Kamei-kitted Typ19 1985 Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk2 - period perfect 80s icon with a 2.8 VR6 twist
There are many different types of hero in this world; ones that leap off tall buildings in a single bound, those who fight off evil empires, and then ones that fight off ghosts and drive VWs in their spare time… like John Vanek.
WHO YA GONNA CALL
Kamei-kitted typ19 1985 Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk2 Period perfect 80s icon with a 2.8 VR6 twist
Words: Ted Dorset
Photos: Tony Watson
VW technician by day, a Ghostbuster by night, John Vanek is a dedicated VW head all around. Yes, we said Ghostbuster! Proton Pack, Ecto-1 (B5 Passat wagon), and all the trimmings. Basically, John is part of a team of Ghostbuster re-enactors who enjoy movie prop building from the Ghostbuster franchise and does commissioned builds of replica screen accurate props from the Ghostbuster movies. But that’s a conversation for a later date… John’s VW journey started many moons ago in his teens. A friend at the time had a ’97 Jetta GT in five-speed manual form. John was intrigued with the transmission, as he’d never seen a car with a ‘stick’ trans before and this piqued his interest straight away. More and more he saw how easily VWs could be modded to go fast and look good, and the fire was lit.
«It’s just a Golf with a body kit and some stickers, but to others it’s something special»
His first VW was a triple black Mk1 Cabby back in ’04. Of course, this had the gamut of the ‘Tuning Scene’ parts thrown on it and was a head turner for sure. Like most of us the list goes on with Mk2s, Mk3s, a Mk4, and a Corrado, but we’re not here to talk about those. The time machine you see here on these very pages is the focus and the shining star here for our John.
«John was originally going to bring it back as a period correct restoration to complete factory spec»
Some of you out there will remember John from his previous Mk2 Jetta. It was one of the few Mk2s out there with a Versatec headlight/grille setup with louvers and a plate that read ‘CURSED’. John states that the car was, in fact, cursed and openly hated the car! Unfortunately for many who love it, the car met an “ill-fated demise”, but lucky for John, he was thumbing the digital pages of Craigslist and landed upon a lowly 8 valve 1985 GTi that had just been painted. Mars Red. John states that the ‘1985 Motor Trend Car of the Year’ was always a dream of his and here one stood, ripe for the picking. Well, it was ripe on the outside, but the inside needed to stay on the vine a bit more, as it was basically a shell. There were no interior plastics, the seats were mismatched, the headliner was missing. It boasted a tired 8 valve that marked its spot (like most VWs… lol) and it had A/C! After some back and forth haggling with the owner, John snapped up the car for a better price than the seller had placed on it. Believe it or not, this car was not going to be the ‘Hot Hatch’ you see here. John was going to bring it back as a period correct restoration to complete factory spec. Just a no-nonsense factory build with dealer installed A/C! Then, inspired by the euro scene and the retro mods, the interwebs’ magnetic properties showed just how strong they were. As John is a complete stickler for period correctness (PC), the rare PC parts that could be had, began their tracking number journey into John’s capable hands.
«Super rare Recaro CT seats were sourced and quickly reupholstered»
The heart of the build is the 12v VR6 from a 97 GLX Jetta. This was done by Matt Morrison of EuroKraft. Nowadays, VR6 swaps are done easily, like one, two, three, but the car fought tooth and nail going through three motors to get to the one you see today. John made the choice to go with ST coilovers on the GTI, as he states; “They ride and handle wonderfully!” This sounds like an advertisement, but it makes me want to try a set so… hey!
«It’s just a Golf with a body kit and some stickers, but to others it’s something special»
The OCD kicks into high gear here with the attention to detail. The engine bay has freshly powder-coated to factory sheen accessories, new hoses and bottles, and all the accoutrement to make it look as factory as it could be, sans Mk3. For the interior, super rare Recaro CT seats were sourced and quickly reupholstered in black leather and red stitching with a custom rear bench to match by Swift Stitch Upholstery. Piloting in the warm black leather is helped with a black Zender steering wheel, D&W pedals, a VW Motorsport shift knob, accordion shift gaiter, and a Votex console, complete with VDO oil pressure and voltage gauges. Fantastic way to complete the interior! The Kamei X1 kit was in a sore state when completely pieced together, but there was still hope. It was a kit that had been ‘round the block’, so it ended up in the hands of CJ Motoring, a fiberglass specialist, by way of John and found its way back to original shape. Even though the shell had been freshly painted, there were still a few imperfections to the perfectionist, that needed addressing. So off it the car went to Joe Milazzo who paint matched the Kamei kit, Kamei hood scoop, upper and lower ’90 GTI grille spoilers, and addressed the minor body details as well as completing the install of these and the Kamei rear hatch mid-wing. John will willingly tell you that his favourite part of the car is the Kamei X1 side decals recreated by Adam from Benini Design Studio, who also created the body line fillers, hood graphics and body graphics. Let’s talk about those wheels… The rollers are awesome Ronal R50 Aero wheels in 16”, wrapped in 195/45 R16 Federal tyres. These give that serious motorsport look along with the decals and body kit, to make the GTI the total package.
Fun fact is that he loves when people ask what an X1 is, wondering if it’s a special edition of a Golf. He says, “It makes me believe that the car is so well put together, that it can make someone think it’s more than just an ’85 GTI. At the end of the day, it’s just a Golf with a body kit and some stickers, but to others and myself, it’s something special.” John says that the future holds a turbo for it, but “nothing too crazy, just a nice little push…”, but when asked if he’d do it all again, he responded with a resounding, “Of course, have a blank check!”. When you want a to the teeth period correct ’85 GTI, “Who Ya Gonna Call?”… We surely know!
Let us know when you want to take that ride again John, but until then, ‘Golf Clap’ to you and congrats!
DUB DETAILSKamei-kitted Typ19 1985 Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk2 — period perfect 80s icon with a 2.8 VR6 twist
- ENGINE: 2.8L VR6, Techtonics Tuning 260/264 turbo cams, Techtonics Tuning 3” exhaust to a Borla muffl er, lightened flywheel, functioning air Conditioning
- CHASSIS: ST coilovers, Mk3 front brakes with drilled/slotted discs, 8x16” Ronal R50 Aero wheels with 195/45 Federal SS595 Performance tyres
- EXTERIOR: Full Kamei X1 kit including hood scoop and rear hatch mid-wing, custom X1 badges, custom heckblende decal, custom Kamei side graphics, custom hood graphics, chrome stripe Euro bumpers, OEM dual round grille with Kamei upper and lower spoilers, shaved radiator support, reproduction under hood liners
- INTERIOR: Custom Recaro CT seats with matching rear bench, Zender steering wheel, Votex centre console with VDO amperage and oil pressure gauges, as well as USB charging port, D&W pedal covers, VW Motorsport shift knob on top of an accordion shift boot. Alpine Bluetooth headunit, JBL speakers in dash, doors and rear tray, hidden 10” Rockford under seat subwoofer
- SHOUT: Matt at Eurokraft performance for making the car what I envisioned, for helping me source parts and having the missing interior pieces. Also for dealing with the aggravation of building this car. Joe Milazzo for the work done on the bodykit and rust repair. CJ from CJ Motoring for the bodykit repair. Rick Thompson from Swift Stitch Upholstery for the rear bench. Adam Benini and Scrape Empire for the graphics. Ted and Tony for making this feature possible. All of the people Ive met over the past 16 years that I still see to this day. You know how to make a guy from Long Island feel at home. Thank you