DustinV

Audi Quattro celebrates 30 years of gravel spitting performance

PRESS RELEASE

Audi Tradition celebrates the 30th anniversary of quattro
- Special exhibition at the Audi museum mobile
- Attendance at the world's largest classic car show, the Techno Classica in Essen
- Extensive historical programme for 2010

INGOLSTADT, Germany, Feb 12, 2010 - This year Audi once again has many historically significant events to celebrate, with one especially important anniversary: 30 years of quattro. At the world's largest classic car show, the Techno Classica in Essen, Germany (April 7 – 11), Audi Tradition will therefore be exhibiting four Audi quattro models of outstanding interest. And at the museum mobile in the Audi Forum Ingolstadt, there will be a special exhibition from April 28 to July 31 devoted to "30 Years of quattro". This year Audi Tradition is taking its motor-vehicle treasures to an unusually large number of events.

Audi Tradition will for instance be at the Grand Prix Historique in Monaco (May 1 and 2), an event in which it participated for the first time two years ago. On this occasion, two Auto Union Silver Arrow racing cars will be seen in action on this most classic of all Formula One racing circuits: the Auto Union Type C dating from 1936 and the Auto Union Type D with twin-supercharger engine (1939). Audi Tradition is also returning to the "Schottenring Classic Grand Prix" on August 14 and 15, an event for motorcycles only, recalling the earlier heyday of DKW and NSU bikes – models that wrote history in world championship events in their time.

Audi Tradition will be present for the first time at the Classic Days held on July 30 and August 1 at Schloss Dyck (Dyck Castle) in Jüchen near Düsseldorf. Here too an Auto Union Grand Prix racing car will be seen in action, and also the Audi 200 Trans Am dating from 1988. Another premiere will be the Metz Rally in Stein near Nuremberg (April 23 and 24), where a 1979 Audi 80 Rallye is to be entered. Audi Tradition will also be in attendance at a new exhibition: "Klassikwelt Bodensee" (Lake Constance Classic World) from June 3 to 6 in Friedrichshafen. The topic here will be the "Electric Car Heritage" of AUDI AG – electrically propelled vehicles going back as far as the 1920s.

And of course Audi Tradition will be running its vehicles again at the world's largest historic car event, the Goodwood Festival of Speed (July 2 to 4) in England. Every year the Earl of March extends a most welcome invitation to the historic motor-sport elite. The 1939 Auto Union Type D Grand Prix racing car with its twin-supercharger engine will be among the treasures from Audi Tradition's collection to roar up the hill in the park of his country house.

Nor will Audi Tradition fail to participate in this year's classic oldtimer rallies such as the Silvretta Classic (July 8 to 11), the Ennstal Classic (July 14 to 17) and the Gran Premio Nuvolari (September 16 to 19). Events at which the brand with the four-ring emblem is the main sponsor are the Danube Classic in Ingolstadt (June 24 to 26), the Heidelberg Historic (July 15 to 17) and the Eifel Classic Rally at the Nurburg Ring (September 30 to October 2).

The 30th anniversary of quattro is accompanied in 2010 by a second major jubilee year: 125 years of the Wanderer company. Based in Chemnitz, Wanderer was represented by one of the four rings in the company logo, and built cars and motorcycles until the outbreak of the Second World War. To commemorate this anniversary, Audi Tradition will be taking part in the "125 Years of Wanderer" meeting from September 2 to 5 in Leipzig and Chemnitz.


Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2010/02/14/a...g-performance/

mmarshall

The development of car-based AWD was, IMO, one of the most important advances in automotive history....though I didn't fully appreciate it at the time (30 years ago) Audi, Subaru, and American Motors (with the Eagle and SX-4) did more to develop it than any other companies. I myself am (now) sold on it......I may (?) never have another car without it.

IS-SV

Congrats to Audi on the Quattro. Both Audi and Subie have done a great job of producing and marketing excellent AWD systems which greatly helps differentiate the 2 brands, especially considering other attributes of the cars are not always on par with the best of the competition.

SLegacy99

I don't envision myself owning a car without AWD anytime soon. Especially since my town has been crippled by the piles of last week's snow. Its nice to be able to park in any space that I want and not think twice about it.

Automax Service

Audi's quattro platform is great. We service alot of Audi's and for a German car, they are built great and last long. I think if I could have any all wheel drive sedan out there, it would be the RS4.

Great article!

mmarshall

While I don't know this for a fact, I strongly suspect that the RS-4, even with the AWD, comes with low-profile, dry-weather, high-performance tires that are not well-suited to slippery surfaces, and that don't wear very long either. You'd probably have to get a good set of all-season or purpose-designed rain/snow tires if you wanted to get around easily in bad-weather areas. That is also the case with Subaru's WRX/STi and Mitsubishi's Evo/Ralliart.

Automax Service

You are totally right. I live in California and don't have to worry about snow. If I ever bought this car, it would be a weekend car anyways. Right now I have a 40 series tire on my car and I am lucky to get 20k miles out of a set. I was speaking from a strictly performance standpoint.

Pearlpower

iTrader: (2)

Currently shopping for a Quattro Audi 2.7t for a daily beater. Hopefully it will not fall apart or burn to the ground as my past Audi's. H-B Q.

1993ES300x

I have a 2.7t. They are great cars and the AWD is awesome on snow. Just make sure the car has it's tb and water pump replaced if it has 75k+.

Good luck and soon you be itching for mods!!! 600 dollar full ecu flash for 50+ hp. Hellz yeah it's worth it.

mmarshall

You actually had an Audi catch on fire?

Of course, it can happen with any manufacturer. One of my neighbors had a Toyota Tundra burn up on him a few years ago...he got out OK.

Pearlpower

iTrader: (2)

the old 5000 turbo in Audi's engineering brilliance had the plastic air filter housing and other plastic bits above the turbo!
Go figure.

bad co

B5 S4 in nogaro (sp) blue is one of my all time favorite cars! The turbos will die eventualy, so what a lot of owners do is upgrade to k04's they are factory turbo's from the rs4 and the tt 225. Basicly all you got to do is custom exhaust, a moddified fuel system and software, end result 400whp+ dd XD. and you have 11 second flat 1/4 mile. Or you can go crazy like these guys from Poland.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xL0y...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lA7mSLmXzS4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IixxF...eature=related

bad co

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo6OdjcxwJI

The sport quattro is my favorite audi, the old dog can hold its own against the evo.

mmarshall

I agree...that takes some figuring. And, of course, the media (as I remember it) never harped on that. They, of course, were more concerned with the old 5000's sticking-throttle problem....most of which, like the current obsession with the Toyota throttles, was probably overkill.

In those days, too, turbos ran HOT. You didn't have the coolant jackets, efficient intercoolers, Turbo-approved oil, and other advancements to keep the turbo temperatures down, and had to idle them a minute or two, before you cut the engine off, to keep the oil from cooking, unless you used synthetic oil.