Joe

I asked them to check out:

--the engine (surging turbo, lousy fuel economy (17mpg on the last tank), poor/inconsistent acceleration)
--the dead cruise control
--the tempermental seat heater switch
--the whining CD player

I also mentioned the car's intermittent steering pull (which at times seems like more than what could be attributed to low profile tires), though I didn't actually ask them to look into it. I have a couple nits to pick with the steering (one being that, though the wheel rim, you have more "engine feel" than "road feel"), but my main concern right now is the engine. (I don't care about quirky steering if I'm getting the fuel economy of an SUV and can't pass Saturns at 35mph).

So hopefully they will call me later with some type of information.

Had a nice weekend with the car, though. I took a friend and his little sister Xmas shopping (thank God I didn't need to merge onto a highway with three passengers and a full trunk), which drew numerous stares.

I also had three people approach me about the car while gassing up yesterday. (One of them drove into the station just to see the TT at close range).

On another note, Cliff sent me a scan of the C/D review of the TTQ. A street start 5-60 of 8.6 seconds? That concerned me. I was also intrigued by their clocking a 6.9 second 0-60 with a FWD TT, but then saying that the TTQ is only "0.2" seconds slower than the FWD with its 7.6 second 0-60 in this test. Did they forget what their FWD tester actually did? Do you guys suppose this test's numbers are representative of an average TTQ?

Janet

Has anybody else noticed how VERY difficult it can be to merge onto a road/highway from the "left" (i.e., where the traffic you're joining is on the passenger side of the car)? Merging from the right side of the roadway (i.e., where the traffic is on your side of the car, as the driver) is no problem at all. But even though I've adjusted the passenger seat & headrest so that I have a slightly better view from the little triangular-shaped rear window, I *still* feel awfully "blind" when merging from that direction...and I have to be VERY careful not to pull up so far before merging that my visibility is completely blocked. It's really the only fault that I have found with the TT's design.

Janet
'00 180Q

dmf

Yes, there are some scary moments when I hit that blind spot while merging from the left.

dmf

and the mileage has been awful.

Andy F

Adjusting the passenger side mirror outward can mitgate this

Joe

Usually I find a bit of neck craning sufficient to show me what's going on in that lane. I also have resorted to adjusting the mirrors.

PaTT

Might have to do with my height (6 feet), but by adjusting the passenger side mirror, lowering the passenger seat all the way down and the passenger seat headrest all the way down, I don't have any problem with the passenger side blind spot. Anything I can't see in the mirror is easily visible with a quick head turn to the rear window.

Overall, I think visibility is better than I expected, given the roof line of the TT. I should point out, though that I've been driving an SUV for the last six years, so I'm pretty used to being careful with blind spots.

Jenner

The manual suggests no warm up time for Audi engine's because they emissions are higher because they are purposely trying to warm up the engine faster with increased fuel flow. When I start my TT COLD it idles at 1200, warm start it idles at 750.

-Jenner
'00 180QX TT Garrett, H&R Sport Springs

Joe

They have fixed the cruise control, and the technician was able to duplicate the stereo whine. he was looking into what they could do about it.

Re: the engine. It feels "normal" to them in road tests. Everything they checked was okay, and the computer showed no stored trouble codes. They offered to keep and drive the car overnight, but weren't sure that they'd find anything else.

My thoughts: If this kind of acceleration is normal, I can't believe that more people haven't complained about it on this forum. Especially given the number of people who have specifically said that they like their car's acceleration. I just can't relate when, with a 170lb passenger aboard, I can barely match the acceleration of a Saturn SL2 (let alone pass). I took a coworker (who drives a Subaru Impreza Outback) for a ride on Friday, and when I mentioned I'd had my foot on the floor something like eight times over the past five minutes, even she thought the acceleration was unsatisfactory.

Maybe I'll feel better after picking the car up later this afternoon, but right now, I'm feeling like either my TT has problems that elude the service people, or the car is an extremely superficial automobile. Eyes open, and its breathtaking; eyes closed (or focused on the road, where they belong), and it has no more charm than something made by Proctor-Silex. None of the tactile bits and pieces of this car seem to add up to what they promise, or what everyone else keeps flowing over. Maybe I'm in an extremely negative mood right now, so I'll stop here. But I'm looking forward to a CT TT meet, so that I can do an apples to apples comparison.

Jenner

Let me know if/when you'll be in the hartford area in the future. I want to meet you and see how your car performs.

-Jenner
'00 180QX TT Garrett, H&R Sport Springs