vr6 corrado buying guidelines and mpg? please

[Mr oemforyou 0]

hi new on here would quickly like to say how good the site is and how friendly everyone seems to be im looking at buying a corrado vr6 and just wanted to know the things that have to be checked when buying one of these cars from bodywork,mechincal and engine wise any help would be massively appreciated,also wondering what the around town mpg is on these cars are.....

thankyou to anyone who takes there time to help me cheers chris.

[dman78 1]

hey mate welcome,took time out to read your thread,i find that it's the same as running a 1.8t quattro round town then again it depends on how heavy your right foot is,hope this helps

[VR6Nat 9]

Hello and welcome to the site!! :)

Corrados are gorgeous cars, all i will say before anything is dont rush! There are a lot of good ones out there but you have to do some hunting... here's a Corrado specific buyers guide:

Good luck with your search! (oh and you should expect to get between 20 and 32MPG depending on how you drive)

Corrado Buying Guide

Body & External

Check for accident damage around inner wings and the boot floor, including seams.

The rear panel (above the spare wheel as you look in the boot) has a VAG sticker which gives all model information, if this has gone, the car may have had rear end damage and been rebuilt/resprayed.

Rusty creases in the inner part of the front wings may mean the car has had some front end damage/repair.

Above rear bumper - check that the two vertical 'seams' at each side of the rear panel are perfect, straight and even, with no bubbling/rust coming through (possible evidence of poor rear end damage repair).

Also look for rust on the chassis and under the bonnet and door sills and check the valance under/behind the front bumper/lower spoiler for rust.

Check body for:

Scratches

Dents

Rust

Misaligned panels (inc doors, bonnet, boot)

Door handles are stiff. Can be replaced with Passat rear handles (de-locked) for around £10 each or genuine Corrado handles for approx £55 each!

Stone chips on the bonnet are quite common. Although this can just be an indication of motorway driving.

For info:- Bonnet cross sections:

Early style ------______------

Late Style ____----------____

Lights for cracks including spots.

Headlights for early models are £60+vat and £99+vat for later complete units.

Headlight glass is 22.50+VAT from Euro Parts for both early and late models

Fogs from GPC will cost approx £50 for early style and approx £75 for later style

Indicators are about £50 new from VW, but can be had from scrap yards more commonly than "good" fog lamps. 2nd hand they seem to fetch about £25 the pair.

More details on the differences between early and late specs can be found at the bottom of this page

Chassis plates - check the VIN plate on the cross member at the back of the engine bay matches the log book and the sticker inside the boot

Colour code ("mailshot" size sticker on the inside of the rear panel with the relative colour code or an orange-red smallish sticker on the inside of the o/s/f wing) & also a sticker insider the drivers side door pillar.

Wipers are notoriously poor – possible remedies include modding the existing setup or using Lupo wipers, which would be a bonus if already done

Colours/Codes

See the list at the bottom of this page for colour codes and details

VW's (amongst others) reds are quite infamous for fading/going pink. A good check to see if the colour can be recovered is to rub a wet finger on the paint – if it regains some of it's colour, the odds are that it can be recovered with cutting compound treatment

Interior

Look out for ripped/worn/saggy seat bolsters

Sunroof – does it tilt and slide. Any scratching to the paint on the external side of the sunroof

Passat glass sunroof can be used as a direct replacement

Check for damp carpets in the footwells – could be due to heater matrix or could need new inner door membranes

If its passenger side (RHD) check that leaves, pine needles etc have not blocked the drains by the bulkhead, as in hard rain the bulkhead area can fill up and overflow into the ventilation intake. Cheap fix!

Leather is a sought after extra. Available in Black, Cream, Grey [any more?] and on the Campaign model, Brick-Red (but you'll be lucky to find one of the 6 available Campaign interiors or cars.

Check the headlight switch action is smooth and accurate - they run warm and this can make the plastic brittle. If its notchy or wobbly, it could be about to snap inside and a new one is expensive. Used one, less so, but rare. Alternative is a bottle of superglue and a quiet night in.

First aid kit in centre arm-rest (if applicable) - can be replaced with other first aid kits for around £30

Warning triangle in rear seat back (zipper at top) - can be bough from dealers for around £20

Check that the ventilation control panel functions competely. The fan should work in all four positions and the "direction" dial should also work. For later (dial type panel) a replacement is over £200 and slider type panel used on early cars is no longer available from VW

Wheels & tyres

Kerbed alloys

Worn tyres (especially uneven wear)

Missing centre caps

Signs that the wheels are fouling the arches

Check the condition of the spare wheel, and more importantly, that it has one! Also check that the jack, wheel-brace, spanner and screwdriver are present

All 4 cylinder (2.0 8v, 1.8 16v, 2.0 16v and 1.8 G60) models have 4-stud hubs and all VR6's have 5-stud hubs.

Suspension

Listen for any knocking sounds from the suspension and check to see if there is any leakage from the dampers.

Under rear wheel arches - look at shock absorber top spring plate, check for corrosion and ensure there is a gap between the plate the top of the strut spring sits in, and bodywork.

A decent set of coilovers can be a plus point because if you intend to add them yourself, you will need to budget approx £500 for an average (price-wise) setup. VW did spend a lot of money developing the suspension, however, so finding a good standard setup is preferable (might be a sign of less 'spirited' driving as well).

