If you have been following these ramblings of mine you might have noticed that I have (or did have) a bit of an affinity for Volkswagens and Audis. You might ask why, to which I might respond: I don’t know. But there we have it, A VW Quantum wagon sat in front of my friend’s VW shop for sale. We were needing a better family car after the Suburban debacle and when I learned that it was a turbo diesel my interest peaked. For some reason I thought it might be a bit more reliable than my previous Audi designed car.
Now before we get any further, take a gander at this psychedelic Brazilian advertisement for the Santana (the European moniker for the Quantum). Perhaps that might explain my strange attraction to VW/Audi products at the time. But not withstanding the propagandist hallucinogenic marketing campaign for this car, I saw that it would be the perfect family vehicle for us. It was silver with a black leather interior, sunroof, five speed manual transmission, and my friend wanted eight hundred dollars for it. Well I of course didn’t have eight hundred dollars, but what I did have was a Honda 90 ATC that I had got in trade for my Cherokee and an engine hoist that I got to replace the one I traded for the Suburban. So for those goodies and a hundred bucks I ended up with the Quantum.
Now given that the Quantum was essentially an Audi with a VW motor (turbo diesel four, in this case), you may not believe me when I tell you it was great. In fact it was one of the least problematic, most dependable cars I have ever owned! It helped that when I got it, it was in great condition. As I recall it had a few small dents in the passenger side and I think that’s why the former owners got rid of it. It’s always a good sign when you find the original manual in the glove box!
We took that car everywhere and since I had no running trucks at the time it became my everything car. So it happened one day while shooting an AK47 from the window (not as sinister as it sounds, really) that I forgot about the ejection of the shells. The ejection was strong enough to break my windshield. Here is some video of me doing same after learning the hard way.
That was truly a sad moment as the car was mostly pristine otherwise. It got great mileage, made cheaper by ag fuel, it had enough power to merge safely unto the highway (with some planning), and it was immensely practical. My only constant wish was that it could have been an AWD Syncro, but you usually can’t have it all.
For some reason it had all the right Farfegnugen in all the right ways. I guess it really shows my predilection for foreign cars and how they are designed. Domestic cars of that era and shortly before, were designed around a living room. Lazy-Boy recliners up front, sofa in the back, the controls to the big screen in front of you at hand. All of these amenities were designed to keep the driver and passengers in a coma-like state in all circumstances. A state where the road had no tactile output to the driver but was merely a moving picture on the big screen of the windshield.
On the contrary, European cars were designed around the driving experience. The seats were firmer but more form fitting, the steering more tactile and responsive, the ride more lithe and crisp. To sum it up, a short tale: back in the days when German car companies still gave a crap about that sort of stuff, an American woman came in to rent a car in Munich. She looked at the selection and asked why none had cup holders. The German clerk simply replied “in Germany we eat in the dinning room”.
So why did you ever get rid of it you wonder? Well this time I didn’t (for the most part). One day I was driving to work, my drive took me through a smallish town of rather poor repute. I turned right, as I did everyday, after carefully looking both ways and seeing a completely empty street, into a two lane city thoroughfare. As I began to accelerate up to the thirty-five mile-per-hour speed limit, a Ford explorer came barreling up on my left side going the wrong way, cut in front of me and slammed on the brakes. I could see that it already had damage to the passenger’s side as the Quantum’s front end smashed into it.
The Explored pulled off to a side street and I followed. As I pulled up behind them, three tough looking young men got out and came towards my car. They were yelling obscenities and gesturing at me. I was on my way to work so as I stepped out they first saw my badge and uniform and then my gun. They instantly turned around and went back to the truck. Now a small young Hispanic woman got out of the driver’s seat and came over to me. She said that she was driving her mom’s car. I asked her for her insurance information and ID she said she didn’t have either but that the truck was insured through her mom. So I gave here my insurance info but not my ID and wrote down her plate numbers and name.
The Quantum was still drive-able but it was pretty ugly now. A few weeks latter our insurance company, the cheapest one we could find, decided that it was my fault. Never mind that they never looked at either car, never mind that the damage on the Explorer was supposedly worth five thousand dollars and that it was higher than the bumpers of my car, never mind that she had no license, nope all my fault. And no lawyer would touch the case because in the end it’s a losing proposition. So lesson learned about cheap insurance.
