[V8] Blackest Mariah?

[Roger M. Woodbury]

I SAW IT FIRST I SAW IT FIRST I SAW IT FIRST I SAW IT FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And frankly, I'm not really interested.

Two reasons come to mind.  First off, I do NOT want another project car
right now, and despite the glowing writup, I think this car will have
"issues" that will need to be dealt with.

Secondly, I have come to really, REALLY like driving my 200 20-Valve
Avant...warts and all.  And I HAVE been driving it.  Three trips to Portland
and back in the past month, as well as a couple of other longish trips.
Plus making the round trip from home to Sullivan, then back, then to Blue
Hill and back, and to Belfast....thirty to sixty mile jaunts in an average
day.

The car returns 21-25 miles per gallon and seems happy on mid-grade
gasoline.  The car uses next to zero oil...yes, it does use a quart in
around 4500-5000 miles, or two between changes.  The car has ALL the power
in the world.  The acceleration is stronger than my last V8 by a whole lot
and surprises me at how strongly it pulls and accelerates up steep grades in
fifth gear.  

Now the negatives. The ABS is getting to be a real pita.  The rear spliney
thingys are corroded and the ABS refuses to allow full stops without pumping
the brakes when the car is almost completely stopped.  The switch does not
turn off ABS, so the plan is when the car goes in for its new exhaust
system, we will disable the ABS permanently.  

The airbag warning light is on all the time.  That means, yep, its time for
a new airbag.  Not gonna happen.  I never wanted an airbag to begin with,
didn't order one, and don't care if it is there now.  

Radio still doesn't work properly, and that will require a new antenna lead
from the new mast in the rear to the radio.  I think that is not gonna
happen, either.

I would like European headlights.  Not gonna happen, either, as I drive am
driving relatively little at night, but when I do, the lights aren't very
good.  Relayed, too, still not good, as usual.

Car doesn't look very good.  Oh, its ok from about fifty feet, especially if
I take the time to run it through the car wash.  But it really looks like a
car that has spent too many of its 165,000 miles in northern New England.  I
really do wanna fix that.

So, here's my plan of the day.  I am going to find a replacement for the
Black Mariah once I am nearer to the target date/miles for retirement, which
originally was 200,000 miles, or replacement of the UFO's, whichever comes
first.  That's 35,000 miles from now, or perhaps sometime next spring.

And the ideal replacement will be a 1991 200 20Valve Avant with less than
120,000 miles:  no more than second owner.  That's ideal.  That car will
receive a new computer, wastegate spring and down pipe, most likely,
although the downpipe may not be necessary.  

As a matter of fact, there is a likely candidate out in Oregon...but there
is NO way that I can go out to see it before next year, so someone will
scoop it up and I will continue to build the wish list....

...then again, I might buy an old Rabbit diesel and run it on veggie oil....

Roger

-----Original Message-----
From: Mike Del Tergo [mailto:mdeltergo at hotmail.com] 
Sent: Tuesday, July 25, 2006 8:56 PM
To: v8 at audifans.com
Cc: rmwoodbury at adelphia.net
Subject: Blackest Mariah?

Roger???

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Audi-V8-QUATTRO-BLACK-ON-BLACK-RARE-GOOD-LOOK
ING-AUDI-V8-4-2_W0QQitemZ190012280979QQihZ009QQcategoryZ6055QQrdZ1QQcmdZView
Item