Autoblog

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Audi TT 2.0 TDI quattro

After Audi unveiled the almighty R8 V12 TDI at the Detroit Auto Show, I asked the obvious question and they made it clear that they had no plans to build a production version. Now that the disappointment has subsided somewhat, Audi is offering up a consolation prize, although it's not known yet if the US market will get a crack at it. For the first time since the original TT debuted ten years ago, Audi will be offering a version with a diesel engine. A 170 hp, 258 lb-ft 2.0L TDI will be available in both the TT Coupe and Roadster. Putting the torque down through all four wheels by way of a six-speed manual gearbox, the coupe will run 0-62 mph in 7.5 sec, with the ragtop accomplishing the feat in 7.7sec. While by no means blistering speeds, the nature of diesel engine torque will mean that the TTs will feel quick everywhere. The real upside to all of this is the fuel economy of this claimed world's first diesel sports car. The lighter, more aerodynamic coupe will be capable of 44.3 mpg (US) while the convertible is just behind again at 42.7. Pretty impressive when gas prices as likely to go ever higher. The Audi press release is after the jump.


[Source: Audi]

Audi is beginning to rival DaimlerChrysler for the title of most eye-catching debuts in all of autodom. While DCX hired desperate housewife Eva Longoria to intro its Imperial Concept at the Detroit Auto Show and buried the new Jeep Wrangler Unlimited in a mound of dirt at the New York Auto Show, Audi hooked up with the German government to debut the TT alongside an oversized sculpture called The Automobile and now has introduced the new coupe in the U.K. with the help of burlesque beauty Dita Von Teese. The TT will go on sale in Britain in October with the 2.0T priced at priced at £24,625 ($45,423 US) and the 3.2 quattro at £29,285 ($54,109 US), Dita Von Teese not included.

[Source: Fourtitude]

Immediately after the webcast of the TT's unveiling in Berlin Thursday evening, Audi released a full press kit for the new Coupe. Full press release after the jump. Highlights include:

• over 5 inches longer and 3 inches wider than the last TT
• the body is a combination of steel in the rear and aluminum elsewhere to help balance the car's weight distribution
• powered spoiler deploys at about 75 mph
• 2 2 coupe is the only model for now, a roadster will follow later
• choice of two drivetrains: FWD with a 2-liter, 200 hp, direct-injection turbo four-cylinder or Quattro AWD with a 3.2-liter naturally-aspirated V6 making 250 hp
• standard 6-speed manual, optional S-tronic dual-clutch 6-speed
• best performance configuration: 3.2-liter Quattro with S-tronic transmission - 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) in 5.7 seconds (0.2 sec. quicker than the standard transmission V6)
  

[Source: Audi]

With much pomp and ceremony, Audi AG unveiled the new TT Coupe in Berlin, at the site of the famous Brandenburg Gate. In keeping with Germany's "Land of Ideas" national marketing campaign to the world ahead of the World Cup, Audi first opened the show with a 1938 Wanderer streamliner - an aluminum-bodied sports car presented as being far ahead of its time and emblematic of Germany's history of innovation. Finally, Dr. Martin Winterkorn, CEO of Audi AG, together with German football stars, unveiled a supersized TT sculpture, 10 meters long and weighing a svelte 10 tonnes. The sculpture is one of many that will symbolize milestones in German innovation in an outdoor sculpture display called "The Walk of Ideas." The TT Coupe was chosen to celebrate Germany as the birthplace of the automobile.

After unveiling the mega-Audi, two real-life TT Coupes drove into the display area through the Brandenburg Gate. Screencaps of the unveiling after the jump, and more pictures of the TT Coupe! Specs to follow!

[Source: Audi AG]