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I recently sold my 1995 yellow A4 coupe, after spending a few months bringing her back from near death (documented in another thread). She now has a new home, and I just found her replacement. As the title suggests, it's a black 95 coupe with the ZF manual transmission. The car has been well cared for, with only a few modifications. It has stainless steel long tube headers, nicely installed with the air injection tubes plumbed correctly. It has mini cats, a stock resonator, and muffler eliminators. The exhaust note is wonderful, but I'm still on the fence as to whether or not I want to quiet it down a bit. The wheels are chrome ZR-1 replicas (not sure what brand, etc). Tires are Nitto 555, 285-40-17 rear and 255-45-17 front, 90% tread left. Brakes are in very good condition. The PO bought new Bilstein shocks, a new rear mono spring, and a few other new pieces. It has a triple claw style intake with K&N filters. I also got the two volume service manuals in pristine condition. The A/C blows cold, and all the interior controls seem to work fine. It has the Bose Gold stereo with a hard-wired Bluetooth adapter, which works well. The PO also installed a lockout switch for the antenna, so you don't have to wear it out when you're using the Bluetooth. It has the fiberglass top (headliner sagging, but easily repairable) as well as the smoke tinted Targa (although the lens needs to be bonded back onto the frame). The weatherstripping is good, not great, but should suffice for my intended use (for now at least). I'm sure I'll be seeking advice from you guys, as I learn more about my new ride.
All in all, I'm thrilled with the car and looking forward to sorting out some minor issues and driving it regularly. Take a look at the pictures and let me know what you think.
Thanks guys for all the kind words! One of the first issues I need to tackle is an oil leak. It's not severe, but it's finding its way to the exhaust somewhere, and giving off an odor, mostly after I've 'exercised' it a bit... I haven't had the time to put it up in the air yet to search for the source, but I suspect it is the China Wall syndrome. If anyone has any tips on where else to look for possible sources, let me know. I'm also planning to repair the headliner soon, as it is driving me nuts brushing the top of my head while I'm driving. I watched a YouTube on repairing it, and it seems pretty straightforward. I'm sure I'll have a few more questions as I sort this thing out.
Thanks guys for all the kind words! One of the first issues I need to tackle is an oil leak. It's not severe, but it's finding its way to the exhaust somewhere, and giving off an odor, mostly after I've 'exercised' it a bit... I haven't had the time to put it up in the air yet to search for the source, but I suspect it is the China Wall syndrome. If anyone has any tips on where else to look for possible sources, let me know. I'm also planning to repair the headliner soon, as it is driving me nuts brushing the top of my head while I'm driving. I watched a YouTube on repairing it, and it seems pretty straightforward. I'm sure I'll have a few more questions as I sort this thing out.
Regards,
John
I recently had to fix a leak at the oil filter adaptor, o-ring and gasket.
Easy fix.
It looks like your triple claw intake is one of the early ones before SLP bought them. The early ones were "K&N triple" intakes that were gloss painted (SLP uses a semi gloss) and the filters are actually K&N (SLP uses another brand). I have one just like it on my '95 6M too. My air filters were bent/dented like yours. If you want to spend a few evenings this winter they can be straightened by hand. I spent a few hours on each one and now they look straight and like new.
I had muffler eliminators on my '94 6M and like you, I had concerns about it being too loud. The first time I drove it I thought it was horrible because it was just too loud and I expected it was the first change I would make to replace them. However, I drove it daily 100 miles per day commute. Over time, I got used to it and I also found that I could modulate the volume with the throttle to keep it quieter at times and louder when you push on it. It has a great sound at idle and screams when you load it. After about 45k miles I sold the car and ever since I miss that sound. Over time, I got to really like it. In many ways I like it more than the Corsa or Borla catbacks I have now. So before you give up on it you might drive it a while and see if you get to like it.
It looks like your triple claw intake is one of the early ones before SLP bought them. The early ones were "K&N triple" intakes that were gloss painted (SLP uses a semi gloss) and the filters are actually K&N (SLP uses another brand). I have one just like it on my '95 6M too. My air filters were bent/dented like yours. If you want to spend a few evenings this winter they can be straightened by hand. I spent a few hours on each one and now they look straight and like new.
