The best modern Audis ever made

The rise of an unpromising relaunch that became a byword for German technical breakthroughs, stringent quality, safety-backed performance and design elegance.

Arguably the German marque represents the epitome of the internal-combustion engine epoch. Audi’s back-catalogue bulges with brilliance but we think these are the pick of its greatest-ever 40 years:

After ownership of Auto Union switched from Mercedes-Benz to Volkswagen in 1964, the days of the smoky old DKW range were numbered. The front-wheel drive DKW F102 model was redesigned with four-stroke (instead of two-stroke) engines and a slow haul upmarket began with a rebrand as Audi – a name last see on a car in 1939. The Super 90 was the best of the F103 series, with a 1.8-litre twin-choke carb engine giving 89bhp so that it could hit  100mph.

The first all-Audi Audi in 1968, carrying over some of the old drivetrain (with new strut front suspension), but in a handsome new executive saloon body. The roomy and comfortable cabin and the exacting build quality were impressive, and Audi began to pick off buyers who might otherwise have chosen a Rover 2000 or Citroen DS. Fuel-injection for the largest 1.9-litre engine arrived in 1975.

Media verdicts at the time that this four-seater fastback had something of the baby-Aston Martin to it must have been music to Audi’s ears. Under the bonnet was a 115bhp, fuel-injected engine, while vented disc brakes hid behind wider wheels. This good looker with a spacious cockpit would also remain quite rare, with just over 30,000 examples sold in seven years.

The little 50 of 1974 can rightly claim to be the first ‘premium’ supermini with transverse-mounted four-cylinder 1.1- or 1.3-litre engines, front-wheel drive, hatchback, folding rear seat and Audi allure. Volkswagen’s version of the very same car, the Polo, followed its launch by only a few weeks, and by ’78 the tiny Audi 50 was quietly discontinued.

The Audi 80 received a great reception as a high-quality small saloon in 1972, bringing it the accolade of European Car Of The Year when it was highly praised by judges for its quality, roadholding, comfort and safety. Exciting, though, it was not… until a 1.6-litre engine with Bosch K-Jetronic fuel injection was installed for the vivid, 110bhp GTE boy racer of 1975. This same engine found another great home in the first Volkswagen Golf GTi.

Audi modified its recently-unveiled flagship saloon model with a fastback tailgate as a semi-estate to go head-to-head with big European sellers like the Renault 20, Rover 2300/2600 and non-hatchback Citroen CX. Like its 100 saloon counterpart, the biggest power unit was unique at the time: a five-cylinder that came in 2.2-litre petrol or 2.0 diesel versions. Refinement was always a strong suit.

A somewhat forgotten car these days, here is Audi’s first attempt at a super-saloon, with a turbocharged edition of its inline five-cylinder engine that could propel it to 139mph and 0-60mph in 7.5sec. The dressed-up 100 bodywork looked pretty slick but 170bhp of hair-trigger power through the front wheels did have its limitations… The Audi 200 was named Audi 5000 in North America.

A truly game-changing performance car. The Quattro united four-wheel drive with a turbocharged engine for a car whose performance and roadholding were as sensational as each other. Once anti-lock brakes were added in 1981, the Quattro’s winning formula was complete (and its Audi 80 Coupé roots were almost unrecognisable) and the rally victories came thick and fast.

Pininfarina’s 1981 show car is the only publically revealed collaboration between the German manufacturer and the Italian design house. The basis was the then-new Quattro and the lead feature were the headlights, much smaller than normal thanks to their novel elliptical-lenses provided by Carello. It was fully functional, and later timed at 136mph by Swiss magazine Automobil Revue.

The car world got to understand what made a large car truly aerodynamic with this impressive saloon. Its co-efficient of drag (Cd) of 0.30, more wind-cheating than most supercars, was proudly stated on its side windows in decals. The new 100 exemplified the ‘Vorsprung Durch technik’ slogan that appeared in Audi marketing at the same time, and its slippery shape endowed it with class-leading fuel economy.

This short-chassis variant of the Quattro was intended to contest Group B rallying in 1984, but after that series was axed for its dangerously high speeds, the Sport found a new role as a relentless hillclimb machine, storming up Pike’s Peak in the USA. A small number of road cars were sold for homologation with a special, all-alloy 302bhp engine, and today they’re highly collectable.

This third-generation of Audi 80, smooth and sober, occupied an envied spot in the market between Mercedes’ senior-citizen 190E and BMW’s youthful 3 Series, and was hugely successful as a result. The closely-related 90 spin-off catered for performance drivers with five-cylinder engines and turbochargers, and both models could be had with four-wheel drive.

