While earlier this week I reviewed a importable 1989 Audi Coupe, the car we received in the United States in late 1989 was this car, the 1990 Coupe Quattro. While on paper the new B3 chassis car had specifications very similar to the U.S. spec Audi Quattro that it replaced, the truth was that the new Coupe sported much more luxury and the accompanying weight, dulling performance and making the car feel fairly sluggish. What the B3 coupes did gain was a much more user-friendly design and a less driver-dependent all-wheel drive system. With a commodious hatchback and fold-down seats, it was now easier to carry large items that the Quattro simply couldn’t fit. Further, where the early car had driver-selected lockable differentials, the new car sported the next generation of quattro, with Torsen torque-splitting diff in place of the old lockers and a electronic lockup for the rear that was disabled above 15 m.p.h.. Despite the dumbed-down for the driver but smarter for the car AWD system, these Coupes were nearly as good as the previous generation cars in snow and ice. They arrived expensive and at a bad time for Audi, so it’s no surprise that they’re a rare find these days:
