[V8] V8 Digest, Vol 92, Issue 5

[ProfessorGT]

On Jul 4, 2011, at 1:34 PM, Ricky Joshi wrote:

> I think one car that no one thinks about is the 1990-1994 Lexus LS400

Ricky,

No one thinks about them because they are a BORING, typical Asian
copycat type vehicle. Fairly relaible ........., okay really relaible,
but horrendously uninspiring!

Even with the addition of a fart-can muffler, like most of the other
race car ricer wanna-bes out there, it still pegs the Boring meter on
full snore, although it does elevate the "cugino" meter to the
badda-bing level.

Last time I checked this was an Audi V8 forum, so I would venture to
say that most of us would rather not waste our time with other
dirstractions. Don't mean to be harsh on you, but really, that vehicle
would be better appreciated elsewhere. They were a marvel of
engineering for their day, but like anything else they have a specific
audience, and speaking strictly for myself, not something that excites
me.

Now, mention some of the other fine european artwork out there from
the stables of MB, BMW, Ferrari, Lamborghini, and so on, and many of
us here would appreciate that. You see, the love we have for our
vehicles goes beyond reliability (lord knows that's not one of
VW/Audi's strong points), to the driving experience. I remember the
first time I drove my 5-speed V8. Memories of my late 80's M5 came
rushing back!

These Audi V-8's we all love are best left to those who have the
where-with-all to fix them ourselves. That too, is part of the
ownership experience: the satisfaction of knowing you can keep one of
these cars running and in good shape. They do need constant attention
once they age a bit, so they are not for the faint of heart! But, get
one tweaked to the point where it's running great, and they are just a
blast to drive!

Can I get an Amen?

