1986 Audi 5000 CS Quattro | Retro Review

[@tresgriffin8242]

1986 was an interesting year for the Audi 5000. From being prominently featured in the "beat the parents home" scene from "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" to that "60 Minutes" piece that almost ruined the brand's reputation in the U.S. that took years for them to to recover from.

[@HerrUns]

I was just a kid then, but very enthusiastic about cars. That 60 Minutes piece was the last I ever watched of that show. I may have been a bit of an Audi fan.

[@christopherconard2831]

The sudden acceleration thing eventually came down to "Americans have big feet and wear even bigger shoes." The driver side footwell was a bit narrower than expected, but not by much. People took a while to get used to it. I have a hard time wearing boots in my Corolla for the same reason. My left foot tends to hit the brake when I'm pushing the clutch. Then there was the problem, less serious though, of convincing the engineers over at Mercedes that Americans also drink coffee in their cars. It took another decade before they discovered cup holders.

[@mediocreman2]

You forgot to mention that it was a hit piece, staged by 60 Minutes. They rigged the car to fail. There's even speculation that Mercedes had a connection to 60 Minutes.

[@hellkitty1014]

60 Minutes singlehandedly nearly killed Audi in the States. The car was seen in one of the biggest movies of the year only to be dragged by 60 Minutes creating hysteria. That and the Chevy Corvair caught more hell than Christine the Chrysler could ever unleash!😂

[@hellkitty1014]

​@@mediocreman2I wouldn't have put it past MBUSA at the time. Audi because a very serious player and of course started siphoning off MB's marketshare, in addition to MB having to fight off a rapidly growing BMW.

[@palebeachbum]

I really love this era of Audi. Handsome, solid cars.

[@fernandorocha-dx1wv]

Audi 1985-1988 is beautiful and solid cars. Comfortable and great space interiors

[@hitchedtohorsepower]

My dad bought a 87 model the week before I turn 4. Good and bad news was it didn't have any resale value after the "sudden acceleration" even though being a stick it didn't have any claims against it so I got it when I turned 16. That Quattro system was amazing! My dad was out in the DC/Baltimore blizzard of 93 when his best friend in his new Suburban couldn't get out of his driveway! By the time I got it we lived in Nevada near Lake Tahoe and it was a ton of fun on the mountain roads. I put the ski pass through bag to good use quite a bit!!

[@stevennevins6643]

I bought a low mileage 1984 5000s in 1987 for $6,000. Thank you 60 minutes. It was a great car.

[@AndyMatrix]

wish we had more comments like that on retro review

[@Kantoh22]

My neighbor down the street, has 2 of these in MINT condition. He LOVES these cars. They are his only 2 vehicles. One for going out, and one he keeps under a cover most of the time. The daily is STILL mint.

[@sayimjustadreamer]

Exceptionally advanced technology and styling for 1986!

[@landonbenford8369]

Yeah. Heated seats?? Leave it up to the Germans to make it available to America before the Big Four did!

[@markw208]

Nice review. I had a 1988 5000 CS Turbo Quattro in pearl white, with matching 5 spoke wheels. It was a wonderful car that surprised everyone who rode in it. In great shape with over 130,000 miles on it and then tropical storm Allison parked over Houston and flooded the city and my car. 😢

[@VideoAmericanStyle]

Handsome cars. You very rarely see these around the US anymore, though.

[@TS-ef2gv]

I agree. My '86 CST was a beautiful car, but the '80s were 35 - 45 years ago. I can't remember the last time I've seen ANY '80s vehicle on the road, not just a 40 year old Audi. Only slightly less rare on the roads are vehicles from the '90s. I see a '90s vehicle in use on occasion, but not often, and I live in The Land That Automotive Time Forgot (aka the SW US).

[@rafapenson]

​@@TS-ef2gvare you live at Detroit?

[@TrailBlazerSS502]

Audi’s Quattro AWD is forever the hallmark of the brand.

[@cardo1111]

Was the Honda Accord of upper middle-class suburbia throughout the 80's.

[@hellkitty1014]

This car and Volvo dominated our sububuran-Boston enclaves.

[@DQSpider]

It's amazing to see how much anti-lock has improved since the early days

[@scottyg7284]

Unless you are on snow, hence the switch, and you wouldn’t use the diff locks on tarmac, even if it was wet.

