Honest John Long-term tests

Audi A6 Allroad

Audi A6 allroad - halfway from an estate to an SUV

The new Audi A6 allroad joins our fleet as a replacement for the Volvo XC60. Can it match the Volvo's all round talents?

Date: 16 October 2019 | Current mileage: 1203 | Claimed economy: 47.9mpg | Actual economy: 34.9mpg

Before we start, I have to say it - I've always liked the Audi A6 Allroad. Although I'm not sure why. On paper this is a car that shouldn't work. A big estate with more ride height that's a kind of halfway house to an SUV.

Yet somehow, it all comes together to produce a versatile estate that for some reason, has real appeal. The latest version of the A6 allroad has only just hit our roads, so what better time for us to take one on for six months to replace the excellent Volvo XC60 that we were sad to see go.

We've gone for a Sport version (the Vorsprung model wasn't available when we chose ours) with the 50 TDI engine - that's the same 3.0 TDI V6 unit as the 45 TDI but with more power - 286PS to be exact. However, it's the 620Nm of torque that stands out more. 

A first for the allroad is a mild hybrid system called MHEV. Designed to improve economy, it uses a new 48v system and a lithium-ion battery that holds charge recovered from braking. It can also coast with the engine off and the start-stop kicks in from 13mph.

Audi A6 Rear

Finished in Firmament Blue, our car also has larger alloys, the 20-inch V-spoke wheels cost an extra £2200 - ouch. That's a heck of a lot of money for wheels that are an inch bigger and is in fact the most expensive option fitted to our car.

On top of that, it has the £1495 Technology Pack, which includes MMI Navigation Plus with MMI Touch, Audi Virtual Cockpit and wireless charging. We've also got the Bang & Olufsen Premium Sound System, 4-zone deluxe air con, the panoramic glass sunroof (a mere £1950...) and HD Matrix LED headlights. The total? Somehow £68,885.

That money is not far short of the Vosprung model, although to be fair, equipment wise, our car pretty much matches it. But there's no denying that £70k is a lot of money when you consider that a standard A6 Avant starts at £40k. Each time we tell someone how much this actually costs, they pull one of those faces...

Still, there's no denying this has a luxury feel to it and the quality to match. So we have six months to discover whether the A6 allroad is worth the money and how it performs as our everyday family transport. 

Simply one of THE best interiors around

The A6 Allroad has plenty of good points but its perhaps the quality and design of the interior which really stands out.

Date: 30 October 2019 | Current mileage: 1455 | Claimed economy: 47.9mpg | Actual economy: 34.9mpg

I'm a month into my time with the A6 Allroad and if there's one thing that continues to stand out for me, it's the design of the interior. I first saw this on the Q8 and loved it. So while this generation A6 may not look that different on the outside, the interior is a big change from the old one. 

Audi has basically done away with as many buttons as possible and gone for a clean and minimal look. Now the danger in doing this is that simple things, such as turning the heating up, require messing with menus in touchscreens. Fortunately, that's not the case with the A6.

It has two touchscreens and the lower one is solely for the climate control. The top one controls everything else but thanks to an intuitive layout - helped by the column of quick buttons to get you to most places - it's very simple to use. 

What is quite odd is that both touchscreens feature haptic feedback, similar to a phone. It probably seemed like a neat touch when Audi thought of it, but it's really a step back from a touchscreen. Because you now have to push the screen like a button. Which surely defeats the whole object of a touchscreen? Fortunately, when you use Apple CarPlay, it acts like a standard touchscreen.

Audi _A6_Allroad _050

The top screen is cleverly designed to flow in with the wide dash, with all its gloss black trim. There's big chunky metal around this and at night the ambient lighting looks superb around the edges while the quattro badge also lights up. Being a £70k you won't be surprised to learn you can change the colour of the interior lights. It's currently set to purple...

The other interior that comes close for me is the E-Class, another car I think is excellent. That interior is quite different with its circular vents and rotary controller, but it has the same special feel to it. Personally I prefer both to the BMW 5 Series interior.

