10/07/09

• Price42,985
• We like...Power, engine note
• We don't...Crazy cost of some extras

It's quicker than a Porsche 911 and cheaper, too. But can this hot-shot TT do enough, all told, to justify its RS badges?Faster, sharper, louder. That’s this latest TT. The RS musters more brawn than any other and, because of that, swings the price for this pretty coupe to the high side of £40,000. That’s a lot by anyone’s measure, particularly when you can pick up the entry model from the change and see change from £26,000.

So what do you get for the extra lay-out? There’s the engine, a five-cylinder petrol turbo that’s unique to the car and can trace its line back to the original Ashes to Ashes-era Quattro coupe. It spits out up to 336bhp of sound and fury, rattling out a deep-noted exhaust blare that rattle headily off walls and tunnels as you pass. You’ll crack open the window just to hear it and, this being an Audi, there’s a button to quieten it, and smooth the throttle’s eagerness, should you ever tire of its racket.

 As the figures promise, there’s more push on hand than you’ll ever sensibly put to use on the UK’s traffic-strewn roads. But it will also ease along slowly in town traffic, too, without feeling too much out of its element. Find a clear road, though, and you’ll notice that it rides with greater squish and poise than you’d grant such a full-on performer. It’s civilised and amazingly, it'll crack 30mpg in everyday driving.

And this is no fussy, fizzy performer that gives of its all only at unfeasibly high engine speeds. The power comes on strong at modest revs and stays there across a wide band. Considerable traction is there courtesy of the car’s quattro all-wheel drive which, just as in other Audis fitted with it, works away without ever bringing itself to your notice.

The steering and drive are more involving, too, than in lesser TTs but, truth be told, the engine is the stand-out feature. If ever there was a car made for the sake of its motor, this is it.

You can have the car as the coupe shown of, if you find an extra couple of thousand pounds, as a roadster. Its looks are as other TTs. The badging and body kit are subtle and if you want a really ‘stealth’ model you can even swap the standard fixed rear spoiler for one that pops up and down according to speed.

Inside, it’s all you’d expect from an Audi costing this much: plastic and chrome of peerless quality, silk-finish leather seats and, if you pick the roadster , a folding cloth roof that hoists itself up and down. And, as is usual with the make, you can go conkers with your cash on extras: £3530 on RS bucket seats, colour matched to the exterior paint, anyone?

It’s powerful, exclusive – Audi expects to find homes for only a few hundred each year – and expensive. But is it sufficiently better than other TTs to justify its big price? A spin in a 2.0 model brought us the answer: no. The lesser car isn’t nearly as quick or demanding but, for us at least, it is almost as much fun. Good as it is, the TT RS left us feeling that – all done – it asks a lot for what extra it gives.

To read the motors.co.uk review - and watch the video - of the Audi TT, click here
To view and buy new and second-hand Audi TTs, click here

• Engines2.5 petrol turbo
• Power336bhp
• 0-60 mph4.6secs
• Economy31.0mpg
• CO2g/km214
• Insurance groups20
• EuroNCAP
• Airbags6
• Seats4

Motors.co.uk value verdict: