Малко хронология

[Guest hellix]

There is possibly no other car company in Germany whose history is as tricky as Audi's. But it is not really that difficult:

1885: Wanderer founded

1899: Horch founded

1907: DKW founded

1909: Audi founded

1932: The above metioned companies fused to Auto Union AG, four rings symbolizing then four brands

1949: Changed to a GmbH (Limited Liability Company)

1969: Purchase of the NSU Motorenwerke AG founded in 1873 as NSU. New name: Audi NSU Auto Union AG

1985: Today's name: Audi AG

Before WW II

Irritation often circles around Audi and Horch. August Horch was the founder of Horch. In 1909 there were arguments in the company. Horch -slightly upset- left it and founded in the same year the A. Horch Motorenwerke AG. But the old company Horch had secured the rights on the name "Horch", resulting once again in problems. To avoid these, August Horch renamed his company in Audi, Latin for "Horch!" meaning "Listen!". The idea came from the son of a co-worker in a meeting.

Audi soon gained a reputation with its "Alpensieger" (meaning Winner in the Alps). These sportive cars were not only called this way. They truly lived up to their name. Even if Horch started out with little cars, today Horch is best-known for its huge straight eight-cylinders, giving ample power to elegant luxury cars.

1932, the fusion was a deep cut. Within three years, the program was completely restructured, resulting in a better use of resources (yes, even back then!), but still leaving the character of the different companys exist. That way, Horch established its role in the luxury market, while DKW became famous for its motorcycles. The most widely known "product", however, are for sure the "Silberpfeile" (meaning Silver Arrows). Powered by supercharged V16s they fought hard battles with the Mercedes Silberpfeilen.

On the right the Auto Union hillclimber, on the left the circuit racer. Both were restored by Audi in painstaking work and now are in immaculate condition. Their worth cannot be estimated.

After WW II: Consolidation and management by Volkswagen

After the war, it was especially DKW with their 3=6 principle, that was productive for Auto Union.

In 1964/65 VW already owned 50,3 % of Auto Union. Under the management of VW, a four-stroke engine, developped at Mercedes during the short period Auto Union belonged to Mercedes was built into the DKW F 102. Its name: Audi, with no other extensions yet. The reason for this step was that the old two-stroke engines just didn't sell any longer. In the transition time until the Audi was introduced to the market, the VW Käfer (aka the Beetle) saved Audi, as it was partially built in Ingolstadt. Since 1966 Audi is a 100% daughter of VW. In 1969 NSU came to Auto Union. NSU is most widely known for its motorcycles, the Prinz (meaning Prince) and the misfortuned rotary engines, called Wankelmotor.

NSU was a pretty old company, having had success even before WWII. Some of their racers were converted to streamlined worldrecord racers, but not this one. This Wankelmotor was a pain for the oldfashioned VW-guys. Sure, it did have its problems, but these resulted in the main part of a too fast introduction to the market. The high fuel consumption was not too important before the oil crisis in 73. However, later the decision against the Wankel should be considered right.

NSU had also developped a four door sedan without the rotary engine. As K70 it came to the VW line of products. Its fast end was caused by

being progressive (ample room and a watercooled engine)

that's about it really

VW said the reason was the high fuel consumption, well, you could have used another engine, but VW was at that time too fixed on air-cooled rear engines. Later, that should nearly break VW's neck.

1965 is the most importeant year for Audi since its founding in 1909: The brand name Audi gets reanimated. The DKW F 102 gets implanted the 4 cylinder fourstroke engine that was developped in the time Auto Union belonged to Mercedes Benz (1958 till 64).

The engine should become famous under the name of the "Mitteldruckmotor" what translates to mid-pressure engine and refers to the fact that it has a rather high compression, placing it in the "middle" between Diesel- and Otto-engines. A high compression is decisive get a good efficiency. The new car bears a simple name:

Soon after its introduction, the name Audi 72 gets known, as it has 72hp. In short intervalls models were introduced having the same body but different engines. To be precise, these were the Audi 60 (55hp), Audi 80 (80PS) and in December of 1966 the well equipped Audi 90 with -yes- 90hp. In the same period of time, the Audi 75 with 75hp replaced both the Audi 72 and the Audi 80.

Body styles were twodoor and fourdoor Sedans and a twodoor stationwagon called Variant (!).

These pics were taken 99 in Monterey. They show an Audi Super 90.

[Guest hellix]

C1 12.68 - 8.76

1968 was a decisive year on the route to becoming a premium brand: The first Audi 100 was introduced in December. Completely engineered by Audi, without knowledge or allowance of VW it found the approval of VW in the end. Liked by customers and press alike (pun intended), a two-door sedan (10/69) and a very beautiful Coupe (9/70) completed the lineup. Audi used the gearbox and frontwheel drive of the Audi 90, everything else was newly engineered. The brakes were mounted not at the wheels, but directly at the gearbox, in the middle of the car. Low unsprung masses are an advantage, on the negative side are high stress for the drive shafts (Brake power is higher than engine power!) and the danger of oil spill on the brake discs. This problem was solved in 1970. Older cars could be updated to that new standard using a special kit that was available from Audi.

A type name is unknown to me, but the internal code C1 should fit.

A German limo. Room was really plenty: You did not need to take off your hat! Seriously: Trunk and passenger area are roomy, even for today's standards.

