[urq] I wish ...

[urq]

... I lived in Europe ... I just saw the following article in Sports Car
Digest:

	
http://www.sportscardigest.com/audi-tradition-plans-full-schedule-in-2010/

I hear you David, and while I tend to be one of those cheap bastards I see
signs that things are changing.  I think you aren't factoring in the prices
the cars are going for, which seems to be improving.  Hopefully, gone are
the days where you only hear from people trying to low ball you when you try
to sell your car.  Since my car apparently had some work done to it before I
bought it I've never considered it will ever get top dollar, and I think
that is what leads to not wanting to put "top dollar" money into it.  That
said, I'm always on the look out for an original '84, and if it is in good
original condition I'd be willing to pay for it and keep it up in that
condition.  

You are correct in that we as the owners and fans can make this happen ...
who knows what "this" will eventually mean ... but one thing that is key is
that we need to support people like Javad who are willing and able to do
what they can to help us keep our cars on the road.  Frankly though, I don't
think I've seen much complaining about how much 034 Motorsport charges for
OEM replacement parts.  In fact, I've wondered if it makes sense to try to
create a more official relationship with someone like Javad (there may be
other candidates, I offer 034 as an option because I live near Javad and his
business).  

In a way this discussion is coming full circle ... in the case of the Viper,
the manufacturer is doing things to support the owners and fans ... and as
you rightly point out, Audi is not likely to act similarly for urq owners
and fans ... but perhaps we can form a partnership with someone other than
Audi who can help us get the factory quality parts we need ... 

Steve Buchholz

-----Original Message-----


 Perhaps I picked a bad example... and the fact that it is still available
from an aftermarket supplier speaks to its demand.

How about a wiper blade for $99... or a front fender for $1446... or maybe a
sun visor for $406?

My point is that the clan of urq owners is a price sensitive bunch of
people, for the most part.  I've never heard a Sport Q owner complain about
pricing... they simply accept it as the price of admission... most
collectors do.

I'm only summing up my observations.  2 things seem to happen repeatedly:

1) We bitch about a lack of parts.
2) An NLA part becomes available in the aftermarket, then we bitch about the
price (034efi, for instance, producing replacements parts)

You've got to realize that any business person is going to look at this
scenario and arrive at the conclusion that it probably isn't worth the
effort... especially to support 11000 cars, of which probably half or less
remain.

Dave