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Month: March 2020

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1981 Audi 4000 5+5

Do you know how many times I’ve heard “It was just too nice to part out” when referring to an older Audi? Heck, I’ve personally had three that I’ve said that very sentence for, and at least one more I should have said that about. One time I bought a 4000S front wheel drive 5-speed simply because I wanted a door. No, I’m not joking. The entire car was in mint shape – Sapphire with Marine Blue velour, and because I was 18 and had fully subscribed to the idea that the only good Audis were all-wheel drive Audis, I paid $300 to rip what was otherwise one of the nicest 4000S models I had seen to that point in my life apart. Most of it went to the junkyard, in fact. It’s something that near 40 year old me is mad at 18 year old me about, still.

Fast forward 25 years into the future, and since then I keep hearing the phrase in relation to all sorts of obscure, slightly crusty and forgotten examples of the brand. So when this 4000 5+5 popped up for sale it was worth a look. These are highly prized for their donor doors (see what I did there?) which are utilized in Sport Quattro conversions. Does this one have to die?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1981 Audi 4000 5+5 on eBay

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2012 Porsche 911 Turbo

Last week Porsche announced the new 992 Turbo S and of course, the stats were bonkers. All you really need to know is that it does 0-60 mph in 2.5 seconds and will top out a little north of 200 mph. Much to no one’s surprise, it will be an 8-speed PDK gearbox with almost zero chance of a 6 or 7-speed manual gearbox given that the entire 991 Turbo generation did not offer a true manual gearbox. I totally get why, and you can’t blame Porsche for not offering it. First, the majority of 911 Turbo buyers don’t want a three pedal car, and if they did, as soon as they smashed the throttle in first gear, they’d be banging it off the redline. As much as we like to think we are all amazing drivers, your dentist Gary is not. That means if you do want a 911 Turbo with a 6-speed manual gearbox, you have to venture all the way back to the 997 generation.

This 2012 911 Turbo up for sale in New York is just 1 of 163 examples produced for the North American market with the 6-speed compared to the significantly more PDK cars. That means finding one is very a tough task to say the least. Finding one in Carrera White with a Carrera Red interior and just 6,000 miles? Bring your checkbook.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2012 Porsche 911 Turbo at Ryan Friedman Motorcars

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2000 BMW M Coupe

The M Coupe has moved from cult legend into one of the most desirable M products produced. Late production S54 equipped models have recently topped $90,000 at auction. Add in a rare color and great condition, and they’re all the more desirable. While not quite a 1:1, the M Coupe is like the Porsche 964 and has gone from being ugly duckling to the market darling, and the S54 models are the RS America of the lineup.

For most of us, that means if you want a ‘Clownshoe’ you’ll need to look towards early production when they were equipped with the venerable S52. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as lower running costs and higher production numbers mean much lower asking prices. Take this 2000 in Dakar Yellow, for example. First off, only 2,180 S52 M Coupes were sold here. Of them, 52 were Dakar Yellow II – so you know this one is special. But even more telling is the number when you consider slicktop models, of which this is one. Just 342 were delivered sans sunroof, and only 14 of those were Dakar. Just ten shared the black Nappa leather seen here. So this one is a very low production number car with interesting options and, in this case, fairly low mileage. What does that mean for the price?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2000 BMW M Coupe on eBay

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2008 Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG

One of the most interesting things I want to see in the next 5 to 10 years is what happens to the cars that were extremely expensive when new and offered a ton of things, but no one really wants anymore because they’ve become very dated. It is tough to compare that the to path the cars of the ’70s, ’80s, and now ’90s because they were all relatively straightforward in what they were and now are. Something like a 1992 S600 Coupe or 1993 BMW 850Ci was at the top of the food chain in the mid-’90s, but as soon as something new came out, they were dumped for the latest and greatest. Now 20 years later people are clamoring for clean examples of those because sometimes the the latest isn’t necessarily the greatest.

Case in point, a 2008 Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG. At the time, this and the CL65 were the top of the range big coupe in the Mercedes lineup and had everything and more when it came to a car. Extreme power and the best tech, but now there are much faster cars and the tech isn’t really the best anymore. The thing is, this car isn’t bringing back feelings of nostalgic for probably anyone. These cars burn fast and hot, then are forgotten about given all the other ways we can spend a pile of money on a fun car. What does that do for prices of these? Straight down.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2008 Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG on eBay

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1999 Porsche Boxster

Sometimes just for fun I go back and look at concept cars for production models just to see how much had to be changed for whatever reason. The first-generation Porsche Boxster is an interesting example of what started as a really progressive design with some homages to years past, only to be changed significantly because of production requirements and cost control. Go look at the working 1993 concept, and the exterior had shades of 550 Spyder while the interior had some really wild features such as little three-fan blades as blower fans. I totally get why something like that didn’t make production as it would have been extremely expensive to produce, and even more expensive to fix after they broke twenty minutes after leaving the dealer lot from someone sticking something in them. What ended up in production is a design that was still fresh for the mid-1990s, but an interior that was watered-down considerably. Still, it is tough for more to argue about this Boxster as this car literally saved Porsche from dire financial straits, along with the Cayenne.

Now that we are nearly almost 25 years from the launch of the Boxster in 1996, are these becoming classics that will be looked at the same way we now look at the 914? Tough to say.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1999 Porsche Boxster on eBay

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