Audi is planning a TT successor after all

It might not look like today's model, though.

Earlier in 2019, Audi announced the TT's future looked murky at best. The company explained the model was unlikely to be replaced by another two-door coupe powered by a gasoline-burning engine because it competes in a segment of the market that's shrinking. Company boss Bram Schot clarified what he meant (and, significantly, what he didn't mean) when he said the TT wouldn't return for a fourth generation.

Schot told Holland's Autoblog that he was tired of hearing people whine about the TT's demise, which he announced in May. He candidly said that every second question he has been asked during interviews held since the announcement were about the TT, and what's next for the model. He shared more information about what enthusiasts can expect for the TT during the 2020s.

"I am a person of flesh and blood, and I also like beautiful things," he said. "Of course, there will be a successor!"

He conceded the TT's successor will likely cost more money to develop than it will generate, and he added his team hasn't decided whether the model will come with a four-cylinder engine, or with a battery-electric powertrain as previously announced. He didn't comment on the earlier reports suggesting it will take the form of a four-door fastback (a "four-door coupe" in marketing-speak) instead of a two-door coupe.

Audi has time to answer all of these questions, because the TT's successor -- regardless of what it looks like and what it's powered by -- won't make its debut until the early 2020s. What's certain, however, is that the company plans to keep a design icon in its line-up in the foreseeable future.

Photo by Ronan Glon.