Now as to the poor Quantum; she was in a sorry state. Duct taped headlight, leaky radiator, etc. I couldn’t bear to see her that way, but it was not worth what it would cost to fix. So we pulled the engine to use in our Rabbit Pickup project and used the rest for target practice until the scrappers came by. And that was the sad inglorious end of a great car. Would I own another? Maybe, but it would have to have lots of service records and be in excellent shape. As several readers have stated, maintenance is everything. Most vehicles are good when new, so keeping them like new, also keeps them good (with a few notable exceptions of course).
We replaced it with something much larger and much tougher to crash into. But that’s one for the future.
(pictures by Paul Niedermeyer)
As an ex-VW tech, I understand what you’re saying about them being fun to drive.
My car at the time was a Camry, a car infinitely more reliable than the shitpiles I repaired every day as a tech. But on test drives of customers’ cars, or when I’d have to take a VW home for a weekend, they were ALWAYS more fun to drive than the Camry. Damning with faint praise and all that I know, but the crappiest 2.slow Jetta with an automatic on bald tires and dead struts was still a joy compared to most any other car in its class.
But then you have to fix them…
As the former owner of a 1986 Jetta Carat, I completely understand the love/hate relationship of VW cars. Mine turned to hate and in 1998, that hate caused it to be sold and replaced with a Honda Accord 5 speed. It actually drove better than the VW due to its wishbone suspension and lower CG.
This is why when I get a chance, I will rent a Jetta or other VW product (even the new, decontented Jetta) but will likely never actually own one.
I still have my 87 VW Quantum Deluxe Station Wagon, 5 cylinder engine AC sunroof, AC , Electric windows, cruise control, Front Wheel drive. As it was a factory exec car for 6 months, and titled to VW. Darth had been ordered by a VP of VW of America with the 1988 color of Graphite. So the car has a lot of provenance. I am the original private owner. I have taken care of it all of its’ 244,000 miles. I am having to give it up due to arthritis and being 72 years old. The ten minute oil change now takes me about 30 minutes. Darth, as I call him due to his custom color of Graphite, was garaged for all but five years in the 90s’. I still take him out for a drive and last year on my way to Germania near Cincinnati, Darth and I were clipping along at 85 on the way to the event. Darth attracted a lot of attention and offers. But I was not ready to say good by. Darth leaks no oil or coolant, still gets the same original mileage of 23 city and 27 highway. I started using synthetic oil soo after it was introduced. IN 2013 Darth and I had a close encounter with a deer which led to an extensive restoration including metal replacement at the rear fenders. The body shop screwed up and instead of not paying attention to me about the color “Graphite”, they checked the paint code in the rear cargo area. The signal paint code called for a silver blue color. It really gets dummer here… Instead of checking the paint for color match, they painted the whole thing. Next day, I got a phone call asking me to come out and check the car. My jaw dropped when I saw ha the idiots had done.
I said, “I brought a black VW in here and I’m leaving with a black VW”. Message received and mission accomplished. As part of the restoration, I found a replacement hood in Youngstown Ohio. I went there to get the hood and while there, I bought the rear lift gate as it showed some rust. Darth was finally back together but I had to take it to my mechanic due to having the lift gate wiring all screwed up. IN 87, I blew the head gasket on the highway. Darth was taken to my mechanic and there was no distortion of the head and I got a new timing belt, water pump and gasket.
I love Darth but I want to find ‘the right guy’ who can give him the care he deserves. I have a storage room off the garage and in there are every thing I took off Darth. Around 160, 000 miles I wore out the drivers seat and replaced both seats from a Quantum sedan…perfect match. It’s time for a new caretaker.
I have never been able to find a replacement grill so I fabricated one from aluminum diamond stamped metal.
Hi Tom
I bought your car from Carl…now has a new front grill and a lot of a new parts
As a (euro) Ford guy I can’t think of any reason why you’d think it was a fun car to drive (other than the fact that you may have owned an American or Japanese 70’s car before it) I haven’t driven this exact car (been a passenger many times) but I did own a 1980 Audi 100, and it was a huge comfortable slow car (it even had the VW 1.6 liter engine). It was nowhere near as fun as a Euro Granada , even if almost the same interior space and stiffer springs) being wrong wheel drive didn’t help.
It had decent front wheel traction on snow though, even if it would plow straight forward as soon as it ran out of grip…
You need to drive a 1970’s Fod LTD or Chrysler Cordoba to understand the comparison I think.
