CONCEPT CAR AUDI QUATTRO
Retro Dream
Car buffs are crying for it to be made, but bean-counters at Audi may not find a case for it.
But aren't retro-looking cars in vogue these days?
If you take into consideration what other makers have been doing, building cars with nostalgia seems to be a sales success. Cynics who believe rehashing iconic cars is rubbish should think again. Look at the Volkswagen Beetle, Mini and Fiat 500.
In Audi's case, the Quattro Concept heralds back to the original of the '80s and made its debut at the Paris motor show last month to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the thoroughbred driving machine.
The Quattro is fittingly modern, with a huge gaping grille, slim bonnet intake, LED lights on the front and rear, muscular wheel arches and rear diffuser and spoiler.
The interior also looks suitably contemporary...
True, especially with that electronic instrument panel and MMI streamlined function on the centre console. Note the minimalist fascia design from left to right, the colours and textures of the materials and the race-inspired four-point seat belts.
If there's one significant difference between the old and new Quattro, it would have to be the seat layout. Unlike the four-seat matrix of yore, the 2010 car only has two seats (so the driver can install a body cage if he likes, or even a fire extinguisher.
Sounds like a truncated version of the RS5...
Spot on, mate. Audi says the four-seat RS5 provided the foundation for the Quattro, although the wheelbase has been trimmed by 150mm and roofline by 40mm.
The heavily modified body is made mostly of aluminium, with the bonnet, rear hatch and certain other components made of carbon.
In fact, the Quattro is about lightweight body, which is why it tips the scales at a remarkable 1,300kg _ practically in the vicinity of lightweight specials like the Porsche 911 GT2 RS, Ferrari F430 Scuderia and Lamborghini LP570-4 Superleggera.
Wow! And with V8 power...
No, no, my friend. The Quattro doesn't get the 400hp-plus 4.2-litre V8 power from the RS5. Instead, it gets the 2.5-litre inline-five turbo of the TT RS, albeit tuned from 350hp up to 408. That's also why you see the Quattro getting a six-speed manual gearstick.
Performance is better than in coupe{aac}s like the RS5 and BMW M3 and nearly matches those aforementioned stripped-out supercars: 0-100kph in 3.9sec. Coping with such grunt are disc brakes made from carbonfibre-ceramic housed in 20-inch alloys. Note the gimmicky central locking of the wheels like those used in racecars.
Hmm... it's starting to sound quite costly...
Exactly, and that's why the Quattro, when all is said and done, may not see the light of the day. Sources in Germany are finding it difficult to make a business case for the Quattro for several reasons.
The interior, for one, isn't shared with any other Audis. Then there's the issue of crash test worthiness since the installation of an inline-five motor in a longitudinal manner has implications on pedestrian safety.
More important are the lightweight body materials which are certainly going to make the Quattro an expensive car to build. Had it been clothed in conventional steel, the performance targets would have not been met, thus contradicting the concept of the Quattro.
Why not just build in limited numbers?
That idea has been discussed, although the familiar sources pointed out that it will still be expensive _ in excess of the Audi R8, which is the theoretical mid-engine rival to the Porsche, Ferr and Lambo.
You'd probably won't want to spend nearly B20m for the Quattro, right? But on the brighter side of things, the Quattro could be pinpointing to future mid-size sports cars with lightweight bodies.
Thanks for spoiling my day.
Well, over to the bean-counters.
Modern-day Quattro is a strict two-seater.
Credit: Bangkok Post
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