billk

I've thought long and hard about this post, so think before you flame me or make some offhanded (ie dumb) remark PLEASE!

I had one of the first FWD TT's and now I have a new Quattro. I was thinking through the differences between the two, and since this is a common questions FvsQ I thought I'd throw my hat in the ring of answers.

Summary:
For shear power and kick-*** performance that'll make you smile: FWD
For power, prowess, smarts, cabin silence, and kick-*** performance: Q

Analogy:
The FWD is like a pit bull on a leash. You have to control it and keep it on a short leash. If you can, great, it's a hell of a lot of fun.
The Q is like a doberman or German Sheppard. Controlled, powerful, quiet, and lethally fun.

Details:
The first thing I noticed is that the Q is like the FWD TT only a newer version, version 2.0 perhaps. The Q car is quieter, better behaved, more solid (they fixed the DAMN creeky hatch cover), and has a totally different transmission than the FWD. The Q is totally solid and as quiet as my Lexus (sorry, I could never say that about my FWD TT). No creeks, no strains, and the driver's seat doesn't CLICK on turns (yeah!). The Q's trans is quick, crisp and smart and feels TOTALLY different than the FWD. The car is more stable than the F at high speeds (90+) and seems to LOVE to go faster and faster. The car is as stable at 40 as it is at 100. My FWD was stable at high speeds, but the Q is damn stable. The cornering in the Q is damn fun, but it's so good at cornering that it takes the fun out of it. The F was great in turns because you could throw it around, but the Q seems to know what you're doing before you do it and handles the turn with grace (not letting you throw it around). The F sound meaner than the Q (muffler tuning difference). The F is faster in 1st gear and goes longer in 1st and 2nd than the Q. The Q has better 3-5 than the F.

If I was a millionaire I'd have both. But I bet I'd drive the Q more than the F.

The F is like a young muscular brother. Full of muscles and strength, but not too smart (yet).
The Q is the mature muscle-head, strong and silent and very smart.

Enough!
That's my take on the Q vs the F.

STTeve R

nt

David Ross

Thanks very much for your report. Perhaps you could extend the F-Q comparison a little further for me: Do you have a feeling for how the 2 cars compare when not pushed too hard but in adverse conditions like heavy rain?

smiTTy

Great post! Well thought out.

My 180Q is now officially "in transit" to Pittsburgh. (At last, after 16 weeks of waiting!)

Your enthusiasm for the Q really shines through. I'm so anxious, I can't sleep. (3:25 a.m. now--Geez!)

Thank goodness for the ol' reliable TT Forum. Open 24 hours!

Brad Willis

Excellent comments. I hope that you enjoy your Q, and I'm very glad that the creaky privacy cover has been fixed, because mine's really starting to annoy me.

For anyone who missed it and is interested, I also did a FWD vs. Quattro review recently. To take a look, follow this link to the SoCal TT Club homepage, then click on news. Here's the link:<ul><li><a href="http://home.san.rr.com/winefinds">SoCal Audi TT Club</a></li></ul>

bsm

It's hard to imagine why the hatch rattle and seat click you experienced in your FWd would not occur in the Q. I wonder if those were caused by having bad luck (I hate to use the word "Lemon"). I mean think about it, there is no reason your hatch should rattle less in a Q than a FWD. A bumpy road is going to shake either car enough to cause the rattle. In any event, I'm glad you are pleased with your purchase.

I am going to enjoy my FWD for a few years (due to be in my possession early next week), then see what looks good later. Maybe, I be ready for the 225hp Q. For now, I'll take the friendly sticker price of my FWD and enjoy the heck out of it!

David Ross

A few weeks ago, you wrote that there is a known (to Audi) problem(s) with the FWD transmission. Can you or anyone confirm that and perhaps give a little more detail about it.

Brad Willis

I hesitate to even bring it up, since the subject has been beaten to death here. Since you asked, a high percentage of "first U.S. wave" FWD owners have developed transmission problems. It usually shows up as a 2nd gear syncro grinding. In other words, the tranny grinds when upshifting or downshifting into 2nd gear, even though the clutch is fully depressed.

There appears to be 2 seperate problems. I believe (personal opinion, but I'll bet that it's accurate) that the first problem is a manufacturing defect relating to the 2nd gear syncros. The other problem is that Audi apparently used the wrong transmission fluid in these cars. I know that it sounds implausable, but several folks who work for Audi have told me so. The synthetic fluid that was put in by the factory is almost as thin as water, and is not only providing inadequate protection, but also creates an "unsmooth" feel. Since Audi replaced my thin synthetic with a different grade of conventional, it shifts much smoother. A few here have switched to a synthetic tranny oil that seemed to do the trick, but this is not a conventional vs. synthetic issue, as crappy synthetic is (was?) in there from the factory.

Audi initially began replacing the trannys and the tranny oil, but some of the replacement transmissions had the same 2nd gear defects. Now, their strategy appears to be to replace the tranny oil and repair the 2nd gear syncros with parts that they know to be good, rather that slap a new transmission in there with parts that may be defective.

I am certain that Audi is well aware of this problem. Also, I wrote a multi page letter to AoA head, Len Hunt, documenting a very large number of transmission failures. I would assume that Audi would correct this problem and that the new wave of FWDs would be okay, but we shall see.

billk

I think the rattles and noises and quirks are simply a matter of time and experience building and tweaking the car. I don't think my experience with the FWD was unique. It is much like software, version 2.0 is usually better and more refined than version 1.0 because the people who created had more time to refine and work with the "code".

bk

billk

Brad, I've seen that you can order another hatch cover under warranty. The problem is in the engineering and the plastics they used. You can separate the top from the bottom of the unit and see what I mean. There is no way to quiet the current version you have, but you can order a new one under warranty. Just remove it from the car, and twist it a bit in the presence of the service guy and trust me he'll get you a new one.