one year of ownership.....and things to watch out for

[edfoxuk]

I've had the 98 mk4 (8000 miles) for a full twelve months its been a lot of fun, a
few things have happened that may benefit others to know about.

The big cable ties that are the front clip/bonnet stay, are not to be trusted (fortunately found this out on grass)

The allen bolts on the drive shafts need periodical checking for tightness, nearly
lost one of mine.

Had to replace a fuel tank, check the side pods if you smell petrol, there could be a couple of gallons in there. Never let a garage near your holley to try to make your chevy zz4 pass the emissions test.

Tell your passengers to be carefull with the door struts, you guessed it, mine broke.

Spa race type wing mirrors can be fragile.

Dont unwittingly degrease your suspension bushes, they make awfull noises if they go dry.

Also learned carbon fibre wings are very expensive and you can't cut 6mm aircraft grade alloy with a laser.
Still working on the understeer/ front aerodynamics. Very pleased with my cosworth/mondeo brakes. Must sort the charging issue when the aircon's on.

Otherwise its been a blast, still get that "kid with a new toy" feeling and it still looks great in the garage when i go to the fridge for a beer.

Oh and guys in people carriers want to rip your head off!

[martinlaw]

Hi Eddie,

I have a 1996 mk4 with 8400 miles on the clock.

Interested in your ownership observations:

I have owned my Sport for 3 months now.

My car has gas struts for both the bonnet and boot - these are ok but are a little restrictive on how far they will allow to bonnet to open.

I had same problem with door - openned it up and it just kept on going. Snapped off the mirror but fortunately door was not damaged. The strut had broken away from the frame (needless to say I have now reinforced this).

Have just repacked the cv joints - all bolts were tight - phew!

My car is fuel injected so unless the engine is remapped it will be difficult to alter emissions - my MOT is due in March - hope it passes

Have you checked the suspension bushes, espeically the lower front and rear wishbone. Mine had a lot of play in them (must be all the power!!)

If your car is understeering, have you checked the ride height front to rear and the damper settings (assuming yours adjust)? Are your tyres wearing evenly?

I live in Stoke-on-Trent, if you are ever in the area contact me and perhaps we could compare notes.

Regards,
Martin.

[menostig]

Hi Ed, Martin

I bought my ZZ4 engineed 98 mk4 twelve months ago too:
+ it's been a wonderfull experience, definitely met expectations
+ when I'm lacing up my sparco boots I get that anticipation/excitement feeling
+ everything else I've driven this year feels gutless & lacking occasion (impreza turbo, 911 carrera, boxster 3.2S)
+ 3-4k miles and only breakdown was over-heating in 39 degree ambient Le Mans queues
- maybe lost £1k in depreciation (4%), spent maybe £1.2k debugging, another £700 on insurance and tax and MOT
- also had to remove suspension/drive-shafts & cut pods to repair corrosion pin-holes in fuel-tanks, fit sacrificial anodes !
- averages ~15mpg I think (hard to tell with the original leaks in the tanks)
- passengers like to drop the door too hard

Finally - got the MOT next week. Slightly worried about chevy zz4 & emissions ! Still, you managed it.

I've not noticed the MPV attitude thing, instead two pretty girls wanted pics and ended up sitting and chatting on my lap on the driver's door sill (at once) - this upped the grin-factor !

cheers
Roger