Audi 100 – also known as Audi 5000
The Audi 100 C3 was produced from 1983-1991. For us, it was a model that placed Audi in the premium class. It was a proper boss car, - but also as a performance car with the 2,2 turbo engine. In the USA, the C3, like its predecessor the C2, was sold as the Audi 5000. There, the C3 will forever be remembered as the Audi that accelerated by itself. During its career, the model caused 6 deaths and more than 700 accidents due to it taking off at "full throttle" with terrified people on board.
No technical fault detected
No real explanation was ever found - or demonstrable error on Audi's part. Audi blamed this on human error caused by people unfamiliar with Audi – or European cars. The most credible explanation is that the electronics that control the idle speed often increased the revs a thought after start-up. It could create an initial acceleration if the car was idling in "Drive". The small puff could cause inexperienced drivers to panic so that he or she stepped on the wrong pedal. Audi claimed that people of short height were most at risk.
That's how it happened
The scenario is that the car is in "Park". The driver switches to "Drive" and lets the car roll drowsily at speed with no foot anywhere near the pedals. When the electronics in the car automatically adjusts the idle speed a little, the car accelerates a little - completely insignificant - but the driver, who does not have the brake foot near the pedals, gets "heated", plants his foot in the door, hits the accelerator instead of the brake. The driver, thinking that the car is accelerating on its own, misinterprets the signals. He/she thinks that the car just keeps accelerating despite the fact that - what they think is the brake - the pressure is all the way down...
Fix and facelift
Audi's official solution was to create a physical block that blocked the possibility of taking the car out of "Park" without keeping your foot on the brake, a so-called "Automatic Shift Lock" which was introduced in 1987 on all Audis with automatic transmission, also in Norway. Today it is standard on all cars with automatic transmission. Audi also moved the pedals slightly to make it easier to hit the brake instead of the gas in a panic. But the Audi 5000 was forever a "lost case" on the US market.
The C3 received a mild facelift in 1987. One of the visible changes is that the new model received recessed door handles.
About the pictures
The yellow-brown car was photographed at Fornebu. It is more than 30 years old, but still functions as a utility vehicle for some - even on salted winter roads. It is a standard Audi 100 with a 2,2-liter engine of 137 HP. It is before the facelift on the 1988 models. The red Audi 100 Avant is photographed in Herbolzheim, Germany, 2024. Early Avants were sleek, sporty cars that emphasized design more than space. The Audi C3 Avant was a very advanced car for its time.
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Copyright notice
See
Audi's propaganda film where one of America's great motorsport heroes, Bobby Unser, tells the American people that the Audis are not dangerous. He explains how Audi has taken the signals seriously and introduced the novelty "Automatic Shift Lock" on the 1987 model. It requires that the brake must be held before you can shift from "Park". The funny thing about this feature is how old-fashioned everything seems - except for the Audis, of course.