Audi Club of Florida Newsletter April 2022

April Season of Audi Sales Event Continues, Deals, and Incentives, at our Prestige Partner!

 

Hanania Exotics needs your exotic cars they are paying top dollar for Exotic Inventory. Or want to trade it? They can source your Exotic Car of your dreams and hold your tax credit for 6 months! Get the best of both worlds! They have Some Beautiful Rare cars in stock now!

 

Lifted Diesel Trucks are flying off the shelf, they change daily, come check them out!

 

Unfortunately, due to their constraints in inventory now arising, they have put a halt on all special pricing.

 

Check with them daily, as their inventory constantly changing, and many times, it does not hit the website.

 

2022 Audi A8 and S8 are at the port and will arrive soon. Put your orders in now for your new car!

 

Q4-Initial car will be available for sale 2nd or 3rd quarter of 2022; every dealer is only getting one. So get your orders in for next year delivery. Q4 e-Tron is will be available for slot ordering. We will take deposits and put you in line for when the ordering is ready, which has now been moved to 2nd quarter.

 

Need your car serviced? We are waiving our service at your doorstep fee and offering free vehicle pickup and delivery! The minimum service charge will be waived, continued through end of the year.

 

Looking to get top dollar for your Audi? Give us an opportunity to buy it. We need inventory, and we will pay top dollar for low mile, right optioned Audis. We will also give you $500 over any CarMax written offer.

 

April Audi Club Special

New Anderson Ord shirts Spring Collection just arrived. Get 20% off your new shirt! Even the new Spring Collections!

 

Caffeine and Octane Jacksonville at the Avenues Mall

Saturday, April 9th, 2022 at 8 AM EDT – 11 AM EDT

 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/AudiClubFlorida

https://www.facebook.com/groups/JaxRings

https://audiclubna.org/florida/

First Coast Region (Jacksonville)

Leslie de la Serna First Coast Region Lead

 

 

Gulf Coast Region April Report

April Specials at our Prestige Partner, Audi Clearwater

 

If you are in the market for a New or Pre-Owned Audi or plan to order a 2022 bespoke Audi, contact George Rangelov at 727-906-1101 directly and he will get you set up, he is aware of the ACNA club discounts and is our ACFL Audi Brand Specialist at Crown Audi. The new e-tron GT is ready for order and George can get you on the list. There is also one available for sale in the showroom and it is stunning.

 

Take advantage of Audi Clearwater’s offer of a 15% discount to all readers of this newsletter on Parts and Service for your Audi. You need not have purchased your Audi at Audi Clearwater to receive this discount.  If you are traveling to the Sunshine State and are a reader of the ACFL Newsletter, you can also use this discount should you need service for your Audi while you are on the road.

 

The above discount cannot be combined with any other discounts or offers but is available and all that is required is that when you are writing up your service order that you mention the ACFL newsletter discount and the code 2204 for April to Mandy. It is very simple to start saving money on needed parts and service.

 

Audi Clearwater is located at 18940 US Highway 19 N; Clearwater FL. 33764, the main numbers is 727 312 1220 and ask Mandy Walter to schedule your service. Tell her the ACFL newsletter has sent you.

 

 

Down the Road

 

Cars and Coffee: Will be held the First Saturday in April on the 2nd, located where the old Reeves Motorsports facility was located and has since been torn down. It is now Morgan Import Motor Cars 11333 N Florida Ave, Tampa.  Activities start at 7:00, but I recommend that getting there starting at 6:30 for good parking spots up front. Free hot coffee and beignets served

 

One Last Thing

 

On Visiting Four Different Audi Dealerships in the last month.

 

I realized that during the past five weeks I had visited a number of Audi dealership for various and sundry reasons, including looking for a RS 6 with the cognac interior, meeting with one of the former owners of Reeves Audi at 6:00 AM, setting up Cars and Coffee, having work done on my own two Audis, and attempting to set up a Cars and Caffeine at Hilton Head Audi.

