Motoring | News
Mad new Audi A1 clubsport unveiled
Audi unveils the 496bhp A1 clubsport quattro. In other news, suicidal maniac arrested in Ingolstadt
- wheels Staff Report
- Published: 00:00 June 10, 2011
- Image Credit: Supplied picture
- Audi went with its award-winning five-pot turbocharged engine for the A1 clubsport quattro.
The quaint little Austrian village of Wörthersee has been the setting for thousands of obsessed Volkswagen fans' gatherings for the past 30 years. That's a notable anniversary, and one that had the folk from Wolfsburg rushing to wrap all the presents in time for V-Dub ‘Christmas'. And the enthusiasts must have been very, very good little boys and girls because their presents were plenty, and lavish: crazy Golfs in no fewer than three wild trims plus an even crazier Skoda.
But Ingolstadt took the cake, undoubtedly, with a 496bhp Audi A1. Yes, 496 horsepower, or 72bhp more than a V8-engined R8. Called the A1 clubsport quattro — all lower case just like that — the hypermini from hell (or heaven, depending on how you look at it) is still a freshly painted one-off, but its specs list reads like a Michelin chef's menu; it's insatiably delicious.
Because of the obvious space issues, Audi went with its award-winning five-pot turbocharged engine such as in the TT RS. Besides the ridiculous bhp figure, the fiver also squeezes out 660Nm of torque to all four wheels through a six-speed manual quattro transmission. Weighing 1,390kg (yes it's heavy, but still 60kg lighter than a TT RS) the A1 clubsport quattro sees 100kph from rest in just 3.7 seconds, a full second quicker than the hot TT, and V8 R8. Keep right on going and you're hitting 200kph in less than 11 seconds. Further still, and you're bouncing on the electronic speed limiter at 250kph.
Just like its ludicrous performance, the exterior of this suicidal A1 is also quite brash, with 255/30 low-profile tyres and 19in wheels harking back to the awesome Audi 90 quattro IMSA GTO. The wheel design is actually functional as it aids brake cooling.
All of the body kit pieces are made of carbon fibre-reinforced polymer and the Audi badge on the grille is solid aluminium, as is the gear lever inside. Engineers widened the track by 60mm to ensure each of the 496 horses are harnessed, with the body modifications necessitating wide box arches just like on the original Ur-quattro from the Eighties.
It sits nice and low too, with coilover suspension featuring adjustable compression and rebound damping.
Don't you wish your brand of choice cared this much too? Maybe then you'd get a Nissan Sunny Nismo JGTC edition.
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