Audi Axes The Sport Quattro Concept

The Audi Sport Quattro Concept, which served as an homage to the original Audi Quattro of Group B rallying fame, won’t make it to production after all.

The Sport Quattro Concept was first shown at the 2010 Paris Motor Show and marked the 30th anniversary of Audi’s Quattro all-wheel-drive system. The German automaker reaffirmed its interest in the concept at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show, introducing an updated version powered by a 4.0-liter twin turbo V8 with a hybrid system, good for 690 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. Rumors surfaced Audi was going to put it into production, but Audi Sport boss Stephan Winkelmann put them to bed in a recent interview with Car & Driver.

“It’s a nice dream,” Winkelmann said in regards to the concept. “but I think we have so much in front of us that the most important thing is to get the lineup where we need it. I think there is the opportunity for a very limited car, but this is not my top priority at the moment.”

Instead of investing in limited-run halo cars like the Sport Quattro, Audi is turning its attention toward introducing more RS models, namely crossovers and SUVs. In a separate sit down with C&D, Winkelmann said “a CUV shift is due” for the RS brand as crossovers and SUVs have good global appeal. The Q7 and upcoming Q8 are said to get the RS treatment first, but the Q5 may also get a performance injection.

There’s not just crossovers and SUVs from RS on the horizon, thankfully. The RS4 Avant is on the way and Winkelmann confirmed the brand is working on an all-new RS6 Avant for 2019. We may not get the former in North America, but C&D sources say Audi of America is currently trying to make a case for bringing the latter over. We imagine there’d be few complaints about that.