This is the Effect an Audi A1 Quattro has on Road Test Editors

The Audi A1 Quattro is a limited-edition model built in only 333 units that showcases the brand’s engineering expertise and also serves as a tribute to the iconic Audi Quattro. Rare and expensive, the A1 Quattro is basically a pocket rocket that Audi built just to show it could.

The crew from XCar in the UK managed to get their hands on an A1 Quattro for a test drive and were absolutely impressed by it. I mean, who wouldn’t be impressed with an all-wheel drive B-segment premium car that is powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter gasoline engine developing 252 bhp?

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Audi Shows Off R18 Le Mans Racer-Themed A1 Sports Hatch at Worthersee

Audi has always been very proud of its racing heritage, and while before it was all about Quattro and rallying, over the years, they’ve made their presence felt in the world of Le Mans, too. Now, they have chosen this year’s Worthersee GTI meeting to reveal a specially themed A1, which features the R18 competition kit. Read more »

Audi A1 and A3 get New 1.4 TSI with Cylinder Deactivation System and Up to 60.1mpg in the UK

Audi is welcoming the addition of the VW Group's new 1.4-liter turbocharged petrol engine (TFSI) with Cylinder-on-Demand (CoD) technology in the A1 and A3 hatchback ranges in Britain.

The new 1.4 TSI CoD unit can run on two-cylinders under low and intermediate loads and when coasting, at engine speeds between 1,400 and 4,000 rpm, and torque between approximately 25 and 75 Nm, to greatly improve fuel economy.

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Audi A1 Quattro Versus the Original Ur-Quattro from 1989

The original Ur-Quattro from the 1980s is the quintessential Audi that defined the brand with the four-ring logo, both on the track and on the showroom floors. While it’s a completely different world today, some things remain the same for Audi, including its love for all-wheel drive sports cars.

Audi says the spirit and soul of the Ur-Quattro lives on many of its modern-day creations, such as the limited-run A1 Quattro, of which only 333 examples were produced.

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Audi A1 Quattro Beats Nissan GT-R on a Wet and Twisty Track, Rains Cats and Dogs Over England…

Pitting an Audi A1 city car against the almighty Nissan GT-R sounds silly, even if said A1 is the limited run Quattro model with a 253HP engine, a 0-62 mph (0-100 km/h) time of 5.7 seconds and all-wheel drive, and the venue is a twisty and wet track.

The GT-R is much more expensive and has double the power, probably double the electronics, too, and is the car to have under those exact circumstances. Put simply, it’s probably the fastest production car bar none in such a scenario.

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Spied: Audi Also Working on Sportback Version of New S1 Quattro

Back in the summer, our spies snooped out a three-door Audi A1 prototype in Europe, which we believed to be the future S1 Quattro. As it turns out, the Ingolstadt carmaker is also testing a five-door version of its pocket rocket, the S1 Quattro Sportback. Read more »

Audi A1 Quattro Bumped to 302HP by ABT Sportsline

Even though Audi created the limited run A1 Quattro as the ultimate performance model of its premium sub-compact series, ABT Sportsline believes that there's always room for improvement.

In factory trim, the "Little Devil", as the German tuner's founder and CEO Hans-Jürgen Abt names it, comes with a 2.0-litre turbocharged engine that generates 252hp (256PS / 188 kW) at 6,000rpm and 350Nm (258 lb-ft) of peak torque between 2,500 and 4,500rpm for a 0-100km/h sprint time of 5.7 seconds.

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Audi A1 Sportback gets the Tuning Treatment from ABT Sportsline

After the three-door Audi A1, it's time for ABT Sportsline to show some tuning love to the five-door Sportback variant of Ingolstadt's premium supermini.

The German tuner offers a complete mix of cosmetic and performance enhancements, including a lite styling package as seen on the model in these pictures and which includes vents on the front fenders, side skirt décor parts, chrome tailpipes and a choice of 17- and 18-inch alloy wheels.

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Scoop: Is Audi Preparing New S1 Quattro Sport Hatch?

When Audi presented an 182hp (185PS) version of its A1 premium supermini equipped with a slightly more powerful version of the VW Polo GTI's 1.4-liter TFSI engine back in 2010, we were wondering why the German automaker didn't use the S1 moniker.

One reason could have been that the automaker had not yet readied a quattro system for the A1, which came the following year with the announcement on a new Quattro model powered by a 2.0-liter turbocharged four with 253hp (256PS).

Aside from the significant power and price gap between the A1 1.4 TFSI and the A1 Quattro, the latter will be produced in a limited number of 333 examples, which means the brand with the four rings will eventually be left without a high performance supermini in its range.

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Audi Enhances A1 Lineup with Three New Amplified Special Editions

Audi is bringing three new special edition models of its A1 three-door and A1 Sportback five-door hatchbacks to the European market.

Named Amplified, the new A1s feature exclusive content from the carmaker's, quattro GmbH and Audi Genuine accessories parts list and are painted in Misano Red (amplified red) or Glacier White (amplified white).

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Pocket Rocket 252hp Audi A1 Quattro Tested on Gravel and Tarmac

Even though Audi's quattro GmbH engineers may have developed the A1 Quattro with gravel in mind as part of its rally heritage, we somehow find it hard to believe that any one of the 333 owners of the limited production model would actually drive it off the road.

And this is why press cars and magazines exist… German publication Sport Auto took an Audi A1 Quattro to test it on both tarmac and gravel, giving us a short taste of what to expect from the upcoming issue of the magazine through a teaser video that you can watch after the jump.

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