Enthusiasts Blogging Our Favorite Classifieds
Just the other day, Nate wrote up a resto-modded BMW 325ix. There were some nice touches and a considerable amount of work done, but also a few pretty polarizing items – the gold BBS turbofan-look replica wheels, the gold custom decals and the factory BMW sport seats that were recovered with Recaro fabric. As if to answer some of the issues with those items, a rare European-spec 1979 323i with some period modifications turned up for sale:
The Porsche 964 Turbo is identified by a lot of 911 purists as the last of the real 911 Turbos. When the 993 based Turbo arrived, all-wheel drive entered the equation and a bit of the challenge (or threat, depending on who you talk to) was taken out of the driving experience. The 964 Turbo isn’t a car you’d expect to find in a particularly feminine color. But that’s just what we have here with this 3.6 Turbo for sale in the UK painted in the striking shade of Rubystone. This is one of the 1990s Porsche colors I’ve always loved. Question is, are you male readers out there comfortable enough in your masculinity to be seen in a sports car like this?
It is with a slight bit of envy that I’ve noticed that each Jetta Sportwagen I pass in the Bay Area has the little TDI emblem on the back. It is the mark of the modern young suburban professional family that is environmentally friendly but doesn’t quite have the cash or ostentatiousness to buy a Tesla. When the Sportwagen TDI first came out, there were waitlists here and even today they hold their value remarkably well, with low-mileage examples demanding anywhere from the high teens to the mid-$20ks. To find one for cheaper than that, you’re usually looking at high-mileage commuters or dealing with rebuilt titles, but every once in a while you can find a middle-grounder like today’s 2009 model that won’t break the bank.
With 80k miles, DSG, and a 4-year warranty this silver Sportwagen is a great all-around commuter or roadtripper for a nice price.
The Audi 4000 quattro was like a Sherpa to thousands of European car enthusiasts; a steadfast winter standby with slick styling and Rally-bred sure-footedness. On paper, looking back today the 4000 was probably a bit dull; nearly 2,900 lbs of brick-on-brick design with a measly 115 horsepower motivation. But numbers don’t tell the whole story of the B2 Audi, because in any configuration it’s a great handling car. The quattro, however, had some special features that would have been headline items for any sports sedan until very recently; four wheel independent suspension with a large front sway bar and four wheel disc brakes. Couple that with the first all-wheel drive system fitted to a small car, sprinkle some luxury items in and cut the price of the exotic Quattro in half, and it didn’t matter that it wasn’t particularly fast. What the 4000 quattro was, though, was one solid all-around performer. The subtle changes from the front-drive sedan resulted in a car that felt more grown-up and refined, yet still pushed you to do silly Hoonigan things. 4000 quattro owners that I’ve talked to almost always have the same proud story; the time that they managed to get their 4000 quattro stuck. Normally, that would be a cause for embarrassment, but such was the grip of the plow-through-anything small sedan that it became a badge of honor when you outdid the car’s twin-locking differentials. The secret, of course, was just to make sure all four wheels were in the air! But because of this type of sillyness inducing competence amongst dropping residual value and a second or third tier of ownership that didn’t always repair or maintain the cars, few are left in good condition. However, I managed to scratch together a trio of three-quarters of the U.S. bound production years, all in the fetching shade of Tornado Red. We’ll start with the end of the run:
Every now and then I’ll come across a Porsche painted in a hue which I had no idea was offered. I had seen Riviera Blue on a few 911s before, but after the folks at flüssig magazine posted a picture of a Riviera Blue 928GTS, I was yet again stumped. I had never seen a 928 in this hue. It was surely unique, but I’m not sure it really fit the nature of this grand touring machine. This 1987 Porsche 911 Carrera in Cassis Red, however, is another story. You don’t see them in this color all too often, and with the burgundy leather, it really looks rich. This example for sale in Texas has covered just over 50,000 miles and is the first model year to have the desirable G50 gearbox.