Lot details Registration No: WHX999S Chassis No: 1783500010
- One of only 22 original special order vehicles imported by VW into the UK in 1978
- Full glass and interior out body and mechanical restoration to original specification
- Original very early features still present
Now in its seventh generation, the Golf GTi remains the hot hatch by which all rival products are judged. The inaugural version was made available to a delighted German public in June 1976 and, while it wasn't until July 1979 that righthand drive versions landed on British shores, a special order of 22 lefthand drive ones were imported by Volkswagen the year before in order to give the already salivating UK enthusiast fraternity a sneak peek at this new and exciting genre of performance car. The ploy worked perfectly as the car's unique combination of handling, performance, packaging and affordability was an instant hit. Suddenly, there was the perfect solution for the enthusiast who'd forsaken his sports car to transport a young family - the GTi was what you might call a 'cake and eat it' car. Models have a habit of growing over the years and today's Polo is in fact larger than the original Golf, never mind the current generation of Golf itself, which is way bigger. So, though naturally not as quick as the current offering, the first generation GTi is actually more nimble and still great fun to drive - small wonder then that collectors have long since latched on to the good ones.
'WHX 995S' is special in several ways. Firstly it is one of the aforementioned 22 lefthand drive pilot cars, so a very rare beast of significance to Volkswagen history. Secondly, following a comprehensive restoration , just completed , this matching numbers example is now immaculate, with its vendor describing the bodywork, Silver paintwork, check cloth interior trim, 110bhp four-cylinder engine and four-speed manual gearbox as all being in 'excellent' order. He is now offering it complete with fresh MOT and Volkswagen Museum Certificate confirming the factory build date, chassis and engine numbers etc, plus the specification that includes green glass!
PLEASE NOTE: Due to time constraints, this Lot has been fitted with later specification seats. However, a restored set of MKI seats will be supplied in original specification material.
All successful bids must be paid in full by midday the day after the auction at the latest.
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