The Slightly New Audi TT RS Just Warbled Into Our Lives

Audi has revealed a refreshed version of the TT RS, which retains the 395bhp turbocharged inline-five

06 Feb 2019

The Slightly New Audi TT RS Just Warbled Into Our Lives

Following an update of the Audi TT last year, we now have a tweaked version of the mighty range-topping RS model to investigate.

In terms of powertrain and chassis, nothing has changed. But let’s be honest, it wasn’t ever wanting for straight-line performance or sheer all-weather ability, was it? The 395bhp inline-five is still there, and still with its warble-tastic 1-2-4-5-3 firing order.

As before, it works together with a Haldex clutch-based four-wheel drive system to deliver a slightly ridiculous 0-62mph time of 3.7 seconds. The top speed is electronically-pegged at 155mph, with a 174mph limit on the options menu. Conventional steel dampers are fitted as standard, but if you want, an adaptive suspension setup is available.

It’s all pretty familiar inside, too. We have some lovely quilted leather sports seats, an R8-style steering wheel with integrated starter and drive mode buttons and Audi’s virtual cockpit system.

So far, so familiar, but when we move on to the styling, there are plenty of tweaks to talk about. The massive Singleframe grille, for instance, is now flanked by larger air intakes, each of which has a new divider blade. The side skirts are new, as is the fixed rear wing, which has been given some purposeful-looking winglets. Under that wing, you’ll see a pair of new vents either side of the car, and lower still a redesigned diffuser. If you want to tweak the styling further, you can choose either a matte aluminium or gloss black styling package.

Finally, there are some new colours to choose from, with Kyalami green (exclusive to the RS), Pulse orange and Turbo blue bringing the total number of available hues to eight.

The new-ish Audi TT RS goes on sale on 7 February in Germany with a starting price of €67,700 for the coupe and €70,500 for the Roadster. UK pricing will be released in the coming weeks.

Growing up on a diet of World Rally Championship highlights and lengthy Gran Turismo 2 sessions, a life in cars was as good as inevitable for Matt.

Comments

All the same tbh

Why change perfection?

I love these things, but the RS3 is so much more practical for only marginally worse performance that it makes it almost impossible to justify

It’s really not possible to justify any Audi RS model if practicality is what you’re after.

True but if I was to get it I’d buy the TT cab. I’d have a different car for practical reasons. I’d stick with my focus ST wagon. Probably cheaper now than some options!

Also a lot cheaper. And I reckon it looks better…

It’s supposed to compete with the 718 unlike the RS3, plus it looks better (not that the RS3 is ugly, it’s simply that the TT RS looks better, especially this generation unlike the previous gen TT RS) and it’s a coupe. I guess that with enough money this would be my daily, it’s just more usable than the 718 and more powerful as well as quicker. I mean, the RS3 is based on the A3, and it’s not like the rear seats in the A3 are any comfortable for people that aren’t children. The A4 plays in a field where rear seat space is still pretty limited, so the A3 is even worse at that level. Now, giving that the RS3 isn’t really that much more better, you might think about the RS3 Sportback and I’d be agreeing with you. Only thing is that the Sportback isn’t available in North America and only the sedan is offered. That means its practicality is not really that bigger than the TT RS, plus if you’re on the market for a TT RS you won’t really care that much about cargo space.