Tag: C4

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1995.5 Audi S6

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The Audi and Volkswagen crowds can be pretty finicky. Instead of cheering on high sales of models similar to their cars, they instead tend to resort to denigrating lofty asking prices. Truth told, I’ve been guilty of it myself – but, then, there are owner’s who “know what they’ve got” and it’s easy to point towards another example that is equivalent for a better deal.

Then there’s this S6.

Look, far be it from me to say that the S6 isn’t a very special car. It is. And I certainly feel that it should be held in equal esteem to its contemporaries, the M5 and ‘E500E’. I’ve said as much many times. But here we have a very clean-looking example of a 95.5 S6…and, well, the elephant in the room has to be not the condition, not that the C4 is overlooked, not that the mods can make crazy power; no, the headline here is the $32,900 asking price:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1995.5 Audi S6 on eBay

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2019 Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS

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I have to hand it to Porsche, they really nailed it when it came to their GTS trim line on the 911. It slotted in perfectly between the S and GT cars for those buyers who wanted more, but didn’t want to pay GT prices or live with the harshness they can dish out. When they launched the 991.2 C4 GTS, it sure seemed like it was knocking on the door of the GT3. The new twin-turbo 3.0L with the PDK gearbox could whip it to 60 mph is just 3.3 seconds. That is just .1 second slower than the 991.1 GT3. Seems like a heck of a value at a $135,000 base price back when these were new. Even better, you could get it with the 7-speed manual gearbox. What isn’t to like?

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2019 Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS on eBay

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“The One” – 1993 Audi S4

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Back almost exactly three years ago in 2016 I took a look at one of the best ’93 Audi S4s out there for sale. Today, it’s back again for trade – and has hardly changed. The seller has only accrued a hard to fathom 600 miles in that time on this pristine C4, while maintaining the near-perfect presentation. It was no surprise that two of our readers, including the ex-owner, spotted it up for sale and wanted to share it! The following is the original ad copy from October 22, 2016 – still relevant today, and perhaps moreso three years later:

Any time one of our readers sends in a car, I try hard to take notice. It’s not always easy, as we get a lot of emails and as this is really a spare time endeavor, it can be exceedingly hard to stay on top of replying to everyone. However, there was not just one reader who sent this car in. There were three. Almost as if they colluded, my inbox pinged earlier this week with the subject line “S4”. Though they’re getting harder to come across, it’s still relatively simple to find a C4 Audi today. Amazing as it may seem, a lovely black ’95 S6 merged into morning traffic right next to me just yesterday. They’re out there, and while they’re rare, they aren’t unseen completely thanks to religiously devoted followers, stout build quality, and unprecedented longevity. But the reason that three readers sent this car in was that it wasn’t just any C4 Audi – this might be the best one for sale in recent memory:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1993 Audi S4 on San Francisco Craigslist

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1995.5 Audi S6

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Like the C3 chassis that predated it, the C4 went through numerous changes seemingly every year – giving each individual model year something special for fans to covet. 1994 to 1995 saw some major changes for the C4; the most obvious being the model designation change from S4 (1991-1994) to S6 (1995-1997). European models had some additional drivetrain options that weren’t available in the U.S., and indeed the Avant had previously been available in S4 form, but the 2.2 liter turbocharged inline-5 carried over largely unchanged into 1995. The big news was the addition of the Avant to the U.S. lineup; at the time, as expensive as an Audi got here. There was also the obvious external refresh; smooth body-colored bumpers and wider side trims eliminated the rubberized black moldings. The hood and lights were lightly re-sculpted too, along with the change (rolling, for some models) from the Fuchs-made 5-spoke alloys to the Speedline-made 6-spoke Avus wheels which would be the signature S-wheel for the next decade.

Gone were two staples of the Audi lineup from the 1980s – Procon 10, the seatbelt pre-tensioning safety system Audi highly marketed in the late 1990s disappeared with little fanfare, but also, perhaps more strikingly, S cars would no longer be branded with “quattro” badges – a change that would carry on nearly until today’s models, where models like the RS7 re-introduced it in the grill. Inside minor changes were introduced; a revised dashboard, shift knob, along with the introduction of the most notable item (once again, rolling) with a 3-spoke sport steering wheel. It was a tremendous amount of minor fiddling that in sum resulted in a slightly different feel for the S6; slightly more polished and grown up, carrying the new design language for Audi that would remain for the next decade.