Enjoy!
ProfessorGT


On 7/4/11, v8-request at audifans.com <v8-request at audifans.com> wrote:
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> Today's Topics:
>
>    1. ...a 2.7T? (Roger M. Woodbury)
>    2. Re: ...a 2.7T? (Ed Kellock)
>    3. Re: A V8 Avant in my future? (cobram at juno.com)
>    4. Re: ...a 2.7T? (Ricky Joshi)
>    5. Re: ...a 2.7T? (Roger M. Woodbury)
>    6. Re: ...a 2.7T? (Dave Saad)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Mon, 4 Jul 2011 09:20:55 -0400
> From: "Roger M. Woodbury" <rmwoodbury at fairpoint.net>
> To: <KeithT1967 at aol.com>
> Cc: v8 at audifans.com
> Subject: [V8] ...a 2.7T?
> Message-ID: <6407F16F882D427DA307B717F3D45B96 at roger6a391dba0>
> Content-Type: text/plain;	charset="us-ascii"
>
> I never thought about  the newer turbo charged engine in a C4.  I wonder if
> it would be more difficult to get the electronics to work with this engine
> than with a 3.6 V8 swap?
>
> I quite agree that the C4 is the best car for us, particularly at this point
> in our lives.  I have little tolerance for "niggling" issues that I believe
> should have been eliminated during the design and engineering process.  I
> have NO issues with a car that has north of 150k developing "issues", but
> when the car has less than 50K and has "issues", I can get right nasty.
> When my brandy new BMW 318 developed run on problems and bad synchronizers
> TWICE in fifty thousand miles and I was advised by the BMW factory rep that
> I should "hold on" until the newer 325 appeared because it was going to be a
> MUCH better car, I nearly came unglued.  That was the last Bimmer in my
> life, because BMW admitted that the 318 engine was not properly designed to
> operate in the US on US formulated unleaded gasoline....couldn't operate at
> high enough temperature to burn off the anti-smog additives, and they
> admitted to me after the first transmission overhaul that they had
> experienced a period of issues with the synchronizers that were supplied for
> that gear box.  Fourteen plus grand for a small two door sedan was a bunch
> of money in 1983!
>
> In 2001 I paid about that for the C4 Avant which we now have 165,000 miles
> on.  The car now has "issues" of old age and wear and tear.  It needs
> refurbishing, both inside and out, it needs a new A/C compressor at some
> point, although the system still works as it should.  The control head is
> argumentative until the car has run for an hour or so, the transmission has
> a one second delay going from park to drive first thing in the morning (not
> after that), and the engine has leaks that will need to be addressed at some
> point by pulling the engine and resealing.
>
> My wife thinks it's perfect as is.  If she is content with it, I won't stir
> up the hornets nest, but I still have this fanatasy of a similar car that
> just once...one time only....really surprises some yahoo in his new, retro
> Mustang.
>
> Just not going to happen THIS year, but since C4s keep getting thrown away,
> who knows what next year will bring.
>
> Roger
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Mon, 4 Jul 2011 11:25:18 -0600
> From: "Ed Kellock" <ekellock at gmail.com>
> To: "'Roger M. Woodbury'" <rmwoodbury at fairpoint.net>,
> 	<KeithT1967 at aol.com>
> Cc: v8 at audifans.com
> Subject: Re: [V8] ...a 2.7T?
> Message-ID: <049A508D1EE94587B4533028E05F89ED at Boonieslap>
> Content-Type: text/plain;	charset="us-ascii"
>
> Is it possible that this car was ordered up for European Delivery by a US
> buyer and they selected the cloth interior.
>
> Ed
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: v8-bounces at audifans.com [mailto:v8-bounces at audifans.com] On Behalf Of
> Roger M. Woodbury
> Sent: Monday, July 04, 2011 7:21 AM
> To: KeithT1967 at aol.com
> Cc: v8 at audifans.com
> Subject: [V8] ...a 2.7T?
>
>
> I never thought about  the newer turbo charged engine in a C4.  I wonder if
> it would be more difficult to get the electronics to work with this engine
> than with a 3.6 V8 swap?
>
> I quite agree that the C4 is the best car for us, particularly at this point
> in our lives.  I have little tolerance for "niggling" issues that I believe
> should have been eliminated during the design and engineering process.  I
> have NO issues with a car that has north of 150k developing "issues", but
> when the car has less than 50K and has "issues", I can get right nasty. When
> my brandy new BMW 318 developed run on problems and bad synchronizers TWICE
