fka smurfette

A few notes from the Audi Driving Experience. We got to drive a Q7, A3, A8L, and A6 in the exercises, and a new TT on the north track.

The new TT is nice, but very floaty.
Sporty is not the first adjective that comes to mind. The car felt numb, even compared to the avant, probably b/c of the feather light steering. When did Audi do this?? I thought the avant was light compared to my old S4, but every car I got into today, the steering was featherweight.

The A8L handles and brakes really well! A close 2nd to the A3 in handling.

Audi put 2 people in each TT for the lead-follow lapping. I drove first. It was disconcerting to follow a driver who clearly had no idea what he was doing, but we were going pretty slow. Still, it was fast enough to get a feel for the car.

I then made the mistake of getting into the passenger seat. I think the boy played too much GT3 or something. We came within inches of putting 2 wheels off on the exit of 6: he missed the apex by a mile and was way optimistic on the gas. That was not a good moment. He was the worst driver I have ever gotten into a car with on a track.

I'm surprised that Audi is putting total n00bs into a relatively uncontrolled lead-follow session like that. I predict someone is going to ball up a car at some point on their tour.

The R8 looked and sounded sooo sweet. I dunno if I'd spend $600 to take it for some hot laps, but it's tempting. Hats off to Audi for giving people the opportunity.

MARKNMTT

the TT right behind the lead car. So we were able to push him along and got good speed up (flat out for the TT trying to keep up with an RS4)...but realllllllyyyyy lost the other two cars in the group to where we had to nearly stop for them to catch up. Surprised myself they don't pair individuals with an instructor as the others had never been on a track and were very nervous.

You observation on the steering is dead on...all the newer cars are as you describe. You said the TT fealt floaty which it is but i will say it felt better than my last generation TT. The transmission (this one handed driver here had to drive the DSG automatic) did a great job of holding and getting into the right gear for the situation I thought...better than the guessing my RS6 does.

Wish I could have seen the R8 on the track more but i can wait till '09 when i will hopefully be in one myself.

fka smurfette

I was kicking myself for not running to that first car... and for not trying the lotus line through 1. :-p

John J Szobocsan

I agree that the TT MkII has a significantly different feel than the older TT. I too have found the steering weighting ill at ease for a sports car; however, I recently learned that Audi's intended demographics for the new TT is male with a median age of roughly 50. The first TT's intended market was male with a median age of 40. This car is definitely being targeted to an older, more mature audience. Also there is a push to target the female market, no offense intended. These demographic targets my be the reason why the car seems more Lexus than what I would have expected from Audi; luxury with a dash of sportiness.

I should also point out that most of the cars, if not all, were equipped with the Magnetic Ride system and it made a noticeable difference at slower speeds. I would imagine, that out on the North Track, the feel and responsiveness of the system would be magnified.

The lead-follow format is common with most makers' driving events. Porsche has a similar program at the Barber Motorsports facility in Alabama. I attended the Porsche program at Road Atlanta; however, everyone is given their own car. The really high speed circuit required an instructor in the car.

I did attend the debut of the Boxster in 1996. That event was a shared drive for over 50 miles in the mountains outside of Scottsdale, Arizona. My co-driver recently had his license reinstated and enjoyed passing on blind corners on public roads. Oh fun! One poor individual rode with a Porsche engineer and had video of the car exceeding 160 mph on the public road leading from Bartlett lake.

This is why Audi charged $600 to drive the RS4 and R8. It eliminates most of the drivers that are out for a cheap thrill. Most interested in paying the fee appreciate the cars, and more importantly, the art of driving. We ran two sessions in the R8. The first time I was third car and the second driver avoided using the brakes entering a couple of corners, such as number one. His car stepped out a couple of times and the ESP kicked in. Later we switched positions and I had a much more enjoyable time.

PlainRuss

That rocks and makes a huge difference.

redrum3

a "lexus", then they should make a new line like that, and not screw up the good cars!
(well, I don't actually "own" an Audi, putI do appreciate them.)

d

skabaru

you, like every 54 year old, has a giant skull and crossbones on their hood.

larryV

sucks that allocations for these cars are so low... I wanted to get one by next summer but it's looking more like next winter. grrrrr. At least by then, we'll have carbon options in terms of sideblades and interior trim.

Dvlad

LOL!

gription

So that's what I have to look forward to...