2015 Audi TT pricing and specifications

The next-generation Audi TT will be more powerful, more tech-laden and more expensive than before when it hits local showrooms in February.

It will also only be available with petrol engines.

Audi Australia has released provisional pricing and specification details for the third generation of its iconic coupe, confirming it will not offer a diesel variant in 2015 due to low demand.

Instead, the provisional 2015 TT range will start at approximately $77,000 plus on-road costs for the base model, front-wheel drive 2.0 TFSI – an increase of about $1500 over the outgoing version. The petrol engine has been uprated for 2015, with figures boosted to 169kW and 370Nm. Fuel consumption in the front-drive base version is rated at 5.9L/100km combined, while the 0-100km/h sprint has been whittled down to six seconds.

The 2.0 TFSI quattro will start at "$80,000-plus", according to Audi, fitted with the same 2.0-litre engine. The German marque claims the combination of all-wheel drive and its S-tronic transmission will boost the quattro's 0-100km/h sprint time to 5.3 seconds. Fuel use, meanwhile, is ratcheted up to 6.4L/100km on the official cycle.

Topping the range is the TTS, which is due to hit showrooms in the third quarter of 2015. Audi says the coupe flagship will be priced from "$100,000-plus" – the current model is $98,900.

The TTS now boasts 228kW in power (versus 200kW) and 380Nm of torque – corresponding with a hastened 0-100km/h time of 4.6 seconds. Fuel consumption is officially rated at 6.8L/100km combined.

Audi is yet to clarify whether it will continue to offer the entry-level 1.8 TFSI TT, which currently starts at $69,350 plus on-road costs. An Audi Australian spokeswoman told journalists that it would be "looked at favourably" if it is given the nod for global production.

Coming in at up to 50kg less than its predecessor, while offering up to 14 per cent more power, the TT range ushers in a new driver-focussed display that threatens to revolutionise the way technology is experienced by the sporting owner.

The interior of the 2015 TT is a total redesign, bristling with a new generation of user-friendly electronics and connectivity features. The look and soft furnishings haven't changed much from previous TTs, sticking to the Audi formula of simple, classy and sporty, with aluminium and aluminium-look splashes among the largely dark leather and plastic.

The revolution arrives in the versatility of the driver-oriented virtual cockpit display, used in an Audi production model for the first time.

It's a fully digital instrument cluster displaying all the information directly in front of the driver. There is no need for a conventional multimedia interface (MMI) screen in the centre of the fascia. This fresh approach gave the Audi designers the freedom to slim down the instrument panel architecture.

The virtual cockpit will be offered standard in the new model, as will a 10GB hard drive, four-way electric lumbar adjustment, climate control, leather trim, flat-bottomed steering wheel, cruise control with speed limiter, Bluetooth phone and audio streaming and push button start.

In addition, the 2015 TT will be offered with the brand's Matrix LED headlights – an extension of earlier automatic highbeam devices.

Audi has confirmed it will debut the TT Roadster at next month's Paris Motor show. The car maker also announced this week that it would employ a five-cylinder turbo for the next generation of the TT RS – the highest tier of the TT line-up. It is expected to bring power increases on the last RS launched in 2009, which produced 265kW and 465Nm.