As far as I know, this is the last VW Fox still running free on the roads of Eugene. And it better watch out, what with the roads being so full of so many bigger predators, like this CRV.
But it’s a nimble little thing, so maybe it can outwit them for a while longer.
Related CC reading:
CC 1987 VW Fox: This German Fox has a Brazilian Accent
At least here on the. east coast, this was an Audi Fox. Maybe the VW Dasher was the brand-modified equivalent … ? ….
The Audi Fox was a different car, the Audi 80 renamed for the US. The VW Fox came some years later, and was a Brazilian VW Gol renamed for the US market. A wee bit smaller (shorter wheelbase) than the 80/Fox, but actually related in a number of respects.
The VW Gol name was used only for the hatchback version. The 2 and 4 door sedan got many different names in South America and Brazil (Voyage, Amazon, Gacel) but was not called Gol. The 3 door wagon was called Parati. It’s weird seeing them in US spec…a very interesting product, that at the beginning had a Beetle engine located in front and later the commonly seen VW AP engines. In South America it was common as a private car, police car, taxicab…you name it.
I absolutely loved the 3-door Fox wagon… in appearance. It was one of the many vehicles I liked on paper, but had no faith in their manufacturer or build quality.
If you got one of the Brazilian assembled cars (here in Uruguay we got them at first in CKD form and the results were not good) the only problem was rust. Engines and gearboxes were very reliable. Export only Diesels (Diesel cars were never sold in Brazil), widely used as taxis, were probably the most uncomfortable cabs I’ve ever ridden on, but they would go on to about 700.000 to 1.000.000 km (even with only one overhaul), about 7 to 10 years old. Now cabs are not older than 5 years around here, so they never get to those kms.
We only got the 1.8 gasser here, but it was fine, same unit as the Golf and Jetta etc but longitudinally mounted a la Audi and VW Quantum. Easy to fix, cheap parts. My college dorm neighbor had a new 1987 wagon in 1987 and we drove it all over the state the whole time we were in college together, it racked up the miles without major issue.
The most annoying part of driving a compact is trying to pull out of a parking lot and having to inch out as you stare at SUV’s on both sides of the car, hoping whoever sees you backing out stops. Also people using the side of your car as a door stop is annoying.
+1
The tradeoff is pulling IN to a parking space is a piece of cake with a compact as opposed to a bloated SUV/crossover
My brother and a good friend both had the 2-door wagon version, which I always thought was cool. Both cars gave good service for years, and they had that super-tight structure of VWs of the period.
I have wanted an Audi Fox for a very long time. After reading about the Brazilian Fox (here on CC) I know that is one to avoid. Car and Driver tested one in the same issue that they tested the ’78 Coupe de Ville. I chose the Caddy instead with no regrets. I’ll keep on looking, though I’ll bet parts supply would be sketchy Today with the Audi.
I owned an ’89 four-door for a few years. Highs included surprisingly good highway manners, interior materials that were as good as anything else VW made at the time, virtually bullet-proof 1.8-liter engine and 4-speed manual, and that Teutonic “thunk” when closing the doors. Lows included a virtual useless backseat for an adult human, unbelievable short 1st gear, terrible maroon paint, pretty bad fuel mileage considering the powertrain, and a lack of power steering. I felt like it was tiny compared to an ’86 Jetta I had owned, but essentially comparable in terms of quality and feel. Both had high-levels of character, and I remember them mostly with fondness.
A bunch of my friends received these as gifts around high school graduation. They fell apart as fast as Hyundai Excels. The engines were completely unstressed, although restricted by a small orifice VW installed in the exhaust to keep them from running rings around GTIs and whatnot. Unfortunately, all sorts of other stuff fell apart. The VW Fox is still the only car I’ve ever seen have the steering wheel back off of the column. On three different ones. They were also designed like 3/4 scale replicas of mid-sized sedans. Other small cars dedicate a greater percentage of their volume to passengers. The Fox was just scaled down, making it a perfect car for a family of four 10-year-olds. When I adjusted the driver seat so my head didn’t hit the roof, there was no legroom left for a back seat passenger.
Thirty years later, I have met two people with generally fond memories of Fox ownership. I wish I’d known them when I was giving Fox owners rides and listening to Fox owners’ horror stories.
Knew a couple still had a Fox in 2007. Might be only one I ever saw. They were from Philadelphia area moved to Cleveland for work.
This car was sold in Argentina in the 80s and 90s, first under the name Gacel, and later Senda. It was manufactured in Argentina and Brazil.
What strikes me is that a car like this could have been sold in the US; that’s truly a great achievement for Volkswagen.
A beige one rambled about “upper, northwest DC” until about “2005-6ish”. Remember seeing it around “Fessenden St/Reno Rd”, quite a bit.
One of my old Air Cooled VW buddies bought a new black three door wagon, I don’t now what broke but he soured on the car in a matter of months and sold it on at a dead loss .
-Nate
My uncle bought a new Fox, I drove it for a couple of days and liked it compared to the old cars I was driving at the time. He wondered what the rear drums were made of, because they wore out but the brake shoes were still fine.
I also rode around in a Fox wagon for a day trip while working in Argentina. Don’t remember much about the car but it got us to Puerto Piramides and back.
I absolutely loved my 1987 VW Fox wagon. This was my first brand-new car and, as I recall, it had the most comfortable seats of any car I have ever owned, before or since. The only reason I sold the car was because I got married in 1993 and my beautiful bride simply could not get the hang of the manual transmission. This picture is from the day in 1987 that I brought the car home from Broadway Imports in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
First reference to a song by The Sweet I’ve seen in CC.
Could the next article about an Opel be titled “Ballroom Blitz”??