Every kid from eastern europe knows everything about a Mk.2 Golf. I remember in the early 2000s these were just getting imported to us from German junkyards and one guy from our village bought a GTI not knowing what it even was. Apparantly the guy couldn't sell it to anyone because it was too thirsty. And this guy as well later desecrated the car by putting a NA diesel in it. It's unbelievable what people do to cars sometimes.

My parents bought a 1.3 CL in 1984. It wasn't the fastest thing on the road, but it was dependable and much better quality than the Ford's they previously owned.

Difficult second album done well. Just a shame the 3rd and 4th left a lot to be desired.

A 4-door GTI always looks wrong to me -- and at least in the U.S., that's the only way you can get them anymore!

I owned a Mk2 Golf 1.6 Driver back in the 90's. It had the GTI look without the extra power. One of the most solidly built cars of its time and good to drive.

I had a GTI 8v just like the one in this film, not really that fast but was just lovely. Comfortable, practical, made a lovely noise and handled superbly. One of only two cars I really miss and wish I’d kept.

I’ve got a 1988 CL as my first car now, simple, rugged, reliable and their design aged so well!

Having owned a Mk2 Jetta, an E8 and two E9 Corollas one thing stands out; the Japanese were a hundred miles ahead what comes to engine, gear change and suspension. On our long Finnish winters I like to test and play with my cars and the Mk2 with its beam rear axle and extra conservative setup felt numb and overly understeering where as the Corollas felt playful and easily tossable, highly due to their sophisticated rear suspension. The Corolla engines; 1,3 and 1,6's felt so much snappier too than the 1,6 in the Jetta. both Corolla engines were ahead too with the 12 valve OHC 2E and 16 valve DOHC 4A. About the gear change; everyone who has driven a Mk2 with any miles knows it can get sticky and inaccurate while the Corolla's gears you can just flick in with a finger or two.

Lovely piece of work again Ed. You certainly had your facts 💯 👌. I've owned a number of hot VW's and still have a MK2 GTI 16v and love it. They were a real weapon in the 80s and still have grin factor today.

Great review! Just bought a 3 door mk2 last winter for myself for 1000€. Fully road legal and running, barely any rust with 170k kms. Never gonna sell it.

Great video, I have one of these in alpine white mk2 1989 GTI 118,000 miles in my garage next to my mk5 r32. I’m an enthusiast and owned far to many. I’ve spent a lot to make it great again and now turning my attention to the engine and underside of car to future proof the car for many years to come. Thank you for this brilliant video

Great, as per usual Ed. Mike

Awesome video yet again and also about one of my favourite cars. Thanks!

Excellent video👍

Very well put together and interesting video ....again.

Ive owned mk2 golfs since i passed my test 20 years ago and never could resist buying another after i sold one as i missed it so much. Great vid appreciated.

I worked at VW South Africa inProduct Engineering from 1974 to 1994 & for most of that time was resposible for suspension, wheels/tyres& steering. For our purposes here the Golf/Jetta 2 was a far superior vehicle, it was better developed for RHD ( apart from wipers & bonnet release ), which we altered) its handling & roadholding were generally better. I myself ,as many people here ,prefered the Jetta CLi 8V which after uprating the rear springs could be made to oversteer ( unusual for FWD) but upon throttling off handled neutrally. The 16V was made here , but not overly popular ,since the ride was far too harsh and poor engine flexibility at low speed & increased fuel consumpton. Some can still be seen around today, mostly Jetta 4 door which outsold the Golf by about 4 to 1. However, throughout all this time my own personal was a Rover P6B V8 , still running today, 50 years old.

Great video again Ed, Beautiful car

Great video, as always. A friend of my dad had a B reg 1.3 C back in the mid 80's. It wasn't new, but not that old. Maybe 2 or 3 years old. I always liked it, and wanted one when I was old enough to drive. Unfortunately it never happened. It has always bugged me that the earlier ones had LHD pattern windscreen wipers.

Another great video Ed, not a huge VW Fan, but you cannot go wrong with a Golf and especially a Mark 2. This example is stunning, another car to add to my dream fleet list.

Had a Mk ll GTi.Lovely.Wish l'd still got it,but hey,ho,there you go! Great video mate👍!

Cheers Ed - WOW a whole 920 Kg …. We now live in an EV age where it takes 2 tonnes of metal to carry four people around in comfort …. Progress ?

Really enjoyed this video. Great background info. Minor criticism but I wish it was a little longer so I could finish the dishes without having to scroll to the next vid :) Looking forward to the next one.

