All Audi TT reviews

"Some day all gearboxes will be made this way"

Audi's TT Roadster has always been one of the better coupe-to-droptop conversions. All too often, this transformation results in badly compromised cars that handle poorly and inflict a number of sacrifices on their owners. The TT is different and loses little in terms of driving enjoyment to its hard top sibling. With the revolutionary DSG transmission available at a £1,400 addition to the £31,210 asking price and a powerful 3.2-litre V6 engine up front, the TT Roadster now has some serious firepower to fall back on.

Should any ill-informed colleagues make any 'hairdresser' jibes about your soft top car, you can smile knowingly, safe in the knowledge that the 247bhp engine under the TT's stubby bonnet will soon wipe the grins off their faces. There has been some conjecture as to whether the big V6 is worth the additional premium over the 190bhp 'four', given that it's a far heavier engine and the performance advantage isn't that great. True, when you check the performance figures of the two cars back to back, you'd have to say there's not a great deal in it. Nevertheless the V6 powerplant transforms the roadster's nature. Make no mistake, it's quick enough for some serious fun, notching off the sprint to 60mph in 6.4 seconds before running onto a terminal velocity of 155mph. It's the same engine found in Volkswagen's Phaeton luxury saloon and the Touareg 4x4 but has been subtly tweaked by Audi to generate 247bhp. Unlike its 190bhp turbocharged understudy, the TT 3.2 V6 suffers no lag when you prod the throttle pedal. Instant urge is the name of the game here, and the potent snarl when the engine ascends the rev range is a welcome improvement to the rather anodyne whoosh and blare of the 1.8T. The exhaust has been tuned to produce a sporty sound and if you back off the throttle at high revs, there's a series of crackles and pops as unburnt fuel detonates in the exhaust. Drop the hood and you'll experience the engine note in full surround sound, making the TT feel like a genuine sports car.

Audi have had to work carefully on the TT Roadster's suspension in order to accommodate this extra power. Spring and damper settings have been specially calculated to cope with the demands of serious drivers and to ensure that only a certain degree of force is transmitted to the open top body. Despite the lack of a roof, the roadster chassis is one of the stiffer floorplans in the class and only the severest ruts will induce a slight shudder of body flex. The engineers have given the roadster 17 rather than 18-inch wheels as standard in order to soften the ride a tad. This TT is also possessed of a more direct steering rack that feels purposeful and sharp. Whilst it's not Porsche-style communicative, it at least excises the somewhat numb feeling that has characterised Audi performance cars of late. The other accusation levelled at Audi sportsters has been the charge of overservoed brakes. The TT 3.2 V6 addresses this as well, offering more feel and modulation in the pedal travel. Despite the attractions of the 3.2-litre engine and styling that still turns heads, it's the DSG gearbox that's the key talking point with this model. Jump in and you're greeted with what looks like a relatively conventional automatic gear lever sprouting from the transmission tunnel. Closer inspection reveals that the gearstick can be knocked sideways into a slot so that you can push it forward to change up a gear and pull it back to drop down a ratio. There are also paddle shifters behind the steering wheel to achieve the same effect. But then a number of cars already feature such a system. What's the advance? It's important to understand how these other cars' gearboxes work. Basically, they can be split into two forms. The first is a proper automatic gearbox that can double up as a rather poor manual 'box as typified by Porsche's Tiptronic system, and the second is a sequential manual box that will, at a pinch, function as a somewhat clonky automatic as typified by Alfa Romeo's Selespeed, Ferrari's F1 or BMW's SMG system. Neither system is ideal. Tiptronic style gearboxes use a torque converter and as such are inefficient and a touch slow witted albeit very smooth. The sequential manual gearboxes can be brutally efficient in manual mode but are neither smooth nor very convincing when trying to mimic an automatic gearbox. Just try a hill start in reverse and you'll see what we mean. Audi have approached the issue in an ingenious way. The TT 3.2 V6 uses a sequential manual gearbox in order to ensure efficiency and rapid responses, but it also uses a clever twin clutch system to ensure creamy smoothness. Engage first gear and the gearbox will pre-engage second gear in advance, the second clutch engaging as soon as you flick up to fire the TT instantly into second gear. This means a seamless flow of power. The electronics predict what gear you're about to engage, depending on whether you're accelerating or braking and the result is astonishing, making every other gearbox look distinctly clunky. The other option is to slip it into 'D' and drive it like a normal automatic. Even in this mode it's butter smooth. One comes away with the impression that Audi have a tangible advantage over everybody else with this system and that some day all gearboxes will be made this way. The car is available as a manual but most buyers really should find the £1,400 to get the DSG. Otherwise much is the same as the familiar TT roadster recipe. The styling has aged extremely well given that it was first shown at the 1995 Frankfurt Show and appeared in dealers thereafter virtually unchanged. True, there have been a few minor nips and tweaks to the detailing but Audi have been wise not to mess with a winning formula too much. The 3.2-litre roadster seamlessly shifts the car's reputation up another gear.