legacycentral bbs

I have an opportunity to pick up a 1994 Audi S4. As far as I can tell these were never released in the US so it was imported. 2.2L inline 5 turbo charged. 227 hp and 250+ tq stock but this one is modded. FMIC etc... I am still waiting to hear back from the seller about a full mod list but this thing is slick as shit. Black on black, tinted windows. Euro everything, lights etc....

I have heard that this year S4 is a tank and doesn't have the issues many Audi do. It's heavy with a curb weight of 3800 lbs but I don't care. This could be one of like 20 S4's of this year in the states, very rare.

Anyways, just looking for opinions.......

You don't want mine!

Ill take two.


Kidding aside. the Inline 5 is a bulletproof motor. It IS slick as shit. GIve it a good solid going over. Drive it. Put it through its paces looking for weeknesses.... then spend an hour and step away from it. Rub one out or bone your Girl, whatever, Just get your mind elsewhere. You still goota have it? Go for it.

Doesn't look that good. Kind of scary looking IMO. I think those rims look horrible on it mainly. Are those things AWD i hope?

ok theyre not common, but theres definitely more than 40 of them. a lot more. that one is modded but I would look it over REALLY carefully and do a lot of research into the typical problems of the car just so you can be an informed buyer.
what really takes it out of these cars is deferred maintenance that happens when a schmuck gets their hands on one. you could be looking at thousands of dollars to get it perfect. I wouldnt go for it unless youre really sure its a high quality example that has been taken care of. perhaps one that has been owned by a aud fanatic or a wealthy doctor or something. as a car they are freakin amazing. the 20v is one of the best motors ever made imho. Ive wanted one for a long time.

^sorry but that is one sexy as car.

i would get it if i had the money. that car is a good ass car.

ericem wrote:Doesn't look that good. Kind of scary looking IMO. I think those rims look horrible on it mainly. Are those things AWD i hope?

I like the rims, they're pretty rare, BBS RF, IIRC, was gonna buy the one piece for my e30 but dicked around too long.

Those things certainly aren't as rare as you think they are OP, but they definitely aren't common. As mentioned it was modified, FMIC, and what looks like smoked tails, screams teenager or early 20s, so look at it very carefully. But I've heard really good things about those cars, I'd say go for it if it checks out.

Thats a sweet car, I bet it drives nice.

Parts are gonna be a real bitch.


I start looking for wear items cost. Starter, radiator, brakes? That things gonna use some funky Brembo stuff for sure. I bet the clutch for that thing is spendy. Whats a fuel pump relay, and or pump cost?
Does this one have the clutch rad fan? My benz does, and its crazy expensive.

Look all this stuff up, because if it hasn't been done yet, it will need to be.

My experience with German stuff, is it really depends who has worked on it. If it doesn't look like its ever been worked on, that can mean two things. Whoever worked on it was REALLY good, or its never been worked on. Documentation is soooo important, unless the buying price is super super cheap.

Wiring, and hoses are all held together with lots of small clips. Those clips all serve an important purpose, and especially important with cars of this pedigree with the funny wire insulation thats biodegradable, they all break.

These cars also have funny parts, like overload protection relays that always go bad, cost 80 bucks, and start a chain of solid state black boxes going up in smoke. Electric aux water pump?

Did someone bother to go back through and tie everything back up?
Did they use cheap zip ties?

fyi i had a tornado red 90 ' 90 quattro 20v non-turbo sedan and it weights in a heffer as well , though all things concidered i m still looking for another one today to put the parts on which i recovered from the wreckage
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i love the audi 90 series
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i ever wished it was the S series

i say pay for it !
and cherish it like a son
somthing to be said of german engineering
lovly sound from a inline 5 witha Cast-Iron Block and stainless exhaust
imo the turbo will only exponentiate the harmonics
oh yess buy buy buy !