Great video and that red GTI is in amazing shape. I’ve had an awful lot of cars, usually bought from the heart and not using common sense.. until 2017 I’d never owned a VW, then I bought a low mileage 2007 Polo for a family member who literally never did anything except put fuel in and wash it maybe once every 6 months, I came along and changed the oil and filters every year though. A few months ago and it was changed for a Honda for no real reason except that after 4 years it was time for a change, in those 4 years it passed its test every year with the occasional light bulb and once rubber boot..I came to the conclusion that it was about the most reliable car I’d ever bought and I never bought it for myself. I advertised it and it sold literally within the hour, much to my amazement for the full asking price. I’ve since bought a 2009 mint low mileage example for my own daily use, and now I can’t believe it took me so long to appreciate VW cars..

I've just watched this video. What an amazing car. I was the third owner of FBH, for about 7 years and loved every minute of it . It was in such brilliant condition, the first owner keeping it for 18 years. If you want any more information on this car ( I still have some paperwork) please find a way to contact me privately).

Great video, glad to see some 1980s cars getting a look in. As much as it is an Icon, I haven't actually seen much content on the Mk2 Golf really, so nice to see some love being given. I have just bought a B2 generation Audi 80 Sport which uses the same 8v engine as the example car, I am hoping it will be reliable...

I had a red 3-door Mk2 Golf with the non-turbo 1.6 diesel engine. I really loved that car even though it was the slowest and loudest thing on the road! Excellent video, brought back some good memories.

What an amazing video. Would love to hear an overview of the golf series from you. Great job !!

Great video 😎🎉 I had one of those MKII Golfs in white..it was built like a tank...a great machine 😎👍🏽🎉🎉

You do great videos, keep it up ..!

Nice video. I love the MK2 and would love to have one here in the US.

Lovely example of an 8v 🙂 i bought my 1st 8v as a stop gap in 06 for £500, bought my 16v in 08, sold the 8v in 09 and bought it back as a wreck in 2015 for £400.. now rebuilt as a 2.0 8v! Love mk2's, both mine sorned for winter now! 5 Golfs in total 😁

I watch the adverts through for you Ed , another good review .

Excellent piece as ever, Ed. I had one of these. I remember two things about it. It was the first car that I had with power steering. And it was the first and only car to be stolen from me.

Another brilliant video. As a long time Golf owner (MK1/MK5/Mk6/MK7) - I think they got the styling wrong twice. The Mk3 (92-98) and the current MK8 - I've gone over to Toyota

I had a mk2 Gti 16v. What a car!!!. It was incredible

I had an 'F' reg Mk2 Golf GTI from new and absolutely loved it. It gave me 80k untroubled miles, with full servicing and I still miss it..

Great video Ed. I have owned many Golfs in my time and my mark 2 was a tornado red Golf Driver 1.6 petrol (looked near identical to the GTi which I couldn't afford!). Probably the best car I ever owned and much better looking than the mark 3, which I also owned later. The only "modern" thing it lacked was power steering but then it didn't really need it with its accurate rack and pinion steering. :-)

Excellent presentation of a exceptional car. Had a Mk1 and later a Mk2. Only down side was things like power steering central locking and sun roof were optional and as it was a bit more expensive than its rivals they dident all come with them. The GTI had wide wheels and power steering was a must for parking, The Mr2 had much better brakes as the Mr1 only had disks on the front and drums on the back, Mk2's had discs all round. But what a car. Only car I got nicked in for speeding and the only one had stolen.

Loved the video

In the early 90's, I owned one of these, a 4 year old GTI 16 valve. I recall few reviewer references to the MK2's aerodynamic efficences. What I do recall is that it was a rather bland car to drive. It was quick, right enough, but not in a way that stirred your soul. Just quick. Oh, and by the way, after a while I came to the view, as did some of the more discerning reviewers, that the 8-valve version was, for most people, a car that offered far more access to the available performance. As with most 16 valves, the Golf 16 valve had to be revved quite hard to tell the difference between the 2 versions. There was a 6 or 7 year period in the mid '80's thru early '90's, when I owned quite a number of cars.... BMW 325I, Dolomite Sprint, Citroen BX19 GT, Peugeot 405 1.9 GL, Porsche 911 SC, BMW 535i Sport, Mercedes 300.... . amongst others. I also rented a Peugeot 205 GTI. They all, in different ways, had a certain something. The Golf didn't really.

