Audi 80 Saved from the scrapheap...
Discussion
Hi Folks,
Been a lurker for a long while, but have something post about now.
This has just come down through the extended family. One owner since new with a FASH believe it or not. It originally belonged to my step father who bought it for £20k new back in 1994. It's done 82k miles in all that time and only 10k in the last 10 years. He's since stopped driving and gone to a home poor fellow, and the Audi was forgotten about until recently when it was found again on his daughters driveway (SORN'd fortunately!). Hadn't been run in over a year - non car people in the family said it had 'electric problems' and hence it had been left unused. They knew we liked old cars and asked if we'd be interested, otherwise it was going to be sold for scrap.
A quick poke around indicated a car with mould, damp and paintwork that was hosting the local flora more than it was covering the car. A nice collection of spider nests and condensation hanging from the headlining. Nice. Brakes were seized on (handbrake left on - doh!). No MOT of course... but all the paperwork was there.
My son and I (he's a trainee mechanic) thought we'd take a punt on it and grabbed a trailer to go and pick it up.
Brake discs were obviously toast, battery dead (not even a flicker). Oil was still golden though. We managed to loosen the brakes eventually and pulled it up on to the trailer and towed it home.
Disconnected the battery and left it on charge overnight. The next morning was gloomy outside, and the dashboard lights were also gloomy. Battery clearly dead, which was a shame as the receipt showed it was only two years old.
A quick look through the service history indicated it was stamped up to date at an Audi dealer until 2016 with about £500 being spent every year on servicing. So far so good... but would it run?
Under the bonnet was a decidedly oldskool looking engine, inline four pot - alas visions of a nice burbly 5 cylinder were dashed. According to the V5 it was a mere 1.6, so I had visions of a rather breathless carb fed base model, but it turned out to be fuel injected, sporting (!) a half reasonable 100 bhp when it was new.
Digging around, the filters seemed brand new, as did many other service items, including the brakes pads (though the discs were rusted to buggery). Everything was stamped Audi or OEM. MIleage checked out as 82k.
Turns out it was an 'SE' model which built on top of the base spec with 15" alloy wheels, sports front seats, front electric windows, leather sports steering wheel and auxiliary oil temp, pressure and battery voltage gauges along with a very 80s style spoiler on the back.
We swapped the battery out of my son's Mk2 Golf and switched on the ignition. Lights came on. ABS light flickered on... then off. We disconnected the dizzy and gave it a crank.
There was oil pressure. According to the gauge in the car... 4 bars of it. Seemed smooth enough to try firing it up. Dizzy back on and...
There it sat, purring away as if it had only been left the day before. Now 5 bars on the oil pressure gauge, electrics charging. All seemed good.
Then we tried the electrics.
Wipers - nothing.
Head lamps - nothing.
Electric windows - nothing.
Blower fan - nothing.
OE Sony headunit - static out of one speaker on the radio, but it did play a cassette too.
Electrical problems indeed. Fuse box was found and located, everything absolutely fine and dandy. Earth straps found and checked, absolutely fine. Head scratching and cup of tea consumed.
Interior illumination was working at least!
Switched the engine off and restarted it. Lo and behold the electrics came to life. Wipers, windows, headlamps. Bemused looks all round. Turned out to be the ignition barrel is sticky and isn't turning back to the 'ignition on' detent when you start the car - so all the main electrics are interrupted. A quick clean had that sorted. Electric problems indeed!
Brakes were swapped out (good having a son as a mechanic!) and the car given a good clean inside and out. Came up like a champ.
Everything else seems in good condition. It's off for an MOT today, cost thus far? £90 for brakes discs and £60 for a battery.
Plans are to push it into service as a daily and see how it goes for now.
More updates to follow.
Cheers,
Drew.
Been a lurker for a long while, but have something post about now.
This has just come down through the extended family. One owner since new with a FASH believe it or not. It originally belonged to my step father who bought it for £20k new back in 1994. It's done 82k miles in all that time and only 10k in the last 10 years. He's since stopped driving and gone to a home poor fellow, and the Audi was forgotten about until recently when it was found again on his daughters driveway (SORN'd fortunately!). Hadn't been run in over a year - non car people in the family said it had 'electric problems' and hence it had been left unused. They knew we liked old cars and asked if we'd be interested, otherwise it was going to be sold for scrap.
