2009 Audi TT
Great performance, beautiful interior, stunning looks.
By Kirk Bell
|
|
Overview
The Audi TT appeals to sports car enthusiasts and weekend cruisers alike. The powertrains are responsive and quick. The steering is sharp and the handling is crisp.
Quattro all-wheel drive gives the TT enhanced handling tenacity and remarkable bad-weather capabilities. The interior is stunning, with a brilliant design and layout, beautiful detailing, tight panel gaps and first-class materials. But what really sets the TT apart, and has since the introduction of the first-generation version some years ago, has been and still is its wonderful exterior design, giving it a style and a look that is unlike anything else on the road.
The TT is available as a coupe or roadster. The coupe is claimed as having 2+2 seating, meaning two adults in front and maybe two other, non-complaining and hopefully smaller person in back, but it's really a two-seater. The roadster has no pretensions of being meant for anything other than two people. The coupe also offers a certain degree of luggage space under its rear hatchback.
The Audi TT offers a choice of a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline four-cylinder engine or 3.2-liter V6, and with front-wheel drive or quattro all-wheel drive. There are a variety of trim levels and a wide range of options, including some really neat leathers and interior options, and we think it's well worth taking time to carefully consider them all.
Audi TT 2.0T models have a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that makes 200 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque; they are available in front-drive or quattro versions, but the only transmission choice is the six-speed S tronic, a dual-clutch transmission that can be operated either as a manual or an automatic. The 3.2 models have a 3.2-liter V6 that produces 250 horsepower at 6300 rpm and 236 pound-feet of torque from 2500 to 3000 rpm; all 3.2 models have quattro, but there is a choice of a six-speed manual or the six-speed S tronic.
The Audi TTS is powered by a version of the 2.0-liter inline four-cylinder that's been up-rated to 265 horsepower at 6000 rpm and 258 pound-feet of torque from 2500 to 5000 rpm. It's available only with quattro and the S tronic dual-clutch transmission.
Fuel efficiency for the TT line is remarkable given the levels of performance. The 2.0T is EPA-rated at 23/31 mpg City/Highway, the 3.2 with the manual is rated at 17/25 mpg, and the TTS is rated, somewhat astoundingly, at 21/29 mpg.
Model Lineup
The 2009 Audi TT 2.0T coupe ($35,200) and 2.0T roadster ($37,200) come with leather/alcantara upholstery, automatic climate control, tilt-telescope leather-wrapped steering wheel, cruise control, six-way manually adjustable front seats, center console, aluminum interior trim, heated power mirrors, power windows, power locks, remote keyless entry, AM/FM/CD player, digital clock, trip computer, variable intermittent wipers, rear defogger, theft deterrent system, rear spoiler, and fog lights. Coupes come with a split-folding rear seat. Roadsters get a manual convertible top with a heated glass rear window; a power top is optional ($900). The 2.0T models come with front-wheel drive, 225/50R17 all-season run-flat or summer performance tires, alloy wheels, limited-slip differential. The 2.0T comes with the S-tronic direct shift gearbox (DSG), which is a clutchless manual transmission that can be operated as an automatic or as a manual via the gearshift or steering wheel paddles.
Audi TT 3.2 quattro coupe ($42,070) and 3.2 quattro roadster ($45,140) come with AM/FM radio with six-disc CD changer, steering wheel audio controls, auto-dimming rearview mirror, compass, HomeLink universal garage door opener, rain-sensing wipers, and automatic headlights. On 3.2 quattro roadsters, the convertible top is power operated. Audi TT 3.2 models all come with Quattro all-wheel drive, 245/45R17 all-season run-flat or summer performance tires. A six-speed manual transmission is standard, the six-speed S tronic is optional.
Audi TTS coupe ($45,500) and TTS roadster ($47,500) are equipped similarly. All come with Quattro all-wheel drive.
Options include a navigation system ($1,950); Bluetooth ($450); Alcantara inserts and other interior trim upgrades; wheel and tire packages; heated seats; sound system upgrades.
Safety equipment includes front airbags, seat-mounted side airbags, front knee airbags, ABS with electronic brake force distribution and brake assist, traction control, stability control, active head restraints, and a tire-pressure monitor. Roadsters have rollover bars mounted behind the seats, and coupes have LATCH-style rear seat child-seat anchors.
|
