Thursday 11th September 2014

Audi TT Quattro Sport: Catch It While You Can

We drove the new TT last week; the pick of the originals might be a sound investment too

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Speed dating has ruined the Audi TT for me. And in more than one sense, too.

I have an admission to make - my encounters at speed dating events have been occasionally fantastic, often tragic. But one question can always be relied on to come up: 'What do you do?' And as soon as the job of car scribe is mentioned, everyone immediately tells you what they drive. And I soon realised two things: every speed dater seems to be in marketing, and everyone in marketing drives an Audi TT.

There was a 'comfort' option; buckets cooler

As if that wasn't bad enough, there's my more literal 'speed date' - an appointment with a TT Mk1 around Silverstone. Quick in a straight line the TT undoubtedly is, but its charisma as a corner-meister is sorely bypassed. Too little feedback from the steering wheel, and even less from a numb four-wheel drive chassis.

Redemption gong
Maybe, just maybe, redemption has arrived in the all-new TT Mk3, especially as there may be a Quattro Sport version.

Ah yes, the words 'Quattro Sport' got me thinking back to the original version. Even I, blinded by my anti-TT prejudices, have to concede that the Mk1 has an iconic shape, as well as one of the world's most seductive cabins. Mk1 TTs have long since entered the banger zone, but one Mk1 is a sure-fire future classic. No, not the V6, tasty though its 250hp motor is. The Mk1 to have is the 240hp Quattro Sport.

Contrast roof most obvious distinguishing feature

Why? For starters, it's a special edition. Just 800 were made (for the UK market at least), and people in the know say there are probably only 650 left. So it's rare, then.

Strictly for two
It's also built by Quattro GmbH, which breathed on the 1.8 turbo lump to boost it from 225hp to a snorting 240hp, with a healthy 236lb ft of torque. The QS also went on a diet, reducing weight by 75kg. The rear seats (useless in any case) were ditched in favour of a brace bar. Also deleted were the spare wheel, parcel shelf and climate control. The result? 0-62mph in 5.9 seconds. Additionally, a relocated battery (to the rear), plus S Line suspension, gave the TT the best chance of actually getting around corners.

It's the Mk1 TT for those who like corners too

The '240' also looks cool in its duo-tone finish. Black paint for the roof, contrasting silver, red, blue or, er, black for the bodywork (the same contrasting colour being echoed in the backs of the front seats). You also got an S Line bodykit, black tailpipes and unique 18-inch 15-spoke alloys over red brake calipers. Inside, The TT's front seats were swapped for tasty Alcantara/leather Recaros with loads of lateral support - and there were even mounting points for race harnesses, plus an Alcantara steering wheel, gear lever and handbrake. Yum.

It's all about the Mk1
So what price a Quattro Sport? Inevitably they're the priciest of all Mk1s. The cheapest we could find in the PH classifieds is this one at £6,800, while this one at £7,850 is more typically priced. This low-mileage (45K) example at £9,999 is on the pricey side, but here's the thing: I can't see a Quattro Sport being anything other than the soundest of investments. Look after it, keep it standard, and there will always be a demand for it. You'll even have something in common at speed dating events.

 

[W124]

I reckon ANY decent, low miles MK1 TT in a restrained colour would be a good buy. It's one of those cars where, suddenly, there's none left. Amazing looking thing really.

[SmartVenom]

I hated TTs when they came out and every review of their driving perfomance helped re-inforce this hatred. However, like you I can't help but admire what is definitely an iconic shape and a great piece of design. Recently I have been toying with the idea of building one up for racing, but I think they need just a bit too much spending on them to be good on the track (haldex controllers aren't cheap). These will definitely attain classic status.

[Leins]

One of these, an R56 Mini GP and a Mk4 Golf R32 I feel would be a nice little collection to try and fight off depreciation with

[redwedge]

Is it just me who thinks this is one of the worst-looking versions of the TT?

Give me a silver one, with a silver roof, and the launch alloys any day of the week over a QS.

[timmeh2k]

Only around 750 made it to the UK and nearly all of them have climate control.

Some defcon/cookbot front wishbone bushes and some thicker anti roll bars cures most of the numb handling and understeer too

One of the truly iconic shapes, with the perfect wheels to match and the two tone colours set it all off really well.

Not that I'm biased or anything....

[AdamGP]

Leins said:

One of these, an R56 Mini GP and a Mk4 Golf R32 I feel would be a nice little collection to try and fight off depreciation with

A R53 GP would be the safer bet, there still struggling to shift a few delivery mileage r56 GP's

[Matt UK]

When I needed a local runabout, I considered one of these. I they the black roof looks great and they were much better sorted than standard.

But even last year they were holding prices well.
I just couldn't justify to myself that it was twice as good as an equivalent year/miles R53 Mini Cooper S, so got one of those instead.

