Faults:

Front and rear wheel bearings worn.

Body rot on the floor of the vehicle. As a result, there was a 4 inch hole.

Brake lines had holes in them.

Clutch was hard to push down. Clutch was completely "rigged" by the previous owner. But still worked good enough to my liking.

Driver side drive shaft broke. Was replaced the next day.

Valve cover and oil pan gaskets leaked.

Burnt valves.

No exhaust. But was acquired shortly after purchase. Glass pack muffler (cherry bomb).

General Comments:

This car was so sweet.

It was the best car I ever had.

It was so fast and quick I was able to win many races. For the way it looked people didn't think it would be fast. They got a rude awakening. I would smoke Toyota Supras, Civics, 1 Camaro, CRX Si, and other various cars.

I loved the way the car handled and the tranny. The shifting was superb. For such a small car it was pretty nasty.

Faults:

Clutch cable broke.

Clutch cable bracket broke off of the firewall.

General Comments:

This is my first car and I'm never going to sell it.

This car handles better than anything I have ever driven, including Toyotas, Trans Ams and other Volkswagens.

It's got a lot of power, and it's lots of fun to drive. From 1 to 10, the fun level would have to be 11.

Despite other people's opinions, I always found my Rabbit very roomy and comfortable. It's as if it was made for me. And I am 5'11".

The only things that wear off with time are upholstery and plastic dashboards. The body and the engine are rock steady.

These little cars are the most tunable race car candidates on the street. I always enjoyed smoking Camaros in my GTI.

Faults:

Radiator leaking - replaced.

Light switch assembly wore out - replaced.

Front wheel bearing worn out - replaced it plus the hub assembly.

Tail light assembly heat damaged from the previous owner(s) using too high wattage bulbs - replaced.

Rear hatch rubber seal worn out, leaking rain - replaced.

Will need new bushing set for the shift linkage - worn out, hard to shift into first gear.

Leaking oil from the back of the motor, most likely a worn out rear oil seal - will need to be replaced.

General Comments:

Even though this car reads like a piece of crap, realize that the items replaced were wear and tear items that many cars would need when 16 years old and with over 200,000 miles.

Rabbit GTi's are nicknamed pocket rockets, aptly so. This 'lil rodent, even at its age, leaves Stock Mustang 5.0's way behind at red lights. This car handles really well - there is no body roll whatsoever, even in curves at 55 mph.

This car is not appropriate for those 5'10" and over - I took out the stock driver's seat and replaced it with one out of a junk Fiero, had a custom sliding mechanism fabricated, and now drive happily with my seat all the way against the rear seat (I am 6'4").

Faults:

I blew the engine that it came with so I upgraded from a 1.8 to a 2.0 16v.

Broke the CV joints.

General Comments:

Volkswagens are reliable cars, but if you mess with them too much, they won't be.