Volkswagen set about replacing the Karmann Ghia in the early 1970s, beginning with a design by Giorgetto Giugiaro. The new car was named Scirocco, after a desert wind (joining the handful of cars from Maserati also named after windy weather). Planted on the A1 platform shared with the Golf, the new car’s geometry was a titanic departure from VW’s previous rear-drive/rear-mounted, air-cooled motor formula. Now the engine sipped water, sat ahead of the driver, and drove the front wheels. The Scirocco was introduced in 1974, and its first generation ran to 1981. More than half a million copies sold. Updates in 1981 included an in-house re-design to provide more interior and luggage space. Today’s example is a late 1984 model, distinguished by the return of two wiper blades, a feature abandoned after 1976. With only 30,000 miles on the clock and two owners, this Scirocco might be just the ticket for an enthusiast looking for a sporty four-seater.
The strong cosmetic appearance continues underhood, where the engine bay is, if not concours, darned nice. The VIN suggests this Scirocco came with a 1.8-liter fuel-injected four-cylinder good for 90 hp (US delivery), backed up by a five-speed manual gearbox. The cars weigh only about 2000 lbs, a great headstart on low zero to sixty times. The siren song of performance improvement infected not only VW – who introduced high-performance variants throughout the Scirocco’s production span – but owners as well. Many a Scirocco has found its way to the track. This one excels at hillclimbs. The seller performed recommissioning work here, including rebuilding nearly the entire fuel system and replacing the master cylinder, brake hoses, and tires. The new owner can drive it home from Wellington, Ohio.
Supportive bucket seats mounted low in the car, a four-spoke steering wheel, the steeply raked windshield – these features made the Scirocco a sportier alternative than the Golf. But the Golf sold millions more than its sibling over eight generations. We can’t say the Scirocco is rare, but if you want a car that’s on the unusual side, this one is a likely candidate. The seller notes that the dash does have a few cracks.
Karmann built the Scirocco, maintaining its close relationship with VW. Note the spoiler installed part-way up the hatch; that differentiates a second-gen car from earlier versions, where the spoiler was integrated at the base of the rear window. This fine 1984 Scirocco can be found on eBay, with an asking price of $14,500 or best offer. It previously failed to sell here after a high bid of $9000, for no particular reason. Meanwhile, prices for these sporty VWs have been rising gently for a few years now. The most collectible variant is the briefly-offered 16-valve, capable of 0-60 mph in 8 seconds. What do you think of this low mileage survivor?
I swear, you stick around this site long enough, every vehicle known will eventually make an appearance. How many here ever thought they would see a VW Scirocco( always tough to spell),,,again. Even Stewie Griffin made fun of one. Since we were still in shock over what replaced our beloved Bug, the Rabbit had some big shoes to fill. Poor timing for the Scirocco, as we hadn’t even accepted the Rabbit yet. And another thing, where’s the single wiper? It seems, they went back and forth. The 1974 Mk. 1 had one, in ’75-’81 had 2 wipers, Mk. 2 switched back to 1 wiper in ’82 and ’83, but for unknown reasons, went back to 2 wipers in ’84. Why the hub bub? We never saw anything with one wiper, and burst out loud. The Scirocco was kind of a Rabbit on steroids, the “Dasher” never had a prayer, and I saw very few Sciroccos, if any. While the Rabbit was a huge success, many eventually accepting the change, I just don’t think, at the time, a Scirocco was what anyone wanted. Great find.
My wife owned two, a 1979 and a 1984. They were both fun to drive cars before the Western New York road salt applied at a rate of 1 ton/100 yards took its toll on them both
I wanted one, I’ve had many Sciroccos over the decades and still have one. Try one Howard.
I had 3 of them, Howard! A 78, 80, and an 84 Wolfsburg. They weren’t all that fast, but a blast to drive.The Rabbit, Scriocco, Dasher, Quantum, and Jetta were all popular in Northeast PA, but unfortunately, the salt claimed most of them.
I had a new ’75 Dasher GT. My girlfriend rolled it.
Don’t agree with you Howard. I certainly wanted one – they were great cars – had a Dasher beforehand, and wound up buying a Mk1 Jetta 2dr for a slightly larger space for the babies. Essentially the same car in a different body – and was an enjoyable car.
Looking at the dash, I recall the OXS idiot light regularly needing a replacement – of the black tape dot I stuck on the plastic cover. Also always had to have fuel pump relays handy as after a good rain the wire would drip thru the firewall and short it out.
Gawd, them bumpers…
I could never see them when driving and they came in handy for pushing snow.
Auction closed. After I sold me beetle (1987) I looked at one of these at it’s replacement. Didn’t pull the trigger, always thought these were cool little cars. Fortunately the replacement was a Dodge Colt Turbo. Miss that car!
My sister-in-law bought one. I think it was a ‘77 model. Her’s was silver, very cool looking and drove well. She had an accident with it and it took three or four months to get the parts. VW was not good to her at all. Why didn’t they have every part available in some warehouse here? She learned a lesson and never bought another VW.
A friend had the same experience recently trying to get her VW Atlas SUV repaired after a minor accident . . . no replacement parts available for many months.
Supply chain issues are still a fact of life. My son might have a six-week wait for a tailgate part on a brand new Lexus SUV that was rear-ended in VA a few weeks ago.
10 years ago I bought Nancy an 84 VW Cabriolet that spent most of its life in California. It has still never been in the snow or even rain. The older gentleman that orig. owned it in Calif. had many things replaced and restored. He gave it to his Grandaughter for college. She drove it here, he passed away shortly after and she sold it to us. It was too “Old School”for her.
We drive it about 50 miles/year. Every 2 years or so I pump the gas out and replace it with fresh gas. No match for my Escalade and I don’t feel safe at all, but it is fun to drive(short trips only).
I hadn’t seen one of these on the road in many years, until yesterday. I pulled up behind one at a red light and when it went green, the driver stomped on it, winding around the 2 lanes of traffic, and disappeared.
The car made a very satisfying sound as it pulled away.
As stated above, plenty of performance-minded people wanted these cars.
Bought a new 79′ when I was at OSU (Oregon) working on another degree. Kind of a gold color with rust color corduroy seats. Great car! Handled well and was plenty quick for street use. A new baby and two labs forced a sale soon after – not much room. Haven’t seen one in years, so this was a nice reminder of a simpler time.