RE: Audi TT 1.8T (Mk1) | Shed of the Week

[Earthdweller]

I seriously looked at these about 4 years ago, hoping to find a good well cared for low mileage example

Well, every one I saw was a dog .. I was quite shocked tbf how shonky they were.

Most had little or no history and had generally the look of being abused

I gave up and started looking at other things and generally found a real disparity between makes in condition on average

I ended up buying a Z4 .. which was mint, low mileage and very well cared for .. almost all the Zed’s, both 3 and 4 were clearly cherished cars

But the TT’s wish I could say the same

[WJNB]

Reciprocating mass said:

The car you don’t no which way it’s facing, is the front the back or is the back the front, I have and always will think they are absolutely gopping ugly as ugly
It’s a no from me

Think fairground dodgem.

[blade7]

J4CKO said:

blade7 said:

J4CKO said:

I had one, I documented it in readers cars, I loved it even though it was a stter.

Reminded me of my 944 in a lot of ways, and just as needy

What happens to cars when they are worn out, and nobody wants them anymore? J4CKO buys them...;)

Pretty much !

Trying to do fast, interesting and cheap is difficult, going a bit newer these days, or might do older but properly.

Catching up on neglect is hard work.

If something happened to my 944 I wouldn't replace it with anything over 10 years old.

[FN2TypeR]

I like these. The crap spoiler would have to go and the alloys would need a re coat so that they aren't black but surely if you did that and looked after it you wouldn't lose any cash on this over a 2/3 year period, running costs aside?

[Court_S]

bungle said:

Court_S said:

The pixelated dash is a shame. Still an expensive fix?

Not at all, cheap fix these days. You can get someone to fit a new one "while you wait" for around £100. (or cheaper if you want to send the dash cluster away for fixing, and then refit yourself).

That’s not too bad then. I remember looking at them a fair while ago and sorting the dodgy pixels was bloody expensive.

[Gandahar]

Check list

1. Looks distinctive.
2. Great steering wheel
3. Great gear knob
4. Great dash

there was a very nice subtle green convertible ( apple?) that had the dark orange base ball stitched seats .. that looked epic.

Still so funky looking to this day

[s m]

WJNB said:

Reciprocating mass said:

The car you don’t no which way it’s facing, is the front the back or is the back the front, I have and always will think they are absolutely gopping ugly as ugly
It’s a no from me

Think fairground dodgem.

Or Porsche Boxster?

[ian316]

CDP said:

grumpy52 said:

DrSteveBrule said:

ian316 said:

grumpy52 said:

Limited audience to those under 6 foot tall unless you're a contortionist.
I rarely see them driven by males .

I don't agree with the under 6ft part, I'm 6ft 3 and got in and out easily the second part about being driven by males is strangely true no idea why they're a lot faster than an mx5 and rot less

I'm 6'3" and didn't have any difficulty in getting in or out. I did have trouble seeing traffic lights & signs if they were close by; it was like looking out of a letterbox. Not that much of a problem that it put me off the car though, I think they are great.

Not this one though.

I have used two over the years , one RHD one LHD , I am 6 ft 1" and at the time about 14 stone . I banged my head pretty hard getting in the RHD one and the LHD one I actually split my ear on .
As others mentioned seeing traffic lights when stopped close to the line can cause problems.
I am a bit biased as I have yet to find a hard topped sports car that I have felt comfortable sitting in or driving .

Have you driven an S1 Elise much? They can be a pain to get in and out of, the TT is limo in comparison.

We perfected our quick Lotus exit when thick black smoke started pouring from the engine compartment - quite an incentive to get it right...

You do have to dip your head to get in and out but once in there is plenty of headroom

[Brads67]

Loved mine. Had it for yrs. 225 quatro.

Felt like an A6 until you booted it, then it shrank and turned into a scalded cat.

Brilliant wee car and would have another. Mk1 only.

[rallycross]

Earthdweller said:

I seriously looked at these about 4 years ago, hoping to find a good well cared for low mileage example

Well, every one I saw was a dog .. I was quite shocked tbf how shonky they were.

Most had little or no history and had generally the look of being abused e

That’s odd you found that, we have had a few of these mk1 225’s over the years all the ones I’ve looked at buying had impressive service history’s and the cars felt like they had been really well looked after, unusually so for what were quite cheap examples (under £3k).

This example is very well priced good 225’ sell for a lot more than this (usually). Looks like a clean well looked after car, and black wheels are very easily put back to silver.

[s m]

bristolracer said:

What are they like to drive?