 

It was great to talk with Tony who is now the GM of Audi Sarasota and who sold me my 2012 A7 Prestige. Their show room was full of cars with a silver on black RS 6 waiting for delivery. Brand Specialists were assisting customers. The place was alive and one would not think there was an issue or a scarcity of cars let alone Audis. The lucky purchaser of that RS 6 paid no market adjustment. Definitely a class operation. As we talked it was fascinating how Tony conducted business like a master conductor attending to a multitude of different tasks or parts of his orchestrated ABS selling operation, smoothly, efficiently and without skipping a beat. A finely tuned operation that had time for everyone.

 

Crown Audi had two R8 strategically placed on their spotless showroom floor, Audi Brand Specialists were either helping customers or on the phone. Everyone was busy clearly doing something constructive. Both the SM and the GM David came out of their respective offices and acknowledge me.  Though they had only two new Audis it was all Audis lined up in front of the dealership and alongside of the dealership where the customer parking was located. No mistaking this for an Audi dealership. Non-Audis parked in a different section.

 

Arrived at 6:00 AM for cars and coffee. Kim, the daughter of the former owners was physically helping to set up the tent and tables for Cars and Coffee. Now between her mom and husband they had just sold the Reeves Dealership but were still working as hard as ever. As we talked she gave directions to at least a dozen of employees to ensure that the new Cars and Coffee met the Standards of Excellence the ones in the past had meet for so many years when it was their dealership and run by Reeves Motorsports. Certainly, one could see “Pride of even Previous Ownership” as folks came up to greet her and give her a hug.  There is still a lot to be said for family-owned dealerships. Certainly, a dying breed.

 

Arrived at Audi Jax.  In front of the showroom, all of the cars were Audis. The area opposite the customer parking was also filled with Audis. No mistaking one was at an Audi dealership. The customer parking had one customer car parked and Brandon who was expecting me came out with an umbrella as I drove up. It was slightly drizzling outside. Thoughtful touch. Inside the dealership, the cars sparkled under the lights and the highly polished showroom floor mirrored the bright lights that was bedecked with pristine Audis. The place looked “Sharp and Crisp”. An old retailer’s display term to describe a presentation that not only looked good but had some punch to it.   Everyone seemed busy either on the phone or talking with a customer. No one was in his or her offices but all seemed to be on the floor actively engaged, and not just standing there talking. One could tell these folks were on a mission. I met with Brandon, and briefly spoke with the GM who was manning the front desk along with the receptionist. He seemed to be actually taking calls. Talk about being engaged. No one was “hiding” behind their desk.

 

Arrived at Audi Hilton Head, in front of the dealership must have been at least half a dozen vehicles parked, perhaps two were Audis, made the left turn to the customer parking and could clearly confirm that there were no cars in the showroom. The doors were not open so they were not in the process of moving inventory in or out and no one was in there working on the floors, continued on to park in the customer parking.  To the right where there would usually be all Audis in the past there might have been four at the most, then a MB and BMW and the rest were “Pacific Rim” SUV’s as far as the eye could see  the parking lot could have been a Car Max. Nothing inherently wrong with Pacific Rim SUV’s pretty good vehicles for the money but last time I checked this was not Car Max.  Where the customer parking and the single charging station was located a non-descript vendor’s van was partially blocking the charging station. I briefly thought that  GM or Ford may now have E-Vans though Ford for years called their vans E-100 etc. Vans.  It was behind the white van I parked some 40 feet from the side door.  By the time I had made it to the sidewalk a very pleasant ABS had approached me and asked me if I needed any help. I told him I would like to meet with the GM if he was free or set up a meeting to discuss some possible Audi club plans regarding the upcoming Legends of the Autobahn to be held in November at the Port Royal Golf and Racquet club. As we made it into the broom swept stark empty showroom, it headed south from there. After submitting a written proposal, never received even an acknowledgement. A long time ACFL and former Chapter Board of Director member speaks very highly of their service department so all is not lost for those who have to deal with this former Peacock and now recently acquired AutoNation owned Audi dealership.

