Audi has confirmed that a fire breathing Audi RS1 will join the German manufacturers line-up in 2017.
The pint-sized RS1 is set be the swansong for the first generation Audi A1, prior to a new model launching in 2018. Set to go on sale in early 2017, the Audi RS1 will build on the same platform as the already brisk Audi S1 (170kW370Nm) that is capable of accelerating to 100km/h in 5.7sec.
The RS1 will feature a reworked version of Audi’s widely used EA888 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder engine. The Audi RS1 is likely to receive slightly more power than the 210kW Audi TTRS and the 206kW Volkswagen Golf R, both use the same EA888 engine.
With a power bump in the vicinity of 230kW and the addition of a slick-shifting seven speed dual clutch automatic could see the Audi RS1 reaching triple figures in less than 4.5sec, enough to give Ford Focus RS owners something to think about.
Despite the potential to punch well into hyper-hatch territory, the micro Audi RS1 is most likely to square off with the Mini John Cooper Works 170kW/320Nm- a task that seems almost redundant given the Audi S1 already eclipses the Mini in terms of acceleration and outright speed.
The Audi RS1 is expected to debut at the 2017 Geneva Motorshow. Lackluster sales of the Audi S1 on the local market mean that there is no certainty that the Audi RS1 will reach Australia.
