Faults:

Nothing, but needed more power.

General Comments:

I loved this car! My good friend Bill (a VW Mechanic) and I thought what a project car this would be. We started will a Holley BIG-Throat throttle body. Headmann Headers. Head work consisted of Chevy small block Manley Racing Valves and seats. Almost doubling the size of the intake and exhaust valves. Re-ground cam to mid-range specs for higher RPM and low end torque. Ported and polished to a mirror finish, (Bill spent 20 hours on the head alone). Anza exhaust system. Andersen Racing 4 puck racing clutch. Quickor Engineering anti-sway bars front and rear. Bilstien racing struts. 1.5" lowered springs, Recaro Seats. Front Air dam w/brake cooling ducts. Hella fog and euro headlamps. Dunlop 225/60HR13 Tires. Additional 10 gal fuel tank that fit in the spare tire well and teed into existing fuel fill tube.

Performance was incredible. It Dyno'ed out at 137 HP, up from the stock 70HP! The car loved to cruise at about 80MPH and I got 40MPG! With 20 gal of gas, an 800 mile range was great. The extra tank in the back gave the weight ratio the right amount of balance for a neutral suspension. At 1950 GVW with this kind of power, it was hard not to spin the tires in first and second gears without slipping the clutch. The car topped out at 150 MPH and would stick like glue in the turns. After two car rallies and a lot of fun, I sold the car to Bill who started running it a Laguna Seca and Sears Point Raceways. I wish I still had it... Loved that car!

Faults:

Now a 26 year car, you will need to put time and money into this car.

They are prone to rust, and water leak. After I repainted my 1977 rust started from behind the passengers window and bubbled my paint. I have a lake where the spare tire goes even after spending a day with sealant.

The electric wiring seems to make the car have its own mind. Shorting has happened on mine a few times. After I let an Idiot install a stereo, a dash fire happened soon after.

The engine is old. No plug in for a laptop! These are old school. You have to keep tuning them. It is a great design, but lacks power of the newer cars. I have two dead Sciroccos in my backyard.

Interior material cracks from sunlight and age.

I love this car, but has caused my more frustration than pleasure.

General Comments:

The Scirocco was a stylish hit in the 1970's. Italian design with German economical manufacturing. Very cool in the 1970's and 1980's. Now Cool again in retro style. This is a extremely light car. It can out handle most cars on the road in stock form. With aftermarket suspension and bigger tires, it corners like a racecar.

The Scirocco uses many of the same parts as other VW models. Rabbit, GTI, Golf, Jetta, and older Passat parts bolt right on. Parts are still commonly available and very inexpensive. This car makes a great car for building a "tuner", and SCCA race car, or Mini-stock oval track racer. By far the VW Scirocco is the best value for handling. Cars can be found for under $1000us.

The Scirocco is cheap economy car. Today they are prone to rust. Inside door panels and under fenders rust will eat itself from the inside out. The rubber parts will be rotted. Replacing them will be hard because window trim is no longer manufactured. I combatted this by cleaning and clear coating over them. This gives it a wet look. Rubberised undercoating car be sprayed on to prevent further rust.

The seating postion is low, and sporty. Like a Ferrari. Gauges are analog dials, also simalar style to a European sportscar. The dashboard is designed for very easy maintainance. The interior can be removed with a phillips screwdriver.

The engine is an exciting fast revving 1.6L. If you like vintage sportscars like Lotus, Alfa, or 1960's Ferrari the Scirocco has the spirit without the cost. Stock they are about 70hp. The 1988 1.8L is a common and easy swap. These engines are under $500 and double the horsepower. 1990's 2.0L Golf engines aren't quite as sporty, but offer street usable power and long engine life.

The 1970's (MKI or type 56) had a 4 speed transmission. I recommend installing a 5speed. The one in my car is from a diesel and keeps the engine at low RPMs at legal speeds.

I've owned two Sciroccos. My 1978 was owned by a Mechanic. The motor blew a head gasket in the first week. I was 21, and drove it hard. It had over 125,000 miles on it. I paid $500 for it in 1998. We had it loaded with camping and snowboarding gear for three people. It was WAY over loaded. I never got around to replacing it and disassembled the car completely in hopes to build a "tuner". I ended up giving it away to a member of my VW club.

The head gasket is something you can get to. All parts, including new engines are very common and cheap. Rabbit, late model Scirocco, and some Passat motors can be swapped out to make a VERY fast sports car. Ebay has parts for these cars as well as 100's of specialty parts manufacturers that still exist. On MSN and yahoo there are clubs and mailing lists. A VW club annual drive or BBQ are always fun. The people are laid back, fun, good people.

My Second VW was a 1977. I found it in one of my buddies teachers barns. He had perfectly maintained the car. It had always been garaged. It was Painted Pearl Coral, but sunbleached to a alley vomit color. In 2003 we painted it with 2003 Audi "Thundercloud Metallic Pearl". From a distance it appears to be the same color as duct tape. I put all the performance parts from the 1978 on the 1977. The only difference on the two is the front turn signals. I found a Zender full body kit on ebay for $500. Brakes from 1980's Scirocco's 16 valve motors fit. These brakes stop like a racecar. My brakes are painted red to give a performance look. Honda, Nissan, and Toyota 4x100mm rims fit.

With All accessories and parts put into this car it cost my under $2000. It feels like a true performance machine. The early Scirocco and VW GTI offer the best value for performance for the money.