Rig
Veteran Member
1998 Jetta TDI, Porclain Blue
5 speed Manual
Brief History of the Car:
My Grandma helped me purchase Ole Blue in 2010 as my first car before heading back to college for the fall. My dad found the car on ebay after doing a bunch of research to see what was the most efficient, powerful, cost effective car at the time. Price was $3000 and change.
We had dreams of making our own bio-diesel to run the car (i'll still do when I get a proper workshop). 40+mpg with the torque of a diesel sounded pretty good!
He drove the car all the way from it's origin in Florida to New Mexico (probably saving it from a rusty fate). I have a cousin in florida and he was helping remodel their home at the time. He recorded the gas mileage on the trip and was getting numbers in the high 40s and low 50s.
Car had limp mode right off the bat but was pretty easily fixed with some new vacuum lines to the ECU.
Here is the first picture I took of the car in 2010 (Looks brand new!).I think it had around 140k miles on it, however I misplaced the title, so I don't know the exact number. (I'm sure it will show up at some point - probably buried in the glove box).
I commuted from college in Las Cruces to my Grandma's in Silver City NM for about a year and half. I ran 100% biodiesel in the car quite a few times with no issues.
... until I got sick of school. I dropped out and went back to work. Drove the car all the way to alaska to do some seasonal work that year and work off some debts I had acrewed.
So, the car drove all the way from Florida to Alaska. Someday I plan to visit my cousin in Florida so I can say it's been to Alaska and back!
Insects and Airbags
About 2015, I wrecked the car by driving off the road, hit a dip and crumpled my front wheel while damaging the frame and triggering the airbags. This happened for a pretty stupid reason. There was a large insect on my shoulder that distracted me long enough to run the car off the narrow shoulders. I was still a relatively new driver and I'm still upset at myself for doing this to the car.
The car spent a week in a tiny town near where I had wrecked it. Mechanic did a decent job piecing things back together well enough to drive it home. Had the frame re-bent back as best as they could get it
Puddles and Engine Damage
About 2018 I drove the car too fast through a flooded road. Sucked water into the airbox and stalled the engine. Stupidly, I restarted it and drove it home. Took it to a mechanic the next day and they said I had damaged one of my injector nozzles. Without knowing much about power mods I swapped out all the nozzles with something bigger and without getting them properly calibrated. The car ran really rough for about a year before I got a proper set of calibrated nozzles and a kerma tune.
I tested compression not too long ago, and cylinder three definitely shows a variation of around 80psi (all others are around 490psi), so there is definitely damage. Engine rebuild will happen in 2023.
This is Now "My Work Truck"
I pack the car to the gills with tools for interior remodeling. I primarily install flooring and trim, refinish hardwood floors, and paint.
Car has over 214k miles on it now, but I hear this means it's "just getting broken in"
Aside from countless normal repairs and maintenance (which include all the vacuum lines, new N75, two timing belt changes, alternator, and new coolant globe), the modifications I would like to write home about are the following:
Tinted Windows
I had all the windows custom tinted when I was living in Las Cruces. Very hot climate there. Not legal in some states.
New Speakers and Head Unit
Basic plug and play swap of the head unit and all the speakers. It was the most bang for my buck in terms of sound quality. Speakers are lower-end Rockford fosgate brand. I listen to a lot of music and this was an important upgrade. Speaker still sound pretty good despite not having a separate amp or subs.
New Suspension
All new suspension and a total front end rebuild (cv axles, control arms, bushings, ball joints, tie rods, the works!). I'm using Bilstein B6 struts with b4 Passat wagon springs front and rear. This gives me a slight lift in the rear. It's a robust and tight suspension which is good for carrying a lot of weight as I typically do.
SBC Stage 2 Endurance Clutch - I installed this clutch before a long trip to california and back. Probably had more life in the stock clutch but seemed a bit weak to me. Stage 2 is good up to 350ft lbs of torque, which is plenty for now. I know I will have to swap in a stage 3 if I ever get to 200hp.
PD150 Intake Manifold, Straight Pipe with EGR Delete - kind of miss slightly faster warmup times but I think the tradeoff is worth it.
