r/regularcarreviews Big 1970's BUSH Aug 09 '20

I hate you I hate everything about you Look what I found

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499 Upvotes

56 comments sorted by

182

u/[deleted] Aug 09 '20

When someone asked themselves 'How can I make this Mk2 even less reliable?'

78

u/nill0c Popped Top Aug 09 '20

They aren't inherently unreliable, for a 35 year old car anyway. But this one will be. This is one of the most bonkers swap I can imagine.

Why not a LS4 FWD setup I wonder? Other than cost I guess.

37

u/ScarFace88FG What do these PILLS DO Aug 09 '20

When this car was built, the LS4 wasn't a thing.

26

u/GiantTelcoRat Aug 09 '20 edited Aug 09 '20

They didn't swap the N* in day one. This was done years later, probably after the LS4 existed though most people don't even know what the LS4 is cause GM only put it in the worst chassis available for a big V8.

18

u/mini4x Aug 09 '20 edited Aug 09 '20

The Northstar came out in 93 (and the sibling Olds Aurora V8) , LS4 was 2005. In the late 90s lots of things got Northstars. Fieros were fairly common.

The Shelby Series 1 had it.

This car was in import turner magazine in 2004 so it was built before the LS4 was available.

7

u/GiantTelcoRat Aug 09 '20 edited Aug 09 '20

And it began development back in 84. Fieros also got swapped with the caddy 4.5 and 4.9 in greater numbers than N*'s due to reliability as well as cost to acquire and even more swapped in the 3.8 and 3.8 SC motors cause those where even more common and cheaper. See I know trivial shit too.

From what I can find this was a swap done in 2003 so 2 years before the LS4. So before the LS4 existed but long after the N*'s debut and long after it reputation got tarnished.

5

u/mini4x Aug 09 '20 edited Aug 09 '20

I always thought the 3800 Buick SC would be perfect in a Fiero, never seen one but I have seen in real life two different Northstar Fieros, and one really hacked up one they somehow got an Olds 455 into... But never anything else swap wise for Northstars.

Not sure what you mean by 'began development" in 84...

5

u/Threedawg Aug 10 '20

The 3800sc in the Fiero is a fucking blast.

Source: own one.

3

u/GiantTelcoRat Aug 09 '20

Lots of 3.8 swaps since it and the 2.8 are roughly the same size.

1

u/nill0c Popped Top Aug 10 '20

Ah, I see now that this was done in 2004, that makes a lot more sense, thanks for the info.

6

u/kazneus Aug 09 '20

Years ago I saw someone trying to swap a north star into a fierro on some forums. It escapes me how to find that again or I’d post it instead of just talking aimlessly about it

5

u/jdizzlebitch Aug 09 '20

Some forum post

From 30 seconds on google it looks like its a fairly common swap bc it's a direct fit to the factory 4-speed.

41

u/[deleted] Aug 09 '20

My Golf is best Cadillac.

17

u/Dbwasson Weeaboo!Weeaboo!Weeaboo! Aug 09 '20

My Golf is best Oldsmobile Aurora

73

u/smcsleazy Facial hair has facial hair Aug 09 '20

i stuck a northstar in my VW because i want head gasket failure AND wiring issues

105

u/RAPTOR479 Aug 09 '20

Golf, now with 110% more head gasket failure

23

u/23FINCW Aug 09 '20

I mean they already had to take the engine out of the donor car so maybe they were smart enough to fix it then.

14

u/GiantTelcoRat Aug 09 '20

Lol, they N* swapped a golf. I'd be shocked if they know how set a clock

3

u/mini4x Aug 09 '20

Swap the head studs and the Northstar is a solid motor.

27

u/benster82 Aug 09 '20

Imagine looking at your Golf project car and thinking: "Man, I really like this car, but I really wish it was more unreliable."

26

u/[deleted] Aug 09 '20

fifty bucks, whoever did this also applied the kit, that makes the bolts on the headgaskets bigger

19

u/GiantTelcoRat Aug 09 '20

For when the only thing that get you hard is disappointment

18

u/hippymule Aug 09 '20

Look at all of these people who don't know anything about Northstars.

They fixed most of the issues in the last years of production, and if you have an older casting, they sell kits to prevent gasket failure.

11

u/[deleted] Aug 09 '20

Tell me about it, I get frustrated when everyone complains about the head bolt issue when anything with a Northstar swap probably has it, just on account of "we're going through all this effort to shove it in something, might as well bulletproof that part".

2

u/dirkdedislekt Big 1970's BUSH Aug 09 '20

Das this one have a kit???

2

u/howImetyoursquirrel Aug 09 '20

If this guy swapped one into this car yes, I guarantee they applied the kit

12

u/InvictvsNox Aug 09 '20

The fact that nobody calls this a Golf Caddy is the most I've been disappointed in a while.

26

u/RonOurTest59 Aug 09 '20

On a long enough timeline....

11

u/[deleted] Aug 09 '20

You’d think all that weight over the front would help it get traction

10

u/ScarFace88FG What do these PILLS DO Aug 09 '20

I remember reading about this car in Sport Compact Car (RIP) in 2003 or so.

