RE: Audi TT RS: PH Carpool
Discussion
Had a TTRS as a daily for three years when they first came out and can honestly say for blitzing across the country in whatever the weather wanted to throw at you it never put a foot wrong. I never had an issue with the brakes and when people talk about understeer I can’t help think they don’t understand physics and that cars don’t generally steer around hairpins at 90mph. Writing this now is actually making the brain tick about getting another one
Top article this. I read it with close scrutiny as I've often thought long and hard about the most powerful manual, 4 seater audi on the market but the relability of my old s3 and the understeer on tight turns at low speeds (e.g. accelerating onto a roundabout in the wet) have been two off putting factors so far.. maybe, still maybe. I wish the Cayman S had TT RS poke.
Lovely review thanks.
Still own both mk 1 & the III， both base quattro. The points i loved most in the review are the presence of manual，in addition to scottish road crosscountry capability （lived in Scotland for a few years with my mk I）， & boot space （relocated 23 times during my 1st 6 years of mkI ownership stuffing all my belongings in the boot back seat down）， & engine （even base had a 5 cylinder which I absolutely love）. I suffered understeer for 10years til when the springs snapped I upgraded to Bilstein & ever since it handles like on the rail.
The mkIII I am really not impressed，the unavailability of manual definitely played a major part. Handling still understeers & lack communication， engine only 4 pot & sounded fake. Car is bigger but lighter....... to me this is blxxdy weird. Sounds like a well maintained newish MK II manual RS is a good choice of TT to go for ，which I never considered before.
Still own both mk 1 & the III， both base quattro. The points i loved most in the review are the presence of manual，in addition to scottish road crosscountry capability （lived in Scotland for a few years with my mk I）， & boot space （relocated 23 times during my 1st 6 years of mkI ownership stuffing all my belongings in the boot back seat down）， & engine （even base had a 5 cylinder which I absolutely love）. I suffered understeer for 10years til when the springs snapped I upgraded to Bilstein & ever since it handles like on the rail.
The mkIII I am really not impressed，the unavailability of manual definitely played a major part. Handling still understeers & lack communication， engine only 4 pot & sounded fake. Car is bigger but lighter....... to me this is blxxdy weird. Sounds like a well maintained newish MK II manual RS is a good choice of TT to go for ，which I never considered before.
Yipper said:
These are great value now. You can pick them up for £15-20k. A cheap remap will push them to 60 in ~4secs. A cool car for the wife or gf.
That sounds like Al Murrays pub landlord, what do you drive that enables you to damn with faint praise a TTRS ?I would love one, but from a Citroen C1 everything is an upgrade
J4CKO said:
Yipper said:
These are great value now. You can pick them up for £15-20k. A cheap remap will push them to 60 in ~4secs. A cool car for the wife or gf.
That sounds like Al Murrays pub landlord, what do you drive that enables you to damn with faint praise a TTRS ?I would love one, but from a Citroen C1 everything is an upgrade
When these came out, they were compared to other cars much further up the food chain, and seemed to do well.
My frustration in these is that the basic layout (AWD turbo) is similar to the rally cars I love, and while I would love to be in a modern version of that from either Subaru or Mitsubishi, they just don't have the performance (brand new) that I want. The modern cars are too heavy.
So I look at cars like this, and the AMG, and I'm still left feeling they're too heavy. Added to that, servicing seems to be expensive compared to the Japanese cars, so for me its a case of "thanks, but no thanks".
My frustration in these is that the basic layout (AWD turbo) is similar to the rally cars I love, and while I would love to be in a modern version of that from either Subaru or Mitsubishi, they just don't have the performance (brand new) that I want. The modern cars are too heavy.
So I look at cars like this, and the AMG, and I'm still left feeling they're too heavy. Added to that, servicing seems to be expensive compared to the Japanese cars, so for me its a case of "thanks, but no thanks".
big_rob_sydney said:
When these came out, they were compared to other cars much further up the food chain, and seemed to do well.
