By the mid-1990s, Audi had solidified its naming methodology to a structure it uses to this day—"A" for cars, "Q" for SUVs, "S" for sport, and "RS" for high-performance variants. The automaker has followed this consistent and structured system to the letter ever since. Except for one model.
The Audi TT, named after the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy race, was originally conceptualized by American designer Freeman Thomas, who endeavored to create a puristic sports coupe. Inspired by the circle—the perfect graphic shape, as Audi exterior designer Torsten Wenzel put it—each line of the TT was...