> in fifty thousand miles and I was advised by the BMW factory rep that I
> should "hold on" until the newer 325 appeared because it was going to be a
> MUCH better car, I nearly came unglued.  That was the last Bimmer in my
> life, because BMW admitted that the 318 engine was not properly designed to
> operate in the US on US formulated unleaded gasoline....couldn't operate at
> high enough temperature to burn off the anti-smog additives, and they
> admitted to me after the first transmission overhaul that they had
> experienced a period of issues with the synchronizers that were supplied for
> that gear box.  Fourteen plus grand for a small two door sedan was a bunch
> of money in 1983!
>
> In 2001 I paid about that for the C4 Avant which we now have 165,000 miles
> on.  The car now has "issues" of old age and wear and tear.  It needs
> refurbishing, both inside and out, it needs a new A/C compressor at some
> point, although the system still works as it should.  The control head is
> argumentative until the car has run for an hour or so, the transmission has
> a one second delay going from park to drive first thing in the morning (not
> after that), and the engine has leaks that will need to be addressed at some
> point by pulling the engine and resealing.
>
> My wife thinks it's perfect as is.  If she is content with it, I won't stir
> up the hornets nest, but I still have this fanatasy of a similar car that
> just once...one time only....really surprises some yahoo in his new, retro
> Mustang.
>
> Just not going to happen THIS year, but since C4s keep getting thrown away,
> who knows what next year will bring.
>
> Roger
> _______________________________________________
> Audifans V8 mailing list
> Send posts to: mailto:V8 at audifans.com
> Manage your list connection: http://www.audifans.com/mailman/listinfo/v8
>
> You can help keep the audifans site running by shopping at
> http://audifans.com/shop/
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Mon, 4 Jul 2011 15:27:04 -0400
> From: cobram at juno.com
> To: rmwoodbury at fairpoint.net
> Cc: v8 at audifans.com
> Subject: Re: [V8] A V8 Avant in my future?
> Message-ID: <20110704.122731.950.726626 at mailpop06.vgs.untd.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>
> Thanks for the link, didn't work, but it's easier to just punch in the
> item # 330584058753 on fleabay.  The color is something else, not
> "brown", not my favorite color, and that's probably the most horrendous
> looking interior seat cloth since Porsche offered psychodelic interiors.
>
>
> Mystery solved, it is indeed a "US" model, but it was a euro-delivery
> program car.  With Euro-Delivery, you could get options, packages and
> delete options not available on lot cars.  No DOT riders though, so no
> Webasto heaters etc. allowed, but god awful tacky cloth available to your
> hearts content. ;-)
>
> I agree that some of the best cars have been built,  when it comes to
> Mercyless Benz it was a corporate vision and attitude change, which means
> if you want a "real" post 1990ish Mercedes, you have to buy a Mayback.
>
> I don't know if it's a reflection of current offerings, or what, but I
> haven't been excited by any of the new offerings out there for a long,
> long time.  I used to see brand new 200TQA's, V8Q's, Ur's running around
> back in the day and thinking that "I'm gonna get me one of those when
> they're priced right in the used market."  Haven't thought that about a
> car in a long time.  Maybe we're just gettin' old?  ;-)
>
> BCNU,
> Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes.
>
>
>  "Roger M. Woodbury" <rmwoodbury at fairpoint.net> writes:
>
>> Here's the link to the one that prompted my current
>>
> rant....http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GARAGE-KEPT-DIESEL-WAGON-RARE-3RD-
> ROW
>> -LOW-MILES-CLEAN-/330584058753?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item4cf8586b81.
>>  Note
>> the interior.
>>
>> Now there are probably some stories here...the extra plug on the
>> left rear
>> flank was placed there, why?  Early cellular antenna, perhaps?  Also
>> note
>> the right side headlight wiper is screwy, and I wonder why the
>> dealer didn't
>> fix that before putting the car's pictures up on eBay.  I wonder if
>> the car
>> might have been hit and repainted?
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Mon, 4 Jul 2011 12:34:41 -0700
> From: Ricky Joshi <rickyjoshi01 at gmail.com>