The only thing i'd like in the Audi is slightly better seats. Theyr'e certainly comfortable enough but compared to a Volvo V90, they don't feel as supportive. You tend to sit on them rather than in them. That said, the driving position is excellent with a low slung feel and huge amounts of adjustment and at 6ft2 tall it's one of the few cars I don't have the driver's seat all the way back.

The one fly in the ointment of the A6 Allroad is the Tiptronic gearbox which seems to be quite indecisive at lower speeds. Slow down for a roundabout for instance, and you go back on the power there's a big delay. It's something I'm hoping will improve over time.

Dear Audi gearbox, what is going on?

Our A6 Allroad has an eight-speed Tiptronic gearbox but it's not without its issues, as we're discovering.

Date: 13 November 2019 | Current mileage: 1971 | Claimed economy: 47.9mpg | Actual economy: 35.8mpg

There's much to like about our A6 Allroad. It's comfortable, quiet and has a superb interior. But if there's ony big fly in the Audi ointment, it's the automatic gearbox. And it's starting to become a real issue. 

Our car is fitted with the more powerful 286PS version of the 3.0-litre TDI engine but it has the same eight-speed Tiptronic as the 231PS model. It's also the same gearbox you'll find in many big Audi models like the A7 and Q8.

Get in our A6 and accelerate from a standstill and you'll wonder what the issue is. The Allroad is hugely powerful thanks to that 620Nm of torque and it effortlessly gains pace. The shifts are instantaneous and pretty much impercetible. The problem arises in every driving, especially the kind of thing common in the UK - roundabouts.

If you slow down for roundabout (or a junction) and then ask the A6 to accelerate again you'll find there's a big delay before the power kicks in. It may only be a second or two but it feels like an age when you want to get across a roundabout and there's some big truck lumbering towards you.

Audi A6 Allroad Gearbox

The first few times it happened I thought maybe it was just a one off, but it soon became apparent that it's just the way this gearbox is programmed. I've changed some of the settings, turning off the Intelligent Coasting function for example, but it's still the same. The only way to combat it seems to run it in Sport mode, but even then the problem persists, albeit not quite as pronounced. Also, I don't really want to have to drive around in 'Sport' all the time.

This is delay is something we have noticed in other Audi models with this gearbox and 3.0 TDI engine, however, it seems much worse in our car. A quick phone call to Audi UK gave us some answers though. It seems we're not just imagining it and there is an issue.

Audi AG has admitted there's a 'start-off delay'. It says "The 3.0 TDI (210 kW / 286 PS) has been designed for efficiency and driving comfort. We are aware that this vehicle currently features a certain start-off delay. With a view to product optimisation, we are currently developing and testing suitable measures to improve the engine and transmission control in order to improve the start-off performance.”

So for now all we can do is live with it and hope for a software fix sooner rather than later. It has somewhat taken the shine off our enjoyment of the A6 Allroad. There's no a journey goes by where the problem doesn't become frustrating as you sit there waiting for the power to kick in. It makes driving smoothly annoyingly difficult. Fingers crossed for a fast resolution. 

Is this A6 worth £70,000?

With all its extras, our A6 Allroad comes in at close to £70,000. Is it a worthwhile investment?

Date: 28 November 2019 | Current mileage: 2277 | Claimed economy: 47.9mpg | Actual economy: 35.9mpg

Our A6 Allroad has a bit of an identity crisis - it's a Sport model that wants to be a Vorsprung. You see, when we ordered it at launch, Sport was the only trim level available. Yet that didn't mean we weren't able to give our car pretty much all of what you get with the posher Vorsprung model.

So from a starting price of £55k for the A6 Allroad Sport, we managed to bump our car up to £68,885. That's a big jump but our car is pretty much fully loaded with everything you'd want in your big lifestyle premium estate. The price of the Vorpsrung? From £71,000. It does get posher wheels though...

