Update: Parked Since The 1980s: 1974 Audi 100 LS
UPDATE – The seller has lowered the asking price of this Audi 100 LS two-door sedan to $5,330. That’s over $4,000 less than they were originally asking and a more enticing asking price. Any thoughts on this one at the new price?
FROM 11/22/2021 – Having been an Audi fan for many decades and an Audi owner for the last couple of decades or so, I always enjoy seeing earlier cars such as this 1974 Audi 100 LS two-door sedan Coupe. This car would be fun to add to the shrinking collection. The seller has it listed here on eBay in Farmingdale, New York on Long Island and they’re asking $9,500 or you can make an offer.
Those bumpers though, ugh. I have a friend who is a collector of vintage Japanese vehicles and he sometimes tracks down Japanese market bumpers to replace huge bumpers that were mandated for the US market and it makes quite a difference. 1974 was the first year when Audi was required to have these giant bumpers here.
It’s hard to tell from the wet photos and brown paint but I don’t notice any glaring rust issues. If this car has been driven in New York winters I’m guessing that there’s some rust and it shows up in the cracks and crevasses in the trunk photo and in other places. They say that there’s no serious rust that they can see and it’s wearing the original paint. This is a first-generation Audi 100, or a C1, which was made from 1968 to 1976. They came in a four-door and two-door as with this car, no wagon was available until the next iteration, the C2, came out in 1976. This is basically the ancestor of the Audi A6 that we know today.
I’m ruined for life having grown up in the Midwest and having rusty vehicles literally my whole life, so the first thing I think of and worry about is rust. I think I can see some rust in the door crevasses and that would be a bummer for me. Sorry for all of the rust talk. The seats are no big deal, but this car also has an automatic transmission which is also a bit of a bummer.
If a person were looking for an ideal example that had everything they wanted, there’s nothing wrong with that, is there? Is that nit-picking? I’d want a manual transmission so why settle for what you don’t want, life is too short for that. You can see that the headliner needs to be changed so add a grand there on a good day, this one will add up pretty quickly and I think the asking price may be a bit on the high side given all of the work that needs to be done.
The biggest issue here may be the 1.9L, 95-hp engine and that’s not what anyone wants to hear with an Audi. This car hasn’t run since the 1980s and that’s a scary proposition. Pulling and rebuilding the engine, restoring the engine bay, and making sure that all of the brakes and suspension systems are up to normal, in a car that starts at $$9,500 may be a stretch for almost anyone’s budget. Would any of you take on a project like this Audi 100 LS?
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Comments
cute car, but too much need for such a strong ask, half maybe and you have a deal!
$9500! what is this guy smoking! I’m sorry folks but the 100LS was not a good vehicle which is why it was parked in the 80’s. Maybe he saw that color on a 911 and thought his Audi must be worth something. I bet you will have a hard time finding rebuild parts for that lump they call an engine. If you want an early Audi find a late 70’s early 80’s 5000. They had problems but 10X the car of the 100LS. And they have a good sounding and bullet proof engine.
This thing is as rusted out as a Barn Finds Dodge Charger..and parts are extremely hard to get. And to top it off, these were extremely hard to work on.
Wait a minute, a Wisconsin car in New Yawk? 1st, let me say, the car Scotty is referring to, is his Audi TT, which is a really cool car, and 2nd, being the 1st post of the new week, I want to say, I’ve been lambasted plenty on my views relating to the hobby of today. I know I’m not alone, and the most vocal opposition to my views are people that obviously want to make as much money as they can. I’m just not sure how we lost our way. Take this car, for example. In good ol’ Beertown, the Audi 100 was just some obscure European make from far away, from a country whose axx we( sadly) kicked, and posed little threat to our 70’s cushy way of life, riding in our parents LTD’s or “Deuce and a Quarter’s”,,,or so we thought. Some sort of Volkswagen, maybe our only reference for many on German cars at the time. Who cared, this is America, mash the throttle, baby,,.
Truth be known, it wasn’t until much later, we found out what quality cars Audi turned out, right from the get go, not some early spindly Asian thing, real road cars, best in the world. Funny how we, as Americans, were possibly intentionally, sheltered from that.
