Have you ever sold a car and then regretted selling it? That’s definitely the case with a certain 1972 Audi 100 Coupé S that left my fleet a few months ago. I’d picked this Swedish V8 and quattro-swapped Frankenstein up during the pandemic, imported into the US and then spent a couple years coming to grips that it was beyond my skillset and/or budget to complete.
The car’s got a new home in SoCal now, a new owner with more mechanical and restoration acumen than me, and will probably end up living its best life as a result. Selling it was the right thing to do, but just like an unforgettable ex those feelings don’t just go away.
When I closed out the car in this site’s oooo Fleet series, I’d shared a lot of renderings and plans I’d had for the car. Various paths forward had come to mind over the years – from swapping in a high-revving 4.2 V8 to more Porsche inspired options given the car’s spiritual affinity the Coupé S-bodied Porsche 928 test mules.
This week, the Coupé S is top of mind again. Audi Tradition has released a new book focusing on the history of this model, with German language versions already available for Germany and the UK. It seemed an appropriate time to add both the C1 (1970-1973) and facelifted C1.5 (1974-1976) versions to the Audi Archives and so I found myself rendering the car. One thing led to another and I find myself reimagining that ’72 swapped Coupé S all over again.
In this case, I worked from an original rendering I’d done before buying the car. It lacks the front air dam and some of the modifications of the actual car or concepts I’d later render. The body is more true to form of the original car and the color is slightly changed to more of a Porsche signal green. It’s also got some rivet flares I’d been admiring at that time on some JDM Datsun Z car builds.
I kept the black steelies and the lower stance. To that I also added a stock interior – mine wasn’t – complete with rare (i.e. never produced) steering wheel from the original presentation car. I have images of that car handy so was able to train the AI to include it.
Under the hood, I also took a different departure from where my actual car was. The car I’d imported had an early 4.2 V8 engine from a European market S4 V8 (C4) that made all the right sounds but was also heavy and not all that fast.
Swapping that for something else was always the fantasy. And, while most of those alternatives were V8, there was part of my that considered a 3.6-liter VR6 from the Porsche Cayenne in order to keep that Porsche + Audi theme alive.
It’s remarkable how realistic the AI tools are now about placing an engine in an engine bay. Were it only that easy in real life.
Given renderings don’t cost me anything, I decided to try the latter. No doubt sourcing one would have been more cost-effective and relatively plentiful. It likely would have been lighter and provided better balance to the car for whatever that was worth. And, it would have had that so-called Wookie sound.
In the end. The car’s gone, so all I have to show for it are renderings. For now, here’s the first round. I’ll probably revisit some of the others at a future date.
PHOTO GALLERY
