Seat Time: 2016 Audi TTS – Flawed and We Love It!
July 30th, 2016 at 3:00pm
Seat Time is a chance for us to share our impressions of vehicles being tested in the Autoline Garage and at media previews from around the globe.
Reviewer: Sean McElroy
Vehicle: 2016 Audi TTS
Price: $57,600 (as tested)
Final Impression:
The Audi TTS is the biggest and baddest TT you can buy. The 2.0L turbo 4-cylinder kicks out 72 more horsepower (292hp) and 22 more lb.-ft. of torque (280 lb.-ft.) than the standard TT. That’s good for a 0-60 MPH time of 4.6-seconds. The TTS is also upgraded with magnetic ride suspension and unique wheels. The car rides on VW’s modular architecture, called MQB and despite sharing similar underpinnings with other cars, like the Golf, the TTS both earns and deserves its “sports car” moniker.
This car is just waiting for you to tap the Drive Mode button into “Dynamic” and mash on the gas. It seems to want you to push it harder each and every turn. But even if you do push a little too hard the brakes are more than adequate to bring you back into reality. And the TTS is so well balanced that if the back end does want to creep out, you never really feel out of control. It could make even a novice driver feel like a real racer. I’m sure a lot of that forgiveness has to do with the AWD system but a good set of 19-inch summer tires doesn’t hurt either. Actually, I would have loved to slap a set of race tires on this thing and thrashed it out on a track or autocross. With race tires this thing has got to be a whole lot of fun.
But all this love I have been spewing for the TTS is about to switch to the other side of the equation. Like any TRUE sports car, the TTS is flawed. And in its case, it comes down to normal, everyday driving. The set of roads I take on a daily basis are a fantastic way to test NVH (Noise Vibration Harshness) in any vehicle. While the TTS does an OK job of limiting that Harshness factor, a big thanks to its magnetic ride suspension, and is not the worst I’ve ever been in, I’m pretty sure you can guess how a small sports car with 35-series tires feels to ride around in. It’s not a car I would want to be in for any long period of time. But I will say, the seats are very comfortable and have lots of adjustments for lots of body types.
So if you’re looking at getting into an Audi TTS as a daily driver I really hope you don’t have a very far commute and have access to a track or to the kinds of roads befitting a REAL sports car.