Photo: The Market
Technically speaking, the Golf GTI Mk. 1 isn’t the first-ever hot hatchback. The Mini Cooper doesn’t count either because we’re talking about a two-door instead of a five-door design. On the other hand, Volkswagen did set the golden standard for hot hatchbacks at the 1975 Frankfurt Motor Show.
A little more than 462,000 examples of the breed were produced until 1983, and you can find a second-hand model for peanuts or a bit of a fortune depending on a number of factors. This fellow here – a 1979 model in right-hand drive for the United Kingdom – is described as a museum-quality survivor.
To be auctioned on March 19th, chassis number 1793609609 is a 1.6-liter Golf GTI in black over black-and-silver tartan upholstery. The odometer shows less than 17,000 miles, and yes, this car features the four-speed manual.
“This is possibly the last opportunity that any of us will ever have to own what is still an essentially brand-new, unrestored, reference-quality Golf GTI Mk. 1," said Tristan Judge, director of The Market. “It’s not any GTI, but the very purest, earliest model that blazed a trail for everything that came thereafter,” including the likes of the Peugeot 205 GTi, Renault 5 Turbo, and Ford Fiesta XR2.
Registered as ENT 847V, the first-generation model in the photo gallery can also boast two television appearances in 1995 and 2000 on The Car’s The Star and Clarkson’s Car Years. Recommissioned in 2015 for over 7,000 pounds sterling, the vehicle further sports a rebuilt gearbox and clutch assembly.
As if those weren’t enough, the seller mentions that his Golf GTI is accompanied by a historic vehicle certificate, Corgi scale model, and what can only be described as a treasure trove of documents. These include the bill of sale, llogbook brochure, publicity photos, MOTs, servicing expenses, correspondence with the BBC, and road tax discs from the car’s 41 years of cherished existence.
On an ending note, the estimate starts at 31,000 pounds sterling. After a week of auctioning, chances are the Mk. 1 will achieve or surpass the high estimate of 42,000 pounds sterling if bidding gets a little wild.
To be auctioned on March 19th, chassis number 1793609609 is a 1.6-liter Golf GTI in black over black-and-silver tartan upholstery. The odometer shows less than 17,000 miles, and yes, this car features the four-speed manual.
“This is possibly the last opportunity that any of us will ever have to own what is still an essentially brand-new, unrestored, reference-quality Golf GTI Mk. 1," said Tristan Judge, director of The Market. “It’s not any GTI, but the very purest, earliest model that blazed a trail for everything that came thereafter,” including the likes of the Peugeot 205 GTi, Renault 5 Turbo, and Ford Fiesta XR2.
Registered as ENT 847V, the first-generation model in the photo gallery can also boast two television appearances in 1995 and 2000 on The Car’s The Star and Clarkson’s Car Years. Recommissioned in 2015 for over 7,000 pounds sterling, the vehicle further sports a rebuilt gearbox and clutch assembly.
As if those weren’t enough, the seller mentions that his Golf GTI is accompanied by a historic vehicle certificate, Corgi scale model, and what can only be described as a treasure trove of documents. These include the bill of sale, llogbook brochure, publicity photos, MOTs, servicing expenses, correspondence with the BBC, and road tax discs from the car’s 41 years of cherished existence.
On an ending note, the estimate starts at 31,000 pounds sterling. After a week of auctioning, chances are the Mk. 1 will achieve or surpass the high estimate of 42,000 pounds sterling if bidding gets a little wild.
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