At present, diesel engines occupy a decreasing share in the automotive industry due to the growth in the number of electric, especially hybrid vehicles, this is especially true in Europe. However, decades ago, the spread of diesel cars was no less expected than the appearance of the Messiah, when not only the European continent, but also America moaned about the consequences of the oil crisis – and this was not so long ago. you just need to fly back in time for 40 years.
At the time, car manufacturers responded to the rampant rise in gasoline prices by releasing practical entry-level models while using the latest technology of the time. In the late 1970s, passenger cars with a diesel engine began to enter everyday life, and in the case of the still famous Volkswagen Golf, it debuted in 1982 and also produced a sports version. It was easy to distinguish diesel Golfs from gasoline ones: unlike the GTI models (considered the most powerful among gasoline ones), the radiator grille was not red, but silver-striped.
Click on the image to open the gallery:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
Share a photo:
The sports seats and even the tachometer were taken over from the GTI, but everything else remained the same: body curves, spoiler, wide wheels and gearbox. However, a significant difference – as in most cases – had to be found under the hood, to which the “Turbo Diesel” lettering on the four-spoke steering wheel attracted and continues to attract attention.
While its 54 horsepower didn’t prove to be particularly damaging on asphalt, it was also particularly popular with the Golf 1, which is a big word since – given its introduction in 1974 – it was produced exclusively for a long time and there were six in total worldwide. types of gasoline engines, and then from September 1983, the successor to the legendary Beetle of their second generation began to appear on the assembly line. As with the later version, the 1.6-litre but weaker engine – since there was an even slower, 50-horsepower version of this type – took 19-20 seconds before the Golf reached 100 km/h from standstill ; the use of a turbocharger made it possible to correct this situation.
At the same time, it was possible to increase the power of the diesel Golf to 70 horsepower, but compared with the fact that the new GTI model, equipped with a 1.8-liter engine, produced 112 horsepower, it was still meager consolation. The 133 Nm of torque also helped improve its acceleration significantly, but the 14 second value was also 4 seconds behind the petrol version. But at the time, it wasn’t that that really mattered, but the fact that fuel consumption had dropped by 60 percent.
Photo: Collecting cars
Photo: Collecting cars
For four or five decades, many Golf 1s have been owned by many, but one or two early GTIs are still common, and some examples are still in particularly fine condition to this day. In the case of the GTD Golf, this is much less likely, but there is definitely one that holds up well today. The 1982 Volkswagen that appeared on the Car Collecting page was for sale in Italy at the time and has had a fourth owner since, is immaculate inside and out, and the 1.6 diesel engine, which sounds loud today, can Does a modern Pioneer cassette recorder suppress sound. This is the perfect nostalgic train.