Quote Of The Day: Ugly Is As Ugly Does Edition

by Edward Niedermeyer

November 24th, 2010 11:43 AM

quote of the day ugly is as ugly does edition

Although it did what it needed to do, it looks awful

Peter Birtwhistle, designer of the legendary short-wheelbase Audi Sport Quattro (above), tells Autocar what he really thinks about its design… and just in time for Audi to announce that its Ur Quattro-inspired Quattro Concept will be built in limited numbers. Birtwhistle explains that the real cause for Ur-ugliness was “stretching the Quattro look over [the shorter Audi 80 platform],” a challenge that also echoes with the Quattro Concept, which slaps retro design elements on a short-wheelbase version of the handsome RS5. As a result, the Quattro Concept looks every bit as awkward and disjointed as the Sport Quattro, with just a touch of Camaro-esque retro-self-consciousness. But as Birtwhistle’s line reminds us, sometimes ugly is the best way to emphasize purpose.

#Audi #Concept #Design #Germany #Heritage #Quattro

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Johnny ro on Nov 24, 2010

Its not so bad, the new one, but I didn't catch why its better than a TT. The TT is a pretty car and can get hysterical if you want.

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Porschespeed on Nov 25, 2010

I dunno, In their period, the Quattro/5+5 seemed pretty damn sexy relative to what was available in the US market at the pricepoint, at the time. There wasn't a domestic that looked (or drove) within a lightyear of the Quattro back in the day. Sure, with contemporary glasses it was a Civic, but let us not forget that a 77 930 was a "rocketship" when it turned in a 7-ish second 60 run....

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