I really miss mine, had 3 of them, fantastic cars

Looks such a smart tornado red 3 door, 👌 iv got a nice mk2 golf you might find interesting come the next year when I get it out the workshop, a mk2 golf 4 door syncro, (4wd) in tornado red

I had a 1991 base model GTI that was simply excellent!

Hi Ed. My first proper car was a 1984 Vauxhall Astra GL with GTE body trim and stone guards. It was awesome and certainly a match in terms of looks and equipment levels to the VW Golf - and it drove brilliantly too. Please don't slag off the Astra too much!

As a Golf owner your review was fantastic. So full of truth.

Great video. I owned a red one like this one in the nineties. Absolutely great car. Loved it. I was sad to have to sell it when moving overseas to the states.

Wunderbar ! I had a go in a 1985/86 Jetta GT that my sister's partner owned at the time. Absolutely loved it. It was an 8v but it had some type of engine mod. Floored it when it was safe to do so and inadvertently frightened him (he was in the passenger seat). He bought it for around £350 circa 2000 but sadly he didn't keep it for long as it had a fault. Well, what do you expect for that money? He replaced it with another £300 car with a different fault. 🙄 Rinse and repeat.

These cars always remind of the smell of smoky diesel from the 90s when I grew up my neighbours had a Golf Mk2

Another great video from you Ed, I passed my test in '71 in my 1200 Beetle and have had Volkswagens ever since, including an '85 Jetta, '89 Golf 'driver' ( Manhattan in Germany), '91 Golf 'driver' (Pasadena in Germany) Mk 3 and Mk 4 Golfs. Though never a proper GTI, despite driving Volkswagen UK's first press fleet GTI, a 1600 3 speed in Mars Red (MKT 512R). In recent years i have moved on to Audi, currently an S3. Though i must admit to looking recently at a Mark 7.5 Golf GTI - performance. Who needs 300ps and all wheel drive, when 245ps, with the appropriate winter tyres when needed, will do all that's required in the UK. PS, So nice to see a standard spec MK2 GTI, even down to its factory steel wheels.

Great video Ed. This was the car that if your mates got it as their first car 2nd hand in the late 80's and early 90's you thought they were doing very well! Volkswagen was seen as the affordable, well built and reliable manufacturer compared to Ford, Vauxhall and any French car.

Great video, very informative. I’m 77 and drive a mk7.5, it’s like being a kid again. Thanks, RickGTI 🇺🇸

The drag CE was still a long way from Renaults GTA in 1984 of 0.27. It was the most aerodynamic car in the world until the Calibra arrived and took the record. (I have a GTA V6 Turbo ).

Another brilliant video Ed , My first car was a MK2 Golf 1.3 CL Carb , I took that car all over even to the Wolfsburg factory and Autostadt Museum . I would till have the car now if some idiot in a TVR had not hit me and wrote it off . My love of the MK2 started when i was about 8 and my Aunt had a 1.2 Ryder as a Motability car for my nan . I remember saying thats what i want as my first car and i was lucky enough at 17 to get a G Plate in Tornado Red .

Great history of the Mk 2 Golf Ed remember them coming out in 1983 as a 9 year old a very popular hatch of the 80's👍👍👍

Good video on such an everyday car. In Russia used MK2 Golfs became a hit among buyers in the 90's. Almost every city was full of Golfs from Austria, Germany, Poland and even Japan (yep it was actually possible to meet the RHD Golf in cities like Vladivostok or Khabarovsk). The one thing that could radicallly change this car's desing was flush headlights IMO.

The only VW I've driven regularly was a 1999 Golf GTi Turbo. I suppose it drove OK, but there was a problem with the alarm that never got resolved (I never managed to succeed in disarming the alarm, I had to park it in a carpark away from houses overnight because the alarm kept going off regularly during the night and my neighbours complained). One time it was being serviced at a VW dealership, and not only did they fail to fix the alarm, but someone emptied over £5 from the coin tray, and that put me off considering VWs in later years.

Many years ago, around 87, i was selling my Jag XJS, and some bloke bought one of these around my house wanting to do a straight swap. I took the GTI around the block...and hated it. It felt like a slow tractor in comparison to my Jag. I passed.

Not to mention that the Golf Mk2, brought along VW's first ever full mapped engine management system "Digifant I" in 1989. The car you have there is the Digfant1 PB engine. 112BHP. They could be remapped to 125BHP fairly easily. The PB engine was also placed in the VW Passat GT.