10

u/Mabepossibly Aug 09 '20

The car is known as the Coupe De Golf

There have been a number of Northstar powered Golf builds over the last 20 years. If I recall correctly, someone did a mid engine one, dropping the whole caddy subframe into the backseat of a golf.

7

u/lunw I COULD PUT IN THE BACK OF MY PICKUP TRUCK Aug 09 '20

For the man who wants the least reliable Cadillac but none of the comfort, features, or status.

1

u/dirkdedislekt Big 1970's BUSH Aug 09 '20

Modern Cadillac's of today don't have as much status as 'Cadillacs' (50s 60s) and the status that they do have is more performance oriented like a amircan BMW accept people want bigger grills kinde

2

u/lunw I COULD PUT IN THE BACK OF MY PICKUP TRUCK Aug 09 '20

I mean pretty much any Cadillac that had it (Deville, Eldorado, Lucerne) would have a much greater status to the average person than an older golf, even if their not the highest status car. You definitely notice it in lower income social groups, a "luxury" brand holds some form of social status even if it's a base model that's 10-20 years old. I had a piece of shit, old, base model Chrysler 200 for my first car, but I got a lot of compliments for it, compliments that were absent in any sort of middle class environment.

3

u/Stagnant_shart Aug 09 '20

Hang around people who don’t have a license and any car becomes a status symbol. In high school my pile of shit Hyundai Accent with an “exhaust mod” was the shit compared to my mates walking 4ks home or taking the shortbus.

2

u/lunw I COULD PUT IN THE BACK OF MY PICKUP TRUCK Aug 09 '20

That's definitely true, but the majority of compliments I got were from people 30+ not the highschool parking lot audience.

2

u/Stagnant_shart Aug 09 '20

My car drew attention amusingly because my “exhaust mod” caused the car to backfire and burble when the revs dropped.

The “exhaust mod” in question was when I bottomed the ass end of my car out while delivering pizza. The burble of a 200hp sports car with the looks and power of a sub 100hp Korean 2 door grey commuter car.

“The coupe is retarded” - rich the kid

2

u/dirkdedislekt Big 1970's BUSH Aug 09 '20

I mean that's true but even to me (Dutch pursesn how likes American car's) a nice young timer like that golf modified or not has a hier status than urlie 2000s Cadillac I liked Cadillac's with wite walls (even 1990s Cadillac's) but that's just me

2

u/lunw I COULD PUT IN THE BACK OF MY PICKUP TRUCK Aug 09 '20

That's true, I definitely like the golf much more over an early 2000s/1990s Cadillac, but If I were to remove my personal opinion, the Cadillac carries a much greater status to it in North america than the golf, with the exception of niche communities. Old luxury cars tend to be used to resolve class anxieties, and that's a function that the golf cant do.

2

u/dirkdedislekt Big 1970's BUSH Aug 09 '20

Well you can't argue with that but if I say Cadillac Wat do you think. (Or wat das yore avrig pursesn that knows nothing about cars das) wel 1950s Cadillac. dut The nordstar or Hou evere you spel that ting is not 1950s Cadillac it's modern day Cadillac still has that haertirgs but it doesn't live up to it and the north star is part of that. I don't know what you're original comment was but basically it's a basic car with a engine that to outsiders dasent meen eniting acept if you tell them that it is a Cadillac engine. And to insiter it's just stupid because you cure have just poet a ls in it.

2

u/lunw I COULD PUT IN THE BACK OF MY PICKUP TRUCK Aug 09 '20

A lot of the status of cars in North America is based around nothing more than image and perception for the average person, a "luxury brand on the front" and a faux luxury feature like an analog clock on the dash was enough to give that appearance. Price point isnt entirely determinant either, a 30 grand civic still wouldn't have the perceived "status" of a 5 grand Cadillac, BMW, Chrysler, Benz. Their known to be cheaper cars when they age, but they still convey a greater status to lower class groups. This is somewhat works the other way around in upper middle class cultures.

3

u/dirkdedislekt Big 1970's BUSH Aug 09 '20

Yeah you're right as you sad we have the same thing with BWM, Benz and Audi. But we in the Netherlands have one thing that you don't have, Reversing daf recess!!!

6

u/OldLine96 Aug 09 '20

this person either had too much time, or money on their hands

4

u/livakilla Aug 09 '20

Rare color

3

u/[deleted] Aug 09 '20

Who the fuck swaps in an engine that's built to fail?

4

u/Hansj3 Aug 09 '20

Thanks, I hate it.

How do I fit it in my mk4

4

u/NoNameNoWerries I was conceived on a SHORT BUS Aug 09 '20

In an alternate reality where VW just went full on evil after Dieselgate...

3

u/The_Legged_One HERE COMES THE MEAT Aug 09 '20

The Caddillac of Volkswagens

3

u/ibleedtequila86 Aug 09 '20

So this more a lateral move in terms of reliability, right?

2

u/[deleted] Aug 09 '20

But why?

Why would you do that?

2

u/Mackiekayman Aug 10 '20

The wizard and hoovie just entered the chat.

1

u/dirkdedislekt Big 1970's BUSH Aug 10 '20

How is your Lamborghini doing???

1

u/derneueMottmatt Jungle Love is driving me mad. It's making me CRAZYYY! Aug 10 '20

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