The ultimate stealth estate? With looks that don’t exactly shout exotic origins, this super-rare 1995 Audi RS2 nevertheless boasted supercar performance when it was first unleashed, with acceleration to rival that of McLaren’s renowned F1. Just 180 right hand drive examples were made – and this might just be the finest, ready and waiting for its next adventure. The RS2’s secret is that it’s basically a Porsche in Audi disguise.
The RS2 was the brainchild of then-Porsche boss Ferdinand Piech, who had the idea of a super-fast estate and wanted to power it with the fastest possible version of Audi’s five-cylinder engine, linked to the company’s rally-proven Quattro four-wheel drive system. This then-unlikely notion became something of an after-hours skunkworks project - the forerunner of Audi’s future production of fast, desirable, utility-oriented cars that are such a feature of the company’s output today. Indeed, the RS2 was the first of Audi’s storied RS high performance cars. Humble Audi 80 estate that formed the basis for the project didn’t quite know what had hit it.
Power for a sports car manufacturer is everything. So Porsche were hardly likely to leave the Audi power unit untouched – and they set to work getting the most out of the five-cylinder unit that was to be at the heart of what Porsche called the P1. Power output is 311 bhp, 60 mph is reached in 4.8 seconds and motoring journalists at the time found it was faster to 30 mph than McLaren’s renowned Gordon Murray designed F1. Top speed is a handy 158 mph, which should mean that you’ll get back from that essential visit to Ikea before the meatballs are cold.
Built for speed
Suspension is all Porsche, along with – you’ll be glad to know – the Brembo brakes. Tasty five spoke alloys, the major external sign that this is no ordinary 31 year old Audi along with a discreet RS grille badge, are Porsche Cup I items, despite their Audi hub caps. Aficionados may notice that side mirrors are also from the Porsche parts bin.
Stealth rules inside too, with added performance touches. Bolstered sports Recaro seats on this example are in black leather, with high angled head rests. Carbon effect inlays are among the first ever used. Dials are in white, a classic 1990s performance touch, but in truth it’s pressing the accelerator that the true Porsche influence will reveal itself.
This impeccable and rare machine is available through the good people at Fast Classics. Price? Well, you’ll find many a fast Audi estate in the classifieds – we found a nice RS4 Avant for £55,000 for instance – but nothing as rare or quite as stealthy as this RS2, the ancestor of them all, created by Porsche. That explains the price tag: £79,995 and it could be in your garage ready for a very fast trip to the tip and back, perhaps via Germany to visit its origins. We’ll happily come along for the ride.
Next up: The best German car brands.