I don’t know if this car is worth $10grand? I’m “out of touch with the current market”, some say. Out of touch with how off the wall someone actually thinks this is worth? I mean, granted, it’s an unusual find, merely because nobody wanted one in 1974. I’m sure it must have been some mechanical issue, and no parts that sidelined it in the 1st place, probably saving it from the “grinder” altogether. I don’t know if they were good cars or not, but you mean to tell me someone actually thinks someone is willing to spend $10 grand for a car they don’t even know runs, much less get parts for today, and I’M THE CRAZY ONE,,,,I could, however, see Scotty in something like this, riding along in his ’74 Audi 100, arm out the window,, for a couple hundred bucks maybe.
Drop a zero off the price, then maybe…
Historical note:- the first woman to win at Pike’s Peak did so driving an Audi.
I’ll bet it wasn’t a 100.
Perhaps I don’t understand your comment, but what was sad/sadly about the U.S./Allies kicking Germany’s “axx”- a reference to WW II, perhaps? If that’s the case, you’ll find no sadness on my part.
Hi John, I hear ya’, not many ethnic groups have to put up with what atrocities the Germans inflicted upon, than “my” people,,maybe yours too. The sad part, is Germany STILL lives with that, and it’s so unfair. The Germans today have little, if any connection to those times, but even in the 70’s, people like my old man STILL held a grudge. German and Italian cars were FORBIDDEN in his driveway. My dad’s crowning achievement in the war, was him and a bunch of his army buddies, urinated on the podium Hitler made his famous speeches from. Had little to do with the great people of Germany, more of a vendetta than anything. These people picked themselves up, ( with our remorseful help, of course) and rose above that to become one of the leading economies in the world.
HoA-
You’re not crazy. Like so much of American life today, the asking price of old cars has become unmoored from common sense. The problem is we can’t agree on much, much less the value of old iron :)
As a college boy in the early seventies, when I was driving a ’63 Lincoln Continental, I had a friend who had a baby blue ’74 ( I think) 100 with the small bumpers. I remember tearing around town wedged in the back with my larger friends. Of course it was a row your own and I thought it was a pretty neat little car and I had never seen another. . I liked the driving position and the big windshield, of course I also favor the BMW 2002 so I clearly have a weird seating position fetish :)
That said its a good thing this particular 100 is brown….it will help hide the rust.
When these first came out (about 1970),I really wanted
my Dad to sell our ’64 Coupe de Ville & buy one.
I’m really glad he didn’t.
My sister had a 4 door 72 100 LS auto when she lived in California in 1978-1980 beige car which rode and handled great but we nicknamed it “Smokey” because the valve guides would wear and leak oil into the cylinders and create a mosquito control vehicle my brother in law replaced the valve guide seals about 4 times in 3 years
This is not an Audi 100 Coupé. These are actually sought after and in good condition somewhat higher than the car offered here, as they are a lot rarer.
See here for pricing & pictures:https://www.autoscout24.de/lst/audi/100?ocs_listing=include&sort=standard&desc=0&ustate=N%2CU&size=20&page=1&body=3&atype=C&fc=0&qry=&;
This limousine in its current state would not fetch half its price here in Germany, maybe not even a quarter.
You are right, sir, I should have mentioned that model rather than referring to a two-door sedan as a coupe here. Thanks for the clarification.
Audi made best-looking imports of the 1970s IMO, but I’ve heard nothing great about their reliability or quality. The fact that this one survived makes it seem like a cool oddball to have in a collection–maybe not for $9500.
I bought a used four door version of this on my first deployment to Germany in the early 80s. Stick shift though. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Reliable and comfy. I still drive German car as everyday driver. Have to agree price seems a little hopeful. And I like these. Lol.
I owned a 1973 Audi LS100 2 door. Put a Weber carb on it and adjustable shocks at each corner. Autocrossed it for one season. Did pretty good but beat the hell out of the brakes. Came time to replace the inboard rears and no parts were available anywhere. This was before the internet. Finally sold it. Will say that it had a very comfortable seat in it. Moved on to Fiat X1/9 s after that, never looked back.
I agree with rick and would put a Weber on it immediately; the OEM carb was
a nightmare.
It’s always good to hear from Howard. I share some of his thoughts and in this
specific case the Seller may have a perspective issue because he/she is a New Yorker and I can tell you as a former resident old cars don’t look that good
there unless they were preserved in a climate controlled glass case. It’s an attractive driver for the West Coast but the price is too high.
