TT Quattro Sport 2006
REMOVING THE REAR seats and producing a special edition in limited numbers now seems like a safe bet for boosting demand for a performance car that’s about to be discontinued. Not so when the TT Quattro Sport debuted in 2006, at the end of the Mk1 TT’s life. Only 800 were offered in right-handdrive for the UK, but – as TT Owners’ Club chairman Andrew Stevenson reveals – dealers didn’t find it easy to shift them, and many were sold at a discount to people who didn’t lavish them with much love and attention. The used market has warmed to the TT Quattro Sport, but they’re still great value at £7k-£13k. Given that warning about possible neglect, we’d look towards the higher end of those figures.
And this is a special car, not just a cosmetic marketing exercise. Yes, the Phantom Black roof and 18-inch alloys work wonderfully, but the way it drives proves even to a disbeliever like me that a TT can engage and entertain. Audi could have used the 3.2 V6 but instead it tweaked the 1.8-litre turbo engine to 237bhp – 15bhp more than any other four-cylinder TT, and just 9bhp shy of the V6, and with less weight over the nose. Other weight saving measures – removal of the rear seats, spare wheel, parcel shelf and air-con (which became a no-cost option) shed a further 75kg, taking the kerbweight to 1390kg – 100kg lighter than the V6. S-line suspension and a six-speed manual gearbox were standard. Low Recaro bucket seats and an alcantara wheel set the scene for a focused drive, and the reality doesn’t disappoint. The turbocharged delivery has a frisky energy, the gearshift is positive, and the chassis is both supple and adjustable – twist the steering and lift the throttle mid-bend and it’ll tuck its nose in keenly; it feels responsive and interactive.
The steering could be quicker and the bodyroll better damped, but the original Quattro wouldn’t see which way a Quattro Sport went, and I’d rather drive one cross-country than the ace VW Golf GTI Mk5. Never thought I’d say that.