The Audi TT RS 40 Years of Quattro made the headlines about a month ago, but not necessarily for the right reasons. Celebrating four decades of AWD knowhow from Ingolstadt, the special edition is a retro take on the Tourist Trophy recipe with an exorbitant price tag of €114,040. That’s about $136,000 at current exchange rates, so nearly as much as an R8 V10 RWD ($142,700).
It has now been spotted at the Nurburgring where it was sharing the legendary track with a TT RS Roadster. The 40 Years of Quattro variant is going to be a rare sight, in part because only 40 cars will be made, and also because Audi will sell all of them in its domestic market Germany. Interestingly, the prototype spotted at the Nordschleife lacked the white paint and wheels of the vehicle featured in the official images.
13 Photos
The vehicle did feature the same decals and body kit with the front bumper canards and the fixed wing in the back. It’s unclear why Audi was actually testing the 40 Years of Quattro since the changes over a regular TT RS Coupe are limited to the car’s appearance. That said, the aero kit was developed in the wind tunnel, so the Four Rings might have been putting the finishing touches out in the real world.
Another piece of the puzzle is why the car doesn’t look exactly the same as the German-only special edition. Could it be because Audi is planning to launch the 40 Years of Quattro in other markets with a different livery? It’s only a supposition at this point, not that many people would rush to pay six figures for an already slow-selling sports car that has an uncertain future.
Then there’s the TT RS Roadster chasing the coupe in the first part of the video before taking the lead. Both prototypes were being driven at full tilt around some sections of the ‘Ring, with the turbocharged inline-five engine playing its unmistakable soundtrack. While this spy video raises more questions than answers, it’s a good opportunity to see the Tourist Trophy in action.
Enjoy it while you still can as Audi might turn the TT into something else later this decade, moving away from the little sports car it has been since 1998.