Why I drive an Audi

[Tom Nas]

Back in the early '80s, I was a rally fan. The quattro was just about the
ultimate car in those years, and seeing TV coverage of those monsters was
great. In '78, a friend's father bought a copper metallic 100 GL 5E, and I
loved the stylish exterior and the wonderful-sounding 5-cylinder.
I drove a 1980 Jetta 1.3 at the time, and a new job demanded a better, more
comfortable and safer car for a long commute. Shortlist consisted of a used
E30 3-series, a Benz 190 and a type 89 Audi 80.

The BMW dealership decided ignoring me was preferable to taking my money and
providing me with a car- exit BMW. The Benz dealership showed just a
marginally less snooty attitude, and the numb steering, weak and rough 1.8
and stupid frantic single wiper of the 190 clinched it for me. Luckily, the
Audi dealership not only had the right car for the right price, but they
also knew how to treat a customer. In short, I bought a Tizian red metallic
1988 80 1.8S (88 hp) and loved it. Put a lot of miles on it, great car.

I joined the quattro list as one of my first steps on the Internet and
enjoyed the discussions. You guys convinced me that I should try out a
quattro (driving James Marriott's 4kq helped a lot, too), and as a result I
traded the 80 in on a 1987 90 quattro after a couple of years. It was
excellent, until after driving it for some time the lack of maintenance by
the previous owners caught up on me. As I worked an 8-minute bicycle ride
from home at the time and didn't really need a car anyway, it was laid up
pending repairs.

However, after a merger at work I was facing having to commute to a bleak
industrial area that was otherwise inaccessible, and I had to get a running
car. The budget didn't allow for all repairs to the 90 to be done, so I
started looking for a circa-'85 VW Polo beater. A good friend told me of an
Audi 80 for sale for $60, so I went to check it out, expecting a rusty type
81 but finding a type 89 instead.
The previous owner had driven it into the ground, and after a couple of days
fixing brakes, sheared-off exhaust and lots of other small and not-so-small
things, I was once again mobile.

The 'new' 80 proved very reliable and safe transport, though the 75 hp 1.8
is hardly exciting. The fact that it starts every morning (knock on
Zebrano!) compensates for the lack of excitement completely, and its thrift
with fuel (at four times what you guys in the US pay!) is appreciated, too.
I'd since joined the Dutch Audi Coupe Club ACGN (OK, so I don't own a Coupe
but it's a great club and I've made lots of friends through it) and become a
true Audi nut. I've always been car-mad (previously into classic British
iron) and have just concentrated on Audis, buying scale models, books,
magazines and collecting brochures and emblems. My apartment, with my
collection of spare parts and other Audi stuff looks like an Audi shrine.

Having visited Steve Buchholz in CA in '99, I was captivated by his rare Fox
GTI and wanted very much to import it into Holland to restore it. As you
can't get any parts for these cars from the dealerships anymore, I needed to
find a parts car. After a lot of searching I found a '78 80 GLS automatic
with two previous owners for sale in Germany for DM200 ($80). The
description sounded great, and on closer inspection the car was superb. Got
it back, cleaned it and found it too good to use for parts. I've since
received an offer for it and may sell it to buy a less pristine example as a
parts car.

The stable currently consists of:
-1987 80 1.8 FWD, Sapphire blue metallic, 264k km
-1987 90 quattro 2.3E, Tizian red metallic, 180k km
-1978 80 GLS, Manila green, 85k km(!)

The dream garage would contain:
-circa-'75 Audi 100 Coupe S
-early Ur-quattro
-'82 or '83 Coupe GT 5E
-Fox GTI (soon!)
-type 43 200 5T
-type 44 turbo quattro Avant
-V8 4.2 6-speed
-S2 sedan and/or RS2
-S3

Owning multiple cars in Holland is no fun, and there's only one parking
space per person in my apartment building so space is a bit of a problem
too. As soon as I strike it rich, I will own all these cars and a decent
place to store them in. :-)

Tom
Zeist, The Netherlands