Joe

With all the posts, news clips, and magazine articles I've read about the TT and the supposed high speed stability issue (in particular on this forum, which lately seems to be descending from a truly engaging exchange of thoughts into a hysterical whirlpool of randomly emotional posts), I have to say a couple things about the car being built on a Golf platform.

First of all, I have been surprised by the frequency with which the automotive press has thrown around comments about the TT's platform. Six months ago, Car and Driver heralded the TT as if it were some sort of second coming, a great triumph proving that cars built on shared platforms in an age of "corporate consolidation" could, in fact, achieve unique personalities and be "dynamically brilliant."

Now, with the heat turned up a bit, the automotive press is suddenly less exhuberant. Car and Driver's brief write-up of the "Tamed TT" was much less enthusiastic, and some of the other bits I've read in other magazines were similarly different in tone from earlier articles. Amazing shift, considering that this is the very same car.

Secondly, if the TT is based on a Golf platform, WHO REALLY CARES? Many of history's most memorable cars have arisen from humble platforms, often engineered for mass-produced economy cars.

I'm sure there are TT owners out there who wince in disdain at the thought that their car could have anything whatsoever to do with a mere Golf. Anyone who so fears their TT and its loss of snob appeal (please spare me the flaming messages) doesn't belong in this car.

I am sure there are some of us who can feel the Golf beneath the skin (myself included), and who perhaps wish that Audi had done a better job distancing the car from its "lesser" cousins. I am sure some of us also would not have complained if some of the substantial development effort spent perfecting the car's superficialities (the headlight washers, for example) had instead been invested in chassis engineering, weight reduction, or other design enhancements that might have moved it closer to a real sports car. But the TT remains a pleasant car that many of us are trying to enjoy.

I just think it's time we calmed down a bit about the handling issues. Isn't there more to discuss about this car?

Brad Willis

You'll see that almost every comment has to do with handling concerns, the ugly spoiler, the proposed pop-up spoiler, ESP and so on. In other words, the same topics that we are discussing here, only more so. This topic is important to most TT owners worldwide, and I suspect that it will be one that we will all continue to discuss in great depth for quite sometime.

JMaTT

I can't wait until the spring & summer to start hearing stories about people autocrossing their TT's. Once we start getting TRACk reports more often, I think the handling issue will start sorting itself out. I'm sure some people will enter their TT's in SCCA events (is a TT class B?). If someone can successfully negotiate Mid-Ohio, or Watkins Glen, Or Indianapolis Raceway Park, then I think the crashes on public roads will begin to be shown for what they surely are: driver error/incompetence/in over their heads/playing race driver & neglecting real world obstructions (like that car coming at you in the other lane).

Bored.

Yawn.

Steve B

I find it amusing that some dislike the TT's shared platform with the Golf. My first impression when I test drove a 180Q was a flash back to zooming around in my wife's '83 GTi Rabbit (even the shift **** feels like the old 'golf ball' **** in the GTi). I look back at that car with great fondness (I once raced and beat a Camaro). Yes it was basic, but it had a lot of character (soul). The TT obviously takes it to the next level, but I don't think there's anything wrong with the original platform. I would also think most TT enthusiasts would be well aware of its platform. Bottom line - the Golf is nothing to be ashamed of.

Hey sleepy/bored guy!

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Bored.

Thanks. That really will keep me busy for hours.

Janet

I'm glad you said that, because I'd been thinking the very same thing...YEARS ago, I used to work flagging & communications with the SCCA regional group here in the Houston area. What led me to think about this was a recent comment from my TT salesman. He, along with a lot of other Audi specialists, etc., was given the opportunity to test drive TT's on various courses in the US...well before the "handling issues" became the monster they are now. Tony told me that he really put the TT through its paces and didn't sense any stability problems at all. I've been told by others that the Audi specialists they dealt with have made similar comments.

Now I'm not so naive to not believe that folks selling Audis might alightly underplay any problems. But since many of us bought our TT's from people who are true automobile enthusiasts, I think that their comments are worth noting.

Let us know, please, if you hear any specifics about TT's in upcoming SCCA events...and I'll do the same.

Janet
'00 180Q

Robert Fogt

I'm pretty sure I've posted this someplace before, but I'll go ahead and repeat myself since it seems kind of relavent to this thread.

Here in Minneapolis/St.Paul, most of our events are held at a site that much more closely resembles a track facility than a parking lot. It consists of a 1.25 mile perimiter road, criss-crossed by winding infield roads that include elevation changes and on- and off-camber turns. The track width is 25 feet, bordered by gravel shoulders. This is where, for example, various Minnesota agencies teach high performance driving to state troopers, ambulance drivers, etc. It's also available for weekend/evening rental to autocross, kart, and motorcycle clubs. (You can see a map by going to our club's website at:
http://www.visi.com/mac/
Then click on "recent updates", then on "6 Nov 98 Site maps".) There are some local competitors with nationals experience who don't care too much for this site because it isn't truly representative, and I do agree with them on that point. But as a strictly local guy who will probably never fulfill his road racing fantasy, I think it's a blast!

It is the nature of this facility that autocross speeds tend to be a bit higher than is typical of the sport. (And here's where I'll finally get to the point.) There was one event last summer which had a somewhat awkwardly designed finish. Following a rather long (for autocross) straight, there was a 45 degree left, the finish timer, and a VERY short shutdown area which required a full stop at the end. At the end of the straight, my TT was in third gear, moving at about 70+ mph. On my third run, I finally convinced myself that I could squeak through this turn without lifting, and could accelerate right up to the timer. What this meant, though, was unwinding from the full throttle 70 mph turn and simultaneously hitting the ABS before the suspension had even begun to settle. The car was as stable and manageable as any I've ever had out on the track. And
although this wasn't 125 mph downhill in the rain, it was certainly as violent and fast a maneuver as I'll likely ever encounter!

For those of you who have never autocrossed but are tempted to try, all I can say is DO IT!
I started about ten years ago in a D/Street Prepared Renault 5. (Don't laugh - You can't make a pig into a race car, but you CAN make it into a damn fast pig!) This was followed by five years in a DSP Golf GT, and my three events thus far in the TT are my first foray into stock class/street tire competition. I'm hooked. Autocrossers are a friendly lot, beginners are certainly welcome, nobody will laugh at your mistakes, so give it a try! And if you happen to be in the Twin Cities when there's an event going on, stop by. Enter, work, or just watch.....you're welcome!

Bob Fogt
Novice Program Co-Chair
Minnesota Autosports Club

Biggus

Re: Remarks on the TT's Golf underpinnings - the Golf is in fact weak and suckly, the facts