TT a real driver's car

I was wolf-whistled at the other day. Rotund as I am, ageing and grey as I have become. No longer a spring chicken, as she continually chirps, to deflate my weakening ego. Heck, a fellow darn well whistled at me!

Well, to be honest, it wasn’t really at me! Twas the car it was. And it was more of a whistle combined with a pheeeewwww!

The sleek Porsche-like Audi TT, conceived by enthusiasts for enthusiasts, isn’t just a knockout in its looks and build quality – it is a real driver’s car.

This two-by-two coupe – an open-topped version, the TT Roadster, is on the way – comes equipped with a quattro 4WD train as standard and is available in two versions, both powered by a 1.8 litre turbocharged engine. One pumps out 180bhp (my test vehicle) whilst the other, a more powerful version fitted with twin intercoolers, delivers an exhilarating 225bhp. One can only imagine how that behaves.

It’s a wonderful coupe. Just sitting in its all black trim cabin with its 50s retro aluminium fest is a thrill let alone the sheer joy of actually driving it. There’s aluminium on the radio flap and console, pedals and gearlever and circling the heater outlets and dials. The low driving position is delightfully sporty and the seat provides high lateral support.

However, first you have to get into the car. The TT coupe squats low and for a chunky lad like me sliding into the hot seat took a lot of neck bending and back arching. I could have done with someone pushing my head down like they do in those cop programmes when they load the villain into the police car.

Windows are not that big and with the high waist and sweep of the roofline denying adequate sideways vision, the cabin does have a claustrophobic feel. But you get used to it.

There’s bags of room up front but the sloping roofline does limit the two rear seats to toddlers.

Standard features include driver and passenger front and side airbags, climate control air conditioning, leather upholstery, remote central locking, Blaupunkt stereo CD player, 16-inch alloy wheels and antilock braking.

POWER: The engine is derived from the VW-Audi 1.8 litre turbo, but retuned to deliver 180bhp. That gives it a a 0 to 62mph in 7.5 second and a top speed of 140mph. I returned 30.5mpg.

Gearchanging is great fun. Short, swift, slick and precise with closely stacked ratios ensure rapid, sporty progress.

On the road it handles brilliantly. The steering is sharp and the finely tuned chassis ensures almost endless grip and stability on bends. Throw it in hard and it stubbornly refuses to budge off its course. I adored every mile-munching moment with it. One of the best of its type on the road.