KEY POINTS:
The bright orange paint seemed ideal when boulevard cruising, or blitzing a demanding road. It was less so as I pulled up at the supermarket in front of a group of harassed-looking families who'd clearly had better days.
It's a bit shouty at the best of times, this
car. It doesn't need the colour ...
Audi's TT has always been something of a design icon, but the original drew some handling criticism. This one's better. It's lighter, with a wider track and revamped suspension tuned for keen driving. It's still built of aluminium and steel, the latter carefully positioned with optimal weight distribution in mind.
The TTS we're driving tops the TT range at 2.0 litres, but doesn't have the largest engine. Turbocharging and tuning mean it has more power and torque than the 3.2, topping out at 200kW and 350Nm _ the latter available over a wide rev range.
Audi says it'll dispatch 0 to 100km/h in 5.4 seconds; certainly it feels eager, and sounds reasonably keen under hard acceleration. The auto's quicker to 100 but we had the self-shifter with its short-throw gear lever and instant connection from wrist to wheels.
This Audi is an enjoyable point-to-point car _ nicely balanced, powerful enough yet not so powerful there's no joy to be had in working to make the most of it.
Working it came easier once we discovered how effective the adaptive dampers are, here mated to stiffer springs and anti-roll bars. The magnetic babies alter resistance according to electrical currents passed through them.
The ECU's darned quick to read the road, I must say.
Select sport to firm her up, and she's delightfully nimble through the swervery _ though too firm for cruising. Select normal, and you lose the crisp handling I was growing to enjoy, but gain impressive compliance for a sporting car.
That dual personality is deliberate, and matched by the soundtrack. Despite the alarming colour, this is not a loud car. It sounds purposeful enough to turn heads under hard acceleration, but only then. The rest of the time, it's a pussycat, something you'll appreciate on any long drive.
You'll also appreciate this engine's ability to sip frugally if preferred. I averaged 11.6 litres/100km. Opt mostly for moderate revs, and my calculations suggest you'll be much closer to the 7.9l/100km claim.
Overall, I liked this car's impressive ability to manage everyday tasks.
The cabin's beautifully built and finished, the fascia angled to the driver and the flat-bottomed wheel a nice touch.
The front seats are comfy and spacious _ a 1.9m passenger found leg and head room adequate _ and the boot, though shallow, swallows an impressive amount of luggage.
The rear seats aren't good for much more than monkeys, but they do make a good shelf for smaller bags.
And if you don't like this car's paint-matched orange panels and contrast stitching, there are more conservative options.
The TTS doesn't have quite the sporting edge of its Porsche Cayman competitor _ there's a whisker less feedback near the ragged edge.
But for most, its everyday ability more than offsets the few times you'd like to take it further into the dark side.
