- What We Know
- Following about a year after the release of the upgraded 2008 Audi TT-S, the 2009 Audi TT-RS will be the top of the line model in the lineup. Currently undergoing development at Audi's Ingolstadt headquarters in Southern Germany, the TT-RS will be Audi's answer to rival go-fast coupes such as the BMW Z4 M coupe and Porsche Cayman S. Rather than the 3.6-liter V6 engine as widely rumored, Inside Line can confirm the range-topping TT is set to become the first Audi model to receive a new turbocharged version of parent company Volkswagen's long running 2.5-liter five-cylinder as found in North American versions of the Jetta. Updated to accept the same cylinder head configuration as the 5.2-liter V10 used in the S8 along with the latest direct-injection technology from German specialist Bosch, the new Audi engine is said to deliver in the region of 365 hp. That's some 22 hp more than the Z4 M Coupe. As with the TT-S, the TT-RS will place its power to the ground via either a standard six-speed manual or an optional seven-speed version of Audi's S-Tronic double-clutch gearbox, with a Haldex-style four-wheel-drive system, which uses a multi-plate clutch instead of Audi's more traditional Torsen-based arrangement, apportioning drive to all four wheels.
- What Edmunds.com says
- This could be the TT that could finally shakes its image as nothing more than a pretty face.
