Chopping off a car’s roof, if you didn’t already know by now, does bad things to a car. A wobbly chassis (also known as scuttle shake), poor sound insulation and limited boot space are just some of the negative traits that plague a typical convertible.
What you get in return, though, is a flair factor turned up to 11 and greatly increased look-at-me cachet. Well, most of the time anyway – remember the hideous Chrysler PT Cruiser Convertible?
At the other end of the “unsightly” scale is Audi’s new-generation TT Roadster. When I drove the coupe version in Spain last year, I loved it. With its sharper looks, improved dynamics and, thanks to Audi’s state-of-the-art Virtual Cockpit, the best dashboard/infotainment system this side of the Starship Enterprise, the TT has a whiff of “driver’s car” about it. Will going alfresco dilute the coupe’s rewarding driving experience? I’m in Mallorca in Spain to find out.
It may have been sunny at the launch, but the temperature was a chilly 12 deg C – hardly ideal conditions for topless driving (the car, not me) if I factor in wind chill. The test cars have S sport seats, complete with in-seat neck warmers and pneumatically adjustable side bolsters to make the drive more toasty/cushy. Expect these extremely supportive seats to be standard equipment on local TT Roadsters.
You also get Audi’s brilliant Virtual Cockpit, of course, as first seen in the coupe. Everything – driving info, navigation, audio and telephony – is shown on a crystal-clear, 12.3-inch screen in front of the driver, controlled via buttons on the wheel, centrally located MMI or voice command. For the Roadster, the TFT display has been tweaked to offer drivers optimum viewing with the roof down, courtesy of an increased luminous intensity count (800, whatever that means) and optimised angling of the screen.
As with the coupe, three variants of the Roadster are available: diesel 2.0 TDI (unlikely to be imported), 2.0 TSFI and the (currently) range-topping TTS.
On the motorway, the TT Roadster is almost indistinguishable from the coupe. The ride provided by the non-adjustable dampers is generally good all round – supple enough for boulevard cruising and just firm enough for speedier shenanigans. The TTS takes ride quality up a notch with its magnetically adaptive dampers and a wider spectrum of damping.
Should you feel the need to see more and be more clearly seen at the same time, the soft-top, which Audi calls “acoustic soft-roof”, folds up or down in 10 seconds at speeds of up to 50km/h – two seconds and 18km/h faster than its predecessor.
As befitting the Roadster’s anti-family persona, the coupe’s tiny rear seats have been sacrificed to make room for the roof’s storage. Usefully, it doesn’t eat into boot space – now 30 litres bigger at 280 litres (and only 25 litres smaller than the coupe’s), which should be adequate for a weekend getaway.
With the roof down, there is noticeable cabin buffeting at speed, but not as much as I’d expect. If it gets too blustery, deploying the electronically controlled wind deflector behind the seats help to calm things down a tad. But we’re talking liberal European speed limits here. Singaporean customers can sleep soundly, knowing their slick hairstyles will stay intact if they stay within local speed limits. With the roof up, wind noise is more evident than in the coupe, but nowhere loud enough to distract the two occupants from their conversations.
The base TSFI engine, identical to the TT coupe’s, is a real peach. In fact, it might even be sweeter than the higher-tuned powerplant in the TTS. Despite having more torque and power, the TTS’s maximum figures of 310bhp at 5800rpm and 380Nm at 1800rpm comes in later in the rev range compared to the TT’s 230bhp at 4500rpm and 370Nm at 1600rpm, resulting in the slightest of delay before I experience that extra punch of the TTS over the TT.
This means the TT pulls hard from low down on the rev counter and is surprisingly linear all the way to its 6200rpm redline. Equally crucially for automotive “audiophiles” like me, it sounds less artificial than its sportier brother, whose sound-piping technology is more obvious from the car’s speakers. On the road, the regular TT is the better, more forgiving all-rounder compared to the TTS, which has a somewhat edgier personality.
To compensate for the torsional weakness attributed to the lack of a roof, Audi has reinforced key areas of their largely aluminum Audi Space Frame (ASF), itself an evolution of the one employed in the TT coupe. The reinforcements include beefier A-pillars, stronger sills and an extra solid panel between the cabin and the boot. And since it’s a soft-top rather than a heavier hard-top, the Roadster tips the scales at only 1425kg for the TT and 1470kg for the TTS, a roughly 90kg increase over the coupe in either case.
To be honest, if you’re not at a racetrack, you’d be hard-pressed to tell the difference in dynamics compared to the coupe. Showcasing the same agility and poise, and more importantly, the same fun as its structurally stiffer sibling, the TT Roadster is, in some ways, even more exhilarating because of the “missing” roof and ensuing exposure to the elements.
Like the coupe, it has a tendency to understeer when pushed hard, but keep it smooth and the TT turns through corners like it’s on rails, thanks in part to quattro permanent all-wheel-drive (as tested). Both the TT Roadster and TTS Roadster slated for Singapore will come with quattro as standard, along with Audi’s super-quick S tronic dual-clutch transmission.
But such abilities, I suspect, are inconsequential to the average TT Roadster customer, in the same way the multi-talented TT coupe is a more convincing prospect than the more powerful TTS coupe. People will be drawn to the new TT Roadster because it’s arguably the most attractive in its class – inside and out, roof up or down.
If posing in style is what you’re after, both the TT Roadster and TTS Roadster will do the job with consummate ease. And they’re not just pretty faces – they’re also a pleasure to drive.
AUDI TT ROADSTER QUATTRO 2.0 (A)
SPECIFICATIONS
DRIVETRAIN
TYPE Inline-4, 16-valves, turbocharged
CAPACITY 1984cc
BORE X STROKE 82.5mm x 92.8mm
COMPRESSION RATIO 9.6:1
MAX POWER 230bhp at 4500-6200rpm
MAX TORQUE 370Nm at 1600-4300rpm
POWER TO WEIGHT 161.4bhp per tonne
GEARBOX 6-speed dual-clutch with manual select
DRIVEN WHEELS All
PERFORMANCE
0-100KM/H 5.6 seconds
TOP SPEED 250km/h (governed)
CONSUMPTION 14.9km/L (combined)
CO2 EMISSION 154g/km
SUSPENSION
FRONT MacPherson struts, coil springs,
anti-roll bar
REAR Multi-link, coil springs,
anti-roll bar
BRAKES
FRONT / REAR Ventilated discs / Discs
TYRES
TYPE Hankook Ventus S1 Evo2
SIZE 225/50 R17
SAFETY
AIRBAGS 4
TRACTION AIDS ABS with ESC
MEASUREMENTS
LENGTH 4177mm
WIDTH 1832mm
HEIGHT 1355mm
WHEELBASE 2505mm
KERB WEIGHT 1425kg
TURNING CIRCLE 10.96m
BUYING IT
PRICE INCL. COE To be announced
WARRANTY 3 years/100,000km
WE SAY
+ Prettiest soft-top in its segment, fast and nifty roof system, as engaging as TT coupe
– Noticeable buffeting at speed with roof down, noisier than TT coupe with roof up
AUDI TTS ROADSTER QUATTRO 2.0 (A)
ESSENTIALS
SPECIFICATIONS
ENGINE 1984cc, 16-valves, inline-4, turbocharged
MAX POWER 310bhp at 5800-6200rpm
MAX TORQUE 380Nm at 1800-5700rpm
GEARBOX 6-speed dual-clutch with manual select
0-100KM/H 4.9 seconds
TOP SPEED 250km/h (governed)
CONSUMPTION 14.5km/L (combined)
CO2 EMISSION 159g/km
PRICE INCL. COE
TO BE ANNOUNCED
