Audi Sport Quattro Concept debuts as a 700-hp plug-in hybrid

The original Audi Sport Quattro, developed for Group B rally homologation in 1984 and sold as a limited production vehicle, signifies Audi at its very best. As it powered across gravel roads in the hands of the world's best rally drivers, or slithered up Pikes Peak in 1985 — setting a new course record — it inspired car enthusiasts (like myself) in a more real and relevant way than a Testarossa or Countach ever could, much like the equally rousing Lancia Delta Integrale.

And after a brief tease of its revival back in 2010, when Audi revealed a Sport Quattro Concept at the Paris Auto Show, we've been musing about the possibility of a Sport Quattro return being imminent.

While this latest concept, set to debut next week at the Frankfurt auto show, remains merely an updated version of the 2010 tease, it does offer further evidence that a production version could be close. In fact, Audi told me that while nothing is officially decided, if the response is positive, it's safe to say one may well arrive.