► Month nine with the Audi TTS
► Time to say goodbye to the AWD wonder
► Fast and classy: Audi has nailed it
The TT has come of age in this third incarnation. We know this because we’ve been running a top-of-the-range TTS for most of a year, living with this Glacier White slice of Audi modernism every day for 12,400 miles.
Let’s not forget the devastating impact the Mk1 had back in 1998. The 1990s were not a great era for car design, but I’d argue that the late-decade modernisers – led by German giants Audi, BMW and VW – pushed the envelope for mainstream kitsch, with the TT, Mini and Beetle all forcing stylistics slap bang to the front of consumers’ minds. Everyone else’s been playing catch up ever since.
It’s the Audi that has stayed truest to that original mission statement. While the Mini and Bug have twisted and turned into all sorts of new facets and strange shapes, the TT has evolved steadily but surely through the Mk2’s rather stout, sensible polish to today’s Mk3 excellence.
Is excellent too strong a word? I’d say not. This is a sharp-suited design – inside and out – and one that still turns heads, especially when equipped with our 20in alloys (an £850 option) and blood-red leather sports seats (no-cost Express Red Nappa leather). That boldly Bauhaus profile riffs on the original TT graphics, yet remains fresh, simple, modern. We like.
I’ve spent much of the past year raving about the cabin and its allure has not dulled with every passing month and mile. It’s well thought through, stylish and fizzing with surprise and delight: the minimal switchgear really works, I love the heating controls thoughtfully incorporated into the air vents and the reconfigurable digital display works well, focusing on maps one minute, speedo the next or audio settings as you desire. It’s great to see Audi pushing ahead with the cabin quality advantage it started back in the late 1990s.
Of course, the TT’s not perfect; we’re not sure we even believe in the concept of fault-free automobiles, but we’re pleased to report that the list of shortcomings on our TTS is filed under ‘N’ for nit-picking. The ride is still firm, for starters. While Audi is making strides in this department, its adaptive dampers still can’t match the well-judged plump of a rival 4-series.
Economy lagged behind the 40.9mpg claim, averaging 27mpg in our tenure. That’s what happens when you have a turbo’d 2.0 four-pot and Quattro system capable of deploying 0-62mph in less than five seconds 24/7. The central touchpad MMI controller works less well for us Brits; ask a right-hander to write a postcode on its surface and you’ll see waht eye meeean. And in freezing weather, the driver’s window once dropped on entry and then refused to close, leaving online editor Lewis Kingston stranded until the motor thawed out.
But the niggles are vastly outweighed by the positives. Nothing mechanical went wrong. The TTS was fast, classy and boasted a knock-out design ethic that made us feel good every time we slipped behind the wheel. That’s everything a mainstream sporting coupe should do, isn’t it?
Count the cost
Cost new: £46,565 (including £7120 of options)
Dealer sale price: £32,150
Private sale price: £29,590
Part-exchange price: £27,880
Cost per mile: 18p
Cost per mile including depreciation: £1.68
Logbook: Audi TTS Coupe
Engine: 1984cc 16v 4cyl turbo, 306bhp @ 5800rpm, 280lb ft @ 1800-5700rpm
Transmission: Six-speed dual-clutch auto, all-wheel drive
Stats: 4.6sec 0-62mph, 155mph, 159g/km CO2
Price: £40,270
As tested: £46,565
Miles this month: 2721
Total: 12,405
Our mpg: 31.9
Official mpg: 40.9
Fuel this month: £460.58
Extra costs: £0
Read more from the May 2016 issue of CAR magazine