TT – Pulpaddict

2017 Audi TT With Turbocharged VR6 Swap Churns Out 700 HP

A turbocharged VR6 swap makes this 2017 Audi TT incredible quick, but it also looks the part with an array of upgrades.

Now on its way to the proverbial automotive graveyard, the Audi TT certainly gained its fair share of fans over the years, largely thanks to its concept car-like styling and solid performance. For some, however, you can just never have enough power underhood, and that includes the owner of this wild 2017 Audi TT. Rather than spend the time and money upgrading this car’s original turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four cylinder powerplant, they wound up replacing it altogether with a larger turbocharged 3.6-liter VR6 built by R-Performance and AW-Racing, and the results are quite amazing.

Those companies provided what the owner calls their Stage 2 setup for this particular powerplant, as well as a titanium exhaust and multiple tunes so that he can run different fuels when so desired. On 98-octane, the combination of good for around 600 horsepower, while adding 100-octane helps it make an impressive 740 horsepower, which flows to the wheels via a built DSG DQ500 gearbox.

In terms of how this translates to performance, the owner claims that his swapped 2017 Audi TT will do 0-62 mph in the sub three-second range, and go from 62-124 mph in 4.9 seconds – impressive numbers, indeed. To help manage the car’s newfound power, he also added a set of Bilstein B16 dampers, Eibach sway bars, and a braking system that consists of six-piston calipers and PFC discs up front, as well as 334mm ventilated discs out back.

However, this 2017 Audi TT isn’t just chock full of mechanical upgrades – it also features a full TT RS body kit, along with a large rear wing, Rieger diffuser, and a front splitter and side skirts from Maxton Design. The car rolls on a set of 19×8.5-inch Motec Ultralight wheels wrapped with Pirelli rubber, though the interior was left alone, save for a set of DSG shift paddles.

It’s a tantalizing package for certain, and one that’s actually for sale right now on the Unique Cars For Sale In Europe Facebook page. Problem is, the car is located in Warsaw, Poland, which isn’t great news for U.S.-based buyers. Regardless, it’s a spectacular machine worth taking a closer look at, with an engine swap that makes it truly unique as well.

Photos: Unique Cars For Sale In Europe/Facebook

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The Audi TT Was Almost a Porsche, According to the Car’s Designer

An internal battle between brands ultimately resulted in the Audi TT winning out, but it nearly didn’t.

The Audi TT is set to sail into the sunset after many successful years on the market as a futuristically-styled, satisfying luxury sports coupe. The first-gen model is also arguably one of the most iconic designs in automotive history, a car that looked like a concept for the street, which is something we rarely see happen. However, it seems as if the Audi TT very nearly became a Porsche model during the initial development phase, as its original designer – Freeman Thomas, explained to CarBuzz at the TT’s recent going away party.

“I was asked to do a Porsche version and an Audi version, and [the Porsche designers] in Weissach were also asked to do a Porsche version and an Audi version,” Thomas said. “And because I came from Porsche, I knew their design language and said to J Mays (who was Audi’s design director at the time), ‘this is what they are going to do, and this is what we are going to do.’ We kept to this Bauhaus absolute design and theirs was very styled.”

The team later had a somewhat secretive meeting to go over these designs and lull over the two different scale models they had created and determine the future of each. Porsche designers reportedly weren’t thrilled at the concept of Audi having a more powerful, all-wheel-drive model, which obviously didn’t settle too well with the Audi team. “We told them everything was off, but we are going to [the Frankfurt Auto Show] and beginning the full-size [model],” Thomas said. “Porsche had no idea we were doing this. We developed the coupe first. That was at Frankfurt 1995; it surprised everybody.”

The rest, as they say, is history – Thomas and his team created the Audi TTS Concept alongside the production version, took it to the 1995 Frankfurt Auto Show without Porsche’s knowledge, and it became an instant hit. Consumers loved the fact that the production Audi TT looked just like the concept, which has been heralded as one of the most beautiful automotive designs in history – even by the loftiest of standards.

“We went to Italdesign and I got to know Giugiaro [one of the legendary automotive designers of all time] very well,” Thomas said. “I remember presenting the [TT] to him and asking him ‘What do you think?’ He said ‘I wouldn’t change a line.’”

Photos: Audi

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Audi TT Gets Special Sendoff at Cars and Coffee Event at Company’s U.S. HQ

As it nears the end of the line, the Audi TT will get a proper goodbye from its maker, and everyone is invited to attend.

As most are well aware by now, Audi in the midst of transitioning its entire passenger vehicle lineup to EVs, a decision that has some unfortunate side effects aside from the fact that we’ll soon no longer be able to purchase vehicles from that brand with glorious-sounding ICE powerplants. It also means that some beloved models – like the Audi TT – are going away, in this case, following the conclusion of the 2023 model year. However, the Audi TT is getting a proper send-off at least, in the form of a cars and coffee event at the company’s U.S. headquarters.

Audi has announced that it will be hosting this special gathering at its headquarters in Herndon, Virginia, this coming Saturday, April 29 from 9am to 12pm. However, this isn’t just some private corporate event – in fact, everyone is invited to attend and pay homage to the TT, and bring their own Audi, if they own one. The idea here is simple – to celebrate the TT’s quarter-century of existence in the most enthusiast-friendly way possible, and what better way to to that than with an early morning parking lot gathering over some java?

