fixing the 90q

[Tom Nas]

Hi all,

Thought I'd give an update to the 90q story-
The timing belt has been changed, together with the water pump and idle 
roller. Thanks to a very experienced friend (and the use of his dry and 
roomy garage and excellent selection of tools) this was fixed in little 
over three hours- not bad considering you have to take the bumper off, too.
Now I've still to replace the radiator (it's weeping slightly and the car 
smells of coolant when it gets hot) with the all-metal unit I have in my 
spares collection.

The cheap 215/40 16s give me no joy- they spoil the quattro's excellent 
roadholding and tramline badly. Next big job is fixing up the 15x7 Ronal 
R8s of my old 90q and fitting new -decent- tyres to those. The 16" PCW 
Porsche Cup look-alikes are OK and easy to clean, but I like the R8s, too. 
They seem to enhance the car's stealth looks (it's Nile Green, a very dark 
metallic green).
I'm hoping to find out if I can change the handsfree kit the previous owner 
installed so that I can use it with my Nokia. Taking it out is no option, 
it would leave too many holes. I'll also install a Kamei leather gearshift 
knob with red illuminated shift pattern. Yes, trivial upgrade and somewhat 
silly but I like the stock look of the Kamei and the idea of an illuminated 
shift pattern appeals to me. I'll hook it up to the rheostat, though. Less 
trivial is the water that finds it way into the trunk when it's raining. I 
guess it's the taillight gaskets that need replacing, as the water is right 
underneath the lights. No biggie.
I'm enjoying the a/c a lot, it's excellent for demisting your windows. My 
first car with a/c and I'll be using it frequently.
In the future I'll be changing the driver's seat foam, as the lefthand side 
bolster is in bad shape. I'll also take the tow hitch off my old 90q and 
fit it to this one, the car is much more useful with a hitch. It needs a 
few bulbs in the interior- most notably the mirror adjustment and the diff 
diagram on the centre console. Don't know if I'm going to upgrade the 
headlight wiring and fit relays- I like being able to use the Autocheck and 
the 90's H4/H1 units are pretty decent anyway.

The car was quiet already thanks to the excellent sound insulation, but the 
engine runs much smoother and even quieter now that the timing belt is 
done. Overall, the tightness of this car belies its 210,000 km.

Sorry for rambling, but at least now I have a car I can mess with again...

Regards, Tom