Tesla Motors Club

For various reasons I've ended up with my mothers Audi TTS to look after during lockdown. Now, I've never really wanted a TT, but an Audi -S spec 3 or 4 was definitely on the spreadsheets when I chose my Model 3. So if I was was going to choose a TT, it would have been this one, probably. The -S spec cars are all badged as quick, but with out the total phycho side that the RS series have. They should, in theory, be what is compared with probably the AWD Model 3.

The TTS in current guise has 306bhp, 4wd and an audi tiptronic auto box. Claimed 4.5 - 4.2 seconds 0-60 depending who you ask.

So I was rather looking forward to taking it out the other weekend for 'a wee run' to turn the engine over and make sure the brakes were not ceasing up etc. The wee run happened to include some back roads I know quite well, after finding and setting the 'dynamic' mode.

But I was really shocked. It was utter utter pants.

• It wasn't fast. OK, I'm driving a P- which isn't really a fair comparison, but at no point, in any gear, at any speed did the TT feel quick. It didn't have more poke off the line, which I expected, but neither did it seem like it had any advantage at higher speeds, which is where the '3 starts to struggle a bit more.
• The tip tronic gearbox couldn't be coaxed into life for anything. Full auto was poor. S mode held onto gears waaaaay longer than it should of for a turbo engine, and using the flappy paddles introduced soooo much lag waiting for gears.
• The trick magnetic suspension was a bit better than my P-, but not nearly to the extent I was expecting. I never seemed to get enough speed up for it to matter either.
• The noise. Urgh. On startup the TT sounds beutiful, you think wow - that's some noise, no wonder people say they might miss it. But then you drive it around town a bit and just wish it would shut the hell up. So much noise and drama for very little progress.

I guess after all the waiting for the Model 3 I had kind of idolized the S3/4 as a solid, fast, practical and price competitive option, the top of the ICE pile, and really what I'm saying is I was wrong. Its rubbish. For all the good memories of my last lightly chipped Leon FR, or the previous ludicrously modified Celica, ICE is dead.

Long live the BEV.