The Car Connection Expert Review
Likes
- Driver-focused cabin
- Well appointed
- Agile and fun
- TT RS is track ready
Dislikes
- Best for one
- Few safety features
- Firm ride without magnetic dampers
- Soon to fade away
Buying tip
features & specs
The 2021 Audi TT is sleek and fun to drive, but without the top performance credentials of rivals.
What kind of car is the 2021 Audi TT? What does it compare to?
The Audi TT is an all-wheel-drive coupe and roadster with pedestrian hatchback roots cloaked in style and thrills. It competes with the Porsche 718, BMW Z4, Toyota Supra, Jaguar F-Type, and Mazda MX-5 Miata.
Is the 2021 Audi TT a good car?
The TT is fun in any form. Its looks border on iconic and its agility defies its nose-heavy layout. The line-topping TT RS offers track-ready fun, but the best buy is the mid-grade TTS. We rate the TT a 6.2 out of 10 overall. (Read more about how we rate cars.)
What's new for the 2021 Audi TT?
Audi adds additional standard equipment to the 2021 TT and ups the price a few thousand dollars. It now gets standard nappa leather upholstery, navigation, blind-spot monitors, and Bang & Olufsen audio, and the roadster has standard neck heaters. Base models now come with 18-inch wheels on all-season tires and the TTS gets 20s on summer tires.
The TT’s design is low and sleek and if you squint you can see the rounded VW Beetle lines in a sleeker package. It looks similar to its original design, which is a good thing. The TT is minimalistic but beautifully rendered inside.
Audi builds the TT around the driver, without much care for passengers. The digital instrument cluster also serves as the infotainment screen. The rest of the controls are canted toward the driver, though the front passenger does have a comfortable seat. The roadster lacks a rear seat and has minimal cargo space, while the coupe’s rear seat is best left to packages. Either way, the TT really only seats two.
Based on a front-wheel drive platform, the TT comes only with all-wheel drive and a choice of three turbocharged engines. The base 2.0-liter turbo-4 makes 228 hp and delivs 31 mpg on the highway. Step up to the TTS and its version of that engine spins up 288 hp. The 394-hp 2.5-liter turbo-5 in the TT RS is a high-strung powerplant that enables a 3.6-second 0-60 mph time. It’s part of a track-focused package that includes a stiffer suspension and bigger brakes. All TTs are fun to drive, with agility that matches their small footprint, precise steering, and a good ride with the available magnetic dampers. The nose-heavy design isn’t best for balance, but the car’s tossable size and a rear end that can be placed by skilled hands create their own kind of fun.
One area where the TT falls flat is safety. It doesn’t have crash-test ratings, doesn’t offer automatic emergency braking which we deem essential, and only offers blind-spot monitors and front and rear park assist.
How much does the 2021 Audi TT cost?
The base 2021 Audi TT coupe runs $50,845 while the base roadster costs $54,945. Both come standard with heated nappa leather sport seats up front, extended leather upholstery, a digital instrument cluster, and the other equipment mentioned above. The TT RS stretches the range past $70,000.
Where is the Audi TT made?
It’s built in Germany and Hungary.
2021 Audi TT Styling
The 2021 Audi TT retains an iconic look that hasn’t changed much since it debuted.
Is the Audi TT a good-looking car?
The 2021 Audi TT soldiers on with its smart sports car take on a humble hatchback platform. It comes off as a squashed VW Bug that manages to be sleek and attractive. We rate it an 8 for style, awarding a point for its exterior and two points for its simple, yet sumptuous cockpit.
The Audi TT was a refreshing take on the sports car when it debuted almost two decades ago. The current version doesn’t stray too far afield, but it has some R8 supercar in its upright grille and clamshell-style hood. It’s short, though, a product of its Volkswagen Golf platform. It still has the rounded lines of the original, which derive from the VW Beetle that shared the same platform. Larger wheels on the TTS and TT RS versions create a sportier look.
Inside, the driver-focused design features all the driving and infotainment information right in front of the driver. Beautifully finished and offered in attractive color options, the cabin is a delight for one and attractive for all.
2021 Audi TT Performance
Small and tossable, the 2021 Audi TT provides thrills behind the wheel.
The 2021 Audi TT performs better and better as you move up the lineup, but all models provide agile handling and brisk acceleration. We rate it a 7 out of 10 for these strengths, and the TTS and TT RS models would rate even higher.