Audi wasn’t done, though, because in “1995.5” Audi once again altered several items on the then-still-new S6. This included a major switch moving forward – the elimination of driver control of the rear differential, a hallmark of Audis since the introduction of the original Quattro. Audi opted for an “electronic differential lock”, which in reality was a system which utilized the ABS system to detect wheelspin and apply the brakes. This major change resulted in some minor interior tweaks, such as moving the cigarette lighter, and there were additional revisions to the radio. The transmission’s traditional weak first gear was also addressed, as well as swapping infrared locking for radio frequency and some other minor trim. All of these changes – some of them running – give the limited production S6s a bit of a bespoke feel. With numbers produced only in the hundreds, these are special and coveted cars that are very capable – and highly sought:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1995.5 Audi S6 on eBay

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Black or White Double Take: 1995 Audi S6

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Update 1/17/19: The white S6 listed as sold for $8,900.

If you weren’t paying attention, a few weeks ago we saw a record high price (since they were new) for a C4 Audi. It was a particularly impressive 1993 Audi S4 with a scant 12,000 miles on the odometer, and it sold for $33,000. If that sounds like a lot, I’d wager it was still a relative bargain. Find an equal contemporaneous M5 or 500E, and you’d likely have to add a “1” in front of that sales number to take it home.

So here we are looking at two turbocharged quattro sedans of the same ilk. Both are the revised S6, both are well presented, but both are also driver-quality, with far more miles than appeared on the S4. Which is the one to take home? Let’s start with the late build 1995.5 in Pearlescent White Metallic:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1995.5 Audi S6 on eBay

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1995 Audi S6

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Of course, the ultimate evolution of the Type 43 blueprint emerged in 1995 with the launch of S6. If you want to be technical, it wasn’t really – there was a far more potent and special version in the S6 Plus to come for Europeans, and truth told there weren’t many changes from the prior S4 to the re-badged S6. Despite this, for U.S. fans of the traditional Audi inline-5 mated to a manual transmission and all four wheels driven, it didn’t get much better than the S6 you see here.

The last S6 we looked at seemed to be a pristine example, and bidding was very aggressive – in fact, problematically so. Several times it was bid to $12,200 and though it was a no reserve auction, each time it failed to trade hands. I ran across the listing again on Craigslist, where it was listed for $19,900. Ouch! Worse, there were claims from a reported ex-owner that the car was grossly misrepresented. Today we have what promises to be a better one to pick up, then – and it won’t cost you nearly as much:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1995 Audi S6 on Syracuse Craigslist

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1995 Audi S6

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Update 9/9/18: After being listed as sold at $12,200, this S6 was relisted again with no reserve, ending 9/18/18.

Update 8/27/18: This S6 has been relisted with no change in mileage and again at no reserve.

Update 8/22/18: A second listing was generated for this car, apparently by the previous owner, who claims it had 125K when he sold it and the current seller has forged documentation on the car. This clearly got the attention of eBay, as both listings were pulled. The last bid I saw was $12,200, indicating strong interest in clean examples of the chassis.

Back in the 1990s, the latest release of top-tier executive sedans out of Germany still got me pretty excited. Each generation introduced a bit more power, much more refinement, exciting designs and unorthodox technology. While today even fairly basic economy cars have nearly 200 horsepower, crossing that threshold in the age of grunge actually meant quite a lot. It moved you into a new performance category of sporting automobiles, and the war which was waged between BMW, Mercedes-Benz and relative new comer Audi was at its most compelling during this time. If you wanted race-car pedigree and a high-strung personality, you bought the M5. Now in its second generation and with over 300 horsepower on tap, though larger and more refined it was still the defacto driver’s car bar setter. If you wanted the velvet hammer, you jumped into Mercedes-Benz’s 500E. Topping the power charts for these sedans, it also offered enough torque to reproduce the carrier-launch scenes from Top Gun. And then there was the Audi.