[@davidaubin3902]

4:53 John: THAT IS IF DON’T COUNT THE $30,000 PRICE! LOL

[@DQSpider]

right? I wish we could touch anything luxury for 30k these days

[@VideoAmericanStyle]

@@DQSpider$30k in the mid-80s was very expensive. Basically $80-90k today.

[@Guzzzr]

my dad had one of these. i was 16 at the time and loved driving this thing espcially during the PA winters.

[@Steve-gc5nt]

Cars were so much more interesting back then.

[@2.3_44XD--]

I worked some years later in VW aluminum factory. The same pieces for all cars with the difference of the piece quality. If the piece had some micro mistakes it went to Seat or Skoda with almost no Microproblems to VW and the immaculate Aluminium piece went to the Audi

[@mediocreman2]

The share of components between VW and Audi during this time and even the '90s was basically non existent.

[@dennishughes721]

I thought this was the ultimate luxury sport sedan.

[@tonychavez2083]

2.2L iron block 5 cylinders were bulletproof, had a few in my youth.

[@hellkitty1014]

Yup, literally indestructible.

[@ENDTIMEsVideoLibrary]

I had a Non-Quattro 2 door Coupe for a while. It was the one that looks like a Hatchback but isn't. Beautiful car and very elegant, but I've always wanted a 5000..

[@bwest6275]

So ahead of its time. Beautiful vehicles from Audi.

[@kevinbarry71]

As a teenager I always wanted the wagon version of this car, in pearl white. And, if only one front wheel has traction, it's not going anywhere

[@thejake8099]

it has lockers...and that ski jump commercial, omg. Yes

[@nicholase.9195]

Tell your one wheel has traction, not going anywhere comment to somebody who owns a Jeep and see if they agree with you.

[@kevinbarry71]

@@nicholase.9195 I never ask anybody if they agree with facts

[@kevinbarry71]

@@thejake8099 the front axle does not, as was clearly stated. Try to pay attention

[@nicholase.9195]

@@kevinbarry71 Facts or “I did my own research“ facts?

[@nicholase.9195]

No one will ever know just how well this car would have competed with BMW and Mercedes during the late 80s because of the un believably irresponsible 60 Minutes piece. I had one of the very first A4’s when they came to America that I bought in Carlsbad, California. What an unbelievably amazing car that was. Audi really struggled in America for the next decade but because of their popularity in the rest of the world it didn’t stop them from innovating, designing, and manufacturing beautiful if somewhat dodgy cars. Regardless, I still love them and own an A5 today.

[@markw208]

In 1991 the local Audi/Porsche dealer told me they sold only 6 cars the previous year

[@mediocreman2]

It was more than irresponsible. They intentionally rigged the vehicle to fail. Audi should have sued 60 Minutes. They lost billions in sales over the next 15 to 20 years probably.

[@nicholase.9195]

@@mediocreman2 I completely agree.

[@nicholase.9195]

@@markw208 Oh my God. Unfortunately, I believe it.

[@jjojo2004]

$30K USD in 1985 is $89160.00 in 2024. Nothing has changed in the pricing of premium German cars! 😎😎

[@Fony_turgeson]

i know..i love hw everyone says car makers are so expensive now....they have way more costs and much more features for pretty much the same price...but people are stuck on the "old days" when 5$ was actually something

[@allentoyokawa9068]

and they still make junk

[@u2canbfmj]

I'll go with something different. At the time of airing the gold price was ~ $350/oz. So to buy the car in gold terms it took 85.71 Oz. If you convert to todays price of gold of ~$2,294. The effective price of the car in gold terms is $196,628. Using your dollar figure of $89,160, now its only 38.86 Oz of Gold.

[@am74343]

I remember how big a scandal the "unintended acceleration" snafu was back then... Everybody was like, "OMG! I just turned the key and all of a sudden I was crashing through my garage wall!"

[@mediocreman2]

Only after 60 Minutes ran their staged hit piece. Before that, it wasn't known really by anybody.

[@ke228]

It would have been awesome to be in 1983 when this gen came out, seeing this car on the road amongst LTDs, Citations, etc.

[@Earcandy73]

That car was beautiful and ahead of its time. Considering what was being churned out by the big three, it is plain to see that innovation is only limited by complacency.