Hybrid Turbo
I have the K03 Hybrid Turbo from Kerma TDI. I thought this was the best turbo available for the car until I did further research. Will switch to a VNT at a later date as money allows. Will probably purchase a new turbo and swap out the hybrid, then list the hybrid on ebay.
"Hotswapped" Nozzles
I have bosio 1019 nozzles from Kerma
Custom Tuning
I'm working with a friend to develop a tailored tune for the car that is both efficient and powerful. Kerma's out of the box tune just didn't work well for the car and I had issues communicating with them to get it fixed.
I bought my own GQ 4x4 usb programmer to quickly swap tunes with my programmer friend based on VCDS logs that I send him.
O2J Shifter Swap with Diesel Geek Short Shifter
I really can't recommend this mod enough! Shifter feels amazing to me after getting used to the difference. It's a relatively straightforward install but takes some know how and patience.
New Lighting
Again, this is something I wish I had done many many years ago. I'm using German made e-code In-Pro brand projectors with dual H7 LEDs. I also have LEDs for fogs and turn signals. VERY happy with the results as the lighting is about 10,000% better than stock. The projectors do a great job of controlling the super bright LED light output.
My philosophy with the car has been to fix what's broken and get superior parts if possible or available. I will continue to use that philosophy moving forward. My logic basicaly is that many of these OEM parts are a bit weak. Either brittle plastic, or just poorly designed or least not made for what I tend to use the vehicle for. If I'm going to spend the money on something, it might was well be new and it might as well be better than stock.
That said, there's no reason to throw money at something that is working well enough. It's why I've held off on some of the more extreme power mods, or some of the more expensive luxury things like amplifiers and high end speakers.
I would like to maintain as much of a stock look at possible. I view this project more as a restoration. I don't particular want to draw attention to the car, especially since I tend to store thousands of dollars worth of tools inside of it.
This is a utilitarian vehicle. Like I've said I use it as my "work truck" and will continue to do so. It's a powerful car, efficient for commuting to the jobsite and I like driving it.
So I will list some of the things I plan to do with the car in order of priority.
REBUILD HEAD - This has moved up on the priority list. I've been getting abysmal mpg, 30-40ish. One cylinder is about 80psi off from the others so I definitely have an issue. I will be doing a stage 2 rebuild with ported head, pistons and rods, stage 2 cam and lifters etc... this is big money so it may be a month or two until i can make it happen.
Reset Driver's Airbag - The car has been without functioning aribags ever since I popped them. I have a new one seated in the steering wheel and I replaced the passenger one with a glovebox. When the airbags popped it melted the wiring harness for the airbag, so that needs to be replaced.
Fix Steering wheel Horn - Car has no horn really because I have to press what's remaining of the buttons in a very particular way to get them to make noise. When the airbags went off, the horn buttons went with them. It would be great to have a functioning horn.
Install Custom Roof Rack - I want a detachable but extremely sturdy custom built roofrack for carrying tools and materials to and from worksites. The mounting points will be directly bolted through the roof and through a reinforced steel plate. The rack will be flat and allow me to clip in my Milwaukee packout toolboxes. rack will have extendable arms to help carry long pieces of trim.
Get a small trailer (maybe even covered), maybe dual axles with its own brakes, not sure. I have a lot of tools and some jobs require me to make multiple trips. I'm also currently unable to do dump runs and have to hire that out. No, I'm still not interested in another vehicle!
Replace rear lights with LEDs
Better Security There are systems you can add to a car to get a bit better theft protection. Due the fact I tend to store a lot of tools in the car and the fact I am putting more and more money into the car itself, I think protecting my investments is a priority.
15in steel wheels and all terrain tires - I've done research into this already. I'm thinking 7in width basset DOT steel racing wheels with an appropriate set of tires for rough dirt roads and mud, however I may opt for some regular stock looking wheels instead. Not sure yet. Main thing I'm after here is functionality and performance. I have traction issues with my current tires. 15in wheels will give me more tire options and allow me to fit a big brake kit eventually.
Rust proof bottomside and install steel skid plate - generally, I'd like to mud proof the car as much as possible and especially seal up the engine bay. I'd like to coat the entire bottom of the car in rustoleum if I can. More research to do here for sure. Steel skid plates aren't available anymore for the car so I will have to get it fabricated someplace. Replace plastic fenders with metal would be nice. Some kind of discreet snorkel might be cool too so I never have to worry about water getting into the engine again.
