered seats, I’d take the latter. But if you look closely, the partially reupholstered interior has resulted in about seven different colors throughout the cabin. Maybe you don’t care about this, but it really bothers me and it’s one of those things I can’t unsee now. I can’t quite tell but it looks like the car has a sunroof, which would be typical, and air conditioning, which is less so – but there’s no disclosure on whether or not it works.
The seller has priced the car at $18,500, which – if the restoration had been done to top standards – would probably be a good deal. To my way of thinking, though, and knowing the premise of the show, this car was likely not done to top standards, but again I admit that I didn’t see the episode in question. Still, you can’t really find ‘restored’ A1s for a lot less generally, so if everything works as promised, and if the car isn’t hiding any secret damage or rot, perhaps it’s not the worst deal? What do you think?
-Carter
I think it is a good deal…if you like the modifications. I like the cleaner look a bit better…but would have to examine the interior for those color differences.
I found myself arguing with the TV when I watched this episode.
The front fenders are the original Westmoreland parts with small pieces of metal grafted in to fill the turn signals. The front valance had a piece from a round headlight car welded onto the original Westmoreland valance to fill out the grill. It does have a sunroof, which they repaired in the show. It also has air conditioning that was repaired as well.
They installed an A2 throttle body, but nothing else. They didn’t discuss the exhaust so I don’t know if it has been improved to take advantage of the larger throttle body.
I *hate* what they did to the interior. I want to say they claimed to have sold it for $9900, but I could be wrong.
I would have a very hard time paying $19k for any Mk1 Volkswagen (and I’ve owned at least one since 1984), but I certainly wouldn’t pay it for this one.
I have always been a big fan of Wheeler Dealers (despite Mike Brewer), and remember this episode. The thing about Wheeler Dealers is that they do not restore cars, they do a lot of high profile fixes, but the cars still have lots of little issues when they go to sell them. And they brag about how much money they make (they really lose money on each car if you count labor hours), but although they get decent money for the cars, your average schmo wouldn’t get that same selling price because he is not a tv personality.