A quick poke around indicated a car with mould, damp and paintwork that was hosting the local flora more than it was covering the car. A nice collection of spider nests and condensation hanging from the headlining. Nice. Brakes were seized on (handbrake left on - doh!). No MOT of course... but all the paperwork was there.
My son and I (he's a trainee mechanic) thought we'd take a punt on it and grabbed a trailer to go and pick it up.
Brake discs were obviously toast, battery dead (not even a flicker). Oil was still golden though. We managed to loosen the brakes eventually and pulled it up on to the trailer and towed it home.
Disconnected the battery and left it on charge overnight. The next morning was gloomy outside, and the dashboard lights were also gloomy. Battery clearly dead, which was a shame as the receipt showed it was only two years old.
A quick look through the service history indicated it was stamped up to date at an Audi dealer until 2016 with about £500 being spent every year on servicing. So far so good... but would it run?
Under the bonnet was a decidedly oldskool looking engine, inline four pot - alas visions of a nice burbly 5 cylinder were dashed. According to the V5 it was a mere 1.6, so I had visions of a rather breathless carb fed base model, but it turned out to be fuel injected, sporting (!) a half reasonable 100 bhp when it was new.
Digging around, the filters seemed brand new, as did many other service items, including the brakes pads (though the discs were rusted to buggery). Everything was stamped Audi or OEM. MIleage checked out as 82k.
Turns out it was an 'SE' model which built on top of the base spec with 15" alloy wheels, sports front seats, front electric windows, leather sports steering wheel and auxiliary oil temp, pressure and battery voltage gauges along with a very 80s style spoiler on the back.
We swapped the battery out of my son's Mk2 Golf and switched on the ignition. Lights came on. ABS light flickered on... then off. We disconnected the dizzy and gave it a crank.
There was oil pressure. According to the gauge in the car... 4 bars of it. Seemed smooth enough to try firing it up. Dizzy back on and...
There it sat, purring away as if it had only been left the day before. Now 5 bars on the oil pressure gauge, electrics charging. All seemed good.
Then we tried the electrics.
Wipers - nothing.
Head lamps - nothing.
Electric windows - nothing.
Blower fan - nothing.
OE Sony headunit - static out of one speaker on the radio, but it did play a cassette too.
Electrical problems indeed. Fuse box was found and located, everything absolutely fine and dandy. Earth straps found and checked, absolutely fine. Head scratching and cup of tea consumed.
Interior illumination was working at least!
Switched the engine off and restarted it. Lo and behold the electrics came to life. Wipers, windows, headlamps. Bemused looks all round. Turned out to be the ignition barrel is sticky and isn't turning back to the 'ignition on' detent when you start the car - so all the main electrics are interrupted. A quick clean had that sorted. Electric problems indeed!
Brakes were swapped out (good having a son as a mechanic!) and the car given a good clean inside and out. Came up like a champ.
Everything else seems in good condition. It's off for an MOT today, cost thus far? £90 for brakes discs and £60 for a battery.
Plans are to push it into service as a daily and see how it goes for now.
More updates to follow.
Cheers,
Drew.
Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 30th January 09:31
Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 30th January 09:31
Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 30th January 09:33
Thanks folks!
Haven't actually driven it yet - just moved it back and forth on the driveway so far. First impressions are that it has an incredibly solid feel, as if it's been carved from a single lump of metal. I keep opening and closing the doors to listen to the 'whump' as they close. Nothing like the tinny noise on modern cars.
Discovered it has a few other oddities - like central locking for the split-fold rear seats. I thought they were jammed for a while and then realised that you had to unlock the boot to unlock the seats.
It also seemed to be sans-aerial, but a poke about revealed the aerial cable was there but had worked loose. Plugged it back in and the radio burst into life (still only on one speaker). On the outside though... no aerial to be seen. According to a google search the aerial is actually the top two elements in the heated rear windows. Very clever.
Rubber mats in the car are also marked 'Audi' so appear to be the originals. Spec sticker in the boot is still present and correct too.
Tyres will need replacing at some point. Pumped them all up to 30psi (according to the sticker in the filler cap), the best was at 12psi!
