Haynes has always been all about helping you, the home mechanic, to maintain and repair your vehicles. Here, we celebrate those who use their spare time and Haynes Manuals to fix and improve their pride and joy.
DIY champion: Phil Ward, North Yorkshire, UK
Vehicle: Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk2
Phil Ward is not what you'd call a hoarder, but there’s no denying that he does like to hang on to things. Getting the ‘maximum value’ out of stuff he owns is clearly a priority.
How do we know this? Well, his pride and joy is a Volkswagen Golf GTI. A man of taste, clearly.
A man of thrift, too, because the Golf GTI at the centre of this tale is a car he bought brand new. In 1989. Yup, 34 years ago.
At the same time, Phil also bought the Haynes manual for his car, although he admits that it didn’t get a whole lot of use in the first couple of years, when the car was under warranty and was serviced by his local VW dealer.
Since then, however, Phil has carried out all of the servicing work the car has required, with his trusty Haynes Manual as a guide.
VW Golf GTI problems
On top of that, Phil felt no qualms about carrying out repairs including tie-rod end replacements, and a change of the differential output flange seal. Phil is clearly a man who knows his way around things that are mechanical, oily and broken.
However, as fettled and mollycoddled as the Golf was, the march of time was merciless – both age and mileage began to take their toll, and the Golf began to look and feel more than a little world-weary.
What to do? Many people would have offered a sigh of regret then consigned it to that great scrapyard in the sky. But not Phil. Phil likes to hang on to things, remember? He also knew that the car had many more kilometres left in it, provided he could get on top of the ageing process.
So, he began a full-on nut-and-bolt rebuild, in a bid to end up with a car that looks like the one above. As tends to be the way with these things, doing the job properly took time, but the result is a stunning 1989 Golf GTI that Phil is undeniably proud of, and which would look entirely at home at any classic motor show.
Fair play to Phil – we can understand why the feelings of satisfaction and pride must be strong, and we’re stoked that our manual was able to help him along the way.
Phil’s tale is a happy one, and we want to hear your stories of the joy, frustration, fulfilment and amazement that you experience while keeping your car on the road. It doesn’t have to be as full-on a tale as Phil’s, because just servicing your car and making it run that bit better are also sources of contentment, so we’d love you to show us what you’re working on and how you’re using Haynes to help you out.
Just send us a few details about yourself and your vehicle to yourrepairs@haynes.co.uk (our UK colleagues will be in touch).
Tell us about any issues you’ve encountered or any problems you foresee, plus a few pictures, and we’ll feature you on our website and social channels.
After all, fixing your car or motorcycle isn’t actually that difficult, and can bring confidence and delight. It will also save you a whole load of money, so let’s tell everyone about it.
