New V8 Owner Questions

["Kang Family" <kkang@dallas.net>]

I recently bought an used V8 without having ever driven one, sight unseen.
The deal was okay, and the car is in excellent condition with a little south
of 70K miles on it. It seems to be a great car in the european fashion with
autobahn temperament and makes the SHO it is replacing seem like a crude
american muscle car. As it was raining in Dallas today, I had a great deal
of fun launching from stop lights and turning at intersections on the gas,
and feeling the stability that the awd set up provides. Normally in rain,
everything else I drive would be slithering around with any mildly vigorous
throttle application.

There are a couple of things about V8s that I am curious about, that I was
not able to find through searches of the archives, although I am sure they
have been covered. Hopefully you kind souls can provide some simple answers,
so I won't have to spend another couple of hours searching the archives.

I knew from reading reviews that the slush box and engine tuning made the
car a weak performer off the line, but I didn't think the car would be so
close to my Volvo wagon (4000lbs w/115hp) at speeds below 60 in performance.
Is there any modification that can be done which will improve low end grunt?
I was really hoping for performance somewhere closer to the SHO it replaces,
than the wagon that it shares european temperament with.

I also plan to put a tow hitch on the car and tow motorcycles to places like
Monterey, CA and the Blue Ridge Parkway. The manual claims a maximum tow
weight of 2000lbs with a braked trailer. How much have people towed with
their V8s, what type of set up have they used and are there any
peculiarities to towing with a Quattro?

Are there any cup holders that are made for this car?

Lastly, anybody interested in a well maintained SHO?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

Ray

80 Suzuki GS1000E
91 Kawasaki ZX-11
89 Ford Taurus SHO
90 Audi V8
91 Lotus Esprit
92 Volvo 745