[RenesisEvo]

I'm going to disagree a little here. I owned one, and when it came time to sell this time last year, I struggled to find people interested, even though bar a wheel refurb it was in good, original condition, no mods. Every interested party was male - stereotypes need not apply. In the end it sold for quite a bit less than I hoped, hardly an investment - it didn't retain its price at all, but then I didn't keep it for long. The problem now is that for the price, it's quite an old car, and it shows in places. The design dates back to '98; the youngest examples are approaching 10 years old. There are a few examples kicking about that I suspect won't selling at the asking price. A rare car though - in 18 months I saw only 4 or 5 others, 3 of which were at an owner's club meeting. Few if any have the correct polished lip on the original alloys, and for a reason - try finding someone willing to refurb it for you at a sensible price.

I did enjoy my time with the qS; great traction and lots of torque made it superb point-to-point, but it was caught between a GT and a sportscar and ended up being bad at both: too stiff for comfort, steering too heavy just off-centre, but not that involving either. The chassis very sharp and responsive but it's all grip, point-and-go, and the steering is rather numb.

Edited by RenesisEvo on Thursday 11th September 11:46

[smaybury]

timmeh2k said:

Only around 750 made it to the UK and nearly all of them have climate control.

Some defcon/cookbot front wishbone bushes and some thicker anti roll bars cures most of the numb handling and understeer too

One of the truly iconic shapes, with the perfect wheels to match and the two tone colours set it all off really well.

Not that I'm biased or anything....

Yeah, I had H&R ARBs on mine and you could hurl it into any corner. Turned like a dodgem and clingier than my ex girlfriend...

You could still find understeer, but it took quite a lot of effort. The Defcon upgrade was on the list, but then a large dog arrived in our lives and a Forester XTe suddenly made a lot more sense. We just don't discuss fuel consumption.

[Leins]

AdamGP said:

Leins said:

One of these, an R56 Mini GP and a Mk4 Golf R32 I feel would be a nice little collection to try and fight off depreciation with

A R53 GP would be the safer bet, there still struggling to shift a few delivery mileage r56 GP's

Sorry, yes I meant R53

[HeMightBeBanned]

How heavy are these cars?

[Matt UK]

HeMightBeBanned said:

How heavy are these cars?

They're no lightweight - I think about 1,400kgs maybe?

[HeMightBeBanned]

Matt UK said:

They're no lightweight - I think about 1,400kgs maybe?

Blimey. Heavier than a 997 Carrera!

[X5TUU]

I loved mine, but preferred the convertible even more (I am a slave to the roofless) ... I have noticed them creeping in value though and my old one recently changed hands at a local indie for 2k more than I sold it for and I made money off it for what I bought it for ... def one to watch for the future ... and the QS's with the non-buckets (non-cost option from the buckets) are even rarer and saw a relative low-miler recently advertised briefly online before it sold for a shade under 13k

[ManOpener]

I've always thought the Quattro Sport was the tidiest looking of all the Mk1 TTs, but at those prices you'd be better served with a mint 225 Quattro, £2k worth of mods to make it less dreary to drive and a few grand left over.

[J4CKO]

W124 said:

I reckon ANY decent, low miles MK1 TT in a restrained colour would be a good buy. It's one of those cars where, suddenly, there's none left. Amazing looking thing really.

Kind of agree, but they dont seem to be disparaging from the roads in great numbers, they dont rot (afaik) and they generally have a decent value so are worth repairing if anything fails, will mainly be crashes writing them off, they are pretty robust.

[an20ny]

Wow that ones going for £10k, my 04 plate V6 with 20k miles should fetch a good price

[crostonian]

Had a longish drive in one last year and all I can remember is the combination of a rock hard and bouncy ride together with rock hard seats made it deeply uncomfortable, and the buckets made entry and egress a pain - literally. The breathed on engine is still characterless and the two tone body makes it look like it's got a vinyl roof.

[mighTy Tee]

I was at the initial TTOC preview of the qS back in 2005 (before the dealer even saw it) and thought it was a folly. The qS didnt sell well. I was going to buy a mk2 but bland styling mean I traded in my 225 and I bought my qS as an ex-dealer car in 2007 with 6k on the clock, 13 months old and having depreciated by well over 30%. It was a daily runner and now has 44k on the clock. Surprisingly comfortable on runs across Europe, it is a great car, the problem is, it is a "Jack of all trades - master of none".

Circumstances change and the qS is now in the garage as a play car, I think about selling it, then I take it out for a spin and get a reminder why the qS is such a great motor.

[corcoran]

I had one on an 06 (from distant memory) plate. Other TT drivers used to race me all the time not realising I had good legs on 'em. Hah.