The days of relatively simple Audi Sport cars look done - making the old ones look more enticing than ever
The days of relatively simple Audi Sport cars look done - making the old ones look more enticing than everThe new RS5 is more significant than just another M3 rival from Audi.
Its first PHEV marks the beginning of Audi Sport’s truly electrified era. All future models will surely have to come with some sort of electric assistance, meaning more power, more tech, more weight and more money. We’re already at the point where the car called the RS4 until recently is a £100,000, 639hp, 2,355kg prospect; where on earth will the RS6 land? It’s not all doom and gloom, of course.
Reviews for the RS5 have been positive, thanks to the torque vectoring advances made possible by electric; and we shouldn’t forget that the e-tron GT remains a fine large EV. This is the future of fast cars, seemingly, if we want to keep combustion as well as emissions compliance. Audi is hardly alone in its strategy.
But for those of us who buy secondhand, a petrol-electric drivetrain seems even more daunting than a 8,000rpm one… The move towards hybridisation is doubly disappointing because, while Audi is hardly known for light and simple cars, its sole attempt at just such a hot hatch was absolutely brilliant. The S1 was always a bit of an outlier, and all the more charming for it.
Having a 2.0-litre engine was odd in a class full of 1.5s and 1.6s; being offered only with a manual gearbox was strange given Audi's auto obsession; and featuring an entirely new rear axle - benefitting from thePlus it was a proper little hoot to drive. Not Fiesta flingable, sure, but fast, agile, well-balanced and engaging. Larger S3s never quite delivered the same feeling of effervescence that coursed through the S1.
Which it managed while still retaining a great interior and smart design. It was all the good bits of an Audi and all the good bits of a small hot hatch in one car. No wonder they were popular. Despite a price that rivalled larger hatches like the Leon Cupra, the S1 was little slower, and of course meant getting the four rings on a performance car for less than anything else in the range.
Some cool colours and options were offered, as was a five-door; using the EA888 engine meant all sorts of tuning possibilities as well. Despite being on sale for just four years from 2014 to 2018, it feels like the S1 sold well. Certainly it proved that Audi could do relatively back to basics fun.
What felt like old school a decade ago now seems like an incredible throwback to a simpler time, complete with buttons, beautiful HVAC controls and - brace yourselves - silver wheels. That and the small fact that it’s 10 grand. Well, £10,985 to be specific, though it still looks like good value against similar cars. Of course you could go and buy a Clio, Fiesta or 208 for the same , but the vibe is undoubtedly different.
You wouldn’t be against an S1 holding onto its value a little better as well, with none on PH less than £8,000 yet. Plus the fact that, sadly enough, cars like this won’t happen again from Audi - or anyone else, for that matter - in the immediate future.
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