writeup on sport Q

[Eliot Lim <eliot@u.washington.edu>]

here is something from my archives.. enjoy..

eliot


mel nichols of CAR magazine on the sport quattro:  circa 1985

so put me on a highway
show me a sign
and take it to the limit one more time

the sign said nuremburg and the speedo said 163 mph.  but the limit?
the limit was nowhere in sight.  i wondered if i would even near it.
this car seemed to have *so much*. i'd already learned that it flew
from zero to 60mph and back to zero in less than eight seconds.  its
acceleration was enough to mash me hard back into the seat.  it put
its power down in corners like no other car i'd driven.  its braking
force made my eyes feel as if they'd shoot from their sockets.  and it
was so stable at 150mph and more that it was an effortless matter to
reach out and slip the Eagles into the cassette deck.

take it to the limit?  that had been my desire. [..] but, with this
audi perhaps it was an old fashioned notion; an idea that belonged to
a time when cars had less grip and the edges of the envelope were
closer.  even in a testarossa or a (ferrari) GTO, there was the
likelihood that sooner or later the brakes would lock or the tail
would flick out as the power overcame the rear grip.

in the first 10 minutes this audi suggested that the new era for the
supercar promised five years ago by a handful of engineers from
ingolstadt had come to pass; that within this curious kevlar body
lurked the ultimate automotive technology of the age: [..specs deleted
except for:..] and nothing less than Porsche 917 brakes with second
generation anti lock circuitry.  it suggested that it had such high
reserves of roadholding and braking, coupled with such speed that,
without Mikkola or Miss Mouton ( World Rally Champions who drove
quattros) in the driving seat, reaching its limits on the road might
be beyond any sane likelihood.


we were running along one of the ribbons of road that weave between
bavaria's forests - at an extraordinarily effortless 110 to 120 mph.
at first, despite his relaxed mode, i thought herr hagemeister was
exaggerating when he remarked that we were travelling at perhaps 80%
of the Sport's potential.  i was tensed, ready for a bend or an
obstacle to catch him unaware. and there were times when i was certain
we were flying towards bends at a pace that *would* be too much for
even the Sport's 1.2g cornering power and his cool reactions.  but [..]
as i was to discover later, [..] i needn't have accorded our progress
a moment's concern.

as he kept devouring the little forest roads with such great speed
and such little fuss, despite patches of damp and frequent strips of
badly broken tarmac, i began to realise that the Sport Quattro was
rather different, rather more significant and very much better than
i'd imagined.

(author drives it now..)

with the engine warm, i unleased full power in second (306 bhp, 85
mph) as we curved around the tight loop taking us out of ingolstadt
and on to the autobahn.  just extra loading at the wheel, a trace of
audi's designed in understeer - and extraordinary cornering speed.  in
a fwd car, the nose would have been running wildly wide; in a rwd,
even a mid engined one, the betting would have to be that the tail
would have snapped out.  this car just put its power down and raced
around the bend.  by way of education, i backed off - hard. there was
just the easiest, gentlest tightening of the nose with the Sport
maintaining such poise, though its attitude had changed, that the
flick of opposite lock i applied instinctively was entirely
unnecessary.  going back on the power, the transition was just as
gentle and stable the other way.  To lose traction altogether, to make
the thing slide...how hard would you need to go?

[..]

but we soon saw the exit from the autobahn that we knew led to a
network of lovely little roads running through the altmuhl valley. a
few gearshifts later, the audi was running at an effortless 120 to 130
mph. as it had been when full out on the autobahn, here, too, it
seemed to have such exceptional stability.  it allowed me that mental
state possible in truly great cars; plenty of time to look and judge
and act; to drive cleanly and accurately, fast but not flustered.