ABT tweaks the Audi A1 40TFSI

Remember the Audi S1? We do. In fact, we slid the turbocharged all-wheel-drive manual-only A1 across dirt in a way that would have made Stig Blomqvist proud of the little glorious oddball.

So you’d understand our disappointment for the absence of a successor in the incoming A1 range. Luckily, German tuner brand ABT has come to the rescue, sort of , to plug this gap, and injected the top-of-the-line A1 40TFSI with some much needed aggro.

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Starting with an ECU tune for its turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder, which is shared with the Polo GTI, power and torque jumps from 147kW and 320Nm to 176kW and 360Nm. That's about as much as the old S1, thanks very much.

This is all for the front wheels, though, so the little A1 will squeeze these outputs through an open differential and wheelspin a lot when it tries to improve the 40TFSI’s claimed 6.5-second 0-100km/h time. That’s with the exclusively equipped six-speed dual clutch semi-auto, too.

In lieu of front driveshafts, the exterior at least echoes the spirit of the original Sport Quattro from 1984. For instance, those three slits peering out from the bonnet’s end are complemented by the 40TFSI’s already mean looking skirts and bumpers.

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Oh, there are also a set of mean looking 18s that come wrapped with 215mm tyres. You can option them in either matte or gloss black. Lowering springs that drop the ride height 30mm also sweeten their stance.

We’ll need to wait for Audi’s new A1 range to land here before throwing ABT’s tuning package at the thing. But at least we know it’ll cost somewhere around €3,790 (AU$6130) if you want to make plans for your own ABT A1 at the end of this year.