Used to do ok in contemporary tests

CAR magazine’s Handling Day 2000 - real world cars

[bristolracer]

s m said:

bristolracer said:

What are they like to drive?

Used to do ok in contemporary tests

Interesting.
I've been looking for a weekend toy on a budget.

Candidates have been

MX5 rusty rusty rusty
Mgf/Tf yes mate head gasket has been done but I've lost the receipt
MR2 out of budget now
Slk mainly autos
Z3 needs the 6 cylinder for interest so out of budget
Celica another candidate, but not sure if it has character?
Alfa gt or GTV pricey parts and reliability?
E46 CI missed the boat on that one

So a TT could be a candidate if it's fun to drive,but it needs that fun factor or it just becomes another car.

[s m]

bristolracer said:

s m said:

bristolracer said:

What are they like to drive?

Used to do ok in contemporary tests

Interesting.
I've been looking for a weekend toy on a budget.

Candidates have been

MX5 rusty rusty rusty
Mgf/Tf yes mate head gasket has been done but I've lost the receipt
MR2 out of budget now
Slk mainly autos
Z3 needs the 6 cylinder for interest so out of budget
Celica another candidate, but not sure if it has character?
Alfa gt or GTV pricey parts and reliability?
E46 CI missed the boat on that one

So a TT could be a candidate if it's fun to drive,but it needs that fun factor or it just becomes another car.

The early suspension set up was ‘edgier’/sharper according to testers but if you have the ESP system on the revised cars it’s supposed to be a decent driving tool
My friend has gone for a very similar set up on his ( along with a smidge more power )

Edited by s m on Saturday 29th February 12:40

[1781cc]

Coding out the ESP should be the first thing someone does if the do spirited driving, or you can put an inline switch in to disable it.

The MK1 arms were edgier but this can be mimicked with cookbots or defcons.

You can also get a Powertrack insert which locks the car in a permanent 50/50 split on the haldex, or you can upgrade the controller to a blue or orange version.

The sky is the limit tuning wise with these

[CDP]

1781cc said:

Coding out the ESP should be the first thing someone does if the do spirited driving, or you can put an inline switch in to disable it.

The MK1 arms were edgier but this can be mimicked with cookbots or defcons.

You can also get a Powertrack insert which locks the car in a permanent 50/50 split on the haldex, or you can upgrade the controller to a blue or orange version.

The sky is the limit tuning wise with these

There's a switch on the dashboard.

The issue for me wasn't ESP, it was just general sense of weight and numbness.

On the roads it's got enough grip that understeer isn't too much of an issue but round Cadwell Park it was pretty tragic.

[Pericoloso]

Don't understand the hate this getting.
It's got black wheels.
It's got an extra rear spoiler.
It's not the greatest sports car ever.

It's £1500.....what more do you want ?

6 TTs out of 10 quattros from me.

[edwheels]

Hmmm - like the MK1 TT - design way ahead of its time - and this is a good price.

I had to do a double take.... it has TWO spoilers! but guess the black aftermarket one could be removed along with the stickers fairly easily?

Then, have the wheels put back from black to silver (£300)... and this could be nice shed....

See through the modifications (I've seen worse) - they are easily rectified - and not a bad effort actually....

[rallycross]

edwheels said:

Then, have the wheels put back from black to silver (£300)... and this could be nice shed....

See through the modifications (I've seen worse) - they are easily rectified - and not a bad effort actually....

The wheels go back to silver with a £12 aerosol and a few hours of your time, or 4 refurbished cheaply at £50 a wheel - this is shed money not ‘spend as much as possible’ on pointless cosmetic changes.

[edwheels]

rallycross said:

edwheels said:

Then, have the wheels put back from black to silver (£300)... and this could be nice shed....

See through the modifications (I've seen worse) - they are easily rectified - and not a bad effort actually....

The wheels go back to silver with a £12 aerosol and a few hours of your time, or 4 refurbished cheaply at £50 a wheel - this is shed money not ‘spend as much as possible’ on pointless cosmetic changes.

Fair enough...

[s m]

1781cc said:

Coding out the ESP should be the first thing someone does if the do spirited driving, or you can put an inline switch in to disable it.

The MK1 arms were edgier but this can be mimicked with cookbots or defcons.

You can also get a Powertrack insert which locks the car in a permanent 50/50 split on the haldex, or you can upgrade the controller to a blue or orange version.

The sky is the limit tuning wise with these

Yes, the recall really only needed to have added ESP-retrofit and the spoiler to be effective.
As you say, shedders can code/add a switch for the ESP