Date:         Tue, 27 Nov 2001 20:56:53 -0500
Reply-To:     Phil Menchions <tassie@E-STELLA.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Phil Menchions <tassie@E-STELLA.NET>
Subject:      Audi rims: The continuing saga

No luck tracking down any spare center caps for my Audi rims so I broke down
and ordered one from the dealer. Turns out they're only $13 and change
Canadian anyway.

While there I grabbed a brochure titled "Real Volkswagen Alloy Wheels".
There are 3 center badges which look like they may fit the Audi Alloys and
they certainly make the Audi badges look pretty plain Jane. These are from
the alloy wheel models "Twist", "Tango" and "Montreal", all with a cool
looking fake chromeVW emblem on a black background. I'm sure you've all seen
them in your travels.

By coincidence I decided to stop at the local hoboes perpetual lost hubcap
sale just up the road to see if I could find the original hubcap I'd lost a
month ago.
(Strangely enough it was the mechanic who sold me the set of Audi alloys who
was responsible for me losing my hubcap.) There was no sign of my hubcap but
I'll be darned if the guy didn't have one of these badges out on display.
From comparison with the brochure it appeared to be the "Tango" model.

I gave the guy 5 bucks for the thing and went straight home to see if it
would fit the Audi rims still sitting in my basement. The thing went on to
the rim's center hole just fine, however, because of its flared shape it
does not sit flush and consequently is offset by 1/2 an inch. The outside
diameter is just a couple of millimeters larger than the original Audi
badges but is not a problem. There is some leeway to go slightly larger.

I suppose one could butcher the thing and use silicone to literally glue
them to the rims and still acheive a nice look. ( All the damage would be
out of view ).
However, looking at the the "Montreal" alloy badge in the brochure it may be
a better fit since it is not flared and in my opinion is the coolest looking
of the lot anyway.

If anybody out there on the list has an opportunity to mate one of these
"Montreal" badges with an Audi Turbo rim please do so for my sanity if
nothing else.

Sorry, I know I do go on about these rims.

Phil
'89 Westy