My frustration in these is that the basic layout (AWD turbo) is similar to the rally cars I love, and while I would love to be in a modern version of that from either Subaru or Mitsubishi, they just don't have the performance (brand new) that I want. The modern cars are too heavy.
So I look at cars like this, and the AMG, and I'm still left feeling they're too heavy. Added to that, servicing seems to be expensive compared to the Japanese cars, so for me its a case of "thanks, but no thanks".
Assuming you mean the late 90s generations of WRX & Evos that could crack 60mph in ~4.5-5sec and weighed around 1250-1350kg versus the TTRS managed sub 4 seconds an weighs in at 1440kg, no doubt the TTRS has got more than 100kg of interior infortainment/electrical gubbins that those old Jap cars lacked. The dash alone probably weighs 3 times as much with all the soft touch plastics & leatherMy frustration in these is that the basic layout (AWD turbo) is similar to the rally cars I love, and while I would love to be in a modern version of that from either Subaru or Mitsubishi, they just don't have the performance (brand new) that I want. The modern cars are too heavy.
So I look at cars like this, and the AMG, and I'm still left feeling they're too heavy. Added to that, servicing seems to be expensive compared to the Japanese cars, so for me its a case of "thanks, but no thanks".
That said compared to it's competition the Audi is within a few KG of the Cayman & 370z and a substantial 300kg lighter than a Skyline GTR.Regarding the servicing isn't the main difference that a EVO/WRX needs servicing every 3-6k where as an TTRS still maintains 10-15k intervals?
I had manual 2009 TTRS Coupe.
1. Had intercooler replaced with a larger capacity one, had downpipe cat removed and engine remapped. At one point had the main cat removed as well.
2. Had front suspension modified to make the camber angle bigger and had different stiffness anti-roll bars installed in an attempt to make the car understeer less.
3. Had sport brake pads installed (do not remember the manufacturer and type).
Without both cats the noise on pedal-to-the-metal acceleration from ~2000rpm probably stripped paint from tunnel walls, noise was raspy, mean and loud.
It certainly breathed better and accelerated more vigorously without catalysts, but stank real bad, I could not take the smell and I was embarrassed to drive around in a stinky car, so I put the main cats back in. That way I had 420hp and 606nm on the dyno.
The sport brake pads made loads of squealing noise when they were cold (basically every time I drove in the city). It was also embarrassing but I kept them on the car.
I did not have the bucket seats and standard "sport" seats were not very supportive when going around corners in a vigorous manner. I say in this car bucket seats are a must.
The navigation system was not that good either, no touch screen and slow. I had 2007 Golf GTI Edition 30 before TTRS (modified even more than TTRS, but still nowhere near as fast as even the stock TTRS) and Golf had much better nav/music system.
The engine produced quite a lot of heat in summer, oil temp regularly jumped to 120C in city traffic. I yanked off the long rubber seal under the hood close to the windscreen in an attempt to improve engine ventilation. This "mod" did decrease the oil temp a couple of C and did increase the engine noise in the cockpit slightly, I liked both of these results. Generally, the car lost power in hot weather (which turbocharged car does not) and I noticed that in winter (0C) the clutch started slipping, I think cold air gave that car quite some more torque.
The car understeered really badly accelerating around corners from slower speed, but at higher speeds, especially on wet roads, it did cool 4-wheel slides instead.
Despite the above negatives, I was in love with TTRS, the engine was the masterpiece, of course, but the car was also short (good for parking), looked really nice (I had Daytona Gray with matching 5-spoke alloys) and was comfortable all-season friend with big boot and back seat that could sit a grown up (woman diagonally).
Still, I sold the car within 18 months of purchase with about 20000km on the clock.
The reason being - I drove a manual (modded) 997 Turbo back-to-back with TTRS.