In 1974, My Dad bought a 1975 914. I am very familiar with this era of Audi, as they were sold at the same dealership (Tom Sullivan, on Woodward Ave). Part of the reason I have such memories is that we were always at the dealership for the recalcitrant 914. I used to climb in and out of the cars, shift the gears, get the catalogs, etc. So I know I had a better time at the dealer than my father.
So that’s the Audi memory…
My first car was an Audi 100 LS. It was an act of faith every time I put the key in the ignition.
I have no doubt it’s been parked since the 80’s. Audi was turning out some real garbage in the 70’s
This, the Audi Fox and 5000 nearly drove Audi out of the US market, they were such turkeys. Fortunately, when the Audi A series came out, they were good enough that people started buying Audis again, for better or worse.
Have to disagree with the folks dissing the 100LS. My folks bought a new ’74 and I drove it periodically. No mechanical problems while they owned it for 50k miles. I then bought it, drove it from San Francisco to Colorado (great open road car) and owned it to 110k when I sold it. Never a mechanical failure….just routine maintenance. One of the more enjoyable cars I’ve owned. I’d love to have another one. Yes, this particular one is overpriced.
WUZJEEPNOW SAAB: WRONG. I had a ’73 100LS. Quality car, very comfortable seats. No problems with it. Then a 5000. Same thing. Reliable, cruise at 104 all day, never any problems. Both good cars and zero rust on either in Florida.
Still beautiful. Even the 5 mph US Spec bumpers couldn’t destroy that.
I bought one new in 1973.A love/hate relationship…Great car to drive but it burned two valves within 5,000 miles and VWOA wouldn’t take care of it without a fight. Yep about the valves seals. The front brakes were inboard, rears were drums.
Yeah, correction. The rear brakes were drum. Also owned a Fox, terrible car. But I wouldn’t mind owning a LS100 again. But not for anything near this price. I did keep the 4rings off the front grill of the LS. Hangs on my garage wall. Probably to remind me to forget the idea of ever buying another one. I should listen.
It’s a good thing VW had zillions of DM in the bank from selling Beetles, or Audi would have died on the vine, at least in the US. These early cars were pretty awful.
Listen
It`s an Audi 100LS coupe or an Audi 100LS two door. You can use both. It`s not an Audi 100 coupe s. The first Audi after 2. WW because before it was Auto Union and DKW. This was owned by Mercedes and after selling VW changed the name. By the way, it was produced in the NSU factory. So NSU is the fith non existing circle from Audi. The fourth is Horch and “Horch” in latin language means “Audi”. These cars are quite rare because they used not so good metal for the coach. The two door “Limousines” are realy rare because a lot of them were parted out. The doors are same with the Audi 100 coupe s. The Coupe s was never sold in america (I think, but I am not 100% sure). So this car is more worth than a four door and it is even more rare than a Coupe S. Too expensive – could be, but I am not sure …
Well, sorry, rusty cars…, rusty english … (but I hate translation apps)
a legendary POS from Audi. It probably has low miles as these were a daily breakdown car. This guys is nuts asking almost 10 large for a car that needs everything and has no title. GLWA.
I have always found AUDI’s to have a certain elegance about them from the 1960’s to the 2000’s but the big problem I would have with them is my local AUDI dealer. I have had nothing but hard times with them over the years. I have tried many times to purchase various AUDI’s and I have run into the most arrogant and stupid sales staff I have ever seen. The service department only has the most current parts and if you ask for an item on a previous model they will help but expect the part to take between one and two months to come in directly from Germany and do not expect them to tell you that it has arrived as they do not care. To get anything that is not current they want you to pay up front. That for me puts all AUDI’s
I had a pretty red 71 sedan in 76. It proceeded to self destruct… A rust belt upstate New York car.. The front suspension points were rotting, the engine mount was baked away next to the exhaust manifold causing the motor to drop… Tranny modulator went out and I was blowing clouds of trans fluid smoke… Worst car I ever owned…
When I look at some of the beautiful, advanced cars Audi makes today I still get a slight chill when I remember how awful they were back in the day.
