Awesome Audi RS 6 GTO marks 40 years of Quattro

Audi has continued to celebrate four decades of its Quattro all-wheel drive with a wild new Audi RS 6 GTO concept.

Paying tribute to the legendary Audi 90 Quattro IMSA GTO that raced in American Trans-Am back in 1989 with Hans-Joachim Stuck behind the wheel, the new RS 6 is, sadly, a one-off created by Audi apprentices at the German car-maker's Neckarsulm factory.

Mimicking the Audi 90 racer that squeezed a mighty 530kW from its tiny turbocharged 2.2-litre five-cylinder engine, the RS 6 GTO gets an outlandish body that features flared fenders, big spoilers, centre-lock disc wheels and a side-exit exhaust.

Tweaked LED lights, bonnet vents and the plentiful GTO badges complete the changes.

Painted in a similar white, black and red livery, the commemorative RS 6 sports the number '40' in honour of Quattro's ruby anniversary.

Inside, in keeping with the racing theme, the carpets, rear seats and all sound-deadening material have all been dumped, making room for a full six-point roll cage and a pair of race-ready Recaro carbon-fibre bucket seats.

What didn't get the chop in the makeover is the Audi wagon's centre console, transmission tunnel and Alcantara-wrapped steering wheel that all carry over from the regular RS 6.

As well as shedding plenty of weight in the car, the team of apprentices might have also tweaked the fast Audi RS's twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 that, in standard form, delivers a thumping 441kW and 800Nm of torque – enough to haul it to 100km/h in just 3.6 seconds.

A production version of the RS 6 GTO is highly unlikely but a commemorative trim option celebrating 40 years of Quattro could follow.

Officially, Audi Sport has already revealed its moving tribute to Quattro – the Audi TT RS 40 Years of Quattro.

The special TT was inspired by the '87 Pikes Peak-winning Audi Sport quattro S1 and features dedicated aero, weight-saving measures and R8 supercar-troubling performance.

Just 40 examples of the Audi TT RS 40 Years of Quattro will be built, with sales limited to the German market where it will sell for a hefty €114,040 ($A190,000) – $55,000 more than the standard Audi TT RS in Australia.