Presumably you would have turned your nose up at every other reasonable S or RS badged Audi in your wait for scorching-hatchdom, but alas your wait is over as the latest Audi to feature a vast power hike and four-wheel drive is the littlest of them all, now badged the Audi S1 and costing R442 000 in three door guise (R449 500 in Sportback configuration).
That is A LOT OF MONEY for a VERY SMALL CAR and let’s be honest, when a few must have optional extras are ticked in haste, that base price will sky-rocket over half a bar.
Don’t worry though, because you too will skyrocketing to the horizon and back as this diminutive Audi reaches 100km/h in just 5.8 seconds (5.9 for the Sportback).
In their press release Audi waxes lyrical about the legendary 1980 S1 beast which dominated Word Rally in Audi’s heyday. But, there’s little more to compare than the badge itself and the proprietary Quattro technology.
Yes it is the first A1 to feature the all-wheel drive tech now synonymous with S and RS badged Audis but it’s what’s under the bonnet which will cause those with a fondness for fast hatchbacks to shudder and say a little prayer to the automotive Gods. The four-pot develops 170 kW and 370Nm. Phew!
And even better, those wanting to emulate their WRC Group B heroes rejoice as the S1 will only be available with a manual transmission.
For those who need a written description of visual differences to lesser A1 models, the S1 gains a whole new front bumper with S1 badging, beefed up side sills, and new rear bumper with a quad exhaust pipe layout. Xenon headlights are standard and the rear LED light clusters have a slightly different arrangement.
Among other standard specs the S1 has 17" 5-spoke alloy wheels, drive select with adaptive damping, Bluetooth connectivity with audio streaming, all-round, independent S sports suspension, and Audis progressive steering system with dynamic ratio. S1 sport seats will keep you locked in under hard cornering and come with a cloth/leather combination and S1 logos embossed on the seat backs. In case you forget you’re in a special A1, S1 logos feature on the steering wheel, instrument cluster and door sills.
