There it lurked at the bottom of the 'cars available' list on the
S1
launch; beneath the S3 Cabriolets (review on that soon), almost by mistake it seemed, was a solitary Audi Sport Quattro. Surely they wouldn't actually let us scuzzy journalists drive it? It must be a misprint.
Perhaps not its best angle...
It wasn't a misprint. They did let us drive the Quattro. And it was absolutely flippin brilliant.
With just two laps of a short test track and running on studded tyres, it wasn't exactly an in-depth Sport Quattro drive. In fact I probably spent as long in the car as Chris allocated to it in his Group B worship vid back in 2012. But it was enough to get me all giddy about Audi's most famous Quattro.
The interior is fabulous. After 113,000km and 30 years the Recaros have a bit of squidge to them but the bolsters still feel great around the thighs and shoulders. Gauges for pressures and temperatures sit at the top of the dash, and the boost gauge sits directly in the middle of the two dials. Not that I noticed that initially because the steering wheel diameter is gigantic. It doesn't adjust either so it manages to sit in your lap and still above the dials. It's a delightful reminder of why thin steering wheels just worked though.
That wheel gets worked a lot too, with what seems like loads of turns lock-to-lock on top of the understeer from those tyres on tarmac. It's a sharp contrast from the immediacy of the new S1.
But my goodness is it fast. Of course it's laggy, but that just proffers a couple of seconds to get properly excited about the imminent onslaught. Above 4,000rpm it absolutely flies, a sensation augmented by that thrilling five cylinder warble. Amazingly the Sport Quattro makes less torque than the S1 hatch (259lb ft v 272lb ft) but weighs less (1,298kg v 1,390kg). And with its peak power of 310hp made at 6,700rpm, it really is worth revving the Quattro and savouring that noise for just a little longer.
There are some funny angles to the Sport Quattro. Hacking so much out of the wheelbase leaves it with really strange rear overhang but viewed from dead straight on it's captivating. The smaller headlights, huge arches and bonnet vents give it a fantastic presence. Audi probably wasn't too pleased, but the assorted journos were swooning over the Quattro all day. The S3 may as well not have been there.
To have driven it is a great privilege though, one I'm hugely grateful to Audi for. And how much for my own one? 300,000 euros on suchenmobile, and it's not even red...
Quick little onboard vid here, lots of inane grinning and poor driving for your pleasure.