Fix Slow AC leak. I have to recharge the AC every year which means I have slow refrigerant leak somewhere. So far nobody has been able to find it.
Rebuild Exhaust - turbo back 2.5in downpipe, magnaflow cat?, resonator? I know my exhaust is stock and likely full of soot. It should be replaced at some point.
Total paint job. Car is starting to rust in some places and the exterior really has taken a beating from the sun, from my various accidents, etc. Same color of course, but I may do a few little extra details. By the time I can afford a paint job, I'm sure it will REALLY need it.
LET THERE BE MUSIC I've always wanted a kitted out speaker system with serious amps and subs. I'll probably get an extra set of mids, and set of roof mounted tweeters. I'd like to have a really dynamic system where quality of sound is a priority. Not interested in thumping at 3am, just want brilliant impressive sound.
Tear dash apart and fix blend doors, heater core. The car doesn't really have heat to speak of. Someday soon I would like to fix that. While I'm at it I will likely take care of a few other things.
Gut the Rest of the Interior I want to replace the headliner and the rest of the upholstry in the vehicle. It's pretty gross. This might happen sooner than later. I want to use soundproofing through the car and this would a great thing to tackle together. This will most likely happen in tandem with rewiring my speakers.
Convert rear drum brakes to disc, big brake kit for front with new rotors. I just refreshed all my brakes, including new rear drums, so this will be a while, however it stil something I want to do.
Repaint, replace, refurbish interior plastic. Much of the interior plastic is looking pretty bad.
5 speed Manual
Brief History of the Car:
My Grandma helped me purchase Ole Blue in 2010 as my first car before heading back to college for the fall. My dad found the car on ebay after doing a bunch of research to see what was the most efficient, powerful, cost effective car at the time. Price was $3000 and change.
We had dreams of making our own bio-diesel to run the car (i'll still do when I get a proper workshop). 40+mpg with the torque of a diesel sounded pretty good!
He drove the car all the way from it's origin in Florida to New Mexico (probably saving it from a rusty fate). I have a cousin in florida and he was helping remodel their home at the time. He recorded the gas mileage on the trip and was getting numbers in the high 40s and low 50s.
Car had limp mode right off the bat but was pretty easily fixed with some new vacuum lines to the ECU.
Here is the first picture I took of the car in 2010 (Looks brand new!).I think it had around 140k miles on it, however I misplaced the title, so I don't know the exact number. (I'm sure it will show up at some point - probably buried in the glove box).
I commuted from college in Las Cruces to my Grandma's in Silver City NM for about a year and half. I ran 100% biodiesel in the car quite a few times with no issues.
... until I got sick of school. I dropped out and went back to work. Drove the car all the way to alaska to do some seasonal work that year and work off some debts I had acrewed.
So, the car drove all the way from Florida to Alaska. Someday I plan to visit my cousin in Florida so I can say it's been to Alaska and back!
Insects and Airbags
About 2015, I wrecked the car by driving off the road, hit a dip and crumpled my front wheel while damaging the frame and triggering the airbags. This happened for a pretty stupid reason. There was a large insect on my shoulder that distracted me long enough to run the car off the narrow shoulders. I was still a relatively new driver and I'm still upset at myself for doing this to the car.
The car spent a week in a tiny town near where I had wrecked it. Mechanic did a decent job piecing things back together well enough to drive it home. Had the frame re-bent back as best as they could get it
Puddles and Engine Damage
About 2018 I drove the car too fast through a flooded road. Sucked water into the airbox and stalled the engine. Stupidly, I restarted it and drove it home. Took it to a mechanic the next day and they said I had damaged one of my injector nozzles. Without knowing much about power mods I swapped out all the nozzles with something bigger and without getting them properly calibrated. The car ran really rough for about a year before I got a proper set of calibrated nozzles and a kerma tune.
I tested compression not too long ago, and cylinder three definitely shows a variation of around 80psi (all others are around 490psi), so there is definitely damage. Engine rebuild will happen in 2023.
