There’s really no other way to introduce this story: the Cookie Monster has been caught speeding on a German autobahn. Not only that, but the baked-goods-munching Sesame Street character was driving something that caught our eye – an ultra-rare Audi RS2 Avant.
A speed camera on the A45 autobahn between Dortmund and Frankfurt caught the fuzzy blue biscuit enthusiast – or at least someone dressed as him – travelling 11kph (7mph) above the speed limit as they travelled along in the rare performance estate last month.
The Cookie Monster speeding in an Audi RS2
The RS2 doesn’t need much introduction. Produced between 1994 and 1995, it was the first car to wear Audi’s RS badges. It took the regular Audi 80 Avant and packed it with four-wheel drive and a turbocharged 2.2-litre five-cylinder pushing 311bhp through a six-speed manual box.
Famously, Porsche was heavily involved with its development, providing the brakes and suspension. The 964 911 Turbo donated its door mirrors and wheels, and the car was even assembled at Porsche’s famous Zuffenhausen facility. Fewer than 3000 were made, and it’s now one of the most revered performance cars of the ’90s.
Audi RS2 Avant
This is all well and good, but that doesn’t explain why a furry binge-eating children’s character was charging down an autobahn in it. The Dortmund police posit that the driver – possibly the 57-year-old man from the town of Hagen that the RS2’s registered to – got the ticket deliberately so they’d have the photo as a souvenir.
At any rate, as they weren’t too far over the speed limit, the fine is relatively small – €40, or around £33. Still, in a press release that takes a rather dim view of the whole situation, the police also point out that the mask could have obscured the driver’s hearing and vision.
We’ll be keeping an eye out for any reports of Big Bird drifting roundabouts in a Mercedes 190E Cosworth.
