Audi's performance arm is on a roll.
Quattro Gmbh, the official name for Audi's go-faster division, has created not only the sensational RS4 but fathered the sublime R8 supercar and unleashed the insanely fast RS6.
So when news comes of another all-new RS it's no surprise the performance world sits up and pays attention.
After all, the RS engineers don't believe in half measures; remember it was them who thought dropping a turbocharged version of a Lamborghini V10 into a family car was a good idea. Perhaps then it's no surprise the TT's existing 2.0-litre turbo and 3.2 V6 engines didn't measure up to their high expectations. A more suitable alternative was needed.
But the engineers couldn't find one. Both the RS4's 4.2 V8 and S4's new supercharged 3.0 V6 were too bulky and heavy for the light TT body, forcing the RS team to start again from scratch.
The result is the all-new 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo that pays homage to the legendary Audi ur-Quattro of the Eighties.
Pumping out a healthy 335bhp, the new engine gifts the TT with searing performance. The 0-62mph sprint takes the RS just 4.6 seconds, making the small Audi coupe as quick as the R8 supercar. Pay Audi to remove the limiter and the RS tops out at an unbelievable 174mph.
To help underline the TT's new-found muscle the RS gains an aggressive new look. In come R8-style wider air intakes up front, as well as an aggressive new body kit and a big ugly rear spoiler ensure. Subtle it isn't.
Prices for the new car start at £42,980 for the TT RS coupe, and the roadster will set you back £44,880. Both versions are pitched head-to-head with the talented Porsche Cayman and Boxster S.
With the new engine both TT RS versions are significantly faster than the Porsches, but crucially it's not all about straight-line speed. Is it better than the Porsches? Read on to find out.
Audi finished a decent seventh place in the most recent 2008 JD Power survey behind Mercedes and Jaguar.
The TT specifically didn't feature in the survey, but built on a policy of parts-sharing there's nothing to say the sporty Audi coupe shouldn't be no more or less reliable than an A3.
Nowadays, that's a good thing because the first generation of TT suffered from the odd faulty electrical faults and failing instrument panels.
Until the RS arrived the TT, like many other Audis, led the class for fit and finish and the quality of its cabin, but at almost £10,000 more than the next most expensive TT, is the RS outshone by new similarly priced competition?
Not at all. It's a credit to Audi's choice of high quality materials and beautiful build that the TT is still pick of the bunch even at this rather hefty price. To help justify the extra cash the RS gains plenty of brushed aluminium inlays, RS logos and heated leather seats plus a sportier, flat-bottomed steering wheel.
On paper the new RS Audi leads the coupe class with its explosive performance, while in the flesh it finally packs the visual aggression but can it finally outdrive the class-leading Porsche Cayman?
Sadly, the short and brutal answer is no, but the RS comes closer than any TT before. After the sensational RS4 and sublime R8, you can't blame us for expecting more.
Let's start with the positive.
The new 335bhp 2.5-litre 5-cylinder is a gem. From standstill to 62mph the Audi coupe outguns all its rivals taking just 4.6 seconds. Aiding its blistering getaway from the line is the superb traction provided by the Haldex 4x4 system that efficiently shuffles torque to the axle with most grip, and it is torque that dominates in the RS.
With the maximum 332lb-ft delivered from just 1,600rpm the new engine has a broad spread of power and decent go anywhere in the rev range.
Where a Cayman would require third for blistering exit from a medium speed corner the Audi will suffice with fourth.
Emphasising the TT's strong overtaking performance is a close-ratio gearbox that is both snappy and fast to use. Perversely, despite Audi pioneering the technology, the double clutch DSG, is not offered on the RS.
That said, close-ratio box or not, away from traffic-light grands prix and cross country the RS doesn't feel substantially quicker than the equivalent Cayman S.
A quick look at the tech sheet and it's easy to see why. The RS is burdened with a 100kg (the weight of a portly adult) weight handicap that blunts the Audi's power-to-weight ratio. Even with 'just' 315bhp the Porsche has the fractionally superior power-to-weight ratio that helps claw back some ground over the blistering Audi, although this advantage would shrink in damp or slippery conditions where the Porsche's rear-wheel drive would be no match for the TT's all-wheel-drive traction advantage.
Strangely, for perhaps for what's supposed to be the most extreme and hardcore TT, the RS uses the speed-sensitive power steering that feels supermini-light at parking speeds.
At speed we'd also prefer a more predictable and linear weighting and more feeling. The RS also is less playful, responding less to mid-corner throttle inputs, instead preferring to shrug off a series of corners with its huge reserves of grip. It's fast and neat, thanks to the torque-juggling abilities of the Haldex all-wheel-drive system.
It is tidy and organised but it's less fun than the Cayman S, which isn't so clinical in the way it goes about its work. The Porsche also feels the better balanced of the two and far more adjustable even if its rear-wheel-drive isn't always the fastest way out of the bend.
The Porsche has also got finer, more communicative steering, although the 3.4-litre will need working far harder with its peakier torque delivery. With the howling flat-six soundtrack that's no chore.
