{"id":1779675,"date":"2026-02-19T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1779675"},"modified":"2026-02-19T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T21:00:00","slug":"audi-a6-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1779675","title":{"rendered":"Audi A6 review"},"content":{"rendered":"
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It\u2019s the new Audi A7! Except it isn\u2019t. You see, Audi\u2019s plan was<\/em> to name its all-electric models using even numbers<\/a>, while its internal combustion-engined cars would take on the odd numbers. It\u2019s why the new petrol and diesel-powered A5<\/a> is actually a saloon and estate replacement for the old A4<\/a>. And yes, the two-door A5 coupe is dead as a result.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, after it had made that change to the A4\/A5, Audi then agreed with its customers and dealers that this was a stupid idea, so it announced that it would return to its old system<\/a>\u2026 starting with the new A6.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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So, the A6 is just an internal combustion car still?<\/h2>\n

Erm, no. There are now many flavours of A6, with the A6 e-tron<\/a> all-electric version that\u2019s available as a super slippery Sportback or a more practical Avant. We\u2019ve covered both of those off in a separate review that you can find by clicking these words<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Before you head off to the full EV, it\u2019s probably worth noting that there is now a plug-in hybrid A6<\/a> that\u2019ll manage up to 63 miles of electric range as an Avant and 64 miles as a Saloon. Impressive.<\/p>\n

What engines can I have?<\/h2>\n

This oily A6 still comes in both petrol and diesel forms, but on UK shores you only get the option of 2.0-litre turbocharged four pot engines. You\u2019ll get a seven-speed auto gearbox and 201bhp no matter which fuel type you pick, although the diesel gets mild hybrid<\/a> tech, quattro all-wheel drive and 295lb ft of torque, while the petrol makes do with front-wheel drive and 251lb ft.<\/p>\n

The PHEV mates a 248bhp 2.0-litre TFSI four pot with a 141bhp electric motor and 25.9kWh (20.7 net) battery for a combined total output of 295bhp\/332lb ft. Enough to see off the 0-62mph sprint in a hot hatch-like 6.0 seconds, but more importantly it delivers 57-63 miles of EV range.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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What else is new?<\/h2>\n

Well, the first thing to note is that this car looks quite different to the A6 e-tron. Not different enough that you\u2019d guess the extent of the changes underneath, though. Where the EV is based on an entirely different platform and gets split headlights, a closed off \u2018grille\u2019 and the option of cameras for wing mirrors.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The combustion engined A6 is slightly more conventional, although it\u2019s still super streamlined and manages a drag coefficient of 0.23Cd in saloon form and 0.25 as an estate. You\u2019ll notice the slimmer lights compared to the previous gen, plus the giant new air intakes in the front bumper, the flush door handles and the lack of chrome trim. It\u2019s also slightly longer than before.<\/p>\n

The saloon gets a little \u2018notchback\u2019 spoiler and the rear lights on both now include a full width light bar and strange little fang-like brake lights that hang down and look a little bit like fake vents until they\u2019re illuminated. We like the design overall, but that final detail doesn\u2019t really work to our eyes.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s it like inside?<\/h2>\n

Hope you like screens. The A6 is full of ’em, with an 11.9in \u2018Audi Virtual Cockpit\u2019 driver display and a giant 14.5in central touchscreen merged together in a curved dash unit. There\u2019s also a configurable head-up display and an optional 10.9in touchscreen for the front seat passenger. Want to know more? Click through to the interior tab of this review.<\/p>\n

How much will it cost me?<\/h2>\n

Great question. Prices currently start at \u00a352,785 for the petrol-powered saloon, or \u00a357,055 if you want the same shape and the hybridised diesel engine. The Avant is \u00a354,735 as a TFSI and \u00a359,005 in TDI form.<\/p>\n

If it\u2019s the plug-in hybrid you\u2019re after, you\u2019re looking at \u00a362,485 for the saloon, or \u00a364,455 for the Avant.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Rivals include the ever-present BMW 5 Series<\/a> and Mercedes E-Class<\/a>, plus more left of field choices like the Volvo V90<\/a>, Genesis G80<\/a> and Lexus ES<\/a>. Shame there’s nothing from Jaguar<\/a> these days, isn’t it?<\/p>\n

Oh well, how about a bargain VW Passat instead? Given the A6 Avant doesn\u2019t really pack a punch of excitement, the VW makes a pretty compelling cost-effective alternative. Of the others the Merc still has top status and the BMW drives the best. But also has the clunkiest cabin design.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Can we all just take a moment to thank Audi for not calling this the A7? We\u2019re only just getting over the confusion caused by the new A5. Now that\u2019s out of the way, we can conclude that the new combustion powered A6 is an attractive thing that works from most angles. We\u2019re not completely sold on those new rear lights and the interior is a bit of a tech fest, but generally this is a smart looking saloon or estate.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a bit of a shame that it borrows its engines from the A5<\/a> and Q5<\/a> and isn\u2019t offered with six cylinders on our shores, because fully loaded even the torquier diesel feels a bit stretched. The BMW 5 Series is a more sporting car to drive, but also manages to be more refined than this A6. Still, keep things sedate and this can be a properly comfortable cruiser. Loads of space for dogs in the Avant too \u2013 which of course is always the most important metric to judge these things by.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s the new Audi A7! Except it isn\u2019t. You see, Audi\u2019s plan was to name its all-electric models using even numbers, while its internal combustion-engined cars would take on the odd numbers. It\u2019s why the new petrol and diesel-powered A5 is actually a saloon and estate replacement for the old A4. And yes, the two-door […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,237],"class_list":["post-1779675","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-topgear-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1779675","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1779675"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1779675\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1779675"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1779675"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1779675"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}