The US sedan of Bruce Toski from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, who is constanly searching for contact to all first series Audi 100 drivers. You can clearly see the position lights that are pretty obvious on the US C1. As Bruce's Coupe is from 1972, it still has the small (Euro) bumpers!

A very rare two-door sedan. It was 300DM (today roughly 150Euro) cheaper than the equivalent 4-door limo. It was also available in a beautiful twotone paint job.

Limo and Coupe happily together. Today, nearly only the rare Coupes have survived. This paradoxon happens to nearly every sedan and is not limited to make or year. The Coupe was pretty expensive in those days and is it again today. But the sedans more and more close the gap as people realize that there are only a few left.

Both cars have the twin headlights setup. It is standard on the Coupe and came from 9/1971 onwards in the Audi 100 GL which has the Coupe engine. From 1973 on, you could buy the "M" option, including twin headlights, for the Audi 100 and 100 LS, with their weaker engines. It was a rather popular option. In the US, twin headlights with seal beams instead of the Euro H1 lights were standard for all 100s since 1970.

This Coupe is something special. There were no Coupes in the USA, but this one has late US bumpers and position lights. Reason:

The first owner was the US Ambassador in Greece who wanted his Coupe to follow US specifications! So Audi built it that way. Today, it belongs to Theodosios, a greek Audi fan. Porsche 928 rims in 7x16 with 225/45/16, Porsche/RS2 brakes in front, V8 brakes in the rear and a lowered suspension are the main parts of his conversion.

[Guest hellix]

B1 09.1972 - 08.1987

In 1972 the first Audi 80 of the new generation was introduced. With its styling it was more or less typical for all VW and Audi models right into the 80s. The internal code B1 showed that it was the first generation of the new mid-size "B" platform. Virtually extinct today, the Audi 80 was a very popular car due to its modernity and reliability. The Audi 80 Type 82, how it is sometimes also called was exported to many countries, amongst other also to the USA, where it improved the slightly battered reputation of Audi after the C1 had shown a few problems. Its name there was neither Audi 80 as in Europe, nor 4000 as the next Audi 80, but Fox.

The initial type designation was "80" derived from the model name. When in 1977, the KBA (German Office for Vehicles or so) made "real" type designations compulsory, the "Type82" was born.

The picture shows a VW Passat, (later US models were called Quantum), heavily based on the Audi 80 but offering other body styles. The Passat was avaliable as station wagon (Variant) and hatchback. As can be seen, even in the past it was common to share one vehicle within a large comany.

How far this was already the case in the 70s is shown with this picture. The Audi 80 Estate (station wagon), here its UK version, was not offered in Germany but in some foreign countries (USA, UK, South Africa I know of). In countries where both Audi 80 and VW Passat were offered, the Audi was positioned slightly above the VW.

Please note the bumpers which are as massive as the American safety bumpers of the 80s.

According to Richard, these bumpers were used in the UK only in 1976 on both the B1 and the C1. 1977 saw the facelift of the B1 and the introduction of the C2, both with Euro bumpers.

Although the Audi 80 B1 with its early birth was more or less skipped by the 1980s' spoiler movement there were still a few add-on parts available. That you can build a car that still looks fashionable today is proved by these two cars.

Whether the car has single or twin headlights depends on the equipment of the car. The better-equipped had the twin headights. But many owners have retrofitted the other front fascia in the event of tuning measures.

Both vehicles on the left have full metal bumpers.

Who did not want to tune his/her Audi 80 had only one real choice to drive a sporty B1: Buy an Audi 80 GTE. With its fuel-injected four cylinder engine, which became (world) famous in the VW Golf GTI Mk. 1, it may be slower as the lighter Golf but is still a fast car for its time.

When the Audi 80 got older, a faceift was performed, which change the appearance of the Audi 80 quite immensely. You can instantly see the rectangular headlights which put the B1's look closer to the Audi 100 Type43 and no longer a large copy of a VW Derby (Basically an Audi 50 sedan). The bumpers now show much more plastic, but they still are allowed to carry some chrome.

Of course the station wagon was facelifted, too. This version with tastefully apllied wood foil was sold in South Africa.

Whether before or after facelift, the Audi 80 was (and is) a pretty and easy to drive car. With its large windows it manages to create a feeling of space, despite its compact size. Even the trunk is rather roomy. However, it was (at least in Germany) never really luxuriously equipped, some even say it was scarcely equipped. But, in a decade of the oil crises, this might have been the right thing to do.

Hm? Did you at first think that this is a Type81? The turnings signals, looking like Type43 units and the fact that the rear doors reach until the C-pillar both show that this a Type82.

By the way, if someone can tell me why the first Audi 80 was called Type82 and the second one Type81, please do so!

[Guest hellix]

Audi 50 10.1974-07.1978

In 1974 the Audi 50 with 50hp was introduced to satisfy the market's need for smaller cars. It was a huge success immediately.

The picture on the right shows once again the VW version of the Audi. Do you see any differences apart from the logo?

The Audi 50 (and the Audi 80) were important for Germany as they saved one of the biggest employers of Germany from a crisis which results would have been unpredictable.

The picture to the left shows the VW version of the Audi. Can you spot any differences besides the logos?

