Executive Audi 80: Back In Business

[Skizzer]

Is the boot unusably small or not too bad? Contemporary reviews seem to grouse about this, the high list price and poor ventilation. My brother had the later type 2.0e with the bigger front end and boot which seemed a good car although this was a decade ago so my memory is quite hazy.

 

I think Audi went overboard on the galvanising of these and the first aero 100s because you still rarely see rusty ones, whereas the later 90s versions seem to corrode a little more readily around the front wheel arches.

 

The boot is not so much small as just oddly shaped.  It doesn't go back far, but it's very deep.  The aperture isn't all that big, so even though 430 litres is enough to take a big box, you'd struggle to get it in there in the first place.  This one has the optional full size spare wheel that bolts to the side of the boot Jaguar-style (rather than underfloor space saver), which makes things worse.

 

I'll have a go with a couple of suitcases when the rain stops.  Might even make a little road test movie.

 

 

In other news, Mrs Skizzer has now been out in it and quite likes it, rather to her surprise.  She says the tweed upholstery is like sitting in an old man's suit.  Sorry Holbeck, it might be staying for a while at least.

 

 

I shall keep the trims.  One is a bit scratched so I might even have a go at filling, sanding and painting it.

[Skizzer]

I am biased though

Lovely 90! Is that your current ride? If so, we need MORE PHOTOS. Welcome aboard.

 

DMB Graphics are indeed bookmarked on my work PC, by the way. I need to ask if they do a frequent flyer programme.

[trigger]

That's such a nice old car, I agree that a new set of DMB plates will finish it off a treat.

[mhrallye]

Hi, bit of a lurker here - been registered for nearly 5 years but not posted anything since I started! Just want to say audi 80's are excellent cars from a period in history when they built cars to last - unlike the modern ones which seem to be mostly driven by complete tossers!

My own car is a 80 turbo diesel se model which i've owned for nearly 5 years now and seems to be unkillable - not bad for a car which only cost £200......!

 

Anyway a pic from a few years ago - if I can remember how to do it that is......

 

The car WAS in really good condition until the start of this year when this happened......

 

Just to show how much the bootlid was bent.....

 

The car was parked up in it's usual spot across the road from my work when something ran into the back of it then buggered off! one of our mechanics out on test noticed it - needless to say i've never found out what actually did the damage - possibly a large van or truck as the impact moved the car 20 feet down the road - to be fair there was a light dusting of snow that day.

Anyway later on we got the car into the workshop and using another car (and a large tow strap!) we managed to pull out some of the damage and once I managed to find some new tail lamps off ebay the car was back on the road - still using it today!

[robinmasters]

At St Pancras now, hanging out by the champagne bar because Executive. (Not actually in it though, because just pretending.)

image.jpg

Eastenders was there five hours later. You are Phil Mitchell and I claim my five pounds.

 

This was just up the road from me; would've been a shit collection thread, so I was out. Still would like one of these though-they looked like they were from the future when they came out, with the flush windows and PROCON TEN stickers. And the Chock-a-block computer rear rear lights.

[holbeck]

Sorry Holbeck, it might be staying for a while at least.

Sigh...

[Lacquer Peel]

The fuel tank is in a weird place on these, behind the rear seats, so the boot does have a weird layout.

 

 

Hi, bit of a lurker here - been registered for nearly 5 years but not posted anything since I started! Just want to say audi 80's are excellent cars from a period in history when they built cars to last - unlike the modern ones which seem to be mostly driven by complete tossers!

My own car is a 80 turbo diesel se model which i've owned for nearly 5 years now and seems to be unkillable - not bad for a car which only cost £200......!

 

Anyway a pic from a few years ago - if I can remember how to do it that is......090.JPG

 

The car WAS in really good condition until the start of this year when this happened......SAM_3108.JPG

 

Just to show how much the bootlid was bent.....SAM_3110.JPG

 

The car was parked up in it's usual spot across the road from my work when something ran into the back of it then buggered off! one of our mechanics out on test noticed it - needless to say i've never found out what actually did the damage - possibly a large van or truck as the impact moved the car 20 feet down the road - to be fair there was a light dusting of snow that day.

Anyway later on we got the car into the workshop and using another car (and a large tow strap!) we managed to pull out some of the damage and once I managed to find some new tail lamps off ebay the car was back on the road - still using it today!

 

That looks ace, surviving turbo diesel ones must be rare, glad you managed to keep it on the road after that rear ender!

[inconsistant]

GR80

[Skizzer]

Ouch! What Lacquer Peel said: looks a peach in the 'before' shot, I'd have been ready to murder someone.

I was going to make a vulture-like enquiry about the alloys, but much happier that it's still a runner.

