Car Review: Audi TT RS

Top-of-the-range TT is exhilarating but expensive

(Audi)

“Hairdresser’s car”, said my friend the Ginetta driver about the Audi TT. Oh dear. Such a dated expression (applied first, I think, to the Triumph Spitfire circa 1965). So wrong, too. The cute, Beetle-esque, shape of the Audi TT has been around for so long now – 20 years this September, would you believe? – that we’ve been taking the little neo-Bauhaus gem for granted, or, for those with pretensions to being “drivers” disdaining it. Well, the Audi TT RS has arrived to remind us why this is a serious little sports coupe.

The TT is rather more than just a Golf in drag (Audi)

First, there is the unusual five-cylinder engine, with turbo-charging boosting power output to a formidable 400 PS with a remarkable 480 Newton metres of torque, especially good for a petrol (as opposed to diesel) unit. In both respects it punches some way above its rivals the Porsche Cayman, Alfa Romeo 4C and Jaguar F-Type, which are also all heavier and, thus, slower than the TT. It’s very special to Audi, their five-cylinder unit, and is not available on other VW group products, so they’ve lavished unusual care upon it and you can’t get a budget-priced version in a Skoda or Seat.

Leather for seats and Alcantara for the headlining is typical Audi quality (Audi)

The RS version featured in this top-of-the-range TT is all aluminium, and employs some special magnesium bits to help with weight and the sort of edgy performance and sophistication owners expect. I have no doubt that the engineers at Audi, smart as they are, cannot abolish the laws of physics, and a V-formation five-cylinder engine will always be less smooth than a straight six-cylinder, as you’d find in a BMW M2, because odd numbers of cylinders are harder to balance than even numbers in such a configuration: but you don’t miss the sixth cylinder and the TT lacks nothing in practical refinement or delivery. Besides, most of its direct competitors all feature four-cylinder units. All have their own charms, especially the BMW M2, which I’d favour (that or the much cheaper, if slower, Subaru BRZ). In any case, the TT is rather more than just a Golf in drag, though it shares some of its componentry with its sibling.

The fixed rear wing screams power and speed (Audi)

The spec

Audi TT RS Coupe quattro

Price: £62,815 (TT RS starts at £52,450)

Engine capacity: 2.5-litre V5 petrol; 7-sp auto

Power output (PS @ rpm): 400@5,850-7,000

Top speed (mph): 155

0-62 mph (seconds): 3.7

Fuel economy (mpg): 34.4

CO2 emissions (g/km): 187

BIK (%): 36

So much fun is the TT to drive that it invites you to explore its capabilities, and play. I broke a small rule of mine and used the paddles either side of the steering wheel to change gears. These are usually entirely redundant and add nothing to the driving experience, but in the TT they work well, and the engine’s electronics will prevent you from over-revving or labouring the unit. You can also move up and down via the auto shift stick, thus replicating the traditional action of a fully manual gear change in what is in effect a clutchless manual car. Plus you can move from paddles to manual gear shift to the auto box seamlessly – fully automatic transmission for traffic jams, paddling up and down the range for country roads. Blissful. The seven-speed dual clutch transmission in this TT has matured, and now displays only the slightest hesitation on occasion. (This is because the gearbox is supposed to select the “next” gear for you, but sometimes doesn’t quite guess right.)

The TT RS also features “launch control”, so if you put your foot down too hard there’s no loss of grip or embarrassing wheel-spin – nor generally, with Audi’s long-standing and rally-proven quattro four-wheel drive system. The high-tech engine and transmission are well matched and make for a formidable combination. It is entirely credible that Audi claim it would have a top speed of 174mph were it not deliberately and artificially limited to 155 mph (still more than twice the legal limit, I might add).

Air vents that look like turbo fans... but no fully responsive touchscreen (Audi)

The sense of fun obviously took hold of the interior designers, too. The three big round air vents on the dash are made to look like turbo fans, with the air conditioning controls cleverly located on buttons in the centre of each. The interior was typical Audi quality, with leather for seats and Alcantara (faux suede) for the headlining, but, as one of the firm’s older models, it lacks a fully responsive touchscreen. Not that I’d want to be too picky. It is snug in there; a strict 2+2 seater with rear passengers accommodated only to a minimal degree.

With the standard split-folding rear seats, the boot is more practical than you might imagine (Audi)

The TT stops well too – aided in the case of the press car with £1,000 worth of optional ceramic brakes. Just as well, given the temptation to press on open roads. The TT is an exhilarating experience and the perfect antidote to those hulking SUVs and crossovers that are proliferating on our already congested roads, and which I’ve had to drive far too many of of late. Here, in stark contrast, is a car that offers a surprisingly “big car” ride with superb handling and which is compact enough to manoeuvre and park around town. So far from being a niche model, the Audi TT is a mainstream answer to some motoring woes. You might well wonder having driven one why you’ve taken the TT for granted for so long – though at the wrong side of £50,000, its sales pitch is a little compromised. That said, like its rivals, it will retain about half of its purchase price after three years, so you’re really paying about £8,000 a year, or £150 a week, for one of the best toys ever, whether you’re a hairdresser or not.