Audi S2 Coupé had an almost impossible task: to follow the Oerquattro!

Walter Röhrl summed it up succinctly. When asked how good the Quattro, Audi’s rally weapon, really was, he said you might as well put a trained monkey behind the wheel – he would still win. It wasn’t that simple, of course, but Röhrl’s subtle irony sums up how Audi shook the rally scene at the time. The 600 hp Audi S1 ​​E2 catapulted itself to 100 km/h in less than 2.9 seconds and took its driver to the podium in almost all major rallies. The impressive grip effectively compensated for the engine placed very far in the front and the model laid the foundation for Audi’s image as a manufacturer of dynamic driving cars with permanent four-wheel drive.

It was by no means an easy task for the Audi engineers after that to develop a worthy spiritual successor to Audi’s image miracle weapon. Built from October 1988 to November 1995, the Coupé had a wind tunnel-optimized design that was closely related to that of the civilian Audi 80 B3. The iconic wide wheel arches of the original Quattro shone here because of their absence. As a tribute to his fast ancestors, the new sportsman wore two small silver-colored S2 logos. It was also equipped with the five-cylinder in-line engine with multi-valve technology, known from the Quattro 20V. To gain access to the higher sporty segment, the S2 had the three trump cards aerodynamics, four-wheel drive and turbo technology. A fully galvanized body was standard. Perhaps the Audi engineers packed the brilliant technical fireworks in too modest packaging.

Hardly any other appearance

In the eyes of laymen, the appearance of the initially 220 hp and later 230 hp strong S2 looked hardly different from that of its braver brothers with their considerably weaker naturally aspirated engines. Thus, at least in appearance, the S2 was not a miracle weapon. The angular lines of its predecessor were a lot more charismatic. Nevertheless, the S2 was indeed a pleasant driving sportsman with the discreet dynamics of a strongly motorized GT. But who would buy such an extremely understated youngtimer? The often dragged by the hair Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde comparison sometimes applies to this Audi. In the fastest Audi coupé from that time, you can still do tens of thousands of kilometers a year at high speeds, regardless of weather conditions.

put 2 to 3 tons on it

The almost 250 km/h fast S2 is the hero of the left lane. It is not afraid of tight motorway bends and, regardless of the load level, it impresses with unparalleled stability. Modern gadgets at the time were the then just new, perhaps slightly too light Servotronic power steering, an electronically controlled air conditioning and ergonomic sports seats with a satin-like upholstery. Much more interesting – and fun – are fast stages on twisty roads. Then an enthusiastically ridden S2 can finally show its second face. Steering movements are admittedly not followed very quickly, but with great precision. Of course you feel that this car weighs more than 1.5 tons, but the rev-hungry turbo engine wipes that disadvantage with a powerful gas shot. The traction miracle is eager to get started at any speed and the five-cylinder pulls itself smoothly out of the speed cellar. Its distinctive, hoarse sound is the result of the firing order of the cylinders: 1 – 2 – 4 – 5 – 3. This produces the rumbling staccato sound that becomes more aggressive with increasing revs. With the robust multi-valve you can drive 200,000 or even 300,000 kilometers without an overhaul without any problems. Like the rest of the car, it hardly suffers from signs of aging. Once the water and oil are up to temperature, speeds above 7,000 are no problem and he drives as if the devil is after him. But it is probably more a rally fan who wants to hear the Quattro sound of the past.

This article originally appeared in AutoWeek Classics issue 7 of 2018.