Find or Sell Used Cars, Trucks, and SUVs in USA

1983 Volkswagen Rabbit Caddy Pick Up Gas Engine Excellent Project Runs & Drives on 2040-cars

Year:1983 Mileage:200299 Color: Black /
 Tan
Location:

Denver, Colorado, United States

Denver, Colorado, United States
Transmission:Manual
Body Type:Pickup Truck
Vehicle Title:Clear
Engine:Gas
Fuel Type:Gasoline
For Sale By:Private Seller
VIN: 1V1KB0172DV047119 Year: 1983
Make: Volkswagen
Model: Rabbit
Cab Type (For Trucks Only): Regular Cab
Trim: Pick Up
Options: CD Player
Drive Type: FWD
Mileage: 200,299
Exterior Color: Black
Disability Equipped: No
Interior Color: Tan
Number of Doors: 2
Number of Cylinders: 4
Warranty: Vehicle does NOT have an existing warranty
Condition: Used: A vehicle is considered used if it has been registered and issued a title. Used vehicles have had at least one previous owner. The condition of the exterior, interior and engine can vary depending on the vehicle's history. See the seller's listing for full details and description of any imperfections. ... 

I bought this car as a cleanup and repair project to share with my 19 year old son. The upside potential for an economical practical cheap driver was the goal, and this car was chosen because it looks ratty but has all the major requirements in place. It currently runs and drives, but is handicapped by a broken or worn out shift linkage. I have successfully found four forward gears and reverse, but couldn't repeat the process if I tried. It's like pushing a spoon around in a bowl of oatmeal, occasionally finding a gear; no sense that there is anything connected between your hand and the gearbox. The engine starts, runs, and moves the car through a good clutch, but I'm not taking it out on the road if I don't know where my next gear is coming from. No smoke, no knocks, engine idles down as it  should, and can get the car rolling even in higher gears (that's how I know the clutch is good). Brakes work fine. The shift linkage is the single major problem with the car - fix this and you already have a driver/beater. I have lots of pictures which show how solid the car is; shock towers and rockers are nice, as a result of living dry in Colorado. The only rust on this car (shown in pictures) is non-structural, purely cosmetic, and easily repaired. I know full well what happens to these back east, so you may know of one that has all it's plastic bits, but is about to fall in half from rust. If you do want a solid car to restore, this one would be worth the cosmetic work because it is NOT a rust bucket, nor does it show any sign of major damage. Plus, it already runs, so you're not keeping your fingers crossed over the unknowns you expect in a dead car.  

That said, the car could be considered nice only if you are looking for a solid unrusted, unhit base for a restoration. That, or stop at "Beater", because it's overall condition is "needs everything". It has a crappy, peeling black paint job over the original dark red. The windshield is cracked. The interior is dirty. The bed has been used as a truck bed. There are scrapes and dings. There is no cover over the cam belt. The drivers door handle doesn't work from the outside. The CD player was installed by a less than competent person (but the dash isn't cut up). Seats are non-original, and poorly mounted (but not hacked, either). The back window is something a high school kid would deny. No rear bumper. Grille badge and left plastic headlight bezel missing. Door lock knobs, heater fan switch knob are missing, and the hood release cable is operated by a pair of vise grips. Emergency brake does nothing. The tailgate corners are beat up, but can be straightened, as they are not rusted. Look at the pictures closely, using the Ebay zoom feature - though not pretty, you will find that there is nothing requiring a skill level beyond 'basic home mechanic' to turn this into a decent practical car. 

I am listing this car at $500 no reserve in the belief that it will actually be worth more in the right hands. I am happy to answer questions, take closeup pictures of typical VW trouble spots, and generally do what is required to represent the car accurately. The winning bidder can store the car free of charge for 30 days in my fenced asphalt lot, and I believe that a competent VW person could find a way to drive it home. Now, the question of the day - "Why aren't you making this your own project, Dan?" Well, the young automotive apprentice (my son) who was going to help me on HIS car has found a more direct path to the type of car that he wants, without having to get all dirty. I only wish I had figured that out by now...Thanks for Looking!  Dan Larson             

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Auto blog

VW using other manufacturing locations as leverage in battle with TN [w/video]

Sat, 26 Apr 2014

We've reached a new step in the ongoing drama at Volkswagen's factory in Chattanooga, TN. The United Auto Workers recently dropped its opposition to the union vote and agreed that it wouldn't hold another ballot for at least a year. Now, the new question becomes where VW is going to build its forthcoming midsize SUV.
Earlier, it had been considered all but certain that the SUV, likely a production version of the CrossBlue concept (pictured above), would be built in Tennessee. However, it seems the Chattanooga factory might have competition to produce it. In emails obtained by The Detroit News, VW's lawyer wrote to the Tennessee economic development department in January saying, "While we understand there are some 'non-deal' issues that are causing a delay in the TN solution, VW has been successful in reaching agreement on terms at the alternative locations."
As previously reported, the state of Tennessee allegedly offered VW about $300 million in incentives to build the vehicle there and create an estimated 1,350 jobs, but it later rescinded the deal. Newly leaked documents from NewsChannel 5 (WTVF-TV) in Nashville allegedly show just how close that offer was to being completed. It appears that VW actually sent the government the first draft of a memorandum of understanding agreeing to the incentives, but the state removed the offer in late January.

VW looking to MAN up, ditch Mercedes van deal

Wed, 16 Jan 2013

Unlike the US, the commercial truck market throughout the rest of the world is chocked full of competitors from many different automakers. Since 2006, Volkswagen has had a fullsize van called the Crafter that was a result of a partnership with Daimler AG and based on the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. This partnership is supposed to last through 2016, but Reuters is reporting that VW might be looking to end its relationship with Daimler and create its own van in cooperation with German truck and bus maker MAN.
The article says that VW AG has more than a 75-percent stake in MAN, which would essentially be keeping the new commercial vehicle in-house. Even if VW bolts, Daimler still has a deal worked out in the commercial truck industry between its subsidiary Mitsubishi Fuso and Renault-Nissan to supply the other with different trucks.

VW readying CC Shooting Brake?

Mon, 11 Feb 2013

This was bound to happen. Volkswagen's relentless drive for big volume has the brand mining seemingly every niche it can find for additional sales worldwide. And with its CLS Shooting Brake, fellow countryman Mercedes-Benz has already shown that a wagon based off of a "four-door coupe" can look dead sexy and command extra dollars. So it follows that the Volkswagen CC (whose existence is all but directly attributable to the success of the original CLS sedan) will also get a load-lugging variant. That's according to the UK's Autocar, which notes that the five-door will come in the CC's next generation.
According to the report, the next CC will be available in front and all-wheel drive variants with the usual assortment of gas and diesel four-cylinders found in the Wolfsburg empire, with the possibility of a gas plug-in hybrid model, too. The rakish estate will ride atop VW's MQB architecture, a shorter variant of which is also found underneath the new Golf. The scalable chassis is set to spread like kudzu throughout the company's lineup, but the CC probably won't happen until after the launch of the next European-market Passat in 2015.
Will we get it in North America? Hard to say. Volkswagen sells the standard CC saloon here, but not in particularly large numbers, and when the company moved to a North American-specific Passat, it dumped the wagon variant. The traditional VW estate apparently continues to pick up sales momentum abroad, however, making the CC Shooting Brake a seemingly natural fit for buyers who still want the utility of a two-box form but can afford to sacrifice a bit of cargo room in the name of style.