Since more than 25 years, the Audi TT has been synonymous with the brand, a modern machine that initially favored style over sport. The final editions are very different beasts from the original.
Think back 25 years and the automotive landscape was very different. “Car Culture” was just starting to take off, there were only a handful of other titles devoted to the subject, the internet was an empty wasteland, and the definition of “Car & Fashion” was still largely attributed to a small logo on the car bodies…
Entering this respectful atmosphere, the first Audi TT was considered nothing short of sensational. For guardians of what constituted good design, Audi’s compact, curvaceous sports car seemed to be the epitome of everything “design” promised; a distinctive, purist industrial object that was available to all. In short, the ambitions of the Bauhaus had finally been realized.
Audi first presented the TT as a concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1995. With external styling by Freeman Thomas, the TT project was overseen by the then design director, Peter Schreyer, along with J Mays, Martin Smith, and Romulus Rost, plus the input of legendary Audi design chief Hartmut Warkuss. The production version arrived in 1998, remarkably unchanged from the concept. Proportions and shapes were all faithfully transferred, except for elements that proved too difficult to mass-produce, such as the large C-pillar.
As an object of desire, the TT was unmatched. Priced far below contemporary sports cars like Porsche and Maserati, yet it drew more admiring glances than its peers. For more seasoned writers, less versed in the art of proportion and more concerned with driving and dynamics, these early TTs didn’t quite live up to their looks. It wasn’t the sports car of their dreams, let alone a credible successor to the legendary Audi Quattro. Beneath Freeman Thomas’s curvaceous bodywork lay the mechanical underpinnings of the VW Group’s A4 platform, which also formed the basis of the VW Golf Mk4 and Audi A3. The oily bits might not have been as groundbreaking as the style, but it was this pragmatism that allowed the TT to be built and sold at a reasonable price.
Yet there were grumbles. It wasn’t until the release of the 2005 TT quattro sport, with its two-tone bodywork and limited production run, that petrolheads finally got what they wanted from the TT. This may have skewed Audi’s perception of the model too, as the next generation, which surfaced in 2006, lost some of the original’s character in favor of a more aggressive approach. This culminated in the 2009 TT RS (for RennSport, or “racing sport”), before the launch of the TT Mk3 in 2014. From 2024, the TT will be no more.
Yet there were grumbles. It wasn’t until the release of the 2005 TT quattro sport, with its two-tone bodywork and limited production run, that petrolheads finally got what they wanted from the TT. This may have skewed Audi’s perception of the model too, as the next generation, which surfaced in 2006, lost some of the original’s character in favor of a more aggressive approach. This culminated in the 2009 TT RS (for RennSport, or “racing sport”), before the launch of the TT Mk3 in 2014. From 2024, the TT will be no more.
Audi is offering a final edition of the Audi TT RS and the TTS Roadster Final Edition as a tribute to this remarkably successful model. These vehicles played a pivotal role in revamping and strengthening Audi’s reputation as a design innovator. Additionally, the evolution of the TT closely aligns with Audi’s progressive emphasis on power and speed over the years, as evidenced by the development of ultra-powerful and extremely aggressive variants within its lineup..
Finished in Nardo Grey, the TT RS still retains some of the modernist purity of the original. If you can overlook the (massive) rear wing and deep, multi-slatted front grille, you’ll find that the perfect curve of the roof, high shoulder line, and sharply defined wheel arches remain distinctive and instantly recognizable.
Inside, there’s a triple air vent system where most modern cars slap a flat screen – infotainment, navigation, and everything else are taken care of in the digital dashboard. Without the TFTs, the interior has a certain analog feel, enhanced by the well-tuned exhaust note and Audi’s characteristic spring firmness.
The convertible version of the outgoing model, the TTS Final Edition, is also spoiled by a spoiler, although not quite as OTT as the RS. The original Mk1 Roadster had elegant metal hoops as rollover protectors; their modern equivalents are a bit more functional. Yet the hood is quick and comfortable, and you lose very little boot space or practicality, except for the loss of the (tiny) rear seats. Yes, it’s true – the TT was a four-seater from the start, something its proportions never let on.
They’re still great cars to drive, benefiting from their relatively small and low-slung, sporty driving position, with quick steering that makes the most of the ultra-stiff suspension. Despite its role as a design icon, the TT was very quickly out of taste. The market for small two-seater cars inexorably slipped downwards during the car’s lifetime. In addition to the difficulty of electrifying such a small platform, this accelerated the inevitable demise of the TT.
Nevertheless, we’ll always have a soft spot for this little German coupé, a car created by a design team, not by a marketing committee. Perhaps technology will mature to give Audi’s icon a well-deserved encore.
Audi TT RS Coupe 400PS Iconic Edition S tronic, €102,572
Audi TT S Roadster Final Edition, €60,179
Cover image by Amos Fricke for Intersection magazin (DE)