curse ye audi gods--SOLVED

[LOACESQ <LOACESQ@aol.com>]

Hi QList,

The QList and the archives came through again!  I went through the no-start
postings and armed with ideas, got back on the street to my parked, dead q at
around 1 am.  Since I was at the office and with the new-to-me 89 200q, I had
NO tools (my 87 5kcst, of course, is stocked like an auto repair shop).  I
went into McGuyver mode.  First, I checked the various ignition connectors
under the hood--everything was tight.  Then to check the starter itself, I
needed light.  Found an aftermarket notepad/vanity set strapped to the visor.
Took the mirror from this and broke it into two pieces.  Scrounged around the
car's crevices and found a paper clip.  Bent the paper clip into a support
frame for one piece of the mirror and set it on the ground.  After alot of
aiming and adjusting, I was able to make the mirror on the ground redirect the
street lamp light to my handheld piece, which I angled around to illuminate
the bottom of the engine.  Dim as hell, but it relieved the complete blackness
under there.  Let's see now . . . the postings describe a thick braided copper
wire about an inch long . . . I poked at it and it fell off.  The wire was
sooo corroded, it didn't even resemble metal.  I could grind it into dust just
rolling it between my fingers.  Problem found, but not solved. I still needed
to restore the circuit to get home.  I scrounged the streets for a conductor
and salvaged the cord from a lamp in the garbage.  Not beefy gauge, but
hopefully enough when doubled up.  Cut and stripped the cord with the piece of
mirror.  It was easy enough to twist the wire onto the terminal on the
solenoid side, but the only contact point on the starter motor side was a
shred of fuzz (copper braid in a former life) left sticking out of the
housing.  I jabbed the end of the wire through the shred of fuzz into the
starter motor body as much as I could and turned the key with a prayer to the
Audi gods.  VROOM!   Home by 2 am.

adam