The Audi Quattro competition programme began formally at the 1981 Jänner Rallye in Austria, following a development run at the Algarve Rally in Portugal in October–November 1980. The original competition Quattro was largely based on the bodyshell of the road-going model, with its turbocharged inline-five engine producing approximately 300 PS. In 1981 Michèle Mouton became the first female driver to win a World Rally Championship event, driving a Quattro to victory at the San Remo Rally. Hannu Mikkola won the 1983 drivers' championship, and Stig Blomqvist took the 1984 title, with Audi also winning the manufacturers' title in 1982 and 1984.
The original competition car was progressively developed into the A1 and A2 evolutions. The A2, driven by Blomqvist, Mikkola, and Walter Röhrl, won eight world rallies in 1983 and 1984 combined.
To remain competitive as rivals escalated their Group B programmes, Audi developed the Sport Quattro: a substantially shorter and lighter derivative built for homologation. Only 224 road examples were produced. The competition version featured a carbon-kevlar body shell, wider wheel arches and nine-inch wheels (versus the road car's eight-inch), and a steeper windscreen rake borrowed from the Audi 80 to reduce cockpit reflections. The wheelbase was shortened by 320 mm compared with the Ur-Quattro.
The engine was a 2,133 cc all-aluminium inline-five with DOHC four-valve-per-cylinder head, KKK K27 turbocharger, and Bosch LH-Jetronic fuel injection. The road version produced 306 PS at 6,700 rpm; competition specification initially reached approximately 450 PS. The S1 made its competition debut at the 1985 Rally Argentina, driven by Blomqvist.
Michèle Mouton won the 1985 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in a Sport Quattro, setting a new course record.
The Audi Sport Quattro S1 E2 was introduced at the end of 1985 as a further development. The engine displaced 2,110 cc with a bore and stroke of 79.5 mm by 85.0 mm, officially rated at 480 PS, though actual output exceeded 500 PS at 8,000 rpm. The final factory cars of 1986 were rated at 600 PS. A recirculating air system was added to the turbocharger to maintain boost during throttle-off moments — on gearshifts or through corners — allowing near-instant resumption of full power. The E2 received a distinctive aerodynamic package with large front and rear wings, and its kerb weight was reduced to 1,090 kg. The car could accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.1 seconds. Some examples were equipped with a power-shift gearbox described as a forerunner of DSG technology.
Walter Röhrl and Christian Geistdörfer won the 1985 San Remo Rally in the S1 E2. In 1987, after Group B had been discontinued, Röhrl drove a modified S1 E2 to victory at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.
The S1 E2 was the final Group B car produced by the Audi works team. Following the 1986 Rally Portugal, where fatal crowd accidents prompted the FIA to abandon Group B, Audi withdrew from the World Rally Championship. The programme had established four-wheel drive as the dominant technical architecture in rallying, forcing every major competitor — Lancia, Peugeot, Toyota — to adopt similar systems. The Sport Quattro's influence over rally car design proved lasting well beyond the Group B era.
The Audi Quattro programme transformed how the world thought about all-wheel drive, both in motorsport and on road cars. Every subsequent Audi production model using the quattro four-wheel-drive badge traces its identity back to the principles demonstrated by the competition cars. The original Quattro and Sport Quattro are widely regarded as among the most significant racing cars of the twentieth century, and the Sport Quattro S1's distinctive silhouette — with its massive aerodynamic appendages and shortened bodywork — remains one of Group B's most iconic images.
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