Audi avoids the heavy-handed retro approach but still has a heritage feel to the Quattro Concept.
Marking the 30th anniversary of its original Quattro model, Audi has lifted the covers on a tempting new show car, the Quattro Concept, at the 2010 Paris Motor Show.
Though it’s anything but retro, the Quattro Concept revives the long-nosed, angular-backed shape of the original, 1980 Audi four-wheel-drive model.
While there appears to be no immediate plans for production, Audi is in the midst of a rather rapid expansion of its line-up – most recently with the A7, also on display at the Mondial de l’Automobile.
That’s keeping its engineers busy, but as CEO Rupert Stadler told TheDetroitBureau.com, the Volkswagen AG subsidiary is keeping an ear out for public reaction to models like the Quattro Concept and eTron sports cars – the latter in both coupe and Spyder form.
Sharing some of the RS5’s high-performance underpinnings, the Quattro Concept is just made to perform, at a weight of less than 3,000 pounds and with a 408-horsepower turbocharged 5-cylinder engine under its hood.
Oh, and if we didn’t mention it, this is a Quattro in more than name, splitting power between the two axles in a performance-based 40/60 Front/Rear split.
Audi was an earlier pioneer with the Quattro technology. Today, all- or four-wheel-drive is becoming a common feature on any number of vehicles, standard on brands as diverse as Land Rover, Lamborghini and Subaru, and optional with many others.
An early rendering of the Audi Quattro Concept.
The technology has been evolving, as well. The latest approach, which Audi is helping pioneer, uses torque vectoring. In other words, it pushes power not just front or back, but moves it from one wheel to the other in order to help steer, rather than push, through the corners.
Staying on top and continuing to give its own system a definable advantage could nudge Audi to give serious consideration to a production Quattro Concept.