As mentioned already, VW was fixed on the Beetle and rear engines. Sadly, the customers realised before VW that this was not at all contemporary. Interesting is the fact that only some years ago the VW Beetle saved Audi (or Auto Union), now Audi saved VW. The Audi 80 (US: Fox) was taken over virtually unchanged as Volkswagen Passat (Quantum). The Audi 50 was taken over as the Polo. It is interesting that this was planned all the way, as the manufacturer in the vehicle's papers is always VW for the Audi 50s!

This is an Audi 50 prepared by nothelle at the German Touringcar Championship in Zolder (Belgium) in 1975. Cited from nothelle.com: "This race was the world premiere of a Audi 50 racecar: "He came, saw and won" "

VW could dictate the prices resulting in Polos selling better than Audi 50s. Furthermore, the VWs were cheaper because some odd modifications were made. For example, the accelerator pedal in the Polo was now constructed of a bent wire and the Polo only had 40PS. But the Audi 50 was not so revolutionary, that VW could not have come up with something like that on its own before: The Austin Mini had frontwheel drive and a transverse mounted watercooled engine long before.

After production for the Audi 50 stopped in 1978, it lived on as the VW Polo. In only 4 years, Audi sold -despite the bad economical situation in Germany and the competition by the Polo- over 180,000 units.

After 1978 the Audi 80 (US: Fox/4000) and later the A4 was the smalest Audi until the introduction of the A3.

[Guest hellix]

C2- second generation 08.1976 - 09.1982

In 8/76 the second generation of the Audi 100 was introduced to the market: the angular Type43 as 2-door and (much more often) 4-door limo. Accompanying the sedan was from 9/77 on the first Avant that could be described as the first life-style wagon. The top of the line Audi 100 was powered by a 5-cylinder that should become famous. Out of 2.2 litre (that must be around 134 cui ) it provided 136PS (100kW). Not bad already, especially if you consider the low weight. But what followed in 9/78 was probably a shock to the established upper-class companies: The Audi 200 was introduced, but not only with the normally aspirated engine 5E, also the 5T was born. 5T standing for 5-cylinder Turbo. 170 PS catapulted the visually light appearing Audi 200 into the premium sector for the first time. The first step to where Audi is today.

The main optic difference between the 100 and the 200 were the front lights. The lights of the Audi 100 looked more friendly and provided better light, whereas these of the 200 looked more aggressive. A comment of an owner: "It is like having candles sitting ontop the bumper!" Another friend (owner of the dark-blue 2-door below) converted his headlight power supply to relays and lived happily ever after. They stay a matter of taste! The Audi 200 was better equipped (power windows for example) and had 5-cylinder engines as a standard, ABS was an option. Also noteably are the 200's bumpers that have additional chrome.

This is an Audi 100 Type 43 Avant before the facelift in 9/79. It still has the small lights and the yellow turning signals. Note also the bumper: It looks much more clumsy than that after the facelift. At that time, when you ordered fog lights, these were mounted below the bumper, much like aftermarket items.

Three cars, three stages. On the left a standard Audi 200. Double headlights. In the bumper fog lights and turning signals. Besides the headlights there is an orange cover (not visible here, see the green Audi 200 5T above). This is only a cover, no turning signal. Also see the picture below.

The blue two-door in the middle is a model after the facelift. Bigger lights, nicer bumpers (one part) and white turning signals are most important on the outside. Now the fog lights are integrated into the bumper, making it look much smoother.

On the right is a modified car. It has Audi 100 lights and turning signals but the Audi 200 bumpers. As the front spoiler looks pretty much like an Audi 200 item, I would say it is an Audi 200 converted to the better Audi 100 lights.

This is a 2-door limo converted to Audi 200 looks (and technic!). The 200 front mask has the orange covers (see picture above) painted black. By the way: The wheels are Urquattro wheels. As the 200 had 5x112 while the Audi 100 had 4x108 (that describes the mounting holes in the rims, first number=number of holes, second number=diameter in mm of the circle upon that the holes are.) So this conversion was only possible as the owners converted the whole drivetrain to 200 5T technology. Done very professionally!

These are two interesting pics. Both Type 43s are US Audi 5000s. You can see the double headlight configuration and the US bumpers that have the 200 chrome parts like in Europe, but have other turning signals. What makes these pics interesting is that the upper car is clearly based on an Audi 200: 5 holes in the rims, spoiler and wheels. The car below is equipped with aluminium rims that are an Audi 100 part and only came as a 4-holes version in Europe. As the cars also lacks the Audi 200 front spoiler and the thick plastic side guards of the 200 but has the 100 L chrome trim from back to rear (about 7 inches below the window line), I would say that it is based on an Audi 100. Obviously, both where sold under the same name in the US; but it is interesting to see that they nearly looked the same, whereas in Europe these cars were easy to distinguish.

[Guest hellix]

C3- third generation 09.1982 - 11.1990

The successor to the Type 43 came in 9/82, the Type44. My current car is already my second Type44. That car is simply brilliant: Wether it is the cab or the trunk, there is probably more space than you'll need, powered by the 5-cylinder -one of the best engines ever (not only in my humble opinion). Of course you get some 4-cylinder engines, but...

Here you see what I mean by "large". This trunk is big enough to sink the Titanic in it. Ah, well, to carry Leo's body. And if you use an Avant which were available from 3/83 on, you should be able to use a coffin therefore...