997 Turbo had Sportec exhaust with 100-cell cats, H&R springs, HRE alloys, Sportec engine tuning.
First of all, the gearbox with factory shortshifter on 997 was so much more precise and shorter I could not believe it! After 997 the gearbox in TTRS felt very mushy.
Then the handling of 997. I know Turbo is probably the worst handling 911, being relatively heavy and AWD, but the way 997 goes around corners from any speed simply cannot be compared to TTRS.
The hydraulic steering of 997 really lets you feel the road with your hands, unlike TTRS which has no feel in its steering wheel.
The interior of 997 is really simple, even too simple for a car costing as much as new 997 Turbo did, and navigation was if anything even more prehistoric than the one in TTRS, but since I was not bothered that much with the TTRS system and 997 had 6-CD changer, could play MP3s and had Bose speakers I was ok with it.
The 18-way-adjustable sport seats in Turbo are light-years better than "sport" seats in TTRS. Generally, the whole sitting position in 997 Turbo is much sportier than in TTRS, Turbo really feels like a sportscar, while TTRS feels like a run-of-the-mill coupe with a different engine.
I had a roof hatch in 997, but TTRS did not have one even as an option. I like roof hatches.
997T had much more power, much more torque and much more noise than even fully-catless TTRS. In those days all of that was important to me.
Basically, I saw that particular 997 Turbo, I test drove it once and I sold my TTRS on the spot. Did not regret that decision since.
I still have the Turbo after 6 years, but these days I use it as a feel-good GT car and use sportsbikes for thrills, and when I want to have some cornering/aural thrills in a car I drive 981 Boxster S with sport suspension and sport exhaust...but I still keep the Turbo, for me it is a special old school car, manual-hydraulic-Mezger-powered very fast (and sometimes scary) feel-good GT car.
1. Had intercooler replaced with a larger capacity one, had downpipe cat removed and engine remapped. At one point had the main cat removed as well.
2. Had front suspension modified to make the camber angle bigger and had different stiffness anti-roll bars installed in an attempt to make the car understeer less.
3. Had sport brake pads installed (do not remember the manufacturer and type).
Without both cats the noise on pedal-to-the-metal acceleration from ~2000rpm probably stripped paint from tunnel walls, noise was raspy, mean and loud.
It certainly breathed better and accelerated more vigorously without catalysts, but stank real bad, I could not take the smell and I was embarrassed to drive around in a stinky car, so I put the main cats back in. That way I had 420hp and 606nm on the dyno.
The sport brake pads made loads of squealing noise when they were cold (basically every time I drove in the city). It was also embarrassing but I kept them on the car.
I did not have the bucket seats and standard "sport" seats were not very supportive when going around corners in a vigorous manner. I say in this car bucket seats are a must.
The navigation system was not that good either, no touch screen and slow. I had 2007 Golf GTI Edition 30 before TTRS (modified even more than TTRS, but still nowhere near as fast as even the stock TTRS) and Golf had much better nav/music system.
The engine produced quite a lot of heat in summer, oil temp regularly jumped to 120C in city traffic. I yanked off the long rubber seal under the hood close to the windscreen in an attempt to improve engine ventilation. This "mod" did decrease the oil temp a couple of C and did increase the engine noise in the cockpit slightly, I liked both of these results. Generally, the car lost power in hot weather (which turbocharged car does not) and I noticed that in winter (0C) the clutch started slipping, I think cold air gave that car quite some more torque.
The car understeered really badly accelerating around corners from slower speed, but at higher speeds, especially on wet roads, it did cool 4-wheel slides instead.
Despite the above negatives, I was in love with TTRS, the engine was the masterpiece, of course, but the car was also short (good for parking), looked really nice (I had Daytona Gray with matching 5-spoke alloys) and was comfortable all-season friend with big boot and back seat that could sit a grown up (woman diagonally).
Still, I sold the car within 18 months of purchase with about 20000km on the clock.
The reason being - I drove a manual (modded) 997 Turbo back-to-back with TTRS.
