Niek

Not long after, this came up on sale. Not quite full options (no sunroof nor heated seats) but a clean example with reliable milage. Didn't work out though. (the seller being an absolute tool didn't help either lol)

Initially, I was going to have a look at this 1999 3L. Non-imported car with leather interior, lowering kit, alloys, cruise control, xenon and some subtle mods. Looked nice, although a check proved the milage was dodgy. And the seller didn't want to know. Last month I coincidentelly ran into this car at my friendly Lupo 3L specialist so I got a chance to have a looksee. It looked rather tired after only 2 years. Good thing I never bought it, although it did look quite nice.

Meanwhile in the Netherlands, the quest for a Lupo 3L was in full swing. Finding the right example was a bit of a challenge, as was being dicked about by various sellers. High on the list was a full option model, which is hard to come by. I did find one in the south of Germany with fsh, winter tyres on original alloys and lots more. This car was over 400 miles from here and it looked good. Unfortunately, it was sold before I had a chance to destroy the piggy bank and make the trek to Kraut country. Oh well... Never mind that, I eventually found one at 30 miles. It's an German imports from 2003. Sunroof, electric everything, power steering, a/c, the lot. 150,000 miles on the clock (word of warning: 90% of German imports have been tampered with) and judging by the condition this looked plausible. Unfortunately no history and 7 previous owners in the Netherlands alone. Oh dear... Fast forward to July 2016 and the Loopmobile and I have travelled places. So far, we've been to a wedding in Swansea, Wales. To family in Prague, Czech Republic. To Lisbon, Portugal, to visit my sister. Countless times to Germany for bits and bobs. To Belgium, just because it's only 150ish miles from here. During that time I've racked up 50,000 miles and - other than some notorious 3L gearbox issues and a collection of mildly expensive parts - it hasn't let me down. Much. Fuel economy averages at 3.4 litres per 100 km which equals 83 mpg. Quite happy with that, as it gets me over 750 miles from a tankful. Over the past 2 years I've done a few mods, but nothing major. I've deleted the 2 particle filters with a straight through pipe, I've removed the tank breather valve and bought an extra set of alloys for winter tyres. I've replaced the old head unit with a bluetooth Pioneer one, ditched the old speakers in favour of some fresh OEM ones (nothing fancy here - yet) and bought a new interior with heated seats. The current seats are a bit odd, as the drivers seat isn't heated but the passenger seat is. Makes you wonder about the history of the car. Plans for the future include a tune, cruise control, a new drivers door (door catch strap was completely broken out of the door frame by previous owner), an early alloy bootlid and a decent subwoofer. One of the chaps from the 3L club in the Netherlands kindly donated an old cylinder head so I'm thinking of having that ported and polished, along with new valves, seats, guides and injectors. Sweet. Below is a selection of pics from the past 2 years. Enjoy!

Got pics? Or is it already sold? Cheers, Niek

Nope - I'm in the market for a 3L TDI only, as I want fuel economy. For performance I have a nice little motorbike that does the job nicely...

Cheers! Yes, I'm currently negotiating with a someone from Germany. He has a full options 3L for sale. It's literally stuffed with options - electric windows/mirrors/sunroof, heated seats, ESP, 2 sets of wheels, 2 sets of floor mats (winter and summer use), stationary heater (standheizung), foglights, the list goes on. The only downer is the car is 625 kms (just under 400 miles) from here, so having a quick look is not really an option. Oh never mind, I think I'll just give it a go. This is the car. Never mind the colour, it's the factory fitted options I'm after.

The black 3L turned out to be right dodgy. It was imported from Germany in 2013. Last registered milage at a VW dealership in Germany, May 2012, was 378,000km (236,000 miles). Now, almost 2 years later, it's on sale with an indicated 231,340km (144,587 miles)!!! Clutch is knackered. Tailgate is rusty. Paintwork is scratched beyond belief. The list goes on. Needless to say I'm not buying this shed. The silver one, for sale at the 3L specialist, proved to be mechanical sound. Gearbox is a peach, which is good. Interior is tatty though, as is the outside. Shame. I've tried contacting the owner of the third (and best looking) 3L, but every appointment has gotten cancelled by the seller at the last minute. Something tells me he is reluctant to sell. Oh well... Lots more Lupo's on sale in both the Netherlands and Germany. Good. I'll keep you posted! Cheers, Niek

Well look at that! Dutch speaking persons on here! Cheers! The wife and myself are going to look at 3 nice specimens this weekend. First one will be a black 04/2002 3L TDI with electric sunroof and ESP. No electric windows or other options which I would like to have. This one is in need of a good service, a new CV joint and other things. Asking price is reasonable at €3200. Don't think we'll buy it, but we'll have a look nonetheless. Second one is a silver 09/2002 3L TDI with a number of interesting options and FSH, on sale for €3950 at a 3L specialist. (apologies for the dodgy pics) This has a dent in the passenger side sill and the driver's seat bolster needs a bit of love. It does, however, come with 3 a month warranty on engine and gearbox. Third on the list is a nicely modded 1999 3L TDI with coilovers, leather interior, cruise control, heated seats and other options. History is a bit dodgy and at €4500 the asking price is too steep. Add to that it needs a new cambelt, all fluids and all that. It does, however, looks nice.

Hi all, it's Niek from the Netherlands here. Over the past years, I've had 2 Vauxhall Nova's (Opel Corsa-A) which I still have as projects. Also had a Seat Ibiza 6K with an 1.3 litre AAV engine, a BMW E30 316i and currently I own a Citroën BX 1.4 Deauville. Unlike most, I don't have a Lupo. Yet. For quite some time I've been looking about for a nice little Lupo 3L TDI. Why? Simply because I like small cars, also because the BX is very likely to fail the upcoming MoT (called APK down my end) and because I drive way to much to justify the ridiculous petrol prices in my country. Yes, diesel is cheaper than petrol over here. More to the point: like Nova's, Lupo's have an incredible tuning potential, both engine wise and styling wise. To me, that's enough reason to want one. From what I've been told, this model has never been sold in the UK. This particular model has been build with only one purpose: fuel efficiency. The name 3L says it all really - 3 litres per 100 km or 94 MPG in imperial. As such, it has a lot of weight saving features like an alloy bootlid, alloy bonnet, alloy doors, thin windscreen, slim seats, magnesium alloy wheels coupled to a 1200cc 3-cylinder TDI and other things that make it as efficient as it is. Over the past months I've been looking about for a 3L, mostly in Germany because their Lupo's are usually stuffed with options that are non existent in Dutch Lupo's. Also because German Lupo's usually come with a FSH, whereas Dutch Lupo's - especially the ones that were imported from Germany in the past - have a dubious service history (if at all) and in many cases the tachos have been wound back to a more favourable milage. Not good. Reason for registering with Club Lupo in the UK is because I visit your green and pleasant land on a regular basis and because I like the UK car scene. That, and because I'm an Anglophile. Marmite anyone? Now a bit about myself: my name is Niek (pronounced "Neik"), I was born in 1964 which probably makes me an old fart, in daily life I work as an assistant project engineer for a company that does cooking hoods (as used in professional kitchens) and air-treatment/filtration units. Since 2002 I live with Ellen who happens to be a bit of a petrolhead which is always nice. Oh and we have a Great Dane named Amber. She is sweet. Cheers, Niek