About T44Brian

HOW IT ALL BEGAN (AND WHY IT CONTINUES)

There has never been a point in my life where I haven’t been surrounded by something on wheels.

Raised on a 55-acre farm in small-town Connecticut, my earliest interests were tractors and trains. Outside of the farm, my father was professionally a diesel engine builder, and my mother was quite invested in bringing me to museums and places that I could explore and learn about how everything mechanical worked. The interest in automobiles began to edge out the others once I was given the ability to roam free at cruise nights and car shows, where I mostly took interest in the largest 4-door sedans from the ’70s and ’80s.

Born in 1995, I grew up with a lot of American vehicles in my immediate vicinity; my father’s ’87 LTD Crown Victoria and ’87 F350 work truck, my grandparent’s ’88 Chevrolet Celebrity and ’83 Cadillac Coupe DeVille, my mother’s psuedo-American NUMMI-derived ’87 Chevrolet Nova, my great uncle’s ’73 Impala Custom Coupe, and plenty of other Rad-era cars intertwined in the rest of the family. When my great-uncle passed in 2000, we took possession of his ’73 Impala, and at the age of not-quite-five I hopped in that car and started to drive around the fields… By myself without consulting anyone. I was an only-child with lots to explore around the property on my own, so I sort of chose my own destiny, and generally believed I didn’t have to answer to anyone regarding my actions (it’s the Aries in me, probably).

The shift from a common knowledge of vehicles and more of a honed-in interest in ’80s metal initially stemmed from a trip to the Henry Ford Museum where I was intrigued with a few concept cars and, more specifically, the ’86 Taurus and ’84 Voyager on display. This is when I began to seriously study and research every ’80s car I came across: and thankfully there were plenty around at the time. My best memories are many of the weekends my father took me to local cheap car lots to explore: we became very good friends with anyone who sold cars or had a tow yard. The internet wasn’t exactly the endless well of instant-information it is today, so to know what cars were out there, you had to go find them. That’s how I found out about Peugeot’s and Quantums… Merkurs and Eagle Medallions: I was up close and personal with these cars early on in life, and made sure to document each one with photos and notes.

Where I grew up, very little excitement lurked on the streets daily. The late ’90s/Y2K SUV craze was in full-swing, my hometown of Suffield was becoming less of a farm community and more of an aspiring suburban, family-friendly town. School parking lots were littered with the typical Caravans, Explorers, and Blazers, with incredibly few outlier cars. We had one used car dealer, a Subaru Specialist, dead-center on the main strip of town, which I also would spend time at after school.

So… Where do the Audis come into play? They don’t: and they didn’t for years. I had never seen an Audi older than a ’96 A4 on the road for my entire childhood (and I notice everything – so that statement is 110% true). There were none offered for sale in the local Auto Buyer magazine (my Bible), none on the road locally or on the highways – they just did not exist on my radar. The *only* one that was around was a Bamboo Metallic ’90 100 sedan that was parked in a driveway in Agawam, MA. However, the car never moved from that driveway, and if it did, it was for an inspection sticker once a year. We had Audis around – I wouldn’t consider Northern CT and Western Mass to be hot-beds for these cars much like they were in other parts of the US, but we had well-established dealers nearby, so it always was quite a mystery why I never saw more of the older stuff – surely 60 minutes didn’t wipe out every last one.

Part of the allure of an Audi 5000/100/200 was that I had never been able to able to really get my hands on one – in pictures and brochures the cars were always fascinating to me: well executed, well-designed, and an overall vibe that Audi had a confident offering in the face of rival German competitors. And maybe, the Audi 5000 was the underdog… The car that had to fight a little harder to win over a staunch supporter of a Benz or a BMW. And maybe it didn’t win that person over, but it garnered a nod of approval. That’s the kind of car that resonated with me. So I had to find one.

I graduated high school early in 2013, so around my 18th birthday I decided to look for a project car. I directed my energy towards a few options – my hand-me-down ’99 Crown Vic from my father was my daily driver, and I had been playing with a W210 ’98 Mercedes E300 Turbo Diesel at the time as well. I considered a further foray into the 210 chassis cars, but a Tornado Red ’91 100 Sedan had become available on Craigslist for a cool $750 in Canaan, NY. So – I took a ride to see the car, and the rest is history. On the spot I knew that I needed to know more. I needed to rip that car apart and understand exactly what this 5-cylinder CIS-controlled engine was all about. I was in love with the Zebrano wood, the velour seats, and the way the car sounded and drove. So I talked the guy down to $600, and he threw in a parts car as well. The summer of 2013 I learned everything I needed to know about these cars via a 3-Volume set of Bentley manuals and hours of time in the small two-bay garage on the farm.

