Where is the thermostat on 91 Golf

[gunslinger_of_NY]

hey im new to this so if i mess up i apologize
my friend gave me a 91 VW golf GL 1.8L I was on my way to work yesterday and my heat just shat the bed..i had no heat and i was overheating..i put coolant in it, drove it home, and i asked around and my friends told me change the thermostat..if it's not the thermostat its the pump, etc etc etc..
Well i went out last nite and bought a new thermostat..just one problem...does anyone know where the thermostat is on one? lol
i was told near the lower radiator hose but im not sure..thanx
mike

[mars-red]

My current daily driver is also a 91 Golf - fantastic little cars. I think I can tell already that the thermostat is not your main problem here.

The thermostat on your VW controls coolant flow between the radiator (at the front of the engine bay) and the engine, and does not affect coolant flow through the heater core (underneath the dash, where you get your heat from). If your car was overheating and and you were getting no heat from the vents, then you were running your engine with little or no coolant - which makes sense, since you said you had to add coolant. And that probably means you have a coolant leak to deal with. It's not abnormal for the coolant level to drop very slowly over the course of many months or years... so if it has been years since the coolant was checked and topped up, then it could be no big deal... however, my gut tells me that's not the case here.

Hopefully the engine was not overheated severely enough to be damaged (older watercooled VWs like yours have quite strong engines, so unless it was *severely* overheated then it's probably fine). Fill the car with coolant to the appropriate level (around the middle of that ball shaped reservoir - it should be marked), and keep an eye on it. Check it every day for the next few weeks - make sure you always either check it when the car is cold or when the car is warm - the level will vary based on temperature of the coolant. If the level drops noticeably over the course of a couple weeks, then you have a coolant leak that should be fixed. It could either be a leak internal to the engine (causing leaking coolant to get burned and thrown out the exhaust, and possibly causing coolant to mix with the engine oil) or it could be an external leak, dripping onto the ground or even the floor inside your car. If it's an external leak then you'll probably smell hot coolant (sort of a sickly sweet smell) around the car after it warms up.

Good luck, and let us know what you find!

[gunslinger_of_NY]

i just want to say thank you for the reply on that..
youre advice helped me out a great deal....and yes they are great cars..hopefully i can help you out with any problems u might have in the future(well i hope you have no problems) thanks a lot once again man and merry xmas..i will def. follow your advice to a t
thanx
mikey