Audi RS2 Total Underneath Refresh/Refurb

[phumy]

Hi

Not sure if i have put this in the correct area on PH but i guess it will get coverage on here, I bought my Audi RS2 towards the end of 2015, it looked a very clean example and this iconic 1995 car drove very well, the paintwork was in pretty good condition, however it didnt look too great underneath. Like most 20-odd year old cars it had a lot of polishing done to it over the years but sadly like most the underneath was neglected, quite badly, as you will see in the pictures that i will upload. I love the car and needed to get oit done at some time, sooner rather than later and i as i work away from home there was not much chance of me doing it, or if i did then it will take years as im only back for a couple of weeks or so, so it was down to finding someone who could do it for me. Chatting things over with my son, he knew just the person who could help me out, this guy runs a vapour/water blasting company and does a lot of work on motor bikes, racing bikes, classic bikes and the odd few car parts but wanted to get into doing full on resorations such as mine.

So after agreeing things with Nick the owner of the blast company, i dropped the car off and he went to work, so the agreement was that he will strip everything off underneath, if its blastable and powder coatable he will do it, if its worn or broken, then i will buy new and he will refit it and thats basically how it has gone. I am buying a few parts to put on new anyway, such as:

New front discs and pads
New rear discs and pads
New suspension struts
New CV boots all round
New subframe bushes
New Wisbone bushes
New ARB bushes
New rear track control arm
New anti roll bar drop links
New wheel bearings
Mew bottom ball joints
New steering arms
New back disc dust shields
New brake hoses
New fuel lines
New brake caliper piston and dust seal kits

Everything else was down to nick to dismantle, blast and either powder coat or Epoxy paint, then refit.

I will upload the pictures in a kind of chonological order as that works better for everyone to see but you will see that im doing this refurb just at the right time or maybe a little bit after the right time but i seem to have caught it and hopefully will keep this car going for another 15 to 20 years.

Pictures are coming up soon, i wont write too much about each shot as im sure the picture with talk for them selves, if you have any questions then please fire away.

The engine is fine and really doesnt show the same aging that the underside does. Anyway here goes:

A couple of shots of the car in all its glory first.



url]|https://thumbsnap.com/WrtRprjx[/url]































OK as you can see it was in a pretty shocking state and had not really had the love that it deserved, I will up load some more pictures in a while, let me know what you think of it so far.[

Edited by phumy on Sunday 28th July 09:41

[phumy]

Still on the dismantle/removal phase and more parts coming off:































Will upload some more in a while. As you can see its not in a good state

[phumy]

200Plus Club said:

How deep underwater had it been stored springs to mind. .?

I do think that it is 24 years of UK roads/salt and not too much love or even checking by previous owners

Edited by phumy on Sunday 28th July 08:44

[phumy]

200Plus Club said:

Will be nice to see the "afters". Not a cheap project by look of it and knowing Audi part prices if you are using o.e or have to for some bits. Should clean up really nice. I've seen a Resto on a 993 using dry ice dine in situ to clean muck/dirt but you've definitely gone at it right stripping it all back. The only issue then is you won't want to use it in the rain! :-)

Youre right, its not a cheap fix, esoecially on these old Audis and and old Rs at that, most of the parts are now NLA so you have to either search out parts that maybe cross referenced to other Audi/VW parts, or a decent after-market manufacturer such as Lemforder or Febi, or the secondhand market is also good too, especially in Germany/Europe.

Edited to add: I will be putting a wax film over everthing underneath to keep the salt and unwanted rubbish off ot the car, such as this:

https://www.bilthamber.com/corrosion-protection-an...

Edited by phumy on Sunday 28th July 09:03

[phumy]

200Plus Club said:

My Alfa is completely covered where it needs to be in bilt hamber clear UC on top of POR rust proofing. If doing it yourself wear paper overalls, a beanie and safety specs, it's very sticky lol.

Thanks for the heads up on using it.

[phumy]

Just a few more:

[phumy]

I think he will see what the underside is like, remove anything thats loose, treat it then coat it but im not sure what with yet. I will leave that to Nick

[phumy]

Im really looking forward to getting it back on the road too, i will upload some more pictures later, you`ll see how its turning out and coming good.

