Audi TT 2012 News

Hot on the heels of the Australian government's mandatory Takata airbag recall, Ford, Audi and Tesla have joined the list of carmakers to detail which of it's models are affected.

The popular Audi and Volkswagen tuning fest, Austria's Wörthersee Tour, will see a number of interesting vehicles presented this year, the highlight of which will be a lightweight Audi TT concept. Audi is believed to be planning a lightweight version of its next-generation TT sports car and many of the lightweight design elements of that future car are likely present on this new concept, which is based on the current generation of the TT. The concept is called the TT ultra quattro, with “ultra” being the name used by Audi for its lightweight construction methodology. The vehicle has a curb weight of just 1,111kg, despite it packing a turbocharged engine and all-wheel-drive system. Peak output from the car’s turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine is 228kW and 400Nm, which in the lightweight body sees the 0-96 km/h sprint take just 4.2 seconds (1.3 seconds faster than stock). Each of the car’s kilowatts has just 4.87kg to carry. To reduce weight, engineers stripped the car of some non-essentials and replaced parts of the structure using lighter materials in line with the automaker’s evolving multi-material construction techniques. Regular steel ended up being replaced with carbon fibre, magnesium and aluminium. Engineers also stuck with a regular manual transmission but swapped the TT’s seats for lightweight units from the R8 GT. Interestingly, air conditioning, electric window controls and an electromechanical parking brake are still fitted. One key difference is present, however. The exterior mirrors have been replaced by compact cameras that transfer the images directly into the digital cockpit. More than 23kg were saved in the engine alone, by replacing parts like the crankcase, crankshaft, balancer shafts, flywheel, oil sump and several nuts and bolts with lighter units. The suspension was also replaced with a lighter setup, some parts of which are made from fibreglass-reinforced plastic. More savings come from carbon ceramic brakes, a titanium system and wheels made from carbon fibre-reinforced plastic and aluminium. Total weight savings add up to 300kg. Finally, engineers also worked to hone the handling of the TT. They have taken away weight from the ends of the car and moved it into the middle. The lithium-ion starter battery, for example, is now located in the interior under the driver’s seat. It is much smaller than a lead battery and weighs as little as 4kg The 2013 Wörthersee Tour will take place from May 8-11. Also on show will be the legendary Sport quattro S1, the latest RS line of cars and the race-winning R18 e-tron quattro. www.motorauthority.com

The spiced-up version of the Audi TT-RS that is on the dance card for Geneva may be on the cards for Australia. To be released overseas as both a coupe and roadster, the TT RS Plus boosts the TT's 2.5-litre turbo five- cylinder by 15kW of power to 265kW, and adds an extra 15Nm of torque for 465Nm.Buyers can self-shift with a six-speed manual or let a seven-speed dual-clutch do the work for them. The automatic is an attractive option when it comes with a launch control mode that can teleport the Plus Coupe to 100 km/h in 4.1 seconds (the manual is only barely behind at 4.3 seconds) - and that's getting into Ferrari territory, friends. Top speed is limited to 280 km/h, and Audi claims the auto Ccoupe uses 8.5L/100km, with the Roadster at 8.6L. Style changes nose in with the black diamond-mesh of the single-frame grille, and tail out with a large fixed rear wing. The black accents carry through into five-spoke 19-in cast alloys -- with red rim flanges -- and black oval tailpipe trims, down the throat of which a 'reverber' amplifies the engine sound.The good news? Audi Australia is considering the TT RS Plus for local sales. “We don’t have a final date for launch overseas at this stage, but we are certainly looking at it with interest for the Australian line-up,” Audi general manager of corporate communications Anna Burgdorf says. Burgdorf says Audi wants to make sure they have a good business case for the TT RS Plus, but admits Australians are likely to warm to it.Audi steadily sold more than 35 TT variants per month over 2010 and 2011, and this year has started off with an average closer to 40 per month YTD. Sales have spiked when both  higher spec versions were introduced.“The TT has been a strong seller from the first day, the TT S on top of that was extremely well received, and the TT RS moved quickly – and for those who want a little more the TT RS Plus goes one step further,” Burgdorf says. “It is something that would be great to have in the range, but we want to make sure there is a market here for the car.“We may see it by the end of the year, but to say that at this stage would just be speculation – and so would any discussion of price. The current pricing of the TT RS is just shy of $140,000 and at the top end the TT RS Plus would be fairly loaded with spec, but our goal is to bring in the best value package we possibly can.”

