Oakie Dokey - Restoration to Roadtrip! Part three!

Ok, the clock kept ticking, weeks had passed since I had even swung a spanner in anger, and I was getting nowhere fast.

My time was taken up with work, trips to hospitals in Waterford and Cork, and the car was low on my list of priorities.

My daughter was home and she was stable, awaiting further advice and treatment from the neurological team (thank you all for the good wishes on her behalf, by the way, much appreciated - I've been literally blown away by all the support people have shown over the past couple of months).

After a few texts to a few friends in VAGE, the cavalry was called in...I finished work at 7am one Sunday morning in late June, and just after I dragged my ass outta the cot at lunchtime, a convoy of VAGs pulled into my drive....enter Johnny Fennell, Cian O'Connor, Donie Browne and Tony O'Connor; all were armed to the teeth with spanners, socket sets and an admirable selection of hammers, the most important tool you can have when dealing with old VWs!

I filled the lads with tay and ham sandwiches and we made the short trip over to the workshop where Oakie had sat unattended...

By 11pm that night, we had engine and gearbox, new wishbones, new track rod ends, new front and rear wheel bearings, new droplinks, exhaust system and manifold, new front and rear bumpers, lights and a whole pile of other parts installed.. I'll let the pictures of that hectic day do the talking!

Ok, so this shot's ever so slightly staged! HAHA!

Donie and Cian giving the brakes a good seeing to!

 Again, Donie and Cian...this time adjusting the front subframe and making the new wishbones and bushes fit...with some hammers!

Johnny and Tony lying down on the job? Nah, They're making an uncooperative rear bumper fit.

11PM that night, everyone gathering their tools for the weary drive home after an epic day's work!

 I went back to work for another shift rotation; every spare minute was spent over in Cookie's workshop, fitting parts, removing them, trial fitting, setting bits up, bolting them on...you know the score.

The final stages of any restoration or rebuild are always the most frantic, fitting all the fiddly little bits and figuring out where those few little pieces go, the fine tuning, gentle persuasion with a hammer, it goes on and on....

On Monday, July 1st, the car still had no wings, bonnet, glass (apart from a new windscreen), tailgate, etc. - they were still in Robbo's workshop!

The engine was still not plumbed in for coolant and the entire loom was an unholy mess, due to some 'inventive' wiring that had been performed over the years, adding alarms etc.

Brakes were still to be fitted and bled, the engine needed a full set of fluids and filters, and we still hadn't even turned the key...hell, there weren't even any relays or fuses in the car!

In some of the most selfless acts of generosity I've ever experienced, two men dropped everything and put their lives on hold for the four days leading up to the Inters trip....remember, this car was meant to be driving onto the ferry at 8am on the morning of July 5th!

Donie Browne slept in my spare room and put in 16hr days all that week with me, up at dawn and falling into bed when the sun was rising the next morning, finishing the car...brakes, steering, engine work, all the heavy duty stuff I can't do anymore since a back operation a few years ago.

Padraic Bolger (Podsy on here and the Irish aircooled forums - check out some his work with his company Customvolkz on Facebook) is an electrical/electronics genius...he also happens to be my cousin! Every day, he arrived in his T25 camper (complete with Audi Allroad V6 2.5tdi conversion) to tackle the mess of wiring, bad connections, corroded contacts and broken earth points, and practically rewired the car in a couple of days....he even renewed the wiring that would be hidden under the carpets and wrapped it all sexy new loom tape, doing a better job than when it left the factory!

While all this was going on, Robbo arrived and we refitted bonnet, wings, tailgate, glass, trim, everything that had been scattered around the workshop in boxes!

Dylan, my 13yr old son, cleaning up after all the bodywork...Jesus, that dust gets everywhere!

Taking shape, slowly but surely!

Engine plumbed, radiator fitted, lights in.

Not driving yet - we pushed her out in the sunshine to get some daylight while we were working!

Taking shape nicely now.

Robbo carrying out the final touches, polishing the freshly painted and refitted panels.

If you squint, it looks just like a Golf!

That's more like it!

A hive of activity, hidden behind all those vans! Who's the little fecker photobombing in the corner??!!

The last day came and we fired her up....nothing....it was a real 'OH 5HITE' moment...had all this hard work and generosity by all the lads been for nothing? I was getting ready to ring the ferry company and tell them I'd be showing up Friday morning in my battered old T4, I was broken and defeated, mentally and physically at this point.

Undeterred, Donie and Padraic went digging in the bowels of the car, found the problem, and we tentatively poured some more petrol in the tank and turned the key again...SUCCESS, she fired first turn, gave a little cough and settled down into a healthy, throaty burble through the Magnex stainless system.

The last few hours are a total blur, refitting interior, Robbo refitting the sunroof, being more careful than a bomb disposal expert, in case he scratched any of his meticulous hard work, Padraic feverishly running wires everywhere, rewiring lights, stereo, replacing relays, dismantling wiper and window motors and rebuilding them; it truly was a sight to behold!

10pm came and we were done....there was nothing more to do than torque wheelstuds, clear all the tools and oily rags out of the way and drive her out of the garage....would she run? would the brakes work? would she change gear?

She rolled out under her own power into a beautiful summers evening...here's a pic of that moment..

Words can't express how that felt...she ran smoothly, stopped briskly, drove perfectly, everything worked as it should and it was all down to the hard work and generosity of a few good men. 

So, did she make it to GTi International? Read on...

6am, Friday5th of July; time to head for the ferry.
We threw our gear in the back of the Golf, said our goodbyes, and jumped in...me and Dylan were a little nervous to say the least...last nights shakedown run had consisted of the ten minute journey from the workshop to home with Padraic driving behind us in case she calved! Was it enough? Would she die on the road to Rosslare?

I'll let the pictures do the talking...

 Parking up on the ferry to Wales.

Nice Arse.

On the road, somewhere in the UK

On the VAGE clubstand at GTi International, Stratford-Upon-Avon.

That weekend, we covered 700mls in 30+ degrees celsius heat. Oakie suffered nothing worse than a leaking heater matrix and a rear roundel badge which fell off due to the intensely hot weather melting the glue....not bad for a car lashed together in a couple of weeks!

Thanks again to all the lads for their help and perseverance, I couldn't have done it without ye.

Later folks, drive safe,
RV

Who's the smug fucker???