Audi TT 2.5 RS Roadster

 

What‘s it? This is actually the Audi TT 2.5 RS Roadster – the chop-top version from the range-topping TT complete with 335bhp turbocharged five-pot and six-speed manual transmission. Losing the roof will cost you not only the substantial four-figure premium during the coupe. You also lose the 2 rear seats, a decent chunk of boot space and put on 60kg in weight. So it’s a very good thing the Roadster loses little from the coupe’s potent performance. 0-62mph is dispatched in 4. 7 seconds as well as the highest speed remains a similar electronically limited 155mph. What’s it like? In isolation, the TT RS does all the things you could want of the focused sports roadster. The engine is brilliantly accessible, offering up a continuous mass of torque throughout a lot of the rev range.

Combine that using the reassuringly predictable behaviour from the Quattro chassis and direct steering the RS makes to the type of performance car that‘s both forgiving and entertaining. It even has the ideal dose of rebelliousness, which you’ll discover in case you push the ‘S’ button to sharpen up throttle response and permit the exhaust free rein to scandalise your neighbours. Driven hard you‘ll notice a particular level of flex inside the Audi TT 2.5 RS Roadster  on UK roads but it’s unlikely the average TT RS owner will let that bother them. More troublesome is the quantity of wind flutter you will get past the A-pillars at motorway speeds, to not mention the ride quality, which settles only on very smooth tarmac and descends into plain uncomfortable on very uneven surfaces. Regardless of the on-paper prowess, and also the strengths from the new engine, the Audi TT RS Roadster amounts to lower than the sum of their parts. It‘s undeniably the quickest car among its rivals, however it offers none from the cohesion and precision from the benchmark Porsche Boxster S, nor the touring ability and plush cabin from the BMW Z4 and Merc SLK.

 It settles instead for as like a blunt instrument that majors on drama and magnificence instead of driver reward. Should I buy one? Audi predicts really low sales volumes to the TT RS Roadster, with lower than 100 units expected to leave showrooms in 2010. There’s little question that they’ll achieve that. Even so, apart from an aversion to rear-wheel drive there’s no reason to choose the TT over its rivals. Throw inside the inflated price – over £4000 more when compared to a Boxster S – and it’s a no-brainer.