My dad bought one new… without a doubt the worst car he ever owned… complete junk. He bought a 633 BMW after that and put 350K on it in LA
East German/ VW styling at its finest. The horsehair seat stuffing always drove me nuts
My father bought one brand new in 1973 on my birthday, and as strict as he was about school let me go with him to get it, He got rid of our gas guzzling 66 Chrysler New Yorker that he claimed to cost $1 every time you turned the key . One of his friends talked him into the Audi, Despite my love of the car the problems started very early, my mother noted on her first ride in the car that the shifter knob was loose and came off in her hand. One day the oil light came on and we brought it to the dealer who promptly checked the oil and said its fine. But still the light came on and off , we asked several mechanics to check it. Every one said theres plenty of oil in it and just keep driving. I was about 13 and would poke around all the cars my parents had and my brothers and sisters . I would usually be the one to change the oil. I decided to look around the engine compartment to get familiar with it. I checked the dip stick and there was clearly very clean fresh oil at the full mark. I poked around and found behind the air cleaner a wire that looked like a hose holder and noticed it turned , I realized that this was the dip stick that eluded everyone including the dealer. With a hit of very black oil on it. I put a couple quarts in and the light went off … genius … apparently the mechanics at the dealership werent familiar with the sideways configuration and were checking the front drive unit. I could write about the numerous issues, including when I was 16 and got to take the car for a ride with my girlfriend , got the car up to 65 and gently pressed on the brakes only to hear a loud bang and in the rear view saw a caliper bouncing in the road behind me. Inboard disks werent the Audis strong suit. Another time we picked up a passenger who sat in the ill fitting rear seat (look in the pictures you can see its ajar in this one too) while I was driving I noticed a glow coming from the floor behind me , the battery was under the rear seat and nearly caught on fire and burned the horse hair (or whatever it was) badly and stunk , we drove home with the seat sticking out of the sunroof, the passenger declined to get back in. There were plenty more issues but I still loved the car. By the way the price new for the automatic was $7300 in 73 … the price on this one is a bit high
Had a 72 100LS 4-speed. Sweet car on the freeway but underpowered around town. Inboard brakes were a nightmare.
Lucky you, I don’t get “upper body shots” when I scroll through… I must not be visiting the right sights ?? BTW, a ort of wisdom, just in case, clear your browser and web history 😎
Bloody auto correct I meant SITES not SIGHTS or maybe I meant sites with sights!
It must just be Bob and I, I don’t regularly look for that stuff so that is why I was confused about it. My browser and web history clears on a regular basis too, so again, still confused…and distracted!!!
UGGGHH! I had one and these are a nightmare. Both mechanically and if there are electrical issues, RUN!
They are nice drivers if all is well. But at almost 10k, no way! Good luck with this one.
From 1973-1976 I was a line mechanic in a Porsche+Audi dealership. I was the guy in the shop that could get rid of the stalling, hesitation and hard starting. I don’t remember seeing any 2 doors, but with those bumpers this has to be U.S. version, came with a 2 barrel Solex carb, I must have redone dozens of them. When they were right they were nice driving cars, especially with manual trans. Earliest front wheel drive I ever saw. If memory serves, the next year, 1975, was the first year with CIS injection. Also I think 74 was the one year for the seat belt lockout. If you didn’t connect the drivers seat belt the car wouldn’t start. It was always getting out of adjustment so we would roll down the driver’s window, stand outside and reach through to turn the key so we could drive it into the shop. In the shop we said LS stood for Lost Soul. Those were the days!
Maybe I should cancel my membership to see what I’m missing.😊
I am a specialist on these cars in Germany and know these cars well. I spent a lot of time in Los Angeles and know about the problems early Audis had in the US. The 100LS but more the Fox (Audi 80 in Europe) and the 5000 always worked fine in Europe but for unknown reasons had major problemes in US. As for the 100 it is clear that car was made for the Euro market and didn’t last well overseas. Parts are hard to come by but it is not impossible. Thankfully I have a big attic filled with parts. I still use a 1970 100LS as a daily driver with only maintenance issues and rust but mechanically it is ok. The Sunday driver is very nice and I own the oldest driving US Audi 100 that is still working and in original condition. See this report, the car is the before mentioned car which is now in Germany
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-european/curbside-classic-1970-audi-100-ls-ingolstadts-table-setter/
Agreed. I have a 2 door 4 speed in Corona Yellow and they are very rare in the states, especially running and driving. Parts are available over seas in places like Denmark and Norway. I have two other Audis (S5 and Allroad). The 100LS wasn’t their best car but not half as bad as people make it out to be. 95hp isn’t a racer, but very comfortable for a Sunday cruise and cars and coffee.
