If there’s anything we’ve all been itching to see from Audi, it’s a hotter version of the A1 Sportback – an RS1 to be exact. With the second generation kicking of in 2018, we were hoping that after being fully established on the market, Audi’s resident supermini would finally get the hot hatch treatment that it deserves. Unfortunately, Audi has come right out and said that, despite the fact that it’s going to go all out on RS-badging its SUV lineup, the A1 will always be an A1. There won’t be a warmer S1, and there definitely won’t be a hotter RS1.

Audi’s Inline-Five Will Remain as the Base RS Offering

In an interview with Autocar Audi’s Joint Marketing Director, Julius Seeback, explained that the 2.5-liter, five-cylinder will carry on as the base engine of Audi’s RS lineup. And, since Audi won’t put the five-cylinder inside the A1 , that rules it out from ever wearing an RS badge. Furthermore, the S1 is out of the running too as, apparently, the company just doesn’t see the case for making car this size that fast. That means the best you’ll ever see the A1 40 TSFT with the 2.0-liter with 197 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque. It would have been nice to see the A1 do better than 6.6-second sprint to 60, but then again that would have brough it awfully close to RS3 in terms of performance.

With all of this in mind, the aformentioned RS3 will be your smallest and cheapest RS offering, and it’s paired with the RS Q3 Sportback. In their current condition, they produce 394 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of torque, but the latest rumors suggest the next RS3 and RS Q3 could surpass the 400-horsepower park. So, in the end, either settle for the 40 TSFI, the Audi RS3 or, if you want something just a little different, check out the new Audi A1 CityCarver.