Golf GTi VR6: The Latest Addition to the FCC Stable

For too many years, I've watched guys drive around in their Golf GTi's looking so satisfied and, well, happy. I always wondered why. Now I know.

Having owned and driven plenty of old skewl VW Rabbits over the years, the Golf just seemed too...refined, too new, too pricey. I stuck with my dirt simple VW Rabbits and their 1.6 or 1.8 liter engines...

That was then. Fortunately, the effects of time have done more than fatten my midriff, shorten my patience, and dullen my intellect. Time has also made Golf GTI's affordable. What used to cost an easy $30k can now be had for around $5k-$8k. Nice...

So when I discovered a'98 GTi VR6 sitting all lonely like on the lot, I acted. I pulled the trigger. I made it mine. Had too: after a test drive for about an hour, I was left exclaiming in the cockpit, "Where have you been all my (driving) life?!?!!". It's true.

So, having driven, owned, raced, and lovingly Ghetto-modified Subaru Impreza's, Colt turbo's, Suzuki Aerio's, Honda Civic's, Mazda 323's, Volkswagen Rabbit's and Jetta's, and many more fun cheap cars, the latest addition to the stable is the Golf GTi VR6.

After the first few impressions, this feels, sounds, and pulls like a damn good driving decision.

If you have any thoughts, opinions, or advice to share, post a comment and let the world know!

More to come as the wheels spin...

Top fun cheap cars for under $1000

Ever wondered what kind of a car you can get for under $1000 bucks? Some pretty good ones, it turns out. I surveyed a few online classified ads for cars under $1000, checked out a few deals, and drove a few cars. Some good, some bad, some ugly, but all in all, pretty fun.

The cars listed below are all over 15 years old, but they would all make fine daily drivers with a little TLC. Just mind the rust, torn interiors, squeaky breaks, and ticking engines...

Fun cheap cars for under $1000
Click the links for more information from WikiPedia and RWUsed Car Reviews.

• Dodge Mitsubishi Colt - great little cars that keep running and running. Not pretty, not slick, but they handle well and are bulletproof reliable.
  
• Subaru Justy - where else can you get a 4x4 car that's great on gas, cute as kittens, rock solid reliable, and really fun to drive--for the price of a set of tires?
• Mazda 323 - well built, peppy engines, easy to modify, and they run for ever and ever. Amen.
• VW Rabbit - quick and nimble, nice interiors, classic looks, and one of the best engines ever assembled.
  
• Honda Civic - Honda quality, easy to work on, also cute as kittens, great on gas, and they don't know how to stop running
• Chevy Cavalier - not particularly fun to drive, but dang if these things don't keep going and going...
• Suzuki Swift - great fuel economy, good looks, and arguably one of the funnest to drive

There are more good cheap cars out there of course, and this is only a partial list based on the time I had. Watch for more though, because in this economy the emphasis is on the cheap part of Fun Cheap Cars.