More V8 Questions...

[Chris King <cking@legend.txdirect.net>]

Well, I finally completed the deal on the V8 I was looking at, so it is
officially mine now.  I ended up getting it for $7k, so I think I made out
like a bandit.  Anyways, I have a few questions, so hopefully you guys can
help me out, so here goes:

1.  How hard and expensive is it to change out the steering wheel and gear
shift knob?  The previous owner must have had very acidic sweat, since the
wheel and knob are both extremely  pitted and dirty.  Other than that, the
interior is in mint condition. Is it better just to have the original wheel
rewrapped in leather, or would a new wheel be better?  I'm sure either way
would be time consuming, since the airbag has to be disabled.  The shift
knob I know I can order from Audi, but it's the wheel that looks like it's
gonna be a problem.

2.  Should I switch to Mobil 1 synthetic oil, and if so, what weight?  From
what I have noticed during my driving, the oil in this car never gets hot,
so there must be a good cooling system on this engine.  Even this past week,
when the temperature here in S.A. got up to 100 degrees (yes, 100 in
Feb...), the oil temp barely went past the second hash mark on the gauge.
Are there any benefits to using synthetic oil in the V8, besides it lasting
a little longer?  I'm assuming I could change the oil about every 5k miles,
so about 4 times a year.  Any suggestions on this subject?

3.  The starter sometimes cranks for about 4-5 seconds before starting.
Sometimes I have to turn the key off, then try again, at which time it
immediately starts up.  Does anyone else have this problem?  A friend of
mine at the dealer said this is normal for the V8.  The starter doesn't make
any funny noises or anything, so I guess it is OK...

4.  My car has the original, "UFO" brake setup, so I was wondering if only
some of the cars were affected by the factory recall that swapped out the
brakes for the 200TQ setup?  I asked the dealer about it, and of course they
didn't know about it.  If someone could provide me with the campaign number
and some more details, could I still have this done to my car?  I hate to
think about getting brake work done wih the current setup, since I am sure
the prices are astronomical.

5.  And last, as far as we could tell, my car has the original transmission
software.  Is this recall really beneficial, and what does it involve?  Do
they just upload new data into the car, or so they have to change any parts?

Any help y'all could give me would be greatly appreciated!

BTW - We had our first rain in two months yesterday, so with the rain mixing
with all of the dust, it made the roads extremely slippery.  Didn't phase
the Q at all, it just kept plowing along without a hint of any sliding or
hydroplaning.  This car is great so far!
---
 Chris King           ===================================================
 cking@txdirect.net    '94 Corrado SLC        (Sherry Red/Beige Leather)
 San Antonio, TX       '90 V8 Quattro               (Black/Grey Leather)
                      ===================================================