Blue Tongue Overland XR vs Audi TT

What's the difference?

The Overland XR Series 2 isn't quite the perfect camper, there's a few little things in the set-up that preclude it from that. Still, at the price and with the features it gets as standard, it's a really good value trailer. It's comfortable, it'll handle off-road trips with ease, and it the kitchen is really quite good.

Audi is finally saying hooroo to this model which has made the world stop and stare like I did on that Parisian street all those years ago.

The Final Edition is a fitting tribute to this iconic sports car and I’m glad Audi didn’t go ‘OTT’ and deck it out with gimmicky features. 

At the same time the Final Edition’s big rear wing, blacked out badges, wheels and interior colour coding hint that this is not just any ordinary TT and those that know will know.

Farewell Audi TT, we hope something just like you but probably electric appears to stop us in our tracks again. 

As the lid becomes the floor, it's quite open inside the camper, with plenty of room to move around and space to do everyday things standing up, like get dressed, which is often more difficult in a forward fold, as there's not a lot of standing room inside them. There's also no stairs to climb getting in or out, as the hard floor is almost at ground level.

The tent seems quite well made. It's a 450gsm waterproof canvas with a tropical roof, windows all around the bed and three doors, one each side of the hard floor. Almost the whole passenger side can be rolled away, too, creating a giant opening into the camper, which offers a pretty good outlook on hot summer days at campsites by the beach.

There's no shortage of extra canvas, either. There are two awnings (although only one you'll use often, an ensuite tent and an optional kids room. The best of the awnings is the quick version, which is simply a rectangle of canvas that shelters the kitchen and only needs two poles to hold it up. A more complete awning, which also comes with walls and a floor, goes up reasonably easily, but it'd only be used if you were settling in for a week or more, I reckon, and then only if the weather was questionable. Its pitch has been improved over the Series 1, which had a flatter roofline and was more susceptible to pooling water. The ensuite room is gigantic – about the size of an actual small bathroom.

One of the biggest reasons to get a rear-fold over a forward-fold is the internal access to storage. As the rear-fold's is all under the bed, the four steel drawers make it easy to get to. Two of them are even accessible when the camper is shut, which just isn't the case in a forward-folding camper. A large, wide step makes climbing up into the bed easy, too. It has an innerspring mattress which is firm but comfortable and plenty big enough to spread out on if you are sharing it.

The Overland XR Series 1 was very well equipped electrically, maybe too well equipped. It was fitted with three 100ah batteries, which is not only a lot of extra weight, but that much battery takes ages to charge – if they were all flat, a day's driving probably wouldn't do it, especially if the car also had a second it needed to attend to. The Series 2 has dropped back to two batteries, which is far better suited to the camper and should easily be maintained by one of the optional 144W solar panel blankets. It can also be fitted with Redarc's Redvision, offering phone connectivity to the camper's electronics so you can not only monitor everything, but turn things on or off remotely.

The other side of the camper's forward storage is large enough to fit a generator or any other bulky camping appliance. As it can be accessed when the camper's open or closed, it's perfect for all manner of gear. A smaller box facing forwards is great for hoses and recovery gear or even a couple of jerry cans. Beware of loading this area up with too much really heavy gear, though, as the ball-weight's already on the heavy side. Fortunately, the camper has a flip-over luggage rack, which is ideal for heavier or bulkier items. Underneath, it can carry 155-litres of water in two tanks.

The Audi TT isn’t going to cut it as a family car, but it’s more practical than a lot of people might think.

First this is a '2+2' sports car meaning those two rear seats are there for the odd occasion when you might need them, because the space back there is limited.

But for most of the time having a place to throw a jacket or extra luggage and not have to ask your co-plot to rest it on their lap will feel like absolute luxury.

Up front head and legroom is good, even for me at 189cm tall. Being a coupe the doors are long and although the car is low I found getting in and out easy.

There’s a pretty clever use of space when it comes down to cabin storage. You’ll find door pockets, a glove box, a covered centre console box and a hidey hole/wireless phone charger in the dash.

Back seat passengers have built-in shelves near their armrests. Surprisingly there are four cupholders - two of which fold out of the dash.   

The boot isn’t huge at 305 litres but you can fold the rear seats down to open up the cargo capacity to 712 litres.

So, compared to its two-seater sports car rivals, the TT is relatively and pleasantly practical.

The Overland XR is very stable under tow, which has a lot to do with its ball-weight. Weight to the front of a trailer improves trailer stability (although reduces braking and steering efficiency), so there needs to be a compromise. At 180kg, that's actually a reduction on Series 1, and although that's quite heavy for a camper trailer, is on par with other modern rear-folds, like the Kimberley Kamper.

Well and truly off-road ready, the XR has independent coil-spring suspension and dual shock absorbers, standard, as well as an AL-KO 360° ball hitch, so obscure angles on a rough track won't cause any trouble.

The camper is quite tall, thanks to the spacing of the suspension arms, so clearance will rarely be an issue – when level, the ride height suits a lifted four-wheel drive.

Alloy wheels and 265/75 R16 all terrain tyres fit the bill nicely, and as they're a six-stud LandCruiser pattern, they, and the two tonne bearings, are easy to replace anywhere you find yourself.

There are plenty of sports cars out there which are dynamically superb yet uncomfortable to sit in.

But the TT’s cabin is as ergonomic as it is stylish with a great, low sitting position and good pedal feel, a steering wheel that can be adjusted to be just right and still with plenty of space underneath for long legs like mine.

The shifter feels the right distance away, good visibility even out the rear window and plenty of ventilation.  And we haven’t even started driving yet.

The TT Final Edition felt to me how a TT should. Fun. Not overpowered nor brutally firm and not ridiculously loud.

Instead, my drive in the Final Edition, which took me along some of my favourite country roads, was one of the most enjoyable runs I’ve had in any car. 

This is a car which ‘listens’ to you and replies with exactly what you’ve asked for in the way it turns into corners and accelerates out of them, and pulls up when you need it too. 

There’s so much connection to the road, you can hear the sticks and stones flying up into the guards, you can feel the coarse chip bitumen through the steering wheel.

But it’s all so easy, too. The suspension is firm but soft enough that you can drive this daily. The steering is light but still with great feedback. 

Some sports cars leave you feeling exhausted, like you’ve just wrestled a bear but the TT Final Edition just leaves you feeling like you've been on a ride and all you want to do is run back around to line up and get back on it again.