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quattro is Audi, and Audi is quattro. The all-wheel-drive system is one of the core areas of expertise of the four rings and represents optimum traction on any surface. The quattro drive system is used in conjunction with the RS Torque Splitter for the first time in the Audi RS 3. Drifting in an all-wheel-drive car? This is how it works in the RS 3 ...

US drift artist drives Mattias Ekström’s Dakar car Historic treasures from Audi Tradition at the GP Ice Race Ken Block: “A phenomenal experience” This was a car swap of a very special kind: with Mattias Ekström as the instructor in the co-driver’s seat, Ken Block tested the Audi RS Q e-tron with start number 224 on snow and ice. The outing during the GP Ice Race in Zell am See (Austria) was the spectacular prototype’s first appearance after its successful debut in the famous Dakar Rally. The Audi RS Q e-tron, with which Audi clinched four stage victories in January, was just one of the stars on the icy course in Zell am See. Audi Tradition also brought along the Audi quattro A2 Group B rally car, which competed in the 1983 Rally Finland. In addition, a DKW F 91 and a DKW Hartmann Formula V caused quite a stir. For Ken Block, the weekend trip to Europe was like a visit to automotive paradise. “The laps in the Audi RS Q e-tron were a phenomenal experience – even though the car probably feels more comfortable in the desert than in the snow,” said Ken Block. “Thanks to Mattias Ekström, who patiently explained all the special features of his car to me. A few minutes behind the wheel was enough to understand the fascination of this car.” Mattias Ekström was impressed. “It only took three turns for Ken to get fully up to speed,” said the Swede, who, with ninth place, was the most successful Audi driver in the 2022 Dakar Rally. For Ekström, the event in Austria was also the perfect preparation for his participation in the prestigious “Race of Champions”, which was held in the north of Sweden last weekend. Ekström only had to admit defeat to the eventual winner Sébastien Loeb in the semifinals. In addition to testing the Audi RS Q e-tron, Ken Block also took a little trip down memory lane and drifted around the circuit in the Audi quattro A2.

Audi delivered around 1.7 million vehicles worldwide in 2024. More than 164,000 of those were fully electric models. Reasons for this overall decline of almost 12 percent (8 percent for fully electric models) compared to the previous year included the challenging economic conditions, an intensely competitive market, and limited availability of parts. In addition, the new product portfolio is only gradually having an impact on global sales volumes.

The color tones of the world of snow are reflected on the outer skin of the body and are continued in the interior. With its basic color Florett silver metallic and the black carbon roof in combination with a striking foil warp, the Audi RS e-tron GT ice race edition appears magical at first sight. The colors silver and white symbolize sparkling snow crystals and ice lakes, the purple accents evoke images of shimmering ski goggles. The precise accentuations and transparent patterns harmoniously, yet excitingly, reproduce the style of mountainous winter worlds. This color scheme is continued in the interior: seat center panels, shoulder arches and side bolsters in diamond silver leather emphasize this character. Combined with black leather sections and contrasting purple stitching, the four-door Gran Turismo spoils you with an exclusive ambience. Striking details round off the interior experience. “This new style of the ice race edition underscores the emotional pinnacle of electric mobility at Audi,” says Bernhard Neufeld, Head of Audi exclusive. “Our customization gives this electric Gran Turismo a very special personality.” The ice race edition is inspired by the design ideas of the Audi RS e-tron GT ice race concept show car and is now available in a special edition of only 99 units for Europe. The basis for the limited edition is the unchanged 440 kW RS e-tron GT. Customers can charge it at more than 500,000 public charging points in Europe with a single card using the Audi charging service. With fast DC charging at a maximum of 270 kW, five minutes of charging time is sufficient for about 100 kilometers of driving under ideal conditions. Exterior with unique combination of paint and foil wrap Started in 1952 and revived in 2019, the GP Ice Race event is derived from Scandinavian skijoring, but the race cars pull the skiers and there are show and demo runs.

The excellent driving characteristics of this off-road vehicle on ice and in snow led engineers to the idea of installing the all-wheel drive system of the VW Iltis in a series-production Audi 80. The subsequent tests were especially impressive. And the result was a sporty Audi Coupé by the name of quattro. Its 147 kW/200 hp of power came from a more powerful variant of the 2.2-liter five-cylinder turbo engine presented in Fall 1979. The Audi quattro made its motorsport debut at the beginning of 1981 at the Jänner Rallye in Austria. The all-wheel-drive powerhouse from Ingolstadt revolutionized the international rally and racing scene from that point on. Reason enough, then, for Audi Tradition to bring some of its historical Audi quattro models – rally and street versions – out of storage for this year's event season. Classic events on Audi Tradition's program include the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England (July 9 to 12), the Eifel Rallye Festival in Daun (July 23 to 25), Classic Days at Schloss Dyck in Jüchen (July 31 to August 2), the home events Donau Classic (June 18 to 20) in Ingolstadt and Heidelberg Historic (July 9 to 11) near Neckarsulm, not to mention the Sachsen Classic show at the company's historic Zwickau location (August 13 to 15). The brand with the four rings will also be represented at the Rossfeld hillclimb in Berchtesgaden (September 25 to 27), as well as at Audi RegioSprint in Ingolstadt (April 25) and, for the first time ever, at the Copenhagen Historic Grand Prix (August 1 and 2). Historic motorcycles and an Auto Union Typ C can be seen and heard at Sachsenring Classic in Hohenstein-Ernstthal (May 8 to 10). The season will be rounded out by the model car fairs in the Audi Forum Neckarsulm (November 8) and Ingolstadt (November 29).

The front axle – within milliseconds and unnoticeably for the driver – is additionally activated only as needed – for instance, when there is a demand for high driving dynamics, high torque transfer, or in the case of a low coefficient of friction due to wetness, mud or snow. What is so unique about electric quattro drive compared to competitors? Audi is the first manufacturer to enable highly variable torque distribution in the e-tron S due to the drive topology featuring one motor at the front axle and two electric motors installed in a housing on the rear axle. In combination with sophisticated control and regulation, the electric quattro, due to its single-axle operation with variable, unnoticeably additional activation of the front axle, resolves the conflicting aims of dynamic performance and efficiency. Audi integrates functions such as electric torque vectoring on the rear axle, wheel-selective torque control due to a braking intervention with the mechanical differential, and high recuperation performance in an electric powertrain. Additionally, drivers can adjust the high variability of the system to their personal preferences by individual program selections. When do e-tron and e-tron S models activate their electric all-wheel drive? The electric all-wheel drive is active in situations of degrading grip on road surfaces with low coefficients of friction, in particularly dynamic driving conditions, when the driver demands high traction power, or when maximum recuperation is desired – in other words, the recovery of energy during braking and deceleration. If the driver decelerates the car to a level of 0.3 g, the electric motors act as generators, using the car’s kinetic energy and converting it into electrical energy which, in turn, charges the battery. This applies to more than 90 percent of all braking maneuvers in everyday driving situations.

Professional rally driver Harald Demuth mastered the snow-covered 47-meter (154.2-ft) ascent in the Audi 100 CS quattro. More than 80 percent of the roughly 20 models that Audi will present in 2020 will be launched on the market with at least one quattro variant. 92.2 percent of all cars that Audi delivered to customers in Canada in 2019 had a quattro drive. As a result, the country in North America has the highest proportion of all-wheel drive cars in the world. From 110 kW (150 PS) in the Q2 35 TDI quattro S tronic right through to 456 kW (620 PS) in the R8 V10 performance quattro supercar, Audi provides its customers with the benefits of permanent all-wheel drive throughout the entire model range. 200 PS (147 kW) is what the original quattro had at its disposal – 40 years ago, that was a value truly worthy of a sports car. At this point, the Porsche 911 SC produced just 4 PS more. Around 720 PS (530 kW) is what the five-cylinder-turbo in the Audi 90 quattro produced, which competed in the IMSA GTO series in 1989 – the 2.2-liter four-valve powerplant summoned no less than 329 PS from every liter (0.04 cu ft) of displacement. The drivers, Hurley Haywood and Hans-Joachim Stuck, won almost every second race in the North American series. Audi exploited the technical rules of the IMSA series to the full: A tubular trellis frame supported a greatly widened plastic body, while the tires were up to 360 millimeters (14.2 in) wide. Up to 973 Nm (717.6 lb-ft) of torque is produced by the three electric motors in the Audi e-tron S and Audi e-tron S Sportback. The two fully electric SUV models achieve a power output of 370 kW (507 PS) in boost mode.

It started with my late arrival to Dallas because of so much snow in Italy that my flight was cancelled. Then in free practise we could only drive a few laps due to some problems with the car. In qualifying it was raining most of the time and so we could drive the first time under good conditions during the warm up this morning. After all this, I’m even more happy about winning this race.” Tom Kristensen (#1): “I am very happy and proud to have won this race. But I have to admit that we did not have the quickest car over the weekend. During the race I couldn’t follow Emanuele without pushing the tires too much. After the mishap of Emanuele I took the lead and I went for it. To save the tires I put the break balance as much as I could to the rear. In the end that was the key to win the race.” Frank Biela (#2): “Fighting through the field was fun. The first cars were easy to overtake, but then I really had to concentrate every moment on what the other drivers were doing. I always had Dindo and the Panoz in sight which helped a lot. It’s a pity we didn’t win this race because I think our car was good for a victory today.” Emanuele Pirro (#2): “This is a good team result, but we should have won this race because we were quickest in qualifying and quickest in the race. But I had a stupid accident because the driver of a slower car made a mistake, braked much too late and hit me. After that incident the car was not that perfect anymore.” Dr Wolfgang Ullrich, Head of Audi Sport: “We didn’t expect this race to be easy and we were right. It was a great effort from Frank to fight his way to the front of the field. Unfortunately then the car was involved in an accident. Dindo and Tom drove consistent times to earn their victory. Nevertheless it was thrilling until the very last minute because the new Panoz was in good shape and had a little bit more luck with the yellows.