2015 Audi S1

This 3-door S1 was first registered in Scotland in May 2015 and delivered by Stirling Audi to its first owner. The second owner lived in West London and the third from Wiltshire was something of an enthusiast who commissioned a number of tuning upgrades on the car to ‘stage 3’ - more of which later.

Our vendor, an engineer from Norfolk, is the car’s fourth owner and he bought the car in May 2020. He’s keen to point out that he’s by no means a boy-racer but a more mature car enthusiast who hasn’t thrashed the car, can afford to keep it properly maintained and makes sure that it is warmed up and cooled down correctly before and after use.

He was looking for a sporty hatch and settled on the Audi S1 but wanted to find one that had a little added value and was different to the regular S1.

When talking about tuning stages - stage 3 can refer to modification with race specification parts, which are often not road legal. However, stage 3 can also refer to any modifications that add 100 bhp or more, which is the case here.

The car’s exterior is finished in Mythos Black, and both the paint and bodywork is in excellent condition with just a couple of stone chips on the nose which have been touched in. According to the vendor, the paint has been machine polished and sealed with FinishKare 1000p hi-temp sealant.

To give the car a slightly meaner, more purposeful look, the front bumper was swapped out to incorporate an RS Style front grille with the quattro decal below. Moving the number plate to the side further draws attention to the honeycomb grille, as does the blackened four-rings on the front. At the rear, the badge has also been given a carbon look.

To break up the expanse of black, the door mirror caps and front brake ducts are picked out in an aluminium colour.

The addition of coil-overs and H&R spacers on all four corners has lowered and widened the stance slightly and enabled the fitting of larger 18-inch Rota alloy wheels, which are a gunmetal colour with diamond-turned rims that appear unmarked. All are fitted with nearly-new Goodyear Eagle F1 225/35 R18 tyres showing a good depth of tread

Like the outside, the interior is almost entirely clad in black, although the red contrast stitching combined with the aluminium accents on the knurled controls and around the vents and instruments provides a pleasing, premium look and feel.

The seats are half-leather with contrast stitching and S1-monogram on the front seat backs and, like the rest of the interior, look in a very good condition - clean, tidy and undamaged with only slight wear on the driver’s seat base and the merest hint of creasing on the side bolsters as you’d expect.

Despite being in the supermini class, everything is of a quality feel. The flat-bottomed sports steering wheel, gear-shift gaiter and handbrake are all leather-clad with the contrast stitching.

Equipment levels are high too, having parking sensors front and rear, heated seats, sat nav, keyless entry and start and a CD/DAB Bose stereo. As far as we’ve been able to test, everything works as it should.

The carpets are clean and tidy and have fitted overmats for additional protection.

As you'd expect on a small car with a big motor, the engine bay is a masterclass in packaging, with both original and upgraded parts - like the carbon-fibre intake - sitting neatly into the space. Everything appears in order and has been well maintained.

As you’d expect on a well looked after 7 year old car, the undersides appear in good order, with undertrays fitted down each side, slightly sculpted to improve airflow. There’s the occasional bit of surface rust on a few fixings and a smattering around the rear brake discs and stone shields but nothing of any concern. The quad exhaust system looks in good condition too. Possibly due to the lowered setup, the plastic shield under the front is a little scuffed but not damaged as far as we can see.

Lifting the hatch, the surprisingly roomy boot space looks clean and tidy - carpets, linings and suspended parcel shelf are all intact. There’s a fire-extinguisher strapped to one side and a strong webbing net which a previous owner had fitted with a bar across the back, having removed the rear seats for weight-saving. Perhaps it could be repurposed to keep your groceries from flying around on a spirited drive back from the supermarket?

For more space and flexibility, the rear seats are split-folding and under the floorboard is the battery compartment containing air compressor, tyre-sealant and first aid kit.

The Audi S1 has a current MOT certificate valid until November 2022 which it received with no advisories. The current odometer reading is a shade over 32,000 miles.

As mentioned in The Vehicle section above, this car has received a number of performance upgrades and tuning modifications, which the vendor has summarised as follows:

Littco L380X turbo (£750)

Golf R injectors (£544)

APR carbon intake (£488)

APR catch can (£427)

Turbo technics intake hose (£250)

DVX blow off valve (£280)

3 inch downpipe (£250)

Airtec stage 2 cooler (£695)

Supersprint sports cats and Supersprint full exhaust system (£2000)

Sachs organic clutch (£950)

4H-Tech short shift kit (£200)

6 pot Taxox brake kit (£1500)

H&R coilovers (£1000)

Rota 18-inch alloy wheels (£1200)

Many of these parts including the turbo and injectors were fitted in February 2020 by VAG-tuning specialist Ben Parsons at Devil Developments in West Sussex. At the time, engine performance was measured at over 400 bhp and 420 lb.ft of torque. Since then a larger intercooler has been fitted to allow even more boost.

A couple of ECU codes have been changed - one merely aesthetic to fold the door mirrors in and the other to remove the need for the clutch to be depressed on startup. This latter change was done on the advice of both Littco and Devil Developments to prevent thrust washer failing and crank walk.

The service history is documented as follows:

Nov 2015 - 5,998 - Stirling Audi

Nov 2016 - 11,730 - West London Audi

Feb 2018 - 17,842 - West London Audi

Feb 2019 - 21,544 - West London Audi

Apr 2020 - 24,096 - JWR Vehicle Services, Salisbury

The vendor tells us that he’s had the car serviced 2-3 times in his ownership by a local specialist - Dan Wright Vehicle Services - although the paperwork isn’t present. However, the car’s onboard computer reports that its next oil change and inspection is not due for another 8 months.

The car comes with a small history file containing invoices and MOT reports, all the book packs and two keys in protective pouches.

The standard Audi S1 (if there is such a thing) is a cracker of a car - referred to by some as a “supermini shopping rocket”. This one then, with its considered and well-executed upgrades and modifications could probably do the weekly shop in half the time!

Gaining over 100 bhp on the regular S1, this car accelerates like the proverbial off a Teflon shovel but the stronger brakes combined with the quattro four-wheel-drive make sure that a sensible driver still has everything under control - albeit a little uncomfortably on rough roads due to the stiffer suspension setup. The flip-side of the firmer ride, though, is that it goes exactly where you point it.

The exhaust system won’t annoy the neighbours either, there’s none of the contrived popping and banging that many such aftermarket systems create. It also won’t annoy the MOT testers - it still passes current emission tests.

We think this well-maintained and added-value Audi S1 will fetch between £16,000 and £23,000 and will appeal to VAG enthusiasts and confident drivers alike.

Such is the condition of this car, you have to remind yourself that it has just turned 7 years old, but we think you’ll struggle to find a better one - particularly one with the same levels of performance.

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’.