 

 

A Gathering of the Rings

 

Legends of the Autobahn

The above is the cover and a page from a 1935 “High Brow” propaganda book promoting and glorifying the construction of Germany’s Autobahns during the early 1930’s. It  is a collection of 60 water color paintings of the Autobahn under construction by Ernst Vollbehr (1876-1964) official artist of the Reich-Bahnenen. These paintings were commissioned by the Deutsch Strassenwesen  1933-1934 Leipzig

 

Things are developing rapidly for the ACFL and the first weekend in November as a gathering of all of our different Florida regions early Friday afternoon north of Jax will take place then caravan to Hilton Head for the Legends of the Autobahn. Full Events Schedule – Hilton Head Island Concours d’Elegance & Motoring Festival (hhiconcours.com)  First draft of the AAA Trip-Tik has been printed and the ACFL has completed a test run to Savanah with a slight detour to view the old waterfront then loop around and take the suspension bridge over the Savanah River and the “Old Road” to  Bluffton and the plantations where those who could, fled the hot city during the summer.  Along the way, we will drive under many centuries’ old live oaks bedecked with Spanish Moss and pass Cahill’s Market where we will be meeting for supper. The route has been recently driven to fine tune the directions, create more questions for the Kinder Rally and final printing of the Trip-Tiks which will be done in the next 30 days.

 

We now have a block of reservations for 20 Doubles at the Comfort Suites for $119 plus taxes per night in Bluffton for Friday and Saturday evening.  The General Manager is an Audi fan and owner and will be joining us in our festivities.  Rooms will be on the lower levels (safety) and I have specifically requested that they be away from the ice machines and elevators so that they are quiet.  Phone number specifically for our reservations is (843) 277-9165 and the password is ACFL. I suggest that you call to make your reservations ASAP. You can confirm cancellation policy at that time. These rates will be held until September 4^th.  This will give us time to increase the number of rooms if necessary.  I believe single king beds may even be less.   All will make their own reservations and there is a complimentary breakfast. The hotel is back from the main drag and there are a number of good food establishments within walking distance of the hotel plus a Kroger’s supermarket.

 

Comfort Suites Bluffton – Hilton Head Island

https://www.choicehotels.com/reservations/groups/DB22Z9

 

Online Reservations

 

https://www.choicehotels.com/reservations/groups/DB22Z9

Friday evening’s meal will be at Cahill’s Market early at 4:20. They do not take reservations and we need to beat the Friday rush, which can start prior to 5:00 PM with wait times approaching an hour.  We should be able to get everyone in and seated together at this great Low County place with that occasional free-range chicken running around outside. The ACFL had been there previously when we took a trip to Savannah, terrific fried chicken, sweet potato soufflé (brown sugar and pecans) and of course that great staple, a fried bologna sandwich with either raw onions or fresh tomatoes on toast.

Since Hilton Head Audi has not answered our request for a Cars and Coffee, we will be gathering at Cracker Barrel. The coffee will be better and the logistics will  actually be safer.  There is a traffic light when exiting on to the main thoroughfare. In addition, there have already been preliminary discussions with the Beaufort sheriff MSgt. DiCarlo regarding the logistics of the caravan. We hope that the other two chapters, Georgia and the Carolinas can execute the pincer from their respective regions and join us at Cracker Barrel plus local Audi enthusiasts and owners for a good cup of Joe and camaraderie. This should commence at approximately 7:45 AM. Around 9:00, our combined forces will leave under police escort. If there is a national club raffle car that could lead the caravan that would be fantastic, if a substitute to show, even better, contingent on what is on the raffle block.  The ACFL is attempting to get a well-preserved Audi 200 to lead the parade and if there is another “Old Timer” Audi that is out there and planning to attend, we would love to get you up front also. Nothing like an Audi “History of Progress”. Next up, we will try to line up three Audis in the colors of the German flag similar to what we did back in 2010 when we executed something very similar with a Black, Yellow, and Red TTs. So, if you have an Audi in one of these colors, we are looking for you and let us know when you register.

