2011 Audi TT Overview Change Vehicle

This 2011 Audi TT overview explains changes for the model year, provides a summary of the 2011 TT, and includes Audi TT safety, reliability, and fuel economy information.

Audi continues to hone its sporty TT and TTS models for 2011, adding a revised base engine with more horsepower, making minor modifications to the front styling, and adding more standard equipment to both models. Also, the Nappa leather is now thermally resistant, making it as much as 68 degrees cooler when the car is sitting in the sun. New colors for 2011 include Oolong Gray, Dakota Gray, Scuba Blue, Volcano Red, and Misano Red Pearl Effect.

The 2011 Audi TT lineup is comprised of two models, coupe and convertible body styles, and two trim levels. The Audi TT is equipped with the less powerful version of the turbocharged four-cylinder engine, while the Audi TTS is the performance-oriented model. Each is outfitted with standard Premium Plus trim, and an optional Prestige Package is available along with several individual options.

The 2011 Audi TT comes standard with Premium Plus trim, which includes a long list of items. Ten-way power adjustable sport seats wrapped in leather and Alcantara face a dashboard trimmed in genuine aluminum in a cabin equipped with automatic climate control. Bluetooth is standard, along with an Audi Concert stereo with a CD/MP3 player, satellite radio, and an auxiliary audio input jack. The tilt and telescopic flat-bottomed multi-function steering wheel features controls for the stereo, and the TT includes an information center with trip computer, a HomeLink universal remote, an auto-dimming rearview mirror with a compass, rain-sensing wipers, and heated windshield washer nozzles. Outside, power heated side mirrors, LED running lights, Xenon Plus headlights, fog lights and 18-inch alloy wheels with performance tires are standard, while the interior gets power windows with one-touch operation, power door locks with remote keyless entry, and floor mats.

Prestige trim adds Nappa leather, rear parking sensors, heated front seats, navigation, LED interior lighting, and Bose AudioPilot premium sound. With either trim level the TT Coupe has folding rear seats, while the TT Convertible is equipped with a fabric power-folding top and a ski-sack pass-through from the trunk.

Options for the TT include navigation, Nappa leather, Baseball Optic leather, and heated front seats on Premium Plus models, while both Premium Plus and Prestige models can be equipped with Baseball Optic leather, a magnetic ride control suspension, an S-line Package, an Audi Music Interface system, and upgraded 18- or 19-inch wheels.

For more power and performance, the 2011 Audi TTS is the right choice. In addition to TT standard equipment and a stronger engine, the TTS has 19-inch wheels wearing performance rubber, upgraded brakes, a magnetic ride control suspension that automatically adjusts damping rates in Normal and Sport modes, and a new Sport button that modifies the steering, suspension, and exhaust note as the driver desires. A lap timer is also new for 2011, and Nappa leather also comes standard this year. Other features include upgraded interior materials and revised exterior styling details. Like the TT, the TTS is offered in Prestige trim which includes rear parking sensors, heated front seats, navigation, and Bose AudioPilot premium sound.

Individual options for the TTS include heated front seats and a navigation system with an iPod adaptor or a CD changer on Premium Plus models, while both versions can be outfitted with Baseball Optic leather.

Both the TT and TTS employ a 2.0-liter, turbocharged, direct-injected four-cylinder engine, but there are two different states of tune. For 2011, the TT model makes 211 horsepower at 5,100 rpm and 207 pound-feet of torque between 1,600 rpm to 4,200 rpm. Quattro all-wheel drive is standard, along with Audi’s S-tronic automated manual transmission, which works just like an automatic because there’s no clutch pedal and no requirement to manually change the gears. Fuel economy is improved for 2011 thanks to engine revisions, and the TT Coupe and TT Convertible are each rated to get 22 mpg city/31 mpg highway.

The 2011 Audi TTS generates 265 hp at 6,000 rpm and 258 lb-ft of torque between 2,500 and 5,000 rpm. Quattro delivers power to all four wheels through the S-tronic transmission, and fuel economy estimates mirror the TT at 22 mpg in the city and 31 mpg on the highway. Audi claims the TTS will accelerate to 60 mph in 4.9 seconds and achieve a top speed of 155 mph.

To protect occupants and assist the driver in keeping the TT and TTS rubber-side-down, every model comes equipped with dual front, dual side, and dual knee airbags, antilock brakes with electronic brake-force distribution and brake assist, and a stability and traction control system. Rear park assist, rain-sensing wipers and Xenon headlights are standard or available, depending on the model and trim level.

The National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) have not performed crash tests on the Audi TT, which is expected as this is a low-volume, niche-oriented vehicle.

Consumer Reports estimates that the TT’s and TTS’s long-term reliability performance will be below average, while J.D. Power and Associates believes that these models are likely to return average levels of dependability over time.

Rain was the forecast for the week we drove an Oolong Gray 2011 Audi TTS Coupe, which was perfect for testing the car’s Quattro all-wheel-drive system and foul-weather capabilities. And, as it turns out, the TTS proved just as capable and sure-footed in the wet as it did in the dry.

Slipping in behind the flat-bottomed steering wheel, it is clear that Audi pays close attention to the details. Our TTS, in Prestige trim, featured the black and red two-tone Nappa leather, and it was both stylish and sumptuous. Everything we saw and touched exuded quality, from the aluminum vent dials to the cloth-wrapped windshield pillars. While not quite as artful as the original TT – remember that aluminum TT-embossed stereo cover? – the current car’s cabin is definitely distinctive.

Thanks to stormy weather, our test TTS fed on cool and dense air, making the turbocharged engine feel even more energetic. Except for a hint of turbo lag right off the line, the 2.0-liter’s thick torque curve means the TTS is responsive and quick just about everywhere in the rev range. We adored the S-tronic automated manual, how the exhaust brapped with every upshift, and how the Sport button made a significant difference in suspension tuning and steering effort levels. Plus, we averaged more than 20 mpg despite plenty of hard and fast driving.

What makes the TTS particularly entertaining, in addition to its torque-everywhere engine, is the standard Quattro all-wheel-drive system. In the wet, Quattro adds more grip where other cars have less. And in the dry, the TTS rockets away from corner apexes and flies down straights exhibiting superb traction and grip. We’re sold.

We’re also sold on the new Sport button, which stiffens the steering and suspension for performance driving. We don’t recommend using this around town, though, unless you want to enlarge your biceps and have your fillings jarred right out of your teeth.

If you’re not using the TTS for carve local canyons, it serves well as a practical daily driver. In addition to Quattro and quite comfortable 10-way power adjustable front sport seats, the TTS offers nearly 25 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats folded down. Got kids? They can ride along for short distances thanks to those two small rear seats.

Audi continues to refine the stylish, even practical, TT and TTS models. Both cars are fun to drive thanks to responsive and fuel-efficient turbocharged four-cylinder engines that make plenty of torque over a broad rev band, and the standard S-tronic transmission offers the operation of a manual transmission for people who want it, and the operation of an automatic transmission for people who don’t. Quattro all-wheel drive makes the TT and TTS perfect for areas that experience terrible weather on a regular basis, and the convertible model is great for sunny and warm climates. The coupe even has a couple of small rear seats that can be folded to create almost 25 cubic feet of cargo space. Though the uncommon TT and TTS are now four years old, they still look, feel and drive terrific.

By Christian Wardlaw