That old Audi TT quattro sport 1.8T

[Iklwa]

Was it any good? Prices have dropped below £10k now, and for a reasonably powerful 4WD sports car, it seems like decent value.

By modern standards the power output isn't massive, but I bet it's more usable than any of the VXR's or ST's floating about (especially in the current weather!!), and looks pretty special with the two tone exterior. Limited numbers too, and a seemingly lot of performance Audi for the money.

Thing is, even though it's less powerful, a much younger Golf GTi can be had for around the same money. It has legendary Hot Hatch credentials, plenty of grunt, but no 4WD accessibility. Probably a lot less focused though, as the Audi has all the sports trimmings like bucket seats and no seating in the back, appears to be designed to be more performance focussed than the jack-of-all-trades GTi.

Anyone actually have this TT? I rarely see them, but for under £10k was just thinking it could be a left field choice for something a bit special.

[dci]

Had a mess about in one the other day, was maybe an 02/03 plate maybe? Wouldn't of been much younger..

It handled like it was on rails and being the 225 version it wasn't the slowest thing either. It had everything baseball stitch leather bucket seats, cd changer, sub, electric roof etc..

Can't imagine it returned much over 10 mpg when we hammered it and 30 when cruising though. If I had a small daily commute I would have one in a heartbeat.

Richard

[Motorrad]

Visibility is the main problem with them IMO- it's terrible, particularly round town. Other than that I'd have one over an S3 of the same vintage. The chassis is a little 'wooden' but it's a very competent car with a surprising amount of room for carrying stuff.

[Iklwa]

This is an example of the one I mean, the 240BHP version of which 800 were made:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2014...

So should be everything you described plus more.

[was8v]

I had a TT 225 quattro. The sport was a special edition missing the back seats and lowered suspension and little more power.

TT is very different to drive than the Golf - the comparison is unfair. You sit much lower and further back, hence the weight distribution is totally different.

On release a bunch of people had high speed spins in TTs in the earliest cars, they were recalled and fitted with a rear spoiler and traction control.

The handling of all but the earliest MK1 TT was numbed by them increasing the size and squidginess of a bushing in the front suspension leading to under steer.



A TT with polybushed front suspension, R32 ARBs and a haldex controller giving more rearward bias would be a great machine.

But you could buy a nice 911 996 for that much outlay, which would eclipse it IMO. Porsche dealers are cheaper than Audi dealers in my experience..

[R6VED]

I test drove a QS when they were over 20k and loved it. I couldn't afford that at the time so bought a 225 roadster and had it remapped to 265bhp and 300lbft instead

I also changed a whole load of suspension components and the geometry and still couldn't get it as tight as the QS (obviously being a roadster didn't help with this but I did buy a black hardtop (car was Misano Red) so that helped tighten it but also added weight.

A well sorted QS is a great car, not fashionable to like though.

I owned my TTR for 5 years and ran a business supporting the TT Forum so had massive extended exposure to them and can honestly say I would love one - it would have to be Misano/Phantom and have the Pole Position seats.

Charlie

[Riknos]

I wouldn't bother with that 'special edition' one for £9k+. Just buy a normal 225bhp one, and tune it / respray it/ stick all the bling you want on it and it'll be better / cheaper than that one! Seems way overpriced personally.

Regarding the car themselves, a friend had one, they have immense grip, I dismissed it as a poser car (like I'm sure many do on here) until he took me out in it, and it's very capable.

[F1GTRUeno]

I always wondered if you could turn the understeering, numb handling original setup into something that's actually brilliant.

[Jandywa]

Yep, I've had one for about 8 months now and I love the thing. any questions fire away

[J4CKO]

I still have a big thing for TTs but when it came to it, I couldnt buy one,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3cuFUlKkB0

Ok, thats the V6 but I saw that and just couldnt do it, even though I love the looks, the interior and the quality, also in reality I dont think I actually do that much slidey stuff that I would really notice.