“Now before we get any further, take a gander at this psychedelic Brazilian advertisement for the Santana (the European moniker for the Quantum). ”
I thought that the Quantum was known as the Passat in Europe and when the all-new Passat was introduced for 1990, VW started using the name worldwide.
I think only the hatch and stationwagon was badged as Passat in Europe, with the sedan being the ‘Santana’ up until the ( I believe) 1985 facelift, after which they all became Passats.
These cars are immensely popular and still produced in huge numbers in China. According to my wife, when first produced in China, the reliability was awful and the drivers were trained as mechanics. Said drivers had lots of time to wrench on them while their party honcho attended drunken orgies, oops, meetings of great national importance.
Even now 99% of all the taxis in China are this model of Sanatana, especially so in Shanghai because they are produced there. I asked quite a few taxi people about the car and they all say the same thing: everybody knows them, there are loads of parts available and the are easy to repair. That SOHC VW 1.8 motor is produced in the gazillions in China every year.
Yup, still produced in China, largely unchanged. I learned to drive stick on one back in 1995 in Beijing. Back then they were the “expensive” taxi, though I don’t think 99% of the taxis are Santanas anymore, or even close to it. They’re still quite popular because of parts availability and simplicity, but they started being supplemented by the Santana 2000 (an Asia/South America only model developed in Brazil) back in the late 90s and a lot of the newer VW models these days.
Wow! You might have just found me the first Chinese car I’d consider buying… again. I’d expect a few air bags, though.
The Quantum Syncro was a car I’d admired when new, though I chose a SAAB instead. I finally got a used QS in ’99- an appropriate datepoint for what seemed like my last old-school, 20th Century car. I loved it, but it was almost used up by then. Like the author’s, mine was hit-and-run by a shady character. It rear-ended at a red light by a compact custom pickup truck, at Saturday night cruising time in the brownest part of town. I pulled into a a side street and waited for the driver to exchange info. He roared off, with his radiator spewing and his bumper in the street. My own rear bumper looked like a boomerang, so I drove home and bolted on one from my parts car. Overall, the night could have gone a lot worse. It was, I’m sure, for the S-10’s owner.
It’s easy to describe the merits of the car, but you still had to be there. Power wasn’t the attraction, but the Quattro’s traction was exemplary. It sent me looking for dirty and snowy roads where the limits of handling are so easily attainable. On Intersate cruises, locking the center diff gave the car the dead aim of a dropped hammer. The car felt uniquely planted, tracking on unseen rails. That knob was meant to be used, lectured LJK Setright in a vintage Quattro review I recently uncovered. In normal mode, the steering was equally precise. I found the driving position to be ideal, with a just-right fit I haven’t found in a car since. Like a GTI with a shed out back, it was a true sport-utility vehicle (plate: “VWSUV”). The squared-off styling was square-looking even back then, but it provided panoramic visibility. Just enough more headroom than the Audi, too.
My Quantum Syncro was leaky, creaky and not that fast, but it was reliable. But I was hearing ominous reports of unavailable parts, such as headlights and fenders. The parts car in the alley, was looking ugly. I sold it for $2k, convinced that I wasn’t rich enough to afford such a cheap car. Another SAAB 9000 seemed like a safer bet than a rare, obsolete VW, believe it or not.
But I never forgot the words of an old Audi service manger when asked about the Quantum Syncro– his eyes lit up as he said, “That was the best car VW ever made! It had a DeDion rear end!”
My Syncro isn’t forgotten. It isn’t even all gone. I still have a set of crossbars for the roof rack, if anyone needs them. And I still use one of the car’s comfy, adjustable headrests instead of the hard leather one in my current VW…
Hello there,
I recently bought a 1982 Quantum Wagon with the roof rack. I would like to know if you still have those crossbars.
Many thanks,
Michael
“So lesson learned about cheap insurance.”
tell it loud and long…
I babysat one of these not long ago for my friend. I don’t know exactly what it was about that car, but it’s among my most favorite ever. Same layout – turbodiesel 5 speed.
I’d love to own a non-rusty one someday.
Another great story – and with a youtube clip too! Looking forward to the next instalment 🙂
Thanks for your encouragement, always more needed than you may know!
Nice car. What kind of mileage did the TD get? I had a ’79 VW Dasher wagon 4 spd. It was fun and practical but not reliable so I didn’t have it long. I had a ’70 Audi 100LS too. I still think that car was the prettiest Audi ever. I bought it from the original owner in 1990. It ran well for about a year then the trans croaked. My ’06 GTI was the last VW I’ve owned. It was super fun but job loss took care of that.