About the PO maintaining it thing. If you ask him what he's replaced and he lists what sounds like about the whole engine and suspension, it's probably still not enough but it'll do, that's what you're looking for. If he's says things like spark plugs and oil, and just a few simple things you're probably looking at a lot of work in the near future. But in my experience German parts aren't any more expensive than Subaru parts. Actually most Subaru parts have been more expensive than my BMW parts were so far.

Just be prepared for a bunch of little annoyances more than anything, cluster lights going out, window motors, junk like that.

I promise I won't make this an Audi rant and, in fact, that's the last time I'll use that name in this response as this will be generalized.

As a lover of odd balls, I understand the attraction, but as long as this is a toy you can afford and not expected to be a daily driver, it won't kill you. Probably not. I definitely second needing an expert to service it and the need for a responsible current owner.

Old luxury and sports cars are cheap to buy (I've seen several unfortunate Porsche 928s and a Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow ((meh)) in the ghettos who don't have much longer to live), but there's a reason for it—it's just an old car and out of fashion to the rich (until, by the grace of god, it survives long enough to fall into the collectible car category and is considered, often arbitrarily, to be valuable versus a merely interesting curiosity, which are at least a cheapish way into car shows, like the Legacy turbos may be someday) and most people don't want an expensive car to maintain, leaving a small minority of buyers who can seldom afford the maintenance, but are attracted to the price of entry. And because it's a practical body style doesn't mean anything—as an example, a BMW 3.0CSI is more expensive to run than a Ferrari 308 (though I still prefer the BMW, personally). Some cars might be worth garaging and being cared for until they can be sold as collectibles for profit, but many don't make it to that point regardless of name or rarity. I almost bought a Lamborghini Espada years ago, but was able to reel-in my brain (also helped that girls thought it was weird looking, which ... well, it does kind of looked like a squashed '69 Charger if they had made a wagon version) after talking to someone about maintenance. They're still not worth much and probably never will be so the closest I'll get to ownership is putting one in my second book. A couple years ago, it was a choice between a house and a completely restored Maserati Khamsin with the Euro bumpers (looked unbelievable in black with red leather). They only made 400 of them and it was about $30k, but that's where they sit for prices, partly because of the reputation of the Citroen hydraulics (I still wonder if I should've bought the car instead). The only car I'm interested in as a classic right now is an Alfa Romeo Montreal. The engines have a reputation for being expensive and the SPICA fuel injection as difficult, but talking to owners and experts, that's unfounded and likely because of people not maintaining them right and taking them to mechanics who were clueless. There have been fixes for some of the common SPICA problems over the years, as well, and parts are reasonable. I like that they're worth low $30's tops as it makes it potentially affordable and I don't care about profiting, Not that it would matter as that's a bottomed-out value, so if they appreciate or they don't, I should keep up with inflation.

Just something to think about, I guess. One reason I hate those 4-ringed cars so much is that they often look so damn good that it's frustrating that they're also usually so damned unreliable. I don't know this specific car, but I imagine the electrical systems are the same as the rest.

206er wrote:ok theyre not common, but theres definitely more than 40 of them. a lot more. that one is modded but I would look it over REALLY carefully and do a lot of research into the typical problems of the car just so you can be an informed buyer.
what really takes it out of these cars is deferred maintenance that happens when a schmuck gets their hands on one. you could be looking at thousands of dollars to get it perfect. I wouldnt go for it unless youre really sure its a high quality example that has been taken care of. perhaps one that has been owned by a aud fanatic or a wealthy doctor or something. as a car they are freakin amazing. the 20v is one of the best motors ever made imho. Ive wanted one for a long time.

Yeah, I don't actually know how many there are state side but I would think there really are not that many since it needed imported. I know I have NEVER, EVER seen an Audi S4 in this year, not once.... So, a lot more then 40? I would probably have to disagree with that.

I don't know jack shit about the seller but I do know that his family has a bunch of Audis so, hopefully they know how to keep up on maintenance.

