Rally driver Ken Block tears up Las Vegas in an electric Audi S1 Hoonitron

Professional rally driver Ken Block recently took the Audi S1 Hoonitron for a gripping ride around Las Vegas as part of his ongoing Hoonigan video series. Although the Vegas experience was his 11th installment, it was the first time to highlight what an electric car can do. The one-of-a-kind car was built by Audi exclusively for Block to put through its paces.

Audi stepped it up a notch to design a fully electric car that would meet the needs of Block - and his demanding driving style - with the company saying the S1 Hoonitron "broke entirely new ground" for Audi. The car has been in development since the spring of 2021 in Germany, with Audi taking inspiration from the 80's era Audi Sport quattro S1 E2 Pikes Peak rally car. Of course, the Pikes Peak had to make a cameo appearance in the video, as a sign of appreciation for the past - as Audi ramps up electric for the future.

There were two electric motors installed in the all-wheel drive car rocking a carbon fiber chassis.

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The Audi S1 Hoonitron in all its glory (Image Courtesy of: Jonathan Gitlin / Ars Technica

Here is what Block had to say regarding the difference between EVs and previous cars he's driven, according to Ars Technica: "The thing is, if you were to launch a regular race car, you've got to put it in gear... you need to sit in launch control for four to five seconds for the turbo to spool and for the boost to build and all that. So there's a process; it might only take 5-10 seconds, but there's a process to it."

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The 6,000 newton-meters of torque led Block to destroy 100 tires during filming - more than 2.5 times the number of tires when compared to regular filming.

A final price tag wasn't released by Audi, but Block's team thinks the figure could be around $10 million to $12 million.