Audi officially announced they will import only 19 units (of total 333) A1 Quattro to the United Kingdom, with prices starting at £41,020.

That sounds like an awful lot for a small hatchback, especially as it’s left-hand-drive only. But it is actually quite easy to justify that price tag, because the A1 Quattro is not really a car.

Nope, it’s a toy. You never feel the need to buy a 260hp, four-wheel-drive hatchback. You buy it because you realize it’s so damn fun to have such a thing.

Featuring 600 new or reworked parts over the normal A1, the Quattro is powered by a turbocharged and directly injected 2.0-litre four-cylinder unit has been adopted from the TTS, tuned to make 256PS output at 6,000rpm, 350Nm torque peak between 2,500 and 4,500rpm. It does to 62mph in 5.7 seconds, has a top speed of 152 mph, and average fuel consumption of 32.8mpg.

The highlights of the car are of course the quick-shifting six-speed manual transmission and the quattro permanent all-wheel drive system. Handling precision and adjustability are also enhanced by an XDS selective differential lock and a specially configured Electronic Stability Program (ESP) which offers a sport mode with a higher threshold for intervention and can be switched off entirely for track use.

This car makes no sense at all, and for that reason alone, we absolutely love it.