Registration no. 44 WMN (Isle of Man) Chassis no. SQ85EA905108The ex-works, Hannu Mikkola/Arne Hertz - 1984/85 Audi Sport Quattro S1 Group B Rally CarRegistration no. 44 WMN (Isle of Man) Chassis no. SQ85EA905108
• One of 20 works cars retained by Audi's Motorsport Department
• Winner of the 1986 Welsh International and National Breakdown rallies
• Present ownership since December 2003
• Extensively restored
• Featured extensively on video and in books, articles, rally reports and advertisements
• Carefully stored since last used in 2017
One of the most influential designs of recent decades, the Audi Quattro brought four-wheel drive into the motoring mainstream. Introduced in 1980, the Quattro was based on the outwardly similar Coupé's practical and stylish three-door 'fast hatch-back' bodyshell but used a different floorpan to accommodate its four-wheel-drive transmission and independent rear suspension. The engine was a development of the 2.1-litre, five-cylinder unit first seen in the 200 saloon, equipped with a KKK turbocharger and producing 200bhp in road trim, considerably more being available in race tune. The motivation behind Audi's marriage of a Volkswagen military vehicle's four-wheel-drive system to its new high-performance Coupé had been desire for success in international Group B rallying. In the latter role the Quattro excelled, winning the Manufacturer's Championship for Audi in 1982 and 1984 and the Driver's Championship in 1983 and '84 (with Hannu Mikkola and Stig Blomqvist respectively), but its enduring legacy would be the demonstration of four-wheel drive's advantages for passenger cars.
Having achieved significant successes with the original Quattro, Audi developed a more specialised rally car in the form of the Sport Quattro 'homologation special'. Weight saving had been one of the engineers' main aims in developing the Sport, which featured a turbocharged alloy-block engine of 2,133cc boasting a new double-overhead-camshaft 20-valve cylinder head. Maximum power went up to 306bhp. This new power plant went into a short-wheelbase chassis, while further weight savings were gained by using Kevlar for the wings, roof and front apron. ABS brakes made their appearance on a Quattro for the first time. With over 300 horsepower on tap in road trim, the Sport Quattro possessed supercar performance, boasting a 160mph top speed and 0-60mph time of only 4.8 seconds - truly outstanding figures even by today's standards. According to Eric Dymock's The Audi File: "214 were built; 164 were sold to customers, and 20 were used as competition cars by the Motorsport Department. The remainder were experimental and retained by the factory."
Initially prepared by Audi's Motorsport Department and driven in period by former World Rally Champion Hannu Mikkola, the 1984 Audi Sport Quattro offered here is the winner of the 1986 Welsh International and National Breakdown rallies, which were run over the challenging forest tracks of Wales and North Yorkshire. Driving '44 WMN', Mikkola also established a new record for closed cars at the Shelsey Walsh hill climb of 29.51 seconds. This historic Sport Quattro has featured extensively on video and in books, articles and rally reports, as well as in advertisements for Audi and Hella. It also features in the YouTube footage of the 1986 Welsh Rally.
