The new A6 is going to be a very important car for Audi, and that has several reasons.
First of all, there's the financial aspect, because they're selling more A6's than A8's.
Still, its profit margin is bigger than the smaller A4. Also, it's its appearance.
Vorsprung durch technik is Audi's mission, and they build that with the A8, but the A6 is the car which brings...
the technology to the street, because it sells better than the A8.
All in all, you'll see more of these on the roads.
In short, this is the car which enlarges the advantage.
But that's going to be a tough task, because BMW has a very strong competitor in the form of a 5-series,
which won't be beaten in a blink of an eye.
Audi takes an early lead with the offered space, and it's not per se in the luggage space.
It offers you 530 litres which is the exact amount of its predecessor, but also the exact amount of the BMW 5-series.
It's the rear seat which makes the difference. Because the engine is further forward,
there's more room left for, for example, rear passengers.
I'm not uncomfortable in the 5-series, but my legs have more room back here.
It's easier to move about, and that's very pleasant.
So yeah, that's an advantage, even though it isn't because of technology.
You'd almost ask yourself if it even has an technology-advantage. Especially since the Audi AI-story,
where they claimed that the A8 would be the first Level 3-autonomous car. It's gone pretty quiet since then.
It's not available in the Netherlands and they haven't brought it up since when the Audi A6 was discussed.
So yeah, that won't be very advantageous. What it does have, optional of course, is a very...
comprehensive package of safety systems. It can keep itself inbetween the lines,
it can automatically control the speed, so if you engage the adaptive cruise control,
it will not just adapt to the car in front, but if the speed changes on a sign, it'll adapt as well.
There are all kinds of sensors on it as well, so if you want to open your door when a bicyclist is approaching,
you can't open it and it'll protect you. It's nice and all,
but it's not a really big step forward. You'll find most of it in the 5-series as well...
and the A6 isn't more fluent or anything. So it doesn't feel like a car of the next generation.
It sure looks the part though, because the high tech ambiance of the A8 is present here as well.
I have to say it looks absolutely phenomenal, even though it isn't really user friendly.
You constantly have to scroll through menu's and such, and that's a tad too distracting when you're driving.
It's quick and all, and the menu structure is logical, you can even structure it by yourself.
Also, you can use this screen for addresses. I mean, they're nice gadgets and all,
but they don't make life easier or anything. You're distracted a tad too often,
and when you're driving at 130 km/h, there's a certain kind of danger to it.
The chassis however, is very pleasant. Even better, after the kind-of disappointing A7,
this is a real epiphany. That's not because there's more technology in here,
but more because they've at something else with this car. It's more comfortable,
and that fits the layout Audi chooses for its bigger cars even better.
It's not a car which is incredibly well balanced with the engine all the way in the front,
and the quattro-four wheel drive system which sends 60% of the power to the back and 40% to the front.
If you make it all more comfortable, the car just feels better.
Keep in mind, every possible option is on here,
adaptive air suspension, sports differential with torque vectoring on the rear axle,
four-wheel steering, so you'll have to pay an additional €7.500,
but it's worth every penny. I can't think of a situation which this car won't handle.
Lots of traction, a lot of grip, but because it leans more,
it's calmer as well. It has a better cadance.
It's not as hard as the A7, but it isn't that much less sporty either.
The drive is much nicer, and if the the understeer arrives,
it's not like everything's lost. If you just lift off, it goes away again.
It's a very pleasant and comfortable car, and that's nice.
It suits the drivetrain as well; a 3.0-litre V6 TDI. Audi calls it 50 TDI,
which means it's the 286 horsepower version, which produces 620 Nm of torque as well.
That's more than enough, because it's incredibly quick.
The 8-speed automatic gearbox is nice as well. It's built by ZF, just like the one in the BMW.
However, I have to say that when it comes to working together, the engine and gearbox could be doing better.
It's better in the BMW. When you're at a crossroads and you want to get into a gap,
it has to think for a tad too long and it'll leap forward when you accelerate.
It's good, it's quiet, it's well insulated, it has good performance,
but it could be more fluent. What I do like, and what BMW doesn't have,
is that it's a mild hybrid. That means the starter motor is connected to the...
combustion engine with a belt, and it's able to produce some support.
Sure, it's just a few horsepower, but it makes sure the engine doesn't have to work as hard,
and secondly, because it's connected to the propshaft with a belt,
the start-stop system feels very smooth, so you won't notice anything.
If you release the throttle on the motorway, the engine sometimes switches off completely.
Those are times when you almost don't have friction, so you can keep on rolling for long distances.
It does that without using any fuel, because the engine isn't running. Really clever.
Well... The 5-series doesn't offer a 48V-circuit or mild hybrid engines.
It has more conventional diesel options, but we can compare two of them with Audi's 50 TDI.
The 530d and the 540d. The Audi produces 286 horsepower,
the 530d produces 265 horsepower and this 540d produces 320 horsepower.
So it's a tad more or a tad less, so why did we choose the 540d?
First of all, it doesn't really matter if you've got a tad more or a tad less,
and second, they didn't have a 530d available,
so we had to take the 540d, and of course it's quicker.
It's got more power and it produces 680 Nm of torque, which is higher than the A6.
That's not why the drivetrain is more pleasant however. It's more pleasant because of the automatic gearbox...
and the fact that the engine produces its maximum amount of torque a tad sooner.
That means it's smoother to operate. The performance is the same, but it feels more natural.
Also, BMW has a lot of experience with the ZF-gearbox, because it's in all the BMW's ranging from the 1-series to the 7-series.
That means they're able to tune the gearbox easier. You can feel more easily how far you have to push the...
throttle to make the gearbox react in a certain way. Also, it's a straight-six,
which is naturally smooth, so yeah. BMW has really done a good job with the drivetrain,
it feels better than the Audi. Then, the chassis.
It doesn't have air suspension, and it's not available either.
Actually you can get it on the 5-series Touring, but only on the rear axle.
What you can get on this however, is four-wheel steering, but it's not fitted on this particular car.
Also, it can be fitted with adaptive anti-roll bars, and those are fitted on here.
That makes this car incredibly comfortable. I think this is the most comfortable 5-series I've been in.
At the same time however, the weight distribution feels a little better.
There's less weight in the nose, so it feels natural for a longer time.
I mean, it's not really better than the Audi, but it feels more fluent.
You can feel that xDrive sends more power to the back as standard than Audi does with quattro.
I think it's a matter of taste, and I tend to like the BMW better.
It's very close though, and it's the same story for the rest of the car.
The interior looks very good. It's not as high tech or as clinical as the Audi,
but when it comes to finishing, it's very close. Also, iDrive is a very good feature,
because you now have a touchscreen and a central controller, which is very nice for flying through menu's.
When you're driving, that's a very nice feature. It's quiet, it has modern safety systems,
so yeah, as a whole... I still think this 5-series is quite the match for the Audi.
Audi and BMW have a different interpretation of the 'big premium business saloon',
but when it all comes together, both cars are incredibly close.
So, it's up to your personal preference. Do you want the clincial Audi with a high tech interior...
and a lot of shiny things, or do you want a more modest BMW with better ergonomics?
Audi's incredibly good chassis which feels at home on every surface, but which feels a little distant at the same time,
or BMW's fantastic drivetrain which you're able to read with your eyes closed.
In short, it's incredibly close. When I fill in the scorecard, there will be a small difference,
but it's going to be tiny. That also means that the 'vorsprung durch technik',
if it's there, that is, is very small...