2005 Audi A4 DTM Edition

First registered on 18 October 2005 to the Audi UK press office, this A4 DTM has covered less than 10,000 miles since new, almost all of which were in the care of Audi themselves, or various journalists and media outlets across the UK.

From CarThrottle to Pistonheads, Motoring Research and numerous other outlets, this is a true ‘star car’ and has plentiful web coverage in both written and video form - just pop ‘A4 DTM Edition UK’ into google and you can see the provenance of this example for yourself.

Known to the vendor from its time as part of the Audi Press heritage fleet, as it was looked after by his company, this DTM Edition was sold as part of a ‘thinning out’ process by Audi Press UK, and - thanks to having looked after it for most of its life - the vendor made the decision to purchase the car from Audi, adding it to his own personal collection with a view to enjoying it throughout summer months and dry weather, in order to preserve its excellent condition.

However, with the likes of COVID kicking in and other life events getting in the way, the car simply hasn’t seen the use it was earmarked to enjoy, meaning it is now, once again, up for sale.

Whilst in the care of Audi, and subsequently with our vendor, the car has not only been kept inside, but also within an air chamber storage unit, ensuring it is kept in top condition, and only loaned out for media events, journalist evaluations, displays or taken out for MoT exams, hence its sub-10k mileage.

In more recent times - January 2022, to be precise - the car has been given a once-over, and fitted with a new timing belt kit (including a new water pump) and a major service including new coil packs, ensuring it is in top mechanical condition.

Whilst the standard B6 A4 was never exactly what we’d call a ‘looker’ the DTM edition certainly goes a long way towards rectifying this and adding some jazz to the otherwise fairly bland lines of the A4 Saloon, and, in the process, has turned this family sedan into a true ‘if you know, you know’ hero.

With its plentiful carbon editions, enlarged wheels and purposeful stance, the bodywork of this A4 DTM edition is in exemplary condition throughout, with only a very small dent to speak of in the offside front wing, and that’s about it. There are no scuffs, impact damaged areas or major blemishes to speak of, nor any mis-aligned panels or mis-matched paint.

Speaking of paint, this too is in an equally incredible condition, with only some slightly larger stone chips that are worthy of note, but you’d really have to be looking closely to find them.

Elsewhere, all of the trims, carbon adornments, badges and details are present and correct, and there are no signs of any damage to the various light lenses around the vehicle, nor to the front, rear or side windows.

It should be noted that new tyres were fitted in 2018 (simply due to their age, rather than mileage covered) and the only particularly visible aesthetic issue on the vehicle is some kerb rash on the nearside front wheel. The vendor notes - quite correctly - that the matching spare is in the boot and in pristine condition, so it would be simple enough to fit this and send the damaged wheel off to be refurbished, allowing use of the vehicle in the meantime.

Inside, the fit-and-finish of the cabin is typical of this era of Audi, in that it was put together properly and remains in wonderful shape to this day, though no doubt its limited use and OE-owned existence for most of its lifetime has helped preserve its condition.

Looking around, as with the bodywork, there are virtually no signs of wear-and-tear to speak of, which is testament to the care it has received throughout its lifetime.

There is, of course, some creasing and minor wear to the driver’s seat, carpets and high-traffic areas, and perhaps the imitation Alcantara on the wheel, shifter and handbrake would benefit from a thorough valet.

Being very picky, we’ve also noticed a scuff on the inside of the right-hand base bolster of the front passenger seat, and some marks to the plastic on the lower glovebox door and front door cards.

All of the DTM Edition door covers remain in place, there are no scuffs, scratches or marks to the carbon trim, and all systems appear to be in full working order in terms of the stereo, seat heating, air-conditioning system and dials.

At the rear, the capacious boot is in near-showroom condition, and two press plates / show plates are included with the vehicle.

Having taken the car out of long-term storage, the vendor noted that the boot was tricky to close. Unfortunately, this issue seems to have caused the microswitch in the boot locking system to throw a tantrum, as during our photoshoot the car constantly told us the boot was open (as indicated by the display in the instrument binnacle) and we noted that even if we shut the boot onto the latch, it would then subsequently be popped open again onto its safety catch.

It was also noted by the owner that one of the parking sensors has an intermittent fault, randomly beeping for no good reason, though we were unable to replicate this during our photo shoot, and the parking sensors appeared to be fault-free in our experience.

Mechanically identical to a standard 2.0-litre TFSI Quattro A4 of the era - save for a slight tickling with the tuning brush - the engine looks to be in excellent condition underneath the bonnet, with only a minor fluid misting noted on the offside of the block, as seen in the gallery below, though this could’ve simply been slight over-spill from the aforementioned recent major service.

Out on the road, the car feels tight, fresh and healthy as one would expect. It really is like driving home a brand-new, ex-demonstrator Audi in 2005! The gearbox and clutch action is light and slick, there were no noises from the suspension system, and the engine was idling rock-solid throughout when hot or cold, and had no hesitation when power was requested by our right foot.

Looking underneath the car itself, its condition is as expected from a pampered, dry-stored and limited-use vehicle, with no concerning signs to report.

The most recent MoT exam - dated 13 January 2022 at 9,481 miles - shows a clean first-time pass with no advisory items. In fact, the MoT history of the vehicle is a sea of green all the way through - excellent news!

Having been owned internally by Audi for the majority of its lifetime, there is no real paper trail of history to speak of. Well, none at all, in fact. We do know that it would’ve been maintained impeccably by Audi’s press technician team, as all journalist/media cars are, though there would be no invoices to substantiate this, or they would’ve been retained by Audi upon sale of the vehicle.

The V5 is present, showing one former keeper (Audi UK) and there’s one key fob, that’s it!

Offering rarity and exclusivity, yet remaining wonderfully useable, practical and enjoyable as a standard A4 saloon would be, this exceedingly rare, championship-celebration DTM Edition A4 is presented in outstanding condition throughout, and benefits from wonderful provenance having been part of Audi UK’s heritage fleet.

With only 250 cars delivered to the UK and under 10,000 miles on the odometer, this is a true collector or enthusiast item, and deserves to go to a new home where it will be as cherished as it has been for the first 17 years of its life.

With an estimate of £12,000 to £16,000 we reckon this DTM Edition will prove justifiably popular with our audience - just try and find another!

Viewing is always encouraged. This particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; we are open weekdays between 9am-5pm, to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.