[s-cars] The Audi as a Fiat

Fri Jul 21 10:05:59 EDT 2006

Interesting.  So the B5.5 1.8t was longitudinally mounted?  Don't know
of any other 1.8t VAG product that isn't longitudinally mounted and
utilizes Torsen???  How'd they do that? 

________________________________

	From: hoog23 at aol.com [mailto:hoog23 at aol.com] 
	Sent: Friday, July 21, 2006 10:02 AM
	To: Pasqualoni, James E
	Cc: s-car-list at audifans.com
	Subject: Re: [s-cars] The Audi as a Fiat

	I believe it is torsen.   Thats what I read on the passat forums
at least.

	They imported a couple hundred 4mo 5spd wagons like that.

	Some guy on the tid forums transplanted a euro tdi v6 150hp 6spd
into a 4motion passat.

	-----Original Message-----
	From: james.pasqualoni at gs.com
	To: hoog23 at aol.com
	Cc: s-car-list at audifans.com
	Sent: Fri, 21 Jul 2006 9:28 AM
	Subject: RE: [s-cars] The Audi as a Fiat

	The first and biggest issue IMO is that the 1.8t motor is
horizontally
	opposed in orientation and therefore utilizes the Haldex AWD
system, not
	Torsen.  Too much front bias unless you do the Haldex ecu mod.
	Furthermore, I don't know that any 5-sp 4M Wagons were imported,
just
	sedans, and only for 1 model yr.  My wife drives an 03 B5.5
Pussat 4M V6
	mit Torsen.  *BUT* it's a slush-box.  In 50k miles, all I've
done
	(besides oil changes/air filters, etc) are rear pads and rotors.
Rock
	solid (knock on wood).  Car will literally drive sideways in
winter for
	as long as you want it to.  Actually quite tossable in the snow.

	Just my $.02

	-----Original Message-----
	From: s-car-list-bounces at audifans.com
<mailto:s-car-list-bounces%40audifans.com> 
	[mailto:s-car-list-bounces at audifans.com
<mailto:s-car-list-bounces%40audifans.com> ] On Behalf Of hoog23 at aol.com
<mailto:hoog23%40aol.com> 
	Sent: Friday, July 21, 2006 9:21 AM
	To: s-car-list at audifans.com <mailto:s-car-list%40audifans.com> 
	Subject: Re: [s-cars] The Audi as a Fiat

	Sort of back on original topic.  (I'm just going to throw this
out there
	so not too many flames please.)

	Anyone ever consider a b5.5 Passat 4motion 5-spd?

	Yes underpowered compared to a stock UrS car but its about the
same size
	and its got quattro.

	Maybe with a chip, A8 brake upgrade and different suspension it
would be
	acceptible?  Mileage would be better.

	Did vw ever get the quality issues worked out with the later
years?  My
	wife had a '98 1.8t when it first came out and ended up being a
	maintenance nightmare (nick named it the POSsat).  The warranty
back
	then was only like 2yrs/24k.  Control arms, water leaking into
cabin
	(sound familiar) and even the radiator went at less than 50k.
Best
	thing about that car was the brakes were actually pretty good.
In the
	end I couldn't give it away.

	Dave

	-----Original Message-----
	From: pkrasusky at ups.com <mailto:pkrasusky%40ups.com> 
	To: s-car-list at audifans.com <mailto:s-car-list%40audifans.com> 
	Cc: wmahoney at disk.com <mailto:wmahoney%40disk.com> ;
stevevoit at comcast.net <mailto:stevevoit%40comcast.net> 
	Sent: Wed, 19 Jul 2006 10:48 AM
	Subject: Re: [s-cars] The Audi as a Fiat

	Steve nailed it and Baloney 2nd'd:

	<<<Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2006 14:36:49 -0500
	From: "Bill Mahoney" <wmahoney at disk.com
<mailto:wmahoney%40disk.com> >
	Subject: [s-cars]  The Audi as a Fiat +danger Will Robinson
	To: <s-car-list at audifans.com <mailto:s-car-list%40audifans.com>
>

	SteVo,

	A very nice dribble of wordsmithing you have made here.  I
couldn't have
	said it better myself.  In fact I was thinking of writing
something
	similar, but let's just go with yours.  Yes.  

	I must add that some of those new Alfa's, due here by the next
decade,
	remind us why we like curvy styling and things that go along
with it.

	Also-

	There may never be another Sfest so don't miss the opportunity
to attend
	what could be the finale and put some faces with the banter.
"Sometimes
	ya just gotta say, shoot; I'm goin'"  

	Bill~bad gas mileage and tires that wear too quickly~M>>>

	Steve-

	Couldn't have said any of it any better.  I esp. like your quote
of
	they're all turning left while you're going straight ahead.
Amazes me
	the mfg's don't frickin LISTEN.  I've been beating this same
drum pretty
	hard here lately too.  Trying to think of UrS replacement
options and it
	ain't easy.  Nothing compares, esp. in feel - all new cars lack
this
	especially lately.  

	And all the new crap is filled to the max with fart sensors and
electro
	doodads no one gives a flying F about.  You all might remember
my quote
	about sitting in der neu //S8 @ the Streets of Tomorrow RS4
event.  We
	all sat in it and looked around in marvel / bewilderment of the
sheer
	GLUT of frickin 'things' they cram into that car.  And I started
keenly
	pointing out "that won't work in a year, that in two, this in
three, and
	heck this within weeks".  Answers to questions nobody friggin
asked, I
	say.  Our BMW flogs at the Tit Event further evidenced this
fact,
	they're near the worst offenders.  Coupled with Bangleisms
they've lost
	me for good unless they change course.  Benz is in same boat, I
always
	find humor in chatting with the Service Advisors about the
'issues'
	they're seeing on the new ones.  SCARY - no thanks.

	And all those 'features' adds up to money, weight, crap
reliability, and
	over complexity that you cannot fix yourself, nor cheaply.  WTF?
Buy
	one of these out of warranty in a few years?  HA!  Finance
companies
	better start writing 30 year notes on these things to afford the
	maintenance.

	Craig Lebakken cracked me up yesterday off list.  He went ahead
and did
	the absurd.  Bought himself a near showroom perfect '72 GMC
Jimmy from a
	one owner little old lady who used it to tow horses.  Except the
hood
	that the horse literally bit, it its a complete unbelievable
time
	capsule.  I'd been saying that recently, instead of spending
$8-20k on a
	replacement car of recent vintage, I'm totally tempted to buy
some sort
	of time capsule or restoration from the glory days.  Kudos to
Craig, I
	say.  Trendsetter, and, what a score he found.

	Mfg's need to stop spending R&D $ on useless junk and spend R&D
on
	making a f'n window switch that works longer than 90 days or
turbos that
	blow every 40k or or or or or.  And I suggest taking this
retrotrend of
	recent a few steps further...  make a new car retro, in that
it's
	de-optioned.  We want less frills, less weight, less $, and less
	complexity / things to go wrong.  John Q. Public does, too...
they just
	don't know it as they're fleeced by the marketeers who tell them
the
	latest they 'must have'.  

	Wish some sort of 'movement' would be started toward this end.
	Unfortunately I'm not delusional (well, OK I am but not in this
regard)
	and know it'll get far worse before slightly better - if at all.
I find
	myself sounding like some old codger who shuns technology and is
afraid
	of change - and I'm only 33!  While I'm not afraid of it, I'm
afraid of
	the direction the mfg's have chosen to take it.

	And...  don't ask what I'll be replacing my car with.  You'll
never
	guess, won't believe, and won't accept it as unghey - but - I
don't
	care.  We'll see what happens, when the time comes.

	-Paul

	ps.  Baloney does make a good //SFest point...  

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