Posts Tagged ‘gli’

Three Box – 1990 Volkswagen Jetta GLI

January 7, 2016

If you had to pick the top affordable sport sedan or coupe of the early 1990s, where would you land? Despite the general feeling that 1990 was on the tail end of the malaise era, with affordable cars like Toyota’s Tercel doing nothing to dispel that notion, there were good choices from each major region – America with cars like the Ford Probe GT and various captive imports, Asia (mostly Japan at this point) with Nissan’s 240SX and Toyota’s 4AGE-powered cars, and Europe with, uh, Yugo’s GVX? Well, the one that probably really stands out for most of you is the Nissan Sentra SE-R, widely compared to the BMW 2002 and by extension, the Datsun 510. But that’s a shame, because it meant the excellent VW Jetta GLI was in its shadow, with a sweet 16-valve engine, sure-footed handling, and period-typical design cues like BBS wheels, Recaro seats, and a body kit with spoilers and fender flares. Let’s have a look at this 1990 Volkswagen Jetta GLI for sale for $2350 in San Jose, CA.

1990 Volkswagen Jetta GLI left rear

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Same Same But… – 1984 VW Jetta GLI

November 23, 2015

Searching online listings sometimes brings up interesting dilemmas, like the fact that you can choose between a car that originally sold for $8610 in its year of manufacture, or one that sold for $36,000 in the same year, both in apparently similar condition. Both are faded silver, one has 26,000 more miles, and both have 1980s-ish mesh wheels with rubber that’s too low-profile. All that said, one might be a little more complex to repair and more durable, while the other will have you scrambling to keep up with flimsy rattling plastic trim, but reward you with simpler construction. Yesterday’s 733i is one half of this equation – the other half is this 1984 VW Jetta GLI, for sale for a surprisingly familiar $2400 in Wilsonville, OR.

1984 Volkswagen Jetta GLI left rear

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Nineties 02 – 1992 Volkswagen Jetta GLI

March 9, 2015

So you want a nimble, light sports sedan that’s not heavy with power windows and seats, airbags and other safety nonsense, and a good driver 2002 has moved out of range? All is not lost, by far. Twenty years after the 2002 went out of production, you could get quite a few sporty sedans that were relatively light, similarly quick, and fun to drive, with technology that was not available on the 2002 – things like electronic fuel injection and four-valve-per-cylinder heads, plus you might get somewhat better handling in poor conditions. Check out this 1992 Volkswagen Jetta GLI for sale for $3000 in Edmonds, WA.

1992 Volkswagen Jetta GLI left front

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