Audi Group S rally prototype: no one knows him
Posted on 08-04-2016 to 19:00 by autoblogger – 31 Comments”
A story about the Audi Group S rally prototype.
It was a beautiful fight to rivals Audi, Peugeot, Lancia and Ford in the mid-eighties uitvochten on the international rallystages. Illustrious names from that time, the Renault 5 Turbo, Peugeot 205 T16, Lancia Delta S4, Audi quattro, Lancia 037 and Ford RS200. It was all technically advanced and rapid prototypes, which are only loosely based on street-legal car. There are golden hardly any restrictions and this period is often seen as the highlight of the rally.
Audi competed in the Group B class of the World Rally Championship (WRC), the Rally quattro S1, a model that is relatively close to the seriemodel was that, we present the Ur-Quattro. By the Sport Quattro build as homologatiemodel – with a shorter wheelbase – was Audi an unbeatable graveltijger develop, in the course of his career, still bruter bespoilerd was.
A new prototype
But Audi wanted to take the next step. Therefore, Audi Sport to work on a dedicated competition car to build. The plan was to move into the new category’s go for a drive in 1987 and would start. The new car had nothing to do with Audi’s straatmodellen: not in technique and not in appearance. He got a tube frame, plastic bodywork and the back was a five cylinder 2.1 litre engine with turbo to 500 hp. The only part that he shared with Audi’s straatmodellen of that time was the heck.
The prototype looks a little stocky and the lines reminds me of the concept behind the Ford RS200 which had already participated in the WRC. Two Group S rally cars were built, but they have never participated in competitions.
Year
Because 1986 was a year for rallying. During the Rally of Portugal became Joaquim Santos the power steering lost of his Ford RS200 if he wants to avoid a group of spectators. Therefore, he drives the audience in on the other side of the road, with 31 wounded and 3 deaths.
Later that year were Henri Toivonen and his navigator Sergio Cresto during the Tour de Corse. Toivonen’s Lancia S4 flew of the road and rolled down a steep, wooded slope. By the impact, tore the fuel tank and the car caught fire. Toivonen and Cresto were out of their car ejected and survived the fall.
After Marc Surer in the Hessen Rally on the death escaped, but his co-director Michel By was killed, decided the world autosportfederatie FIA immediately stop the Group B and Group S. The new class stopped even before they had started. So ended the golden rallyeeuw with a black border.
13 Km
Audi decided in the same year for safety reasons from the WRC. The Audi Group S has never been able to prove in the field. That is why the odometer in the car is only 13 km away. Audi Group S prototype, have rarely shown to the public. Maybe he is looking therefore a bit sad from his eyes: “Why, no one knows me?” But from now on, though, because the Audi Group is to be seen at Techno Classica in Essen, together with its equally unique concept-brothers.
Gallery: Audi Group S Concept
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With thanks to Robert van den Oever and Maarten van der Pas for this contribution.