Over 12 months now since I bought the Corrado and, though I still regard it as epic eye candy, it has been a bit of a spanner-slag.
First problem was the ignition switch. Changed that and found the car was blowing fuses on a regular basis. That was traced back to the tailgate spoiler motor and drive assembly which was falling apart inside. Got another motor, rebuilt the whole thing, fitted it and it was fine for a while. Apart from the stupid Cat 1 factory alarm which locks the car with the keys inside if you forget them.
I spent most of my Christmas holidays sorting out brakes and tyres – new pricey 185/55 15 rubber all round, discs and pads front and rear with a caliper clean up thrown in for good measure. Then it went for MOT and failed on headlamp adjusters: a VW-only part. Sorted that and the thing started cutting out intermittently. Suspected the fuel pump and X-load relays. Cleaned them both up internally and it has been OK since. Apart from killing the front brakes and wiping out the rear wiper motor, having a suspect temp sensor and a rickety driver’s headrest. And a cracked front fog lens, which looks like glass but is actually purest unobtanium.
When you consider how sweet the Mk 2 Golf is in the reliability stakes, the Corrado is a bit of a black sheep. Mine has a few miles under its belt (135K ) but it has full VW history and it doesn’t get that much of a hard time from me. It’s just a bit extreme to be chasing bits all the time.
This weekend should hopefully bring some sunshine on Sunday, when I’ll be doing the brakes again (front are toast), as well as the balljoints and getting to grips with that rear wiper. Also got an oil change to sort. After that I’ll get a dent man in to look at two battle scars - one on a wheel arch each side – and hope it will start to behave itself. It’s not worth a fortune, and is a peach to drive, so I don’t really want to sell it, but when you think I could get a half decent Mx5 for not much more money…
I say all that, but then I take it for a spin. We end up parked someplace drinking a latte (no cupholders: aaargh) and, as I stand there taking yet another long look at it, swathed in blackberry-flavoured Silkolene, any notion of eBay goes straight out of my head. What am I talking about? It’s yummy!
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Sorted the shake-the-dash-off front brakes today, with new discs and pads. It's like driving a new car now; unsurprisingly. http://www.twitpic.com/ezf92
Hmm, always fancied A Corrado VR6 John – 'tis a sweet looking car, especially in that colour. Good work !