Those are some big numbers when you consider the A6 Avant range starts at £41,500 but if you want a cross country style big estate, there are few rivals out there. The A6 Allroad is slap bang in the middle of the V90 Cross Country at £47k and the Mercedes-Benz E-Class All-Terrain which is £63,000.

But having fully equipped our A6 Allroad, does it feel worth the money? Well there's no denying the quality nor the performance but it's the comfort which makes the Allroad feel like a luxury car. Even when loaded with people and luggage, our car is amazingly smooth over all but the worst of road surfaces.

Audi _A6_Allroad _001

However, what's letting it down at the moment is the hesitant gearbox which we're hoping there will be a fix for soon as it continues to be frustrating at junctions and roundabouts. It's an annoying quirk and one which has knocked our confidence in the car, there are several times I've found myself coasting across a roundabout waiting for some acceleration...

It seems we'd have been better saving money and going for the lower powered 45 TDI model, which is hardly short of power and has more than enough performance for everyday driving. With no number badge on the boot, the neighbours won't know the difference either.

The last few weeks have given me a chance to drive our A6 Allroad on some more challenging roads than just the very dull A1. On my commute I've started coming off a few junctions early and taking the back roads. It's a route I often do if I have something good to drive (and some extra time for the journey to work).

On these typical country lanes, the A6 Allroad has actually impressed me. It may not be a car designed for throwing into corners and it feels a little bulky, but it's very capable and there's plenty of grip, giving you plenty of reassurance. With an upcoming comparison with an S6 Avant, this route will prove a handy test.  

The options that are worth spending your money on

With close to £13,000 of optional extras fitted to our A6 Allroad, we look at which are worth spending money on. And those that aren't.

Date: 12 December 2019 | Current mileage: 2602 | Claimed economy: 47.9mpg | Actual economy: 35.7mpg

I've already talked about how much our A6 Allroad costs - close to £70,000 - and it's fair to say that few people would buy a Sport model with that many options when you can get a Vorpsrung for the same money.

The Vorsprung model wasn't available when our car was ordered, but it did mean we got to choose lots of options from £150 for heated and folding mirrors to £2200 for the big 20-inch alloy wheels. So which do we think are worth the money?

Well we'd have to say those wheels are an expensive luxury. They're not much different in design to the standard 19-inch wheels. If you want a sportier look for your Allroad, the Vorsprung with its big 21-inch grey wheels is the one to go for. For us, this is an easy way to save more than £2k.

There are a few packs available - the Comfort and Sound Pack at £1895, Technology Pack for £1495 and the £1700 allroad interior line pack. The latter gets you sports seats and an allroad projection on the floor from under the doors, plus stainless steel pedals. We'd give this one a miss.

Audi _A6_Allroad _043

The Comfort and Sound Pack looks expensive at almost £1900 and indeed, it's hard to justify spending so much. It gets you a Bang & Olufsen Premium sound system plus the extended LED Interior Lighting Pack, so you can change the colours of the lights in the cabin.

True, it does also include 360 cameras and the advanced key (giving you keyless entry) but with the exception of the latter, these are all things we think most A6 owner's could live without.

What we do think represents good value for money is the Techology Pack. It's £1500 and adds MMI Navigation Plus and the excellent Audi Virtual Cockpit which replaces the conventional instrument dials with a large 12-inch colour display that you can alter - giving you a huge map view if you want. It means you can have the nav in front of you and use the central screen for something else, such as making a phone call. Also included is a wireless phone charging pad.

The other big cost on our car is the £1950 on the panoramic glass roof. It's one of those things that's a nice luxury - and my four year old sat in the back loves it - but it's a lot of money just to have a glass roof. The one extra I didn't initially think that necessary is the HD matrix LED headlights but there will be more about that in a future update.

A6 Allroad or S6 Avant - which would be our choice?

For the cost of our A6 Allroad you could get a well specified S6 Avant. So which is the better choice? You probably won't be surprised...

Date: 30 December 2019 | Current mileage: 2921 | Claimed economy: 47.9mpg | Actual economy: 35.7mpg

What's better than one big Audi estate? Two big Audi estates. For the last week I've been driving about in the new Audi S6 Avant which has given me a chance to not only annoy the neighbours when it comes to parking, but also to compare the S6 to our A6 Allroad.

