Audi rallye Sport Quattro
Audi rallye Sport Quattro in New Zealand

Short and sweet – the Sport Quattro

The Audi rallye Sport Quattro holds many technical features alike what is known from the predeceeding rallye Quattro A2, but as with everything evolving, some features are introduced with this model.

A painpoint for the Quattro was it’s long wheel base combined with a locked center differential, so a key change with the Sport Quattro was to overcome hairpins in a quicker fashion. It was figured out – after some trial and error of various reductions in wheel base – that a redution of 320mm gave it the right balance, and resulted in the homologation of Audi’s new model. Furthermore, it introduced a more potential DOHC 20-valve engine to increase competitiveness in Group B.

A front section is used for engine layout work at Audi Sport – did it become a 1988 Sport Quattro?

First used at Corsica 1984 and last at Ivory Coast rally in 1985, the rallye Sport Quattro had the same displacement as the A2 with 2110 cm3. It featured approx 420 hp at 7500 rpms and 460 Nm, with a compression-ratio of 7:1.

0-100 km/h in 4.4 seconds, weight was at best around 1060 kg, but in real life seldom improved over the longer Quattro A2.
Length/width/height 4239/1859/1343 mm.

The rallye version of the Sport Quattro didn’t prove itself highly competitive in the result lists. Stig Blomqvist managed to claim the championship title though in 1984, a year he clung to the preferred Quattro A2 as much as possible. When he took his overall win of Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) rallye, it was indeed with a jungle prepared short Quattro.

Succession

The rallye Sport Quattro would prove itself less successful than the long wheelbase versions, and Audi later replaced it with the more infamous Sport Quattro S1.

Sport Quattro wheel bases
Evolving – A1 in front, then Sport Quattro and two wheel-base prototypes

Even with the S1 as the official entry in the World Rally Championship of Group B, Audi secretly developed a mid-engined prototype – which by looks seems to be closer related to a Quattro A2 or Sport Quattro “leftover” basis at hand.