[@kamikazekrew3873]

This was my very first car. I was given a 4 year old one from my Grandfather when I turned 16, as the banker told him that I didn't need a 1986.5 Toyota Supra (Jerk!), so he gave me his 4 year old Audi, as he had another car. However, 16 year old me could not afford the upkeep on it, so my mom and stepfather took it over and I was then given a Chevy Corsica :/ ..until college and I got a Nissan 240SX SE Fastback, that I actually helped to buy this time around. ☺

[@TS-ef2gv]

Yeah, not the ideal car for a 16 year old. I was in my 30s and making good money when I owned my '86 CS Turbo (under warranty when I bought it), and it required a lot of attention on my part. All '80s vehicles were much higher maintenance than now, but high dollar, electrical and tech-heavy premium cars like an Audi even more so. They tended to be more delicate and finicky than a typical, more common vehicle with far less tech and fewer gadgets. There were very little to no aftermarket parts and fewer shops that could/would work on them, and they had more work that they could handle. "Here's the price and our schedule, take it or leave it." As one shop told me back then in response to a repair estimate shock, "Audi assumes that if you can afford to buy an Audi, you can afford to have it worked on." 😄 My Jag and Caddy in that era were the same way, which is why even though I now have far more disposable income than back then, because I want to keep having plenty of disposable income I would no longer own a high dollar, out of warranty vehicle, or at least one that I was not willing and able to do my own work.

[@donaldwilson2620]

Other than the famous red Ferrari 308 GTS, this generation Audi 5000 was also used quite often in Magnum P.I. The Audi was mostly driven by Higgins.

[@cadillacdevile]

I always felt this was Toyota’s true case study for Lexus. Sure they studied the likes of MB/BMW and Cadillac/Lincoln but it was more in line with the ahead of its time controversial Audi’s of the time.

[@bmstylee]

No discussion about the gauges. Specifically the oil and volt gauges. Definitely disappointed.

[@MyGuyJustinH]

I'm really surprised that John didn't talk about the gauges. He usually says if a car doesn't have oil or volt gauges.

[@landonbenford8369]

I don't care what anyone says. The Renault Premier, which then became the 1988 Eagle Premier after Chrysler bought AMC from struggling Renault, is an almost dead-ringer to this BEAUTIFUL Audi. Especially the ES Limited trim!! Did the French try to copy the Germans??!?🧐

[@eddiejones856]

When I was stationed in Germany 1987-90 Audi 5000 and Saab 900 was the cars of choice for Army Officers and Senior NCO’s in Germany. I Knew a few who purchased Audi 5000.

[@travelmates1]

Diff-locks aren't supposed to be used on high traction surfaces, and that includes wet tarmac! One should only use diff-locks in snow, mud, wet grass, sand, etc, otherwise it'll damage the drive-line.

[@jenny80myles]

I still really like the look of this. :)

[@thejake8099]

I miss my 5000 csq, but that plastic radiator omg...just couldn't handle Houston heat. 😢

[@daviddaniel387]

Ferris beulers old mans car

[@82_KID]

Looks like an Audi A8 from the 80s.

[@johninama585]

I guess I was a weird kid. I wanted one of these really badly! I even got an Audi keychain for my house keys. One interesting thing about this era of Audis is that the automatic climate control is from GM/Delco. My grandfather's Cadillac had the same one!

[@TS-ef2gv]

In 1988, I bought an '86 5000CS Turbo (non Quattro) almost identical to the car in the test, bright red with black leather but auto with IMO better looking Audi factory wheels. It had every option it could have including heated seats. It belonged to one of the managers of the local Porsche-Audi dealership, had only 15k miles, and was still under the new car warranty. Because of the idiotic "sudden acceleration" scare, which I didn't believe for a minute and which by then had been thoroughly debunked as impossible in testing by car enthusiast magazines, I got it for half its new price. It was an amazing bit of mid '80s auto tech, a very cutting edge car for its time. However, like '80s cars in general, especially those with a lot of tech, doubly so for almost over-engineered German cars, it tended to have some issues and I was glad it was still under warranty. The window switches tended to be very fragile, the electric antenna stopped working a couple of times and had to be replaced (all under warranty). However, the only serious issue was the torque converter went out at around 20k, requiring a tow to the dealership. To the dealership's credit, they said they didn't feel good about replacing just the torque converter because its failure might have put debris into the transmission fluid. They could have just changed the transmission fluid, buttoned it up, given it back to me, and I would have been none the wiser, but they also replaced the transmission, all under warranty. They actually apologized to me for making that decision because it meant an extra two days in the shop vs. what they had promised (I think it was a total of four days). A new transmission under warranty? No apology was necessary. In general, going to that P-A dealership was always a premium car experience. I kept it until '92 and around 72k miles. It still looked and drove like new, but being an out of warranty, high dollar '80s turbo car was starting to worry me, and although it had never had a serious issue while out of warranty, I thought I'd better get out while the getting was good. When I put it up for sale, the first person who looked at it bought it. Beautiful car, and one of my favorites of the 40+ I've owned over the years.