One of the calipers is sticking a little bit, so that will need a tweak or replace. Other than that we'll see what the MOT shows up. More pics later on.
Cheers,
Drew.
ps. Tyres are about 6-8 years old with about 3mm tread left. Bridgestones on the rear axles and Avons on the front.
Haven't actually driven it yet - just moved it back and forth on the driveway so far. First impressions are that it has an incredibly solid feel, as if it's been carved from a single lump of metal. I keep opening and closing the doors to listen to the 'whump' as they close. Nothing like the tinny noise on modern cars.
Discovered it has a few other oddities - like central locking for the split-fold rear seats. I thought they were jammed for a while and then realised that you had to unlock the boot to unlock the seats.
It also seemed to be sans-aerial, but a poke about revealed the aerial cable was there but had worked loose. Plugged it back in and the radio burst into life (still only on one speaker). On the outside though... no aerial to be seen. According to a google search the aerial is actually the top two elements in the heated rear windows. Very clever.
Rubber mats in the car are also marked 'Audi' so appear to be the originals. Spec sticker in the boot is still present and correct too.
Tyres will need replacing at some point. Pumped them all up to 30psi (according to the sticker in the filler cap), the best was at 12psi!
One of the calipers is sticking a little bit, so that will need a tweak or replace. Other than that we'll see what the MOT shows up. More pics later on.
Cheers,
Drew.
ps. Tyres are about 6-8 years old with about 3mm tread left. Bridgestones on the rear axles and Avons on the front.
Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 30th January 10:19
A few pics of the as found condition - it was actually worse than this, but a lot of the leaves and muck blew off on the tow home!
The numberplates are also original dealer fit and in reasonable condition. The garage is still there according to google - but solely VW now. Might take it back there for a pic at some point!
Natty 80s style spoiler...
Crud in every orifice...
There was some nice paint here once...
Interior sopping wet and stank like an old dog (that had died) but is getting better each time the sun comes out. Seems to have survived mould and damp very well, though the interior panels are sagging a bit - hopefully they'll tighten up as they dry out.
I'll get some pics underneath later today as it's booked in for an MOT at 3pm. Initial look shows all the brake pipes are not corroded and the underneath looks ok from a driveway inspection.
Rear right wheel arch has some sort of dodgy repair on it (looks like a hamfisted minor respray at home to me) other than that no obvious rust. Lacquer is scratched all over the place, but nothing a good machine polish won't fix. Bumpers have a few scrapes, and the silver grille has a crack, other than that it looks pretty solid.
Cheers,
Drew.
The numberplates are also original dealer fit and in reasonable condition. The garage is still there according to google - but solely VW now. Might take it back there for a pic at some point!
Natty 80s style spoiler...
Crud in every orifice...
There was some nice paint here once...
Interior sopping wet and stank like an old dog (that had died) but is getting better each time the sun comes out. Seems to have survived mould and damp very well, though the interior panels are sagging a bit - hopefully they'll tighten up as they dry out.
I'll get some pics underneath later today as it's booked in for an MOT at 3pm. Initial look shows all the brake pipes are not corroded and the underneath looks ok from a driveway inspection.
Rear right wheel arch has some sort of dodgy repair on it (looks like a hamfisted minor respray at home to me) other than that no obvious rust. Lacquer is scratched all over the place, but nothing a good machine polish won't fix. Bumpers have a few scrapes, and the silver grille has a crack, other than that it looks pretty solid.
Cheers,
Drew.
Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 30th January 10:33
Hi Folks - many thanks for the suggestions on keeping the old car running. Much appreciated! I will check them out.
So MOT.
Technically it failed, but only on one item, so it's staying put for the moment and will shortly get a shiny new ticket. Nearside front caliper has seized - could feel it on the test drive quite clearly so already knew something was amiss.Will try to free it up, worse case a new caliper will be required.
Advisories - one. Rear nearside brake pad missing a retainer, but that's an easy one to sort.
CO = 0.06%
HC = 22 ppm
Test drive was interesting. Due to the caliper the performance was down, but even then it was reasonably perky, though certainly not rapid. No clunks or bangs from any suspension parts and the car is whisper quiet when you're driving along... quite spooky really. I don't think the engine has ever been above 3,000 rpm before, it felt tight and unwilling to rev. 70mph = 3,500 rpm in 5th, which was a bit surprising. My son's Mk2 has the 4+E box which is much higher geared.
