[s-cars] L.A. ur quattro

[Charlie Smith]

Copied from the S-Car list for those interested ...
There is an '85 UrQuattro on eBay:

    http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2404807848

    - Charlie


  Charlie Smith   charlie at elektro.cmhnet.org  614-471-1418
  http://www.elektro.com/~charlie      Columbus Ohio   USA
  http://www.elektro.com/~audi     photos & technical info

  95 S6 Quattro  -  24 PSI, RS2 6 speed, and other features
  97 Dodge Ram   -  35 PSI, 4x4 w/Cummins turbo diesel



==============================================================================

From: Djdawson2 at aol.com
Subject: Re: [s-cars] L.A. ur quattro

Steve sent this comprehensive in person review of the LA 85 urq, for any
interested...


All right, you guys, bidders on the '85.  As promised, I did make it by and
evaluate the car for you and here is my review.

It ain't worth $14,900.  Anyone who would pay that is getting into something
they don't know or understand.  Anyhow, here's the review.

Interior:

Actually, very nice, considering the age.  Drivers door map holder is
detached, as usual, and the carpet strip on the side of it is also
detaching.  The vinyl at the top of the door panel at the base of the drivers
window is detached.  The vinyl around the passenger side vanity mirror has
shrunk, as usual, and the foam is exposed.  The front seats look and feel
quite good.  The rear looks virtually new, and was not loose with an
Interstate battery exposed.  All dash items seemed to work, but, I must
apologize, in the test drive I did not check the diffs.  He said they work,
but I was running out of time.  The stereo had a removal face unit (looked to
be a Sony, maybe) but the face was not there.  the speakers were original,
the rears yellowed/oranged with age.  The rear deck covering was dark black.
The carpet mats were a little rolled up/unflat, if you know what I mean.  The
carpets underneath were very good.  The sunroof worked fine.  The high
quality '85 headliner looked perfect.

Exterior:

Original Alpine White paint.  Somewhat dusty looking finish, but pretty
good.  There was a dent/scrape low on the drivers side that ended at the
front of the rear wheel well.  There was a little paint chipped off there.
It is one of those places that you can't easily get to from behind.  All the
pinstriping and the rings were intact, but looked quite faded.  The wing was
white, of course, and looked okay.  The black gutter trim and the mirror
housings looked fairly good; not noticeably oxidized.  There front grill is
shot, very oxidized and rough surfaced and cracked in a couple of places
around the center rings.  The headlights are well set back in the housings
and consist of three Sylvania halogens and one Borg Warner.  One noticeable
chip on the front air dam edge.

The underbody, or what I could see of it, looked like it hadn't been trashed
by anything.  The rear muffler is shot, corroding out the bottom.  The rest
looks okay.  Rear bushings looked pretty decent.  Couldn't really see much of
the front obviously, particularly because the car wasn't there when I got
there at 4:30 and by the time I was able to get to some of this, darkness was
falling.

Engine compartment:

Appearance was relative okay, but somewhat dirty and yellowed looking.  The
cowl cover plastic at the base of the windshield was partially destroyed on
the passenger side.  One strut cap was missing; strut bearings obviously need
replacing as there is a 3/8"-1/2" gap on top.  The auxiliary and the main
radiator had somewhat rusty looking exteriors.  There were some new hoses
evident.  Some oil film/blow-by was evident, but no leaks apparent.  Brake
fluid certainly looked old.  I'm forgetting something...there was some other
plastic cover that was cracked, but I don't remember right now.

Engine:

The engine sounded loud and "whirry"; too much whirring noise associated with
it, like it was dragging some bearing noises along with it.  It was much
rougher than either of my urq's.  Three was no easily apparent EM leak
sounds, but the car had been driven over to the lot by the owner, so it was
well warmed up when I got it.  Note:  he did not shut it down when he got
out.  I did, it restarted, but something to consider with the back seat loose
and the whirring sounds.  Appeared to be charging okay, maybe a tad low.

The Drive:

One of the roughest sounding engines I've ever driven in an urq.  Makes lots
of noise, but not boost rush at 3000 rpm.  They think this think is strong.
I told them NOT!  Definitely would require compression and leak down test.
Just doesn't make the power.  I know I'm biased with my 200 hp and former 230
hp urq's, but his one doesn't cut it in the engine/power department.

The brakes are stock G54 fare and something is warped down there.  The feel
noticeably spongy at first and the hard braking reveals the warped rotor or
something else somewhere.  Not real bad, but there.

The suspension is hard and odd.  The front seems up a little high and it
rides quite stiff.  Don't know what struts were put in (at 130k, they had to
be replaced) but I'd also definitely require it be put on a lift and
determine struts and springs that are there.  The car was running on 215/50
Eagle GA's: absurd HR rated tires for the car which contributed to the harsh
ride and diminished the handling.

Not a car I'd care to run hard through a canyon with the existing engine and
brakes.  Not enjoyable or safe.

I really can't say right off what is making the engine so rough.  It may just
be a poorly taken care of car, in some ways.  The fact that the exterior
black trim was good EXCEPT for the front grill speaks to some limited effort
being taken.  This is way degraded from what the car had to be new.  It is
not an enjoyable car to drive now, at least not to me or any of us.  These
guys think it's hot and it's not right now, but it's a good base to start
with.  The guy wants to get close to $14k.  I told him I wouldn't go over
$11k and that was if I was satisfied with the results of the engine and
suspension evaluations.  With the relatively good interior and the lack of
rust, there's enough there to make it worth that.  With things taken care of
and cleaned up, it might be a $16k car, but it all depends on what you want
or plan to do.  If you planned on redoing the suspension and some engine
works, decide on your final offer accordingly.  It is really attractive
because of the aesthetic appeal that can be there with a little work.  It is
really unattractive due to the engine power, sound, brakes and suspension as
they sit.  I definitely would not trade my 82k '83 for it stright up, and I
would expect to expect no more than maybe $8900 for my car IF I were to put
it up for sale, although I'd probably start above $10k with some of these
prices lately, considering condition. Bob got a hell of a steal on my old
'85, even though it wasn't running, compared to this car.

Rick's already decided on another one, and I think it was a better deal.  Ben
and DJ; depending on what you've got available and planned to do with the car
anyway, bid accordingly, but that's where I see it.  I really wish I'd gotten
more enjoyment out of checking it out for you.

BTW, the lot is a little corner lot across from the Honda dealer.  Three
little independent lots in a row seeiming to specialize in relatively high
level .medium to high mileage cars.  They had a relatively nice '91 300ZX, a
Lexus coupe and a couple of LS 400's there, but nothing first rate condition,
mileage or otherwise

HTH,

Steve

_______________________________________________
S-CAR-List mailing list
S-CAR-List at audifans.com
http://www.audifans.com/mailman/listinfo/s-car-list