Baseball may be the great American pastime, but as exemplified by today’s Nice Price or Crack Pipe TT, it was Germany that extended the sport’s aesthetic to the automotive world. Let’s see if this Quattro convertible’s price proves to be a home run.
The Ephesian philosopher Heraclitus is quoted as saying that “the only constant in life is change.” He was also known as the “weeping philosopher” due to his inability to change his long-lingering depression.
Much has changed since Heraclitus’ days, some for the better and some for the worse. All of it, however, has proved him right. Ford has long tried to keep change at bay when it comes to their premier pony car, the Mustang. That doesn’t mean the line has been static—this isn’t Morgan we’re talking about—but even the minor changes along the way haven’t always been successful.
Case in point, yesterday we looked at a 1977 Mustang II coupé, a representative of the model’s first major overhaul, and one that is to this day considered less than successful and a bit of the red-headed stepchild of the Mustang line. Nice as it was, not even an amazingly orange and plaid interior could muster much enthusiasm for the car’s $18,700 price. That proved to be yet another ignominy for the Mustang II as it fell in a massive 90 percent Crack Pipe loss.
The Los Angeles Auto Show opens this week, and Ford has taken that opportunity to debut a new all-electric Mustang. Not to be left out, Audi too has an EV on tap for debut at the show. VAG’s four-ring brand had been a bit slow in embracing hybrids and electric cars but seems to be making up for lost time. Of course, there is only so much room in both dealers’ lots and buyers’ hearts and so some of the marque’s ICE-powered lineup will need to be culled to make room for the new whips. One such victim is the TT which is being discontinued, supposedly in favor of an electric replacement.
That’s okay of course, there’s that constant change to be considered after all. Plus there are plenty of older TTs on the market for us to enjoy, and this 2004 TT Quattro convertible looks like to be one of the more interesting examples.
This 132,000-mile drop-top comes with a clean title and in Dolomite Gray Pearl Effect over a wonderful baseball mitt leather interior. Below all that it sports polished five-spoke alloy wheels. Both bodywork and interior look to be in fine fettle, with no issue with the glass or trim either.
A typical aging issue on the first-generation TT is clouding of the headlamp covers. These follow the radius of the nose and have a large surface that is particularly prone to weathering. The lenses here look almost as-new.
The upholstery is also laudably intact. The oversized leather stitching is a great aesthetic and the overall color works well with the grey exterior. The top and tonneau are said to be in great shape as well, but we don’t get to see them.
While the AWD TT was branded as a Quattro, the drivetrain here is more closely associated with Volkswagen’s Syncro with a transverse engine and manual transmission driving all four wheels through a Haldex center diff. That engine is a five-valve edition of the VAG 1.8-litre turbo four and here that should be good for 225 horsepower and 206 lb-ft of torque. The ad doesn’t note any issue at all with those mechanicals.
It does claim the car to be “well cared for” and “more than fun to drive.” Those are endorsements that are both valuable and practical towards our ends, seeing as we now need to decide the fate of this Audi and its $6,900 price. What do you think, could this tidy TT be worth that $6,900 asking? Or, unlike the interior, does that price not leave you in stitches?
You decide!
Omaha, NE Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to Patrick J. Brusnahan for the hookup!
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