Audi TT Roadster

First displayed at the 1999 Geneva Motor Show, the Audi TT Roadster quattro is the only open-top two-seater in the world apart from the Lamborghini Diablo Roadster to transmit its power to the road via all four wheels.Like its fixed head counterpart, the Audi TT Roadster quattro is available in two permanently four-wheel-driven guises, both powered by turbocharged 1.8-litre, four-cylinder petrol engines. The 180bhp version, mated to a five-speed manual gearbox, is capable of sprinting from rest to 62mph in just under eight seconds and continuing to a 139mph top speed. The 225bhp engine, transmitting its power through a six-speed manual gearbox, reduces the acceleration time to just under seven seconds and increases the maximum speed to 147mph.These impressive performance figures are not achieved at the expense of body rigidity or occupant safety. Precisely calculated reinforcement using thicker metal in the sill areas and sturdy transitions at the joints between the A-pillar and the floor assembly give the TT Roadster quattro a degree of torsional rigidity that would have earned high praise for a saloon car body only a few years ago. Despite the body modifications kerb weight has been kept down to 1,310kg, illustrating the benefits of developing the CoupÚ and Roadster in parallel. Front and rear crumple zones, high-strength side impact door bars and large volume sill sections have helped the Audi TT Roadster quattro to meet future legal requirements for frontal (96/79/EU) and side impact (96/27/EU) collisions.Rollover protection was also of paramount importance to Audi engineers. They have created an occupant survival zone by adding two striking chromed rollover hoops which form an integral part of the body structure and by strengthening the A-pillars using a tube-in-tube system in high-strength steel./ppInside, the Audi TT Roadster quattro shares its safety specification with the TT CoupÚ quattro. Driver and front passenger airbags are fitted as standard, and are supplemented by side airbags integrated into the seat backs which are designed to protect both the head and thorax areas. Pyrotechnic seatbelt pretensioners also ensure optimum body protection.The CoupÚ's characterful and functional interior design is a feature of the Roadster, but includes some unique detailing of its own. The special leather upholstery with "Baseball Glove" stitching which featured in the Roadster design study is available as an optional extra to ensure even greater individuality.Refinement meets Audi's typically high standards, helped by an impressive drag coefficient and low airborne noise characteristics. The height of the windscreen, the shape of the soft-top, the position of the struts and even the weave and tension of the cloth have been designed so that the airflow remains in contact for as long as possible. This also prevents the top from billowing at speed. The roof's design ensures that it is easy to live with on a day-to-day basis. It features a large, heated glass rear window, can be raised and lowered using only one hand and folds out of sight beneath a neatly integrated cover.