Ran across a Mk3 98 Golf that looks promising for a daily driver. I know 98 is the last of the Mk3 and had side airbags. Anything I should be aware of for a daily driver. Things to watch out for? I see milage is only rated at 31 for hwy but I won't be on the highway much - just around town, stop and go, daily commute to work. I searched various VW forums but any FAQs worth reading out there?
Randy
meh. is it super cheap or something?
yes
ABA powered A3's are uninspiring as a daily. Not terribly reliable but they do what they do pretty well . They have a pretty large folowing who are wrongly convinced they are the best vehicle VW ever produced.
My A3 was ABA powered with a Chip and exhaust and even beating on it I struggled to get LESS than 30MPG mixed. It did high 30's with the wife driving.
We bought a '97 Jetta 2.0/5spd new and it was a turd. Drove nice, but it ate transaxles like crazy (was needing it's third trans at less than 40k when we got rid of it), gas mileage was average at best (low 20's/mid to upper 20's), headlights died frequently for some reason and the clutch started to slip right around the time the last tranny we put in it started making noise.
If it's super cheap, buy it, keep the title in the glove box, drive it till it dies, sign the title and then the car on the side of the road with the keys and title on the seat. 
After reading that, it's had for even me to believe that I actually like VW's.
It can be a good car if it was taken care of and maintained. If not, they can be horrible blackholes where your money and time disappear. If i were to do it again, I would buy a new one, use it up and crush it at 100k.
Most of the people who own them aren't exactly rich or in tune with their cars so most of the maintenance was done to meet inspection or get to work.
The 2.0 engine is decent for reliability if you don't wail on it. Stock clutches will last atleast 100k. Tranny is decent but with a weak reverse gear. Be sure to shift into first before hitting reverse to stop the cogset from spinning. Maintenance will need to be looked after frequently and more often than the manual really states. What stuck me the most tearing through the owners manual was the low maintenance interval specified. (e.g. Coolant for life). The result is a very neglected car made to last 100k. On the plus side, the parts are relatively cheap and plentiful.
I have a Mk3 94 Golf with a 2.0. The car was pretty beat up when I got it. I've been though almost every system on that car trying to put it back right. You name it, i've done it.
Mines was at 130k when I got it. Not one system really lasted on that car. The only thing I haven't touched was the lower block and the master cylinder. I did not see one thing that was made to last in that car. Mines is essentlally a new car from all the work done on it. On the plus side, it now drives nice on koni coilovers. New euro specs lights and a relay kit help a lot too. I get mid 20's city and 30+ highway. It really is pretty basic but nice for a daily driver if everything works. Insurance is cheap too.
There is a rust issues with these cars, floors and strut towers being the most important. Parts aren't the most robust, there are plastic coolant parts a plenty. Lots of high stress parts that should have been metal were made plastic and you'll find those annoyingly broken (e.g vent selection knob). The lights are not very stong. You'll be best served with installing atleast a relay kit and new housings.
Thanks!
I've never driven a 115 hp 8V Vw engine before but from the specs (long stoke, SOHC) I gather it will probably run out of steam at 6k and would be best to short shift it for the commute. How similar would it be to the 132 hp NEON SOHC I once drove? How tolerant is the ECU to mods?
There is a rust issues with these cars
That, is the understatement of the year. These cars rust like CRAZY.
A friend of mine owns a shop in Red Deer that strictly does VW/Audi stuff. He won't touch MK3 VW's in general, I'd suggest you stay away from them. They are slow, and all of the electronics WILL screw up sooner or later.
Here is a question for ya: the battery is fine in the car (MK3 VW), it was not in any accidents, but NOTHING gets electrical power. Nothin, nada. What piece is broken?
The ground strap is still bolted down ... but the bodyshell has rusted from around the bolt-down point.
Just a guess.
Also, my MK3 is the only car in which I've ever seen wires break mid-run. I've got a 300,000 mile MGB, a '76 Fiat, and a Yugo, and I think the VW takes the prize for weird electrics.
That said, they make a decent DD.
HiTempguy wrote:That, is the understatement of the year. These cars rust like CRAZY.
I think he's in Georgia, i am guessing the rust isn't so bad there. The secret is in the evil water trapping undercoating. Mines was definitely a rust bucket. I wanted to torch that thing so bad, it isn't even funny. 
I now beat my time back from it.
I stand by the fact that these things should be crushed at 100k. Subtract the mileage on that 98 golf from 100k and that is the life left in that car. You may reclaim the scrap value and move on to another car at that point.
