Had my test drive on Friday last in a silver high-powered 8 with leather seats and sports exhaust. My comments are general or will compare to my TTC 225.

Looks - Superb, far better in the flesh and even the back looked okay although the car I drove had a sports exhaust with exhaust aluminium surrounds which concentrated the eye better. Looks low enough too although I will be adding mud flaps front and rear. Better than TTC.

Performance - Very good overall. Slower that the TTC on initial acceleration but then just keep on going up the revs, almost like driving an auto, fantastic without all those power curves in the TT although no push in the back. Gear stick great position and gear box very smooth. Up the M20 hit 120mph in 4th testing the rev alarm which I could not hear but not necessary in my opinion if one has a good ear for the engine noise. Great brakes, great balance, not twitchy at all. Will go if pushed in lower gears. Engine noise superb but then I had the sport exhaust which I was told does make a big difference in noise especially at higher revs and will improve power by 5-7%. Worth it I think and big selling point later.

Interior - Getting into the car from the TT did not disappoint. Everything looked good quality and all black not too dark, enough aluminium touches plus adequate light getting in. In fact IMHO the red/ black will look tacky (sorry guys). Additional leather options on the gear lever, hand brake and covers of the central storage bins important to up the quality a little bit, especially as the are all in view and frequently touched View out windows including back good compared to TTC. Boot good size although spare wheel option will eat into that big time. Back seat okay once you are in, getting into back problem on leather option as driver seat does not collapse due to electric (so I was told) although passenger door does, presumably manual (need to check that again - any ideas?).

Moonroof - Very glad I cancelled. With seat at lowest setting I have enough room but moonroof would be problematic.

BOSE - Better than TTC, very good treble and bass movement not available in TTC (either because TTC has smaller cabin or earlier version). Good undistorted volume.

Bonnet - Bonnet stays a must as the flimsy metal pole gets very hot to pick up. Engine cover a pain and oil measuring stick location even bigger one considering how much one will be measuring oil (every 2nd petrol stop I understand).

Overall - Very pleased. Great looking car with punch to match sporty image.

rael

Nice review. Glad you liked it.

I hadn't considered the sports exhaust. In fact I haven't bothered with any extra except for the bonnet stays and the air outlet fins (polished).

I guess we can add such things later.

The dipstick is a right pain if you try to get to it from the front... I leave the cover on and access the dipstick while standing near the passenger side wheel... I've found it much easier this way.

Rael - glad you enjoyed it. Your experience mirrors mine - all that talk about not being as fast off the line as other cars now just seems to be an illusion. The power delivery is just so smooth that you hardly notice it. During my first drive, I kept expecting things to get exciting as the engine got into a power band, but in reallity, the exciting thing is that there is no band - just deceptively smooth continuous porwer delivery all the way through the range.

Does anyone have any more details of the sports exhaust and the definitive benefits power-wise?

the sports exhaust looks great, the tail pipes look to be brushed steel and fit the rear diffuser far better than the standard ones.

only snag is that the dealers strongly recommend the exhaust finishers to protect the plastic surround, all in you'd be approaching £650 for the system if you fit the finishers

as an aside I note that the drivers footrest is an option for both high and low power, my car already has it, what gives?

I think the exhaust finishers (I presume you mean the aluminium surround) are not necessary and that is just a sales pitch BUT for the silver, tit grey abd possibly black it will highlight the larger exhaust pipes and compliment the colour. Also, the noise is far better than standrad.

rael

Think I need a test-drive of one to compare noise/performance.
Whats the story on insurance - does that come under modification?

Good on you Rael, glad you enjoyed the ride, I loved it!

The engine sound from 6500 upwards is addictive.

Cheers
Oilman

As most of us on here are pre-orderers, can we still specify the sports exhaust? Is it dealer fit replacement?

You can, and it is. Still like to understand a bit more in terms of power/performance effect. Also there is the insurance question.
"has your car had any visual or perofrmance modifications?"

Originally posted by Edo
You can, and it is. Still like to understand a bit more in terms of power/performance effect. Also there is the insurance question.
"has your car had any visual or perofrmance modifications?"

I've asked my dealer the questions today regarding the exhaust. Obviously he doesn't know, but he will try and find out. I doubt very much if a £450 sports exhaust will give any power gains, more likey just sound which is fine. I had the optional sports exhaust fitted on a Boxster S last year at a whopping £1000, it was worth it for the sound improvement but no power gains what so ever, so there were no need for the insurance company to know.