Is the Audi TT AWD?
All TT models come standard with all-wheel drive.
How fast is the Audi TT?
The base 228-hp 2.0-liter turbo-4 launches the car from 0-60 mph in 5.2 seconds for the coupe and 5.5 seconds for the roadster. Its 7-speed dual-clutch transmission stays in the right gear and shifts quickly, with little exhaust note braps between gears.
Move up to the 288 hp version of the turbo-4 in the TTS and the 0-60 mph time falls to 4.4 seconds and the top speed jumps from 130 mph to 155 mph.
The quickest choice is the TT RS, with its 2.5-liter turbo-5 that ups the output to 394 hp and 354 lb-ft of torque, which rockets the car to 60 mph in just 3.6 seconds.
The TT is nose heavy, but it’s small size and light weight make it agile. Its quick steering provides good feedback about what the front tires are doing. The nose tucks in when cornering as long as the speeds aren’t too high. The rear end follows along well, and a good driver can provoke it to come around by lifting mid-corner then easily catch it again.
The TTS model’s magnetic dampers balance a smooth ride with even sharper moves. The TT RS has a stiff suspension that’s track ready but firm on the street.
2021 Audi TT Comfort & Quality
The 2021 Audi TT caters best to a driver and no one else.
The 2021 Audi TT caters to the driver’s needs almost exclusively. Its instrument cluster doubles as the infotainment screen, the roadster has no rear seat, and the coupe’s rear seat isn’t fit for riders. It is swaddled in high quality materials, though. We score it a 4 out of 10 here, adding a point for those materials, but removing points for space and compromised outward visibility.
The driver and front passenger get thickly bolstered sport seats that aren’t too tight for bigger drivers. They also have good head and leg room, but the coupe’s rear seat is better used as storage space to supplement the 12.0 cubic foot trunk than to carry passengers. The roadster lacks a rear seat and its trunk has only 7.5 cubic feet of space.
For 2021, every TT gets extended leather upholstery to go with the soft-touch and carbon-fiber materials on many surfaces and exemplary fit and finish.
2021 Audi TT Safety
The base 2021 Audi TT isn’t up to date for safety features.
How safe is the Audi TT?
The Audi TT comes with just a few notable safety features, and it lacks the all-important automatic emergency braking. As a low-volume sports car, the Audi TT hasn’t been crash tested, so we can’t give it a safety rating.
The only safety features worth mentioning for the TT are front and rear park assist and blind-spot monitors, all of which are standard. Audi offer no safety options.
2021 Audi TT Features
The 2021 Audi TT comes well equipped and offers three levels of performance.
The Audi TT offers a performance level for every sports car buyer, though the middle TTS model delivers the best bang for the buck. We rate it 7 for features based on its generous standard equipment and variety of build choices.
Audi builds the TT in base coupe and convertible, TTS coupe, and TT RS coupe trim levels.
The base coupe runs $50,845, while the base roadster costs $54,945. Both come standard with heated nappa leather S line sport seats up front, extended leather upholstery, a digital instrument cluster, navigation, Bang & Olufsen audio, and 18-inch alloy wheels and all-season tires.
Which Audi TT should I buy?
While the base model is fun, we recommend the step-up TTS, which only comes as a coupe for $60,545. In addition to the extra power, it has magnetic dampers and 19-inch wheels.
How much is a fully loaded 2021 Audi TT?
The top of the lineup is the TT RS coupe, which runs $72,545. It gets a sport suspension, a leather and Alcantara-wrapped flat-bottom steering wheel, black exterior trim, and forged alloy 20-inch wheels. We find the TT RS a tough sell versus the similarly priced Porsche 718 Cayman and Chevrolet Corvette.
2021 Audi TT Fuel Economy
The Audi TT doesn’t drink too much gas considering how fun it is.
Is the Audi TT good on gas?
The Audi TT combines the fun of a sports car with the fuel economy of a family car. We base our 5 rating on the base TT, which is EPA-rated at 23 mpg city, 31 highway, 26 combined for both the coupe and the roadster.
Move up to the 288-hp TTS and fuel economy drops to 23/29/25 mpg.
Even the 394-hp TT RS isn’t overly thirsty. It’s rated at 19/29/23 mpg.
No matter the model, buyers will pay more at the pump because Audi requires premium fuel.
