Sampling the 262 hp 2.0T Bound for the Upcoming TTS
Roughly a year ago, Audi launched the current generation S3 in Europe. The new Audi hot hatch replaced the original version – a car that had made a name for itself sharing the first-gen TT’s 225-hp 1.8T drivetrain. When the second S3 hit market, it led the way with a more potent 262-hp 2.0T – a worthy successor unique to the Audi lineup… at least until now. Two weeks ago in Detroit, Audi pulled a checkered flag patterned car cover from first-ever production Audi TTS. Due to go on sale later this year in both Europe and then the States, the TTS shares the S3’s upgraded 2.0T mill. That in mind, a re-examination of Audi’s hottest hatch seems timely.

Picking up our S3 at the Munich airport, a two-day jaunt to Audi’s home in Ingolstadt offered the perfect opportunity to experience this Euro-only hatch. Painted the virtually glowing hue of Ibis White, our S3 tester was fitted with optional RS4-style wheels and the same high-back shell design sport seats that are also sold in the RS 4.

Sliding into the car, much from the US-sold A3 Sportback is instantly familiar. The dashboard, save a few trim pieces here or there, is virtually unchanged. Visible differences are largely comprised of a door panel design unique to the A3, a flat-bottomed steering wheel design shared with the R8 and the aforementioned Recaros. While many American enthusiasts lament that these shell seats have never been offered in a stateside Audi, the reality is that only those with the narrowest forms will be truly comfortable in them. As we’d later find out during our trip to Ingolstadt, the bolsters grip just fine hard into a turn, but our Big Mac-fed body structure left us constantly pinched.

Firing up the S3, there’s a hint of a more aggressive exhaust tone, thoug it’s no large difference heard as compared to other 2.0T models we’ve tested. Pulling away from the Audi Forum at the Munich, we rolled slowly to the airport exit then hit the first on ramp at the exit with gusto just to see what the S3 had to offer.

As with any of the Haldex-quattro cars, there’s no suggestion of torque steer and traction is there in spades. More surprisingly, torque comes on quickly and much more naturally than expected. Audi claims a 0-60 time of 5.7 seconds and though we had no testing equipment with us for our trip to Ingolstadt, the S3 felt every bit that fast and more.

Anyone who’s logged time in a non-modified first-generation 225 hp TT 1.8T can attest to the car’s lack of low-end grunt. Partly from lack displacement, lack of boost and due to the plethora of piping that connected the car’s dual intercoolers, the spiritual predecessor to this motor, the one that saw time in the first-gen S3, felt like the turbos of old - happy to provide power so long as the driver kept the revs up. That’s not so with the new S3.

Mash the throttle and the 2.0-liters of displacement, bigger turbo and all-alloy intercooler combine with FSI direct injection to provide a brawny 258 lb-ft of torque. In this case, it is definitely a replacement for displacement. Yes, it’s still a turbocharged four-banger, but the throttle/shove-you-in-your-seat immediacy is much more forceful – like a tuned 1.8T though more linear.

Unlike an aftermarket ECU upgrade approach, the S3 also benefits from a thorough beefing-up to pass Audi’s own endurance testing. Components like conrods, pistons and bearings are all changed for more robust replacements. Even the cylinder head has been redesigned for better resistance to heat.

There’s a story we can’t help but thinking about as the S3 hunkers down around an arching ramp toward the Autobahn. Thrown around between journalists working the Audi beat, it is said that there was… and maybe still is… a standing record amongst Audi executives. The story goes that none other than Dr. Ferdinand Piech once held the fastest admitted or boasted land speed time from the Munich airport to Audi’s HQ in Ingolstadt – logged back then on a 200 sedan fitted with one of Audi Sport’s Group B motors. Supposedly no one bested it, or no exec loving their post at Audi had the marbles to suggest otherwise.

