No subject

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Priceless original last-of-the-line Audi quattro is stored in secret UK
location

Fame has returned to the sought-after original Audi quattro thanks to =
its
starring role in the new BBC TV drama series =91Ashes to Ashes=92, set =
in 1980.
The most priceless example of the legendary sports car that pioneered
four-wheel-drive for production road cars is Audi UK=92s own =
unregistered car
with zero miles, and will never be put up for sale.

So rare is this car - the last right-hand-drive quattro sports car ever =
made
- that Audi is forced to keep it in a secret location and stored in a
sealed, dehumidified environment. Similar to the TV star example seen
nationally each week from February 7th, the as- new, just as it left the
line Audi-owned example even shares the same bright red paint colour.

An untouched and as new car could actually be worth an unlimited sum to =
an
enthusiast Audi collector. =93We would never be able to replace this car =
and
its value to the brand is inestimable=94 said Jeremy Hicks Director of =
Audi
UK. =93Whenever we have exhibited it, we have received a succession of
surprisingly high offers, but sadly this particular car, the quattro =
that
started it all for the company in the early eighties, will never be for
sale=94.

In the final twist to the tale experts have spotted that the specimen of =
the
model featured in the TV drama is actually a 1984 model year quattro
identified by its single headlamp binnacles which , say the pundits, was =
not
yet on sale in 1980. At that time the first quattro launch in March 1980
features twin headlamp lenses on each side.

=93The unprecedented exposure from the TV show has thrown the spotlight =
back
onto the original quattro for the first time since production ceased =
almost
twenty years ago. We are seeing renewed interest in our classic cars and =
we
fully expect demand for the first Audi quattro to rise dramatically this
year,=94 concluded Mr Hicks.

Audi has just launched the latest manifestation of the quattro line with =
the
580PS RS 6 quattro Avant priced from =A377,625 on the road. Capable of =
up to
174mph, the RS6 - the most powerful road Audi ever made - arrives with =
its
first UK customers in May.

Intriguingly, Audi has always spelt =91quattro=92 with a lower case Q.

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Louis-Alain RICHARD

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