This is Now "My Work Truck"
I pack the car to the gills with tools for interior remodeling. I primarily install flooring and trim, refinish hardwood floors, and paint.
Car has over 214k miles on it now, but I hear this means it's "just getting broken in"
What have I done to the car so far? (besides causing damage)
Aside from countless normal repairs and maintenance (which include all the vacuum lines, new N75, two timing belt changes, alternator, and new coolant globe), the modifications I would like to write home about are the following:
Tinted Windows
I had all the windows custom tinted when I was living in Las Cruces. Very hot climate there. Not legal in some states.
New Speakers and Head Unit
Basic plug and play swap of the head unit and all the speakers. It was the most bang for my buck in terms of sound quality. Speakers are lower-end Rockford fosgate brand. I listen to a lot of music and this was an important upgrade. Speaker still sound pretty good despite not having a separate amp or subs.
New Suspension
All new suspension and a total front end rebuild (cv axles, control arms, bushings, ball joints, tie rods, the works!). I'm using Bilstein B6 struts with b4 Passat wagon springs front and rear. This gives me a slight lift in the rear. It's a robust and tight suspension which is good for carrying a lot of weight as I typically do.
SBC Stage 2 Endurance Clutch - I installed this clutch before a long trip to california and back. Probably had more life in the stock clutch but seemed a bit weak to me. Stage 2 is good up to 350ft lbs of torque, which is plenty for now. I know I will have to swap in a stage 3 if I ever get to 200hp.
PD150 Intake Manifold, Straight Pipe with EGR Delete - kind of miss slightly faster warmup times but I think the tradeoff is worth it.
Hybrid Turbo
I have the K03 Hybrid Turbo from Kerma TDI. I thought this was the best turbo available for the car until I did further research. Will switch to a VNT at a later date as money allows. Will probably purchase a new turbo and swap out the hybrid, then list the hybrid on ebay.
"Hotswapped" Nozzles
I have bosio 1019 nozzles from Kerma
Custom Tuning
I'm working with a friend to develop a tailored tune for the car that is both efficient and powerful. Kerma's out of the box tune just didn't work well for the car and I had issues communicating with them to get it fixed.
I bought my own GQ 4x4 usb programmer to quickly swap tunes with my programmer friend based on VCDS logs that I send him.
O2J Shifter Swap with Diesel Geek Short Shifter
I really can't recommend this mod enough! Shifter feels amazing to me after getting used to the difference. It's a relatively straightforward install but takes some know how and patience.
New Lighting
Again, this is something I wish I had done many many years ago. I'm using German made e-code In-Pro brand projectors with dual H7 LEDs. I also have LEDs for fogs and turn signals. VERY happy with the results as the lighting is about 10,000% better than stock. The projectors do a great job of controlling the super bright LED light output.
Where Do I go From Here (planned mods)?
I have no intention to get another vehicle. The ONLY thing the Jetta doesn't have that I would want is 4wheel drive. It's more powerful than most vehicles its size, even most small trucks. I will keep the car running for as long as I possibly can. I've joked that this was my first car and will be my last. I love it that much. <3<3<3
My philosophy with the car has been to fix what's broken and get superior parts if possible or available. I will continue to use that philosophy moving forward. My logic basicaly is that many of these OEM parts are a bit weak. Either brittle plastic, or just poorly designed or least not made for what I tend to use the vehicle for. If I'm going to spend the money on something, it might was well be new and it might as well be better than stock.
That said, there's no reason to throw money at something that is working well enough. It's why I've held off on some of the more extreme power mods, or some of the more expensive luxury things like amplifiers and high end speakers.
I would like to maintain as much of a stock look at possible. I view this project more as a restoration. I don't particular want to draw attention to the car, especially since I tend to store thousands of dollars worth of tools inside of it.
This is a utilitarian vehicle. Like I've said I use it as my "work truck" and will continue to do so. It's a powerful car, efficient for commuting to the jobsite and I like driving it.
So I will list some of the things I plan to do with the car in order of priority.
To do list for 2023
New Grille that actually fits - yeah, my chinese plastic grille is held on by one zip tie currently.
