Refreshed TT lineup gets 20th anniversary edition
Design icon pays homage to its younger self with hat-tipping, limited edition trim level
It's twenty years since Audi launched the enormously successful TT, an occasion it has chosen to mark not only with a very gentle facelift of the entire range (which can you read about elsewhere) but also that finest of things: an anniversary edition. Badged the "TT 20 years", the model will be limited to 999 cars and incorporates numerous details that were a feature of the Roadster concept car - originally shown at the Tokyo Show in 1995.
The styling homage is nothing if not fitting. After all, aside from the need to retrofit a rear spoiler for better high speed stability, the original TT firmly established the model's reputation as a design icon. Very few cars make it from show floor to showroom without significant alteration, but the first generation TT hardly deviated from the concept's unusually rounded appearance.
Using a circle as the central design motif gifted the model its idiosyncratic look - a standout feature that would serve to brilliantly camouflage the humbleness of the TT's undersides, which were hatchback-based from the start. Twenty years later, and the model is doing much the same job as it ever did, albeit with a few more horizontal lines incorporated into its sharp-suited design.
In truth, the exclusive 20 year trim does not fall far from the tree. Among the most notable features is that moccasin brown leather interior with Panuka contrast stitching, which, while recalling 'the beginnings of TT history' (as Audi puts it) is also likely to be the marmite on the bread stick for most people.
Elsewhere you get 'TT 20 years' badges on the steering wheel and gear lever, as well as a numbered plaque for your viewing pleasure. Externally, there's the exclusive pearl-effect 'arrow grey' paint to go with matrix OLED rear lights, gloss metal grey 19-inch wheels, black callipers and bespoke design stainless steel tailpipes. Along with some more badges.
And the powertrain? V10, presumably? Dream on. You'll be treated to the same 2.0-litre petrol engine that now adorns the rest of the lineup, save the TT-RS (the 1.8-litre unit and 2.0-litre diesel having been kicked firmly into touch). In anniversary format - available as either coupe or a roadster - that translates to 245hp (an entry-level 40 TFSI model is now furnished with 197hp).
The exact price in the UK remains a mystery for now, although with a higher specification across the board and slightly more power from the entry-level model, expect prices to have crept gently northwards. Which ought to put the limited edition version firmly within Porsche 718 Boxster territory. Which won't concern Audi in the slightest.
Search for a used Audi TT here
Read Matt's first drive of the new TT S here
Audi did contribute circa £500 to the bill though IIRC.
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