New Audi TT review: design, tech and driving

Design and dimensions of the new Audi TT

Sorry for starting on a bum note, but do we have permission to be slightly disappointed with the design of the new TT?

That’s entirely your call, though we’d get it if that was your immediate response. Then again, lead exterior designer Jurgen Loffler makes a fair challenge to TG.com: ‘When you’ve come up with a car that looks like the TT, would you rip it up and start again?’

And he’s got a point. The good news is that it hasn’t swollen in size: at 4.18m long it’s near enough the same as before, and the height hasn’t changed either. You do gain an extra 37mm in wheelbase, there’s more luggage space, and the overhangs have been trimmed.

Matrix LED headlights sit on the options list, and they lend the TT a noticeably more aggressive stare than the standard units. Audi is also offering a broader paint palette, but - as ever - the TT flatters itself most in a steely grey on 20in alloys, while yellow makes it look a bit undernourished. Jurgen admits he’s a Porsche 911 devotee, both the original and the latest 991 versions. ‘I guess the TT is our 911,’ he adds, by way of further defence for this subtle third-generation evolution. Now we just need to keep everything crossed for a 553bhp twin turbo.

Not a light visual reboot, then.

No. Audi is adamant this is a genuinely all-new TT, and while efficiency is one of the headline themes, it’s also pitched as something that’s properly driver-led and genuinely enjoyable.

Built around the VW Group’s endlessly adaptable MQB (modular transverse matrix) platform, the 2.0-litre TFSi comes in at 1230kg - 50kg lighter than the comparable outgoing model (the quattro is 1410kg, which is still respectable). It’s also 23 per cent stiffer, blending aluminium with high tensile steel to shave mass and improve the centre of gravity, while keeping passive safety credentials strong. Smart engineering.

Cabin tech: Virtual Cockpit and connectivity

Lots of technology inside, too?

It’s absolutely crammed. The headline is Virtual Cockpit: it bins the centre display and instead lets the driver scroll through and tailor the graphics on a 12.3in screen in the main instrument binnacle, presented in either ‘infotainment’ or ‘classic’ layouts. First impressions are that Audi is doing something pretty momentous here.

Working with Nvidia, there’s enough processing muscle to handle eight billion computing operations per second. Cycling through the menus using the steering-wheel buttons or the MMI rotary controller can feel confusing at first, but it should make sense once you’ve lived with it. The Google Earth and Street View navigation graphics are so sharp you can clearly make out parked cars and trees.

Connectivity is fully catered for: the data transmission module is 10 times faster than 3G. The TT will also integrate properly with your smartphone and stream music. All UK cars get handwriting recognition on the controller for audio and navigation entries (it functions, though it feels strangely old-school in this setting), and you can specify a Bang & Olufsen 12-speaker, 680-watt audio system.

One more thing: the system effectively memorises the phone numbers and destinations you use most, and it can upload information. If only Audi could licence Scarlett Johansson as the car’s voice…

This is heady stuff. Will I actually use all this technology, though?

Possibly, possibly not - but it’s undeniably forward-looking. The TT edges into AI territory, and when you add its cleverly reworked air-conditioning setup plus the expected high-grade materials and finish, the cabin becomes a major USP.

It’s also the sort of car that makes the wider privacy argument hard to ignore, particularly in Germany where the issue is especially sensitive (remember when the US government’s NSA was caught snooping on German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s phone calls?). Audi, unsurprisingly, is alive to data protection concerns.

Still, most of that will fade away the moment you’re stuck on the M25 with endless features to fiddle with. Just don’t send any saucy selfies to the TT’s MMI.

On the road: TFSi, TDI ultra and TTS

Thanks for the warning. Can we talk about the car now, please? Can the TT handle itself against the likes of the BMW 235i, Merc SLK, and Porsche Cayman?

It can - and it may even catch you off guard, depending on what preconceptions you carry about Audi. The probable volume model, the 2.0-litre 228bhp TFSi, is a real little firecracker.

The way it rides and controls its body is proof that the stiff, thumpy Audis of old are now firmly in the past. We’d still welcome more natural steering feel, and the dual-clutch S-tronic transmission can come across as a bit synthetic at times, but overall it’s quick, planted and far more engaging than you might assume - whether you go front-wheel drive or quattro.

Compared with its predecessor it feels noticeably keener on its feet, with a satisfyingly pointy nose, plenty of grip that only lets go when you’re really leaning on it, and strong brakes. The automatic is quicker to 62mph (5.3 seconds), but the manual is the nicer companion and the more economical choice (47.9mpg overall, 137g/km CO2).

Audi’s Drive Select adjusts throttle, sound and steering across Comfort, Dynamic, Efficiency, Auto and Individual modes. Front-drive versions get an e-diff, quattro models add torque vectoring, and magnetic dampers are optional. It’s a dizzying array of combinations, but the mechanical package beneath it all is the real star.

Are the other versions any good?

They are. Company-car buyers should take a close look at the 183bhp 2.0 Tdi ultra: 67.3 combined mpg and 110 carbons is an appealing mix for BIK purposes.

We still think petrol suits a coupé better, but this diesel doesn’t feel as if the front axle has been poured full of concrete, and the six-speed manual gearbox is a pleasant unit.

Audi is sticking with turbocharged four-cylinder engines for emissions and economy, so the 309bhp TTS is currently the most hard-edged offering (it doesn’t arrive in the UK until next Spring). TG.com only drove it at the Ascari circuit, where it felt more at home on track than any TT before it. The one disappointment is the S-tronic gearbox.

Pricing and rivals

So it’s mostly good news, then.

Yes. The TT TFSi Sport opens at £29,860, while the TTS starts at £38,900. It still doesn’t slice with quite the same precision as key BMW or Porsche alternatives, and we suspect Audi could have taken bigger risks with the exterior styling.

Even so, viewed as a complete package it’s hugely tempting, and it pushes the technology arms race along at a serious pace. That alone will guarantee it an audience.