> To: "Roger M. Woodbury" <rmwoodbury at fairpoint.net>
> Cc: v8 at audifans.com
> Subject: Re: [V8] ...a 2.7T?
> Message-ID:
> 	<CADruK_so4EpLTg3+tVv-bphDcwLw=aM6tmC=XRz_R73ggq_Vzg at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>
> I think one car that no one thinks about is the 1990-1994 Lexus LS400.  I am
> a V8 fan forever and am willing to deal with the cost/ effort to keep the
> car going.  The LS doesn't come close in terms of how fun it is to drive or
> overall spirit.  BUT I'm convinced its the most reliable car in history. I
> bought my 1991 in 2008 with 49K miles.  Its now at 80K and I haven't spent
> one penny or one minute on repairs except oil changes and tires.
>
> On Mon, Jul 4, 2011 at 6:20 AM, Roger M. Woodbury
> <rmwoodbury at fairpoint.net>wrote:
>
>> I never thought about  the newer turbo charged engine in a C4.  I wonder
>> if
>> it would be more difficult to get the electronics to work with this engine
>> than with a 3.6 V8 swap?
>>
>> I quite agree that the C4 is the best car for us, particularly at this
>> point
>> in our lives.  I have little tolerance for "niggling" issues that I
>> believe
>> should have been eliminated during the design and engineering process.  I
>> have NO issues with a car that has north of 150k developing "issues", but
>> when the car has less than 50K and has "issues", I can get right nasty.
>> When my brandy new BMW 318 developed run on problems and bad synchronizers
>> TWICE in fifty thousand miles and I was advised by the BMW factory rep
>> that
>> I should "hold on" until the newer 325 appeared because it was going to be
>> a
>> MUCH better car, I nearly came unglued.  That was the last Bimmer in my
>> life, because BMW admitted that the 318 engine was not properly designed
>> to
>> operate in the US on US formulated unleaded gasoline....couldn't operate
>> at
>> high enough temperature to burn off the anti-smog additives, and they
>> admitted to me after the first transmission overhaul that they had
>> experienced a period of issues with the synchronizers that were supplied
>> for
>> that gear box.  Fourteen plus grand for a small two door sedan was a bunch
>> of money in 1983!
>>
>> In 2001 I paid about that for the C4 Avant which we now have 165,000 miles
>> on.  The car now has "issues" of old age and wear and tear.  It needs
>> refurbishing, both inside and out, it needs a new A/C compressor at some
>> point, although the system still works as it should.  The control head is
>> argumentative until the car has run for an hour or so, the transmission
>> has
>> a one second delay going from park to drive first thing in the morning
>> (not
>> after that), and the engine has leaks that will need to be addressed at
>> some
>> point by pulling the engine and resealing.
>>
>> My wife thinks it's perfect as is.  If she is content with it, I won't
>> stir
>> up the hornets nest, but I still have this fanatasy of a similar car that
>> just once...one time only....really surprises some yahoo in his new, retro
>> Mustang.
>>
>> Just not going to happen THIS year, but since C4s keep getting thrown
>> away,
>> who knows what next year will bring.
>>
>> Roger
>> _______________________________________________
>> Audifans V8 mailing list
>> Send posts to: mailto:V8 at audifans.com
>> Manage your list connection: http://www.audifans.com/mailman/listinfo/v8
>>
>> You can help keep the audifans site running by shopping at
>> http://audifans.com/shop/
>>
>>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 5
> Date: Mon, 4 Jul 2011 19:28:50 -0400
> From: "Roger M. Woodbury" <rmwoodbury at fairpoint.net>
> To: "'Ricky Joshi'" <rickyjoshi01 at gmail.com>
> Cc: v8 at audifans.com
> Subject: Re: [V8] ...a 2.7T?
> Message-ID: <F67D0EDD987D4F28858A577945E719D6 at roger6a391dba0>
> Content-Type: text/plain;	charset="us-ascii"
>
> Well, it IS all about the "overall spirit" now, isn't it?
>
> I know people who have very high mileage Lexii LS 400s. Good for them.  I am
> surprised they could stay awake that long behind the wheel.
>
> Of course, the later Toyota products have all fallen ill to the greedy bug.
> This Toyota learned from their liason with GM in the early 90's in
> California.  They may decide to go back to the earlier lessons they learned
> a the hands of Edwards Demming.  My guess is that they will quickly learn
> how to make their current models less suseptible to short term failure, but
> fall apart in the 125,000 range, long after the first and second owner has
> traded on something else.  This will be much like Mercedes and BMW are
> doing, and much like GM and Ford did for decades.
>
> My guess is this "recession" may well be permanent, and people will by
> necessity need to put many more miles on their cars than they ever thought
> they would.  The real story about durability and overall quality may not be
> written for current automobiles for another 150,000 miles or perhaps more.
>
> Keep your Lexus. It's probably better than anything more current on the
> market now.
>
> Roger
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ricky Joshi [mailto:rickyjoshi01 at gmail.com]
> Sent: Monday, July 04, 2011 3:35 PM
> To: Roger M. Woodbury
> Cc: KeithT1967 at aol.com; v8 at audifans.com
> Subject: Re: [V8] ...a 2.7T?
>
>
> I think one car that no one thinks about is the 1990-1994 Lexus LS400.  I am
> a V8 fan forever and am willing to deal with the cost/ effort to keep the
> car going.  The LS doesn't come close in terms of how fun it is to drive or
> overall spirit.  BUT I'm convinced its the most reliable car in history. I
> bought my 1991 in 2008 with 49K miles.  Its now at 80K and I haven't spent
> one penny or one minute on repairs except oil changes and tires.
>
>
> On Mon, Jul 4, 2011 at 6:20 AM, Roger M. Woodbury <rmwoodbury at fairpoint.net>
> wrote:
>
>
> I never thought about  the newer turbo charged engine in a C4.  I wonder if
> it would be more difficult to get the electronics to work with this engine
> than with a 3.6 V8 swap?
>
> I quite agree that the C4 is the best car for us, particularly at this point
> in our lives.  I have little tolerance for "niggling" issues that I believe
> should have been eliminated during the design and engineering process.  I
> have NO issues with a car that has north of 150k developing "issues", but
> when the car has less than 50K and has "issues", I can get right nasty.
> When my brandy new BMW 318 developed run on problems and bad synchronizers
> TWICE in fifty thousand miles and I was advised by the BMW factory rep that
> I should "hold on" until the newer 325 appeared because it was going to be a
> MUCH better car, I nearly came unglued.  That was the last Bimmer in my
> life, because BMW admitted that the 318 engine was not properly designed to
> operate in the US on US formulated unleaded gasoline....couldn't operate at
> high enough temperature to burn off the anti-smog additives, and they
> admitted to me after the first transmission overhaul that they had
> experienced a period of issues with the synchronizers that were supplied for
> that gear box.  Fourteen plus grand for a small two door sedan was a bunch
> of money in 1983!
>
> In 2001 I paid about that for the C4 Avant which we now have 165,000 miles
> on.  The car now has "issues" of old age and wear and tear.  It needs
> refurbishing, both inside and out, it needs a new A/C compressor at some
> point, although the system still works as it should.  The control head is
> argumentative until the car has run for an hour or so, the transmission has
> a one second delay going from park to drive first thing in the morning (not
> after that), and the engine has leaks that will need to be addressed at some
> point by pulling the engine and resealing.
>
> My wife thinks it's perfect as is.  If she is content with it, I won't stir
> up the hornets nest, but I still have this fanatasy of a similar car that
> just once...one time only....really surprises some yahoo in his new, retro
> Mustang.
>
> Just not going to happen THIS year, but since C4s keep getting thrown away,
> who knows what next year will bring.
>
> Roger
> _______________________________________________
> Audifans V8 mailing list
> Send posts to: mailto:V8 at audifans.com
> Manage your list connection: http://www.audifans.com/mailman/listinfo/v8
>
> You can help keep the audifans site running by shopping at
> http://audifans.com/shop/
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 6
> Date: Mon, 4 Jul 2011 17:34:06 -0600
> From: Dave Saad <dsaad at icehouse.net>
> To: v8audi fan <v8 at audifans.com>
> Subject: Re: [V8] ...a 2.7T?
> Message-ID: <1EADD470-C514-4A0D-B2D6-8BCBE3D690AF at icehouse.net>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>
> They are easy to forget because they are just a knock off of a Mercedes.  If
> it had some personality instead of relentless pursuit of perfection, then
> maybe I could see owning one but why not just get a Camry? If reliable is