[@82_KID]

Ever see the movie E.T.?

[@adamn7516]

That was the previous generation 5000 in the film.

[@ThomasSchick]

…84K in today’s money

[@tipsovr2626]

My parents had one of these cars. We thought it was so fast back then. Now an F350 beats it 0-60.

[@PeterCruze-f1u]

Nice 👌 it comes with a black body bag for the mafia customer's, Ah what a year to by alive the 80's.

[@Porsche996driver]

Sometimes it seemed like ol’ Johnny was high lol, like his eyes in that closing ha.

[@2023HondaAccordEX]

Cool car

[@BReal-10EC]

Audi was really on a good run in the US market before the unintended acceleration bullsh!t that killed the 5000 name.

[@joebrito2066]

I remember when Audi was just an upscale VW. I didn’t have the prestige of Mercedes or BMW.

[@peter455sd]

Audi invented the self-driving car in the same year

[@mumwifeteacher]

Audi is literally the Volvo of German luxury cars. Weird/smart tech/ less glitzy and geared to the thinking man.

[@GeeEm1313]

Beautiful then, beautiful now

[@runoflife87]

Great car for sure, just not for "average Joe".

[@topawk2]

Jeez…what was the test track! I notice it’s a highway …guessing on one of the 95’s before it was opened up!

[@larrylaffer3246]

Now $30K would seem like a downright bargain for a car with that many features.

[@palebeachbum]

It was an expensive car in its day. That price is about $86k in 2024 money. $30k is basically a fully-loaded economy car nowadays.

[@GeeEm1313]

Also, it amuses me that the street sign reads SR-795 instead of I-795.

[@davidbaron6647]

nice oldie

[@joeseeking3572]

We had 2 of them. The original version in silver with black leather and a later in bronzit with Alcantara. Impressive interior quality, annoying non-adjustable steering wheel position. The first one would bog a lot from a standing start - it never felt really quick. Really, neither did the second one but it felt a tick more responsive and I enjoyed driving that more. Neither nearly as entertaining to drive as the 535i which remained in the family. Not as luxurious to be sure, but boy, that could coax a smile (and, depending on your competence, some terror as well)

[@m00nkinftw]

No suprise how germany was able to take over such a big chunk of the market. GM was shitting out cars that were slapped together with awful fit & finish, that nowhere near as good as what the germans were making

[@braddietzmusic2429]

I’d be ok with cars that are expensive to own and in the long term ownership em were expensive to repair *IF* those vehicles were reliable enough and of high quality enough to justify and were commensurate with that price tag. But that’s not the way it usually works. The Corolla that is 1/4 the price of some luxury cars turns out to be 2, 3, 4 times more reliable and at 1/4 the repair cost of those luxury brands. These Audis were beautiful cars. I hope they were as reliable for their owners as their premium price tags would seem to have suggested. I always wanted a 5000 Turbo wagon with a MANUAL. Every once in a while I’ll look for one. I find automatic versions. I’m not sure a manual version was ever imported to the US.

[@1vw4me]

Ferris Bueller's father's car. Excellent!

[@TJY2K]

I still kick myself to this day for not being able to save enough on time to buy one offered to me for 1000 dollars. The guy was moving across the country and i was making $15/hr. It was a white pearl color with the quattro system and a manual with red interior. 😭😭

[@2259r3z]

Having experienced it with several "premium" brand cars over the years, I can attest to the truth of the old saying "There's nothing more expensive than a cheap _______". Fill in the blank with Audi, BMW, M-B, Jag, whatever. The purchase price is the least expensive thing about buying one of those brands used and out of warranty. Nothing is cheap on them, there are very few aftermarket parts, and it can be difficult to find anyone who's qualified to work on them and does an honest and dependably good job. The few shops which meet that standard tend to stay so busy that they don't need your business, and their service price quotes reflect that. At $15 an hour you probably dodged a bullet. I made a lot more than that when I had my new Audi turbo, and all I can say is thank goodness it was under warranty for most of the time I owned it, and that it wasn't my only vehicle. Amazing car and still one of my favorites of the many I've owned, but a bit fragile and finicky even when new.

