Business Car Manager Verdict

It’s beautiful, it’s practical for the sporty segment it sits in, and it’s a brand new Audi TT.

Unless you want to wait on the 320 horsepower TTS which can be ordered from November (for March delivery), this is the plenty-hot petrol model for now, and it looks like a hugely sophisticated evolution of the outgoing Mk II, while complemented internally with a raft of clever tech advances that do away with dials for a 12″ screen that can be customised to show different data and mapping.

It comes with some advisories however. Choose S line trim and you go up from 18 inch wheels to 19 inch wheels. Our review car was fitted with optional 20 inch rims. The basic advice is to stay with the lesser ‘Sport’ trim to get the 18 inchers. Even here, we are longing to try the ‘not quite ready’ magnetic damping system that cannot yet be ordered, because the car is so stiff and unyielding that it is harsh at low speeds and desperately needs a ‘comfort’ setting to relax those dampers a bit.

We would also advise a long test drive and direct, back-to-back comparison with the diesel. Even if you totally discount the rational cost savings of the diesel over the petrol, (in our real world test we achieved 26 mpg in the petrol quattro, versus 44 mpg in the diesel) in our minds there is the issue of overall feel and driver involvement. Central to this is whether you opt for the auto or a manual.

We reckon the TT still benefits from a manual despite the obvious daily advantages of the auto. But beyond that decision, the petrol engine suffers from induction boom and feels ‘hectic’ compared to the diesel. This should be an advantage in an out and out sports car, which Audi insists the third generation TT has now become. But it doesn’t feel so on a challenging road.

Meanwhile, the quattro 4×4 system is unquestionably superb, but so much so that you never know really where the grip levels lie. The result is what one colleague called a ‘surgical strike’ car. Clinical was also a term used. It’s unquestionably brilliant, but it’s not terribly involving and never quite feels as fast as its 5.3 second 0-60 time suggests, nor sounds great, the result of Audi having to wring big performance from a four cylinder engine to make up the right emissions numbers.

This may actually make it worth waiting for the TTS if outright performance is your goal, but at that level the competition is also formidable – think Porsche Boxster and even Cayman if you start ticking too many options. Of all the many and expensive options (our test car topped out at £45k), we do recommend the 680-watt, 12 speaker Bang & Olufsen audio system – and the almost unavoidable sat nav option, although we still don’t understand why this remains a vastly expensive £1,700 option as part of a broader tech package.

If you really want Audi TT performance then this is the one – but most SME directors and business owners should opt for the diesel version with its lower operating costs and lower company car tax benefit in kind tariff.

The Low Down…..

…..and what it costs