Audi's A3 TDI clubspot quattro

Shown over the weekend at the 27th annual Lake Wörther Tour in Austria, the Audi A3 TDI clubsport quattro is a one-off show car featuring "the most extreme incarnation to date of Audi’s four-cylinder TDI engine", a powerplant which propels the car from 0-62mph in 6.6 seconds and achieves a top speed of 149mph.

The 2.0-litre, common rail fuel injected TDI unit drives the 20-inch wheels via a six-speed transmission and the quatto all-wheel-drive system. The sleek look of the car, which features a large DTM-look rear spoiler and bolt-on wheel arch extensions, belies its power – the engine provides 450Nm of torque and maximum power of 224PS. Six-piston brake callipers and ceramic discs are in charge of stopping the beast at the front wheels, and drivers can deploy dampers to enable Audi magnetic ride technology, which reacts almost instantly to changes in the driving situation.

The Audi drive select driving dynamics system allows the driver to vary the throttle response characteristics, the exhaust sound, the level of power assistance for the steering, the cut-in thresholds for the ESP stabilization system and the operating mode of the dampers.

Audi has already transferred the superior power of the TDI engines into its road-going cars: the TT and TT Roadster both feature a 2.0-litre common rail TDI unit delivering 170PS and 350 Nm (258.15 lb-ft) of peak torque, coupled to the quattro all-wheel-drive system.