[@bobbydavenport8941]

I wonder if this car is any good in ice and snow with its all wheel drive system?!

[@thahbx]

I wish EU spec 100/200's would be equipped that high

[@adrianvallejo8093]

Unintended acceleration! 2 Chainz approves.

[@maddesi2709]

Center and rear diff locks 😮

[@disan9135]

It reminds me of the movie ET.

[@zillsburyy1]

more reliable than mercedes, porsche and bmw just ask ferris's dad

[@gunsandcars3648]

its slow and poorly built, but i giggle like a little kid every time I drove one, its just fun, would buy a nice one if they are still out there.

[@gunsandcars3648]

@MachtNixPasstSo yes they are audis, so yes poorly built, I owned a few anyway, just have to fix and drive them.

[@kamrankhan-lj1ng]

German cars had much better build quality than the domestic (American) products of those times. Almost as well built as the contemporary Japanese cars. Reliability is altogether a different matter however.

[@Pappy63]

The 1st car in history to accelerate on its own

[@CountryCarReviews]

I’m Audi 5000👋🏻

[@leenevin8451]

How can that have a firm ride?

[@sierrachief117]

I believe that there a coup against Audi in this era.

[@nessuno5403]

European Audi 200

[@iainjackson5107]

From an era when Quattro meant proper 4wd not the Haldex crap these days

[@rxy2580]

Luxury car. But suffers from engine and road noise. Bmw 5 series would have been better

[@Nellie-H]

The truth is: Audi was Volkswagen and could not compete with big engines and rear wheel drive. In order not to change the whole system, they came up with optional all wheel drive from their front wheel drive. They also could not fit a 6 inline or V-8 engine in. Hence their 5 cylinder got turbo power! Too bad, that the truth was lost in translation and modern propaganda advertising! Audi was never at the same level as Mercedes, BMW, Jaguar, etc. until Volkswagen pushed their ads and German Auto Magazines made Audi winners for money in the 80's & 90's!

[@TheBTG88]

Fairly weak hp number. The Saab turbo had 165 hp from 4 cylinders.

[@milfordcivic6755]

All vehicles were weak HP back in 1985. The average small block V-8 only made 170-180 hp back then.

[@TheBTG88]

@@milfordcivic6755 Primarily due to US emissions regulations which strangled all North American engines vs the previous generation of engines where V-8s would make over 400 hp. Europe did not have these same restrictions, but largely produced small displacement engines due to 1) High fuel costs 2) Taxation based on engine size. That is why turbo charging became popular as it allowed for greater power when needed from smaller sized engines. The Saab engine, even though down one cylinder from the Audi, made notably more power and benefited from the pioneering Trionic engine management system.

[@2259r3z]

I had a new Audi CS Turbo in the late '80s, and compared to what we were used to in those days, it felt very strong and smooth. It loved to run and was very long legged, both in range and its ability to cruise effortlessly at high speed in spite of the national "double nickel" in effect at the time. It felt bred for the Autobahn, which of course it was.

[@lplp7656]

John Davis the legend. Not the car

[@milfordcivic6755]

I'm surprised the state of Maryland allowed Motorweek to use Interstate 795 for testing vehicles while it was under construction.

[@kevinwong6588]

The Baltimore Metro extension was built as part of the highway too.

[@imedmhissen3849]

🇹🇳🇹🇳🇹🇳🇹🇳

[@baoquoc3710]

Little that everyone had known, it was containing a fatal flaw that forever tarnished this car's reputation and almost drive Audi to the straight ground...

[@pilskadden]

And the flaw was sitting behind the wheel not knowing the difference between brake pedal and gas pedal. At that time most (if not all) cars you be put shifted into drive without pressing the brake.

[@1995RangeRover]

3rd

[@adbyrd29]

Always thought these cars was just plain ugly

[@unitedcity_mc4421]

Geez, can you be positive for once?

[@invinciblejets4690]

First.

[@ensignjimmy3237]

Congrats on your participation trophy.

[@Outback69]

Will never own a German vehicle again

[@nessuno5403]

Tell us the rest. You bought a new or old lemon?

[@Outback69]

06 Jetta TDI never will do it again. Subaru is a good brand.

[@nessuno5403]

@@Outback69 new or old? They weren't German made? The Japanese brands are better quality anyway.

[@samsagullo5577]

The 80s had some of the ugliest car designs.