Audi RS1 searches keep coming, but the car doesn’t exist, and Audi has spent six years saying it won’t. The A1 it would be built on ends production in 2026 with “definitely” no successor, Audi CEO Gernot Döllner told Autocar in March 2025. So the smallest RS badge you can buy in the US is the $66,100 RS 3, and that changes the math against Honda and Toyota.
Quick answer: Audi has never confirmed an RS1 and has ruled it out more than once. Audi Sport’s Julius Seebach said in January 2020 that no RS version of the A1 was planned, and CEO Gernot Döllner said in March 2025 that A1 production ends in 2026 with no successor. The RS 3 stays Audi’s entry RS model.
Last updated: November 11, 2026
Has Audi ever confirmed an RS1?
No. The closest Audi came was the 2012 A1 quattro, a run of 333 cars with 256 PS (about 252 hp). Then came the S1, sold from 2015 to 2018 with a 2.0-liter turbo four making 170 kW (228 hp) and 370 Nm (273 lb-ft) through a six-speed manual. Neither wore an RS badge.
In January 2020, Audi Sport joint managing director Julius Seebach told Autocar there would be no RS version of the current A1. He said the 2.5-liter five-cylinder stays the base engine of the RS range. A month later, co-managing director Oliver Hoffmann gave the reason in a PistonHeads interview: “to make an RS1, for example? We would have to spend a lot of money on the platform.”
Why the A1’s platform rules out an RS1
The A1 is a Polo-based car. Its top version, the A1 40 TFSI, uses the Polo GTI’s 2.0-liter turbo with 200 PS and 320 Nm, sent to the front wheels only through a six-speed S tronic. Audi has never put an RS badge on a four-cylinder car.
Here’s the mechanism. An RS1 would need a rear driveline, a different fuel tank and floor, bigger cooling and room for a longer engine. Hoffmann’s point was that the RS 3’s platform already has all of that, while the A1’s doesn’t. Engineering it in for a low-volume small car is a cost Audi can’t spread over enough sales.
What happens to the A1 now?
It goes away. Döllner told Autocar on March 19, 2025 that Audi “will end production of the A1 and Q2” in 2026, “and there definitely will be no successor for the A1.” In its place comes an entry-level electric car built in Ingolstadt, sized closer to the A3.
Döllner said reviving a historic name was “thinkable,” and A2 is the obvious candidate. Our read: if Audi ever builds a tiny hot Audi again, it’ll be a performance version of that EV, not a gas RS1. Audi hasn’t said a word about one, so treat any RS1 rendering you see as fan art.
Audi RS1 alternatives: what does the RS 3 cost against rivals?
The 2026 RS 3 starts at $66,100 on Audi’s US site. Its turbo 2.5-liter five makes 394 hp and 369 lb-ft, and CarGurus lists 0–60 mph in 3.6 seconds. Two hot-hatch rivals cost far less per horsepower:
| Car | Starting price | Power | Torque | Price per hp |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Audi RS 3 | $66,100 | 394 hp | 369 lb-ft | $168 |
| Honda Civic Type R | $47,090 (2025) | 315 hp | 310 lb-ft | $149 |
| 2026 Toyota GR Corolla | $41,115 | 300 hp | 295 lb-ft | $137 |
The RS 3 premium buys a rear torque splitter that can send power to one rear wheel, plus a sedan body. For 2026, CarGurus notes Audi made the old RS Technology Package standard, so the head-up display and MMI Navigation Plus now come on every car.
One trap. The Dynamic plus package raises the limiter to 180 mph and adds ceramic front brakes, but it also fits summer tires that Audi itself says aren’t suitable for snow or ice. If the car lives in the Snow Belt, budget for a second set of wheels.
The five-cylinder has a future. Audi Sport boss Sebastian Grams told Auto Express in May 2023, “We are not finished with that car,” and promised more from the engine. That’s the closest thing to an RS1 promise you’ll get: more RS 3, not a smaller RS.
Shopping elsewhere? See our 2027 BMW 3 Series guide, the 2027 Mazda3 price breakdown for an AWD budget pick, and why we think the Charger Sixpack lease beats the Daytona EV.
Audi RS1 questions buyers ask
Does Audi make an RS1?
No. Audi has never built an RS1. Audi Sport managers ruled it out in early 2020, saying the A1 platform would need costly changes, and CEO Gernot Döllner said in March 2025 that A1 production ends in 2026 with no successor. The RS 3 remains the smallest RS model.
What is the smallest Audi RS model?
The RS 3 is Audi’s smallest RS model. In the US the 2026 RS 3 sedan starts at $66,100 and uses a turbocharged 2.5-liter five-cylinder making 394 hp and 369 lb-ft, with quattro all-wheel drive and a rear torque splitter. CarGurus lists 0–60 mph in 3.6 seconds.
Did Audi ever make an S1?
Yes. Audi sold the S1 from 2015 to 2018. It used a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder rated at 170 kW (about 228 hp) and 370 Nm, with a six-speed manual. Audi’s communications chief later said it was expensive to develop and build.
Waiting for an Audi RS1 means waiting on a car Audi has refused to build since 2020, on a platform it retires this year. The $66,100 RS 3 is the real entry ticket, and at $168 per horsepower it costs about $31 more per horse than a GR Corolla.