Incredible Mk1 Golf Self-Build

I ran into Maher Azzam and his superbly clean 1976 Mk1 Volkswagen Golf at the VW Nationals in 2021 and immediately sought him out for a feature shoot. VWMA picked up the car for a full feature and you can see why when you look at the photos.

Powered by a mostly-standard 2L 16V four-cylinder (and a pair of Weber DCOE 45s), the engine is housed in a pristine bay. The car was treated to a bare metal respray in the factory ivory. It took Maher a year to do the job himself, block sanding the car five times to minimise the use of filler.

The car sits in the weeds on a set of BBS-style 15in alloy rims with the rears measuring 8.5in wide. It’s achieved with a set of BC Racing coil-overs and the looks is both purposeful and sexy.

Inside, you’ll find a later-model dash conversion and a re-trimmed interior that looks in keeping with the period. Even the stereo features a three-cassette storage unit.

You can still find issue 73 of VWMA on newsstands now, so go grab yourself a copy and catch up on the whole story. What a DIY hero!