Stupid sexy wagons. Of course, nothing in the press release re: the 2012 Audi A6 Avant had a thing to do with the United States. The newest wagon of our Lord-of-an-Austrian-estate dreams is going on sale in Europe this summer with a base price of 40,850 euros.
There are six engine options available for the A6 Avant: One I4 and 5 V6s. Five of these engines are forced induction mills and all are direct injection. The best fuel economy comes from the front-drive 177 horsepower 2.0-liter TDI hooked to a manual transmission where it returns 47.04 US MPG (conversion from the Euro cycle, not EPA test). The best performer? a 3.0-liter Twin-turbo TDI with 313 horsepower that gets to 60 in 5.4 seconds. There are some gas motors, too; 300 horsepower from a 3.0 TFSI and 204 from a 2.8.
Gearbox options are six-speed manual, Continuously Variable Multitronic or seven-speed S-tronic.
And then we get to the lightness...
the A6 lost some 154 pounds compared with the current model. It now weighs in at 3,615 pounds thanks to the multimaterial space frame with high-strength steel and aluminum.
Like the rest of the higher-end Audis, the A6 Avant features Audi Connect which uses your phone's GPS to locate you on built in google maps and syncs other systems like Audi's online traffic service that monitors phones to determine traffic patterns. The A6 also features radar cruise control and park assist.
mike475 says:
04:00 PM, 05/18/11
Stupid sexy indeed!
heidis says:
06:57 PM, 05/18/11
Thirded on the stupid sexy wagons. I'm tired of driving my big, hefty Grand Cherokee (but I do lurve that Hemi) and want a fun wagon already. A4 is nice, but I'd really like that supercharged 6 and can use the extra space.
heidis says:
07:23 PM, 05/18/11
Also, yay on MMI getting the Google love. It's not Android in the dash yet, but someday it will be I suspect.
v8vader says:
07:36 PM, 05/18/11
haha my wagon is stupid sexy and actually looks something like the white example in the pictures... but no one else agrees with me lol. lucky me!
altimadude05 says:
09:18 PM, 05/18/11
Really stupid headlights. Way over styled. It just needs headlight lashes to complete the absurdity of it all. The rest of the car looks like bad too. Will they use the "coupe-like roofline" selling point with this car too? It's not a coupe, it's a wagon.
stovt001 says:
11:03 PM, 05/18/11
Man that interior looks nice. And 3600 lbs for a largish midsize luxury wagon isn't half bad at all.
joemt says:
07:44 AM, 05/19/11
I doubt the 6MT will make it to the states.
cjasis says:
08:11 AM, 05/19/11
Dear Audi USA -
My wife and I own a 2010 A6 Avant Prestige with the 18" sports package and we absolutely love the car. However, when we replace this car in a few years (when the warranty expires), we may not be buying another Audi. Not because we don't love the car, but becasue you refuse to bring us the products we want.
- The A4 Avant is very nice but the trunk is too small for our dog crate.
- We won't ever go off road and don't want to drive an SUV so while the trunk is still too smal no a Q5 but a Q7 would work... we're not interested in any crossovers.
- I loved the look of the A7 I sat in at the dealership a few weeks back when our Audi was being serviced but the reality is that the very heavily styled rear end would make getting kids and car seats out of the back seats too challenging for day to day use.
So we may end up leaving the brand and buying the MB E63 AMG wagon that was just announced for the US market. I'm loathe to spend more money and not a MB guy but you refuse to give us here on this side of the pond the products we really want.
Sincerely -
A currently happy customer.
smilez says:
08:32 AM, 05/19/11
altimadude05 -
Had your coffee yet?
Have you never seen an Audi wagon? This is no more "coupe-like" than before. And I don't think it's even that coupe-like to begin with. It's a wagon with a slightly sloping roof. That prety much describes every wagon out there.
I will kind of agree with the headlights. They are VERY stylized. However, they seem to fit the rest of the front end.
I think cjasis has a good letter to Audi. I agree with just about everything.
I would like to add to bring back the AllRoad! Yet another thing we don't get. I don't even need the adjustable suspension (It is nice to have, but not needed), I just want the extra ground clearance.
albook says:
09:00 AM, 05/19/11
Who cares....?
stovt001 says:
12:03 PM, 05/19/11
People who like wagons. People who like Audis. People who like lighter cars. People who like manual transmissions. People who like overstyled LED headlights. People who like nice luxury cars. People who like nice interiors. So...at least a few people.
bodyblue says:
12:15 PM, 05/19/11
"And I don't think it's even that coupe-like to begin with. It's a wagon with a slightly sloping roof. That prety much describes every wagon out there."
Pretty extreme for a "slightly" sloped roof. Funny how almost everybody but Volvo ruins the practicality of a wagon by sloping the roof to make it look more 'sporty"
"So...at least a few people."
OK maybe 7 or 8. :)
saturn95 says:
03:34 PM, 05/19/11
Why do Audi's headlights look like someone crying with too much mascara on?
The A6,A5,A7,A8 all do and the R8 somewhat does.
smilez says:
08:39 AM, 05/20/11
I think "extreme" is an extreme statement. It's not that bad. I do see your point, but unless you do nothing but carry big ass boxes back there, I really don't think it will limit your cargo carrying capacity all that much.
eldaino2 says:
10:36 PM, 05/21/11
With the exception of some rear headroom, I don't see how utility is THAT comprimised.
The led mascara is here to stay, its an audi trademark.
Its so successful in fact, that lexus, chrysler and others are copying it already.
britanniarulz says:
07:58 AM, 05/25/11
@albook - All the people who post here do care very much. Looks like you at least care enough, that you felt the need to diss the car. If you truly did not care, we would not be seeing that post...
Anyway, its good to know that at least one car manufacturer has its priorities right on the issue of vehicle weight. The VW group seems to be hitting the ball out of the park on this front. First, I was amazed that the VW Passat weighs so little for its size, and now the Audi A6 (the cars probably share a fare bit of components).
Compare this to what's going on at BMW... which is forced to platform share its new 5 with the 7 series... Now, as great as the new 5 is (and the reviewers will have us believe that the 5 still drives the best in its segment, and I have very few reasons to doubt that) - I am left to wonder how great that car could POTENTIALLY be, if it weighed 400 lbs less.