REBUILD HEAD - This has moved up on the priority list. I've been getting abysmal mpg, 30-40ish. One cylinder is about 80psi off from the others so I definitely have an issue. I will be doing a stage 2 rebuild with ported head, pistons and rods, stage 2 cam and lifters etc... this is big money so it may be a month or two until i can make it happen.
Reset Driver's Airbag - The car has been without functioning aribags ever since I popped them. I have a new one seated in the steering wheel and I replaced the passenger one with a glovebox. When the airbags popped it melted the wiring harness for the airbag, so that needs to be replaced.
Fix Steering wheel Horn - Car has no horn really because I have to press what's remaining of the buttons in a very particular way to get them to make noise. When the airbags went off, the horn buttons went with them. It would be great to have a functioning horn.
Install Custom Roof Rack - I want a detachable but extremely sturdy custom built roofrack for carrying tools and materials to and from worksites. The mounting points will be directly bolted through the roof and through a reinforced steel plate. The rack will be flat and allow me to clip in my Milwaukee packout toolboxes. rack will have extendable arms to help carry long pieces of trim.
Get a small trailer (maybe even covered), maybe dual axles with its own brakes, not sure. I have a lot of tools and some jobs require me to make multiple trips. I'm also currently unable to do dump runs and have to hire that out. No, I'm still not interested in another vehicle!
Replace rear lights with LEDs
Better Security There are systems you can add to a car to get a bit better theft protection. Due the fact I tend to store a lot of tools in the car and the fact I am putting more and more money into the car itself, I think protecting my investments is a priority.
15in steel wheels and all terrain tires - I've done research into this already. I'm thinking 7in width basset DOT steel racing wheels with an appropriate set of tires for rough dirt roads and mud, however I may opt for some regular stock looking wheels instead. Not sure yet. Main thing I'm after here is functionality and performance. I have traction issues with my current tires. 15in wheels will give me more tire options and allow me to fit a big brake kit eventually.
Rust proof bottomside and install steel skid plate - generally, I'd like to mud proof the car as much as possible and especially seal up the engine bay. I'd like to coat the entire bottom of the car in rustoleum if I can. More research to do here for sure. Steel skid plates aren't available anymore for the car so I will have to get it fabricated someplace. Replace plastic fenders with metal would be nice. Some kind of discreet snorkel might be cool too so I never have to worry about water getting into the engine again.
"Soon"
Fix Slow AC leak. I have to recharge the AC every year which means I have slow refrigerant leak somewhere. So far nobody has been able to find it.
Rebuild Exhaust - turbo back 2.5in downpipe, magnaflow cat?, resonator? I know my exhaust is stock and likely full of soot. It should be replaced at some point.
Total paint job. Car is starting to rust in some places and the exterior really has taken a beating from the sun, from my various accidents, etc. Same color of course, but I may do a few little extra details. By the time I can afford a paint job, I'm sure it will REALLY need it.
LET THERE BE MUSIC I've always wanted a kitted out speaker system with serious amps and subs. I'll probably get an extra set of mids, and set of roof mounted tweeters. I'd like to have a really dynamic system where quality of sound is a priority. Not interested in thumping at 3am, just want brilliant impressive sound.
Tear dash apart and fix blend doors, heater core. The car doesn't really have heat to speak of. Someday soon I would like to fix that. While I'm at it I will likely take care of a few other things.
Gut the Rest of the Interior I want to replace the headliner and the rest of the upholstry in the vehicle. It's pretty gross. This might happen sooner than later. I want to use soundproofing through the car and this would a great thing to tackle together. This will most likely happen in tandem with rewiring my speakers.
Convert rear drum brakes to disc, big brake kit for front with new rotors. I just refreshed all my brakes, including new rear drums, so this will be a while, however it stil something I want to do.
Repaint, replace, refurbish interior plastic. Much of the interior plastic is looking pretty bad.
"Someday"
All steel bumpers, maybe police style "deer catcher" push bumbers - As money allows this might happen sooner. Would love to better protect my headlights and rear lights from damage. Rear plastic bumper is kind of a joke. I'd like to find some kind of thick rubber for actual collision points.
Quest for 200hp. If the car lasts this long. Generally, I'm happy with the car's power but why not strive for more? Generally I'll replace things as they fail. Engine rebuild will likely happen fist.
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