Audi Quattro from forge action day at castle combe race circuit 3rd September 2022

The Audi Quattro is a road and rally car, produced by the German automobile manufacturer Audi, part of the Volkswagen Group. It was first shown at the 1980 Geneva Motor Show on 3 March. Production continued through 1991.

Overview :
Manufacturer -
Audi AG
Also called -
Ur-Quattro
Production -
1980–1991
11,452 produced
Assembly -
Ingolstadt, Germany
Designer -
Jörg Bensinger
Walter Treser
Ferdinand Piëch
Franz Tengler (transmission)
Martin Smith (exterior styling)

Body and chassis :
Class -
Mid-size car, rally car
Body style -
2-door coupé
Layout -
longitudinal front engine, all-wheel drive
Platform -
Volkswagen B2
Related -
Audi 80 (B2),
Audi Coupé (B2)

Powertrain :
Engine -
2.1 L SOHC I5 (1980–87)
2.2 L SOHC I5 (1987–89)
2.2 L DOHC 20V I5 (1989–91)
Transmission -
5-speed manual

Dimensions :
Wheelbase -
2,524 mm (99.4 in)
Length
4,404 mm (173.4 in)
Width
1,722 mm (67.8 in)
Height
1,346 mm (53.0 in)
Kerb weight
1,290 kg (2,844 lb) to 1,350 kg (2,976 lb)

The word quattro is derived from the Italian word for "four" to represent the fact that the vehicle delivers power to all four wheels. The name has also been used by Audi to refer to the quattro four-wheel-drive system, or any four-wheel-drive version of an Audi model. The original Quattro model is also commonly referred to as the Ur-Quattro - the "Ur-" (German for "primordial", "original", or "first of its kind") is an augmentative prefix. The idea of such a car came from the Audi engineer Jörg Bensinger.

The Audi Quattro was the first rally car to take advantage of the then-recently changed rules that allowed the use of four-wheel drive in competition racing. It won consecutive competitions for the next two years.[4] To commemorate the success of the original vehicle, all subsequent Audi production automobiles with this four-wheel-drive system were badged with the trademark quattro with a lower case "q" letter.

The Audi Quattro shared many parts and platform with the Coupé version of the Audi 80 (B2).[4] The quattro was internally designated Typ 85, a production code it shared with the quattro versions of the Audi Coupé. Its characteristic flared wheelarches were styled by Martin Smith. The Audi Quattro also had independent front and rear suspension

The original Audi Quattro competition car debuted in 1980, first as a development car, and then on a formal basis in the 1980 Jänner Rallye in Austria. Largely based on the bodyshell of the road-going Quattro models (in contrast to the forthcoming Group B cars), the engine of the original competition version produced approximately 304 PS (224 kW; 300 hp). In 1981, Michèle Mouton became the first female driver to win a world championship rally, piloting an Audi Quattro. Over the next three years, Audi would introduce the A1 and A2 evolutions of the Quattro in response to the new Group B rules, raising the power output of the turbocharged inline 5-cylinder engine to around 355 PS (261 kW; 350 hp).

The Quattro A1 debuted at the WRC 1983 season opener Monte Carlo Rally, and went on to win the Swedish Rally and the Rally Portugal in the hands of Hannu Mikkola. Driven by Stig Blomqvist, Mikkola and Walter Röhrl, the A2 evolution won a total of eight world rallies, three in 1983 and five in 1984. Two examples of the same car completely dominated the South African National Rally Championships during 1984 to 1988, with S.A. champion drivers Sarel van der Merwe and Geoff Mortimer.

In 1988, the Audi Ur-Quattro driven by Audi Tradition driver Luciano Viaro won the 13th Silvretta Classic Montafon

The idea for a high-performance four-wheel-drive car was proposed in 1977 by Audi's chassis engineer, Jörg Bensinger, after he found that the Volkswagen Iltis military vehicle could outperform other vehicles when tested in the snow. An Audi 80 variant was developed in co-operation with Walter Treser, Director of Pre-Development

Audi introduced the original Quattro to European customers in late 1980, featuring Audi's quattro permanent four-wheel drive system, and the first to mate the front-engine, four-wheel-drive layout with a turbocharged engine

The original engine was the 2,144 cc (2.1 L), longitudinally-mounted inline-5-cylinder 10 valve SOHC, with a turbocharger and intercooler. It generated 147 kW (200 PS; 197 hp) and torque of 285 N⋅m (210 lbf⋅ft) at 3,500 rpm, propelling the Quattro from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 7.1 seconds, and on to a top speed of over 220 km/h (137 mph)

The displacement of the engine was dropped slightly from 2144 cc to 2133 cc with a bore x stroke of 79.3 mm × 86.4 mm (3.1 in × 3.4 in) for the Rally car so that Audi could satisfy the 3-litre rallying class with a 1.4 times multiplication factor. Valvetrain was DOHC 4 valves per cylinder (20 valves in total) with an oil cooled KKK K27 turbocharger at 1.03 bars (14.9 psi) and Air-to-Air

свернуть