Quattro's

[kahng@nimo.com]

I'm sure I'll catch some heat on this question, but here goes nothing:
(sacreligious content to follow)

I own a plain Jane 86 5ks..........non-quattro and live in upstate NY where
mega-snow
is a fact of life for over 6months out of the year.

As long as I have a decent set of tires on this car, it pretty much goes
through anything.

I've been watching with interest at the discussion lines on this list
talking about the inherent
handling superiority of the quattro system under all driving conditions and
I'm starting to weaken,
BUT I'm having a hard time justifying the extra cost associated with
quattro's versus the basic fwd
Audi's.

Everytime I try to find parts, the first thing they ask me is......."Is it
a quattro?" which translates into

" Empty all of your wallet on the counter or just part of it".

Do you guys REALLY feel that the AWD setup is that much better and worth
the extra bucks in keeping this
already expensive beast roadworthy?

I would appreciate your experiences and input as I have my eyes on a well
worn 87 5kq of a co-worker and am wavering on whether to buy the car from
him at some point.

Tanks! (Panzer?)