Brakes

Check handbrake. Lots of ‘clicks' to engage?

Condition of disks

Warped disks (brake judder)

ABS – Should be included on all VR6 and 2.0 16V's (should also have traction control as well). Some later G60's had ABS. It was also an option on the other models as well.

There should be an orange ABS light in the dash to the left of the driver (It has been known for cars with faulty ABS for the warning light to just be removed!!

Start the car with your foot on the brake pedal – you should feel a pulse and the light should go out.

If the light is permanently on, it could mean:

ABS sensors might need cleaning

ABS sensors might need replacing

Brake fluid level is low

ABS control unit might need replacing

Brake pedal sensor might need replacing

In general, if the light is on and it isn't one of the top 3 faults above, it could be an expensive thing to fix.

An abs light that refuses to go out may also be due to a faulty ignition switch, or, heaven forbid, a faulty abs pump (expect to pay £750 for a reconditioned one - a new one is over a grand from the stealers)

Check for seized rear brake calipers as this is a common fault (although easily rectified)

Engine

The important thing with any engine is regular oil changes with decent oil.

Also Check:

Oil cap(mayo)

Water (mayo)

Oil filter (should be VW or Bosch)

Timing belt (all belts when serviced) has been changed. (Excludes VR6's)

Check oil level & colour

Engine noise (tappets and knocking)

Smoke from exhaust

Oil leaks – after a drive, check for any signs of oil leaks.

Listen out for noisy fuel pumps

Gearbox

Difficulty engaging gears - mainly 2nd and 1st when cold

Exhaust

As with any car, check for any signs of the exhaust knocking/rubbing against the underside of the car or listen for any signs of the exhaust blowing (hole in the exhaust)

The standard exhaust is heavy and runs close to the rear axle and so a knocking from the rear on dips/bumps might be fixed with new rubbers

Electrics

Lights – Corrado lights are poor. An uprated headlight loom (can be made for £10 or bought for £50) would be a bonus

Heater – does it function on all settings?

Heated windows/mirrors/washer jets

MFA computer (check mileage), and that all functions work:

Time, Miles traveled, Time elapsed, Average speed, Average MPG, Oil temp, Outside Temp

Also check that the MFA is not flashing or that it doesn't rest itself once the ignition is turned off. Both are signs of clocking.

Electric windows

Electric Mirrors

Rear spoiler – Does it work when standing and automatically when moving (45mph is the most common ‘raise' speed (should lower at under 10mph))

Alarm/immobilizer

Does the stereo automatically switch on and off with the ignition

Driving

Make sure:

Doesn't pull to the side when driving or breaking.

Engine performs as it should (G60 – low down pull, VR6/16V's better

pull at higher revs)

Any knocking, droning, clunking or any other noises

Squeaks from belts such as power steering belt

Check documentation

Log book (No. of owners)

Service receipts

Dealer stamps in service book

Check that the History corresponds with/backs up the mileage

VR6 specific checks

Listen for any noise from the timing chain. Slight noise (rattle) can be acceptable.

The guides and tensioner can need replacing once mileage approaches 80k+. £200 for parts alone and it's quite labour intensive as it can be worth doing the clutch whilst you're at it.

VR6's generally have a rough idle. Check that the idle isn't overly erratic.

Puffs of blue smoke on start-up (especially from cold) and over run. It could mean it has bore wear (time for a new block!), but it does mean you need the rings checking out.

UK and Euro VR6 engines should have the ABV engine code which is the 2.9 litre engine. Golfs and USA VR6's (SLC for USA Corrado) are fitted with 2.8 litre versions

The UK 'Storm' model

Only from April 1995 onwards. Some were registered later than N-reg, however.

Only Classic Green with beige leather or Mystic Blue with black leather

250 of each colour

The log book will not identify the car as a Storm

Colour coded grill

BBS Solitudes

[hvr6 88]

welcome :-)

http://the-corrado.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5004

[VR6Nat 9]

Oh and it might be worth printing that to take with you when looking at one cuz you'll soon forget!!

Also it is well worth becoming a Premium Member when you do find your perfect Corrado as there is many benefits like great discounts and a knowledge vault which is priceless when you have a problem... :)

[nivag27 5]

Great List Nat, as for mpg I get around 22 to 24 ish around town and 30, 31ish on a run and lets just say I dont worry how much petyrol I use;)

[Mr oemforyou 0]

Thankyou very much for all the advise yeah im looking around now for a corrado vr6 got upto £3000 to spend so hopefully will find something nice,if anyone see's or hears of any nice ones going any heads up on it would be very appreciated. so with some average driving i should see about 28-30 mpg ? are the vr6s much better on fuel than the g60? just out of curisoty which corrado with average driving is better on the old mpg? how many miles is considered fine for a vr6? i hear they are very strong engines is this true? roughly when do clutches need changing? is it worth upgrading not looking at doing much modding engine wise. thanks for any advice im sure u get asked this all the time thanks for the patience.

[Knightrider 1]

My boy has a VR6 Corrado. Standard apart from Jetex 2 box exhaust and Green Cotton air filter - sounds absolutey awsome. Handles like a god as standard. Amazing car. He needs to sell it as he is running an (amazing) new business in London and is not using it enough. Have a look at the business smallcarBIGCITY - http://www.smallcarbigcity.com

- he is Oli. If you want one, go onto the website and give Oli a call. It is a cracker. Great colour.