First, the Type44 was partially zinced, then from 9/85 on the whole body, being the first mass-production limousine with that anticorrosive treatment, after Porsche had used it on their cars. Also available was the procon-ten, an early alternative to the airbag. In case of an crash, the engine moves backward and with some steel wires pulls the steering wheel away from the driver and tightens the seatbelts. Teaming up with the large crushable bins, a crashing behaviour resulted that is respectable even today.

The Type44 was with a cW- (cD- in English) measurement of 0.30 very long the world record holder. The low wind resistance results in high fuel efficiency and low noise level. Even better is an old Type44 with the 4+E gearbox that is very "long" geared. Only around 2000 rpm at 60 mph really are silent and efficient. Speaking of efficiency, the first TDI in a passenger car was introduced in the Type44. That was the initial sparking to the Diesel development that is still going on nearly everywhere on this planet. The Audi 100 TDI with its fantastic 120PS inline 5cylinder won many prices and world records both modified and stock.

Many people like to speak of heat development in the cab due to sun radiation. It is not really that bad: The plastic won't melt! Seriously: Comparing the Type44 not with cars like Golf I or II (74 to 90) but with modern cars with about the same wind resistance, you will see that they nearly all have air conditioning. The Type44 gets not much hotter than these. To the US guys this may seem strange, but an AC was not common in Germany and the rest of Europe until the last years.

The Audi 100 Avant was introduced in 3/83. The Audi 200 followed in 6/83. In 11/84 the Audi 100 and 200 were available with quattro.

Due to its long production run of over 8 years and the two lines of Audi 100 and 200 in Europe and some special versions, the history of the C3 is quite complex if you look deeper. For now let's look at the body styles and the technic only.

This is my old car. It was built in late 83 and has the 100kW engine along with the 4+E gear box. It also has a sliding roof and that's all. No extras on it even not the black plastic part between the rearlights. It won't get much more basic than that. It was hell'o'fun nevertheless

An early 5000, as the Audi 100/200s were called in the USA. During the first year (till 85) they had the double headlight setup that might remind you of that of the C2. The 5000 was exported (or imported, depends on where _you_ are) to the US from late 83 on. At that time, the Euro 100 was produced for about one year already! The orange thing besides the headlight is a parking light, the turning signal is placed in the bumper.

This is one of the Audi 100s that were exported to the USA as Audi 100s from 89 on. Most imports were 5ks which were based on Audi 200s. Noteable -as with the early 5000- is the front bumper. It looks like a 200 20V item (also look further below.) This is a car after the "big" facelift in 1/88. Smooth door handles, antenna in the rear window, 4 rings on the trunk lid and the trunk lock is now between the rearlights, no longer in the middle of the trunk lid. On the outside, that's basically it. The interieur was really modernized. It looks good even today and the dashboard of the C4 nearly looks the same.

To be precise: The facelift did include the door handles, but the trunk lid modifiction took place in 8/87. So, for about 5 months only or so, these "inter"-models were built. This might make them rather rare, but that is no comparison to the car a bit further down.

In the lower picture you can see the trunk lid after it was rearranged. However, that name plate was dropped in Europe. Left would only stand "Audi" or nothing and on the right the engine's displacement or nothing. The recess in the black plastic part was never used in Europe (except in Switzerland), neither were center high mounted stopping lights (CHMSLs). Also note that the antenna is "missing". It was integrated into the rear window in the facelift.

This is probably the rarest C3 of all. It is an Audi 200 Exklusiv. Production started already before the facelift, but those cars are even rarer than rare. So what makes it special?

Like all 200s it has 5 and not only 4-hole rims (like most 100s, except the CS and turbos) but it also has flared fenders. If they look like 200 20V items to you, you are right and then again not. The 200 Exklusiv was much earlier and the fenders are a bit different to fit the bumpers. What makes the Exklusiv easily distinguished from the 200 20V is its bumper. It has the standard bumpers of all (European) Audi 200s.

Here is the "normal" Audi 200. No flared fenders, smooth as the standard Audi 100/200. The white thing besides the headlights is in Europe a non-functional cover, which is orange on the US-version: see below.

This is my current car. It is an "Audi 100 Sport". It has the flared fenders which -again- are a bit different from these of the 200 20V (to use the different bumper). 215/60/15 on 7,5x15 came stock on these cars, as well as red taillights. However, the center section consisted of the common, but ugly, black plastic part. In the interieur sport seats, some leather and additional instruments set it apart from the standard Audi 100s. Under the body a drivetrain consisting partially of Audi 200 and 200 20V parts along with the 5-hole rims shows that this version is something special.

This is somehow the predecessor to the Sport. It is an Audi 100 CS. It had the stronger drivetrain of the Audi 200. Available as quattro or front wheel drive, it is relatively easy to identify as it has 5-hole rims in a special design (mostly painted white) and the upper strip on the front bumper is body coloured.

When the first CS was built in 82 it had the standard 4-hole 14" rims with the 185/70/14 tires. When the Audi 200 was introduced in 6/83, the CS was improved and now had the 200's drivetrain with the 5-hole 15" rims and 205/60/15 tires. When the quattro became available, it was used in the CS, too.

When the facelift took place in 1/88, the different lines (CS, CD, CC) were dropped in Europe. In the USA, the name CS somewhat belonged to a very basic C3, pretty different to Europe.

