Here’s something you don’t see very often: a 1986 Volkswagen Quantum station wagon. This is the Volkswagen that preceded the Passat here in the U.S., and it’s a car you never see on the road anymore — and yet, here’s a well-preserved one offered by a private seller in Ketchum, Idaho.
For a little background, the Quantum was offered as a sedan or a wagon in the U.S. in the 1980s, before the Passat was introduced for the 1990 model year. This particular Quantum features the top-of-the-line engine — a 2.2-liter 5-cylinder — and all-wheel drive, which probably made it especially useful in Idaho.
Not that it was used very much in Idaho, because it’s only traveled 43,000 miles in 32 years. The ad notes that the car was bought new by someone with a second home in Sun Valley, the ski area, meaning it was probably used sparingly only when the owner was in town. The second owner bought it in 2011, and now it’s that owner who’s selling it. The ad says the car has been driven regularly over the past seven years, and it now has a new battery — though it also has battle scars from hitting a pronghorn antelope. Otherwise, however, the seller reports the body is in nice shape.
The Carfax report backs up the seller’s story, noting that the car was purchased new in April 1987, with consistent registration renewals ever since. The seller is asking $7,500 for the car, and it’s hard to judge where that falls in the market, since finding a Quantum for sale is tremendously difficult — in any condition.
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I have one quantum in mint condition and one in on the burner behind my golf two vw trucks to be built.
For obvious reasons, the Quantum reminds me of my 1980 Audi 5000S. I absolutely loved that interior fabric. 5 cylinders sound like nothing else, and it even has a stick. Glorious. Assuming you can find parts to keep it running.
That’s crazy to see this car with a 5 cylinder engine… In Brasil this car is very common but we only had the 4 cylinder version and probably less than 100hp