For a large estate car, this was as about impressive as you could get in the late 1980s, in price as much as in tech. The ultimate incarnation mixed the sleek five-door body with a 200bhp turbo five-cylinder driving all four wheels via the quattro system. A super-plush interior and period must-haves like an in-car CD player completed the desirable package.

The technical fireworks here were reserved for the electrically-operated roof, which folded away beautifully to leave an elegantly gorgeous-looking profile ideal for posing. Launched in 1991 with a modest 133bhp, the four-seater Cabriolet received a huge image boost when Diana, Princess of Wales acquired one in 1994, and for a few short months it became one of the most photographed cars on the planet.

Here was Audi’s initial stab at an ultimate saloon to take its battle to Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar. The heart of the 1991 car was an aluminium V8 powerplant, Audi’s first, with a 3.6-litre capacity initially and 4.2 later, and it was also the marque’s first car to hitch an automatic transmission to the standard quattro 4x4 system. The use of a modified 100 bodyshell didn’t impress, even though there was a stretch-limo version called the Lang.

Porsche both co-developed and assembled this cult car for its cousin Audi, which at the time was looking for a performance fillip to its image. It was based on the 80 Avant but equipped with a 311bhp five-cylinder turbo engine, six-speed manual gearbox, four-wheel drive and Porsche’s own braking and suspension systems. It was shatteringly quick, with 0-62mph in 4.8sec, and with 2200 built always sought-after.

Audi’s second attempt at a luxury saloon in 1994 was an impressive machine, carrying over the V8 engines and even adding a W12 in a shortlived, late-life über-limo. The car’s huge visual heft was illusory because underneath was a ground-breaking and lightweight, all-aluminium monocoque called the Audi Space Frame. Massive depreciation came later to provide an awful lot of secondhand car for the money…

Without question one of the best compact cars of the 1990s, and a hugely important step for Audi as it introduced a Golf-sized three- and five-door hatchback to its line-up for the first time. It just couldn’t build them fast enough and the A3 and the fast S3 version won almost universal praise in every respect – we at Autocar rated it the very best car in its class.

There was no doubt the original 1998 TT was a quick car thanks to its 1.8-litre 180bhp turbo engine giving 0-60 acceleration in 6.1sec. Yet this 1998 two-plus two provided a lot to admire just standing still with its smooth, Bauhaus-inspired retro-futurism and slinky low roofline. There was nothing else quite like it, despite the fact that it was largely an A3 inside. Later models included a very appealing two-seater open roadster.

Audi’s 1990s concept cars made tantalising display pieces, but this is probably the most significant and prescient one of the era, a compact crossover that heralded the leading design trend of the 20th century. It had three doors, a removeable carbonfibre hardtop, and a 3.2-litre V6 engine, and although you could never actually buy one its influence did eventually feed into the production Q3. Still looks great today…

Audi returned to the city car in 1999 with the A2, a clever take on thrift with its all-aluminium construction, superb aerodynamic efficiency and narrow tyres. The three-cylinder diesel model could return an incredible 90mpg-plus, and the car came without an opening bonnet, just a service hatch for fluids and dipstick. Fascinating, clever, but expensive for its size.

This was Audi’s semi-off-roader introduced in 2000, equipped with an air suspension system to raise or lower its ride height depending on the terrain, and a low-range mode in the four-wheel drive system. A beefed-up floorpan, bigger wheels and robust plastic cladding were all added to the A6 Avant structure. It had all the 4x4 ability that most buyers would ever need.

This hot-rod packed a twin-turbo 4.2-litre V8 in an A6 package, and made its debut in 2002 as either a saloon or Avant estate. Cosworth lent an experienced hand to Audi’s quattro GmbH to engineer this continent-shrinker. Drawing on its 444bhp and 428lb ft of torque, it was ultra-rapid and very flexible, although the only option was a five-speed ZF Tiptronic auto.

It seemed too good to be true but within three years of this 2003 mid-engined show car being revealed it was going on sale and Audi was in the supercar business with the sensational R8. Albeit with some help from glamorous subsidiary Lamborghini, which supplied the running gear from its Gallardo, and eventually even its V10 engine as an alternative to Audi’s own V8.

Appalling or magnificent, depending on your view; Audi’s huge SUV was readied for buyers by 2004 and quickly became a major and profitable seller, twinned with the Porsche Cayenne. Still, seven seats made it probably the most commodious Audi ever, and this first version hit a new engineering peak with the offering of the world’s only production V12 diesel engine… although most came with V6 or V8 power. A big, very big, hit in the USA.