Jaime R.'s Audi A4 1.8T | Featured Car | Car And Model - Import Cars, Import Models, Event Coverage

1997 Audi A4 1.8 Turbo
Owner: Jaime R.
Location: Bay Area, California
Website: http://www.europrojektz.com/
Team: Europrojektz

Chances are if you've been to any of the shows up and down California, you walked by this car at one point or another. We caught up with the owner of this cleanly modified Audi A4 1.8T.

Question & Answer

So tell us a little about how you got into modifying cars. Is this the first car you've modified?

I started going to import shows since I was 15 or 16 years old and got a lot of inspiration over the years. This is the 2nd car I've modified, I started with a VW Jetta MK3 that was never touched and then worked on a Honda Civic in high school for a year. Before I knew it, I was looking for a more serious project -- something with more potential and something very different.

Is your Audi your daily driver or show car only?

My A4 is my daily driver. I drive it everywhere: school, work, nights, weekends, etc.

Your car's original color was yellow, right? What compelled you to change it to a drastically different color?

I had the idea to change the color from the time that I bought it. When I was looking for an A4, they were very hard to come by. It took a few months to find mine, and I couldn't pass on it because it had everything I wanted, minus the color. I thought it would be pretty unique to paint it Porsche Seal Gray since there was no gunmetal color offered for the B5 platform Audi A4 in the U.S.

We know that a lot has been put into your car, but what do you think is its best feature?

I think its best feature is probably the custom pulled fenders. It was something new I had seen applied on many cars out in Germany and a few VWs here in the states, but never on a Audi A4, so it was interesting to try it out on my car for the first time. It was a lot of work, time, and uncertainty, but I'm very, very happy with the results. Special Thanks to Apex Autobody...it wouldn't have been possible without them!

You co-founded Europrojektz, right? Tell us a little more about it & why made you decide to take the plunge & start it?

Sure. Back in 2000 when I first got my A4 and my friend Antonio V. got his BMW 540i, we sat down and thought that we should start something different with our european cars. It would be a new club that drew inspiration from a lot of the import clubs at the time, but we thought that making it all european would be something new and different that no one had done before.

So Europrojektz has been around for 4 years? How big has it grown to?

Yes. Europrojektz has grown to be a nationwide crew. It all started so casual and has evolved into a professional and a very competitive crew. I really appreciate all the hardwork by a lot of the members who are seriously dedicated and are pushing to take it to the next level.

If you had to do it all over again and modify a different car (money no object), what would you pick?

It would definitely be a W211 Mercedes E-class! They are HOT!

Car Specs

Engine and Drivetrain