This is a European Audi 200 20V Avant in Papyrus metallic, The 200 20V came always with turbo and quattro. For the rather high price and the short production time (spring 89 to autumn 90) it sold impressing quantities. It was the first Audi that used the US-style bumpers in Europe, too. According to my newest information, the 200 20V headlights are the same as the standard 200. But be aware that this may only apply to German/European cars!

[Guest hellix]

B2 07.1984 - 12.1987

Introduced in fall '78, the Type81 was optically not that revolutionary compared to its predecessor after its facelift. Apart from the optics, everything was new. The Audi 80/4000 was now further away from the close cousin Passat/Quantum, a station wagon was no longer offered in any country.

After 1980 saw the introduction of the quattro, the Audi 80 had the honour to be the first sedan with the permanent all wheel drive.

As the B1, the Type81 was exported to the USA. However, no longer as "Fox", but as 4000, a designation that would be kept until the B4. Typical are the thick bumpers, while Europe still had the standard plastic bumpers. But, when comparing the bumpers to those of the first exports like C1 and B1, they are already less disturbing.

An Audi quattro in the US version. Soon the name Urquattro should be common, even in English-speaking countries. Nowadays, the US-Americans call the C4 S4 UrS4, to make a distinction from the S4 with A4 base. In March 1980 the quattro was introduced for the first time at the Geneva Auto Show. It saw production together with the normal Coupé (introduced in September at the Frankfurt Auto Show) in November 1980. Its 10V 5-cylinder Turbo made 200hp available. The car was based on the Audi 80 but had a lot of unique parts and specialities. The Urquattro was not only successful in Rallye racing, but also as a normal production car. This is pretty astonishing, as at first only a limited production run was planned and the car had pretty high price tag.

By 8/81 the first Coupés were introduced, here an early German Coupé with the characteristic twin headlights. At least in Europe this twin headlights were Coupé-specific, including the Urquattro. In the US also sedans were available with them.

An early US Coupé. The bumpers are a bit thicker than in Europe, and -hard to see- have the turning signals like the Urquattro above not in the corners as German Coupés have, but further inwards. In order to still be able to see the signals, small side indicators are positioned on the fenders.

200hp in the Urquattro didn't even make the quattro sweat. The Sportquattro, introduced in 1983 was a civilized version of the Rallye car. It put out 306hp and accelerated in less than 5 seconds from 0 to 100km/h (0 to 60mph). Despite its aerodynamic like a wall (or a paracute) it reached 250km/h (around 156mph). It accelerated faster than the Porsche Turbo of this time and only lost 10km/h (6,25mph) in topspeed. It was 10 inches shorter than the normal quattros, making it one of the most extreme cars worldwide. Somehow, it is still today. If an owner of the once 219 (200 were necessary for Groupe B homologation) decides to sell his, he won't do under 50.000 Euro. The sale lasted pretty long, probably as Audi had set the price very high. To my knowledge, sales lasted from 1984 till 1985.

As Coupé and Urquattro share many parts across various years and the facelift, it is relatively easy that some owners convert their late Coupé to an early one and vice versa.

This is a Type85, the facelifted Type 81, introduced in July 1984. As the intern modifications were not that huge, the internal designation stayed B2. The Type85 has another interiour a generally calmer appearing body and rear lights thatv resemble those of the Type44, the outer quaters are to my knowledge even identical. The Urquattro was called Type85 from the beginning on.

The Audi 90 was introduced in September 1984. There was an Audi Super 90 before, which had nothing in common with the new one. In the Audi 90 that can be described as the luxury version of the Audi 80, only fivecylinders were available. Audi already used a similar strategy with the Audi 100/299 since late 1983.

[Guest hellix]

B3 - the third generation 09.19986 - 09.1991

1986 the Type81/85 was replaced by the Type89 or B3. Often fans say that B3 is the wrong name, as the VW Passat (Quantum) is also called B3. But that's wrong. Volkswagen is Volkswagen and Audi is Audi. However, everyone calls the car Type89.

The Audi 80 and its sporty derivate the Audi 90 were good and reliable cars. However, they had some disadvantages which -depending on the driver- would be very severe or would not matter. The most important criticism is the trunk. As the fue tank is placed behind the rear seats (Why, oh why?) the trunk is small and short but pretty deep. Depending on what you have to transport, you will have different opinions about that.

Here an Audi 90. Different front and rear fascias, headlights and grille distinguish the Audi 90 from an Audi 80. The interiour of the Audi 90 is better equipped. The engine choices for the 90 only include fiuvecylinders, with the strongest machine being the 20V normal aspirated engine with 170hp.

The Type 89 was with a cD value of 0.29 the second highly streamlined Audi after the Audi 100 Type44 and therefore boosted Audi's credibility in this sector as one Audi official said. If you look closer at the car's lines, it does not seem that revolutionary: The headlights are angled rather steep and for today's standards the gaps are also pretty coarse. But back then, it was absolute state-of-the-art, also thanks to the underbody that was for the first time streamlined by introducing a plastic cover under the engine department.

As well as the Limo was switched from "B2" to "B3", the Coupe was renewed in 1988. The rounder body was kind of a culture shock for the fans of the angular Audis. Only the Urquattro -now available with the 20V turbo- would still me as edgy, pointy and angular as it should. When in May 1991 the last Urquattro was produced, an era ended. It was the Audi with the longest production run, a record that the Audi Cabrio will equalize or even improve.

