VW Caddy pickup

[JHastings]

I am looking at buying a VW rabbit pickup also called a caddy I guess. Any info on these things. Which year to buy or stay away from? I have mostly seen 81'-83' pickups. Are they good little diesels or throw away pickups? Also, any milage experience with these since that is the main reason I am looking at these. Most of what I have seen is anywhere from $1500-$4000 for 100K miles. TIA

Jamie

 

[Jim McCarty]

Had an '83 as a company car for a few months. It was small and slow. I had to drive it pedal to the metal much of the time. I guess it depends on what you want and what your needs are. I sort of considered it something of a toy.

 

[JHerr]

The Rabbit pickups are good trucks for what they are. They are fine for running errands where you'd use any other 2WD compact pickup. They deliver much better fuel mileage than any other compact pickup (35-50 mpg), but they are slow.



I have an '81 Rabbit two-door sedan. I would have purchased a pickup but couldn't justify the additional cost for my commuting needs.



It is not uncommon to see these Rabbit diesel pickups go for 200K-300K. The prices that you quoted are rather accurate based on what I have seen on eBay. Prices have escalated about $1,000 in the last year or so. Parts are easy to get and inexpensive. My Rabbit has about 170K on it and has been inexpensive to own.



The cabs of the Rabbit pickups are really tight. I remember my neighbor used to keep a window cracked open so he could shut the doors without slamming them!

 

[JHastings]

Thanks for the replies. Sounds it is just what I need since most of what I do is just drive around town when I am not hauling and I am a pretty small guy. If anybody knows of one in the west I would be interested. Thanks again.

Jamie

 

[Rescue Ram]

Watch out for rust in the pan and the strut towers. Once its going, it is a real bear to get stopped. I used to get 40-44 mpg in my '81. It was a 4sp... I like the 5sp's better. It was not fast, but I'm not ever in too much of a hurry, so it didn't bother me much. I was on the original motor and going on 300k with only routine maintenance. We called it the motorized wheel barrow. Sometimes I do miss it. Good luck.