Look at the Wheels on That: Audi TT

27 May 2008

Fulsome curves, Porsche-pouncing power and bags of style � the iconic Audi TT is one of the defining cars of this generation.

As the crazy roofless Audi TT Clubsport Quattro is given the go-ahead, Vijay Pattni looks at the original TT Coupe.

Psychedelic flowers, guitars and Jimi Hendrix � the first generation Audi TT rocked onto the world�s stage like no other coupe before it.

The sober-suited executive cruisers like the Audi A4, A6 and new A3 hatch suddenly found themselves a new rockstar sibling when in 1998, Audi pulled the covers off the stunning new TT.

Styled by design gurus who worked on the trademark BMWs of the late 1980s and even the gorgeous Aston Martin DB9, the hot Audi TT was the coupe to own.

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Featuring svelte curves, doe-eyed headlights and a sharp-suited bodykit, the Audi TT was a German supermodel.

The Audi TT even wowed old Top Gear testers Vicki-Butler Henderson, Tiff Needell and Jason Barlow, when they voted the Audi TT Coupe Quattro as the best overall from a shortlist including the Ford Puma, BMW 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz CL.

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Speaking in 2001, the Top Gear team said the TT won because �its styling is delightful and distinctive, full of lovely details and few cars feel so special to sit in.

�Finally, and most importantly, it�s good to drive.�

And those stunning looks were coupled to this �good drive� via a range of petrol engines, including the storming 3.2-litre V6 powerplant producing 250bhp.

This meant the V6-engined Audi TT could accelerate from 0-62mph in around six seconds and bounce off the 155mph speed limiter.

But aside from the peachy V6 engine and the supermodel styling, the Audi TT had another trump card up its beautifully tailored sleeve � the DSG automatic transmission.

Opt for the DSG auto-box, and the V6-engined Audi TT would transfer its 250bhp to all four-wheels via a complicated dual-clutch automatic paddle shift.

The shift was seamless � testing the car for an episode of Top Gear, Jeremy Clarkson said the super-smooth changes were �like witchcraft.�

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And for 2006, Audi reinvigorated the award-winning TT coupe with a fresh new look.

More evolution than the revolution before, the new Audi TT is more aggressive and more powerful.

The 3.2-litre V6 powerplant sitting underneath the slow-slung bonnet still develops 250bhp channelled to all four wheels, but now rockets the stylish TT from 0-62mph in just 5.7 seconds, which is on the same pace as the old BMW M3 convertible.

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The new Audi TT also sports astonishing levels of suspension sophistication. Audi�s magnetic ride damper system changes the ride characteristics at the touch of a button, thanks to tiny magnetic particles circling in the damper oil.

When a voltage is passed through them, they change the damper�s nature, which in turn changes the way the TT goes around corners.

And now, Audi has announced it will make a limited number of the crazy roofless TTs, dubbed the TT Clubsport Quattro.

This new TT ditches the roof completely like the old roadsters from the 1930s and 1940s, and features a massively tuned 2-litre turbo engine producing 300bhp.

View more images of the Audi TT Clubsport Quattro

Check out the original Audi TT advert � with a little help from Jimi Hendrix: