The Audi RS2 represented the final step in Audi’s transition to becoming a full-fledged performance marque that could compete with BMW and Mercedes. After lying dormant for decades, the Audi name was resurrected as part of the Volkswagen group in 1965 and produced…rather conventional cars. In 1972, Ferdinand Piëch joined the company and set about turning Audi’s products around with a focus on technical innovation. By joining a groundbreaking turbocharged 5-cylinder engine with the now iconic quattro all wheel drive system, Piëch and his engineers created not just a series of motorsport coups, but genuinely covetable road cars as well.

The RS2 is among the most desirable of all, combining the superb competition-bred powertrain that drove almost all of Audi’s racing success with Porsche-engineered upgrades to create the first ever Audi RS car. In this video, Derek Tam-Scott traces the history of Audi RS2 and gets behind the wheel to discover its true character.