Audi TT RS Plus Review: Vulcan Bomber Meets Four-Wheel Drive

Under the hood

Because the dog-slow Audi TT RS clearly isn’t fast enough – 62mph comes up in a pedestrian 4.3sec, for Pete’s sake – Audi’s shoved some essential Viagra Express down its 2.5-litre turbocharged gob and upped the TT’s already monstrous power by 20 steroidal horses to 355bhp!

For that reason, this ultimate TT’s take-off time has dropped to 4.1sec, while top speed has been lifted to 174mph. In Layman’s terms then, this new RS Plus is bloody rapid.

Behind the wheel

Ever heard the phrase ‘goes like shit off a shovel’? If not, this Audi TT RS Plus is the personification of just that saying. It’s monumentally fast in a straight line and just as rapid when you punch the accelerator through a corner; unlike its most obvious rival – the Porsche Cayman R – the Audi’s packing quattro all-wheel drive for mega grip and proper street slaughtering performance.

So what does all this feel like? With our optional seven-speed S-Tronic gearbox, the Plus smashes its way through the gears like a boss. Before you know it, you’re stomping on the brakes to get those three-digit figures down to two from 80mph back down to 70mph. Ahem…

CT Poll: Audi TT RS Plus vs Porsche Cayman R

But it’s not only the turbocharged motor and slick ‘box that goads you into Autobahn-speed territory, it’s the noise. Oh, the noise… Yes, yes, I’ve given love to a few cars recently for the way they sound (BMW M135i, Porsche Cayenne GTS and C63 AMG Black Series), but the Audi’s five-pot chat has to be one of the finest to have graced these lobes; it’s raw, the turbos scream like foxes in the mating season and the sports exhaust evokes the glory days of the iconic Quattro. It really is that epic.

Lest we forget the RS Plus’s ride and handling. It’s slightly firmer over broken ground than the standard RS thanks to bigger 19s (up from 18s), but you’d need to drive each car back to back around 10 times to notice. Either way, ride comfort is decent. The sculpted sports seats are pretty firm, but if you’ve got a really hot girlfriend, you forgive her for being a pain in the arse on long journeys, right?

Back to handling. Yup, four-wheel drive is just the thing to keep this 1475kg monster in line as is the Plus’s beefy steering, which demands serious gunnage for sharp inputs. If you’ve got the weaponry, the TT RS Plus is your go-anywhere at any speed bitch. Yum.

Splash the cash?

A cool £50k is a keen asking price for a jumped-up Audi TT. It’s not quite as poised as a Porsche Cayman R either, but who cares when what you’re buying into is a supersports coupe with massive power, life changing exhaust noise and quattro all-wheel drive that means you can exploit every horny horse at all times.

It also looks great – bar the rude-boy-spec alloys – comes with a premium interior and makes me question my usually unfaltering desire to get behind the wheel of a Porsche.

I need a lie down…

CT Poll: Audi TT RS Plus vs Porsche Cayman R