The New Audi TT RS
Is it just me, or has Audi really been moving form strength to strength these days? They seem to have finally found a styling groove (although that might not be for every taste) and the whole product line is quite robust from top to bottom.
Take for example the new TT RS. Quite the brute, isn\’t it? It will make its official coming out at this year\’s Geneva show, but Audi sent us some info and images to droo-er, share with you.
Although it\’s the styling that grabs you first, what really impresses me is what\’s under the hood. In the case of the TT RS, it\’s an all new direct injection gas engine with turbo that puts out \”… far more than 300HP.\” Don\’t you just love it when car manufacturers use phrases like that? Anyway, said mill is a five cylinder, an engine architecture that Audi pioneered back in the late 70s early 80s with their first coupes. It worked surprisingly well, and Audi had great success with it in the World Rally Championship.
As with the WRC Coupes of old, the new TT RS also features Quattro drive, naturally, which should make for explosive acceleration and huge grip, as well as big breaks to haul it down from speed.
Audi says that the new sport TT \” … needs nowhere near five seconds to reach 100kph.\” Which is cute, but also for a car of this heft (it IS German after all) that is pretty impressive. So I wonder just how far South of 5 flat this will take? Probably the mid-4s, but I\’m just speculating. The top speed, however, is limited to 250 kph (around 155MPH), which is unfortunate.
The downsides, or should I say potential downsides, are going to be cost and looks (for some).
Audi hasn\’t mentioned price as of yet, but it\’s bound to be pretty damn high. As of late, any Audi S variant has equaled surprisingly big dollars. Yes, you get a lot for that money, performance-wise, but the last time I looked, a brand new Audi RS4 was going for more than a Porsche Cayman.
Now, that styling … it\’s bound to be in the eye of the beholder, and a lot of Audi fans were dismayed with their styling of late, but the new TT has more hurdles to overcome than any other Audi.
The TT, when it first appeared, was a real resonant design, bordering on the neo-classical. It had the look of something that, fifty years hence, people would look back on and remark, \”Great looking car!\” So the problem for Audi became \”What do you do for a second act?\” In other words, how do you \”update\” the styling without ruining what you\’ve already accomplished.
When Audi updated the TT from the original, a lot of people didn\’t like it so much, although I found it to be alright; more muscular and taught, but not as pure as the original. This new TT RS continues on with that updating theme. The creases are more severe, the lines are more sharply drawn. That might not be for everybody, but when you couple it with a direct injection gas engine with turbo that puts out \”… far more than 300HP,\” and performance that means it \” … needs nowhere near five seconds to reach 100kph,\” then it become quite attractive.
I'm a big fan of what they did with the restyled TT. Actually the "old" TT was the only car in the Audi lineup that I thought was fugly. Reminded me too much of a VW Beetle. I know that's sacrilege, but it did. The new TT looks much better; like a dark evil twin of the old one. I still can't say I like the design, but it's much better.
Regarding the TT RS, I'm excited to see specific performance (and price) numbers. I think it will be a monster. Hopefully we can get one in for review.