Thermostat is also knackered, the temp gauge never got above 70 on the water and the oil temp gauge barely registered. Oil pressure at idle was an indicated 1.5 bar, and was always up to 4.5-5 whilst driving, which feels a bit high, but might be down to the car running cold.
Underneath inspection revealed no nasties. Surface rust on exposed suspension parts but all sills intact and the original protection is still there under a layer of dirt. The front lower engine tray has disappeared somewhere in the last 25 years.
Other than that, everything works. Car tracks straight, steering is light and fluffy.
Pics for reference! Caliper fix is next up!
Cheers,
Drew.
So MOT.
Technically it failed, but only on one item, so it's staying put for the moment and will shortly get a shiny new ticket. Nearside front caliper has seized - could feel it on the test drive quite clearly so already knew something was amiss.Will try to free it up, worse case a new caliper will be required.
Advisories - one. Rear nearside brake pad missing a retainer, but that's an easy one to sort.
CO = 0.06%
HC = 22 ppm
Test drive was interesting. Due to the caliper the performance was down, but even then it was reasonably perky, though certainly not rapid. No clunks or bangs from any suspension parts and the car is whisper quiet when you're driving along... quite spooky really. I don't think the engine has ever been above 3,000 rpm before, it felt tight and unwilling to rev. 70mph = 3,500 rpm in 5th, which was a bit surprising. My son's Mk2 has the 4+E box which is much higher geared.
Thermostat is also knackered, the temp gauge never got above 70 on the water and the oil temp gauge barely registered. Oil pressure at idle was an indicated 1.5 bar, and was always up to 4.5-5 whilst driving, which feels a bit high, but might be down to the car running cold.
Underneath inspection revealed no nasties. Surface rust on exposed suspension parts but all sills intact and the original protection is still there under a layer of dirt. The front lower engine tray has disappeared somewhere in the last 25 years.
Other than that, everything works. Car tracks straight, steering is light and fluffy.
Pics for reference! Caliper fix is next up!
Cheers,
Drew.
Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 30th January 16:34
A quick update for today. Went through the service history and found a few items of note.
Original manual in the Audi wallet and the service book is all stamped at an Audi dealer from day one.
The service history indicates the cambelt was changed only 4,000 miles ago... but also 6 years ago. Might have a look at that to see what state it is in. I imagine it will be fine.
In the stack of papers that came with the car I found this, the original brochure for the car! Nice little bit of history. Makes for quite fun reading.
According to it this Audi has the Procon Ten system for the steering wheel and confirms the SE spec with all its extra bits. The engine is the 100 bhp 1.6 and quotes the 0-62 time as 13.4 seconds with a top speed of 113 mph - I haven't driven anything that slow in years! Car weighs 1,230 kg apparently, which is pretty hefty for the 1990s.
These made me laugh... (direct quotes from the brochure)
"But the exterior matters too, and the sleek, understated lines of the Audi 80 make the car not only a pleasure to drive but a pleasure to be seen in."
And...
"With 100 bhp, the 1.6 litre Audi 80 delivers real performance, perceptively better than most of its competitors." Ha ha!
Cheers,
Drew.
Original manual in the Audi wallet and the service book is all stamped at an Audi dealer from day one.
The service history indicates the cambelt was changed only 4,000 miles ago... but also 6 years ago.
Might have a look at that to see what state it is in. I imagine it will be fine.In the stack of papers that came with the car I found this, the original brochure for the car! Nice little bit of history. Makes for quite fun reading.
According to it this Audi has the Procon Ten system for the steering wheel and confirms the SE spec with all its extra bits. The engine is the 100 bhp 1.6 and quotes the 0-62 time as 13.4 seconds with a top speed of 113 mph - I haven't driven anything that slow in years!
Car weighs 1,230 kg apparently, which is pretty hefty for the 1990s.These made me laugh... (direct quotes from the brochure)
"But the exterior matters too, and the sleek, understated lines of the Audi 80 make the car not only a pleasure to drive but a pleasure to be seen in."
And...
"With 100 bhp, the 1.6 litre Audi 80 delivers real performance, perceptively better than most of its competitors." Ha ha!
