Although greater power gains can be had with the modern ABA head, I'd like the car to appear fairly stock underhood.
The more modern head / intake looks foreign and strange in the Rocco's engine bay, so I'm having a 1.8 liter head built to install upon the ABA. The head will have bigger valves, a more aggressive cam, and other trick bits that I'll convey later. It won't appear completely stock under the hood, but will look a lot more natural than a direct ABA swap. The plan is to have the car run CIS-E fuel injection.
As this is a front-drive 1900 lb car, I don't need crazy power to make the VW extremely entertaining. I'm looking at a goal of 150 hp at the crank, which should be do-able with the built 1.8 liter (hydro) head.
Gearbox wise I'm currently searching for a close ratio 5spd from a Mk1 GTI. I believe the 4K is the one I need, but I'll need to to a bit more research.
Thanks for the interest guys! I should have some time this weekend to dive into it, so look for more updates soon!