[mhrallye]

Yep I was NOT happy - couldn't believe the guy who had done it had just fecked off without leaving any details - obviously he had his reasons but still!!

This car has been one of the best i have ever owned - never broken down, or required anything more than an occasional service plus being a TD returns 50-55mpg regardless of how much you thrash it - though the turbo lag is something else......to be honest the performance isn't bad as long as you keep the turbo spooled up!

 

[Sudsprint]

Lovely Audi - just a hint of RO80 about the styling. 

 

Possibly their best design ever?

[twosmoke300]

We had one for 3 years and it was a great car apart from not being able to fold the rear seats down

[Skizzer]

The spending has started:

• Permanent insurance and tax all sorted
• old-font number plates on order  
• won a Haynes Manual of Mendacity on eBay for a fairly bargainous £5.43
• won a tidy (and correct factory option) leather steering wheel for a tenner plus postage - there's nothing wrong with the plastic one, but leather is more EXECUTIVE
• ordered some replacement badges for the boot lid (it's been debadged but you can see the ghosts of the old badges).

I took it out for a run yesterday, because I felt like it.  Haven't done that in ages.  It handles well on twisty roads, the power steering having a very good mixture of lightness and precision (notably better than the new 428i).

 

1991 Audi 80 2.0E by Skizzer, on Flickr

 

There's a mild clonking from the offside front when you accelerate and steer at the same time, suggesting (to my inexpert ear) a CV joint on the way out.  I'll get it on an axle stand soon and have a look.  Not sure whether that'll be a DIY job or not - I don't have pulling/splitting tools so it might be better to cut out a load of faffing and get a garage to sort it.

 

 

PS Waving to North Devon shiters - you are just about visible on the horizon in that photo.

[Christine]

 

Knocking cv.. I had a Scirocco do that once but it was just short of grease . Just by squeeezing the boot ,pushing grease back into the joint cured it . We had a Audi 80 Avant b4 . Thats the executive word for "estate "

[phil_lihp]

Nice to see it being looked after, glad those numberplates are going too!  

 

I'll never understand why you can see North Devon so clearly from Wales but it has to be a really, really clear day before we can see you.  Probably all the smog from Port Talbot!

[Lukas]

Nice looking car, as far as this soapy shape can look nice. 

 

I´ve driven a few of the, but this shape Audi 80 is only interesting with a 5-cylinder-engine or the V6 and with Quattro. So to make an uninteresting story short: I could live with an Audi 80 B4 (big facelift), if it comes with 5 or 6 cylinders and quattro. 

 

And I think that´s the problem this generation Audi 80 has. 

 

The Audi 80 B3 is looking quite modern, it does not look like an interestingly old car. The big and unpainted plastic bumpers are quite unappealing too. 

And there have never been interesting engines under the bonnet. So I would say maybe the Audi 90 Quattro may become a classic thats sought-after, but the "normal" Audi 80 variants wont. Because boring engines AND boring looks have never put a car in a good position for becoming desirable.

 

The successor Audi 80 B4 will have a better future I guess. Because it looks better and, and thats the main point, has interesting engines. You dont need an RS2 to have fun, a 2.8 V6 or a 2.3 Quattro is good enough to make this car interesting and desirable. 

[Skizzer]

I think no-one is interestd in my opinion, I would say. 

Doch! Discussion is good 

 

I'd agree it's not actually a particularly interesting car - it's just very competent.  (I do like the styling, but that's just personal opinion, and even I think it's awkward from some angles and doesn't photograph well.)

 

What makes it interesting to me is how well it's aged, and how well it stands up to comparison with a modern equivalent, my work daily, after 25 years of so-called progress.  

 

1991 Audi 80 2.0E vs 2014 BMW 428i Gran Coupe by Skizzer, on Flickr

 

Yes, the newer car is faster for similar economy and has lower CO₂ emissions and presumably better secondary safety, but the BMW rides and (especially) steers less well, is little quieter and is no more comfortable on a long journey - which is really what these cars are for.

 

I'm seriously considering waving goodbye to the modern before it does any more depreciating and using this Audi as the work motorway hack.  Will run them both in parallel for a while as a trial.  Last time I did this, with a 170k mile Rover 75, too many things went wrong - but this feels (so far) like it could work.

[Skizzer]

Knocking cv.. I had a Scirocco do that once but it was just short of grease . Just by squeeezing the boot ,pushing grease back into the joint cured it . We had a Audi 80 Avant b4 . Thats the executive word for "estate "

 

Good tip, thanks, I'll try that.  It's still a fairly gentle knocking at the moment so that may do the trick.

[r.welfare]

BMW's were up until recently praised for their steering, and the 80s Audis I have driven always felt curiously inert, which I assumed was due to the engine being predominantly in front of the axle line. Does your 428i have the fancy PAS (servotronic or something like that)?