To me this is the best looking Golf

Looks just like the one I bought new in 1990. It was a great car but it had its faults. I eventually sold it and It kept going until 197,000 miles Corrosion killed it in the end. I ran it alongside a new Impreza WRX and it was still fun on a twisty country lane but the Impreza made me realize the Golf was in a way quite antiquated. Mind you it took VW 15 years to replace it with a decent car.

I got a Mk2 8 valve Golf GTI years ago, it was about four years old with 56k on the clock, 1 owner. Jade green metallic. Id wanted one for years, it was brilliant to drive, the sound, the way it handled, solid and reliable. Sold it as I thought I was buying somewhere to live with a girlfriend. We split up but id already sold the car. Only downside for me was the gearing on motorways was a bit high doing 70, although the 16v model seemed to have solved that somewhat as I got the chance to drive one a few years later. Never been interested in VW after that. The badge seems to attract smug people these days. Same as every other German car brand. Image obsessed attention seekers. Im now happy tootling around in a nice low mileage Impreza. Should last me a long time. Sod the image, at least you dont see a hundred of them on your way to work.

Great video, I had a MK 1 for my first car, 1100 engine it wouldn't move if there was more than four people in it! Spent a fortune getting it road legal and then sold it for something faster, gutted I got rid of it, one of life's worst decision's.

I used to have a VW Corrado 2.0 16V 94M in Red.

In North America for 1990 there was also a 2.0L 16V (136PS)

The Mark 2 Golf and the Austin Maestro were launched in the same year yet looked like they were from different decades.

My dad still has a 1991 16v which came stock with 15" BBS RS alloys

we had one from 1991 was nice

I've always loved the VW Golf mk2&Jetta mk2.

0:05 ... the leaf lol

Bought a 1.3 as my first car a few months ago

Another excellent piece, Ed. You must do a hell of a lot of reading and research to come up with so much detail on the cars you feature. * While the cars you treat are always clean, shiny, and apparently well kept on the outside and in the cabin, many are a disappointment when you lift the bonnet: they are grotty, far more so than what I believe to be appropriate for and indicative of a well-maintained machine. Is it just that too many people are only concerned with external appearances, indicating a certain superficiality? Or am I just seriously anally retentive in my motorraum? * On the topic of drag coefficient: the 1979-released Mercedes-Benz W126 series had CDs of .34 for the saloon and .31 for the coupé SEC. Not at all bad for large, square land yachts of their time; in fact the W126 series were the first production cars to reach or better a CD of .34.

I still drive mine daily :)

My first car was a Mark 1 Golf N handed down by my parents - The N stood for nothing I reckon! Four speeds, 1.1 litre engine, no headrests, no rear windscreen wiper - turquoise and rusted appallingly! In later times had a Mk 2 GTi 16v - the small bumper version - heavy steering as no power steering but fast and comfortable. This was however the era of the ram raider and it was always being targeted - went through three alarms all of which did their job - even had the garage broken into , heard the alarm go off and went down to see the thief running off with the siren in his hands which was still going off as self powered! He threw it away as he ran! Eventually sold it to one of my receptionist's husband who was a policeman. Stolen a week later by being put on a trailer!

I drove a 1.6d Mk2 Golf long ago...It was so loud that highways were no fun at all.

Get a face lifted 16v, you'll regret it if you don't. I still think they are one of the best hot hatches ever made, and after the face lift, which deleted front quarterlights and added the big bumpers, the car looked good too. A proper, good to drive, powerful, well built car that still turns heads today.

I love how you are dressed to match the era of the car.

The Mk2 diesel is the Platonic ideal of 'an automobile'.

My first car was a Mk1. A fantastic car and, as you say, prettier than the Mk2 which, when they came out, looked much bulkier. A couple of remarkable things about the Mk1. Despite what you say, I had mine to 8 years old and close to 100k miles and it had not a speck of rust. The other thing was its economy, it comfortably returned over 50 mpg on an open run (Formel E); 40 years on I have never owned a more efficient petrol engined car! Progress?!

It's worth noting that Toyota had a 16V engine in 2 different Corolla variants (AE82 and AE86) a full two years earlier than the Mk2 GTi 16V. VW was just playing catch-up as the GTI Mk2 8V's performance was overshadowed by its GTI Mk1 predecessor due to its 180kg weight gain.

The MK2 and MK3 I like the most. MK2 looks pretty good but IMHO the MK3 is when it comes to the Feeling of driving and Interior Quality the better one for me.I also like the MK3 Engines more with the Mono Motronic or Digifant as those with the Pierburg Carburators or the Bosch K/KE Jetronic. What also speaks for the MK3 is that used Parts are way easier to get. MK2 Parts in good Condition getting more rare and expencive. Only for the Look I like the MK2 more ! I know someone who owns a MK2 1.8 Fire and Ice 2 Door with only 63.000km...its standing now for 6 Years, he dont want to sell it but I dont give up on this :)

I think vw of that era were prob better screwed together and longer lasting than the modern ones.

