Audi quattro Stars in Ashes to Ashes BBC TV Series

Today BBC will start presenting the TV series Ashes to Ashes, which will probably drive people’s attention towards the time travelling story but, for cars fans, attentions will surely be driven towards the Audi quattro that has been used to shoot it. Audi UK seized the opportunity to talk about the last right-hand-drive quattro ever made, and this is this news all about. This amazing car was never registered and is kept by Audi in a secret location. Since it is so precious (and to protect it of any sort of Smeagol/Gollum), the chamber is sealed and dehumidified.

“We would never be able to replace this car and its value to the brand is inestimable” said Jeremy Hicks, director of Audi UK. “Whenever we have exhibited it, we have received a succession of surprisingly high offers, but sadly this particular car, the quattro that started it all for the company in the early eighties, will never be for sale.” If it ever was, how much would it worth? Make your bets, gentleman!

The fact is the TV series will very likely to increase the interest for the “Uhr” quattro and make this classic car prices skyrocket. Considering Lancia has even revived the name Delta , and may be thinking of bringing back the Integrale, let’s hope Audi is also in a nostalgic mood and maybe willing to take the amazing quattro into life again, not only as a version of already existing cars.

Press Release

THE FAMOUS CAR AUDI IS KEEPING A BIG SECRET

Priceless original last-of-the-line Audi quattro is stored in secret UK location

Fame has returned to the sought-after original Audi quattro thanks to its starring role in the new BBC TV drama series ‘Ashes to Ashes’, set in 1980. The most priceless example of the legendary sports car that pioneered four-wheel-drive for production road cars is Audi UK’s own unregistered car with zero miles, and will never be put up for sale.

So rare is this car - the last right-hand-drive quattro sports car ever made - that Audi is forced to keep it in a secret location and stored in a sealed, dehumidified environment. Similar to the TV star example seen nationally each week from February 7th, the as- new, just as it left the line Audi-owned example even shares the same bright red paint colour.

An untouched and as new car could actually be worth an unlimited sum to an enthusiast Audi collector. “We would never be able to replace this car and its value to the brand is inestimable” said Jeremy Hicks Director of Audi UK. “Whenever we have exhibited it, we have received a succession of surprisingly high offers, but sadly this particular car, the quattro that started it all for the company in the early eighties, will never be for sale”.

In the final twist to the tale experts have spotted that the specimen of the model featured in the TV drama is actually a 1984 model year quattro identified by its single headlamp binnacles which , say the pundits, was not yet on sale in 1980. At that time the first quattro launch in March 1980 features twin headlamp lenses on each side.

“The unprecedented exposure from the TV show has thrown the spotlight back onto the original quattro for the first time since production ceased almost twenty years ago. We are seeing renewed interest in our classic cars and we fully expect demand for the first Audi quattro to rise dramatically this year,” concluded Mr Hicks.

Audi has just launched the latest manifestation of the quattro line with the 580PS RS 6 quattro Avant priced from £77,625 on the road. Capable of up to 174mph, the RS6 - the most powerful road Audi ever made - arrives with its first UK customers in May.

Intriguingly, Audi has always spelt "quattro" with a lower case Q.

Remembering Dyno Don

Dyno Don Nicholson, a legend of straight-line racing if ever one lived, departed this world two years ago last week. His inspiration, though, is very much alive. One of his many, many buds was Rich La Mont, the impresario of 422 Motorsports in Oaks, Pennsylvania, which runs a brace of both authentic and tribute Ford nostalgia drag cars (and one Mopar, a Jack Werst-recreation 1964 Hemi Belvedere). Before Dyno passed away, La Mont consulted with him about building a replica of the A/FX Mercury Comet that Dyno match-raced extensively in 1964.

Here’s what resulted. La Mont managed to locate a plain 1964 Comet hardtop at a local car auction in Bridgeport, Pennsylvania, outside Philadelphia, back around 1997. The buildup created a four-speed car, powered by a 454-cu.in. Ford based on a Shelby FE aluminum block, with Hilborn mechanical fuel injection. More vitals include 14.5:1 (yikes!) Ross forged pistons, Bill Miller connecting rods, a Crower non-twist forged crankshaft and a Jereco transmission.

La Mont’s never dynoed the engine, but based on its quarter-mile performance - a best of 8.81 at 149 and change, in the hands of resident 422 flogger Fred Henderson - La Mont calculates the gasoline-burning race engine is consistently making 930hp. We photographed the car at 422’s display during the recent Motorsports 2008 show in Atlantic City, including its rear deck, which you can see was John Hancocked by a lot of 1960s Super Stock and F/X luminaries. You can learn more about these (mostly) Ford fanatics by visiting www.422motorsports.com.

Related entries:

GM Heritage Center, the displays

a visit to the GM Heritage Center, concepts and show cars

A significant portion of the GM Heritage Center’s display floor consists of various prototype, concept and show cars from throughout the years, including the multihued Corvette concepts above (AeroVette, front; Corvette TigerShark and Corvette Indy, center; one of the CERVs, rear). Of course I couldn’t ignore them while roaming the display.

The Le Sabre. If you couldn’t tell, we’re big fans of the Le Sabre around these parts. I’d seen it in person before at the Glenmoor Gathering a few years back, but it’s always a thrill to see it before you.

Two of the three Firebird turbine cars still makes for an impressive display.

On the left, the Cadillac Imaj; on the right, the EldoRODo.

The Astro II…

…and the Astro III, still on the original display stand

Buick’s Blackhawk, a modern interpretation of the Y-Job from several years ago.

Cadillac’s 1953 Le Mans two-seat roadster concept

Pontiac’s third generation of the Banshee concept. Behind it, the 1977 Type K Trans Am.

The two Corvair Monza concepts, the GT on the left and the SS on the right. They’re much smaller in person than in any photographs I’ve seen before.

And in the lobby they had this 1958 Corvette that Harley Earl let a staff of female designers loose on. They came up with the custom color, along with a host of minor touches intended to make the Corvette more female-friendly.


Source:blog.hemmings

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GM Heritage Center, the displays

In the April issue of Hemmings Classic Car, the second issue of our two-part celebration of GM’s centennial, you’ll find a pair of articles about the GM Heritage Center in Sterling Heights, Michigan: one profiling Greg Wallace, the director of the center, and another sampling the cars in the collection.

Unfortunately, the GM Heritage Center is not a museum and not open to the general public, so unless you’re among the fortunate few to get a chance to tour it, consider this your best glimpse into the collection.

Of course, we couldn’t show nearly all of the photographs I took the day I visited the Heritage Center, and last-minute changes in the page count for the issue forced us to cut a few pages from both stories. But fortunately, we have the blog.



So over the next several days, I’ll include as many of these photos as possible before my editors tell me to get back to working on other stories. Dialup users beware!

























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GM Heritage Center, the displays

Of the nearly 1,000 cars, trucks and concepts in the GM Heritage Center collection, about 180 to 200 are on display at any one time. And each one is worth plenty of time to pore over. Thus, I shot way too many photos. Check out part 1 of the visit if you missed it.














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