Audi TTS Roadster 2.0 TFSI quattro S-tronic (A) First Drive Review
23 Feb 2015|14,578 views
The appeal of an island destination is hard to negate. Beautiful beaches, breathtaking scenery and bountiful sunshine are just some of the many attractions.
It gets even better when there's a topless sports car waiting to be driven on the brilliant roads that traverse that island.
That was the exact setting when Audi chose the island of Mallorca in Spain for its media drive of the new Audi TT Roadster, where we tried both the base quattro model as well as the S variant that you see here.
Up close and Personal
Compared to the TT Coupe, the removal of rear seats and new rollover hoops give the drop-top its own look, but regardless of the roof up or down, there is no doubt the car is a stunning piece of design.
Things get better inside the cabin where Audi has created an ergonomic masterpiece - spacious and well thought out with a clean, modern dash that manages to be both beautiful and functional.
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Audi's new virtual cockpit remains to be the show-stealer, especially in the TTS, where the speedometer can be discarded altogether in favour of one very large tachometer, right in the centre of the instrument cluster.
More importantly, all of this can be accessed without your hands leaving the steering wheel. Even the Individual mode of the Audi drive select system can be set up just by flicking the left thumb.
The decent-sized trunk, which stays the same at 280 litres when the roof is folded in 10 seconds at speeds of up to 50km/h, will be more than enough for most typical roadster users' needs.
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The Drive
Both the TT Roadster and TTS Roadster are equipped with the same 2.0-litre TFSI engine but the one in the latter boasts 80bhp more and 10Nm more torque. Despite the horsepower spread, they're both equally exhilarating, which is a fight that’s going to be tough to win.
Nonetheless, we found the lesser-powered model a better fit for public roads as the TTS Roadster seemed a tad too anxious to carry out its task.
This was proven by the car's explosive pace as it was brought up to speed, taking 0.7 seconds faster than its lesser sibling and 0.3 seconds faster than its predecessor to hit the century mark.
That said, while the TT Roadster sounded purposeful, the TTS Roadster brings a delicious rumble that builds with speed.
It was enough to force us to drop a gear or two, hammer the throttle and enjoy the mellifluous note as the car rocketed through the roads - most frequently done in tunnels we passed along our driving routes.
Audi's drive select system comes as standard with dynamic mode remaining to be highly sought after by enthusiasts looking for some fun.
Otherwise, comfort or auto modes will do just fine on a daily basis. There's also an efficiency mode for maximising fuel economy, which relaxes throttle response and fully exploits a seamless automatic start/stop system.
Along the way, the TTS Roadster put Audi's magnetic ride suspension to great use as it dialled out all body roll without sacrificing ride comfort.
But more notably, the car handled predictably and sure-footedly down sinuous roads, which isn't much of a surprise since its predecessor was already a very capable car.
Conclusion
If you need to get some fresh air and rorty acceleration at the same time, the third generation TTS Roadster could be the car for you when it arrives at another sunny island destination - Singapore - in the third quarter of this year.
After all, there is so much more to lust after now.
The appeal of an island destination is hard to negate. Beautiful beaches, breathtaking scenery and bountiful sunshine are just some of the many attractions.
It gets even better when there's a topless sports car waiting to be driven on the brilliant roads that traverse that island.
That was the exact setting when Audi chose the island of Mallorca in Spain for its media drive of the new Audi TT Roadster, where we tried both the base quattro model as well as the S variant that you see here.
Up close and Personal
Compared to the TT Coupe, the removal of rear seats and new rollover hoops give the drop-top its own look, but regardless of the roof up or down, there is no doubt the car is a stunning piece of design.
Things get better inside the cabin where Audi has created an ergonomic masterpiece - spacious and well thought out with a clean, modern dash that manages to be both beautiful and functional.
Audi's new virtual cockpit remains to be the show-stealer, especially in the TTS, where the speedometer can be discarded altogether in favour of one very large tachometer, right in the centre of the instrument cluster.
More importantly, all of this can be accessed without your hands leaving the steering wheel. Even the Individual mode of the Audi drive select system can be set up just by flicking the left thumb.
The decent-sized trunk, which stays the same at 280 litres when the roof is folded in 10 seconds at speeds of up to 50km/h, will be more than enough for most typical roadster users' needs.
The Drive
Both the TT Roadster and TTS Roadster are equipped with the same 2.0-litre TFSI engine but the one in the latter boasts 80bhp more and 10Nm more torque. Despite the horsepower spread, they're both equally exhilarating, which is a fight that’s going to be tough to win.
Nonetheless, we found the lesser-powered model a better fit for public roads as the TTS Roadster seemed a tad too anxious to carry out its task.
This was proven by the car's explosive pace as it was brought up to speed, taking 0.7 seconds faster than its lesser sibling and 0.3 seconds faster than its predecessor to hit the century mark.
That said, while the TT Roadster sounded purposeful, the TTS Roadster brings a delicious rumble that builds with speed.
It was enough to force us to drop a gear or two, hammer the throttle and enjoy the mellifluous note as the car rocketed through the roads - most frequently done in tunnels we passed along our driving routes.
Both the TT Roadster and TTS Roadster are equipped with the same 2.0-litre TFSI engine but the one in the latter boasts 80bhp more and 10Nm more torque. Despite the horsepower spread, they're both equally exhilarating, which is a fight that’s going to be tough to win.
Nonetheless, we found the lesser-powered model a better fit for public roads as the TTS Roadster seemed a tad too anxious to carry out its task.
This was proven by the car's explosive pace as it was brought up to speed, taking 0.7 seconds faster than its lesser sibling and 0.3 seconds faster than its predecessor to hit the century mark.
That said, while the TT Roadster sounded purposeful, the TTS Roadster brings a delicious rumble that builds with speed.
It was enough to force us to drop a gear or two, hammer the throttle and enjoy the mellifluous note as the car rocketed through the roads - most frequently done in tunnels we passed along our driving routes.
Audi's drive select system comes as standard with dynamic mode remaining to be highly sought after by enthusiasts looking for some fun.
Otherwise, comfort or auto modes will do just fine on a daily basis. There's also an efficiency mode for maximising fuel economy, which relaxes throttle response and fully exploits a seamless automatic start/stop system.
Along the way, the TTS Roadster put Audi's magnetic ride suspension to great use as it dialled out all body roll without sacrificing ride comfort.
But more notably, the car handled predictably and sure-footedly down sinuous roads, which isn't much of a surprise since its predecessor was already a very capable car.
Conclusion
If you need to get some fresh air and rorty acceleration at the same time, the third generation TTS Roadster could be the car for you when it arrives at another sunny island destination - Singapore - in the third quarter of this year.
After all, there is so much more to lust after now.
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