New member: Help! 88 Audi 80

[MAJ John B. Hashem]

Hi All,

I purchased an 88 Audi 80 and am trying to revive it.  I am not much of a mechanic, so hard to diagnose.  Here is the deal.  The car blows black smoke and stalls constantly when cold.  It will discontinue running after a bit of time.  I had an Audi dealer check it out and they got it running, and said it ran quite nicely.  My wife drove it from Harrisburg, PA to Washington DC, but it conked out just short of home (after blowing black smoke).  She said the speedometer and most electrical items were not working.

Here are the details:

Previous owner had the distributor replaced, new fuel injection pump, coolant temp sensor.  The invoice says that it still needed repairs to fuel trim and pressure wires.

I purchased it and sent it to the dealer.  They replaced the battery, installed fuel injection fuses, replaced plug wires.  They said it was running great at the shop but stalled.  They wanted to replace o2 sensor and do this cold start kit thing...I rejected this.

My wife said the car ran a bit rough enroute home and **Important** it used a whole tank of gas to go 150 miles...more than our follow on vehicle-a jeep grand Cherokee.

So, what are the opinions out there?  easy fix?  should I unload it?  I haven't even seen car.  I bought it on ebay and am in KC area for a few months.  

If you can help, please do!

John
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