2009 Audi TTS Review

For those who think supercars like the R8 are a useless waste of money and resources, you're both right and wrong. Yes, a car that costs $150,000 and needs only one buyer a week across the country might seem ridiculous, but the R8 wasn't conceived to be a volume seller. The R8 is a marketing tool.

Think of the TTS as a poor man's R8. For one third of the price, you get the two-thirds of the performance.

Such a car in a showroom attracts people, who are then brought back down to earth by a sales rep who tells them "yes, it's expensive, but we've got other Audis here that are much more affordable and are just like it." Ahem, not quite, but you get the idea.

Think of the TTS as a poor man's R8. For one third of the price, you get two-thirds of the 'wow' factor and two-thirds of the performance.

High-output four
The TTS gets the base model's 2.0-litre turbo inline-4, but adds direct injection and some retuning to produce more power and torque than the 3.2-litre V6 does. With 265 ponies and 258 pound-feet, and connected to the company's excellent S tronic dual-clutch transmission with paddle shifters, the TTS scorches to 100 km/h in 5.4 seconds.

Compared to the V6, the 2.0-litre TSFI engine is lighter and makes for a more balanced vehicle; with less weight on the front wheels, understeer is reduced. But just about everyone who drove the car mentioned turbo lag when launching the car, a trait that doesn't seem as noticeable with the base, 200-hp version of the same engine.

But despite all that power, the 4-cylinder easily consumes under 10 L/100 km on a regular basis, and our average of 9.7 L/100 km is impressive. In comparison, Mitsubishi's 2.0-litre turbo that powers the Lancer Evo may be a little more powerful, but it guzzles down 50% more fuel than the TTS.

With such a short wheelbase, the car's ride isn't as smooth as in an S5, but certainly not worse than in an R8. When activated, the standard-issue Magnetic Ride shocks stiffen the car's legs even more, but their advantage can only really be exploited on a track, or on a winding, deserted country road at illegal speeds. 2009 Audi TTS Review from (http://www.auto123.com/en/audi/tts-coupe/2009/review?carid=1090603100&artid=104845)

With 265 ponies and 258 pound-feet, the TTS scorches to 100 km/h in 5.4 seconds.

2009 Audi TTS Review

t no longer looks like an overturned bathtub, and with the 'S' badge now available fixed to the Audi TT, no one's going to be dissing its numbers, either.

The new TTS has both its looks and performance cemented in place. It's cheaper than a Cayman, more useful than an SLK, and even more urgent and energetic that its similarly-priced cousin, the S5.

The new TTS has both its looks and performance cemented in place.

TTS is also the only one of its direct competitors to offer all wheel drive-- so you don't have to give it a painful 'bye-bye' at the end of every October you own it.

Grab the camera phones
One could gush about the TTS's lines and shapes as easily as they could reference its potentially humorous name. Here's an example, instead.

Driving through some mid-afternoon gridlock on the 401 near North York, no fewer than 4 drivers slowed beside the TTS to take photos with their camera cell phones. Words like 'sick', 'wicked' and 'phat' were tossed around, as were thumbs-up and approving nods.

Snottier brands don't get this sort of reaction. Maybe folks thought (rightly) that the TTS was a baby R8. Regardless-- the big wheels, tiny body and wide, planted stance attract the eyes of other motorists like a flaming train wreck.

This is a four?
If you don't like attention or having your picture plastered all over someone's MySpace, a huge gap between you and the offending photographer is a mere throttle-jab away. Click up a few downshifts from the dual-clutch gearbox and plant the go pedal, and TTS scrambles away like someone jammed the business-end of a tazer into its left buttock.

Things get moving furiously after just a touch of first-gear turbo-lag. The intoxicating sound, lightning gearchanges and associated exhaust burps thereafter suck up all your attention. Good luck trying to wipe the smirk off your face after a romp through first, second and third.

Drive gently, and mileage frequently dips into 'impressive' territory. The tester often required only about 10L /100km of high-grade during my mid-February test drive. 2009 Audi TTS Review from (http://www.auto123.com/en/audi/tts-coupe/2009/review?carid=1090603100&artid=105118)

The intoxicating sound, lightning gearchanges and associated exhaust burps thereafter suck up all your attention.