The Audi TT is one of those seminal cars that changed the motor industry. It proved that "affordable" European sports cars could be profitable. The recipe? Drape tempting sports clothing and a delectably detailed interior over inexpensive mass-made mechanicals. (In the first TT's case, the innards came from the VW Golf.)
But this was not Homer Simpson wearing Nike. That mainstream Volkswagen engine and suspension were tuned to make sports car noises and give sports car performance. And, if it didn't give quite the buzz of a top pedigree Porsche — well, what do you expect for the price?
"Doing an Audi TT" is now motor industry shorthand for producing premium bijou sporty cars, smallish both in size and in production volumes, and high in charm. They appeal equally to those after style or an elevated driving experience. The recipe has been followed — to at least some extent — from the latest Mini to various Mercedes, from eye-catching Citroën DS3 to Volvo's cute C30. The new small Range Rover, due next year and based on the comely LRX concept car that has just finished its motor show rounds, is often referred to as "Land Rover's TT".
But Peugeot's new 'TT', called the RCZ, is not just TT in spirit, it's almost a TT twin: similar in size and stature, a head-to-head rival with the alluring little Audi. It's a small sporty 2+2 (the rear seats are just for children), low-slung and sleekly styled, with a well-crafted sports cabin and enough aural drama to accompany the eagerness and agility. The top engine is a 1.6-litre 200bhp turbo, a tuned version of the same British-built engine used in the Mini Cooper S (it's a BMW/Peugeot joint venture). There's also a more frugal (52mpg) 2.0-litre diesel which, although less frisky, is still fun to drive. Prices start at just over £20,000.
As with the benchmark TT, the looks are distinctive, not least a 'double bubble' roof which boosts headroom, aluminium roof arches and an 'active' rear spoiler. You sit low — the whole car is only just over 1.3 metres tall — and your backside barely skims over the blacktop.
RCZ volumes are not expected to be great and, as a result, Peugeot is subcontracting production to Magna Steyr in Austria, which specialises in low volume vehicles. Peugeot sees the RCZ more as an affordable sports flagship than a big moneyspinner (although it insists it's profitable).
The RCZ sums up the direction in which new D-G Jean-Marc Gales wishes Peugeot to head: graceful, head-turning style and greater driver appeal. "Elegant, simple design — French chic — is the future," he told me recently. "It's also a return to the past."
Equally — also mirroring the new RCZ — new Peugeots will be agile and enjoyable to drive, insists Gales. Older readers may remember that 20 years ago, Peugeot built the most nimble and driver-focused cars offered by any European mass maker. (Ford now carries that badge.) The apogee was the Peugeot 205 GTI, a car whose memory still brings broad grins to enthusiasts. It wasn't so much a hot hatch as a fireball, complete with scalpel-sharp steering and handling.
The RCZ, says Gales, is the start of Peugeot's redemption. He even hints that the next Peugeot 207, descendant of the 205, will include a seriously hot GTI version.
Gavin Green is a motoring journalist and consultant
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