The Frankfurt Motor Show literally roared to life this morning when a classic BMW 507 roadster ran laps of a custom-built oval track inside the German carmaker's $30 million stand.

The unusual engine design was the heart of the original Quattro that revolutionised performance motoring in the 1980s, as well as dominating the World Rally Championship. Now the feisty five is coming back for a fast-car pacesetter called the TT RS. It won't be spitting flames or roaring through an open exhaust like the engines used in the Quattro coupes which convinced the world that all-wheel drive was the best way to put big power on the ground, but Audi is promising more than 225kW to turn the go-faster TT into something special. "It will be a sensation little rocketship," claims the spokesperson for Audi Australia, Anna Burgdorf. The final figures will not be revealed until the TT RS makes its public debut in a fortnight at the Geneva Motor Show, but Audi is hinting at a four-second sprint to 100km/h and a potential top speed well beyond its electronically-limited 250km/h. The TT RS will be built as both a coupe and convertible, with a bunch of body tweaking work to reflect the muscular potential of the 2.5- litre engine hooked to its quattro drive system. The bad news is a price-tag beyond $100,000, based on today's TT S at $98,900. But the good news is that car TT RS will definitely come to Australia. It will be sold as a coupe only - the convertible is considered too limiting - and the timing is around six months after the first deliveries in Europe. "The car will come to Australia. It will definitely come in 2010 but it's very hard to tie down a date at this stage," says Burgdorf. She cannot comment on details, including the move away from inline fours and V6s to the new five, but says the TT RS is definitely not a show car or a limited-edition tease. "It is a production car. What will be shown on the stand at Geneva is the production car," she says. "We don't know the answer on production numbers, but it is a regular production model. And the engine is a new one that allows the TT to perform extremely well with good fuel economy."   The 2009 Melbourne International Motor Show...  

Audi says the 2.0 TDI quattro coupe and roadster are the first production sports cars in the world to be powered by diesel engines. And it's quite a powerplant, if the numbers are any indication - the two-litre, four-cylinder offers 125kW of power and a decent 350Nm of torque. That's enough for a 0-100km/h sprint of 7.5 seconds and a 226km/h top speed for the 1370kg Coupe, or 7.7 seconds for the 1415kg Roadster, which claims a 223km/h top speed. The TDI engine comes into its own on thirst. A fuel consumption figure claimed by Audi is just 5.3 litres/100km. Both are built with what Audi calls “hybrid design.” It uses an aluminium forward structure and a steel rear end, which the company says aids weight distribution. The TDI version of the TT is on Audi Australia's wish list and was described as “likely” as the company wants to develop its turbodiesel presence in Australia. The TT range also will be expanded on the petrol engine front, with the introduction of a model with more performance than that provided by the 1.8-litre turbo four or the 3.2-litre V6. A TTS quattro will soon be added to the shopping list, with a two-litre TFSI direct-injection turbocharged engine producing 200kW and 350Nm, which will be available from 2500rpm through to 5000rpm. The two-litre powerplant has been strengthened and re-engineered to offer higher performance in the TTS quattro, with work done on the head, block, rods and pistons, with the turbocharger boost up to as much as 1.2 bar and an upgraded intercooler. The intake and exhaust systems have also been revamped to provide better breathing. Although the torque figure is identical to the new TDI model, having 200kW of power on tap helps get the TTS to 100km/h in a claimed 5.2 seconds when driving through the optional dual-clutch S tronic gearbox, on the way to a top speed of 250km/h. The TTS also is fitted with a magnetic ride adaptive damping system, which Audi says will provide a decent ride quality in standard mode. Opt for the “Sport” setting and the TTS drops its sports suspension ride height by 10mm and delivers dynamic handling, according to the German manufacturer. Aluminium is used extensively in the front suspension construction and high-performance brakes sit behind the 18in alloy wheels. The TTS models are expected in Australian Audi showrooms from next month; June 2008.