[Skizzer]

It's steer-by-wire or some such bollocks.  [Checks brochure] yes, Servotronic.  There's a £250 Variable Sport Steering option that might have been better, but FFS it's supposed to be a sporty coupe and should be good enough already at the price they're asking.  It's too light around the straight ahead and makes it hard to judge exactly what the wheels are doing.  It's not awful, but it's by no means a driver's car like my old Porsche Cayman was and is less precise than either the Audi 80 or the Yeti.

 

I've come to the conclusion - which will surprise nobody on here - that there is a huge amount of hype around modern BMWs.  The engine in mine is very good, but see above for the steering and more importantly the pedals are so far offset that my right knee is in serious pain after three hours of driving.  No journalist has ever mentioned this, to my knowledge (not that I read many modern car reviews).

 

It's not a bad car by any means, the BMW, but I'm not bonding with it.  There is no other modern that appeals to me at all though.

 

 

The unassisted steering on the 80 B3 was apparently dreadful, but CAR reckoned it was ok with the power steering option (which this has).

[Tetleysmooth]

I love that 80.

If I'd have been in need of a car at the time, we might have had to resort to fisticuffs for it.

It would have ended up with a set of Minilite style alloys on it though 

[RobT]

Good to hear you are enjoying this Skizzer, how are you getting on with the badermatic element seeing as you normally prefer Spanish waiters...?

[Skizzer]

I do still prefer Spanish waiters (fnarr fnarr), you're right, but the slushbox on this is actually ok.  It kicks down reasonably quickly when called upon, doesn't feel like it's softening the power delivery too much (unlike the Discovery) and doesn't seem to hunt around. It's inoffensive and you just kind of forget about it, which I suppose is the point.

[Slappy]

Ah Crouch's garage. I knew exactly where you were when you said Ford Cargo breakdown lorry Skizzer .

 

And would love to see the Wrecker being put into use once more. I was about 9 or 10 when I saw it used last in anger, would have been 1 of the 1st vehicles that I'd ever seen with a Q plate.

 

That garage had a significant influence on me making layouts for my Matchbox cars too!

 

And as for the Audi, top wafting!

[RobT]

I do still prefer Spanish waiters (fnarr fnarr), you're right, but the slushbox on this is actually ok.  It kicks down reasonably quickly when called upon, doesn't feel like it's softening the power delivery too much (unlike the Discovery) and doesn't seem to hunt around. It's inoffensive and you just kind of forget about it, which I suppose is the point.

 

Sounds a good 'un then.  I like autos but they really can ruin a car, or just make it annoying to drive.  I found the slushbox in the old AS bike Sierra annoying, either holding a gear too long, or having a lazy response when trying to make progress.  I'd adjust my driving style to suit but if I had a Sierra again it'd be in manual flavour.  My Dad once had a BX 4-speed automatic as a company car and it'd hunt like a bastard, but the 3-speed Golf CL afterwards was fine and he loved it.  For years he avoided 4-speeders being convinced it was that aspect rather than the Frenchness that was the problem.

[Angry Sheep]

I quite like these. Looked at one a few years ago when I needed a replacement for my rotten MX-5. I decided I was going to buy something that just wouldn't go rusty.

 

Test drove it and it was slowwww but solid and seemed like it'd be pretty reliable. Annoyingly I made the dealer an offer (he'd taken it in part-ex). He rejected it, but within a few days was advertised for less than I'd offered. I couldn't be arsed going back for it.

[dollywobbler]

Very nice. Certainly still a sharp looking design, though I prefer the 'smiley' 90 snout - that red one earlier in the thread is delicious. Will be interested to see how you get on with it.

[Skizzer]

Had the 80 up on stands today for a poke about.  There is indeed zero rust, anywhere - I know these were galvanised,but so was the Dedra (partially) and that still has a few scabby spots here and there.  

 

The consensus is that the mild clonk under cornering is probably just dry CV joints.  GSF have got a 35% off promotion this weekend though (enter code SEP35 at the checkout) so I thought I might as well get new joints while I was ordering fresh clips - a smidgin over £20 per side delivered, including boots and clips.  Sounds alright to me.

 

The chap I rent the Big Shed from put his head round while I was poking about under the car.  Turns out he was a VW/Audi mechanic in the early 90s so he can do this job blindfolded - he still has the required urethane hammer and has offered to help me do it.  MEGA WIN.

[purplebargeken]

Very nice, neat and straightforward car. Lovely.

[chaseracer]

...I'm seriously thinking about selling the liked-but-not-loved modern BMW before it does any more depreciating and using this as the motorway cruiser.  I shall trial that for a bit and see how it goes.

 

I use the Mercedes (and even the 205!) for work from time to time.