I’ve always liked Volkswagens of the 70s and 80s. Its dated styling may not appeal to everyone’s tastes in what a car should look like, but I like what it looks like. What matters to me, however, is what is underneath the car. Syncro AWD. Despite Subaru’s commercials saying that the Outback is the first SUV car, I’d have to disagree. There are two cars that preceeded the Outback, the AMC Eagle and the VW Quantum Syncro. My only complaint would be its lack of a diesel engine. You could get a Quantum with a diesel engine, but not with a Quantum Syncro.
In 1988, my 1970 Datsun 510 was worth more than what my dad paid for it and I needed to carry a bass guitar rig. A truck was out of the question as I needed climate control wherever my gear was, so a camper shell was not going to do it for me.
My girlfriend at the time had Rabbit diesel truck and I was very impressed with it and I went to my local VW dealer and fell in love with the Quantum station wagon. Unfortunately, there was only one on the lot and I was under the impression they were not getting any more. On the test drive, the salesman was putting the car through some acrobatics before I got behind the steering wheel. Let’s just say that they had to come and tow the vehicle after he ran into a high gutter. I still liked it and wanted it but they weren’t going to fix it before I needed a replacement for the spoken-for 510. I had a hearty laugh and I told them to watch me walk. I went across the street and fell in love with the Toyota Camry station wagon. I had seen the Camry wagon while driving in another city and they were brand-spanking-new to my community. I took it on a test drive and a asked the sales rep. if I could drive up onto the VW lot. Hehehe.
At this point, I wouldn’t put a VW on a long list. I had the Camry wagon for 10 years and switched to Subaru. I am approaching 20 years in Subarus, I will not return to either Subaru or VW. This latest Outback that I own has been a total dog and, because a lot of the dealers cohabitate, I have gotten to talk to techs about the modern VWs. A lot more problems than the Subaru!
Thanks for helping me travel back in time for a moment. That Quantum with a 5-in-line gas engine could have been a lot of fun.
In early 1988, I bought a former factory exec 87 Quantum GL Deluxe driven by a VW VP by the name of Meyer. He custom ordered the wagon with the 5 speed manual and a 1988 paint color called Graphite. At 15000 miles the car was sent to Autobahn VW in Dayton. I had been driving a 1980 Quantum, no air, no power locks, no sunroof, 4 cylinder engine, the car was painted in Helios Metallic Blue. Beautiful car that originally was a Wisconsin car with a block heater. With cruise control, we crossed South Carolina at 85 MPH and got 37 MPG! So when I saw the 87 with all the goodies I wanted, I bought it.
I have taken great care of the wagon that I named “Darth” because of the all black paint color. Darth and I are still together at 233,700 miles. I am sentimental about Darth because he has transported all seven of my rescued Golden Retrievers. I have taken great care of Darth and he has taken great care of me on my travels over most of the eastern half of the US and parts of Canada.
I use Shell gas and Mobil 1 high mileage Synthetic. Mechanically, the car is all original except for routine replacement items such as timing belts, water pumps and I am at my third set of brakes…I know how to drive. At 186,000 miles, the head gasket blew to atmosphere at 80 mph and I babied the car off the interstate to a pull off point. Darth was flat bedded to my mechanic, Foreign Car Service in Dayton. Mike McCarthy, the owner (and my good friend) got it in and check the head for warping and it was OK. I asked about doing a valve job and new seals and Mike explained that it was not needed….Shell gas. Darth gets the same mileage as when it was new, same MPG 25+ Summer, 23+ Winter and uses no oil.
In February 2014 Bambi decided to run into Darth. I found a used hood, aftermarket grill, a used rear hatch back (rust) and some miscellaneous small items. Darth was in restoration for about three months including new metal in the rear areas, and a fresh coat of paint…the wrong color. The shop read the color code in the trunk and painted that color, a metallic blue green. I TOLD them the color was GRAPHITE when I took it in. Why they didn’t check the color on a piece of cardboard is beyond me. DOH! So they repainted Darth the right color.
Darth wears Nokian tires and that helps him hold the road in all sorts of situations and weather. After several years of people asking me what year Darth is, I ordered Ohio plates that read “87WAGON”. It amazes me how many people still ask me what year the car is. I tell them to look at the license plate.
Darth is a great wagon. Reliable, fun to drive and he has been extremely reliable. We are Best Buds! On our way to a quarter of a million miles!