Cheers,
Drew.
Edited by drewwa on Thursday 31st January 11:08
Yep, I'll put the cambelt on my list of things to do.
Oddly enough, by complete luck, my other car is also L reg from 1994, a rather different proposition from the Audi. An Eunos Roadster (JDM mx-5)
1.8 plays 1.6, 16 valves plays 8, supercharger plays... er... nothing, and the Roadster has twice the bhp and rather less weight. 15" alloys are common, but the roadster has low-profile tyres compared to the balloons on the Audi.
The Roadster is only used for high days and holidays now as it's a noisy little beast, so the Audi will be an admirable daily during the less clement weather. Neither of them have airbags and the roadster doesn't even have ABS, though it does have aircon... which I always found a bit weird in a two seater convertible.
The supercharger is an MP62 and the car has 180bhp at the rear wheels, which makes it quite brisk. Still a work in progress itself, new suspension is next (a modicum of lowering required)
Both have, I think, rather pleasant looking steering wheels and cockpits. I've added very similar gauges to the Roadsters dash, interesting to find them as standard in the Audi. There are a few other mods in there too.
The Roadster is tiny compared to the 80 though!
Cheers,
Drew.
Oddly enough, by complete luck, my other car is also L reg from 1994, a rather different proposition from the Audi.
An Eunos Roadster (JDM mx-5)1.8 plays 1.6, 16 valves plays 8, supercharger plays... er... nothing, and the Roadster has twice the bhp and rather less weight. 15" alloys are common, but the roadster has low-profile tyres compared to the balloons on the Audi.
The Roadster is only used for high days and holidays now as it's a noisy little beast, so the Audi will be an admirable daily during the less clement weather. Neither of them have airbags and the roadster doesn't even have ABS, though it does have aircon... which I always found a bit weird in a two seater convertible.
The supercharger is an MP62 and the car has 180bhp at the rear wheels, which makes it quite brisk. Still a work in progress itself, new suspension is next (a modicum of lowering required)
Both have, I think, rather pleasant looking steering wheels and cockpits. I've added very similar gauges to the Roadsters dash, interesting to find them as standard in the Audi. There are a few other mods in there too.
The Roadster is tiny compared to the 80 though!
Cheers,
Drew.
According to the brochure that came in the service history, the car does indeed have the procon-ten system. SInce it's my step-father's car I know it's not been in a serious knock (just car park scraps and the odd ding). I haven't had a proper look under the bonnet to check, but it should be fairly obvious.
Found this image on google.
Some info on that here > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procon-ten and quite a nice old video (1990) about it here > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JX_CFlFZ0w
I've just been in contact with the editor of Audi Driver magazine who has asked to do a feature on the car. Stay tuned for details.
Cheers,
Drew.
Found this image on google.
Some info on that here > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procon-ten and quite a nice old video (1990) about it here > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JX_CFlFZ0w
I've just been in contact with the editor of Audi Driver magazine who has asked to do a feature on the car.
Stay tuned for details.Cheers,
Drew.
Love the idea of an RS2 saloon. A proper sleeper! Beautiful car - are those headlamps from the Cabrio/S2? Are they an easy swap?
I wouldn't say no to foglamps either, but that either looks like a bumper change or removing and changing some of the trim on the front. Not sure.
The larger alloys look great on your car. I'll admit that's the only bit of the visuals of the 80 that look a bit out of place to me. 15" alloys on such a big car look distinctly undernourished. The tyres will need a change before too long, so I'll have to decide then.
I rather fancied a set of the Cabriolet 17" Boleros but it would probably be cheaper to buy a cabriolet whole rather than source a second hand set of the right fitment!
I've encountered a bit of the orange goo in the door cards already when I swapped out the dead OE speakers. Nasty stuff, not going there again if I can help it. Fortunately the headlining appears to be sound, at least for now. I'll leave it undisturbed!
I'll check into the ignition barrel, would be good for peace of mind, don't fancy the electrics cutting out on a cold winters night!
I wouldn't say no to foglamps either, but that either looks like a bumper change or removing and changing some of the trim on the front. Not sure.