Even though the S2, which had to fill the empty space of the UrQ, could nearly everything better than its predecessor, it never gained its reputation. Reason for this is perhaps that the UrQ was the first and most revolutionary in its class. Its long production run further gave reason for the legend: When all other cars were streamlined, the UrQ would still proudly hold its housewall-aerodynamics into the wind. The first Coupés still had the Type89 hoods, which were soon replaced by B4 hoods as can be seen on the left.

[Guest hellix]

The luxury class The V8 10.1988 - 03.1994

Horch and Wanderer were both famous for their luxury cars powered by eightcylinders. In October 1988 Audi revived that heritage. However, the V8 had, in contrast to his ancestors, permanent all wheel drive. It was based on the Audi Type44, but was better equipped, had larger bumpers and a radiator-facing that was joined with the hood.. The flared fenders were even wider than those of the 200 20V.

The 250PS 3.6 litre V8, based on two 1.8litre 16V Golf engines was joined in 1992 by a 280PS 4.2, with 4 valve technology as well. As a gear box, automatic transmissions were popular. The manual shifters are rare and pretty sought after today, resulting in rather high prices. The V8 was Audi's first car with automatic transmission and all wheel drive, a combination then found rarely. Some American Softroaders of that time had automatic trans with non-permanent all wheel drive and no central differential. No comparison to Audi's high-tech solution with muti-disc center diff and Torsen rear diff.

A long version of the V8 was available, too, from 1988 on. This Limo was thought for representative uses. The roomy fond got even roomier:

A special thing is the Audi V8 Evo. It was the homologation model for the DTM. As that, it had the 4.2 litre V8, 6-speed manual gearbox, the pretty 17" rims like the S4 C4 and of course front and rear spoilers.The only thing that is rarer than this car is the brochure these pics are scanned from! Thanks to Mark Annette for the scanning!

The V8 is called D11. So you ask, why isn't the V8 called D1, as it was the first car in the luxury class "D"? Fact is, there was a prototype called D1. It was based on a modified chassis of the Audi 100/200 (5k in the US) Type43, but never saw production, due to too high costs. So the V8 is called D11. Don't ask why not D1b or D2! The D11 splits into Type44 (!!) from '88 to '91 and 4C from '91 to '94

The V8 was only available as sedan (except for a few funeral cars that were built in handwork by some manufacturers). Strange, if you consider that the V8 basis, the Type44 was quite successful as Avant. Understandable, if you know that almost all tries to establish something other than a sedan body in the luxury class failed. For that reason the V8 station wagon built by Audi is unique and probably never was meant for production. Today he stand in Audi's "museum mobile" in Ingoldstadt, where he found a place on a gigantic PatreNostre.

http://amkg.homeip.net/astory/old1/pic3/v8avantt.jpg

[Guest hellix]

C4- fourth generation 11.1990 - 04.1997

The successor of the Type44, internly called C4, was introduced to the market as Audi 100, later called A6, was not really a giant leap in 1990. Interieur and seats, as well as the engines and suspension were carried over at least partially from its predecessor. However, they did not look old, what shows how modern the Type44 was -especially after the big face-lift in 1988. The TDI engine now had 140PS and a six gear manual gearbox. Besides that the smaller 1.9 TDI that was introduced in the Audi 80, was introduced to the A6. With time, new engines were developped and a very good insulation against noise did its part to make a ride in a C4 very pleasant. The top of the line A6 was the S6 (in the beginning called S4, when the C4 was called Audi 100), S4/S6 4.2 and the S6 4.2+ with 326PS. These were real grenades which could stand proudly against M5s or tuned E-Classes.

A European Audi 100 S4 C4 (The driver removed the S4 batch for understatement . The S4 had white turning signals, standard was orange.

But there was a small series of Audi 100 Sport Edition, which also had white turning signals. This special series further had DE-headlights, additional instruments, five spoke aluminium rims, sport seats, the S4 rearlight panel, those cargo rails for the Avant and no chrome. Thnaks to Markus for the info!

With the introduction of the C4, the name Audi 200 died on the European market. The S4 was available with the 230PS 20V fivecylinder Turbo and the 280PS 4.2 V8. The S4 had body-coloured rear-view mirrors as standard.

A US Audi 100 C4. In the USA, too, the new car carried over the name of the C3/Type 44 until the name was changed to A6 in mid 1994.

This is a Euro S6 Avant. Now, white turning signals are standard not only for the S-models. To distinguish an A6 C4 from an Audi 100 C4, you have several possibilities. One is the bumpers, the other one is the hood with the grille: While the grille has two nearly parallel edges on the Audi 100, the A6's hood is formed more like a "V". Another, rather strange thing is the smaller rear-view mirror on the side of the co-pilot on the A6. Its only function is to yield a better drag coefficient. In trade you get an unharmonic look and less rear-view area. Besides that, the new rear-view mirrors look sleeker and now come body coloured on all cars.

The S6 now was also available as S6+, having the 326PS 4.2 V8. Avants and Limos were available, but the Limos are even rarer than the Avants, this is true for "standard" S4/S6, too.

The US version of the A6 looks nearly the same as the European one, if it was not for the turning signals.

