What: Audi quattro Rally concept
Model Family: N/A
Debuted: N/A
Year: 2010
Number Produced: 0, Scale Model Only
Model / Generation Code(s): N/A
Chassis / Matrix: N/A
Engine: N/A
Transmission: N/A
Power: N/A
Peak Torque: N/A
Weight: N/A
Acceleration (0-100 km / 62 mph: N/A
Paint Color: N/A
RELATED
Concept Cars: quattro concept (2010)
Road Cars: N/A
Race Cars: N/A
SUMMARY
The Audi quattro Rally concept (design model) was an unreleased rally-themed design study created by Audi in 2010 as part of the development program surrounding the Audi quattro concept, a lightweight sports coupe unveiled at the 2010 Paris Motor Show. The rally design model was never intended for production and did not progress beyond the conceptual phase, but it represents a stylistic exploration of how a rally derivative of the quattro concept might have appeared.
The model remains a little-known footnote within Audi’s early 2010s lightweight engineering initiatives. What makes it interesting among automotive historians and Audi enthusiasts is what it envisions, a racing equivalent to one of Audi’s most loved concept cars featuring visual parallels to the Group B-era Audi Sport quattro S1 E2.
BACKGROUND
From 2009 to 2010, Audi conducted a series of lightweight engineering programs centered around the B8-generation Audi A5 platform. These efforts produced multiple prototypes, including a lightweight aluminum-and-carbon A5 coupe and an A5 test mule powered by a 2.5-liter five-cylinder TFSI engine. The development arc of these experimental vehicles culminated in the 2010 Audi quattro concept, a spiritual reinterpretation of the original quattro and Sport quattro.
Throughout this period, Audi hosted a series of “lightweight technology days” for media and industry partners, showcasing research vehicles, materials demonstrations, and design studies related to performance-oriented weight reduction. It was during one of these events that Audi displayed the rally-inspired design model for the quattro concept.
DESIGN & STYLING
The rally design model was a scale model created as a non-functional styling study. The model adopted exaggerated aerodynamic forms reminiscent of the final-generation Group B cars of the mid-1980s, particularly the Audi Sport quattro S1 E2 and subsequent Pikes Peak evolutions.
Notable design features included:
- Aggressive front and rear aerodynamic wings with wedge-like geometry
- Enlarged air intakes and venting intended to evoke competition-car cooling requirements
- A widened stance and rally-spec ride height
- Visual cues linking the modern quattro concept to Audi’s historical motorsport identity
The design was intended purely as a conceptual exploration and did not reflect any official motorsport program.
INTENDED PURPOSE & MOTORSPORT CONTEXT
While the model visually referenced Audi’s rally heritage, the company had no intention of pursuing a competitive motorsport program based on the quattro concept so far as we know. By the 2010s, the World Rally Championship (WRC) had shifted toward small, cost-effective platforms, typically derived from mass-market small hatchbacks. Volkswagen, Audi’s sister brand within the Volkswagen Group, competed from 2013 to 2016 with the Volkswagen Polo R WRC, exemplifying the category’s direction.
Premium, limited-production coupes—such as the quattro concept—would have been unsuitable for contemporary WRC competition due to cost, scale, and market alignment. These factors echoed Audi’s earlier departure from top-level rallying in the late 1980s, when the brand shifted focus toward touring cars and eventually endurance racing.
PUBLIC DISPLAY
The rally design model largely served as an accessory and point of interest in brand presentations about lightweight design. It was an eye-catching curiosity, displayed in a sealed presentation case and was not publicized in official press materials.
Automotive journalist George Achorn photographed the model at one such event. These photographs, later enhanced using AI-based image tools, are what you see in this entry.
PHOTO GALLERY
