Author Topic: The 79 Rabbit of Rabbit79  (Read 3217 times)

February 04, 2015, 02:26:43 pm

Rabbit79

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The 79 Rabbit of Rabbit79
« on: February 04, 2015, 02:26:43 pm »
I know she ain't much to look at, but here is the old 79 Rabbit.... Genuine made in Germany. I acquired her in 1996, traded a Ford Tempo straight across to a guy who had kids and wanted something bigger (I only paid $800 for the Tempo, so I guess you can call that the acquisition price). It's got a 1.6 N/A in it. I'd had a gasoline Rabbit many years before and liked it so I figured this would be a good rig for a daily driver, especially when you consider that pickup behind it has a 460 in it. Then when I discovered what great mileage it got, I figured I'd keep her going as long as possible. An engine re-build in 2011 and she's still going strong.

« Last Edit: May 17, 2015, 11:58:07 pm by Rabbit79 »


Current: 1979 Rabbit 4dr
            1984 F-250
            1999 Ford Ranger
Other v-dubs I've owned:
84 Rabbit
78 Rabbit (gasoline) flipped it end over end after driving all night and falling asleep at the wheel. RIP, it was a good little car.
70 Bug

Reply #1February 05, 2015, 08:38:54 am

RabbitJockey

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Re: The 79 Rabbit of Rabbit79
« Reply #1 on: February 05, 2015, 08:38:54 am »
nice man, the german built ones are hard to find, and the round headlights are so pretty.
01 Jetta TDI 100% stock daily
81 Rabbit:TDI-M ported head, Frank06 cam, PD intake, hybrid T3 turbo, Renault intercooler, Syl20 11mm pump, light weight fw, and yellow California Clutch clutch kit

Reply #2February 05, 2015, 12:30:29 pm

Rabbit79

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Re: The 79 Rabbit of Rabbit79
« Reply #2 on: February 05, 2015, 12:30:29 pm »
Yeah I've always preferred the looks of the early Rabbits to anything after. When I first got this car I had a really long commute to work so I'd buy what I called 'disposa-cars', which meant anything that I could get on the cheap, and just drive them til they were dead, haul them to the junkyard, and then get something else. When I got this one, the exceptional mileage made me decide to keep her. That German engineering took some getting used to, as I'd been a Ford V-8 guy for the most part up until then. I read a quote once by an aircraft restorer who was restoring a World War 2 Fw-190 fighter plane which said "If the job could be done with fifty parts, the Germans chose to do it with a thousand." Of course I thought of the Rabbit right away  hehe. While I don't think the v-dub is quite that bad, it was still a little different from what I was used to. Still though it's been fun to keep her going and has actually become somewhat of an obsession for me. My girlfriend hates it by the way, and is always pestering me to get something newer, but I just tell her "you find me something that gets this good of mileage and I'll consider it." She hasn't come up with anything yet  hehe.
« Last Edit: February 05, 2015, 01:03:49 pm by Rabbit79 »
Current: 1979 Rabbit 4dr
            1984 F-250
            1999 Ford Ranger
Other v-dubs I've owned:
84 Rabbit
78 Rabbit (gasoline) flipped it end over end after driving all night and falling asleep at the wheel. RIP, it was a good little car.
70 Bug

Reply #3February 10, 2015, 10:21:38 pm

flying_oliver

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Re: The 79 Rabbit of Rabbit79
« Reply #3 on: February 10, 2015, 10:21:38 pm »
Yeah I've always preferred the looks of the early Rabbits to anything after. When I first got this car I had a really long commute to work so I'd buy what I called 'disposa-cars', which meant anything that I could get on the cheap, and just drive them til they were dead, haul them to the junkyard, and then get something else. When I got this one, the exceptional mileage made me decide to keep her. That German engineering took some getting used to, as I'd been a Ford V-8 guy for the most part up until then. I read a quote once by an aircraft restorer who was restoring a World War 2 Fw-190 fighter plane which said "If the job could be done with fifty parts, the Germans chose to do it with a thousand." Of course I thought of the Rabbit right away  hehe. While I don't think the v-dub is quite that bad, it was still a little different from what I was used to. Still though it's been fun to keep her going and has actually become somewhat of an obsession for me. My girlfriend hates it by the way, and is always pestering me to get something newer, but I just tell her "you find me something that gets this good of mileage and I'll consider it." She hasn't come up with anything yet  hehe.

You don't want a prius? I heard they get good milage ;)
Just kidding. That's a pretty nice rabbit.

Reply #4February 10, 2015, 10:26:31 pm

ORCoaster

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Re: The 79 Rabbit of Rabbit79
« Reply #4 on: February 10, 2015, 10:26:31 pm »
If those snotty nosed Prius owners knew what the true carbon footprint was for that Eco-friendly car they are driving they would buy a 1 ton dually pickup and be most proud of it getting 19 MPG.   

Reply #5February 13, 2015, 02:04:16 am

Rabbit79

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Re: The 79 Rabbit of Rabbit79
« Reply #5 on: February 13, 2015, 02:04:16 am »


You don't want a prius? I heard they get good milage ;)
Just kidding. That's a pretty nice rabbit.

My other condition is it has to be cheap..... Doubt I could get a Prius for a price comparable to what I got the V-dub for. Besides a Prius is way uglier than any Rabbit ever thought about being  hehe.




Current: 1979 Rabbit 4dr
            1984 F-250
            1999 Ford Ranger
Other v-dubs I've owned:
84 Rabbit
78 Rabbit (gasoline) flipped it end over end after driving all night and falling asleep at the wheel. RIP, it was a good little car.
70 Bug

 

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