I saw a link to these on audifans. They are a couple of quattros that were fabled to have existed for quite some time here in detroit. There were rumors of two urqs that were rotting away in a parking lot next to a crummy shopping mall for about 8-9 yrs. A few months ago I went to see if they were actually there...and lo and behold there they were. Just kind of sitting there was a gold and a red '83(i think). I checked into who owned them both. Apparently the owner moved his business from the building where these cars were parked and left them behind. A few people had checked into buying the cars but they were never sold.
Then, they were gone one day and I thought for sure they were trashed. But, when I went to get my urq repaired at autoeurope, there they were again. They really do look like they have sat for a long time - faded paint, rubber, flat tires, etc. I had also heard that one was infested with a hive of bees. Should be interesting to see who bites on this one.

Thanks for posting that background info. I am planning on taking a look at these this week. I have been hunting for something in my price range for a while, and I've wanted one of these since ~'83, when I was 12. It makes me feel better that you said you take your UrQ there for service, I like to have some type of references for car dealer/repair facilities.
I don't know if this will be too big a project for me to take on or not yet, but your feedback was great. I also found the UK Quattro network buyer's guide and a PDF of the intro service manual. Is there anything else you can recommend to look at before jumping in, or anything that is the kiss of death for the cars? I am concerned about the 1983 wiring harness, I heard it was improved in later years.
I'm open to suggestions, recommendations, etc...
Thanks

I take my car there mostly because it is so close. Just one tip on buying a q in rough shape- it will cost you that much more $$$$$ to get it running right. Hope it goes well for you.

Oh, and yes, it does look like a really big job.

Remember the ladies that you meet down at the 'hotel' (Or nowadays, maybe it's the 'at the club'?)?

They look nice when you first see them, but once you get them home, you find out how 'high maintenance' they really are!

Sort of the same with the urq...


Somewhere, someone said something like this:

If the urq sells for 1500, better have another 8k budget for fixing it up..
If it sells for 5k, maybe have 3or 4k budget.
If selling for 10k, maybe budget another 1or 2k for fixing.

And if it's over 15k, better not need anything!

Or something to that effect..

You mention Ebay, any links? If they are at your local wrench you must know "the rest of the story"? You mentioned "see who bites" implying they are for sale? bought by the shop? ready for resale?
Inquiring minds!

I went out and took a look tonight. I do think I have more enthusiasm than brains. Rust on the topside seems pretty minimal, both spoilers are toast though, mars has more topside corrosion, and had faded more, but I don't know what can be saved paint-wise. Both interiors had typical Audi early 80s decomposing plastic syndrome, but the seats and headliner were okay. Both battery boxes had dead batteries but didn't look like they had corroded underneath.
Underneath, I saw about what the pictures showed. The suspension has rust, I can't tell how severe it is because I don't know enough about it. I grabbed each wheel and gave it up/down/back/forth/top/bottom tugs, and sitting there on flat tires I couldn't feel tie rods, wheel bearings, or anything blatantly wrong, although visual inspection the bushings look pretty squished. Oh, and the exhaust looks toast, but thats true of any car in Michgan after a few years.
Engine compartments looked okay, dirty but okay. There were some dangling wires but i think they were just ground wires. As a matter of course, I didn't really check things I was assuming were shot, so any belts and hoses I skipped. There was no electrical so I couldn't test the wiring at all.
All this aside, man those things are cool. I love the way the fenders flare and the machine look to the wheels. The manual crank sunroof is cool, and the 80s Audi radio (if it works), and the "Turbo" steering wheel just rock. They need to be restored. In my mind, I would rather think of them being restored than parted.
Dave, the salesguy in the ebay listing was as helpful as could be, and he implied the reserve is pretty high. I guess we will see.

one of the main places for rust is right where the fenders meet the shock tower. There are two foam water stops that prevent rainwater from flowing down the fenders. Look for rust, blistering or delaminating of the fender right there. If you have it, it'll take some work to get that fixed. The fenders are dimpled along that flange at a regular spacing.

Another easily visible spot for rust is down by the floor at the A pillar on the outside. Where the fender meets the door. The engine cowl drains there and that flat spot holds water.

If you have rust in either of these two spots, it pretty much means you have to pull the fenders off and patch cut weld the fenders and the unibody. It can be a rolling repair and you don't really have to have a lift to do this. Full repaint is likely necessary after the repair.

All the underbody rust is surficial (to me). But there is likely some holes in the floorpan. Always look for IMPROPER jacking in the cars history. The floorpan is really thin metal so just one fubar jacking attempt and it'll crack or punch the floorpan leading to the start of rust holes. This can be welded from the cabin, but it means pulling the carpet and the interior to do so.

The undercarriage parts can be pulled one by one, cleaned and Por-15'd weekend by weekend. Again a rolling repair if you want to look at it this way.

The shop selling them is actually an auto broker as well. They also import elises as well. I don't have the ebay link handy but if you type it in I am sure it will pop up.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1983-Audi-Quattro-Coupe_W0QQitemZ4585264816QQcategoryZ6055QQrdZ1QQcm dZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1983-Audi-Quattro-Coupe_W0QQitemZ4585264836QQcategoryZ6055QQrdZ1QQcm dZViewItem

If I don't have the proper paperwork for my DMV - they're just parts cars. This abandoned car concept is scary - if the original owner surfaces he can get the car back no charge after you put your sweat into it. That's acutally a pretty good scam to get your rough URQ fixed up for free.

So I joined the bidding. I am hoping that I will be able to use a lot of sweat equity to get it where it needs to be should I end up winning the auction. Its got a day to go so I'm not particularly hopeful at this point, but excited none the less. I just wanted to thank everyone for the input on what to look for and a sense of how far in over my head I am getting.