If an alien landed on earth and asked "what is a car", just show them a Golf. The 16v was quite extraordinary at the time. It was the hot hatch to be seen in. The image that your car projected during the eighties was more important to buyers than the engineering to a great extent. The stereotypical image of the XR Fords was a real thing. So was the reverse of that shouty image when you saw a Golf GTi. If you really wanted to fly under the radar though, get an Astra LXi. Basically a GTE estate without the body kit. That was a real sleeper. Has anyone got one of those?

In the US the name "Rabbit" was used. Did the UK get the Golf/ Rabbit pickup truck like the US did?

These cars were meant to last not the shit they make today.

I want that Golf. Give it to me.

Nice video. VAG products just do not do it for me. I have owned a Passat B3, Golf III VR6, an Audi A8, A4 V6. I did not warm to any of these cars and sold them all pretty quickly. The only VAG product that I do like are the old air-cooled cars, especially the 1600 and 411. Do not why. I think character. To me more recent VAG products lack character. VAG cars are cars for sensible people, and I do not qualify for this...

For our American friends: VW from Germany, not Mexico nor Brazil nor Chattanooga.

Unpopular opinion: I love the MK3 Golf

Coming from North America, the Volkswagen experience tends to be ill suited for the market. The consumable parts (engine electronics, cam belt, dampers) have very specific design lives and service parameters that become a trial for drivers accustomed to American vehicles that seem to be made of raw pig iron, and Asian vehicles that do 300,000 miles without asking for much more than an oil change every other year. This also explains why the French are gone, Fiat has died twice, and the only way to sell a Vauxhall/Opel is to badge it as a Chevrolet or a Buick and make it in Korea.

Having run a mk2 gti 8 valve in the 90s for a few years I'll say this,it never lett me down,and was quick for what it was,also ran a mk1 gti campaign for a couple of years and although that turned more heads I'd say the mk2 was a better all rounder.

It’s amazing how little a company has to reinvent the wheel when they get the formula enduringly correct in the first place. The Mk2 Golf didn’t need to leap a decade because the Mk1 - taken as a complete car - was already at least 1/2 to a full decade ahead of the competition when it launched in 1974. The Horizon, Strada/Ritmo, Escort, R14 and 9/11, Astra, and even the Maestro that launched years after the Mk1 all failed to best the Golf as an overall package. Had VW tried to be too progressive with the Mk2, they might have risked outsmarting themselves and coming up with something “ahead of its time” that resonated more in hindsight than when new. Like you, the Mk2 Golf wouldn’t have been my choice back in the day. A more standard Lancia Delta 1.6L probably would have been my choice at the time. Maybe, in later years, a Peugeot 309. What would you have chosen in the Golf class at the time of the Mk2? What might be helpful to note is that VW fell on extremely hard times in the US in the era of the Mk2 Golf. After the second Energy Crisis of 1979-81 abated and the economy began to recover in some ways beginning in 1983, upwardly mobile economical hatchbacks like the Mk2 Golf just didn’t sell very well. VW sales got so bad that the company seriously considered leaving the American market altogether in the early ‘90s and began importing a Brazilian model to offer customers something inexpensive because Golf sales were so poor. The hot hatchback craze in Europe at the time barely showed up in the US by comparison, and the Mk2 Golf had become more expensive than the shrinking market could bear in profitable volume. In its last year on the US market, VW shifted only 9,359 Golf/GTI units total in a market 10x the volume of the UK’s.

Not sure mine will last to 2500, maybe 2030-2035 is more realistic hope

TV advertising was so much cleverer and humorous in the 1970's and 80's. What happened ?!

Shame that Volkswagen can't make a quality car now with numourous engine issues and plasticky interior like the T Roc

Pfffftttt the Mkii is a much, much more beautiful car than the Mki. It's beautiful from every angle. Not angular and bony like the Mki.

Best car VW ever made IMHO. Finally a GOOD car in a review 😉 Oh and you claim a Maestro has more flair... ummm what??

I have a mk2 gti 😍 😍 😍 😍

Brilliant cars, had several, but alas it was downhill all the way after this, the Golf is now a bloated shadow of its former self, build quality bombed and not that reliable either.

You are right the MK 1 was much prettier...