From the ridiculous to the sublime for the Audi TT! Following the 'openly sporting'
TT Roadster
Sportback
, we now have the far more interesting TT Cup. A racing version for a 2015 championship of the same name, it will support the DTM across six rounds. Why Audi chose to announced this on its US media site is another matter entirely...
Anyway, to the car. The 310hp 2.0-litre turbo and six-speed DSG are carried across largely unchanged from the
roadgoing TT S
. However with the Cup stripped out for racing it weighs 1,125kg, a big chunk less than the road car's 1,460kg EU kerbweight. Furthermore, a push-to-pass function with another 30hp should liven up the car (and the racing). Quattro will prepare all 24 TT Cups for each round, the grid comprised of six 'changing guest drivers' and 18 private racers.
Dr Ulrich Hackenberg is always good for a soundbite in situations like this and so it proves with the TT Cup: "For me it was clear that a driving machine like the new Audi TT belongs on the race track as well... The TT is going to thrill fans and drivers". Let's see.
Of course we can't see a racing version of a new road car without speculating on the prospect of a road car. Reducing weight always get the PH thumbs up but it's usually a headline-grabbing power figure that typically sells. Something like the TT Quattro Sport concept then. Fingers crossed. And if Audi is ever short of a guest driver...