ttboy04

Hi all, I'm a car nut and currently drive a 96 Acura Integra with some thoughtful key mods to enhance handling and low-end torque (of which hondas always can use more).

Well, I'm thinking about getting another car and have been superficially following the TT coupe and roadster for some time. I really dig the styling inside and out (looks cohesive and like nothing else new or old); I'd expect that it would be relatively reliable. I also think (the ones I like being turbocharged already) it would be amenable to easy hp upgrades. The only drawback --from what I've read --is the handling. The enthusiast mags (e.g. the British mag, Evo) call it the "poseur's sports car." Just how true *is* the claim, and in what way? More importantly, what could I expect from aftermarket handling upgrades and how much would I expect to spend? Lastly and as an aside, are any model years better than others? 2wd vs. 4wd? Coupe vs. convertible? My goal would be to build a "sleeper" performance car that I also can maintain as a four-season daily driver.

All comments are welcome. Thanks in advance.

JohnLZ7W

The TT can be made into a very good handling car with aftermarket suspension mods. It's really not bad stock but can get so much better for about $2k. Perhaps not as nimble as an S2000 or Boxster (extra weight doesn't help) but I think more accessible... it's hard to get them tail happy which the journalists seem to like but which ultimately isn't the fastest way around a track anyway.
Performance mods will get you probably to around 280hp pretty easily; chip, exhaust, intake, intercooler. More than that really you're gonna need a turbo upgrade.
Later model years do seem to have some bugs worked out but not all. Electrical gremlins are the big concern tho nothing that would leave you stranded on the side of the road.
Performance potential is better with the coupe since it is lighter and stiffer but all the mods apply to either the coupe or roadster. I'd suggest a quattro over FWD for the simple reason that the transmission is better. The FWD TTs use a VW manual transmission that has documented problems. The 6-speed on the 225hp quattro cars is much more solid.
And quattro over FWD just because it feels so good to come out of a corner on the gas and feel the car just clawing at the ground, feels like getting launched out of a slingshot

Tee x2

Yep, if you are talking about limits (#g's) and lap time around a circuit, the stock TT may be justifically tagged so. BUT I think for this car, I can achieve higher AVERAGE speed around a corner over a Boxster because it feels so much safer to take a twisty at higher speed. Yeah you may say I am not driving the Boxster hard enough or I am barely scratching its limits but I DO NOT WANT TO TAKE THAT KIND OF EFFORT IN MY DRIVE AFTER A DAY'S WORK. Also, you don't have to have their experience and skills to achieve high cornering speed.
But for ultimate sports capabilities (practicality totally aside), I would IMHO recommend the Elise, for a 2nd car. Just good luck when the tail swings out and you realise the little fact that your SPORTS CAR has no ESP or 4WD to save you...

ITALSKIER

well said,John.....and ,oh youll love the mid range .. torque..

EasTTcoasTT

<center><img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/54499/dyno.jpg"></center><p>at the wheels. Multiply times 1.28 for crank.

Nebuul

The TT's handling is actually pretty good. I find that most of the people who are reviewing it are used to rwd sport cars, and really don't know how to take advantage of the all-wheel-drive, and Audi's is the best in the world.

As John said, if you adjust the suspension, then the TT can really hang with anything out there. Additionally, someone else found out that our little 1.8L engines are rated for 450+hp (that's why you never hear about TT's with engines wearing out under the turbo strain), so you can really mod our cars to have some power without changing out the engine block/etc.

The Mystro S4

Exactly, My TTqR is easier to drive fast than my last 911.

ttboy04

Wow, thanks for all the quick replies. Sounds like all-wheel-drive is the way to go. Any thoughts on how a modded one performs next to a Subaru WRX (not that I'm considering one; nice car, but I can't get used to its looks)?

Also, just how much torsional stiffness is sacrificed between the coupe and the convertible?