Scirocco Register

do it now whilst they are still reasonably cheap

More work has commenced on the GT2, parents are on holiday so can make as much mess on the drive as i want ha ha

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

Only really got started in the last couple weeks as have been very busy pouring in the overtime at work for some extra cash

started by stripping down the engine out in the pissing rain as i was planning to remove it to start working on bodywork in engine bay etc, iv never removed an engine before in my life and the engine crane in the garage was otherwise engaged so all i had was my axle stands and a jack. Im pretty keen to just get torn into this thing and try new stuff and if i mess up then i mess up, im trying to learn as much as possible with this project..

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

removed radiator, alternator, water pump and all other ancillaries, i decided i was going to drop the engine underneath so at this point i decided to strip the engine down further so it was easier to lower it under the car, i removed the head and manifolds, all fluids were drained bar the gearbox oil, got the jack underneath and unbolted the driveshafts.. Tooke me bloody ages to get everything unbolted as every nut was rusted and rounded on this engine, i suppose thats what happens when its been sat in a breakers yard since 2004 with the bonnet up!

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

started unbolting the mounts, drivers side one just kept turning as it was stuck in its captive nut, ended up taking vice grips to the rusted out allen bolts that hold the mount to the engine and eventually the engine and box was free, lowered them down slowly then on the last couple cm the engine just came off the jack and hit the floor, i didnt care as it was out, i was pretty happy with that as iv never done this before and ended up doing the whole lot on my own, engine probably wouldnt run the way it is, its not fully seized up but its been sat stationary for over a decade, the bores look good though, the plan is a 1.8 turbo anyway..

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

With engine and box out i started to remove the brake servo and the brake linkage, shaved down the shear bolts on the steering column to allow for the brake linkage bar to pull out, with that out i got the grinder out and started to buzz away all the little spots of surface rust, once done i smothered the whole lot in red bonda, Im really happy as the clutch cable exit in the bulkhead is really solid, as is the majority of the engine bay.

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

on saturday i had a go at welding in a patch on the front valance, this was my first time welding on a car and i made a few rookie mistakes, grinded the metal to thin on the valance and welded outside in the wind, wire speed was also very low and power was high so i c
kept burning through the metal!, after seeking some advice i was recommended to try a joggler tool and tack in some spot welds, tried this method tonight on some scrap metal and got on much better! so i think im going to try source a front valance somewhere (as there aother parts of it needing poatched) and use this method to weld it in, hopefully with some more practice i can get a decentish result, its all enjoyment and learning at the end of the day

thats how the car stands now, i got a bonnet from essextom and a rear bench to match the front seats so all thats left to address is; front and rear valance, this dent on the passenger rear quarter (any advice on how to tackle this? its too awkward to get a hammer in!) , couple small holes in the floor/sill and a very small hole in the door around the handle, other than that this car is solid!

Untitled by Darren Ellis

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

I will be spending alot of time on the car in the near future as motivation levels are high right now!

Rocco resto by Darren Ellis

Stripped out the old sound deadening from the floor and bulkhead today, was gonna use dry ice like all the guys on youtube do but didnt know where to buy the stuff locally so just went in with the old fashioned chisel and hammer, took a very long time so instead i started using the heat gun to melt and scrape it off, few hours later and i got it all out, weighed it on some scales and it was a full stone of sound deadening, about 6-7kg in total.

Sound deadening removal by Darren Ellis

Sound deadening removal by Darren Ellis

Sound deadening removal by Darren Ellis

Sound deadening removal by Darren Ellis

The floor is very solid in most areas but there seems to be some symmetry in where the rot lies, there is a hole either side of the centre tunnel and a hole just above them, the drivers side inner sill is also holed through so will need some attention, other than that its pretty good as far as i can see.

Sound deadening removal by Darren Ellis

Sound deadening removal by Darren Ellis

best get some practice in with the welder...

mk2daz wrote:... Im really happy as the clutch cable exit in the bulkhead is really solid...

Regardless, strengthen that area anyway.

i agree, it will pull through eventually and whilst the engine is out it makes sense. you'll find loads more of those little holes when you start poking about!

I guess it depends on what clutch/gearbox you will be using, if going with a hydraulic clutch system then here's no need to worry about strengthening the bulk head but if using the original clutch cable system then do strengthen it as it's a really bad design by VW and it will crack at sometime in its life.

steve bain wrote:i agree, it will pull through eventually and whilst the engine is out it makes sense. you'll find loads more of those little holes when you start poking about!

mark1gls wrote:I guess it depends on what clutch/gearbox you will be using, if going with a hydraulic clutch system then here's no need to worry about strengthening the bulk head but if using the original clutch cable system then do strengthen it as it's a really bad design by VW and it will crack at sometime in its life.

DT1 wrote:

mk2daz wrote:... Im really happy as the clutch cable exit in the bulkhead is really solid...

