Having garnered a great deal of praise at its Frankfurt Motor Show unveiling, it seems that Audi is planning to bring the Sport Quattro Concept to mass production, but the powertrain will undergo some drastic changes.
Speaking in an interview with Auto Motor und Sport, Audi CEO Rupert Stadler has stated that, on the back of “very positive” customer feedback”, the Ingolstadt firm has been thinking long and hard about how it can bring the Audi Sport Quattro Concept into production.
It appears that Audi’s new head of development, Ulrich Hanckenberg, has decided that the Sport Quattro will not take the hybrid powered, small series production route. He envisages a front-engined sportscar with broader consumption in mind. It will be underpinned by a shortened versoin of the current A6 platform and will feature a carbon fibre/aluminium composite construction that will keep the weight down to 1 300 kg.
In a nod to the original Ur-Quattro, the Sport will be powered by a turbocharged five-cylinder engine similar to the 228 kW example powering the RS Q3. It will be offered in different states of tune, including versions developing 250 kW and 265 kW, all of which will be coupled with Quattro all-wheel drive.
The concept featured a 4,0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8 petrol engine mated with an electric motor to produce 515 kW and 800 N.m of torque.
There is also word that the Concept’s exterior styling may undergo some considerable changes. Apparently Audi design chief, Wolfgang Egger, wasn’t too taken with the Concept’s Italdesign Giugiaro-penned design.
The production Sport Quattro will be launched in 2015.
