After solid results in ’83, the car was converted to ‘Safari Rally spec’ as it was prepared for entry the Kenyan classic the following year.
Taking on the gruelling African roads with local driver Basil Criticos behind the wheel, he and co-driver John Rose came a commendable 10th overall and first in its class.
After retiring from the rally the next year, it was then sent back to the UK and converted back for use in the British championship and related events.
Its final event was the BRC’s 1990 Mazda Winter Rally, with the car going into storage and not seeing the light of day for another 25 years.
At the time it was thought no more Quattros remained in public ownership – this was a works Audi never accounted for.
However when its current owner heard about the car at a track day, he investigated and found it to be a “long-lost” works rally car, a rare piece of off-road history.
Once purchased, the new owner spent an estimated minimum of £50,000 restoring the four-wheel-drive beast, with rust needing to be addressed and welding taking place on a shell which had sat in a barn for two decades.
Other than the engine, all the other components are Group B specification.
The car is currently up for private sale at RM Sotheby’s, with an asking price of £150,000. Enquiries can be made here.