Thank you for the story. Though I wonder that given that the Quad-4 was bench marked to other engines, why didn’t they put in balancing shafts to begin with? Does the penny saved really costs a pound? Consider that Porsche licensed the counterbalancing shaft in their 4 cylinder engines form Mitsubishi (if I correctly…

That miss on the Fiero came to mind as I read about the iron duke. Talk about a major blunder. That engine could have made that car a success. 

Just a second... you have to “ask a friend” who is into cars AND you are commenting on jalopnik? Pardon, but it seems that if you are on this site you must have some interest or passion about cars. 

I take it that the BMW was manual. I share your observation on mislabeled cars, with respect to auto/manual. The “errors” are frustrating. Only a photo is valid proof. 

Not really. 161K miles on MKIV Golf. No long trips - just in town running around. Original clutch. 

Thank you for a neat article and the reminder of just how far they have come. This was a discussion the other morning. Just how long do TDI glow plug lights stay on with the record polar vortex temps?

Dreadful, but I really want to know what camera is in this car!

Rebuilt engine? By whom and why? If these are looked after they are durable - I put many more miles on mine without burning oil or having to rebuild the engine. 

JB4 = Not available in California. Bummer

Damn! You let the secret out - tools! However, don’t forget hands on experience. Consider that having the right tools and the experience of event done it at least once, and soon you are on the way to expertise! 

I have done 45 mph on a mountain bike descending mountains of Southern California. Kind of scary to realize that nothing is really balanced and the bike was not designed for such riding. Compare that to an 18 mph crash on my commuter bike. Lycra doesn’t offer much road rash protection.

The prior event posted here had divine inspiration. In the past year there was a story on Jalopnik about a lady getting religion while driving. I recall she closed her eyes while at the wheel during prayer. The result was that she ran through a 3-way stop sign only to crash into a house? Someplace in Texas.... anyone…

Good point. Imagine engineers designing critical engine parts that don’t shake them selves loose - in a diesel engine!

Given recent investment markets, I really do thing that a purchase of one of these would provide a better return than the markets. I wish I had the spare cash!

I see a couple of these in daily use in San Diego.

Way Cool! I have MKIV. What gave you the inspiration? Can you please share the details. 

I am most impressed that there is a VW made in Germany. Which one?

Friends don’t lend friends some things. Watches are just one of them! 

Watches are just fun to learn about and to wear. Just depends on what you like, but by no means are they for everybody.

Thank you for the validation. I got my’96 Montero 10 years ago and it spent its fort 100K as a minivan alternative in Socal. Since then it has been introduced to the dirt via Death Valley an Baja. Though brake disc replacement is a pain as the whole hub has to be removed.I wonder about the advantage of the design.…