Audi went about things completely differently. It, too, had a race-bred engine, albeit an unconventional one. Still sporting a cast-iron inline-5 levered all the way to the very front of the car longitudinally, drive was transmitted through a 5-speed manual only like the M5, but of course drive was executed by all four wheels. Displacing only 2.2 liters – less than half of the Benz’s power plant – the Audi approached the competition as a serious underdog. But a KKK turbocharger and electronic fuel injection meant 227 horsepower and a wide torque band maxing at 258 lb.ft. Yes, it was down on power to the others, but on the move, over changing terrain and especially in real-world situations, the Audi was just as fast as the beefier competition.

But sales were slow in the early 1990s for Audi, and it didn’t trade many of these expensive sedans. But their extreme competence, stout build quality and ability to easily take on modifications – allowing them to outpace their countrymen – have made these sedans legendary. With a strong fan base, you’d expect a lot of pristine examples out there. But coming across a sleeper like this ’95 happens fairly infrequently:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1995 Audi S6 on eBay

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1995.5 Audi S6 Avant

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Yesterday we took a look at the great C4 Audi S6. Although the turbocharged sedan was down on power to the M5 and 500E, it made up for its deficits with clever all-wheel drive power delivery which made it as fast on the fly and on back roads. But, of course, the real trump card for the C4 over its competition was that it was the sole wagon offered in the class. If the S6 is sought by fans of the chassis, the S6 Avant achieves near God-like status and knee-trembling reactions among the faithful. That means that even a higher-mile, less than pristine example usually will pull similar numbers to a better-condition sedan historically:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1995.5 Audi S6 Avant on eBay

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Double Take: 1995 Audi S6

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There are quite a few collector cars out there that we talk about often. In most cases, instead of being ahead of the trendsetters, enthusiasts are left lamenting how cars that are now worth capital could once be bought for pennies. Name the classic that you grew up with, and for the most part really nice examples will be priced out of the reach of many. Because of this, often those that can afford these classics at top-dollar wouldn’t dream of daily driving them.

But there are still bastions of hope for those who want a special car that can be driven daily but will be quite unique and in good shape, yet remain within a reasonable budget. Sound too good to be true? These twin 1995 S6s spooling up their AAN 20V turbocharged inline-5s beg to differ:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1995 Audi S6 on eBay

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1992 Audi 100CS quattro

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So on to the C4 chassis. Though it was instantly recognizable as an Audi, the all-new C4 bore little resemblance to the boxy C3 it replaced. Fluid lines and curves dominated the design, while new running gear and motors made a splash in performance. The C4 continued to stress Audi’s pioneering aerodynamic tradition, but the result this time was a car which seemed far less top-heavy than the chassis it replaced. It looked more trim even if it was a big bigger than the outgoing model.

On the fly, the 100’s new motivation was a revelation. The 2.8 liter V6 replaced the 2.3 liter inline-5, and though horsepower was only 172 and torque 184, both figures represented a nearly 30% gain over the 5-pot. New, too, was a 4-speed automatic transmission. And while the inside looked little different from the last of the C3, only switch gear was shared and the C4 brought a host of new safety and convienence features to the large-chassis Audi.

Strange, though, was the re-appearance of Audi’s earlier naming convention in the U.S.. Back in the early days of the 5000, Audi had used the “S” and “CS” monikers to denote turbo and quattro models at times (but, again being Audi, inconsistently). Well, the S and CS were back after a four-year hiatus. Base model 100 came with steel wheels, while the “S” model stepped you up in options and gave you alloys. But outside of the 20V turbo S4 model, the 100 to get was still the 100CS, which was the most loaded and gave you the option for Audi’s quattro drivetrain. Fully loaded, they were around $35,000 – not cheap, but also not the most expensive in class, and were still unique in offering all-wheel drive.

However, like the C3, the front-drive 100/100S/100CS outsold the quattro model by a fair margin. Audi claims they traded 2,230 of the new 100CS quattro in 1992, and here’s the nicest one out there:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1992 Audi 100CS quattro on eBay

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