If you see a C4 from behind, you have another possibility to tell if it is an 100 (200) or A6: If there is a black plastic part between the rearlights, it is an Audi 100 (or 200 in USA). If it is only red, it is an S4/S6. If it is body coloured, it is an A6.

European Audi 100 S4. Note the vertical orientation of the lights.European Audi S6. Note the slight angle to the sides of the lights.Both have rather large double-flow exhausts.

European Audi 100 with the 2.6 V6.

Double exhaust tips, similar to the S4's, but a bit smaller.European Audi A6 with the 1.9 inline 4 TDI of the Audi 80 B4.

Both TDIs, the 1.9 and the inline 5 2.5, have double exhaust tips, angled downwards.

[Guest hellix]

B4 - the fourth generation 09.1991 - 12.1995

1991 at the IAA the completely revised successor to the Type89, the B4 was introduced. Optical and technical improvements let it look more solide and pleasant. Now, the fuel tank was placed under the trunk so that the trunk is better to use. To achieve a large fuel tank, it is now a pretty complicated plastic part. For the first time, a sixcylinder was available in a "B" Audi.

Distinguishing difference to the Type89 are the thicker fender flares of the B4. This New Zealand B4 has non-stock rims and the nice red rear light centre piece.

With the introduction of the B4 the smallest rim size was 15", no longer 14" as with the Type89.

Interestingly US and German versions of the B4 are quite different. The bumpers are two piece items to incorporate the part that "retracts" in case of a small contact. Europeans have the white turning signals, while the US-Americans have to cope with yellow position lights. (Question: Are position lights and turning signals integrated into one lamp?)

Also in 1991 the convertible was introduced. Its production was stopped as late as 2000, although it is based on a construction of 1986! The convertible concept car was based on a Tape89 Coupé, but the production version was apparently newly engineered from the b-pillar backwards.

Open or closed, the Audi "Cabrio" (convertible in German) was always a pleasure to look at. While the convertible above has the "old" convertible front fascia, the convertible to the left is one of the last, with the slightly modified bumper with the turning signals reaching around the corner.

The convertible bumper was also used on the S2, one of the sport versions of the Audi 80, powered by a 230PS 20V turbo engine. The S2 was available as Coupé (Engine 3B: 5'469 cars, ABY: 1'901 cars), Avant (1'818 cars) and -shown here- as ultra-rare sedan; with 271 cars one of the rarest Audis of all times. In Avant and sedan only the modern ABY engine was installed, among other features it had an Overboost function which raised the boost for a short period of time (for overtaking for example).

Even with the S2 being the wider-spread sport model of the B4, the Audi 80 Compettition has to be mentioned. Robert has parked his special edition also at the visitors' cars. 2500 cars were built for homologation purposes for the 2 litre touringcar racing series STW. A 16 valve fourcylinder with 140 PS caters for fast movement, alas not as fast as an S2. But the Competition has the larger wing. a smart move by Audi as they were then allowed to use a useful wing in the STW, too.

Of course, the "baddest" Audi 80 of all times has to be shown, too. The RS2 was engineered together with Porsche and surely is the top Audi 80 of all times. It had mega brakes and a reworked version of the 20V turbo engine of the S2. Its top-speed of 262km/h (163mph) made it the fastest production station wagon in its days.

The RS2 is based on the Audi 80 Avant. Here is the one of my sister. Eventhough the Avant was introduced together with the B4: The rear view shows that it was already developped during Type89 times. My theory is: The introduction of the Type89 Avant was planned, but when the sales figures of the Type89 were not that great any longer, it was decided to broaden the Type89 facelift to a new model B4 and introduce the Avant at this point of time in updated apparel.

While the S2 is surely not weak with 230PS, this is of course not enough in Finnland! Peter Lindström pilots this hot projectile in the Finnish Super Saloon series

[Guest hellix]

Hitman съжалявам ако по този начин задръствам форума ,но за първи път попадам на сайт с толкова много инфо за любимата ни марка и поне на мен ми беше адски интересно.Тук досега не съм виждал такава тема.А самятам че трябва да има.

Останалото е тук: http://amkg.homeip.net/astory/old1/eaudi.htm

[Guest Speedster]

Hitman съжалявам ако по този начин задръствам форума ' date='но за първи път попадам на сайт с толкова много инфо за любимата ни марка и поне на мен ми беше адски интересно.Тук досега не съм виждал такава тема.А самятам че трябва да има.

Останалото е тук: http://amkg.homeip.net/astory/old1/eaudi.htm

Bravo!!!!

Az mnogo iskam da razbera i info otnosno kude ima zavodi na Audi.V BMW-foruma ima6e mnogo qka statiq otnosno zavodite s snimkite im.

[Guest HITMAN]

Hitman съжалявам ако по този начин задръствам форума ' date='но за първи път попадам на сайт с толкова много инфо за любимата ни марка и поне на мен ми беше адски интересно.Тук досега не съм виждал такава тема.А самятам че трябва да има.

Останалото е тук: http://amkg.homeip.net/astory/old1/eaudi.htm

Nishto ne zadrustvash .. evalata che si go postnal dazhe !

[Guest TDI]

Very Cool :!:

[Guest Wizi]

Maaaaaaannniiia! SUPER!

btw Hothelle e firmata, koiato imah predvid za tuninga na 380 konja za 20'000 Evro za 2.7T deto bili ot tolkova godini v branja...

