924Board.org

[2mAn]

ok where to start. i guess ill start with the shell. I have a 1984 Jetta Coupe. Its rust free, but does have a hole in it. a big one. a friend years ago decided he wanted a rwd jetta coupe. so he found one and cut a big ass hole in the back. then it sat... and sat... about 2 years ago i told him if he lost intrest in it, id take it off his hands. well, a few months ago he told me he was never going to get around to it and it was mine. he is a shop owner and already has a dozen other cars. so i traded him an old 020 5 speed vw transmission i wasnt using and in return i got the jetta along with another core support and fenders. lets pause for some pics...

heres where it sat for over 5 years


heres the hole


the motor back there is a vr6, but its just sitting on the ground...

so ive been toying with this idea for years. its something most vw people dream about, but only rarely do any go through with it and less actually finish. most use the full fwd setup and mount it all in the back. i dont like this method because you are putting so much weight in the back of the car, even if it is technically mounted "mid-engine" style. i wanted something much more balanced. so after hours of research, i think i found what im doing.

the plan!
use the entire drivetrain and underpinnings from a 931 and have the jetta body over it.
the two cars share the same wheel base so this becomes very promising in reducing the amount of custom parts. ive found a 1980 924 turbo that i can get for $200. its missing some of the interior, the hood and headlights, but the motor and drivetrain is all there. the wheels have started turning. i think the best way to accomplish this is to use everything from the 924 that i can. i usually dont like hacking old rare german cars, but both of these would be in a scrap yard if it werent for my madness.

i plan to rebuild the motor, possibly upgrade the turbo and convert it all to EFI. i have a whole new wiring harness for the jetta from a A3 jetta that uses CE2 and is an OBD2. originally i wanted to use a VW motor, but it seems like it will be more work on top of all the work i will have to do.

so, time to tell me it wont work, you're crazy, or hopefully some words of encouragement. i am on a ton of other forums and figured this would be the best place to share. i recognize some names from the vwvortex forum i am on frequently, please keep this here as i dont want those monkeys to know whats going on until its done.

-Simon
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25% of my cars work 75% of the time

[joejax]

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I got nothin'
Uhhh...you got any pics?

[2mAn]

ahh yes, i live by the bizarro code. i hate beauty, and i do love ugly things, like a boxy economy car from 30 years ago! i also am using a bizarre porsche that never really was a porsche, but actually an audi/ vw bastard child

most people who attempt to convert these cars to rwd use either the full transaxle in the back. there was one guy who used a similar setup, but had to do some more work. it was (sadly) called the vorsche

















rather than fabricate a whole bunch of mounts i figure why not use the entire floor of the porsche[/img]
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25% of my cars work 75% of the time

[the_mad_electrician]

That car would look awesome without the Porsche badge... it just doesn't fit the car very well and the colors kinda clash. Should have kept the vw badge
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81 924 N/A

2004 Ranger "Edge"

2005 Mazda 6

[joejax]

Hey 2mAn, I'm just goofing around, I can dig the VW's. The amount of work and talent that goes into a project is incredible.

No need to trash the '24 either, we all realize how much of a basket case it is, and most of us respect it's VW heritage.
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I got nothin'
Uhhh...you got any pics?

[2mAn]

I like 924s! If I didnt, I wouldnt even use the setup, I would just grab what I need and hack up the rest of the car. Anything I wont be using like the fenders, doors, any glass will be up for sale/ free for anyone who needs them. I want the car to be a porsche underneath the Jetta body because that way I wont have to fabricate motor mounts/ move the steering coloumn, tunnel for the driveshaft... so much more work that way.

I agree the porsche badge is tacky and would be much better with a stock vw logo.

Heres more about the car for those who care....
http://vorsche1.readyhosting.com/id1.html
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25% of my cars work 75% of the time

[joejax]

Good stuff 2mAn! I wonder how much easier it will be to swap the bodies though. Lots of cutting and welding, trying to get stuff to line up, yikes!
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I got nothin'
Uhhh...you got any pics?

[2mAn]

yea its going to be a nightmare either way. its a matter of choosing your poison. here are the two options, the way i see it:
A)fabricate mounts for engine, trans, suspension, steering rack, and more. then trim a channel for the tunnel, not to mention cutting and trimming the tunnel to fit on the Jetta body
or
B) trim Jetta body to fit on a trimmed down 924 chassis.

i like option B better because the firewall should be the biggest pain in the ass and then i dont have to worry about custom parts. suspension, brakes, engine, drivetrain will all be factory 931 while wiring will be from a newer jetta so no 30 year old wiring to deal with. im excited to get this going, i need to sell my 78 rabbit to make some room and also start the supply of new parts
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25% of my cars work 75% of the time

[spandelly]

I would do plan b myself it would be the easiest solution and seen as half the jettas missing anyway should save some fabrication. Wont be easy but should be cool.
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It could always be worse so don't worry about it and get the spanners out