Should I buy an Audi 200?

I am not familiar with Audi's and I stumbled on this car by an
individual who doesn't have the space for it anymore.

Here's the problem: Although extremely cheap, the car has been sitting
for 4 years. He thought it might be a problem with the ECU but when I
put a new ECU in (I bought same model # on ebay) it would not crank
over. You could here it trying but the motor just wouldn't turn.

I guess the question I'm asking is; would this car be worth the money
necessary to fix it not knowing what the problem is?

Any help from you Audi enthusiasts would be extremely helpful!

The 200 is from the T44 series which was produced until '91. It is a very good
car if you are god to it. It will have its share of mechanical issues but they
are all solvable given time, DIY effort and an investment in parts.

The 200 is often thought of as a strong performing touring sedan with very
impressive performance and handling but they require their share of TLC. They
have a lot of tuning and performance potential.

If this appeals to you and you understand that it is not a reliable (and boring)
Honda then go for it.

Is it worth it? Depends on your goal. The I5 engines will run to over 300K
easily and the T44 bodies hold up very well. Once the technical issues are
sorted out they will run for a long time and be a very enjoyable ride.

There are a lot of very knowledgeable people in the T44 AudiWorld forum. They
are very helpful and dedicated to the breed.

http://forums.audiworld.com/v8/

Your starting problem is not clear to me. Are you saying that the starter motor
is not turning the engine over or that the engine it turning over but not starting?

Be sure to research Audi problems before throwing parts at them. The ECU in the
T44s are bullet-proof. Your problem is something else.

TonyJ
formerly four T44s '84 - '91

wrote:

> I am not familiar with Audi's and I stumbled on this car by an
> individual who doesn't have the space for it anymore.
>
> Here's the problem: Although extremely cheap, the car has been sitting
> for 4 years. He thought it might be a problem with the ECU but when I
> put a new ECU in (I bought same model # on ebay) it would not crank
> over. You could here it trying but the motor just wouldn't turn.
>
> I guess the question I'm asking is; would this car be worth the money
> necessary to fix it not knowing what the problem is?
>
> Any help from you Audi enthusiasts would be extremely helpful!
>

I apologize for not making the starting issue very clear. When I
plugged in the new ECU and hooked up jumper cables to the battery I got
the standard ...rrrr.rrrr.rrr (excuse the lack of better words) but the
engine never turned over. I

Hmmmm. So I will take that to mean that the starter engages and the engine is
'turning over' but not starting.

There are a number of things that could cause this but you will need
information, tools and a willingness to DIY to discover the problem.

Things to consider:
- Spark Pull a plug to see if it is firing.
- Fuel. When the plug it out look to see if it is wet.
- Compression - Check to be sure the timing belt is not broken.

Reasons for non- start (a partial list)
- Bad fuel relay or fuel pump
- clogged fuel filter
- Air plate in not lifting (above the air filter)
- failed injectors
- Crank position sensor is bad (on drivers side of bell housing
- bad hall effect module in distributor
- bad or weak ignition coil
- failed ignition switch
- Vacuum leaks are a common cause of non-start

If you get past the non-start condition the VERY first thing you will need to do
is to change the Timing belt, water pump, tensioner pulley and front crank seal.
This is sort of a right-of-passage for the turbo T44s. Break a belt you trash
the engine. Change every 80K or five years whichever comes first.

If you are not willing to do this work and climb the learning curve you will not
be able to maintain this car and I would strongly suggest to consider a nice
little Honda Accord.

Tony

jamie wrote:
> I apologize for not making the starting issue very clear. When I
> plugged in the new ECU and hooked up jumper cables to the battery I got
> the standard ...rrrr.rrrr.rrr (excuse the lack of better words) but the
> engine never turned over. I
>

> wrote in message
oups.com...
>I am not familiar with Audi's and I stumbled on this car by an
> individual who doesn't have the space for it anymore.
>
> Here's the problem: Although extremely cheap, the car has been sitting
> for 4 years. He thought it might be a problem with the ECU but when I
> put a new ECU in (I bought same model # on ebay) it would not crank
> over. You could here it trying but the motor just wouldn't turn.
>
> I guess the question I'm asking is; would this car be worth the money
> necessary to fix it not knowing what the problem is?
>
> Any help from you Audi enthusiasts would be extremely helpful!
>

Are you UK or US based?

If the engine is turning over, it maybe just something as simple as the
wrong ECU. If the previous owner suspected it, he may have tried with a
different 200 ECU, but not all 200 ECUs are the same. It depends on which
engine is fitted. Some of the UK models had engines not available in the US
and vice versa.

If it isn't turning over but the starter is whirring, then either the
starter motor isn't engaging, or there are some teeth missing on the
flywheel.

I have a site which covers the UK models (still under development) but if I
can help in anyway please get in touch through the site at
www.audi200.org.uk