 

The caravan route turns left out of staging area north of Cracker Barrel and, will drive through Bluffton then over the bridge to Hilton Head Island and will head to the venue site for Legends of the Autobahn. Last year there was discount ticketing for ACNA members, the same Early Bird Program is available now through April 15th for this year’s event. The ticketing is per person.  The link for ticketing is below.  To date that information has not been posted to ACFL or ACNA members so one should perhaps jump on that. It looks like pricing may go up after April 15^th but since the ACFL has not negotiated this, we are not sure.

 

The Early Bird Discount is available NOW – APRIL 15. Purchase today for TWO chances to win a VIP weekend for 2

 

Legends of the Autobahn East (hhiconcours.com)

 

The ACFL is awaiting word from national regarding the possibility of an Audi Corral parking.  It would make it very easy and convenient for the planned police escorted caravan to just drive right to the venue site into a prearranged “Audi Corral” .  The “Other Boys from Bavaria’s”  national club  seemed to be able to work out a BMW Corral last year, hopefully national can work out something similar for our members this year. The ACFL is leaving that “action point” to the professionals.

 

What a sight and a statement, to present and prospective Audi owners, ACNA members, the same holds true for chapter members, as they see the caravan drive the 12 miles from Cracker Barrel in Bluffton to the venue site, Port Royal Gulf and Racquet Club. There is the possibility of having a drone or helicopter take photos of the caravan as it crosses the bridge on to Hilton Head Island. The ACFL did the same about twelve years ago, working with the Monroe County sheriff’s department at Marathon to safely stop traffic and get a photo of the Audis on the Seven Mile Bridge. We are on the hunt for a member with a drone who is also a professional photographer who just may be up to the task.

 

Chapter registration is now open for the event. 

 

Cost:  $30 per vehicle with a check made out to the Audi Club of Florida. Do not send cash. Yes, we do it the old fashion way and do not waste your money or ours on third party’s fees.

 

Registration to include:  Include a note with your first and last name. E-Mail address, you will receive an e-mailed confirmation of receipt. Make sure to include your

Phone number, Year, Model and Color of Audi.  In addition, your ACNA membership number

 

Number in your party:  Also, include the number of kids, names and their ages, as we will be having a special Kinder Rally simultaneously during the caravan up from Jax to Bluffton. We need to procure prizes ahead of time for the expected winning teams.

 

Registration checks and information needs to be mailed to the following address:

 

Audi Club of Florida

C/O R.S. Greving

Post Office Box 66156

St Pete Beach, Florida

33706

 

If you have any questions, please give me a shout at [email protected]

Another water color from the same book, painted by the same artist . This is the Heidelberg Autobahn spur under construction. If one has spent as much time as I did commuting between Waldorf and Heidelberg exiting, the Autobahn to take the spur into Heidelberg, one immediately recognizes the Neckar River to the left and the Königstuhl Mountain to the right. It has not changed much in the 80 years since the building of the Autobahn, painting of the picture and when I was there heading to my hotel room after a day’s work at SAP’s world HDQ’s. ACFL and ACNA members who were on the Driving durch Deutschland trip a few years back also drove on this part of the Autobahn exiting Heidelberg on our way to the Bodensee.

 

Cheers and Safe Motoring

 

Bob Greving

[email protected]

 

Emerald Coast Region – Panhandle

In March, Emerald Coast Region-ACFL attended Pensacola C&C and Biloxi C&C. A big shout out and thank you to Sean Sweet for organizing and heading the charge to Biloxi Mississippi on an extremely early but very beautiful Sunday morning. We are currently on the hunt for more leaders, especially to the east of Destin and west of Mobile, that are interested in getting Audi enthusiasts together. Please reach out to me, Melisa Wilcox (contact info below) if you fit that bill.

