Audi A6 Avant 2.7 TDI SE Multitronic

A real contradiction of a car good in some areas and poor in others.

An ideal motorway cruising car, comfortable, quiet and refined but not as economical as it should be, I struggle to better 38/39 mpg on long motorway runs cruising at 70 - 75 mph. In contrast fuel consumption is good around town 23 - 27 mpg and can be fantastic on quick, cross country runs - I've seen 47 - 49mpg! Multitronic box could be the reason for this.

Round town though the multitronic is a real pain. The fact that it always goes into its lowest gear at standstill rather than starting off in 2nd like a conventional torque converter auto means that the car needs careful throttle control if you are to avoid surging as you pull away from junctions. This is exacerbated if you live in a hilly area, as I do.

My main problem with the A6 however is how uninvolving it is. The steering is far too light and just does not have enough feel, it really does not you any confidence that the front is going to hang in there if you're wanting to do some quick B road driving.

Whilst the car is comfortable and the cabin is nice on the eye (with a fantastic Bose sound system) I find the build quality rather disappointing - thin plastic, cheap switches, poor map lights, again with plasticky switchgear. With the seats folded down the load area is not well thought out, with a sloping floor towards the front seats and a very clumsy and space wasting arrangement for the load guard - generally not a patch on my previous two BMW's (one a 3 series, the other a 5 - both estates).

The car has now done 65,000 miles and I've just been told that the flap valve system on the inlet manifolds is worn and as a result the car needs two new inlet manifolds. £810 for the offside and £1300 for the nearside! It appears that this is a problem that VW are aware of as there is a technical bulletin which advises replacement of both manifolds immediately a problem occurs with one of them! I note that there is a recent update from another A6 2.7 TDI owner with exactly the same problem. Needless to say the car is going to be sold ASAP!

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