We’re familiar with that particular stretch of Autobahn and have torn northward to Audi’s factory town with perhaps less tenacity than the good Doctor. Normally, the S3 would offer a fantastic opportunity to beat our own record, if not Piech’s. Unfortunately, traffic was working against us as we left the airport region, so we ditched off on some back roads to get a feel for the car’s dynamics.

When the TTS arrives in the USA, it’ll swap a traditional single-rate shock/spring combo like that of the S3 for Audi’s Magnetic Ride as standard. Combined with a lighter chassis made of aluminum, it should sport superior handling in almost every way as compared to the S3, but that doesn’t mean the littlest S-car is a slouch.

The S3 benefits from stiffer springs over the standard A3, with more aggressive dampening. The car also sits about an inch lower than a standard A-version. Even better, the S gets some additional aluminum components to further reduce unsprung weight.

The electronically damped steering has also been recalibrated for an even more sporting feel than the A3. Given the front-wheel drive nature of the A3’s chassis, we’re not surprised feel is still not as communicative as a rear-wheel-drive car, but the variable weighting tendencies are impressive.

The 6-speed manual of our test car is precise and throws are enjoyably short without being obnoxiously so for on-road life. Rev-matching comes easily and there’s no searching for a cog hard into a roundabout or blind and decreasing radius bend.

Pitching hard into some writhing B roads that connect several small German hamlets outside of Munich, the S3 feels flat and taught. This hot hatch is neutral and predictable, though not nearly as willing to serve you a heaping plate of lift-off oversteer as Magnetic Ride-equipped TTs we’ve tested. Also, it’s all-wheel drive poise leaves it less engaging as its oh-so-lovable platform cousin – the VW GTI.

About a third of the way northward, we switch on the Navigation and search for the Autobahn. Back roads are fun, but the remaining stretch of Autobahn on up to Ingolstadt is something we can’t pass up. Better yet… we find clear sailing.

Audi speed governs the S3 to 155 mph, and we found ourselves nosing up to that in a very rapid convoy with an A8L sporting tell-tale IN number plates signifying it’s likely an executive car from Audi’s hometown.

The S3 is quite comfortable at these nosebleed speeds. Torque is still there to be had when in triple digits, and the car willingly changed pace down and then up again, matching the W12 sedan with which we were keeping pace. There’s no light or floating feeling, and you know more than a few S3 and TTS mules were likely tested on this same stretch of German highway.

We found ourselves falling in love with the car, and in particular the engine. Unfortunately, the S3 as it is today is built only as a three-door model. With solely the five-door A3 federalized for sale in the USA, Audi of America product planners tell us there’s no potential for North America to even consider selling the S3 unless Audi AG builds a five-door variant first. Such a configuration could happen when the A3 gets refreshed in 2010, though nothing has been confirmed as of yet beyond the TTS.

Ah yes, the TTS. It is the reason we raise the S3 subject again more than a year after its launch. That motor we’ve fallen in love with is coming, and we’ve seen it first hand on the Audi stand just two weeks ago in Detroit. We’re told the car, while thoroughly incredible, may let us down in one fashion. The TTS will be an S-Tronic-only affair… for now. As much as we love Audi’s dual-clutch direct shift gearbox, we relish rowing our own gears and matching our own revs more. In that regard, we remember fondly the days when drivetrain simplification for Audi of America product planners meant manual only for TT buyers. We thought of it as a way to sift out the truest enthusiasts. Poseurs were out of luck.

Okay, we’ll grouse over transmissions, but otherwise we fully expect the TTS to be one fantastic package. S-Tronic, after all, is still one of the best transmissions going… as is the more powerful 2.0T one of the best motors. Together, they’ll deliver fuel economy in the high 20s. Combine these with the TT’s lighter chassis and more nimble Magnetic Ride and the performance car field will find itself on notice. The TTS is coming, and it’ll be here next fall

 

The torque is surprising…thanks for the info.

 

One of the best looking hot hatches out there.

 

i agree, good torgue for a 'hot-hatch'
torque band looks like 2600-4900, rather narrow, but must be fun when it comes on-.
Thanks for the pics and info....Audi has a great product line-up.