 

Down the Road

ECR’s annual Britton Hill Run has been put on hold, for now. Looking into April for dates or possibly making it the fall run. Keep tuned in!

 

April 2022 Events:

4/9 – ECR luncheon and/or photoshoot is currently in the works. Details will be made available as soon as possible.

4/16 – Destin Show and Shine 9 am-12 pm at Destin Hooter’s, 15015 Emerald Coast Pkwy, Destin, Fl

4/23 – Pensacola C&C 9 am-11 am at Detail Garage, 5007 N. Davis Hwy, Pensacola, FL

 

All events are posted on our Facebook page: Emerald Coast Region – Audi Club Florida. Keep checking in for updates.

 

Make sure to follow us on Instagram @emeraldcoastaudiclub.

We are looking for new content and help with our IG presence. Please reach out to me if you are interested in becoming a part of ECR’s IG contributor group. As always, we appreciate Jeremy Chavez’s contributions and assistance as well as all the ACNA Groups that have continued to tag and support us!

 

Lastly, I’ll be at QDM this year along with some of our ECR members. Feel free to reach out to me if you are planning on attending.

 

Looking forward to the next AudiFam adventure!

Melisa Wilcox

Audi Club North America – Secretary

Audi Club Florida – Director

Emerald Coast Region – ACFL – Region Lead

 

Bobby Hopp

BoD-Audi Club Florida

Emerald Coast Region Lead

 

Platinum Coast Region (Sarasota to Naples)

Ashley’s rings tattoo as a substitute hood ornament on a Model T at the Ford’s Garage restaurant and Cars and Coffee Fort Myers. Photos Barb Lohff

 

Platinum Coast Audi Club April 2022

The Platinum Coast Audi Club is happy to announce our new Facebook page.  Please check us out at:

www.facebook.com/groups/platinumcoastaudiclub

We will be happy to welcome you on board!

Our March Cars and Coffee at Ft. Myers was a fun and informative time with an interesting questionnaire about the car carrier ship, “The Felicity”, which was carrying many Audis to southwest Florida and sank off the coast of the Portuguese Azores Islands.   Sadly, that will put the 2022 orders on the back burner. Our salesman, Jeffry Barrack, gave us a good rundown on all things Audi and answered many questions on a wide variety of topics.  We then took off on our Odometer driven mystery drive to lunch.  The Ford’s Garage in Estero was our destination.  Several Model Ts in the décor, but no rings in sight until our member, Ashley Oliva, loaned her great arm tattoo to the hood of one of the antique showpieces.

We will be gathering at the Naples Audi dealership at 601 Airport Pulling Road in Naples 34104 on Saturday, April 9th at 9:30 am.  Our Naples dealership has been a welcoming host previously, so we are looking forward to a fun and interesting event.  As usual, we will be taking off for another mystery drive to an historic and exciting venue in southwest Florida.  If you have not yet reached out to us or joined us for an event, this one is for you!  We want to see lots of our core group, but also hope to welcome several new folks into the Platinum Coast troupe.

Barb and Rudy Lohff, Leads

Platinum Coast Audi Club NA/FL

[email protected]

facebook.com/groups/platinumcoastaudiclub

 

Space Coast Region (Titusville to Fort Pierce/St. Lucie)

No official activity is scheduled this month.

Matthew Guerra Region Lead

 

Gold Coast Region (Key West to WPB)

Cars and Coffee Miami – April 10^th, 8 am – 11 am Location: Miami International Mall, 1455 NW 107th Ave, Doral, Florida.

We are not allowed banners or signs so please look for the group of Audi’s that I will try and hold spots for our members.

Andreas Regalado Region Lead and BoD Member

 

Gator Region – Gainesville

No official activity is scheduled this month.  Looking for leadership in the region.

 

UroTuning