Mk1 Audi TT

ourmaninthenorth

I know some of you lads have lots of experience with motors...any of you had one of these?

I'm having  the hair brained idea of picking one up to replace my nearly dead Golf Gti, and they seem dog cheap..is that for a reason? Most I'm seeing have full histories, reasonable miles for the years ( 2003 ish ) and seem a lot of motor for the dough. 

I like the 225 1.8's..any good? 

richardhomer

My ex-wife had a 1.8 FWD one, until she ran it out of oil (I’d have checked that had we still been together....)

Pretty quick, beautifully made, handling a bit wayward when pushed - needless to say - it looked great.

If you’re considering retraining as a hairdresser, they’re great cars....

John_P

I’ve had one, mine was the 3.2 version.   I think they go cheap partly because of the mk2 and people assume a car of that age might develop faults and the bills can be huge.    
Mine was awesome - I did have the dsg gearbox problems that are well documented but there are plenty of cheaper fixes for that now - when it first went the first quote was around 5k for a repair.    Servicing costs are high - I think the 3.2 might be worse but check the cost of brake discs and make sure your sitting down.   I needed a new timing chain at one point and that was two days labour alone.    
If you have a good local indie Audi specialist and know what you’re getting into then they are a great car.   
The tt forum is very helpful and worth joining to get a feel for what to look out for.  

TTony

John_P said:

The tt forum is very helpful and worth joining to get a feel for what to look out for.  

I was actually a member there, before joining the MusicRadar forum.  Hence my username.

The mk1 was the more pure design - beautiful inside, particularly with some of the extras that were available - though less well sorted to drive.  I had a mk2, where the design was toned down a bit, but the driving was more sorted.  Though, tbh, the driving aspects are only going to make a difference if you're really, really, pushing it.

You're buying Audi build quality, at a time when they built properly.  Way fewer electronics to go bang, and way more repairable if you can find a decent specialist rather than an authorised dealership for the maintenance.

More than likely that a 225 1.8 will have been driven "enthusiastically" through it's life, so check for the obvious damage repairs, and a FSH.  

The tt forum will give a lot of detailed advice.

guitarcookie1

We had one a couple of years ago. Lovely car but no room at all in the back if that matters to you.

The LCD dash screen went as the pixels died one by one and the servicing costs were pretty steep..

redrighthand

Had a 2004 3.2 DSG. Awesome car, with very few issues. Agree with @TTony completely about the design - there are very few production cars that remain so close to the concept. In the 6 yrs I had it, it always felt more solid than any hire car I drove. Very well built. If you can get one that's been looked after, expect a bargain. The V6 sounds bloody lovely too.

TTony

redrighthand said:

Had a 2004 3.2 DSG. 

I had the first mk 2 that my local dealer put on the road.  3.2 DSG again.  Stunning car.

Sold it after many years, to remove the risk-to-licence.

lustycourtier

Great cars but dated looks wise quicker than Jodie Marsh. 

ourmaninthenorth

Thanks Gents..appreciate the candour. 

Having had a MK4 Golf Gti for 18 years, I consider myself to be a local specialist...I can rebuild one with a 10mm spanner and a spoon, which is fortunate..the bastid's been falling apart for the last 10 years, I've gone through at least 3 spoons. Seriously though I have a specialist just around the corner. 

I'm waiting for the TT forum to approve my registration...I'm on my third attempt since yesterday, but thanks for the suggestion anyway Lads. 

As to re-training as a hairdresser...I've been parting my own hair for a majority of the 54 years ( tomorrow ) that I've been on the planet...does that count..?? hee hee

They really are lovely little buggers...

Thanks again Lads. 

boogieman

I've got a mate who's had one for a couple of years. The 1st/2nd gear selector fork has just failed on his, apparently it's a common problem. It's a relatively easy fix but obviously the gearbox has to come out first, so it won't be cheap.  Edd Chyna covered it an episode of Wheeler Dealers so might be worth having a look at that.

menamestom

My brother has just bought one, a 1.8T and loves it.  It's high milage as you would expect at that age, but drives well and is good mechanically.  

Garthy

10 years with a mk4 Golf gti? Ours was appalling and scrapped shortly after its tenth birthday. Horrid POS.

Heartfeltdawn

richardhomer said:

My ex-wife had a 1.8 FWD one, until she ran it out of oil (I’d have checked that had we still been together....)

Pretty quick, beautifully made, handling a bit wayward when pushed - needless to say - it looked great.

Was the car similar to the wife?

Pwalo

I had a 2002 1.8 225. I only sold it because of a company car. Had a thrust bearing whine, pixelated LCD screen and iffy fuel gauge (very common). Not cheap to run and hideous road tax. 
Had it mildly remapped to about 245. Very solid car, great fun to drive. Always felt like something very expensive was about to go pop (never did though).

ourmaninthenorth

Garthy said:

10 years with a mk4 Golf gti? Ours was appalling and scrapped shortly after its tenth birthday. Horrid POS.

18 years mate, bought it new. I've spent more time under it than in it over the last 10. 

I'm only keeping it going to spite the bastid....

And the bastid is only keeping going to spite me...it's one of those relationships...