Who Says You Shouldn't Slam an Audi 100?

Murilee Martin
by Murilee Martin

When I was 16 and just beginning to contemplate expanding my personal automotive fleet beyond a ’69 Corona sedan, I had the opportunity to buy three Audi 100 s for 350 bucks. Actually, the deal was more like 3.75 Audi 100s, what with all the random engine parts stuffed in the trunks and oozing oil onto the upholstery. None of the three ran, but I figured I could play mix-and-match with the parts and make one runner, which I would then customize in the finest 1982 style (shudder). I ended up passing on the tripartate-O-100s, due to what I thought was the inherently uncool image of the marque (back then, only orthodontists drove Audis), but the question remains: what can be done to fix the stodgy-yet-vaguely-sporty image of the C1 Audi 100?

Tomas Sport Tuning seems to have figured it out. This 8-track-equipped 100LS rides on airbags now, and the look actually works. The key is the factory hubcaps; 21st-century wheels would just look silly.

The only improvement I’d suggest would be an early-70s-grade brown paint job.






Murilee Martin
Murilee Martin

Murilee Martin is the pen name of Phil Greden, a writer who has lived in Minnesota, California, Georgia and (now) Colorado. He has toiled at copywriting, technical writing, junkmail writing, fiction writing and now automotive writing. He has owned many terrible vehicles and some good ones. He spends a great deal of time in self-service junkyards. These days, he writes for publications including Autoweek, Autoblog, Hagerty, The Truth About Cars and Capital One.

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  • Jor65756038 If GM doesn't sell a sedan, I'll buy elswhere. Not everybody likes SUV's or crossovers or is willing to buy one no matter what.
  • ToolGuy One thing is for sure: Automakers have never gone wrong following the half-baked product planning advice of automotive journalists. LOL.I wonder: Does the executive team at GM get their financial information from the Manager of Product and Consumer Insights at AutoPacific? Or do they have another source? Hmm...
  • ToolGuy There is a lot of clarity here and I am not confused at all. 🙃
  • ToolGuy There is a lot of clarity here and I am not confused at all. 🙃
  • ToolGuy Wait there's a TTAC Podcast?
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