Ur an idiot for buying this: 1995 Audi Ur-S6 project

[rightfullrudder]

I don't want to clutter your thread, plus I lost a bunch of stuff in a hard drive crash, but here's a couple from when I bought it 3(!?) years ago. It's basically a "1998 steeze" time capsule and I haven't done a thing to it really, other than drive it so far, besides pulling off the HRE's for a rebuild. I'm currently running a set of 17x8/9.5 OZ Mito Type 1's.

The car was on daily duty until about 8 months ago when the Frankenstein build was supposed to begin, but then I had another project fall in my lap and everything got pushed back. Anyway, that will all be covered in my own thread when the time comes lol, hopefully soon. Lots of plans, interior, exterior, suspension, wheels, etc. I'll definitely give you a heads-up when the build begins and parts become available.

I'm actually going to be moving to your neck of the woods later this year. I'm in the film industry, and Atlanta is the place to be at the moment.

Awesome! Can't wait to see your build. Hit me up if you need info about Atlanta. There are actually a few UrS cars here!

*********

Well, had a nice weekend getting car stuff done, even if most of it was minor. Got back from Albany (for hopefully the last time) and went to go do car stuff.

If you look closely, you can see my buddy using the hood of his Land Rover as a stool to rewire the headlights in his C5 A6 lol.




GF took a pic of my ugly mug as significant others tend to do




Did a bit of preventive maintenance and installed a Samco intercooler to crossover pipe hose, aka the Michelin Man. Bought it sight unseen off a forum, turned out to be yellow lmao. The OEM hoses tend to fly off, tear, etc.




I just think this pic is funny.




Remember those weird lights? Played with the fitment a little to bring them in a little more flush to the body. Installed both of them and we'll see how they look. I think they might be growing on me; they're definitely weird but it's pretty cool that no one in the community has ever seen these before. Even talked to some people in Europe! They look better with the Euro lights -- they match the smoked reverse lights in the inner portion of the tails.




Rerouted ignition coil wires, cleaned up the valve cover and intake manifold a little bit. Also removed the broken fuel rail cover -- Before and after. VC and IM really need to be sanded down completely and painted, but I did what I could with the sandpaper we had. By this point I was in no condition to make a parts store run. Idk why but that one coil was driving me nuts...






Then on Sunday, I went for a drive up to SC to pick up some wheels to bring the daily back up to snuff.






Finally, ordered some stuff that should mean we are good to go to install the turbo and related parts. Mostly just hardware and gaskets.






Everyone enjoy your week!

[toddzilla]

I will definitely be PMing you about those parts -- post some pics of your S4 for inspiration! Would love to have them on the thread and haven't seen them on your profile.

I don't want to clutter your thread, plus I lost a bunch of stuff in a hard drive crash, but here's a couple from when I bought it 3(!?) years ago. It's basically a "1998 steeze" time capsule and I haven't done a thing to it really, other than drive it so far, besides pulling off the HRE's for a rebuild. I'm currently running a set of 17x8/9.5 OZ Mito Type 1's.




The car was on daily duty until about 8 months ago when the Frankenstein build was supposed to begin, but then I had another project fall in my lap and everything got pushed back. Anyway, that will all be covered in my own thread when the time comes lol, hopefully soon. Lots of plans, interior, exterior, suspension, wheels, etc. I'll definitely give you a heads-up when the build begins and parts become available.

I'm actually going to be moving to your neck of the woods later this year. I'm in the film industry, and Atlanta is the place to be at the moment.

[rightfullrudder]

Read this from the beginning. Love the work you've done so far, Ben! I really like the Anteras on there.

Did not realize that you'd moved to ATL. I miss the DurtyDubs crew there, great people.

Thanks CJ! Yup, I've been in Atlanta since last May, I took a job down here with Genuine Parts. I need to get out to Gears and Beers on Sundays, Four Rings ATL does a collaboration with DurtyDubs.

Not sure how I missed this, but it's great to see another C4 on here!! I've got a built '94 S4 with cosmetic/body issues and a stock '95 S6 with good bones, so I will be Frankenstein-ing them into one complete (presumably superior) car, which will be documented on this forum when that time comes. I'm sticking with S4 bumpers, hood, lights, and trim, so I'm not sure if you're still looking for S6-specific stuff, but I'll have it. I do also have a complete 8.5/10 black Euro S6 cloth interior I'll be parting with but it's very rare in the US and you know what that means ($$$$). I realize you're not exactly trying to build a show car here.

Awesome man!! Had no idea there was another owner on here. Sounds like a great plan and over time the S4 stuff is growing on me vs. the S6 stuff, but I'll definitely be sticking with S6 parts given the new hood and grille I just found. I would definitely be interested in those parts (even the cloth interior perhaps) but especially the front bumper. This cracked A6 bumper is a pain. I'm not trying to build a show car per se, but the goal is to improve performance, have fun, and save/restore the car. I've really fallen in love with this thing!