The larger alloys look great on your car. I'll admit that's the only bit of the visuals of the 80 that look a bit out of place to me. 15" alloys on such a big car look distinctly undernourished. The tyres will need a change before too long, so I'll have to decide then.
I rather fancied a set of the Cabriolet 17" Boleros but it would probably be cheaper to buy a cabriolet whole rather than source a second hand set of the right fitment!
I've encountered a bit of the orange goo in the door cards already when I swapped out the dead OE speakers. Nasty stuff, not going there again if I can help it. Fortunately the headlining appears to be sound, at least for now. I'll leave it undisturbed!
I'll check into the ignition barrel, would be good for peace of mind, don't fancy the electrics cutting out on a cold winters night!
Just a small update today. Sourced a replacement leather gaiter for the gearchange... even that was secured by screws.
Popped in a new stereo too. Nothing too fancy, but a Pioneer 'digital only' system (not even a CD!). The MVH-S110UB > https://www.pioneer-car.eu/eur/products/mvh-s110ub
The only weird thing about this was that the Audi doesn't appear to have a switched live feed, so there's no way to turn the stereo on and off with the ignition. Unfortunately the stereo is designed to work like this and doesn't have an 'off' mode using the switches! I have to take the removable facia off to stop it playing. MIght see if I can run a line a some point. The ISO connectors are present and unbutchered, but there's just no wire there. I had to hotwire it into the permanent live to get it to work.
I've replaced the original paper speakers (they had all rotted, hence not working!) and the original Sony Stereo seems to have a blown channel alas. I'll keep it in a box as part of the history though.
The new Pioneer was chosen with three criteria. A bit of power (4x50w), a USB slot and red illumination to match the dash. Looks fairly innocuous in there. It takes up to a 32 gigabyte usb stick, so I found a very small one on Amazon and loaded it up with mp3s. Works well! Managed to get it on offer too, just over £30!
Speakers were replaced with Alpine coaxils. SXE 1325 S in the back and SXE 1025 s on the dashboard. All seems to work quite well.
Removing the rear door trims was quite an exercise though! Don't make 'em like that any more - a lot of screws!
Thermostat is on order for next week.
Cheers,
Drew.
Popped in a new stereo too. Nothing too fancy, but a Pioneer 'digital only' system (not even a CD!). The MVH-S110UB > https://www.pioneer-car.eu/eur/products/mvh-s110ub
The only weird thing about this was that the Audi doesn't appear to have a switched live feed, so there's no way to turn the stereo on and off with the ignition. Unfortunately the stereo is designed to work like this and doesn't have an 'off' mode using the switches! I have to take the removable facia off to stop it playing.
MIght see if I can run a line a some point. The ISO connectors are present and unbutchered, but there's just no wire there. I had to hotwire it into the permanent live to get it to work.I've replaced the original paper speakers (they had all rotted, hence not working!) and the original Sony Stereo seems to have a blown channel alas. I'll keep it in a box as part of the history though.
The new Pioneer was chosen with three criteria. A bit of power (4x50w), a USB slot and red illumination to match the dash. Looks fairly innocuous in there. It takes up to a 32 gigabyte usb stick, so I found a very small one on Amazon and loaded it up with mp3s. Works well! Managed to get it on offer too, just over £30!
Speakers were replaced with Alpine coaxils. SXE 1325 S in the back and SXE 1025 s on the dashboard. All seems to work quite well.
Removing the rear door trims was quite an exercise though! Don't make 'em like that any more - a lot of screws!
Thermostat is on order for next week.
Cheers,
Drew.
Edited by drewwa on Saturday 2nd February 09:03
Edited by drewwa on Saturday 2nd February 09:05
Today's quick update. Booked into the garage on Thursday to diagnose odd noise from offside front. Difficult to tell what it is at the moment.
Slight whirring under moderate braking and occasionally when backing off the throttle, goes away completely under throttle.
Thermostat will be done at the same time as that is definitely busted. Car won't go above 70 degrees on the dial.
Engine is beginning to perk up now it's being used again. Have driven 70 miles already! It's quite a torquey little beast for what it is. Pulls hard between 3 and 4.5k rpms, but it's all over after 5. Redline is just over 6, but not going there until the cambelt is done.
