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Tag: Quattro

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2001 Audi S8 6-speed

2001 Audi S8 6-speed

Published July 3, 2015 by Carter

My somewhat dour post regarding yesterday’s S8 had me feeling a bit downtrodden, and this listing was just what I needed to feel a little better. Not every current S8 owner is less than careful, and there are many who have grabbed one of these spectacular super-sedans because of the same enthusiasm I have for them. In the case of today’s example, it’s a first-year run S8 from 2001. However, the owner has upgraded the often-maligned 5-speed Tiptronic to an 01E 6-speed manual. The dream of many though few have been completed, the 6-speed swap is often mentioned as an alternative to add a little sport and long-term reliability to the mix. But it’s no small undertaking, and finding one that’s done correctly offers the potential buyer a turn-key package without the headaches of heavy lifting:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2001 Audi S8 on Craigslist

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1992 Audi S4

1992 Audi S4

Published July 1, 2015 by Carter

I’ve started a few discussions about the Audi C4 and the relative lack of good examples that pop up. This is especially true when they’re compared to the models that the S4 originally competed in the marketplace against; the M5 and the 500E. While neither are generally spring chickens when it comes to the used car markets, it’s not very hard to find an excellent example of virtually any day. The same can’t be said for the original S4. The 1992 Audi S4 is arguably the hardest to come by, and for some enthusiasts it’s the most desirable. Sales numbers and enthusiast’s accounts of how many ’92s were sold seem to vary; the general number of ’92s imported is often claimed at 250, but Audi’s sales numbers from 1992 claim some 907 Turbo models were sold (though, that number could include leftover 200 20V and 200 Turbo models). While the later S6 and A6, externally, weren’t visually much different, the earlier S4 stood apart from the regular 100 with ellipsoid headlamps and the then-massive 16×8 Fuchs forged alloys. 1992 models sported the lower, closer to European-spec suspension and a rear sway bar, but there were other, smaller changes – ’92s had steel sunroofs, for example, and “quattro” script rear defrosters that disappeared in ’93. Then there were really small changes; like the V8 quattro, ’92s had the “high intensity” wash system for the windshield – dropped in ’93, along with the S4 badge on the right of the trunk. In ’93, it would move to the left, and “quattro” was added to the right to fall in line with other models. 1992 models were still R12 air conditioned, so upgrading to R134 is common. The seller is correct that ’92s interiors had Elm wood trim, where later models would switch to carbon fiber, then Walnut. ’92s also had a trip computer with digital boost gauge and an ABS-disable switch, which also would be removed from the lineup in 1993. Finding a clean example of these ’92s, then, for some enthusiasts represents the Holy Grail of U.S. bound S-cars. And this example, in the signature Pearlescent White Metallic with black leather, is arguably one of the best we’ve seen:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1992 Audi S4 on eBay

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Boxflare Showdown: M3 v. Quattro

Boxflare Showdown: M3 v. Quattro

Published June 18, 2015 by Carter

This one has been brewing in my head for some time, and required only two things; the right two cars. I think, in this case thanks to the help of our reader Martin, I might just have the right two candidates. While BMW enthusiasts love to tout the virtue of the boxflared M3, they often overlook the importance of the Quattro. The chunky, Giugiaro-designed Audi made it to the market with its bulging quarters a full 5 years ahead of the M3, yet the DTM star is arguably much better known than the all-wheel drive Rally champion. Both were certainly important to the development of their respective corporate brands; both have illustrious careers as race cars and both are considered by connoisseurs to be the best design of those that followed. Quietly, while the market-star M3 has soaked up the headlines, good condition Quattros have also been appreciating, and with far fewer of them produced than M3s they’re a more rare sight today. They’re also, generally, much older and fewer were taken care of in the way that the M3s were pampered. Add little factory support and an even worse balance of the number imported to North America – only around 10% of the total of North American bound M3s – and it’s a hard match up. Yet, today we have two overall great condition cars to consider. Who wins the boxing match? Let’s start with the odds-on favorite M3:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1990 BMW M3 on eBay

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1990 Audi 200 Quattro Avant

1990 Audi 200 Quattro Avant

Published June 16, 2015 by Paul

We all have our favorite marque of choice here at GCFSB, and if one person is the resident Volkswagen/Audi fan, it’s Carter. He’s owned many of these cars over the years and knows them inside out. I’ve owned a few Volkswagens, but the Audi has always been that elusive car in my garage. One of the Audis I’ve admired over the years was a car from their dark days in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The C3 Avant. This 1990 200 Quattro Avant isn’t the much prized 20V model from the end of the production run, but with Quattro and a 5-speed manual, you could still have fun with this car.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1990 Audi 200 Quattro Avant on eBay

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It’s Hip To Be Square: 1986 Audi Coupe GT and 1987 Audi 5000CS Quattro

It’s Hip To Be Square: 1986 Audi Coupe GT and 1987 Audi 5000CS Quattro

Published June 15, 2015 by Carter

There are probably a few out there reading this who will remember Huey Lewis and the News, or perhaps you’re a fan of Christian Bale and his performance in American Psycho which prominently featured a notoriously catchy song by the band, “It’s Hip to be Square”. While the song itself was a relative hit, for me it’s Bale’s character’s critique of the band that is particularly poignant when considering Audis from the 1980s:

“You like Huey Lewis and the News? Their early work was a little too new wave for my taste, but when Sports came out in ’83, I think they really came into their own, commercially and artistically. The whole album has a clear, crisp sound, and a new sheen of consummate professionalism that really gives the songs a big boost. He’s been compared to Elvis Costello, but I think Huey has a far more bitter, cynical sense of humor. I think their undisputed masterpiece is “Hip to Be Square,” a song so catchy, most people probably don’t listen to the lyrics. But they should, because it’s not just about the pleasures of conformity, and the importance of trends, it’s also a personal statement about the band itself!”

Audi reinvented itself in the 1980s; with crisp, clean new designs that stood apart from their countrymen. They were boxy but aerodynamic, clean and economical – yet at the same time, they were really noticeable, looked expensive and have stood the test of time. Yet few people partook in these 1980s Audis compared to some more period marques. If Mercedes-Benz was the sign that you had made it to opulent wealth and still made good decisions, BMW was the sign that – well, you’d just made it to wealth. But Audis, though quite dear in price, were always a bit different; outsiders in their own land. Whilst everyone else took tried and true paths, Audi forged ahead through unusual means – small displacement, turbocharged motors feeding locking differentials and all-wheel drive, for example. Every model seemed to be a statement within itself that the company was different, and few embody that ethos quite as well as the 5000CS quattro and Coupe GT:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1987 Audi 5000CS Quattro on Craigslist

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