I remember guys buying these for a 100 bucks a pop in FRG when I was stationed over there. The problem was getting one thru inspection even if it ran like a top. They would rust out bad over there. Drive trains great, Interiors fine. Body toast. Yeah this car might be worth half in great shape only cause it’s a Tudor.
This must be the most comments on a listing from Barn Finds that I’ve seen in quite a while. Keep ’em coming.
Stay Away!! I had a ’77 100LS. Too unreliable. Mine was purchased new and was in the shop 34 times in the two years that I owned it. I would go somewhere and then it would fail to start and I couldn’t get home. Over and over and over. Dealer took six or seven visits to finally figure out that the problem was a two dollar relay that had been installed backwards. when the dealer installed the air conditioning. Probably the dealer’s fault and not Audi’s but I had numerous other reliability issues and finally gave up on it and traded it on it a 1980 Scirocco. (I had had a 1976 Scirocco prior to the Audi and missed it–the 1980 put me off VW products for good. A tremendous blast to drive but couldn’t keep it on the road. But three strikes and you’re out. None of them lasted past 30,000 miles. And yes I was religious about maintenance.) It is possible that 1976 was the last year of production for these but mine was definitely sold as a ’77. (The next year saw the 100 completely redesigned and sold as the 5000 in the U.S….with the unique 5-cylinder engine. I often wish I had waited and bought the ’78 but it was WAY more expensive. my ’77 had the same 1.9L four as this one but fuel injected for a few more horses. Also had a four-speed. It was nice enough…when it ran. Roomy, comfortable and very nice handling. But I needed a car that would get me home when I went somewhere….
The seller has lowered the price to $7,600!
When I was in my early 20s, from around 1982 to 1984, I owned a ’74 LS 4-dr sedan, same exterior color, black leather interior, 4-speed manual transmission. It was very difficult and expensive to maintain; but it was fun to drive between repairs.
This is probably the worst car ever built as is the Audi 5000. When they came into the shop everyone ran or called off sick. I will never buy any Audi ever. I HATE THESE CARS. Try and put rear brake pads on one sometime.
My 100LS was a beautiful comfortable car. Never any problems. I ran my automatic, 5 cyl. 5000 hard. Couldn’t kill it, and I can’t remember ever having to do any repairs in the 3 or 4 yrs. I had it. I’ve owned over 100 cars in my life and that 5000 rates in the top 10 I ever owned. I’ve owned most of GM, Ford, Chrysler and quite a few foreign. Everyhing from Simca/Renault to Alfa and Pantera.
The problem here wasn’t that the price tag started with the wrong number but rather than there was one digit too many in that price!
I had a black 4 door version of this car. It was a couple years newer. By the time I had it, around 1990, it was an old beater. But it was an Audi & it looked decent. I thought I was a hot shot.
And I was…mine had power windows that didn’t work. Mine had a power sunroof that didn’t work. Mine had air conditioning that didn’t work. And it was July. I hated that car!
I later bought a Rabbit. Same situation, except it had crank windows. I had 2 Mercedes Benz products. Same thing…electronics that didn’t function. All of them ran and drove great. The engines and transmissions in all of them seem to be phenomenal! The electronics? Way different story.
I haven’t had a German car now in a long time. Unless it is an old air cooled VW, I will never have another.
I owned a 72 100LS. Great ride but a dog engine- wise although the 4-speed made it a little more entertaining. From experience, these are really good at rusting out in the rocker panels just ahead of the rear wheels.
Reply – Cdice: My light beige early 70s
100LS was in beautiful cond. around 1978 inOrlando, Fla. No dents, perfect interior & zero rust. Automatic. I can’t remember it ever needing any repairs. My – at the time, wife, picked an addiction to downers, which resulted in that beautiful car slowly looking like a demo derby loser. She destroyed it and somewhat w/o crashing it.
So I bought me a 5000, which was in the same cond. and never needed any repairs. Those were the days when no one passed me on the road. That 5000 was a very competent car.