[phumy]

MattyB_ said:

That's one heck of a job. Are you doing any suspension upgrades when it's put back together? My old one had Bilstein/Eibach combo but was really harsh, not helped by the crappy tyres the previous owner fitted, but still. I didn't keep it long enough to try and sort it. Not sure what's currently recommended, those dampers look a little past their best

No im trying to keep it as original as possible, its lovely car to drive at the moment i really dont want to change it.

[phumy]

OK im uploading pictures of bits coming back from powder coat and caliper refurb

[phumy]

Yet another update:

















Thats about as far as i can go at the moment but you can see its all coming back together really nice now and looks so much better than it was, as he starts to build the subframes and other parts and gives me the pictures i will pass them on to here and let you see them as its rebuilt. If i can find any more on my drive i will upload them.

[phumy]

Just found a couple more

[phumy]

bern said:

Oh yes, this is going to be awesome. What's the plan with underneath of the actual body?

I think he will see what the underside is like, remove anything thats loose, treat it then coat it but im not sure what with yet. I will leave that to Nick

[phumy]

Turbotechnic said:

Great project op, it’ll be 100% worth it when it’s done. I noticed the handbrake brake set up is exactly the same as a BMW e28 5 series. A tip for when you reassemble the rear hubs, it’s a lot easier to assemble the handbrake shoes and cable and attach the shoes to the backing plate before pressing in the hub. I found out the hard way, although doable with the hub in position the shoes put up one hell of a fight!

Yes i know what you mean about struggling with these shoes, i fitted a new set around 18 months ago, getting them off is a piece of cake but getting them back on is the problem and the hardest part was re-fitting the small springs. it possibly took me the best part of an hour to connect just one spring on one side but once i have make my own little tool (a wide srcewdriver blade with a "V" filed into the end of the blade) i then was able to fit the other sides spring within around 5 minutes.

These brake shoes are unique to the RS2 in the Audi range and are also fitted to Mercs and Porsches of this era, to be honest they are rubbish and wouldnt hold the skin on a rice pudding, once you adjust them correctly they work for around a month then need to be re-adjusted once more, the wheel has to come off and poking a small screw driver though a small window/opening in the disc/drum to turn the adjuster, whilst laying on your back, its no fun. Theyre crap.

[phumy]

romeodelta said:

Wow, I’m ashamed to admit I never knew Porsche had anything to do with these.

Great work!

Thanks for posting.

No need to be ashamed, many people have not idea on what these are really like, see here:

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/anything-goes/h...

And here:

https://www.classicdriver.com/en/article/cars/audi...

Edited by phumy on Monday 29th July 04:57

[phumy]

Paracetamol said:

Superb- time and money really well spent..

Are you worried that these non OEM bushes will add harshness though?

The black poly bushes are supposedly road bushes. The purple ones are the slightly harder bush, i will see how i get on and change accordingly if needs be, im hoping that not much difference will be noticable.

[phumy]

Thornaby said:

Fantastic this mate, well done.

Thanks

[phumy]

Dr G said:

You're adding at least another 25 years onto the life of that car; it'll still be looking nice underneath when all the dinosaur juice has dried up!

I really hope so and that is the idea, seeing the state of the car last month you can see what 23 years of grime/salt and dirt does to the underside.

[phumy]

frayz said:

phumy said:

The black poly bushes are supposedly road bushes. The purple ones are the slightly harder bush, i will see how i get on and change accordingly if needs be, im hoping that not much difference will be noticable.

I think the black ones are the race version and purple are road.
Pretty sure it will drive lovely with fresh bushes in place

Yes i think youre right, i had many issues finding the correct bushes for the rear subframe from Poly Flex so much so that i couldnt get the correct ones to fit, so had to resort to a company located in Poland, not cheap by any means but excellent quality all the same. Its not a daily use car anyway so the track bushes might help with a more precise and direct feeling and maintain wheel alignment.

Edited by phumy on Monday 29th July 10:14

Edited by phumy on Monday 29th July 10:15

[phumy]

agent006 said:

Now there's a name I remember from the quattroforum days (white RR?).

Glad to see this getting some love, and having had some use. I can't remember the last time I saw any classic audi on the road.

Nope, had a pearl white MB though, yes that man was I in the quattro forum days, long long ago.

It was actually 15 years ago that i sold it, not 6 as in the photo

Edited by phumy on Monday 29th July 10:38