more power

[cyclops@mindlink.bc.ca (cyclops)]

wow, what a blast. after replacing the thermostat my 86 5kcdtq now goes
easily to 1.3 bar. i guess that the computer likes a hot engine better.
before changing the thermostat it was difficult to get even 1.1 bar in third
up a long hill. i felt so good about it that today i changed the front pads.
rotors were fine. i guess i don't drive hard- when i bought the car 1.5
years ago the front pads were about 3/16" thick and now after 50,000 km
they're still 1/8 " thick. i changed the rears when i first got the car
because the calipers were siezed, they still look new.
        on the subject of differentials, i ran into a problem that amazed me
because in all my years of driving i had never before encountered. i guess
it's because of the quattro. while driving enthusiastically down a mountain
road with several consecutive "s" bends, like a slalom, i came to the final
almost 90 deg turn. i knew this road and the normal speeds for the turn. as
soon as i entered it i knew there was a problem, possibly i lifted a wheel,
but almost immediately the rear of the car wanted to pass me. i floored the
accelerator. this caused the spin to stop, but i was sliding sideways
towards a mountainside. at this point i was amazed at the total lack of
traction!!! and no squealing or smoke. i decided that the spin was a better
option so i let off the gas a little and turned the wheel to continue the
spin. it was pretty interesting that as i started going backwards i could
look rearwards and actually drive and steer. at this point i was rapidly
losing momentum and the cars spin stopped in my lane at a 45deg angle to
where i wanted to go. i put it into gear and moved off the road. there were
no tire marks on the road but i was in a huge dust cloud from all of the
loose sand on the road. the rest of my drive was spent trying to analyse
what went wrong.wierdly, i had no adrenalin rush or fear through the whole
episode, which seemed to have happened in very slow motion.       
        the things i thought were different and possible causes were:
1- i had more weight in the trunk and passenger compartment than usual

2- about 2 months before, my right front tire had a cut in the sidewall and
was replaced

3- about 3 months before, my left front developed a faulty belt and was replaced

4- the rears were 3 seasons old with a little more than 1/2 the tread of the
fronts when the fronts were replaced

5- when i checked the rears after the spin out, they had tread but it had
really worn rapidly compared to the fronts.....my first stop was to buy new
rear tires to match the fronts

6- the road at the turn had a heavy layer of loose sand which acted like a
no friction surface

7- i was in 3rd and could have put down more power if i had been in
second... i should have done that before entering the turn

i welcome your ideas and hope that sometime i can attend a track event and
learn how to deal with these strange happenings.

mike
86 5kcdtq