You asked for input, so here is mine: keep the stuff for your build, at least for now. You can always sell parts down the road if your plans change, but it's very difficult to un-sell parts. If you're not hurting for money, sit on it for a while until you're sure what you want to tackle. The car will be ready whenever you are.

Also, that clogged sunroof drain you mentioned can kill an ECU, so that's obviously a biggie, but inspect your rain tray area as well. There are drains there that can/do clog and need to be cleared out. Water in the passenger footwell could also be a heater core... hopefully not.

These cars are basically deathproof when properly cared for and honestly don't ask for much, it's just that parts can be hard to locate or pricey if/when you do have problems. However, the glorious sound of an uncorked 5-cylinder turbo, the oddball/rarity factor, simple understated design, and head-scratching looks you get from people make it all worth it, in my opinion. My 2002 S4 is full-tilt, 600+hp, TE-37s, Ohlins, Porsche brakes, Sporster CS's, and makes a hell of a lot of noise... 99% of people barely glance at it. In the '94 S4, I get comments, questions, compliments, strange looks, parking lot window shoppers, and cellphone paparazzi just about everywhere I go.

Maybe yours isn't where you want it just yet, but they make for great low-maintenance daily cruisers and road trip cars when you catch up with all the stuff the last guy missed. You definitely seem like you're on the right track so far. These are some of the last "modern" cars that you can still work on with basic hand tools and jackstands in your driveway for most jobs, and probably the last Audi ever where you can pop the hood and and access 95% of the components without removing half the engine or front clip. Around 310whp is the sweet spot between stock bottom-end performance and reliability, but inspect/replace/repair mounts and other tired old rubber bits in the drivetrain first. Upgrade to the R8 coils and conversion harness when you do the rest of the turbo/fueling stuff and she'll run like a top. That's my 2 cents.

Subscribed and good luck!

That's a good point regarding unselling parts. I could get what I paid for it, but it'll be difficult to find some of these parts as cheaply as I purchased them, plus motivation is a lot easier when you have the parts already. Speaking of parts, Marc Swanson said I should be around 300whp with my setup without billet wheel, and 330whp if I have a billet wheel put in the turbo. At this time, really not looking to bend a rod lol.

The stuff in the footwell hopefully isn't a heater core because it's just water. Weirdly, I let the interior dry out and washed the car, applying water liberally -- no more water in the floor. I think it could be a door seal issue? Drove the car in the pouring rain before I noticed the floor. It honestly could have been water entering through one of the rust holes on the doors. Really need to get off my ass and figure out how to put the new doors on.

I will definitely be PMing you about those parts -- post some pics of your S4 for inspiration! Would love to have them on the thread and haven't seen them on your profile.

[toddzilla]

Not sure how I missed this, but it's great to see another C4 on here!! I've got a built '94 S4 with cosmetic/body issues and a stock '95 S6 with good bones, so I will be Frankenstein-ing them into one complete (presumably superior) car, which will be documented on this forum when that time comes. I'm sticking with S4 bumpers, hood, lights, and trim, so I'm not sure if you're still looking for S6-specific stuff, but I'll have it. I do also have a complete 8.5/10 black Euro S6 cloth interior I'll be parting with but it's very rare in the US and you know what that means ($$$$). I realize you're not exactly trying to build a show car here.

You asked for input, so here is mine: keep the stuff for your build, at least for now. You can always sell parts down the road if your plans change, but it's very difficult to un-sell parts. If you're not hurting for money, sit on it for a while until you're sure what you want to tackle. The car will be ready whenever you are.

Also, that clogged sunroof drain you mentioned can kill an ECU, so that's obviously a biggie, but inspect your rain tray area as well. There are drains there that can/do clog and need to be cleared out. Water in the passenger footwell could also be a heater core... hopefully not.

These cars are basically deathproof when properly cared for and honestly don't ask for much, it's just that parts can be hard to locate or pricey if/when you do have problems. However, the glorious sound of an uncorked 5-cylinder turbo, the oddball/rarity factor, simple understated design, and head-scratching looks you get from people make it all worth it, in my opinion. My 2002 S4 is full-tilt, 600+hp, TE-37s, Ohlins, Porsche brakes, Sporster CS's, and makes a hell of a lot of noise... 99% of people barely glance at it. In the '94 S4, I get comments, questions, compliments, strange looks, parking lot window shoppers, and cellphone paparazzi just about everywhere I go.

Maybe yours isn't where you want it just yet, but they make for great low-maintenance daily cruisers and road trip cars when you catch up with all the stuff the last guy missed. You definitely seem like you're on the right track so far. These are some of the last "modern" cars that you can still work on with basic hand tools and jackstands in your driveway for most jobs, and probably the last Audi ever where you can pop the hood and and access 95% of the components without removing half the engine or front clip. Around 310whp is the sweet spot between stock bottom-end performance and reliability, but inspect/replace/repair mounts and other tired old rubber bits in the drivetrain first. Upgrade to the R8 coils and conversion harness when you do the rest of the turbo/fueling stuff and she'll run like a top. That's my 2 cents.

Subscribed and good luck!

