83 URQ resto-mod

When the urq became reliable and roadworthy this project virtually ground to a halt. It's far from finished but after so many years and $$$ spent I was reluctant to continue. It wasn't just my money and time that was invested but our whole family of five who sacrificed for this project. So when the car was finally roadworthy we drove and enjoyed it. The family finally received the return on that investment.

Now I'm at a crossroad. I've been lucky to own my dream car but finishing it the way i want is going to be a financial stretch for me. It's hard to have the project stall due to budget constraints. I've also thought about selling it lately because of the money I have tied up in it. So, the future of the car is in limbo right now. I'm not sure if I should keep building the car for myself or start building it for someone else to buy? Driving a half finished urq is slowly eating away at me.

The other big question is what it's worth. The BAT auction results I followed last year ranged anywhere from $15,000 to $49,000 USD. Hagerty values are a bit more silly ranging from $19,800 to $110,000 with an average value of $41,000 CAD. Now because my car is heavily modified these values don't mean all that much to me. I wish mine was a 100% original car because they tend to be more desirable. Unfortunately some of my modifications can't easily be undone like the tubular front end stuff. In other words I'm stuck with them. So as it stands, an auction may be the best route for the car. It will determine it's value and let me know if I'm keeping it or not. For that reason, my car will hopefully be listed in a BAT auction in the spring. Most likely very close to its current condition. I'll keep my investment to a minimum and keep the reserve price low. I know there are lots of people who always wanted to own a ur quattro but prices are steadily climbing. Mine might still be a good entry level car. Time will tell.

PRY4SNO said:

With your attention to detail and craftsmanship most people would be lucky to own the car.

Sad to see it go, but good that it puts you ahead in life.

Good luck!

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Thank you.

There are much nicer cars out there, I know that, but few of those cars were ever so close to becoming scrap metal. I sometimes forget how bad it was when I purchased it. I was so desperate to own one I didn't care what the condition was. I mean, this car sat outside for 18 years collecting water because a tree fell on it. To make a bad decision worse, the values of these cars were half of what they are now. The restoration it needed likely costed more than what the car could ever be worth. That right there basically set the path for the car. I'm only bitching because once the car heads to auction, the comments will be harsh. People watch an 85 urq sell for $81,400 USD and then hold every quattro to the same potential. That isn't fair. My car was begging to be modified because there was nothing "original" to salvage nor did it make economic sense. I hope this car finds a new owner who keeps modifying it like how I hoped to. It's not that I don't love original cars but that's not what I have on my desktop. :wink:

Hopefully, in the next few weeks, I'll have my car ready for sale. I'll be using that short time to tidy up a few loose ends.

1. Install some of the missing Decals
2. Install my boost gauge
3. Install the power steering
4. Tidy up the interior with a proper urq carpet, shift boot etc.
5. A full check over and springtime service.

Nothing too serious. :wink:

So while my part supplier works on those missing trim pieces I started to work on the decals. Rather than buy proper replacements I decided to make my own. My wife always wanted one of these cricut vinyl cutter machines so I said why not? It gives me the opportunity to create custom decals for next to nothing. It's a custom car and now it will have custom badges.

So these are just a few pictures of my first attempt using a vinyl cutter machine. I think it worked pretty darn good. I don't plan to go crazy with these stickers but maybe just some subtle tweaks on OEM design and placement. Maybe some ghost matte badges on the gloss black paint? "HB AUDI TEAM" in a banner? Classic "turbo" script from the original intake manifold? I might try out some ideas and report back later.

I'm still trying to get the car ready for sale but I haven't had much free time. I started a new job and the car was bumped down a notch on my priority list. Regardless, I did manage to score a real urq carpet. So today I spent my day off cleaning it so it doesn't smell like the inside of a 30 year shoe. :wink: Surprisingly it cleaned up really well. Lots of soap and pressure washing.

I've also been working on producing the 10v intake "turbo" script for a decal. Hopefully more to come soon.

Working on more decals... Possibly the trunk decal

I should point out I have no experience with this stuff. I'm actually following youtube clips, step by step, to modify or create designs. I hope the final product looks good enough to install on the car.

Getting closer to putting a for sale sign in the window. :wink:

Today I learned there is a difference between the coupe GT and the quattro centre console. You can see in the picture the shifter plastic is considerably shorter for a quattro. I've been using a coupe gt dash for years but only realized this today when I had a correct replacement part in my hand. :slap:

The main goal today was to replace my coupe GT carpet with a proper quattro one. That job basically turned into me tearing the whole interior apart. I removed & painted my grey door cards. I installed my boost gauge. Tidied up the wiring and mounted my auxiliary fuse panel. I also swapped my front grille for one without the rings and painted some exterior trim.

You may notice my replacement carpet is two different colors. It's not ideal but a pristine black carpet is rare and therefore rather expensive. I'm just happy i don't have to look at my bare transmission tunnel anymore and was able to save some money.

My wife joked with how I'm finally fixing all those little things only to sell it. She joked that I'm not going to want to sell it once I'm done. Well, it's still for sale it but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy it while I still own it.

Tiny update. I installed a windshield tint banner today. Nothing crazy but I think it looks ok. I may put some white vinyl text over top later.

I think I'll only regret selling it for too little money. Having said that I'm not looking to get rich either. I don't expect $18,000 CAD but I wouldn't turn it down either. We know we have somewhere around $10K (CAD :roll: ) invested into it. It's sort of my baby so finding the right owner is also important to me.

It's officially up for sale. :wink:

Just before listing it I installed a new exhaust tip and added some vinyl to the windshield banner. I didn't get everything I wanted done but if I do anymore I'll likely keep it. It might not be everyone's cup of tea but just looking at it puts a smile on my face.