[hellix]

Аугуст Хорх - бащата на две марки

"Четирите ринга" от Инголщат са родени в... Лайпциг

Днес DaimlerChrysler връща към нов живот името на един от големите пионери на автомобилизацията Вилхелм Майбах, имената на неговите съратници Карл Бенц и Готлиб Даймлер пък никога не са излизали от списъка на автомобилните марки. Жалко, че поне засега никой не се заема да възроди и спомена за един друг от големите пионери, превърнали "самоходната каляска без коне" в един от любимците на ХХ век - Аугуст Хорх. Споменът за него обаче също е жив, защото в баварския град Инголщат не само е жив, а и се очевидно се чуства твърде добре Audi.

Всичко започва

на 12 октомври 1868 г. в семейството на ковача Хорх от градчето Вининген, разположено на брега на красивата Мозел, се ражда син, наречен Аугуст. По онова време една ковачница трудно можела да изхрани една голяма фамилия, затова още 13-годишно момчето е принудено да напусне училище и да започне да чиракува при баща си. След две години обаче това му омръзва, една вечер той събира оскъдния си багаж и се отправя да броди из Германия, за да търси щастието си. Работи какво ли не, обаче е толкова упорит, че успява да посъбере пари и се записва в Саксонското инженерно училище. А след като го завършва, има щастието да си намери работа в един лайпцигски завод. Точно там вижда и първия автомобил през живота си. Той го пленява толкова силно, че на 14 ноември 1899 г. младият инженер регистрира компанията Horch & Cie, която си поставя амбициозната задача да произвежда автомобили! И през 1901 г. първият автомобил на новата марка вече е факт. Той веднага привлича вниманието с редица интересни технически новости - оригинален двуцилиндров двигател с патентован карбуратор, предавателна кутия с постоянно зацепени зъбни колела и още много други.

През 1904 г. Horch & Cie се прехвърля в нов собствен завод в Цвикау и започва производството на автомобили с 4-цилиндрови двигатели с мощност 14 - 17 к.с. Три години по-късно Аугуст Хорх вече се чувства толкова уверен като конструктор и производител, че се захваща с реализацията на старата си мечта - автомобил с 6-цилиндров двигател. И на големия автомобилен салон в Париж е показан един огромен за времето си автомобил, който има именно 6-цилиндров 8,7-литров редови двигател с висящи клапани и мощност 60 к.с.! Само че един толкова голям и представителен автомобил за онази епоха все още е нещо твърде екстравагантно - за две години са произведени само 6 такива автомобила (наистина един от тях е поръчан лично от султана на о. Ява, но това не променя нещата). И на 19 юни 1909 г. останалите съдружници просто изгонват Хорх. При това му е изплатена компенсация от 20 000 - сума, за която тогава може да се купи един среден автомобил.

Инженерът предприемач обаче не унива и почти веднага регистрира нова фирма - August Horh AG. Това, разбира се, никак не се харесва на бившите му бизнеспартньори и те успяват да го осъдят, защото името Horh е останало като запазена марка на тяхната фирма.

Ползата от латинския език

Легендата разказва, че когато Аугуст и новите му съдружници обсъждали въпроса за ново име на тяхната компания, Хорх-младши, ученик в класическата гимназия, в съседната стая учел урока си по латински. И точно той дал идеята за Audi. Работата е там, че на старонемски хорх е повелително наклонение на глагола слушам, чувам. Казано с други думи, Audi си е все същият Horh, преведен на латински.

И в новата компания нещата не потръгват добре - поне за неяния основател. Изглежда той се е отличавал с доста опък характер и трудно се е сработвал с хората, защото само след няколко години е отстранен и от ръководството на Audi AG.

А в това време първата му рожба - Horch & Cie, преименувала се на Horch AG, се превръща в един от най-реномираните германски и изобщо европейски производители на елитни автомобили - т.е. точно в това, за което е мечтал нейният създател. В производствената програма на фирмата от Цвикау един след друг се появяват блестящи модели, като 375, 500 (през 1931 г.), 830, 830 BL, 850, 853, 930 V и накрая флагмана 951 А като пулман-кабриолет с каросерия на Glaser.

А най-голямата ирония на съдбата е, че през 1932 г. Audi се обединява с Horch и заедно с DKW и Wanderer образува Auto Union. Тогава, пак за малко, Аугуст Хорх, който междувременно е натрупал колосално богатство и е станал почетен доктор на университета в Брауншвайг, става член на управителния съвет на новото сдружение.

След Втората световна война

Цвикау остава в съветската окупационна зона и по-късно в ГДР бившият завод на Аугуст Хорх е преименуван във VEB Sachsenring Kraftfahrzeug- und Motorenwerk Zwickau/Sa. А във Федералната република е възстановена производството най-напред на DKW, сетне и на Audi. По-късно DKW прекратява дейността си и днес за Auto Union ни напомня само емблемата на Audi. Но и това не е самостоятелна фирма, а част от огромната индустриална империя на Volkswagen.

А самият Аугуст Хорх прекарва последните години от живота си в усамотение и умира в дълбока старост - на 3 февруари 1951 г., когато отдавна вече и той, и делото му отдавна са се превърнали в страници от историята на германското автомобилостроене.