Hello, I have just joined the forum. I own a '99 1.8 156. My wife drives it mostly. Has 120k miles on the clock. I had it from new as a company car then bought it off the lease company at 80K miles. If I had bought it secondhand from a garage I would have been back to "sort out" the salesman for selling me a pile. Best story to date was one day my wife opened the drivers door and it fell off! The top hinge pulled a big piece out of the door frame where it was welded on, and then the bottom hinge broke under the strain. A mechanic friend of mine fixed it to perfection but told me he had to fit and remove the door 13 times to get the door, hinge and locks all lined up. Has anybody else had this experience??
Other problems apart from door falling off; Timing Belt broke at 40K miles, Wishbones and suspension links repeatedly being replaced (we have very bumpy roads in Ireland). Petrol flap goes in too far if shut quickly. Indicator stalk a bit iffy. I have just had the head redone as the valves were sticking. Burning oil since day one (but not as much as my current company car ... a diesel Passat). But still great fun to drive.
So what other problems did you have?
if you go to the techy lounges you will find a host of very knowledgeable helpful people who can assist with your problems 