[theseeker411]

Read this from the beginning. Love the work you've done so far, Ben! I really like the Anteras on there.

Did not realize that you'd moved to ATL. I miss the DurtyDubs crew there, great people.

[MikeyRa]

I had a set of those Anteras years ago on a w124 sedan. You're making me miss those ugly slugs.

[rightfullrudder]

Managed to dust off the real camera and get some pics of the Audi, although as you can see I'm a little out of practice these days. Adulting sucks. Posting this from another hotel room in south Georgia, hope to be home this weekend. It does look my tax return will be pretty decent this year, it hits my account Thursday which will be nice.

I'm at a little bit of a crossroads with the car right now and I'd love some input. Pretty much have all of the bigger turbo parts ready to go but haven't been able to install everything, about equally due to lack of time, lack of skill and lack of confidence in the car to handle the power. A friend of mine offered to buy everything for what I have in it, which would give me some more money to put elsewhere, although I don't think I would be able to buy the same parts as cheaply all over again. Hmmmmm. It's not like I need the money to survive or anything. Toying with the idea of selling the advans too for similar reasons -- I actually love the Anteras on the car.

Anyway, I just found out that there's a junkyard in Austell that has rust free rear doors in the correct color, as well as a trunk lid. I think the best compromise is to find body panels in the right colors to begin with rather than actually having a full respray done. Front bumpers are extremely expensive so I don't think I can do both. Think I'll sell the Advans too, just because the Anteras have grown on me.

Oh right. Pics.

[19birel]

Loving the euro rear lights, the car is cleaning up well, great job!

[KFC ONE]

That looks so goooood.

I prefer the all red tails... but hey do your thing. Killin' it so far.

[rightfullrudder]

A little preface: I used to use DSLR pics for everything, but I honestly don't have the time anymore. I wish I did, these pics suck. Maybe I will start doing legit pics eventually, but for now you guys get the idea right?


Home for the next week and was super excited to get home! My awesome girlfriend bought me a set of Euro tail lights and the center plate tub required to make it all fit.
This pic is upside down, but here's everything laid out. The black center piece mounts on top of the edges of the tail lights.



Went to a buddy's house with a garage because it's been raining the past several days in order to install them. Not really a hard process -- just four 8mm nuts for each taillight, then two 10mm bolts to remove the center panel. The lights are held in with butyl tape to make them weathertight, but I was lucky and able to reuse it. Pretty nice that it was still sticky after 23 years!

Old lights look like this:




New lights on, you can see how the center piece mounts.




Mocked up with a legit German license plate just for fun! Note the mismatched corner lights. I ended up going back to OEM corners just because the fitment on the smoked ones wasn't great. We'll see -- I might put the smoked ones on for real eventually.




All done!!




Stopped on the way home for a pic. E-brake cable didn't release all the way, smelled brakes, pulled off the interstate, hit caliper with a jack handle, we're good again lol.




Also, had to get a pic with the girl who made it possible!! Can't describe how much better this looks.




One more for good measure. The next things to address:
a) Water soaking passenger footwell, probably a clogged sunroof drain
b) Pretty serious tire rubbing in the front with these wheels. It's been so long since I dealt with this I guess it bothers me more than it used to! Maybe I'm just getting old haha. Will have to see if there's anything I can do to alleviate the rubbing.

[rightfullrudder]

The anteras are waaay cooler than I expected! Put some 3D Audi stickers on the center caps maybe?
Also if you lower it some more the car will look awesome on them!

Good on the new "correct black" hood, looks 100% better now

Thanks! Definitely want to source either Antera or Audi center caps. And I agree re the hood. As for lowering, I probably won't lower it much more than this anytime soon. This is supposed to be my "spirited driving" car, but then again I didn't plan to bag my Mazda either...

Wheels and grill look GREAT!

Props to you for seeing this through.

Thank you sir!

I really like the grille with the Audi logo as opposed to the badge-less. Cool taillights. I actually really dig them.

Definitely going to mount the other side and run them for a while to see how I like them. I don't want to jinx anything but I have something in the works that should make them look better.

Damn those wheels look great, with a touch of camber they will look perfect but really look good how they sit now. Those are some weird but really cool lights as well. Good find on the parts !

Thanks man! Thank God you can dial in camber by aligning the car, on the Mazda rear camber is pretty much either camber arms or nothing. I am having some rubbing especially in the front. Maybe I'm being a giant baby but I really don't want to mess up my fenders lol. Although on the other hand, the front fenders need to be replaced anyway.


I'm in Albany GA for work the next two weeks, so not a whole lot going on with the car. I do have hub rings for the Anteras and a silicone Michelin Man (intercooler to crossover pipe) hose in the mail that should be there when I get home. Fuck Albany is boring. Wish I had just brought the Audi down.

[Nissanxrma1]

Clean

[storey618]

looks hella good man! you should quick adjust that hood though

[kittenpuncher]

I really like the grille with the Audi logo as opposed to the badge-less. Cool taillights. I actually really dig them.

[KFC ONE]

Wheels and grill look GREAT!

Props to you for seeing this through.