Quattro Gmbh, the official name for Audi's go-faster division, has created not only the sensational RS4 but fathered the sublime R8 supercar and unleashed the insanely fast RS6.
So when news comes of another all-new RS it's no surprise the performance world sits up and pays attention.
After all, the RS engineers don't believe in half measures; remember it was them who thought dropping a turbocharged version of a Lamborghini V10 into a family car was a good idea. Perhaps then it's no surprise the TT's existing 2.0-litre turbo and 3.2 V6 engines didn't measure up to their high expectations. A more suitable alternative was needed.
But the engineers couldn't find one. Both the RS4's 4.2 V8 and S4's new supercharged 3.0 V6 were too bulky and heavy for the light TT body, forcing the RS team to start again from scratch.
The result is the all-new 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo that pays homage to the legendary Audi ur-Quattro of the Eighties.
Pumping out a healthy 335bhp, the new engine gifts the TT with searing performance. The 0-62mph sprint takes the RS just 4.6 seconds, making the small Audi coupe as quick as the R8 supercar. Pay Audi to remove the limiter and the RS tops out at an unbelievable 174mph.
To help underline the TT's new-found muscle the RS gains an aggressive new look. In come R8-style wider air intakes up front, as well as an aggressive new body kit and a big ugly rear spoiler ensure. Subtle it isn't.
Prices for the new car start at £42,980 for the TT RS coupe, and the roadster will set you back £44,880. Both versions are pitched head-to-head with the talented Porsche Cayman and Boxster S.
With the new engine both TT RS versions are significantly faster than the Porsches, but crucially it's not all about straight-line speed. Is it better than the Porsches? Read on to find out.
Audi finished a decent seventh place in the most recent 2008 JD Power survey behind Mercedes and Jaguar.
The TT specifically didn't feature in the survey, but built on a policy of parts-sharing there's nothing to say the sporty Audi coupe shouldn't be no more or less reliable than an A3.
Nowadays, that's a good thing because the first generation of TT suffered from the odd faulty electrical faults and failing instrument panels.
Until the RS arrived the TT, like many other Audis, led the class for fit and finish and the quality of its cabin, but at almost £10,000 more than the next most expensive TT, is the RS outshone by new similarly priced competition?
Not at all. It's a credit to Audi's choice of high quality materials and beautiful build that the TT is still pick of the bunch even at this rather hefty price. To help justify the extra cash the RS gains plenty of brushed aluminium inlays, RS logos and heated leather seats plus a sportier, flat-bottomed steering wheel.
On paper the new RS Audi leads the coupe class with its explosive performance, while in the flesh it finally packs the visual aggression but can it finally outdrive the class-leading Porsche Cayman?
Sadly, the short and brutal answer is no, but the RS comes closer than any TT before. After the sensational RS4 and sublime R8, you can't blame us for expecting more.
Let's start with the positive.
The new 335bhp 2.5-litre 5-cylinder is a gem. From standstill to 62mph the Audi coupe outguns all its rivals taking just 4.6 seconds. Aiding its blistering getaway from the line is the superb traction provided by the Haldex 4x4 system that efficiently shuffles torque to the axle with most grip, and it is torque that dominates in the RS.
With the maximum 332lb-ft delivered from just 1,600rpm the new engine has a broad spread of power and decent go anywhere in the rev range.
Where a Cayman would require third for blistering exit from a medium speed corner the Audi will suffice with fourth.
Emphasising the TT's strong overtaking performance is a close-ratio gearbox that is both snappy and fast to use. Perversely, despite Audi pioneering the technology, the double clutch DSG, is not offered on the RS.
That said, close-ratio box or not, away from traffic-light grands prix and cross country the RS doesn't feel substantially quicker than the equivalent Cayman S.
A quick look at the tech sheet and it's easy to see why. The RS is burdened with a 100kg (the weight of a portly adult) weight handicap that blunts the Audi's power-to-weight ratio. Even with 'just' 315bhp the Porsche has the fractionally superior power-to-weight ratio that helps claw back some ground over the blistering Audi, although this advantage would shrink in damp or slippery conditions where the Porsche's rear-wheel drive would be no match for the TT's all-wheel-drive traction advantage.
Strangely, for perhaps for what's supposed to be the most extreme and hardcore TT, the RS uses the speed-sensitive power steering that feels supermini-light at parking speeds.
At speed we'd also prefer a more predictable and linear weighting and more feeling. The RS also is less playful, responding less to mid-corner throttle inputs, instead preferring to shrug off a series of corners with its huge reserves of grip. It's fast and neat, thanks to the torque-juggling abilities of the Haldex all-wheel-drive system.
It is tidy and organised but it's less fun than the Cayman S, which isn't so clinical in the way it goes about its work. The Porsche also feels the better balanced of the two and far more adjustable even if its rear-wheel-drive isn't always the fastest way out of the bend.
The Porsche has also got finer, more communicative steering, although the 3.4-litre will need working far harder with its peakier torque delivery. With the howling flat-six soundtrack that's no chore.
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