A few months ago we brought you the news that chief Hoonigan, Ken Block joined forces with Audi. Formerly partnered with Subaru and Ford, the brand ambassador partnered with Audi to usher in a new era for the German brand – and the American petrolhead. A result of this collaboration is the Audi S1 E-tron Quattro Hoonitron.

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A nod to the past

The Audi S1 E-tron Quattro Hoonitron is a modern-day homage to the famous Audi S1 Quattro rally car. As a result, many design cues are carried over from that famous racecar. This includes the widely flared arches and the massive rear wing.

“The S1 Hoonitron combines a lot of what Audi was already famous for in the nineteen-eighties,” says Block. “For instance, the car’s spectacular aerodynamics have now been translated into a totally modern form. I think it’s cool that the Audi designers have been inspired by their own past and uniquely transferred the car’s technologies and appearance into the present.”

Check out another electrified nod to the Quattro rally machine, the EL-1, at this link.

Audi Design tasked Marc Lichte and his team with the overall appearance. “When we first heard about this project, the whole team was thrilled immediately: we had the opportunity to develop a car that combines an icon of our brand with the future,” says Audi’s chief designer. The challenges were tremendous: “It was about creating a modern, all-electric interpretation of the S1 Pikes Peak. The timeline was extremely tight. While our design process normally takes one to one-and-a-half years, we only had four weeks from the first drawing to the final design. We were constantly in touch with Ken Block and his team and engaged in intensive exchanges.”

Modern underneath

It may have retro design cues but the Audi S1 E-tron Quattro Hoonitron is a high-tech tour de force underneath its carbon-fibre skin. A carbon fibre, which is FIA compliant, houses two electric motors. One motor per axle gives the car its all-wheel-drive capability. Currently, Audi or Block have not released any details of the drivetrain, we would not be surprised to learn that it shares its basic architecture with Audi’s Dakar Rally entry.

“Audi gave me the opportunity to test it for a few days in Germany,” says Ken Block. “I’m familiar with a wide variety of cars using internal combustion engines and transmissions, but there were a lot of new things for me to learn here. Spinning into a donut at 150 km/h directly from a standstill – just using my right foot – is an all-new experience for me. Our work was focused on getting the car and I used to each other. My thanks go to the whole Audi Sport squad for their outstanding teamwork.”

Star car

Notably, the Audi S1 E-tron Quattro Hoonitron will soon feature in a new tyre-shredding project from Hoonigan Industries called Elektrikhana.

“The collaboration with Audi is a very special partnership for me. The brand and its passion for motorsport motivated me to get into rallying,” says Ken Block. “That Audi has now developed this car for me and my team, and has joined us in our next project, has made a dream come true for me. The Hoonitron is writing the next chapter in our history and taking our Gymkhana story into the future.”

Audi S1 E-tron Quattro Hoonitron