Audi TT RS plus 2013 Review
More powerful, more dynamic TT RS plus sets a new performance datum for Audi's popular sports coupeQuick Spin
One hundred and forty seven seconds was all it took to convince this writer that the new Audi TT RS plus was a good thing. And how do I know it took 147 seconds? Because that was exactly the time it took me to complete three laps of the motorkhana circuit Audi Australia had set-up as a test course for its new sports coupe.
The handling prowess and all-wheel drive grip of the TT RS has already proved itself to the team at motoring.com.au, and indeed myself in a week-long road test last year. And though I didn’t have a lot of time to test the benefits of this cracking newcomer, the added performance benefits proved immediately evident.
Audi has upped the output of its 2.5-litre five-cylinder TFSI engine by an additional 15kW and 15Nm. This takes the total to an impressive 265kW and 465Nm. The figures are enough to rocket the two-door coupe from zero to 100km/h in just 4.1 seconds, making it the second-fastest accelerating Audi after the V10-powered R8 supercar!
For those with the need for speed the TT RS plus won’t disappoint. Audi has lifted the electronic limiter from 250 to 280km/h, and all of this without lifting the price (still $139,900 plus on-road costs).
An aluminium Audi Space Frame (ASF) body ensures weight is kept to a minimum. The TT RS tipping the scale 1475kg for a power-to-weight ratio of 5.6kg/kW. It also helps save fuel, with the ADR combined cycle figure just 8.5L/100km.
Power is put to the ground via Audi’s renowned quattro permanent all-wheel drive system, quickly and effectively jostling torque from the wheels that slip to the wheels that grip. Ripping through the witches hats of our undulating course, the TT RS plus evidenced a tenacity and obedience of grip let down only by a hint of lag, itself the result of the usual dose of turbo lag and an overstressed stability control system (Audi wouldn’t let us switch
it off).
No such issues with the seven-speed S tronic transmission. And though I admit to only using first and second gear, the time taken to snap between the pair is like a click of the fingers. Launch control is standard and whisks the TT RS plus from standstill like a gunshot. The combination of all-wheel drive grip and effective electronics means you won’t be seen for dust.
Fitted as standard with a sports exhaust the TT RS plus exaggerates what’s already one of the best notes in the business. The growl of that five-cylinder engine popping and snarling up and down shifts is just encouragement for even faster laps, outdone only by even faster stops.
The TT RS plus is arrested by substantial cross-drilled discs grabbed by four-pot fixed calipers. Hiding beneath 19-inch alloy wheels, the massive stoppers haul the little coupe to standstill almost as quickly as it departed – perfect for that last-second dive into the garage at the end of our motorkhana course.
Optional on the TT RS plus are black-painted Rotor design five-spoke alloy wheels with a contrasting red paint around the rim flange. And if that’s a little bold for your tastes, a silver finish is also available. The wheels are shod with 255/35 series rubber all-round.
Standard too is Audi magnetic ride adaptive damping, a large, fixed rear wing, single-frame diamond-pattern grille in Anthracite, a dual oval-outlet exhaust in black and carbon-fibre mirror caps. The engine is topped with carbon fibre.
Although the brief steer gave us only a glimpse of the dynamism and performance on tap in the TT RS plus we’re sure it won’t disappoint when we next have a chance to spend time at the wheel.
Now, just what did I do with Audi’s phone number?
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