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When we first featured this iconic Mk1 Golf way back in 1999, it was like nothing we’d ever seen before. Almost a quarter of a century later, amazingly, the car still remains the GOAT. Here’s why…

When the owner of high-end trimmers, Carsdream set out to build his vision of the perfect Mk1, we expected it to be the stuff of dreams. It didn’t disappoint…

After the distinctively cheeky character and idiosyncratic mechanicals of the rear-engined aircooled Volkwagens, getting into the firmly-bolstered plaid-clad drivers’ seat of this Golf GTI MkI feels like a total culture shock. Everything is angular, futuristic, hinting at computerised systems and digital precision, created in the same kind of ultra-rational post-oil-crisis idiom that produced things like the Porsche 928 and W126 Mercedes-Benz S-class. Only in-house stylist Herbert Schäfer’s contribution, the gearknob – Schäfer was a keen golfer – hints at any notion of fun. And yet in the Eighties, the Golf GTI would define driving excitement.

While manufacturers are obsessed with making everything electric these days, most enthusiasts seem more set than ever on keeping the gasoline dream alive.

A few things come to mind when you think of race car. We bet a ratty, Berg Cup-kitted five-pot Rabbit wasn't one. Shame on you!

US Navy man, Rafael ‘Ralphie’ Cabrera Jr. is used to directing military aircraft in his role as a Chief Air Traffic Controller. It makes sense that his Mk1 Cabriolet is both ready for inspection and, with 1.8T power, a flying machine…

By day Jake Nelson works on military vehicles. It makes sense that his Berg-kitted 330bhp 1.8T powered Mk1 looks as hard as nails. You’d be brave to wage war against this one…

Serial Mk1 modifier, Stuart Shellard is back with a bang for his sixth PVW feature. With 1.8T power, Harris trim, air and those gorgeous E30 splits, he’s got the ingredients right once again but haven’t we seen this car somewhere before?

When Youtube star, Dan Chambers, realised his recently purchased Mk1 Golf GTI Campaign wasn’t going to be the quick fix he had hoped for, he embarked on a full nut and bolt restoration with a 20v turbo twist!

Here at PVW Towers, we are frequently asked what it takes to make a feature car. There are no hard and fast rules to this. This Gorgeous Mk1 GTI with a select few period mods is proof that sometimes less is more…

When accomplished fabricator and sprayer, Dan Sycamore of Sycworx fame turned his attention to his own Golf, we knew it would be special but this is next level. It just bagged ‘Best Mk1’ at Edition 38. Praise indeed…

Small cabriolets often get tarnished with the same, lame image, but Brandon Quail’s Berg-Cup kitted 300bhp 1.8T example is far from your regular rag top!

The Mk1 Golf Cabriolet can often be had for far smaller sums than the regular hatch, especially when it comes to the GTI. But does it make for a great summer classic, or a floppy-topped folly?

After a brain injury left him in a coma, Mick Matthew’s stunning Mk1 Golf project was nearly his last. Luckily, he’s now back to full health and plans on enjoying his latest and greatest build to the full...

Trimmer by day, road racer by night… Chris Smith’s 300bhp Mk1 Golf is far from subtle, but then we don’t think it was ever meant to be.