One my be performance and the other more rugged but the two actually have a lot in common. In fact the two cars you see here aren't that different in price. The S6 Avant starts at around £63,000 and with options fitted, the model we're driving is close in price to the £69k price tag of the A6 Allroad.

They also share the same engine. While many may be signalling the death knell of diesel, it still makes sense for big cars designed to cover long distances, so the S6 Avant gets the same 3.0 TDI V6 as the Allroad.

Of course it does have more power as you'd expect with 350PS and 700Nm compared to the 286PS and 620Nm of the Allroad. It also doesn't have the ugly grille either. I'm still not a fan of the awkward vertical chrome strips.

IMG_2262

Like the Allroad, the S6 Avant also has a mild-hybrid system, an 8-speed tiptronic automatic gearbox and Quattro four wheel drive. That hybrid system isn't for performance - like the Allroad it uses an electric compressor to provide instant torque and a 48-volt mild hybrid system to enable engine-off coasting and improve fuel economy.

Naturally the S6 Avant is far more accomplished in corners than the Allroad, with its lower ride height and stiffer suspension, but the Allroad does its best to keep up, even if it does feel very much the big estate it is when you throw it into a corner. The S6 on the other hand is surprisingly nimble. 

But in a straight line there's very little between the two. True the S6 Avant has more power but the Allroad is hardly short in this department and both are effortless rapid away from a standstill. The biggest difference is that the S6 Avant doesn't suffer the gearbox lag of our Allroad (yes that's still incredibly frustrating).

It means the S6 Avant is far more eager and responsive, while the Allroad is like a cumbersome whale as you wait for the power to kick in. The thing is, if the gearbox (or at least the software) from the S6 Avant was fitted to the 50 TDI in the Allroad, it would solve all the problems...

Matrix LED headlights - a genuinely brilliant innovation

They may seem like an expensive gimmick but Matrix LED headlight have proved to be a great innovation - as we've discovered in our A6.

Date: 13 January 2020 | Current mileage: 3266 | Claimed economy: 47.9mpg | Actual economy: 35.7mpg

Sit inside any modern car like our A6 Allroad and you'll be surrounded by technology. Vehicles have certainly come a long way since my 1981 Ford Fiesta which sported an MW/LW radio, one wing mirror and a three-speed heater but little else.

Audi has certainly been one of the key leaders in introducing new technology into its models, usually starting with the expensive stuff like the A8, before eventually filtering down. It means that even the A1 is available with things like adaptive cruise control and a park assist system that actually manouevres it into the space for you.

Of course whether we need all these extras is debatable. You can go and buy a brand new Dacia for £7000 which despite no radio and manual windows will still get you from A to B safely and comfortably. And this is how I felt about Matrix LED headlights when they first came along.

They're not actually new, Audi debuted them several years ago. I remember seeing the video below on an event and thinking to myself that they were just a gimmick. After all, automatic dimming headlights already exist so why is this needed?

 

But when I chose our A6 Allroad I decided to go for the HD Matrix LED headlights as an optional extra. It cists £600 and includes LED rear lights and headlight washers too. In the grand scheme of the A6 Allroad, it's one of the more reasonably priced options...

The video above explains how they work but essentially the headlights sense anything ahead (i.e another car) and adjust individual sections of the lights, the rest remaining on full beam. A gimmick? I thought so until the first time I drove our Allroad at night on a country lane. And then I realised that they are actually brilliant.

On a dark unlit country lane they provide superb illumination and if you come up behind a car, you can still see all around it, the hedges and ditches either side of the road are fully lit. Yet the car in front isn't dazzled. It works the same for cars coming the other way and will automatically adjust when you come into a town or a well lit area.

What I like the most is simply how well it works. I've not had one person flash me coming the other way, the system is that quick to dip the beam. If you live somewhere remote or often travel on dark roads, I can't recommend it enough.