After tons of speculation and confusion, Audi finally officially confirmed they will be bringing the high-powered TT RS to the United States. Initially, the car was set to be a model only sold overseas. What changed their minds? After putting up a poll on their Facebook page, Audi had more than 11,500 US-based people express interest in the car in the first month. Chances of 10,000 of them being wide-eyed teenagers just wanting to see one on the road? Pretty damn high, probably, but I think the car will do well over here.

“With performance and agility rooted in Audi motorsports success, the TT RS is truly an emotional sports car,” explained Johan de Nysschen, President, Audi of America. “That emotion became abundantly clear as we explored interest across the country.”

Pricing? Not announced yet, but don’t expect it to be cheap. In the UK, the TT RS Coupe starts at £44,775 (or nearly $70,000 USD.) No, it won’t be that much when it goes on sale, but still…whoa!

Check out some more pictures of the TT RS below:

MTM TT-RS

A few months ago we got a look at the Sportec TT-RS, a tuned version of Audi’s high performance sports coupe tuned to 400 horsepower by only modifying the car’s ECU.

This time, German tuners MTM get their hands on a TT-RS and make it even better. By taking the 2.5-liter turbocharged five-cylinder engine and tweaking the ECU and adding their own high performance exhaust, MTM was able to squeeze out 424 hp – 84 more horsepower than the stock TT-RS. The power enhancements allow the MTM TT-RS to travel from 0 to 62 mph in only 4.2 seconds and reach a top speed of 181 mph.

The MTM TT-RS package comes in three varieties, the above-mentioned 424 hp version being the most powerful – and most expensive – running you about $12,900. If you don’t have that kind of cash lying around, you have the option of the 404 or 408 hp versions as well, which will cost about $2,800 and $7,000, respectively. Optional 19- or 20-inch BIMOTO wheels are also available.

Sportec Audi TT RS

What’s a tuning company to do when manufacturers such as Audi take their high performance sports cars – in this case the Audi TT – and make it better? The Audi TTS is Audi’s tuned version of the TT. Think that was enough? Of course not! Audi then came out with the TT RS – a turbocharged 340 hp version of the sports car. This is normally tuning company territory.

Sportec decided to take it a step further with their Performance Stage 1 kit. The Sportec TT RS creates 400 hp – a 60 hp increase, and a feat achieved only by tuning the car’s ECU. A 4.2 second 0-62 mph time is a 0.4 second decrease from stock, and a significant difference for only tuning the ECU.

The $1,963 price tag is high for an ECU tune, but not bad for a 65 hp jump. Like the TT RS itself (unless we’re right,) the tuning package will only be available in Europe. Let’s hope Stage 2 and subsequent packages will include more modifications such as an intake, exhaust, and body kit.

source: Sportec via Luxvelocity

Audi TT RS Coupe & Cabriolet

Despite Audi’s official statements suggesting that we won’t be getting this souped-up TT, insiders are saying otherwise. Audi will start sales of the TT RS in Europe this month, but will delay release in America until probably sometime this fall.

The TT RS will be an Audi halo car, powered by a five-cylinder turbo engine producing 335 horsepower. The TT RS will also receive Audi’s quattro all-wheel-drive, which will give it insane amounts of grip along with the extra power. Why Audi is saying the car won’t be released in the States is beyond me, but I can’t think of one good reason that it shouldn’t be.