Quattro's Legendary Vorsprung durch Technik

It's been 45 years since Audi surprised the world press with the Quattro at the Geneva Motor Show. That was an apparently modest, sporty-styled Audi 80 coupé, but with all-wheel drive and a new 200 hp 5-cylinder turbo engine. Even insiders couldn't have guessed at the time that this Quattro was a revolutionary trailblazer in the car industry. In doing so, Audi boss (and Porsche heir) Ferdinand Piëch fulfilled his brand's vision for the future: a structural advantage through technology.

People like Jörg Bensinger (concept), Walter Treser (production), Fritz Indra (turbo engine technology) and Martin Smith (design) put all their knowledge and creativity into developing the model that revolutionized international rallying between 1981 and 1986. The standard Quattro, with 200 hp, was already making quite an effort in the front, but the rally department went so far with an additional 100 hp that in 1982, French Michèle Mouton became the first female motorsport world champion with an Audi Quattro.

In no time, other manufacturers adopted Audi's idea of all-wheel drive for rally cars, especially since in 1984, the so-called Group B regulations for rally cars offered almost unlimited technical freedoms. In addition to the limited number of Audi Quattro Sport, also known as Kurz Quattro because of its dimensions, Peugeot, Austin-Rover and Lancia with all-wheel drive models also entered the race. This marked the start of the wildest and most spectacular years for rallying, with the Audi Kurz Quattro producing an engine power of up to 400-450 hp and almost frightening performances. Walter Röhrl, who is as talented as he was legendary, scored another world title for Audi in 1985 with this technical masterpiece. But after a fatal rally accident in 1986, those Group B regulations were banned again.

Afterwards, Audi gradually withdrew from rallying to prepare for an even more successful career in the Le Mans 24-hour race. But the Quattro name lives on to this day in various Audi models with sporty aspirations.

At Wheels Mariënwaerdt 2025, we will celebrate the 45th anniversary of the Quattro extensively with a beautiful display of various unique cars.

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