Also, wanted convertible and TT convertibles are just too girly, still may get a TT one day though.

[Leptons]

£9,250

fk that.

[crossy67]

A friend has a 225 convertible. Love the engine but the body's like a big blancmange, totally ruins the whole effect when you can't put it where you want it.

[mike-r]

As mentioned, visibility is awful and they're quite cramped inside. Interior materials to me seem cheap and coupled with them being in your face wasn't my favourite place to be.

Sound cool though and feel quite nimble.

[Iklwa]

It is a tough sell given the competition. Their relative rarity means I would need to travel some way to try one out, but then a new shape for very little more might prove too big an obstacle to me getting one.

Jandywa, did you try out a standard 225 before going with the special?

[aka_kerrly]

Evo ran one as a long termer and were clearly impressed:
http://www.evo.co.uk/carreviews/evolongtermtests/6...

some info here to
http://www.pistonheads.com/news/default.asp?storyI...

[Jandywa]

Iklwa said:

Jandywa, did you try out a standard 225 before going with the special?

I have been a passenger in a 225 convertible but I haven't actually driven a 225 in any form.

For me the Quattro sport was something I had read about but never actually seen. The reviews I read were very positive such as the evo long termer one previously posted, and I had always loved the shape of the TT. To me the sport sounded like the perfect package, more power, less weight, revised suspension, and 4wd. Good ones are quite rare and difficult to find, I ended up getting mine from Dorset! n ahm from t'north

[Baryonyx]

The Quattro Sport was an interesting project, but it tried to make the TT into a sports car, which is missing the point! The mk1 TT, whilst derided on here for a number of reasons, is actually a very good GT car. It's comfortable to sit in, easy to drive, fast enough and with a pokey enough engine not to be 'hard work' for wimps who can't rev out and engine. By taking away the gorgeous seats and stiffening it up, it loses some of it's charm - the Quattro Sport competes with cars in it's price range that are far more fun/sporty/luxurious and falls flat against them primarily because it has tried too hard to turn the TT into something it just isn't.

[Iklwa]

Jandywa said:

Good ones are quite rare and difficult to find, I ended up getting mine from Dorset! n ahm from t'north

You can tell the economies in a mess when people from up North can afford to drive Audi's!! I assume when you say "ended up getting mine from Dorset", you actually mean you travelled to the South by horse, stole it, and took it back to The Grey Beyond the Thames? I cant condone that, but do appreciate your thoughts on the car

It certainly divides opinion, they turned it into something it wasn't originally intended to be, an out and out sports car, and as such will be a compromised sports car. That might actually be the right compromise for me though, strangely, as I like something well built and safe, and with traffic being what it is I spend a lot of time going slow, so having all the pretence that you're in something special is important (I could make engine sound noises while I sit still in traffic, the sports seats, dials, and steering wheel completing the whole race car experience).

I am still thinking a GTi may have the compromise better sorted though, and is less divisive in it's looks (the previous TT has always been known as a hairdressers car, and I do not do hair!!). Or the real competitor to this for me, a BMW Z4, though at this price only the 2.0's have crept that low. Not in a hurry to change cars though so am biding my time and considering options.

Edited by Iklwa on Thursday 6th February 09:15

[Vitorio]

F1GTRUeno said:

I always wondered if you could turn the understeering, numb handling original setup into something that's actually brilliant.

I've read a fair bit about tuning the understeer out of TTs, and with some fiddling with ARBs/bushes and i think camber you can turn it into a neutral or oversteer biased car, as said before, having a haldex controller which engages the rear wheels more will help as well in making it handle well.

FWIW, i was playing a LOT of forza motorsport 4 at the time, took a TTRS, applied the suspension/ARB tunings i had found, and it turned an understeering monster into a wonderfully balanced and quick car, quicker then an R8 V8 around the track.

[aka_kerrly]

Iklwa said:

(the previous TT has always been known as a hairdressers car, and I do not do hair!!).

PH at it's finest...