A few other gremlins noted, electric driver's side mirror isn't working right, the motor is buzzing when you adjust, but the mirror isn't moving and it's floppy as if it's come off a mounting somewhere - to be investigated. That mirror has taken a hard knock at some point based on the condition of the plastic trim.
Other than that it seems very solid. Waiting for a bit of time and nice weather to have a look at the paint and exterior trim!
Cheers,
Drew.
Slight whirring under moderate braking and occasionally when backing off the throttle, goes away completely under throttle.
Thermostat will be done at the same time as that is definitely busted. Car won't go above 70 degrees on the dial.
Engine is beginning to perk up now it's being used again. Have driven 70 miles already! It's quite a torquey little beast for what it is. Pulls hard between 3 and 4.5k rpms, but it's all over after 5. Redline is just over 6, but not going there until the cambelt is done.
A few other gremlins noted, electric driver's side mirror isn't working right, the motor is buzzing when you adjust, but the mirror isn't moving and it's floppy as if it's come off a mounting somewhere - to be investigated. That mirror has taken a hard knock at some point based on the condition of the plastic trim.
Other than that it seems very solid. Waiting for a bit of time and nice weather to have a look at the paint and exterior trim!
Cheers,
Drew.
Shakermaker said:
What a great find. I wish I had done something similar with a good car, rather than a Renault Clio that I reconditioned and sold one a few years ago.. no joy driving that LOL
A mate had one of these as his second car back when we were about 19/20, he had pranged his insurance-friendly Ford KA (or had it crashed into...) and got a reasonable sum, and then found an Audi 80 for £150 because it "wasn't running right" and all it needed was new spark plugs. Job done for £20. He then regretted selling it a year later for a new A4 which just wasn't as good
I used to have B5 Audi A4 TDI and one of the S4s (lovely 2.7 BiTurbo!) - they were great cars, but I'll admit this B4 80 does have a real solidity to the feel of it. Seems like an absolute tank on the road.A mate had one of these as his second car back when we were about 19/20, he had pranged his insurance-friendly Ford KA (or had it crashed into...) and got a reasonable sum, and then found an Audi 80 for £150 because it "wasn't running right" and all it needed was new spark plugs. Job done for £20. He then regretted selling it a year later for a new A4 which just wasn't as good
Cheers,
Drew.
thiscocks said:
Think this is essentially the same engine they put in the Golf MK2 (and 3s) drivers and CLs so should be good for another 300k!. They only produced 75hp in those with the single carb and about the same in the later motronic injection versions I think. Out of interest is there an engine code anywhere on the owners handbook?
Edit- just seen your photos of the MK2! Nice
The engine code is 'ADA' and it's pretty much the same block and head as in the Golf MK2 CL/Driver (1595cc), but it has multi-point fuel injection in this guise. Apparently this engine was also fitted to the late Mk3 Golf GLs, New Beetle, Mk4 Golf, Ibiza, Octavia and Passat. I have to say it was a new variant to me.Edit- just seen your photos of the MK2! Nice
In this state it has 100bhp in combination with a catalytic converter.
My son's Golf has the the carb version of the engine (his car is circa 1988) and the performance of the two cars is about identical. The Golf has 75bhp, but only weighs 900kg or thereabouts, whereas the 80 tips the scales at 1,230!
Very much the base mode of the range, but the SE spec makes it a nice place to be.
Cheers,
Drew.
Edited by drewwa on Tuesday 5th February 16:42
Another quick update. Thermostat is now fixed. Glad I got the garage to do it as it's really low down in the engine bay behind the power steering pump (which needs to come off to get at it).
Temperature now sitting at a rock solid 90 on the water temp gauge - heating much improved too! Result. It's had a tank of fuel and has done just over 80 miles on the first quarter.
Caliper is still sticking a little bit apparently, so needs a bit more work to loosen it up.
There's also a slight throttle hesitancy to work on at partial throttle openings, but nothing major.
Oil pressure is just over 1 bar at idle, and about 3.5 to 4 when driving along, a bit more comforting than having the gauge nailed at 5 all the time!
Also been given an old (well - 2015!) TomTom Start 25 Sat Nav. Nothing fancy, but will serve. Manage to customise the startup/shutdown screen appropriately.
Cheers,
Drew.
Temperature now sitting at a rock solid 90 on the water temp gauge - heating much improved too! Result.