Regardless, strengthen that area anyway.

agreed everyone! The plan is 20vt with hydraulic clutch however if that idea changes then this will be strengthened for sure

Passenger door needed some attention as it was holed right through where the handle is, seems a common spot for rot, possibly moisture trapped in behind the handle seals?

I wanted to have a go at fixing it myself, so i cut out the rot:

https://flic.kr/p/VXAgg3 by Darren Ellis

https://flic.kr/p/WCunBU by Darren Ellis

N by Darren Ellis

https://flic.kr/p/XaAdUS by Darren Ellis

https://flic.kr/p/W1614t by Darren Ellis

tacked in place before joining the tacks up:

https://flic.kr/p/WCuNwo by Darren Ellis

The rust had spread through the double skinned part with the thread for the bolt and around half of the indent section so i was a bit stuck on how to go about it, made up a patch panel out of an old fiesta door and even welded on a double skin to where the bolt goes and i made a thread for it which worked perfectly! welded the entire panel in place and started to grind it down, the rust around the indented section was a bit worse than i first thought and it ended up holing through quite badly when i was grinding down the welds, a bit frustrated with myself i left it for the day, this was my second time welding so maybe it was a bit too much of a task for me! Tried to fill the holes with welds but it just wasn't happening...



then last night a good passenger door came up fairly local to me so i went and picked it up today after work, it has a little bit of surface rust around the handle, but iv sanded that back and coated it in zinc primer for now, the rest of the door is like new!

New passenger door by Darren Ellis

New passenger door by Darren Ellis

the old passenger door im gonna have another go at repairing i think as similar to my new one its mint in every other place, so it will be worth saving and good practice if i can sort it. I'll update on this...

so now iv got solid wings, solid bonnet, solid doors, need to fix the rusty number plate light section on the tailgate and sort the valances and holes in the floor, then things can really get moving!

thanks for reading

was looking through this thread thinking this looks familiar and its just clicked lol
i see what you mean the rot has really eaten into the handle area but you`ve given it a valiant effort.

I find when welding in the gaps between the spot I overlap the last weld and do a blob, wait a second and do it again. The mass of the previous weld stops blowing holes. Also nice tight joints. Trying to fill gaps on bodywork is hard work! Keep going though....

james butler wrote:was looking through this thread thinking this looks familiar and its just clicked lol
i see what you mean the rot has really eaten into the handle area but you`ve given it a valiant effort.

Yeah! Thanks for all your advice over Facebook


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steve bain wrote:I find when welding in the gaps between the spot I overlap the last weld and do a blob, wait a second and do it again. The mass of the previous weld stops blowing holes. Also nice tight joints. Trying to fill gaps on bodywork is hard work! Keep going though....

I started to understand how to do this as I was coming to the end of the weld, might have another go at it soon, but at least I have a good door to fit anyway, cheers!


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fitted my new door tonight after work and it sits nice, no sag in the door height, chuffed!

Rocco by Darren Ellis

Rocco by Darren Ellis

its starting to look like a rocco again, cant wait to really get going with this car, i have a spit frame welded up but its bolted to another shell at the moment, hopefully get the rocco on it and start on the underside etc

been doing as much overtime as i can at work while im off uni to put into the scirocco, also a guy i know just a bit up the road is currently doing a 20vt swap into his GT2, hes pretty clued up with the looms etc and can easily make up a conversion loom, i was wanting to try do most of it myself but its handy to know anyway for advice etc..

Its been a while since iv updated this and unfortunately not much has been going on due to other commitments, both the sciroccos are still sitting with covers on them. Iv been putting a lot of time into my golf as it needed some work for its MOT



I have finally finished University however and will be graduating next month and starting a new full time job soon so I can raise some funds for the project. My old man and I are also currently putting up a steel shed at the house which will have a two poster ramp and spray booth which will be perfect for the sciroccos. Something we've wanted to do for a while now and we are finally making it happen

I have had the week off this week waiting to start a new job as a software developer and with no space to work on the shell itself i decided to unbolt the tailgate to try and repair the rust around the number plate lights





I cut out the rot and welded in some new metal. I'm feeling a lot more confident with the welder now, still not 100% great but I'm happy enough with it



Then a skim of filler to get a nice smooth and even finish, and finished with a coat of primer







All thats left to do is re-drill the holes for the number plate lights and loom however this can be done at a later date. Pretty chuffed with this repair as i have very little experience in doing this and i really thought i was gonna have to source a good tailgate from somewhere which isn't easy..

Next up will be trying to source or fab up a rear valance to fix this



I also stumbled upon this picture in the depths of a facebook group of the rocco when it was laid up in the breakers yard waiting to be saved



Anyway for now i have solid doors, tailgate, bonnet and wings. Just need to get the shell into storage so I can sort out the remaining rot then i can really start cracking on. More updates to come... cheers

An epic tale, good to see you’re still persevering and juggling the studies and that very nice Golf.