Audi Sport Quattro tribute wants €500k but exists only as renders

Key takeaways

• German firm reveals €500k Audi Sport Quattro tribute
• Built on an Audi Coupe B2, not a Quattro
• Just 84 cars planned, currently only renderings

A little-known German outfit has revived one of rallying's great names.

HSR Manufaktur has revealed the Type 859, a modern tribute to the 1984 Audi Sport Quattro, and it plans to build just 84 of them. There is a catch worth knowing before the wallets come out. Every image released so far is a rendering and the first prototype is still being built.

What the Audi Sport Quattro tribute is built on

Rather than butcher a genuine Sport Quattro, of which very few survive, HSR started with a humble Audi Coupe B2 and shortened its wheelbase by 320mm. The result wears entirely new carbon fibre bodywork, with functional vents, a fixed rear wing and active aero at the splitter, wing and bonnet louvres. HSR is targeting a kerb weight under 1,200kg, though it has not confirmed whether the prototype hits that number.

Engine and drivetrain

Power comes from Audi's award-winning 2.5-litre turbocharged five-cylinder, the same unit found in the current RS3. Here it is rebuilt with forged internals, fresh turbo plumbing and a new intake manifold, then mounted longitudinally for better balance.

Outputs run from 500hp to 600hp depending on the drive mode selected.

Drive goes to all four wheels through a reinforced six-speed manual borrowed from the S4, a Torsen centre differential and a mechanical limited-slip diff at the rear.

Type 859 specs

Inside, buyers choose their own path, from a stripped-out track car to a leather-lined grand tourer, with carbon, aluminium and analogue dials on the menu.

Price and Australian availability

Each Type 859 starts at €500,000 before tax, and HSR says demand is strongest in the USA, Germany and Switzerland. There is no word on Australian pricing or availability, and with global allocations already being managed, local collectors should not count on a spot.

The renders-first restomod playbook

Building on a donor Coupe B2 rather than a genuine Sport Quattro lets HSR promise 84 near-identical cars without chasing a tiny pool of surviving originals, the same supply logic HWA used for its Mercedes 190 Evo.

More telling is the sequence: HSR is showing renders and collecting Letters of Intent before a prototype exists, which points to a demand-gathering exercise to fund production rather than a finished car. With stated interest concentrated in the USA, Germany and Switzerland, Australian collectors are unlikely to feature in the first allocation.

For now the Type 859 lives on hard drives, not race tracks. Whether HSR turns those renders into 84 finished cars is the only question that matters.

Frequently asked questions

How much does the HSR Manufaktur Type 859 cost?

From €500,000 before tax. Australian pricing has not been announced.

Is the Audi Sport Quattro tribute built from a real Quattro?

No. It uses an Audi Coupe B2 as its base, with a shortened wheelbase, not a genuine Sport Quattro.

How many Type 859s will be built?

Just 84, a nod to the Sport Quattro's 1984 title-winning WRC season.