► Audi TT Clubsport Turbo concept car
► The TT that’s popped down the gym
► Due for Worthersee festival debut
Think the new 2015 Audi TT is just a tad too debonair to be a proper sports car? Then check out the tuned-up TT Clubsport model, due to make a bow at this month’s Worthersee festival.
It premieres new electric turbocharging – using electricity from a 48v electrical system to spin up conventional blowers, overcoming lag, before exhaust gasses kick in – and boasts a wild bodykit to accompany its heady 600 horsepower output.
A 600bhp Audi TT?
Well, nearly. That’s in metric hp, translating to 592bhp. But, hey, who’s counting when a toppy 479lb ft of torque means you can demolish the 0-62mph benchmark in just 3.6 seconds and power on to 193mph?
The new engine technology is applied to the 2.5-litre five-cylinder TFSI production engine and group development chief Ulrich Hackenberg says the technology is ‘close to production readiness.’
‘The electric bi-turbo signifies a new dimension in driving enjoyment; it boosts sprinting ability and torque and enables high peak power,’ he added. ‘In our TDI engines, we are close to production readiness with this technology. We are now presenting it in a TFSI [petrol engine] – here too, we are the first automaker in the world to do this.’
What else is new?
The car’s spiritual inspiration was the Audi 90 IMSA GTO of the late 1980s, Ingolstadt says. So there are some suitably lairy details applied.
Coilover suspension is fitted, allowing for a slammed ride height, and the concept rolls on 20in alloys. Carbonfibre discs are fitted to wipe off all that speed and the TT Clubsport is 140mm wider for a broad-shouldered, track-car aesthetic.
And that rear wing? Pure street drama. It’s taken from the Sport TT Cup racer, and widened by 20cm. Sadly, it’s unlikely to become an option for roadgoing British TTs any time soon. Perhaps in a dozen years when old TTs are ten-a-penny on Auto Trader…