It's had a tank of fuel and has done just over 80 miles on the first quarter.Caliper is still sticking a little bit apparently, so needs a bit more work to loosen it up.
There's also a slight throttle hesitancy to work on at partial throttle openings, but nothing major.
Oil pressure is just over 1 bar at idle, and about 3.5 to 4 when driving along, a bit more comforting than having the gauge nailed at 5 all the time!
Also been given an old (well - 2015!) TomTom Start 25 Sat Nav. Nothing fancy, but will serve. Manage to customise the startup/shutdown screen appropriately.
Cheers,
Drew.
Edited by drewwa on Thursday 7th February 17:42
Edited by drewwa on Thursday 7th February 17:43
Jex said:
Are you sure you filled the tank? Ours (2.0 8v multipoint) would do 80 miles before the needle came off full, but perhaps that was just ours. The needle would flap about a bit when nearly empty if you were changing velocity.
Definitely filled up until the pump cut out. Hoping to get something near 400 miles out of the tank - we'll see! Our VW Polo sounds like that needle though - nothing happens for the first 70 miles in that car... then the gauge plummets!Cheers,
Drew.
Another quick update. The car is still going fine, though I suspect the nearside front caliper is sticking once again. We'll try freeing it up a bit more but may have to get a new one.
A quick little mod - uniting the free sat nav with the free Audi!
The sat nav works fine, but it was a screen mounted version and I can't stand trailing wires, so I've managed to find a way to secure the clip to the wacky little oddment tray in the dash. I routed the cable through the back and down through the centre console and it pops out at the cigarette lighter for the moment.
I still haven't found a switched live feed, but once I do I'll wire it (with a 5v converter of some kind) directly into the car (also need this for the stereo) and hopefully it will all come on with the ignition.
Quite pleased with it really; robust, totally reversible and zero cost!
Cheers,
Drew.
A quick little mod - uniting the free sat nav with the free Audi!
The sat nav works fine, but it was a screen mounted version and I can't stand trailing wires, so I've managed to find a way to secure the clip to the wacky little oddment tray in the dash. I routed the cable through the back and down through the centre console and it pops out at the cigarette lighter for the moment.
I still haven't found a switched live feed, but once I do I'll wire it (with a 5v converter of some kind) directly into the car (also need this for the stereo) and hopefully it will all come on with the ignition.
Quite pleased with it really; robust, totally reversible and zero cost!
Cheers,
Drew.
Edited by drewwa on Tuesday 12th February 17:01
Thanks to C350 above (many thanks!) I've found the switched live from the ignition. There were a total of 4 red wires though, so it took a while to find the right one. Turned out to be the thinnest red wire. That's now powering a 12v to 5v USB converter hooked up to the Sat Nav and a switched live to the stereo.
Which, of course, is backwards. Not quite sure why, but the Audi wiring by default has Red as permanent live and no switched live at all. The stereo wants Yellow as permanent live and Red as switched, so a bit of jiggery pokery with the (supposedly standard) ISO connectors resulted.
Anyway - it now works how I want. Stereo and Sat Nav come on with position one on the ignition and don't go off again until the key is removed. Result!
Steps below....
Doesn't look like anyone was here before me - always reassuring!
Wiring pretty neat and easy to understand. -You can see the ProCon Ten steering wheel retraction system here...
A bit of diagnostic testing try to figure out how to get the stereo to work...
"Refitting is the reverse of removal"
Cheers,
Drew.
Which, of course, is backwards. Not quite sure why, but the Audi wiring by default has Red as permanent live and no switched live at all. The stereo wants Yellow as permanent live and Red as switched, so a bit of jiggery pokery with the (supposedly standard) ISO connectors resulted.
Anyway - it now works how I want. Stereo and Sat Nav come on with position one on the ignition and don't go off again until the key is removed. Result!
Steps below....
Doesn't look like anyone was here before me - always reassuring!
Wiring pretty neat and easy to understand. -You can see the ProCon Ten steering wheel retraction system here...
A bit of diagnostic testing try to figure out how to get the stereo to work...
"Refitting is the reverse of removal"
Cheers,
Drew.
Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 13th February 15:43
Edited by drewwa on Wednesday 13th February 15:51
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