Tens of thousands of fans will make the pilgrimage to the "Mecca" of historic rally sport in Daun from July 21 to 23 to see the legendary rally cars of past decades.
Audi Tradition will once again be making its mark this year and showing fans of the brand something unique at the Eifel Rallye Festival: developed 30 years ago and never used, the Audi Group S mid-engined rally prototype will be part of a rally event for the first time. In addition, two-time German champion Harald Demuth will be driving the Audi Sport quattro Rallye.
The Audi Sport quattro S1, much sought-after in the rally world, completes the Audi Tradition line-up in Daun, Rhineland-Palatinate.
The Group S Audi
A highlight of the rally event in Daun, for which more than 60 spectacular cars from rally Group B and S have been entered, is the Audi Group S mid-engined rally prototype. After an unprecedented arms race between the brands involved in the World Rally Championship, Audi decided in the mid-1980s to move away from the comparatively close-to-production car in rallying. Instead, the engineers began developing a special car with a mid-engine, tubular frame, plastic body and four-valve turbo engine.
A racing car was planned for the 1987 racing season, when the Group B regulations were to be replaced by Group S regulations. However, after a serious accident at the Portugal Rally - without Audi being involved - the project came to an end: for safety reasons, the International Sports Authority (FIA) no longer advertised both the Group B rally and the planned Group S for the 1987 season. And the Audi Group S mid-engined rally prototype designed for this purpose remained an eternal promise.
Group B also at the start
Audi Tradition will also be presenting two other classics of rally history in Daun: two-time German rally champion Harald Demuth will be driving an Audi Sport quattro Rallye from the 1984 season. In addition, the Audi Sport quattro S1 from the 1985 season will be on display in the paddock. For many fans of the Group B rally, the "winged monster" is still regarded as the most emotional car of the era.
Success story
The Eifel Rallye Festival is a true success story, with the organizers outdoing themselves year after year.