Steve, I know where you stand and I value your opinion.

Keep in mind everyone, this will not be my DD. I have the '07 Leggy. This would just be my fun car. The price is low, under 6k, so it's not a big investment either. I am a little concerned about parts or the availability to get them but I would probably be putting less then 5k miles a year on this. Little things I would fix myself and if it does need a major repair, we have a local guy in my area that specializes in German cars, especially VW & Audi. He's fair but not cheap.

Thanks for the opinions everyone, keep 'em coming!

OK, just read something about the import of this year S4, it said just under 600 were imported so, I stand corrected. It's not as rare as I thought.

If you have 3 other cars that you can rely on, then take the plunge and buy this sucker! Aside from the 80's muscle car rims, that thing is clean!

Haha, thanks. Everybody is dissing the rims but I like them, they are a pretty standard upgrade on a lot of Audi's in these years. My friends mom had an early '90's Audi Coupe and it had the same wheels as an upgrade from the dealer.

Going back and forth in emails with the seller right now. Trying to figure out the history of the car......

Yeah, I don't like those wheels either. They look like cheesy American Racing wheels from an auto parts place or something.

WHOA! I just looked it up to see what the OEM wheels looked like (kind of bland) and the sedan according to Wikepedia weighs 3814 lbs.! That's average or better today, but for 1994... That thing come with 105 mm cannon and reactive armor?

Is that the 20-Valve Turbo? That's a sweet motor. I have a 1992 CQ in want of one of those...

legacy92ej22t wrote:Haha, thanks. Everybody is dissing the rims but I like them, they are a pretty standard upgrade on a lot of Audi's in these years. My friends mom had an early '90's Audi Coupe and it had the same wheels as an upgrade from the dealer.

Going back and forth in emails with the seller right now. Trying to figure out the history of the car......

how long has he owned the car? if not very long, it may be a lemon.

how many owners has it had? if its around 3 it is probably a safer bet than if its around 5.

how much of the maintenance history has documentation ie reciepts and such?

if it has a front mount, how much boost has it been running and for how long?

does it have a puck clutch in it?

looks like an awesome car but I would be wary. it would probably be worth it to take it to a really good independent audi specialist for them to look it over.

those rims are seriously early 90's. love em or hate em.

Yes, 20v inline 5 2.2l turbo

evolutionmovement wrote:Yeah, I don't like those wheels either. They look like cheesy American Racing wheels from an auto parts place or something.

WHOA! I just looked it up to see what the OEM wheels looked like (kind of bland) and the sedan according to Wikepedia weighs 3814 lbs.! That's average or better today, but for 1994... That thing come with 105 mm cannon and reactive armor?

You're sick! Those wheels were about $3k when they were new, and that was quite a long time ago. They're old school, certainly not cheesy.

Though I can't say they look best on that car, I still like them though.

They look better here
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g8/bl ... nks065.jpg

And here's a closer view of a set in all silver
http://images.forum-auto.com/mesimages/ ... -40-16.jpg

Regardless of how you think they look, OP you could sell them for a decent amount of money and get some wheels you like better.

I thought they were old HRE wheels at first.

Either or is big bucks.

I like them.

I guess this is the Ur-S4, the original S4 that was based off the 100 chassis.

As everyone else has said, as long as it remains a toy and you don't mind it breaking down, go for it.

Yeah, they are the BBS wheels. I like em, I even like em on the car.

Yes, it's the Ur-S4 1994. They came out in 1992 IIRC. Saw a 1993 one for sale here in states but it's like 500 miles away....

I feel dumb but what is this "OP" everyone has in their posts?

Steve, I listed it as 3800 lbs in my first post. I think a big part of that is the iron block. Heavy. The tranny is heavy too iirc. Not sure what the front to rear weight ratio is on these but if they are like VW's they are very front heavy.

OP = Original Poster or in other words the person who starts the thread.