Highlights for 2004
Audi's sports car adds a V6 version to its 4-cyl lineup for 2004. TTs come as 4-seat hatchback coupes and 2-seat convertibles. Continuing from last year is a turbocharged 1.8-liter 4-cyl engine. It has 180 hp in Base TTs, which have front-wheel drive with traction control and a 6-speed automatic transmission with steering-wheel buttons for manual shifting. Uplevel 225-hp versions have Audi's quattro all-wheel drive and a 6-speed manual. Arriving midyear is a new 250-hp 3.2-liter V6 quattro model with Audi's new Direct Shift Gearbox, essentially a clutchless manual that can be set to shift like an automatic. All TTs include an antiskid system and front side airbags. A power top is standard on 225- and 250-hp convertibles, optional for the base version; all models include a heated glass rear window. Newly standard are xenon headlights.
News U.S. TT sales were just over 12,000 units in calendar 2000 and some 12,500 in 2001. But coupe orders dropped a whopping 30.6 percent in the first half of 2002, and though we don't have comparable cabriolet figures, it's doubtful that model made up the difference.
Like its corporate sister, the VW New Beetle, the TT is a "fashion" car designed as much for raising nameplate profile as raising profits. But fashions change all too quickly--just ask Chrysler about recent PT Cruiser sales. Then too, the TT has largely accomplished its original image-polishing mission. So does Audi really need it anymore? Intriguingly, industry moles have lately voiced doubts about a "next" TT. Even if there is one, they say, it's still two years away at least. Earlier, Audi was said to be prepping two new versions of the current car: a 265-hp turbo 4-cyl "TTS" and a 300-hp V6, both with quattro all-wheel drive, upgraded suspension, and special trim. But we've heard nothing lately about either proposal--nor, come to think of it, about a TT redesign. So we'll just have to haul out an old chestnut and say, stay tuned
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