Each week, our German correspondent slices and dices the latest rumblings, news, and quick-hit driving impressions from the other side of the pond. His byline may say Jens Meiners, but we simply call him . . . the Continental.
There are great moments in the life of a motor journalist. For me, one of the best was driving a historic Sport Quattro that Audi brought along to the launch of the A1 Quattro in Sweden. Its short wheelbase and long overhangs look rather awkward, and in fact cutting the wheelbase by 12 inches was a half-baked attempt to counter the mid-engined, all-wheel-drive rally cars like the Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 and the Lancia Delta S4 that began to appear as a response to the original Audi Quattro.
In roadgoing trim—Audi built a little over 200 street cars for homologation purposes—the Sport Quattro is powered by a 306-hp variation of its legendary 2.1-liter inline-five. The car feels ultra-fast in a straight line, and the second wind above 3500 rpm—when the turbo hits full boost—would be impressive even in a modern sports car. But in corners, this car’s evil nature breaks through. The Sport Quattro has a tendency to understeer, but load changes will make the rear step out in an instant. It’s not a friendly car to drive quickly, and rally drivers like Walter Röhrl and Stig Blomqvist unequivocally state that Audi would have been better off refining the Rallye Quattro with the regular wheelbase. Nevertheless, the Sport Quattro, with its kevlar and fiberglass body, is an icon. It was an extraordinary experience to push it to the limits.
Audi claims the A1 Quattro is inspired by the Sport Quattro, and we agree it looks similarly wild, although graced with more digestible proportions. There is one detail I loathed: the plaque that says “1 of 333″ instead of disclosing the car’s actual production number. Obviously Audi wants to spare its sales and distribution channels having to deal with touchy customers throwing a fit when they don’t get their desired number. AMG started the annoying uniformity with its special editions years ago. I’d take any individual number over “one of the collective.”
A few kilometers south of Ingolstadt, BMW is launching its M Performance line with derivatives of the 5-series, the X5, and the X6. In the M550d xDrive and its SUV sister models, BMW’s 3.0-liter straight-six diesel is boosted by a Borg Warner–supplied tri-turbo unit: the package includes two small VTG high-pressure turbos and one large low-pressure turbo. The result is 376 hp from 4000 to 4400 rpm and 546 lb-ft of torque from 2000 3000 rpm. Thus equipped, the portly 5-series reaches 62 mph in a claimed 4.7 seconds and tops out at a governed 155 mph.
The M Performance line is targeting Audi’s S models, and keeps a repectful distance to the true M cars. The diesels won’t come to the U.S., but we will see gasoline-powered M Performance cars in the future. The Z4 sDrive 35is would probably be an M Performance model now, and a similar derivative of the 3-series is likely. Moreover, a derivative of the 7-series would finally provide BMW with a true S -lass AMG and Audi S8 fighter.
While BMW is launching tri-turbos in the diesel-powered M Performance cars, I hear that Porsche is getting a tri-turbo ready for an upcoming gasoline engine. Meanwhile, an Ingolstadt engineer probably exaggerated only slightly when he joked that the complexity makes hybridization look like a low-cost proposition.
Last week, I drove the Volkswagen Passat Alltrack near Kitzbühel, Austria. It’s a crossover based on the front- and all-wheel-drive European Passat station wagon, but the changes to the car go slightly beyond the usual cosmetics. It sits higher, and there is an “Off Road” button that helps you keep any speed between 1.2 and 19 mph when going downhill—if traction permits. When stepping off uphill, simply mash the gas pedal; the computer will select ideal revs. The electronic limited-slip function and the dual-clutch transmission are manipulated for better off-road performance as well. Lacking a low-range transfer case, the Passat Alltrack won’t get as far as a true off-roader, but it will hold its ground against most modern SUVs. I liked it.
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