997 Turbo had Sportec exhaust with 100-cell cats, H&R springs, HRE alloys, Sportec engine tuning.
First of all, the gearbox with factory shortshifter on 997 was so much more precise and shorter I could not believe it! After 997 the gearbox in TTRS felt very mushy.
Then the handling of 997. I know Turbo is probably the worst handling 911, being relatively heavy and AWD, but the way 997 goes around corners from any speed simply cannot be compared to TTRS.
The hydraulic steering of 997 really lets you feel the road with your hands, unlike TTRS which has no feel in its steering wheel.
The interior of 997 is really simple, even too simple for a car costing as much as new 997 Turbo did, and navigation was if anything even more prehistoric than the one in TTRS, but since I was not bothered that much with the TTRS system and 997 had 6-CD changer, could play MP3s and had Bose speakers I was ok with it.
The 18-way-adjustable sport seats in Turbo are light-years better than "sport" seats in TTRS. Generally, the whole sitting position in 997 Turbo is much sportier than in TTRS, Turbo really feels like a sportscar, while TTRS feels like a run-of-the-mill coupe with a different engine.
I had a roof hatch in 997, but TTRS did not have one even as an option. I like roof hatches.
997T had much more power, much more torque and much more noise than even fully-catless TTRS. In those days all of that was important to me.
Basically, I saw that particular 997 Turbo, I test drove it once and I sold my TTRS on the spot. Did not regret that decision since.
I still have the Turbo after 6 years, but these days I use it as a feel-good GT car and use sportsbikes for thrills, and when I want to have some cornering/aural thrills in a car I drive 981 Boxster S with sport suspension and sport exhaust...but I still keep the Turbo, for me it is a special old school car, manual-hydraulic-Mezger-powered very fast (and sometimes scary) feel-good GT car.
Edited by Ho Lee Kau on Tuesday 3rd October 22:07
Edited by Ho Lee Kau on Tuesday 3rd October 22:08
aka_kerrly said:
Assuming you mean the late 90s generations of WRX & Evos that could crack 60mph in ~4.5-5sec and weighed around 1250-1350kg versus the TTRS managed sub 4 seconds an weighs in at 1440kg, no doubt the TTRS has got more than 100kg of interior infortainment/electrical gubbins that those old Jap cars lacked. The dash alone probably weighs 3 times as much with all the soft touch plastics & leather That said compared to it's competition the Audi is within a few KG of the Cayman & 370z and a substantial 300kg lighter than a Skyline GTR.
Regarding the servicing isn't the main difference that a EVO/WRX needs servicing every 3-6k where as an TTRS still maintains 10-15k intervals?
Pretty much agree with everything you say. That said compared to it's competition the Audi is within a few KG of the Cayman & 370z and a substantial 300kg lighter than a Skyline GTR.Regarding the servicing isn't the main difference that a EVO/WRX needs servicing every 3-6k where as an TTRS still maintains 10-15k intervals?
And just to add, can you imagine what the TTRS would be like if they did a version without all the extra weight you mentioned, which was targeted at people who want even more?
I would love to buy one that was, as you say, 1250-1350 kg, and had a bit more grunt. It really would be the modern version of the cars I love. I can do without the soft touch plastic, and the leather.
I have to say I love the 5 pot engine and the soundtrack! Reminds me of an 80s S1 standing in the forest as a kid. TTs have a bit of an image issue but blimey these are quick. I have a 997 Turbo and came across the latest version of the TT RS on and early morning journey a couple of months ago, not much to separate them on the road! Got my respect!
No idea how I ended up here. Nice car and all rounder Johnno. Will always remember you in the VX220, that car blew me away and it's why I ended up with an Elise.
Don't know if you've spoken with Shek but he did many modifications to his RS, was an incredibly quick place to sit inside.
Don't know if you've spoken with Shek but he did many modifications to his RS, was an incredibly quick place to sit inside.
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