"evo" article on the ur-q 20v vs the ttq (long)

[Dave Eaton <Dave.Eaton@clear.net.nz>]

if anyone is interested in the full text of this article, i have scanned 
it.

drop me a line.

dave
'95 rs2
'90 ur-q

key bits of the comparison are included below...


The quattro 20v:
Just as it took time to appreciate the Quattro's motorway charms, the first 
few switchbacks aren't as spine-tingling as we'd anticipated.  The biggest 
shock is the steering, which seems to require a quarter turn more than you 
expect to get the nose pointed at the apex.  The response isn't as darty or 
immediate as something like an Impreza Turbo.  We continue climbing the 
pass and, as our speed builds, so does confidence in the Quattro.  The 
steering might be slower than expected but the feel and feedback it 
provides is fabulous.  Its response is also perfectly linear, so that no 
matter how much lock you've applied, or how much speed you're carrying, 
small inputs have the same effect.
It's now that the five-cylinder engine comes alive, warbling and hissing as 
only it can...The power delivery is perfect for punching out of tight, 
second-gear corners and, with the added confidence of four-wheel drive, 
it's possible to have your foot flat down before the apex.  Driven thus, 
the Quattro bursts out of the corner like a Champagne cork.  Every ounce of 
power is applied to the road, the car's nose lifting and rear-end 
hunkering-down with the effort.
Early Quattros were criticised for their understeer but, with its highly 
effective Torsen differential, the nose-weighting effect of the long 
five-cylinder engine isn't so apparent in the 20v model.  Consequently it's 
beautifully fluid and adjustable, power flowing to where it's needed rather 
than in a fixed 50:50 balance front to rear.  Combined with simply awesome 
all-wheel-drive traction out of the corners, the Quattro dispatches the 
tangled knots of tarmac with staggering efficiency.  Even the comparatively 
puny 15in wheels and tyres don't seem to limit the amount of grip, although 
the brakes do start to suffer in extreme Alpine use.  Work the anchors hard 
with repeated downhill stops from 60 or 70mph and the discs start 
grumbling, the normally firm pedal eventually getting a bit soggy.  If 
progress has overtaken the Quattro, it's here.
...The ratios are long and rangy, but the lusty 20v motor pulls them 
perfectly.  With 2281b ft of torque from an incredible 1950rpm, its got 
more grunt than Bill Clinton in the Oval Office, lending the Quattro a 
relentless feel to its acceleration.  Rippling torque at the bottom end 
splices perfectly with a thumping turbo crescendo at the top, all 220bhp 
coming on stream at 5900rpm.  Such brawny, old-fashioned horsepower is more 
than welcome and opens up overtaking opportunities lost to more 
highly-strung four-cylinder 16-valve turbo motors.
The ttq:
...The driving sensations are strikingly different too.  Where the Quattro 
is a dynamic slow-burner, the TT is sharp and immediate.  It puts most of 
its cards on the table straight away, the quick, direct steering working 
with the pointy front-end to give the TT a sharp, aggressive feel... 
combining the keen turn-in of a front-driver with the traction and 
stability of all-wheel drive.
On the tight, sinuous hill roads, this sophisticated transmission makes the 
TT an interesting car to hustle along.  There s genuine feel in the 
steering, something Audis have lacked for more than a decade, and the 
suspension is supple and compliant, soaking up sharp ridges, mid-corner 
pot-holes and high-speed undulations with taut, well-judged damping.  The 
gearchange and brakes feel good too, the six-speed 'box shifting with 
subtle mechanical precision, the strong brakes biting with sharp but well 
modulated stopping power.  On the approach and initial turn into a corner, 
it reacts like a hot hatch, leaning on the front-end grip, reacting swiftly 
to the first half-turn of lock.  It's from this point onwards you feel the 
torque transferring to the rear wheels, robbing you of some steering weight 
and feedback, but allowing you to plant the throttle without fear of 
cremating the front tyres.  If there's a criticism to be made it's that the 
steering lacks the perfectly linear weight and response of the Quattro. 
 Initial feel on turn-in fades when you apply more lock, and you find 
yourself longing for the older car's nuggety response.
Through fast sweepers or tight uphill corners the TT is almost surgical in 
its attack, cutting through the turn with an economy of effort picking an 
accurate, drama-free line and powering up to the next challenging bend.  It 
will even let you play if you're in the mood, tightening its line with a 
small lift of the throttle, and even kicking loose with a quarter turn of 
opposite lock if you wish.  Adjustability, it seems, is back in the quattro 
equation.
The surprise comes in tight downhill corners, when the same spirited attack 
reveals the TT's only on-limit flaw.  When the road is falling away from 
you, rather than rising up ahead of you, the playful flick of opposite lock 
becomes a more serious half-turn or more of vital correction.  It feels 
like the TT switches from four-wheel drive to front-wheel drive as soon as 
you back off, exacerbating the weight transfer and increasing the amount 
and speed of correction.  It's not catastrophic but it does put a dent in 
your confidence on unknown roads.
The verdict:
In terms of sheer pace the TT is remarkably close to the Quattro.  Both are 
extremely quick when you stoke them up, but it's the Quattro that delivers 
more entertainment.  Key to this is the five-cylinder engine, which 
possesses such character the TT's highly efficient but painfully bland 
engine can't compete.
There's no doubting the TT is a fabulous car.  After a day behind the wheel 
it's clear Audi is back on track, creating a car that delivers the kind of 
polished, entertaining and exceptionally well-sorted driving experience 
enthusiasts have always expected of a car bearing the quattro badge.  Where 
the old car scores over the new is in its engineering integrity.  The 
Quattro was a bespoke car, designed without compromise.  The TT can't 
escape its underpinnings, but that's not to say Audi hasn't done a 
brilliant job of maximising its potential.  Where the Quattro was created 
by technical revolution, the TT is the result of clever product evolution. 
 It's still not quite as polished or satisfying as the Quattro, but the TT 
has earned the right the stand alongside its towering forebear Audi is out 
of the shadows at last.