Ford Power Stroke Nation banner

vw rabbit diesel

2K views 14 replies 7 participants last post by  mustang_gt_350 
#1 ·
Just wondering how many of you have had the older diesel rabbit? Like the early 80's. your thoughts on them? And what MPG did you get.
 
#3 ·
My neighbor had a 1982 Rabbit truck diesel. He bought it new and put over 600k miles on it with nothing but a transmission and a couple of clutches. The thing was getting high 40s mpg before anyone really cared about mpg.

He liked his but I have no idea if that is the norm or not.
 
#5 ·
I have driven a number of ole VW Diesels, and do like them.

Had this one for a couple of years, it was a real love hate relationship. I dropped a 1.9 AAZ Turbo Diesel motor in it, 2.5" Straight pipe exhaust, ran great, plenty of power, and 40 MPG, but could not keep belts on the thing.

If I were to do it over again, I would have kept the 1.6 and added a turbo to it.





Overall they are good cars, just keep a timing belt on them every 90k, and make sure you find a solid body, They rust to the ground and are getting harder to find. When you do they bring good money.

I sold this "truck" (and I use the term loosely) for $5500.00

The sedans tend to run about 1/2 the price of a comparable truck.
 
#6 ·
wow, looks nice. The one i found is a 81 4 door (car) with the 1.6 n/a and the optional 5 speed. It has a head gasket problem, which from what i have read around on the net seams to be a normal thing? Anyway it was just repainted and supposedly the interior is good. I haven't went to check it out yet, just getting things to look for first before i go.

Basically want it for my both my g/f and I to drive when the weather is decent instead of the jeeps. She fills hers about 3-4 times every other week and if i can get one for a decent deal and put some time into it it won't take long to pay for itself with her cherokee getting 18mpg, and it will help keep some miles of my CRD and save me money in fuel as well. Plus i have wanted any VW diesel for a while and the newer TDI stuff is out of budget.
 
#7 ·
 
#8 ·
I would jump on one if the price was right.
 
#11 ·
I finally got a reply from the guy, its sold :( I figured it out at 42mpg it will save us about $250 a month in gas/fuel. I'll keep an eye out on the local Craigslist and papers and see what i can find. Now wasn't the exact best timing to buy one but if the deal was right i would have jumped.

Thanks for your input guys.

What front end parts did it eat?
 
#12 ·
watch out for cracked head.....notorious for that.....
 
#13 ·
Ok, didn't know that, just thought they had gasket problems. I'll have to check the oil and coolant when i find one again. Thanks for the heads up
 
#14 ·
my family had a vw rabbit diesel when I was growing up...thing ran forever! it had just over 600k on the clock when dad donated it to one of those programs where kids go learn to work on vehicles..and it still drove too.

dad said that he got 50-55mpg in it..
 
#15 ·
awesome. I just want it for an everyday driver to pick things up and so on. I won't use it for any long trips most likely. Its the shorter drives to town and stuff that kill us on gas/fuel.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top