I had muffler eliminators on my '94 6M and like you, I had concerns about it being too loud. The first time I drove it I thought it was horrible because it was just too loud and I expected it was the first change I would make to replace them. However, I drove it daily 100 miles per day commute. Over time, I got used to it and I also found that I could modulate the volume with the throttle to keep it quieter at times and louder when you push on it. It has a great sound at idle and screams when you load it. After about 45k miles I sold the car and ever since I miss that sound. Over time, I got to really like it. In many ways I like it more than the Corsa or Borla catbacks I have now. So before you give up on it you might drive it a while and see if you get to like it.
Looks like a good one. Have fun!
Thanks for the kind words. I did wonder if the air cleaners could be straightened at all. I'm sure I will pull them off this winter and take a stab at it. He gave me the K&N maintenance kit as well. I'm not sure how often I need to clean/re-oil them. I don't drive in dusty conditions. Your thoughts? I know exactly what you mean about the exhaust. I LOVE the sound it makes under load (better than any stereo) and I'm really afraid that if I tack on any type of muffler I'll be sorry I did. The rear pipes are actually welded on, not clamped on muffler deletes, so I'd have to chop it up to add mufflers. Since I don't daily drive it, I'm leaning towards keeping it as is, at least for now. Oh, I am definitely having fun!!
Well today I fixed the sagging headliner. I followed the YouTube video from Ozzstar. It was pretty straightforward. I also treated the weatherstripping with 303. It seemed to work pretty well. Now I'll just have to wait and see if the repair holds on the headliner.
Regards,
John
Original headliner material re-glued
Industrial Velcro used to reattach it to the roof panel
Looks good. I just repaired my headliner too .no more sagging .took about an hour .
I've replaced them on 3 C4s; glued the headliners to the original foam shell.
NOTE: For anyone doing a headliner for the first time, KNOW THAT 3M SELLS 2 TYPES OF SPRAY ADHESIVE: ONE SPECIFICALLY SAYS NOT FOR HEADLINERS. Get the one that says specifically that it is suitable for headliners.
And, one other note: Usually, contact cement instructions say to apply to both surfaces and let dry to the point of being tacky. Well, the spray-on adhesives dry very quickly - especially in hot weather and/or exposed to sunlight at the same time. If it gets too dry, bonding will not be "as advertised": the liner will come down in a year or so. But! By spraying a 3rd coat of adhesive to one of the two surfaces and then pressing the two sides together WHILE the new layer is WET, the fresh layer will soften the first two layers of adhesive and even allow you to adjust the fit (of the headliner) if necessary. Plus, you won't be grinding your teeth over the headliner sagging again after a year or two. Been there...DONE THAT!
Good points, Paul. I did use the 3M adhesive made for headliners. I struggled with the decision of spraying both the board and the headliner, and decided to just spray the board. The headliner material was extremely thin and lightweight. You could actually see through it when you held it up to the light. I decided that if I sprayed the material itself, it would likely bleed through and look like crap. So, I sprayed several coats on the board and then attached the material just after the adhesive got tacky. It seems to be holding great right now, but if it falls down soon, I'll probably just get some new headliner material from the fabric store and try it again with adhesive on both surfaces. Thanks for the info.
I've decided that instead of posting updates to my car in the "What did you do to your C4 today?" thread, I would try to consolidate them in this thread, so that other people, as well as myself, can track my progress in one place. To that end, I'm going to place some links to recent updates I put in other threads, and then try to keep this thread more current with repairs and upgrades that might be of general interest. So, here is a list of links related to my car that I've posted in various Forums since I last updated this thread. If you decide to plow through these links, and get the feeling that you've read this stuff before, you probably have... Here goes, in chronological order:
07-17-2018, 12:15 PM
My 1995 Black M6 Coupe
Love your new ride, you got the right color this time.
I've replaced them on 3 C4s; glued the headliners to the original foam shell.
But! By spraying a 3rd coat of adhesive to one of the two surfaces and then pressing the two sides together WHILE the new layer is WET, the fresh layer will soften the first two layers of adhesive and even allow you to adjust the fit (of the headliner) if necessary. Plus, you won't be grinding your teeth over the headliner sagging again after a year or two. Been there...DONE THAT!