Audi quattro concept at 2011 Dubai Motor Show

Having launched several new models in the first half of 2011, Audi will present an all new line up during the 2011 Dubai International Motor Show. Between 2011 and 2015 the brand with the four rings plans to invest around €11 billion, mainly in new products, in order to sustain the company’s technological lead embodied in its “Vorsprung durch Technik” (Advancement through Technology) slogan. 

Jeff Mannering, Managing Director Audi Middle East, commented “Audi has lots to present this year! We are aiming for 25 percent growth in 2011. Being able to showcase our new products and the interaction with Audi enthusiasts are an important part of that. Visitors of the Dubai Motor Show will have the chance to get up close and personal with our latest models including the Audi A1, A6, A7, A8 L W12 and the R8 GT. We will also show the Audi quattro concept and a new model, but we will keep it a secret for now.” 

One of the most anticipated highlights of the Dubai International Motor Show will be the Audi quattro concept car. Thirty years after the original Audi quattro rewrote the rulebook of motorsports and everyday practicality, Audi moves it’s most iconic model into the fast lane with this futuristic interpretation. The Audi quattro concept is a thoroughbred driving machine with 408 hp, five-cylinder turbocharged engine, a lightweight body and – of course – the latest generation of quattro permanent all-wheel drive. 

The very first glimpse of the new Col de Turini White show car awakens memories of another legendary ancestor: the 1984 Sport quattro, a 306 hp evolutionary stage of the Audi quattro Coupé with a shortened wheelbase. In fact, the Audi quattro concept also represents the systematic further development of a production coupé using high-performance technology. The foundation is provided by the powerful Audi RS 5, one of the brand’s sportiest production vehicles ever. 

The Audi development engineers shortened the wheelbase by 150 millimeters and lowered the roofline by around 40 millimeters compared to the four-seat coupé on which it is based. Like its predecessor from 1984, the 2010 show car is now also a two-seater. The heavily modified body is made primarily of aluminum, with the hood, the rear hatch and other components made of carbon. 

The low weight of the superstructure leads to significant secondary effects in other components of the vehicle, such as the transmission, the chassis and the brake system. As a result, the Audi quattro concept weighs just 1,300 kilograms, almost exactly the same as the Sport quattro from 1984. This once again moves Audi, the pioneer of “ultra” lightweight construction, to the head of the pack. The know-how and technologies of the quattro concept body will characterize Audi’s entire production model portfolio in the future. 

In another move that benefits the vehicle’s weight, the eight-cylinder engine from the production model has been replaced under the hood by a turbocharged, inline five-cylinder engine that can trace its roots back to another Audi sports car – the TT RS. In the Audi quattro concept, the longitudinal FSI turbo produces 408 hp and accelerates the car from 0 to 100 km/h in only 3.9 seconds. Torque is distributed as needed via a six-speed manual transmission. 

The Audi quattro concept uses the latest evolutionary stage of the quattro permanent all-wheel drive system to deliver its power to the road. The key innovation, the crown-gear center differential, is compact, lightweight, and can vary the distribution of power between the front and rear axles over a broad range, enabling the quattro drive system to react within milliseconds to coax the maximum of fun and safety out of every last bit of torque. Entertainment is offered not just under the hood, but also in the form of digital media and mobile connectivity. 

Whether or not the successor to the legendary Audi quattro will go into series production has yet to be announced.