Back in the early ‘80s, Audi’s original Quattro mesmerized those who lived in northern climes because for the first time, they saw a performance car that could also be their daily driver.
Sure, if you live in Florida, go ahead and drive your Ford Mustang GT – remember, we’re talking about the days before traction and stability control – year-round. Us northerners would be jealous, as we drive our front-wheel-drive beaters through the slop and slush, waiting for the first signs of warmth when we could uncover our “summer” cars.
But the Quattro was a powerful – well, at 160 horses, back then we thought it was powerful – yet it didn’t have to be put away when the leaves started falling off the trees. In fact, the Quattro reveled in the snow, turning the white stuff into a new playground for a performance car.
Today, Quattro isn’t an Audi model, but rather is available throughout the lineup and is standard on many models. While many a modern performance car can be made winter-ready with a set of snow tires, a Camaro SS will never be a match for all-wheel drive when the snow flies.
That includes the A4, Audi’s smallest sedan. The A4 was last reworked in 2008, but it’s aging well.