Audi TT news - It's the baby R8 diesel! - 2008

Smitten by the Audi R8 V12 TDi we saw in Detroit, but put off buying one by (a) the fact it's only a concept at the moment and (b) it'll cost the same as a medium-sized island? Then how about this: the Audi TT diesel?

Yes, Audi has dropped an oil-burner into its WAG-favourite two-door. Think of it as an R8 diesel for the common man (or an R10 Le Mans racer for the very common man, maybe).

OK, so it's not quite a 5.9-litre V12 twin turbo under the bonnet. Rather, the TT TDi (surely to become the TT-D, no?) gets a new two-litre, four-cylinder turbodiesel which develops 168bhp and, more importantly, 258lb ft of torque - which means more twist than the range-topping 3.2-litre V6 TT.

Though the diesel TT's performance stats are relatively modest - the Coupe will hit 62mph in 7.5 seconds (the Roadster is a fraction slower), while the two-litre petrol TT records 6.6 seconds - it's the in-gear acceleration that should impress.

That and the fuel economy - Audi quotes an impressive combined return of 53.1 mph for the Coupe, with CO2 emissions down at just 140g/km.

Interestingly, the diesel TT gets Audi's quattro four-wheel-drive system - the smaller petrol TT makes do with front-wheel drive alone - while the clever magnetorheological dampers can still be ordered as a cost option.

OK, we know it's not quite as exciting as the TT-S (or the TT-RS, for that matter), but this is good stuff from Audi... and good news for diesel. We'll get a first look at the diesel TT in Geneva next week.