Our heavy lift & tow vehicle is a hilux 2WD diesel tray 3L 4 cyl non turbo. As it's now out of warranty & dealer service costs are outlandish, I've invested in a Gregory's manual & had a good read. Frankly I'm impressed (a) with gregory's -they've improved a lot (the dealer quoted $400 for their manual!) & (b) with diesels.
There's no ignition etc or carby so that eliminates a lot of work/worry. The filter situation is obviously critical but even the dreaded fuel system bleed is dead easy- just remove the glow plugs, loosen the injectors & crank the starter till the bubbles stop!
How about it, are there any Golf GLD owners out there with any comments? How are you finding them to live with & service & repair?
The only scary bit is the injector pump. A bit like a distributor because you rotate the body of the pump to time it!

If I had a diesel I think the most interesting part would be making my own fuel - bio-diesel.

I'm sure the local fish-n-chip shops would be glad to get rid of there used oil :-)

But as I have a petrol powered bug and an LPG powered Ford (oh the horror of it - a FORD), I guess I'll have to stick with the commercial juice.

You know what FORD stands for???
- "first on rubbish dump", or
- "fix or repair daily!"

i have had my 79 golf GLD for about 5 years now and in that time i have done 100 000 kms in it and i must say it has certainly been the best, most reliable car i have ever owned. that diesel engine ( in my opinion) is wonderful. plenty of power for overtaking and i have even towed a car and car trailer with it. 550kms on a tank of fuel around town and 650 on the highway.
the car is easy to service and repair also.

I have a '96 turbo diesel golf, I service it my self, that involves changing the oil and filters, thats it. It does 1000 Km on a tank of fuel 4.7 ltrs per 100 km/s. Its fantastic.