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Audi Quattro Concept

Audi and Quattro Autobild is reporting that the four-ringed automaker’s fabulous all-wheel drive system will be excluded from the forthcoming A1 mini car. Quattro tech won’t be added considering that the A1′s design study, the Audi Metroproject Quattro Concept, includes the word “Quattro” in its name. Regardless, while this news might be a problem, on the practical side, the inclusion of AWD means additional weight and cost, something that’s antithetical to the A1′s stated mission.

The A1 will reportedly only be available with one gearbox: a seven speed S-Tronic automatic transmission. Autobild reports that the A1 will be available throughout Europe in August or September of next year, with a sportback version coming online in late 2011 and a cabriolet in early 2012. The S1 will reportedly hit production in February of 2011 with a 1.4-liter TFSI powerplant capable of a very respectable 180 horsepower and a 0-60 mph time of 6.9 seconds. We should know more when the compact runabout is revealed at the Geneva Motor Show in March.