> what you want (and you don't mind the un-intended acceleration thing, and
> you can ignore the plethora of other "reliability" issues) then save
> yourself some cash and get the most homogeneous vehicle ever built.  They
> look pretty much the same to me.
> I prefer the excitement of never knowing if I will arrive in my V8. (spoiler
> alert - I always do)
>
>
> Dave
>
>
>
> On Jul 4, 2011, at 1:34 PM, Ricky Joshi wrote:
>
>> I think one car that no one thinks about is the 1990-1994 Lexus LS400.  I
>> am
>> a V8 fan forever and am willing to deal with the cost/ effort to keep the
>> car going.  The LS doesn't come close in terms of how fun it is to drive
>> or
>> overall spirit.  BUT I'm convinced its the most reliable car in history. I
>> bought my 1991 in 2008 with 49K miles.  Its now at 80K and I haven't spent
>> one penny or one minute on repairs except oil changes and tires.
>>
>> On Mon, Jul 4, 2011 at 6:20 AM, Roger M. Woodbury
>> <rmwoodbury at fairpoint.net>wrote:
>>
>>> I never thought about  the newer turbo charged engine in a C4.  I wonder
>>> if
>>> it would be more difficult to get the electronics to work with this
>>> engine
>>> than with a 3.6 V8 swap?
>>>
>>> I quite agree that the C4 is the best car for us, particularly at this
>>> point
>>> in our lives.  I have little tolerance for "niggling" issues that I
>>> believe
>>> should have been eliminated during the design and engineering process.  I
>>> have NO issues with a car that has north of 150k developing "issues", but
>>> when the car has less than 50K and has "issues", I can get right nasty.
>>> When my brandy new BMW 318 developed run on problems and bad
>>> synchronizers
>>> TWICE in fifty thousand miles and I was advised by the BMW factory rep
>>> that
>>> I should "hold on" until the newer 325 appeared because it was going to
>>> be
>>> a
>>> MUCH better car, I nearly came unglued.  That was the last Bimmer in my
>>> life, because BMW admitted that the 318 engine was not properly designed
>>> to
>>> operate in the US on US formulated unleaded gasoline....couldn't operate
>>> at
>>> high enough temperature to burn off the anti-smog additives, and they
>>> admitted to me after the first transmission overhaul that they had
>>> experienced a period of issues with the synchronizers that were supplied
>>> for
>>> that gear box.  Fourteen plus grand for a small two door sedan was a
>>> bunch
>>> of money in 1983!
>>>
>>> In 2001 I paid about that for the C4 Avant which we now have 165,000
>>> miles
>>> on.  The car now has "issues" of old age and wear and tear.  It needs
>>> refurbishing, both inside and out, it needs a new A/C compressor at some
>>> point, although the system still works as it should.  The control head is
>>> argumentative until the car has run for an hour or so, the transmission
>>> has
>>> a one second delay going from park to drive first thing in the morning
>>> (not
>>> after that), and the engine has leaks that will need to be addressed at
>>> some
>>> point by pulling the engine and resealing.
>>>
>>> My wife thinks it's perfect as is.  If she is content with it, I won't
>>> stir
>>> up the hornets nest, but I still have this fanatasy of a similar car that
>>> just once...one time only....really surprises some yahoo in his new,
>>> retro
>>> Mustang.
>>>
>>> Just not going to happen THIS year, but since C4s keep getting thrown
>>> away,
>>> who knows what next year will bring.
>>>
>>> Roger
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Audifans V8 mailing list
>>> Send posts to: mailto:V8 at audifans.com
>>> Manage your list connection: http://www.audifans.com/mailman/listinfo/v8
>>>
>>> You can help keep the audifans site running by shopping at
>>> http://audifans.com/shop/
>>>
>>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Audifans V8 mailing list
>> Send posts to: mailto:V8 at audifans.com
>> Manage your list connection: http://www.audifans.com/mailman/listinfo/v8
>>
>> You can help keep the audifans site running by shopping at
>> http://audifans.com/shop/
>>
>>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> _______________________________________________
> Audifans V8 mailing list digest
> Send posts to: mailto:V8 at audifans.com
> Manage your list connection: http://www.audifans.com/mailman/listinfo/v8
>
> You can help keep the audifans site running by shopping at
> http://audifans.com/shop/
>
>
> End of V8 Digest, Vol 92, Issue 5
> *********************************
>


-- 
Thanks,
Professor
CavalloGT