1993 Audi 80 2.0 E from UK and Ireland - Comments

The fuel gauge reads erratically.

The coolant temperature gauge stopped working.

The Audi 80 is the car that preceded the A4 and shares many of its classic lines.

I was surprised at the basic engine in the car, being only an eight valve not a sixteen valve which came later.

The build however is the best I have seen on any car, including new cars I have owned. The incredible attention to detail is mind boggling and I have heard that little else is made better than pre 1995 Audi's.

Being tall, I find the headroom bad, whatever angle I have the seats I have my head on the ceiling all the time. the lack of steering adjustment does not help with this either.

Equipment levels are fairly basic in the E spec. It has manual windows, but electric mirrors and sunroof, but no A/C. Having said that though, the ventilation is excellent with no fewer than 8 vents on the dash and windscreen and footwell vents. The heater works incredibly well as I have found with all German cars (early VW's were my passion a few years back).

The performance of the car is hampered by the relatively weak (115 Bhp) engine and the heavy (1400Kg) body, but its not a slow car by any means. Don't expect to give any modern cars above 1.6 litres a run for their money in this, but I was pleasantly suprised at the performance, even with the 4 speed auto box fitted to mine, and my last car was a Leon Cupra R 225 so I can make a good comparison with a fast car.

Handling is actually one of the best points about this car, the other being the brakes. even compared with modern cars the handling is good. Ultimately the power steering is too light and the tyres too tall for really serious cornering, but it remains composed in all situations and rarely feels understeery, but with low power and all that weight pressing the tyres into the road the chassis is not overstressed.

I mentioned the brakes and I was genuinely surprised by them. Early VW and Audi cars had frankly rubbish brakes. Too small for the weight of the car, however the 80 has large discs all round (vented front, solid rear) which really do the job. There is a slight initial feeling that they are under servoed, but work them and they reward with powerful retardation for such a heavy car. You can easily coax the ABS into action in the wet such is the power of them. I doubt they would last after too many stops in succession, but then this is not a car for track days.

I do a lot of fast A-road and motorway driving and honestly I can't think of a car better for the job. It is quiet and reasonable, if not great on fuel. On the A Roads the Leon would have left it for dead (and anything else for that matter) but the cosseting ride and quality feel of the Audi means I rarely miss the fiery Spanish hatch.

To sum up I bought this car to replace my 1 year old Cupra R beacuse I wanted to run a cheaper car. I never expected it to be close to the R in any of the things cars do, but I remain impressed with the 80. I was lucky in that mine was a loved car having covered only 36k in 12 years with full Audi history and all Audi parts, but I hear that mileage is not a problem, the basic engine has less to go wrong and it's a doddle to work on with its engine being mounted longitudonally.

I would recommend one for cheap motoring with a bit of style.

This is a follow up report from the original author of this review.

Its been almost a year of trouble free motoring with around 15,000 miles covered and not a single problem. Not one.

The more I drive the car the more I like about it. It is very quiet and the handling is really very good when pushed hard in bends. In the dry it seems almost limitless grip is available, albeit with some body roll. Even mid corner bumps fail to upset it.

Fuel economy hovers around 30mpg from the injected 1984cc four pot, and performance, whilst not breathtaking is certainly adequate and at times surprising.

The main gripes I have uncovered in the last year are the small interior, and the auto gearbox.

I am 6 foot 3 tall and I can't sort the seat out to provide even an inch of headroom and allow me to reach the steering wheel. I have developed an "Audi 80 stoop" position to drive in. No way to solve this problem really so I live with it.

The auto gearbox has good and bad points. On the plus side if you are driving in a relaxed leisurely way the gearbox is wonderful. Changes are smooth between the 4 ratios and all is well. The main bad point is its dogged reluctance to change down and constant desire to change up. In a scenario where you accelerate up a hill then have to back off a bit for slower traffic / bend etc, the box will stay in low gear to climb the hill due to your throttle position being high for the speed, but as soon as you back off it jumps to top gear and suddenly you have nothing, no revs, high gear, then once the engine labours it kicks down and screams the engine back to life. The best method to cope with this is to manually change to the 3rd gear limited range to prevent it changing into an inappropriate gear.

This problem also manifests itself in 30mph limits. This speed seems to be right on the break point of a gear change so you lift off and you get 4th, slightest throttle, 3rd. Again choosing 3rd works well, just remember to put it back in drive afterwards so you don't hit a motorway and wonder why its doing 5,000 revs at 70mph stuck in 3rd.

Although it has only 4 speeds the torque convertor can lock itself solid in 3rd and 4th gear (3rd for overtaking and 4th for cruising). This makes a solid transmission link between the engine and roadwheels and helps economy by eradicating the losses associated with the fluid coupling.

Overall I love the car, the build quality puts everything else to shame and although dated now the car still looks great with classic Audi lines and close shut lines.

On a final note I found that higher tyre pressures suit this car well, improve the handling and economy. As the tyres are standard 195/65 R15 they have a big sidewall and this hurts steering accuracy as they flex a lot. By having the front up to 37psi and the rears at 35psi, I found the car to be much quieter and use a lot less fuel. As the overall rolling radius of the wheels is over 60cm the contact patch it quite long so the extra pressure does not reduce grip by much. The handling is also much crisper without resorting to big wheels and low profile tyres.

I recently bought myself the Audi 80 2.0E 8V, late 1992 model. I bought her with 149,000 miles on the clock and I can guarantee anyone that this mileage is not nearly as bad for an Audi of this pedigree as for MANY other cars.

I fell in love with this car the moment I sat down to turn the ignition... everything in this car works EXACTLY as it should, there is nothing too fancy, but, at the same time, nothing too dull/understated.

When you get into the car, you can feel the seat support you firmly enough to make you feel snug, but not to the extent that a racing seat would. When you close the door, it closes with a very reassuring 'thud', as if to let you know that you need not worry about safety, it has been checked. Luckily I am only 6 foot tall, so I manage to get enough head space. The steering wheel is at the correct height and distance, the handbrake is incorporated in such a manner that it is easily reachable to let down or pull up, but out of your way. The gearshift-lever is short enough to create a sporty-feeling shift, but long enough to prevent you from reaching for it.

If you turn the ignition, the dashboard lights up in a red-orange fluorescent, which is very visible, but soft on the eyes. All relevant warning lights indicate that they are functioning and if you start the engine, all is well. The fuel management-system automatically adjusts the idling revolutions and you can hear a very reassuring 'purr' from underneath the bonnet as the 2.0 8V engine springs into life. I am fortunate to have the 5 speed manual gearbox... just a personal preference, nothing wrong with the automatic as far as I know and there is no hang-ups with it whatsoever. As soon as you have engaged your prefered gear, albeit third, for pull-away, you only have to ease your foot off the clutch and as soon as it begins to bite, the fuel management compromises for any lack of acceleration to prevent stalling... BRILLIANT!!!

This is a big vehicle, and hence heavy, but I find that the 2.0 8V engine is sufficient for everyday driving and the bhp is absolutely there to optimise when needed, but, this car has not been designed or built with young boy-racers in mind, it has been designed to be classy enough to make you feel good about the vehicle you own, but toned down enough not to be a screamer when going down the road.

The compression ratio on this engine is 10.4:1, which is more than efficient for better than average everyday use.

I find the steering and handling to be superb, though I shall have to try the suggested 37psi front and 35psi rear pressure on the wheels. There is no overwhelming presence of either over- or under-steer, even though I have not taken the car around bends and corners like I used to with my Lancia Delta Integrale.

All-in-all, this is one car that I will NEVER be sorry for purchasing.