Of course, it won’t just be fan-owned rides on display this weekend, as Audi is also promising to pull out some seriously cool machinery of its own for attendees to scope out as well. That lineup includes all three generations of the TT, along with a peek at the future in the form of the entire e-tron lineup – a little bit of past and present, if you will. Those in attendance will also be treated to coffee and refreshments, courtesy of the brand itself.

If nothing else, the Audi TT had an impressive run for a two-door sports car following its debut at the 1995 Frankfurt Motor Show and subsequent launch in 1998. Many other sport coupes have come and gone in the years since then, but the TT endured, giving us a stylish, solid-performing option with concept car looks, a handful of special edition variants, and of course, the high-performance TT RS. We’re obviously sad to see it go, but also pleased that Audi is taking the time to pay tribute to the beloved TT, which certainly deserves such treatment.

Photos: Audi

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1,200 HP Audi TT RS Takes on Wicked RX-7 in Intriguing Drag Race

This heavily modified Audi TT RS proves to be a close match for the equally wicked Mazda, making for some exciting action.

Outside of our world, the Audi TT RS is somewhat of an unknown, a special performance machine that few are aware of, which is obviously a shame. We’ve always felt like the high-performance version of the already-cool TT is an amazing all-rounder, one that delivers a muscle car experience in a comfortable, luxurious, and handsome package. However, if you throw a couple turbos at it, the Audi TT RS can be taken to the next level, as we can see in this new video from Hoonigan’s This vs, That series.

The Audi TT RS in this video has been modified in a number of ways, giving its 2.5-liter inline-five cylinder powerplant a rather hefty output of 1,200 horsepower. Built by Iroz Motorsport, the little Audi features the company’s IMS 1000 kit, a huge air intake, billet manifold, nitrous, and some massive 2600cc injectors. A pair of carbon fiber seats help shed some pounds, along with a rear seat delete, but the stock dual-clutch transmission handles all that extra power with no modifications, while the suspension gets KW lowering springs.

In the other lane on this particular day is an equally wicked Mazda RX-7 powered by a billet four rotor rotary powerplant with a 94mm Garrett turbo, sending its 1,000 horsepower to all four wheels (thanks to an AWD conversion) via a sequential six-speed transmission. The addition of that extra gear does give the RX-7 a bit of a weight penalty, however, as it tips the scales at 3,500 pounds versus the TT RS at just 3,000 pounds.

So how does all of this translate to straight line performance? In the first race from a dig, the Mazda uses its traction advantage to get a jump on the Audi, which hangs right with it until the very end, though it ultimately loses out by a small margin. The rotary-powered beast isn’t quite as lucky in round two, however, as the Mazda struggles to find traction and the TT RS takes an easy win, setting up the third and final showdown to determine a winner.

This time around, it’s no contest, as the Audi TT RS rockets out to an early lead and holds it to the finish line, winning by the largest margin of the day. But these Hoonigan-hosted races are rarely this close, nor do they require a tie-breaker, so we can’t help but be impressed by how well these two very different machines match up.

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Tags: 2023, audi, Drag Race, Mazda, News, racing, RS, RX-7, TT, Twin Turbo, video

A Five-Cylinder, RWD, Manual Audi R8 Almost Happened

A Five-Cylinder, RWD, Manual Audi R8 Almost Happened activesphere concept.

But that doesn’t mean it’s not fun to consider some alternate history. One example? Well, according to a new piece by our friends over at Motor1, the folks at the Four Rings were apparently close to pulling the trigger on a five-cylinder, exclusively rear-wheel drive version of the firebreathing R8 supercar. To be clear, the revelation comes courtesy of esteemed journalist Steve Sutcliffe, who learned about the project from Audi insider Marcos Marques, currently serving as Porsche’s Project Manager eFuels. Here’s the meat of what Marques said about the entry-level R8 project:

It was a shame because the five-cylinder turbo engine was a good strong engine, it sounded different, and I think it worked well in the R8. The car was lighter and more agile, too, but maybe some people at Audi Sport didn’t think it felt like a real R8, so quite late on they decided the car wouldn’t happen.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’ve driven the R8 with the mighty V10, and while I’ve never been shot out of a cannon, using launch control in that beast made me realize what it’s like. Few things truly compare to driving a 600-horsepower supercar. From an enthusiast perspective, however, I love the idea of a lighter, less-powerful R8 with more approachable limits.

The engine in question would have been plucked from the RS3, but tuned to somewhere north of 400 horsepower and 400 lb-ft of twist. Of course, there’s also the fact that it would have been available with a manual transmission. While Marques didn’t elaborate on whether it would get a gated shift available on the early R8s, as long as we’re dreaming, there’s no harm in thinking it would have.

That said, I think it’s worth mentioning that it’s perfectly plausible the Audi brass didn’t feel an I5 R8 would have been “R8 enough.” It’s also worth mentioning that a mid-engine coupe with that kind of poke and a stick could have started eating the Porsche Cayman’s lunch, which might also have led to its demise.

The question now, of course, is what exactly does Audi’s “go big or go home” approach to sports coupes mean for future product. As the company moves toward electric vehicles, are we going to see anything which will fill the hole left by the Audi TT? And given the general disinterest in coupes at the moment, how long will it be before the axe falls on the two-door S5?

Personally, I don’t think it’s too hard to see a future where Audi leaves entry-level sports cars territory to corporate cousins Porsche, and leans into the off-road side with vehicles like the activesphere. Or maybe I’m in a good mood, and being optimistic that Ingolstadt and Stuttgart can play nice? Regardless, hit me up and let me know what you think!

Image Source: Audi

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