We just had a baby and with my wife we would like to buy a new estate, preferably the Audi A4 Avant, although also considering the BMW 3 series touring.

With the Audi there seems to be better deals and very good equipment available with the SE Technik model. The main question is whether it would be worth paying the extra money over and above the most economical engine - the 2.0 TDIe 136 - to have automatic transmission, for which we would need to pay extra over the manual and to go to either the 150PS or the 177PS engines. As this is not available on the TDIe engine (with at least 10% worse fuel economy, plus higher insurance and higher road tax), or the quattro, only available on the 177PS engine (20% worse fuel economy).

We live in Poole, Dorset, but are especially considering the quattro because of the recent bad weather, and for the few days a year that there is snow etc. What do you think? Worth the extra cost? Plus I am also concerned that there is going to be a new A4 model coming up next year... Would you go for the BMW instead to avoid the depreciation next year? We plan to keep the car for at least 6-8 years, and do about 15,000 miles a year.