Now, 12 years later, what’s left of the Vintage Audis has become my whole body of work. Nearly 40+ cars later (with a few Mercedes, Jaguars, and VWs thrown in, too), I still continue to improve my knowledge of these cars and my personal collection, too.

If you have not been following along all these years, this next section is a brief overview of how “T44Brian” has evolved over time.

FWD, Non-Turbo Audis. What’s the deal with that?

Well, you can’t say I am specifically a 10v FWD and non-turbo owner, can you? In case you need a reminder: the fleet is/has been pretty diverse over the years.

In the beginning, I was able to pick up Audi 100s for basically scrap prices. There was no Radwood yet, no ’80s car revolution in the market. These were viewed as cheap survivor cars that were slightly difficult to keep going due to a lack of support from Audi and poor parts availability. I have watched many owners over the years go through an Audi “phase” and eventually give up in short order due to their frustrations. Fortunately/unfortunately I’m still here after all this time, and I truly cannot see As I began to find better cars to keep running, the end-of-life examples were dismantled and donated their parts to those cars, which kept a tight ecosystem of Audi self-sustainability. What I did need to buy for maintenance parts were also pennies: nothing like the prices on parts are today. My experience with these cars early on was potentially better than most had: I trusted them as daily transportation to college, work, and beyond; but that doesn’t mean I didn’t carry tools, belts, Pentosin, and relays without me at all times. The 10v engines never gave me any trouble: it wasn’t until I began working with 20v cars that I knew the true frustrations of keeping up with these cars.

How do you manage to keep multiple Type 44s (and now other generations) in such nice shape and running condition at the same time?

The cars all work, just not always at the same time. And if a car is working, that doesn’t mean everything on the car is always working at the same time, either. This is just a fact of owning an older vehicle, so it’s not Audi specific. No matter what, time does what it does to materials, so cracked solder joints on switches and brittle plastic are just some of the challenges to deal with as they appear.

I’m a bit of a perfectionist, but even I’ve calmed down a bit over the years. If I can secure NOS parts or improve a vehicle in other ways, I generally do. One of my many hats is professional detailer, so at minimum the cars are always clean (well maybe, a little dusty if it’s a daily). I have also had to accept over the years that some pieces are just impossible to get: so the waiting game for spares to be unearthed, or a car to appear in a junkyard, does take its toll on how soon repairs and improvements can sometimes be completed. I have become more crafty as well – reproducing decals, trim pieces, and other items that only I would know were missing or broken.

What’s the endgame for T44Brian? Why do you keep doing what you do?

It’s 2025. We’re in a post-pandemic world with a lot going on. While I have taken a step back from detailing after 5 solid years of spending each day doing what I like most, I’ve found success in other avenues of work, including going back to the rental industry where I’m a little more off-my-feet but more so in the public eye. There has been a mild shift in priorities, but on off days I’m easily spotted working on the cars. There are still cars that I’d like to own, cars I know about and am patiently waiting for, and cars that I own now that I will work on and say they’re finished, but then find something else to do and start the restoration cycle all over again. I never really plan on the next car – it’s spur of the moment and I usually go for it without any hesitation.

Years ago, I would have said all I’m going to do is T44 stuff for eternity. That promise was broken as we now have had B2s, B3s, and C2s but I’m still a large-chassis guy at heart. I do have to realize I’m not 20 anymore, and there’s not infinite time, money, parts, and other resources to do it all, but I try my best. The collection has shifted rapidly over the past year, leaving behind some very long-term vehicles to make room for new ones. It’s never an easy decision to let go of cars you’ve poured your heart and soul into, but if you never move on from certain things you’ll never have the ability to try something new.

It’s hard to not want to work on and keep improving the fleet, because they stare me down all day at the shop. A lot of my thoughts are how I can make the cars better, or what I can learn today that might help me down the road. But also, what is something that will help other owners? That’s what I think is the most important thing. My dedication to what I do wouldn’t be nearly as strong if I didn’t face any challenges throughout my years as an Audi guy. I always joke that I’m so far into this that there’s no way out, but that’s because with every car I buy, every headache of a repair or restoration I complete, I willingly and gladly dig myself deeper into the “Classic Audi Abyss.” And, I have a wonderful community of people who have shared their knowledge and experiences with me that I wouldn’t trade for anything!

Thank you for your support over the years. From humble beginnings to a worldwide community of Audi enthusiasts, I can promise I’m not going anywhere.

Classic Audis, Guaranteed. – B