new audis

["Dave Eaton" <Dave.Eaton@clear.net.nz>]

as the m-b was in for a service yesterday, i had the opportunity to
investigate the audi showroom.

tt.  smaller thank i had thought.  fwd, 180hp only at this stage.
delightful inside with truly excellent detailing.  gearshift seems to be
very good with short throws and a nice notchy action.  seats are comfortable
and (front) headroom adequate.  wheels could be bigger to set it off better.
the car gets a lot of interest.  during the time i was there 3 people
stopped their cars, and popped in to have a look.  the car is on back-order
in nz until january 2000.  i imagine that will make residuals very healthy
indeed. i get to test drive it next week.

a6v8.  much more aggressive in appearance than the normal model.  flared
arches much more apparent, as is the lower stance and bigger bonnet, and
wider tyres.  quattro only.  beautiful paint job.  emphasis on te inside is
on luxury and comfort.  it's a pretty big car, but looks more agressive than
your normal executive-barge, although the dealer is careful to position it
against the s6.  it uses the 5v v8, and produces 300hp.  thinking about a
test drive on this one.  nz$155k ($86usd, 155k dm).

s4 facelift.  the only differences which are apparent with this car are the
new centre console, the new corporate door handles, and the new front
lights.  underneath, the car gets the revised (alimunium) suspension which
will improve unsprung weight, and the low-speed ride, which has been an area
of criticism on the old model.  selling well in nz apparently @$nz110k

no word of any "rs" models coming down the pipe.

vw.  looking at something to replace the so's gti, and the new model is a
very nice piece of kit.  price vs anything in the a3-range is pretty
compelling to.  the premium charged for the 1.8t gti is pretty hard to
stomach, but the imminent release of the pugueot 206gti will apparently drop
the price back by a heafty amount.

dave
'95 rs2
'90 ur-q
'88 mb 2.3-16